Guardian
Souls
By: Ghost of the Dawn
Chapter Sixteen: False Identities
The royal army of Falnan–soldiers and Ronin alike–stood at attention. All eyes were riveted on the landscape; one large hill to be exact. The entire camp had be rousted before the crack of dawn by a scout which reported Akuma's army was almost upon them and would reach their camp by morning. Darris instantly had the camp packed up and every man assembled for battle. Now, as the sun was coming up to warm the land, every member of the army waited. The air was tense as they watched the horizon. War was almost upon them.
One set of eyes closed as their owner yawned a long, tired yawn. Sage covered his mouth grumpily with one hand. That stupid Hariel with whatever it was he did to him. It was very unSage-like to be tired in the morning, but he was. Sage mentally cursed the god or tiger or whatever he was. Hariel made him get too much sleep and now he would be yawning all day. Not seemly for a warrior of his caliber. He actually hoped something would happen so he could wake up.
Someone shouted and all attention was turned to the hills on the horizon. A black lining rose over the landscape. Akuma's army. The mass of warriors rounded over the hills and down towards their adversaries. Voices rose up through Darris' troops as Akuma's army continued to march towards them. Any usual army would stop the second their enemies came in sight. This army did not stop, if anything, the pace of their march was increased. It would only be minutes before the forces collided.
"Prepare yourselves!" Darris called to his troops. "We'll wait for them to come to us! Archers! Ready the first wave!"
In the front lines, anyone that had a bow and arrow stood ready for their captain's signal.
"You're not going to shoot one right at the beginning, are you?" Ryo asked as Rowen, in full armor, pulled back an arrow as well.
"Part of the strategy is intimidation," Rowen smirked. "It may not stop them, but it might make for a few hesitations before taking us on. And in battle, just that much may be all the difference."
"They look like people!" Cye suddenly shot out, his voice rising. The army was almost in range of the arrows. "They are people–like us! These aren't Warlords or Dynasty soldiers! We can't attack them! We can't fight those men when we have our armors on! It's–it's..."
"You might be surprised how unlike real men some of them are, Lord Torrent," Darris spoke calmly, keeping his eyes on the approaching army. "But do not worry, we will not be using your powers to fight those men, but what they brought with them."
Cye was about to ask what that meant, but Darris was already calling for the first wave of arrows. Hundreds of them shot into the air, raining down on Akuma's men who were now all but running towards them. A large man, impossibly large for any normal person, was in the front leading the charge. He saw the arrows coming and jumped forward, smashing his knuckles into the ground. Even from where they were, the Ronins could feel a wave of energy shoot out and somehow, it repelled all the arrows from hitting their targets.
A gasp rounded the front lines of Darris' troops.
"Do you see what I mean, Lord Torrent?" The captain nodded, his face stern. "Not like ordinary men."
"Then we'll see how they like this," Rowen announced as he shot one of Strata's arrows.
The hulking man on the opposite side sent out another energy wave. But the golden arrow refused to be repelled. Almost seeming to take on more power, it pierced the energy field and landed among several of the men, sending out an energy wave of it's own and scattering the enemy in its wake.
Darris' men cheered while Ryo shot Rowen a thumbs up.
"See? Not so bad," Rowen gloated.
"Yeah, but now comes the hard part," said Sage who had been silent and serious the second the army had appeared on the horizon.
Darris voice rang out again and he ordered his troops forward at full force. Sage drew the sword the Captain had given to him.
"Wait a minute!" Ryo cried. This was the moment they all were worried about. Though each knew in their head it would happen, somewhere in their hearts, they had hoped and tried to pretend it wouldn't. "Sage, you shouldn't go out there. Stay with us."
Sage smiled–an odd smile, even for someone who did not smile very much. He placed a reassuring hand on Ryo's shoulder.
"I cannot fight with you this time, my friend," he said calmly. "May we meet each other at the end of this. Good luck."
Ryo panicked. "Sage! Wait!"
But before he could grab his friend, Sage was gone. He lurched forward into the advancing army and was swallowed up in the mass. Ryo stood there blankly, staring at the spot Sage had been just moments before. Men were running around him, past him and forward. There were so many, like a living sea. It was as if the blonde had been swallowed up.
Rowen stayed quiet, his fists trembling. He wanted just as much as Ryo to tell Sage not to go. But he knew his friend. Sage expected more of Rowen than of Ryo in this instance. If Rowen had said anything, Sage would have kicked his can to the moon before he could finish speaking. Rowen knew this was what Sage wanted. Even if he had tried to do something, there would have been no stopping the stubborn blonde.
Cye was going through the same emotions as well. But at the same time, something told him to look around. He turned his head to the right and his gaze fell past his own advancing troops to the enemy lines. How he picked out this one individual from the entire swarm of bodies, he never knew, but Cye saw one of Akuma's men holding a jar. As the man opened it, a grey smoke wafted out. It rose faster than normal smoke as it gathered in the air. Before Cye's eyes, the intangible cloud solidified and it fell to the ground, much like how a jungle cat would land.
In a blink, the smoke became a solid creature. It had a thick, grey body and a long neck with a massive head. Six bulky limbs held the monster up and giant flat teeth stuck out of a pushed in snout. It's fat, short tail was loaded with shiny, sharp spines and it yowled and snapped and thumbed its tail, tearing up the battlefield.
By then, Rowen and Ryo were watching as well.
"What do you bet that one is meant for us?" Rowen questioned.
"That thing is massive!" Ryo marveled. "How are we going to use our sure kills? Our guys are everywhere! We'll hit someone."
Rowen languidly pulled out an arrow and strung it on his bow. "Guess we'll just do it the old fashioned way."
He let the arrow fly. It flew farther than any normal arrow and embedded itself in the creature's neck. The thing howled and thrashed and soldiers of both allegiances cried out as it tore up anything living around it.
"You just made it madder!" Cye accused.
"Come on guys! We've got to get that thing taken care of! People are dying!" Ryo ordered.
The three ran towards it, weapons at ready. The monster was snapping at anything near it; crunching bodies under its jaws and impaling with is massive, spiked tail. Ryo jumped at it, intending to land on the creatures back, behind the neck. But the monster, with its long neck, snatched Ryo right out of the air with its mouth. With a quick jerk of its head, Ryo was flung off into the distance. Cye and Rowen stared.
"We can't do this with just weapons," Cye insisted. "We have to use our powers SOMEHOW!"
"What about that thing you did last night?" Rowen suggested. "Pump the power directly into it."
"You saw what it just did to Ryo!" Cye argued. "I won't be able to touch it. Let alone get near it long enough to call up an attack!"
"I'll be your decoy again," Rowen announced. "Just try it. What have we got to loose?"
Cye did have an answer for that question, but Rowen was already running off in a different direction. He pulled another arrow from his armor's quiver and the creature suddenly had both glowing red eyes riveted on him.
"Smart beast," Rowen muttered. "You know I'm the one that shot you the first time, don't you? That's right, keep watching me..."
The creature continued to stare at him, body tensing for an attack. Lightning quick, it lashed out, but not at Rowen, to Strata's surprise and horror. The creature whirled around with surprising speed and its head snapped at something on the ground. Rowen was pretty sure he knew what it was and shot his arrow.
The creature must have been watching for it whipped it's tail around and shattered the arrow before it could embed itself into its thick hide again. Rowen gave up shooting arrows and ran forward. He soon could see Cye on his back with his yari between the creature's jaws and he was using all his strength to fend it off.
At that moment, Rowen didn't care about anything else. He didn't care who he hit as long as Cye was safe. He began to power up for a full Arrow Shock Wave.
The creature merely glanced in his direction as it continued in its attempt to devour itself a Bearer of Torrent. It flicked its tail in Rowen's direction and dozens of tiny spines flew at him. Rowen, however, didn't move from where he was powering up. They were too small to pierce his armor so he was not worried.
One of the spines grazed his cheek, drawing blood. The second the skin was broken, Rowen lost all power. His arrow became useless.
"What the–" was all Rowen could get out before his bow started to feel heavy, then his arms. Too heavy to hold himself up, his knees gave out as did the rest of him as he fell to the ground, unable to move. A little cut did all that? Its affect was so fast!
Whatever the creature had been doing with Cye, it got tired of it and turned to Rowen, who was paralyzed. All Strata could do was watch as the thing's jowls dripped saliva over him. There was hatred in that creature's eyes. It wanted him to suffer, it wanted him dead. Somewhere in the background, Rowen thought he heard someone calling his name. Whether it was Cye or Ryo, he couldn't be sure.
"One, two! One, two! And through and through!"
It was funny what one remembers or hears when they are about to die.
The creature loomed over him and then froze as if it suddenly had a very unpleasant sensation.
"The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!"
Suddenly, the creature's body and its head were no longer connected. The body twitched, but refused to fall. The head, however, had no other choice. Rowen had little choice either but to lay there and watch those empty eyes fall towards him. The head landed right next to the downed Ronin and Rowen was so creeped out by its near proximity that he would have slithered right out of his armor and far away if he could.
But then he also felt something smaller and lighter land on the other side of him. Something human. Hardly able to turn his head, Rowen's eyes wandered to the opposite side and widened. The person standing next to him was in a dark brown cape. The wind was making it billow and reveal the thin, feminine body it concealed underneath. The person had a massive blade in her hand; impossibly large for one her size. Her hood was down and Rowen could not tear his eyes away from the deep, red hair floating in the breeze.
"Robyn!"
She didn't respond, only stared at the creature's head as she walked over to it.
"He left it dead, and with its head..." She drew back her leg and kicked the massive head, almost as wide as she was tall, with dizzying force. It flew across the battlefield before hitting the ground and bouncing and rolling further, mowing over several soldiers as it went.
"...he went galumphing back."
Rowen stared, unable to do anything else. Soldiers in the vicinity stopped fighting, they looked from the headless body to the head several yards away. Then back to the body and also the young female standing next to it with her large sword swung over her shoulder.
"I demand an end to this battle right now!" She yelled to all who could hear her.
Despite her earlier demonstration, very few listened to her. The battle continued on. Soldiers started fighting again, killing. The dying continued.
"Robyn," Rowen tried again. His voice wasn't as strong as he would have liked. His limbs felt tingly, but he was still having trouble using them.
The girl he called to ignored him. Instead she hefted the giant sword off her shoulder, whirled it around, and slammed the tip into the ground. A massive wave shot out, into the ground upon impact. It spread out in all directions, rattling the very earth beneath the feet of anyone standing. Soon, no one was. The ground shook so violently, no one was able to stay on their feet. Two entire armies were brought to their knees and it was silent when the sword was pulled out of the ground and the quaking stopped.
"I said, I demand an end to this battle right now!" Her voice cut through the silence with more authority and power than Rowen had ever heard Robyn's voice possess. It almost sounded like a stranger to him. He would have believed it was a stranger if the person standing near him didn't look so hauntingly familiar.
It seemed everyone on the battlefield had heard her, but no one had responded.
"It's Bloody Minami!" a voice screamed from the masses. Rowen didn't even know if it came someone on his side.
He struggled to get to his feet as some men stared and others scattered. The soldiers in Darris' army seemed far more alarmed at Robyn's presence than those of Akuma's army. One such creature, a huge, decorated man, probably a general, gathered some of his men to him and they crowded around the red haired woman.
"Who are you to come here and command MY troops on what to do?" the large beast of a man demanded.
Robyn seemed hardly amused. "It's merely a warning," she said calmly, not even looking at him. "If you ignore it, I can't be responsible for the consequences."
The general looked at his men and they all drew their swords.
"Allow us to educate you on the true meaning of consequence," he grinned.
"Stay away from her," Rowen warned, struggling to sit up again. "If you want her you will also have to deal with me."
But Robyn reacted first- faster than Rowen could see. One moment her massive sword was embedded in the ground, the next, she had it in her hands and she was a few paces away, crouched in a finishing pose. The men at her back just stood there in surprise. The one in front, Rowen could see a trickle of blood run from a line across his neck. Then, all of them collapsed, dead. Their cleanly severed heads fell from their bodies, faces frozen in surprise.
"I told you about consequences..." Robyn mumbled.
She stabbed the ground in her sword once more. Grasping the handle, she twisted the blade in the earth with a grunt. As she did so, the ground opened up. The split raced and widened over the battle field. The earth tore from itself and swallowed all soldiers of either allegiance, plummeting them to their deaths deep in the earth.
Sage jumped from the angry tear, grabbing one of his fellow soldiers before he teetered in as well. Still others were falling and dying all around him. He glanced up to the cause of the fissure. He couldn't see exactly what was causing it, but he knew he had to get up there.
"Robyn! Stop!" It was Ryo's voice. He looked a bit banged up, but not too worse for wear as he ran up to the red haired girl.
Robyn turned and looked at him; then at Rowen. "Lord Wildfire, Lord Strata," she said coldly. "This is all foolishness. What do you hope to accomplish here?"
As Rowen regained feeling in his limbs and was able to stand, he wasn't sure what to say. He was too baffled by his senses. Before him was a face he knew that didn't recognize him. And a familiar voice that had never addressed him so coldly before. This was Robyn, but it wasn't. And Rowen was beside himself on how to respond to her.
"Robyn, stop this!" Ryo had no problem finding words. "You're hurting people! You're killing them! Don't do this!"
Robyn turned her head in Ryo's direction and then swung it around as another figure approached.
"Robyn!" Cye cried as he ran towards her. "Are you okay? What–"
Rowen stopped him with an arm in front of his chest.
"That's not Robyn," he said lowly.
Cye's eyes widened and he tensed, hands clutching his yari. So what were they supposed to do then?
Robyn looked at the three armored figures around her.
"So, you're ganging up on me My Lords? Very well."
Before any of them could deny that accusation, she lunged forward. Rowen was her first target. Her open palm grabbed his face and he was slammed backwards to the ground before he could react. The force was enough to take the wind from his lungs and make his vision dance.
"Robyn! Stop!" Cye cried, running forward.
Robyn spun, catching Cye in the gut with her fist. Cye gasped tasting blood. The force of her blows with the Hardrock strength was like being hit by a train. Her foot flew through the air, connecting with his helmet. Cye was out before he even hit the ground.
By the time she was done with the two Ronins, Ryo was in a fighting stance. Even after seeing the defeat of his friends, Ryo couldn't bring himself to yet draw his swords. He knew he had to defend himself, but his heart faltered at the thought of hurting Robyn to do that. He was running out of options.
"Robyn, please," he said in a shaky voice. "I don't want to fight you."
She sneered at him. "Oh, these are hardly fights."
Ryo saw her move and lashed out. But he was only half hearted in his defense and she easily snuck around him, wrapping a steel-like arm around his neck and twisting one of his arms painfully behind his back.
"Now, what should I do with you, Lord Wildfire?" she purred in his ear.
Ryo grunted against her grip. There was no way he could get out of it with the strength she had.
"That body isn't yours," he rasped through the choke hold. "Give it back."
She seemed to almost ignore him. "You know, Lord Wildfire, within this body there is a voice. It is a deep, slithering voice full of filth and darkness. It tells the owner of this body to be fearful of you–that you will be the end of this body's existence. What do you think I should do about that?"
"MINAMI!"
Both sets of eyes turned to Myune, standing before them, blood splattered on her own battle armor. She had her blood tarnished sword in her hand, her eyes ablaze with anger and hatred and she looked dangerous.
"Kita," Robyn drawled, her voice dripping. "How long has it been now. Don't you look good."
"How DARE you come back here!" Myune seethed. "Don't you even have the grace to stay dead after a past life lived with such disgrace?"
Behind him, Ryo could feel Robyn's cold sneer. He didn't even have to see it to feel its chill.
"I was taken before I was done."
"Will you not rest until you have destroyed everyone and everything?" Myune spat. "Such a pathetic life. You have no business here."
Robyn ignored the insults. "Oh yes. I'm afraid I do. You see, I'm looking for your Bearer of Halo."
Ryo's eyes went wide. "You want Sage?"
"There is no Bearer of Halo!" Myune insisted, her beautiful face marred by her own cocky sneer. "I have the Halo armor now and you'll not get it from me." She brandished her sword to back up her threat.
Robyn's face fell into an unimpressed expression and Ryo felt her hold on him loosen a bit. In the corner of his eye he saw a coughing Rowen trying to get up. Cye was still out cold.
"You lie," Robyn said flatly. "You don't control Halo."
If it was possible for Myune to look even more furious, she did at that moment.
"There IS NO HALO BEARER!" she practically screamed. "I have the armor!"
"No," Robyn replied, still calm. "There he is."
Wide eyed, Myune spun around to see a painting, battle filthy Sage behind her. He was looking at Robyn and Ryo with the same confusion his friends had earlier.
Myune was seething.
"ENOUGH! You can't play your head games with me, Minami! If you dare question my right as Halo Guardian, you better back up that accusation. Fight me, Minami!"
Robyn grinned. "That's a bold statement seeing as how I killed you once already."
Myune couldn't take it any more. She shuddered with rage. Her battle scream pierced the air as she attacked, sword raised. Robyn stayed calm. She moved a few steps forward to meet the attack with her captive in front of her.
"Ryo!" Sage cried out, knowing exactly what Robyn was doing.
Myune's lithe blade swung through the air. Ryo saw it coming and could do nothing else but close his eyes. The sword stopped short of slicing flesh. Ryo held his breath, the tip lightly piercing the skin at this throat. The puncture brought forth a single droplet of blood.
Myune's eyes burned into Robyn's while Ryo was still held helplessly between them.
"Careful Myune," Robyn taunted. "You wouldn't want to be responsible for the death of another armor bearer, would you?"
"You can't blame Hardrock's death on me," Myune hissed, not backing away from her stance.
Ryo was finding himself increasingly uncomfortable with his position between two angry women and a sword tip at his throat. But he dare not say anything about it.
"It was everyone's fault!" Robyn cried, showing more emotion than she ever had since she arrived.
"No," Myune correct lowly, lowering her weapon. "It was yours. You corrupted him. You broke your priestess vows. You should rot in hell for what you did."
Ryo could feel every fiber of Robyn's body seethe right before he was swept off his feet and thrust face down on the ground. The wind was momentarily knocked out of him from the impact.
"You want a fight?" Robyn asked, voice thick with venom. "You got one."
Myune scoffed. "With what? You're going to use that huge slab of a sword on me? You should know you won't be able to touch me with that."
Robyn glared and walked over to Ryo. He could feel his hand sinking into the ground to hold him there as Ryo also felt Robyn plant a foot in the middle of his back.
"Alright then, I'll make it even," Robyn's voice was calmer as she eyed the two swords on Wildfire's back.
Myune scoffed again. "Don't be ridiculous. No one but the Bearer of Wildfire can touch those without the swords scorching their–"
Robyn grabbed one in each hand and pulled them both out of their sheaths. Myune was wide eyed and, behind her, so was Sage. Robyn held both swords in the light and then threw one of them into the ground at Myune's feet.
"Pick it up."
Myune just stared at the weapon. Curious, she reached a hand forward, but the hilt was already flaming in anger, warning her not to touch it. Myune looked back up at Robyn who still had the other Wildfire sword in her hand.
"What are you?" Myune whispered.
Robyn waved her finger, a cocky grin on her face. "Uh uh. Knowledge is power, you know? Know your enemy and know yourself. Or, in my case, know the self you have possessed. With this body, you can never beat me."
Myune's mind raced. What was she talking about? Minami could hold the sword without being burned because of the body she was in? But that didn't make any sense! What would the body of another Hardrock Guardian have to do with the Wildfire swords?
Robyn looked less than impressed with Myune's confusion. "I guess you're ill prepared, Kita. Perhaps another day then?" She shouldered the Wildfire sword and went to retrieve the other massive sword still in the ground.
"Don't you turn your back on me, Minami!" Myune's anger started to grow again. "You turn from me and I'll–"
"DON'T YOU THREATEN ME!" The ground cracked open from where Robyn was standing and ran all the way over to split a few inches between Myune's feet.
"Really," Robyn continued as if speaking to a child., "You have no idea what you are talking about.
"Shut up!" Myune barked. "Don't tell me what I know!"
She lunged forward to attack, but Robyn had already met her, the Wildfire sword drawn.
She's too fast! Myune's mind spoke to her. I'm done for!
Sage had been helping Cye sit up as he regained consciousness. Rowen was stumbling towards them. Ryo was still stuck, face down with arms buried in the earth. Everyone saw as Robyn lept into the air, sword ready to swing. All witnesses, especially Myune, could see the attack aimed for her throat–Minami's fatal blow of choice. Myune shut her eyes.
The sword swung wide, slicing deep. Myune's body went rigid as something heavy fell from her shoulders and hit the ground. From where Robyn landed, she smirked. All was at a stand still for the breath of a moment.
Myune took in the deep breath she had been holding. She was still alive. Her hair that was once pulled up in a tight, beautiful pony tail now fell freely around her face in short clumps. A thick knot of gorgeous, long hair was at her feet in the dirt. A hand traveled up to find her hair now shortened to about the length of her jaw.
"My...hair..."
"Remember how close you came," Robyn said softly, not turning around. "I may not miss a second time."
Myune was shaking as she fell to her knees. She did not fear death, but she did fear power and helplessness. And she was afraid now.
Robyn, both mismatched swords in hand, walked over to where Sage was propping up Cye.
"Robyn," Cye coughed. "Don't be like this. You're hurting yourself as well."
Robyn paused, looking down at him with no recognition in her face and no response. She ignored everything Cye said look at Sage.
"We will have to speak again, Lord Halo."
"Don't call him that!" Myune cried from her place, tears were streaming down her cheeks now. She was right, she had to be. Why was everything now falling apart?
"You have no right to do this!"
Robyn turned to see Rowen this time, standing before her.
"You shouldn't use another person's body this way. It's wrong, Minami."
Robyn just smirked. "Don't get too attached," she said as she began to sink into the ground.
Rowen ran to catch her, but she was completely swallowed up by the time he got there. Frustrated at losing her again, Rowen punched the ground.
The second she was gone, Ryo's hand were free and he sat up and looked around.
"Now what do we do?"
Sage surveyed the battle scene, looking hard at the large, gapping tear still splitting the countryside. "Looks like the fighting has stopped, for now. Both armies are pulling back to regroup after that display."
Ryo walked over to his friends, ignoring Myune's hunched form completely.
"Then we should regroup, too," he announced. "You okay, Cye?"
Torrent grimaced as they all helped him to his feet.
"Some bruised ribs maybe, but nothing serious."
"So what ARE we doing to do from here?" Rowen asked. "We can't use force on her and we can't catch her when she's got that kind of strength. How do we stop a powerhouse like that without hurting her?"
Ryo looked to the horizon. Their first confrontation against Minami was confusing for all of them. He was just as much lost on how to act upon this as any of them were.
"I hate to say this, but Kento might be our only hope of catching her without harming her."
Sage looked grim. "Then we better hope he gets here soon."
"Woah! Woah!" Kento called as they started to descend. "Why are you going down?"
Seiji landed bumpily with a huff and sat there for a moment, panting.
"Tired already, huh?" Kento grinned, even though he was more than happy to reach the ground himself.
"He doesn't stay up in the air for very long," Natalia worried. She wondered how long it would take to get to the other castle now.
"Well, it's his first time flying," Kento explained. "He's still a baby...I think."
"Aww, well he did good for his first time then," Natalia sympathized, patting the dragon's head. Seiji gave a deep, purr-like rumble in the back of his throat. "I'm just worried about Robyn. I want to see her as soon as possible."
"Yeah," Kento agreed. "I left right after it happened and that was almost four days ago. I have no idea what's going on there now."
Natalia nodded, seeming a little down.
"But don't worry!" Kento tried to cheer her up. "She had good doctors. I'm sure she's feeling a lot better by the time we get there. So don't worry, okay?"
Natalia didn't respond. Kento was feeling stupid for saying "don't worry" twice in one breath. It made it sound like it was a lie. The truth of the matter was he was worried, too. There was a lot he hadn't explained to her. Like how Robyn was injured and how Natalia's friend "Akumie" was in a war with the kingdom they were going to. For now, he figured it would be best to wait until they reached the castle for all explanations.
Having caught his breath, Seiji started in a trot towards their destination.
"This is smoother than riding a horse," Natalia commented, her spirits rising a bit.
Kento just nodded, but didn't say anything. His thoughts were elsewhere.
"You know, I bet you thought I was crazy back at the castle," Natalia went on, catching Kento's attention. "I'm really not, I promise. But everything happened so fast and still, I'm not even sure why it happened in the first place. I was attacked and kidnaped and brought to that castle that's both full and empty of people. They actually locked me up for a while. I couldn't see anyone, but I could feel there was something there watching me." She gave an uncomfortable laugh. "It kind of freaked me out.
"Then Akuma came there and let me out. He said he made a mistake and I could stay as a guest until someone came to get me. That's all he said. He never explained anything to me; even when I asked.. He was weird. Sometimes he would seem normal and other times...it was like there was another personality in there. He and Yanushi were the only two people I saw in the castle at first. Neither were cruel to me, but they stayed distant and never told me anything."
She glanced over her shoulder at Kento. "You couldn't see the other people in the castle besides those two, could you?"
"Not really," Kento admitted. "But there were, right?"
Natalia nodded.
"They were invisible to me for a while, too. I knew there were other people in the castle. Even though I couldn't see them, I could feel them all around me. There were more when I acted nervous–watching me. But I noticed on the days I was happier, there were less."
Her head dropped a little and her voice grew quiet as she looked at her hands.
"I didn't believe Akuma when he said someone would come for me. I thought it was just me here and no one would ever see me again. It felt like a dream so I let it consume me. I pretended it all was a dream and that I enjoyed it. The happier I pretended to be, the less I felt the invisible people follow me. And then, one day, I could see them and the place seemed more normal. I just let the whole world swallow me up." She paused and glanced at Kento.
"And then you came and you shattered my dream world. I'm still trying to get over it. I'm still trying to find the reality in all of this. I feel caught between the two now. I'm not sure what to think or what to do, to be honest."
Hearing her story, Kento's thoughts of waiting to explain things until they got back flew out the window.
"I can't tell you what to do, but I can explain everything to you, if you'd like."
Natalia swung her head around, her face bright. "You will?"
"Sure," Kento grinned. He had never been so thankful to know stuff. "I'll tell you anything you want as long as you promise to believe me. Some of it is kind of out there."
"Oh, believe ME," Natalia confirmed. "After what I've just been through, I doubt that will be a problem."
It was starting to get dark. The battle had been an all day event, including the time it took for those well enough to move the wounded. Not including the time it would take to bury the dead Minami hadn't already buried herself under the attacks. It wasn't until all the wounded had been attended to that Cye allowed himself to be looked at.
"OW! Ow ow ow!" Don't wrap it so tight, Rowen!" Cye yelled at him. "It hurts!"
"Of course it hurts!" Rowen shot back. "Your ribs are bruised. It's going to hurt no matter how loose I wrap it. You're lucky they're not broken."
"Feels like they are, the way you're doing it," Cye continued.
"It's nice to see you two getting along for a change," Sage commented as he sat himself on a rock. He still had a few flecks of blood on his clothes from the earlier battle. But his face and hands had now been cleaned off.
"Screw you Sage!" was Rowen's retort.
"Yeah, bugger off!" Cye chimed in.
All heads turned to Ryo to see whose side he would take. But Ryo only stared deep into the fire, a grim expression on his face. He hadn't caught any of the conversation. The other three sobered and Rowen continued wrapping Cye's mid section without any further quarrels. Sage breathed out loudly. Ryo had a great knack to brighten or deepen any atmosphere instantaneously as he pleased. All looked up, however, when Captain Darris entered the small campsite. Miniko was trailing behind him.
"Just doing a routine check," the captain explained. "How's everyone here?"
"Fine," Cye sighed as he put his shirt back on.
"What were the damages?" Ryo asked, not looking up from the fire.
It was Darris' turn to sigh. "About a third of our original numbers are either dead or too wounded to go on. However, I believe Akuma's forces suffered similar losses. We still may be more or less evenly matched."
Ryo still did not look up where his fingers were interlaced and resting over his mouth. His eyes bored deep into the fire as he thought things over.
"It would have been less if she hand not shown up, wouldn't it?"
The atmosphere grew even deeper with that question.
"It does not matter," Darries replied. "Minami or no Minami, this WILL be the last and most devastating battle Falnan will ever be part of."
"A war to end all wars, huh?" Rowen mumbled.
"Why do you say it that way?" Sage asked. "Sounds like it will also be the end of Falnan."
"It might be," Darris explained. "There is no time here. No one grows older. No one dies of old age; no one is born. These men who are with us are it. This is Falnan's army. When we have all been killed, there won't be anyone else. All because of Minami's curse."
"Minami?" Rowen's head popped up. "How is Minami responsible for this?"
"No one really knows how she found the power to do it, but shortly after she died, we began to notice that time had stopped here. It stayed summer forever and on one aged."
"Tch," Rowen made an unconvinced noise under his breath.
"Something you want to say, Lord Strata?" the captain asked, eyebrow raised.
"Tell me Captain," Rowen said. "This wouldn't have been around the same time Talpa stole the armors and left this world, would it?"
"Yes. It was because of all the chaos Minami caused that Talpa was able to take all the armors in the first place."
"Including the season armors?" Rowen prodded.
The others raised their heads.
"Which armors?" Sage asked.
"Mia told me this before we left," Rowen explained. "There were four armors that controlled each of the four seasons. We know them as the four Warlord armors. Don't you find it very coincidental that time stopped not only when Minami died, but also when the season armors were taken?"
Darris looked thoughtful. "Interesting theory. Though the four season armors were always believed to be just superstition. They didn't really bring the seasons. No one thought they had any real power."
"Oh, they had power," Cye added. "Beleive me. We all saw it first hand."
"So, would it be logical to assume that if the four armors were returned, time would start again?" Sage guessed.
Rowen shrugged.
"How did Mia find out about this?" Miniko, who had been silent until then, asked.
"She said the guy who made this world told her," Rowen said pointedly. "So I would assume he knows what he's talking about." He stood up. "What I really don't understand is how quick everyone in this whole world is to blame all their problems on this dead girl. The way I see it, it's the people blaming her that started it. She may have broken some rules, but she didn't hurt anybody. However, the people she was protecting killed an important person to her just because they didn't like what she was doing and their pride was hurt. If something like that happened to me, I'd tear this place up, too."
Darris narrowed his eyes as Rowen finished his speech. "Don't make it sound like I'm one of those people who blame her for everything. I KNEW Minami. There was no malice in her. She was a very kind person--very strong and passionate. Maybe she did have the right to do what she did. And besides," he turned his back to leave. "I know of very few men who would dislike the idea of dying for a beautiful woman."
They all looked up at him, Miniko, too, as he walked away.
"I bid you good evening, My Lords," Darris said as he disappeared into the darkness.
Miniko bowed to them and said a soft "good night" as well before following after.
Cye's mouth ticked up as he watched the Strata priestess go. "You think she likes him?"
"If she does, she might be in for some trouble in this place," Sage replied with all grimness.
"But that really isn't the biggest of our problems right now, is it?" Cye said, matching Sage's seriousness.
"No," Ryo finally spoke. "If Minami comes back again..." He paused, knowing none of them wanted to think about it, himself included.
"Well, what exactly happened in the first place?" Cye asked. "If we can figure that out, maybe we can get Robyn back in control. It was just so sudden. Before she got hurt, she was herself and then she suddenly took off."
Sage looked thoughtful. "It's probably safe to assume Minami's spirit had been around for a while. Possibly ever since she and Kento came back from the spirit world. Robyn mentioned something to me once that she felt a presence following her sometimes--like a spirit."
"Makes sense," Rowen nodded. "So that explains how Minami got here in the first place. And she probably managed to take over Robyn's body when she was weak from Myune's attack."
"So where exactly is Robyn now?" Cye asked. "Her consciousness--is it still in there, too, or...?"
Rowen furrowed his brows in thought. "Back at the castle, I thought I saw Robyn's ghost walk down the hall away from her room before we found her body gone. But then..." He trailed off for a moment. "Maybe it's inconsequential, but the first time I saw her today, she was reciting some weird lyrics. I couldn't hear them very well...One two, one two, through and through...something about a blade and...sliced him dead and with his head...something, something."
Cye blanched at the lyrics. "Sounds about right for Minami's taste if you ask me. She either buries her victims or chops off their heads."
"He took his vorpal sword in hand:" Sage said aloud.
"Long time the manxome foe he sought --
So rested he by the Tumtum tree,
And stood awhile in thought.
And, as in uffish thought he stood,
The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,
Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,
And burbled as it came.
One, two. One, two. And through and through
The vorpal blade went snicker-snack.
He left it dead, and with its head
He went galumphing back."
All eyes were on Sage now.
"It's a poem we had to memorize for creative writing. I believe somewhere in there is still Robyn's consciousness. She saw the creature she was fighting earlier and it reminded her of the Jabberwocky."
"Alice in Wonderland, huh?" Rowen asked as he leaned back against a bolder, arms crossed behind his head. "What a dangerous rabbit hole we've fallen through. Our Alice has been possessed by the queen who wants to chop everyone's heads off."
"I guess that makes the five of us white rabbits?" Cye ventured. "Since she sort of followed us down here?"
"You guys aren't helping," Ryo shot at them. "We shouldn't be joking around about this. We need to--well, we need to come up with some kind of plan before she hurts more people or herself."
"Wow, taking Sage's line," Rowen marveled. "Alright, buddy, do you have anything in mind?"
Ryo hung his head in defeat. "No."
"There isn't a single plan we can come up with that will work," Sage announced. "Not until you three decide to be serious about confronting her. She beat you earlier because not a single one of you fought back against her. And she's going to keep winning until you do."
Cye and Rowen didn't say anything, but Ryo stood up and stared the blonde down as if it were a personal challenge.
"Are you saying we should just leave it to you, Sage?" Ryo accused. "Since you're SO much better at this than us. You don't even need your armor, we'll just leave it all to you. You don't have a single problem taking Minami down, even if it hurts Robyn in the process. We should all strive to be more like you, right Sage?"
Sage glared. "Ryo, you're too upset to think straight and I am not having this conversation with you." He turned to leave the fire and wander off into the woods.
A bit miffed that he was leaving when they should be discussing their next move, Ryo was going to stop him, but Rowen held him back.
"Let him go, Ryo," Rowen said softly, so Sage wouldn't hear. "Give him and yourself sometime to calm down. Besides," he tossed a worried look where Sage had gone. "This has been really hard on him, even though he refuses to admit it. Without his armor, he's probably feeling useless right now. Just give him some space for a while. He'll be back when he's ready."
Rowen hadn't meant for Sage to hear that, but Sage had. And as the blonde made his way deeper into the darkness of the woods, he had to say that he hardly agreed.
Sage didn't feel completely useless without Halo. To be sure, he still felt a bit guilty that he could not help his friends the way he used to. But at the same time, he also felt relieved. He and Halo had never really seen eye to eye. A part of Sage even felt an aversion at the idea of becoming souly dependant on an object to feel of worth. With Halo gone, Sage now had an opportunity to see what he could do for himself without the aid of mystical powers or anything else. It was all him now.
Fighting on the battlefield that day had been invigorating. No powers, just skill against skill alone. To win that kind of battle made Sage feel more of worth than he ever had when fighting with Halo. He also, for the first time, felt completely in control.
Control and the Armor of Halo, in Sage's mind, felt like opposites. It never became more clear to him than when he had been kidnaped in New York. Sage had never experienced a lack of control in his life. It was pure torture just to sit there and know his armor --which he thought was supposed to be a piece of himself-- was acting without him. And control was something Sage valued very much.
After that incident, Sage regarded his armor more like a stranger. Not as a piece of himself, but as something he was momentarily borrowing to get a job done. Nothing more.
"I saw you on the battlefield today."
Sage stopped at the sound of that voice. He turned and saw a figure crouched in a tree, watching him in the darkness.
"You felled many men in battle, but you refused to kill a single one. You are a very interesting warrior, Lord Halo."
Sage regarded her placidly, not surprised at all. "I was wondering when you would show up."
She landed on the ground a few feet away from him. "Why is that?"
Only Robyn's eyes were illuminated in the moonlight and glowed green. The rest of her seemed embraced by the shadows, unable to be reached by any light.
"I know each priestess has a specific time of day that they are at their peak. Yours is midnight, so I knew you would be out and about.. I also know you wanted to speak with me so I assumed if I strayed from the group, it would only be a matter of time before you showed yourself to me."
Robyn's lips quirked up. "Well, well. You're using your head and doing your homework. Not bad for a Halo from another world." She looked him up and down. "A definite improvement from the last Halo, to say the least."
Sage ignored that.
"What exactly do you want from me?"
"I need to borrow the Halo sword," Robyn told him frankly.
Sage's eyes widened. "What!"
"Only for a short time, of course."
It took Sage a moment to recover from his initial shock. "Wh-why are you asking me? I'm not the Bearer of Halo any more. Myune took the armor back."
"Myune?" Robyn asked. "Is that what she's going by now? She doesn't control everything, you know. You don't honestly believe she has full power over the armor you're bonded with. Even though, I'm sure, she's made you believe that and, quite possibly, believes it herself. But you could get it back if you really wanted to. No matter what, you can never truly loose that armor."
Sage's chest fluttered. Never? Why not?
Shouts and laughing came from the darkness. A group of soldiers were patrolling the area around their camp and not being too quiet about it.
"Would you like to continue this else where?" Robyn asked.
Sage was far from done with this conversation. The men were coming closer. If they saw Robyn, that could be a problem.
"Where to?"
Robyn stepped right up to him, putting her arms around his waist. "Grab onto me."
Sage wasn't sure what to do. The soldiers were coming closer. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders, holding as tight to her as she was to him. It was funny how menacing she looked in the darkness when she felt this small in his arms.
"Now, shut your eyes and hold your breath."
Sage was about to ask why when he felt the ground beneath his feet start to lose its solidity. They began to sink and Sage shut his eyes and took a deep breath before they both slipped below the ground into a far purer darkness. By the time the soldiers had made it to the spot they used to be, there was nothing there to see.
Sage was released from the smothering darkness and he came up gasping for air. He considered himself to be in fairly good shape, but he still could not hold his breath for too long. At least not compared to someone like Cye or most other experienced divers. Robyn seemed unaffected by their trip. Sage guessed there was some way her powers let her breathe through the ground.
As soon as Sage got his breath back, the first thing he did was reach for his hair. It was petty and superficial, he knew. But he really hated the idea of having a head full of dirt and dust. It wasn't like he could easily take a shower out here, either. To his surprise and relief, his hair and the rest of him were no dirtier than he was before he went underground. Sage was impressed and he didn't impress easily when his hair was concerned.
Robyn walked over to a small stream that trickled around a simple clearing. Near the bank, an impossibly large sword and one of the swords of Wildfire were embedded tip down into the ground. They looked like a big brother and baby brother standing next to each other.
Robyn sat herself down on a large rock, crossing her legs casually. That was when Sage noticed she was wearing less than he had ever seen her wear in this world. It was just a small kimono-style wrap without sleeves. It only went to about mid thigh. Sage had not noticed it during the previous encounter that day because of the large cape and hood she was wearing. Now it was hanging off the hilt of the giant sword. Sage could not even begin to imagine where she got the cape, sword, or kimono.
"So tell me, Lord Halo," Robyn said to him. Her voice flowed unnaturally for Robyn. Like warm honey, hot and sweet. Robyn did not speak like that. But it was still Robyn's voice. "I've been curious all day. Why is it that the five of you call me by that name every time I see you? But...Myune, was it? She'll only call me Minami."
Sage regarded her placidly. He refused to let any indication of what he was thinking show on his face.
"Robyn is the name of the one who's body you are currently possessing."
Her eyes went wide. She was more surprised than Sage would have expected from her.
"Oh really? My, that's interesting. And here I thought you Lords were able to see into the very dark of all my secrets with that name."
"What do you mean by that?" Sage had tried not to look confused. But he really had no idea what she was talking about.
"Robyn was my name, too," she said to him. "What do you suppose a coincidence like that means?"
Sage tried to process that. She probably meant it was the name of one of her previous incarnations. Like how Miniko was using her current name instead of her priestess name. Still, Sage had to admit, that was quite a coincidence. It almost sounded like it was planned. However, such a small happenstance was not his main worry right now.
"You said you needed the Halo sword," Sage quickly changed the subject. "Why?"
"That's not really any of your business," Robyn replied with minor annoyance.
"It is if you're planning to use MY sword," Sage shot back.
"Oh, NOW it's your sword," Robyn retorted. "I thought you said it belonged to your dear, pretty priestess."
Sage huffed and looked away, folding his arms in agitation. "We're not getting anywhere with this."
"No, we're not," Robyn agreed. She stood up and started to wander, gathering her thoughts. "The true fact of this matter is that Myune currently has Halo so it's not doing her nor us any good as it is now." She swung around to look Sage in the face. "And we have to get you to believe you can get it back from her if you wanted to."
Sage looked away.
"You do WANT it back, don't you?" Robyn pressed, not liking the expression he had.
In all honesty, Sage wasn't too sure. He really did not know how to answer that question. Glancing down, he noticed a thin drop of blood running down the outside of Robyn's thigh. A small red spot was slowly forming in the fabric at her side. Right where Robyn, the Robyn he knew, had been stabbed.
"I'll tell you what," Sage announced, looking pointedly at the blood as so the other Robyn would not miss his meaning. "You take care of that body and I will work on trying to get Halo back."
Robyn smirked at him before turning around and smoothly pulling the Wildfire sword from the ground.
Sage momentarily forgot his earlier offer. "How can you hold that sword?" he wondered.
Even he himself had never placed a hand on one of Wildfire's swords. Or any of the other armor's weapons for that matter. It just wasn't done. Plus Ryo's swords were famous for having their own personalities. They didn't seem to enjoy being touched by anyone else but their owner. It was the same with the Halo sword. He knew it didn't like strangers anywhere near it. Talpa had once pulled it from the armor's source and given it to Kayura, but he knew how to properly pull it from him. One could not just pick it up if he happened to drop it. Still, Robyn had pulled both Wildfire swords right from the back of his armor and they had done nothing to respond. Only when Myune approached did one of the swords react with heat.
Robyn walked up to him, sword in hand. The question of how was still in Sage's eyes. Robyn pointed the sword tip towards her, laying the blade flat on her arm, offering the hilt for Sage to take.
"It's the same reason you can," she said.
Hesitating for only a moment, Sage gathered courage and gripped the sword in his hand. It did nothing to prevent his touch. He lifted the blade up to reflect in the moonlight. This was the closest he had ever seen the Wildfire sword. The only other time was in Mia's lab when the sword had been shattered and pathetic. Now it was whole and glorious and it radiated with power in Sage's hand. Much like his own No Datchi. But this power was different. The Halo sword surged with an energy meant for him, granting that power whenever Sage asked. This one had power, but it was emitting a message: "This power is not yours."
Sage understood that message. He would return the sword to its master as soon as he was able.
"You and that army should stop your assault on this land and its king," Robyn told him suddenly.
Sage tore his eyes away from the beautiful sword to stare at her.
"What? Why? He is trying to take over the kingdom of Falnan. That is why we are here in the first place."
"They told you that is why you are here," Robyn corrected. "What they didn't tell you as that Akuma has the right to challenge her majesty for the throne of Falnan. He was originally next in line BEFORE Queen Laelia."
"How is that possible?" Sage wondered.
"He is her older brother," Robyn informed him.
Sage almost dropped the Wildfire sword as something dropped down from the trees. The form landed between the two. It was Diana and she was in a defensive stance the second her feet touched the ground, facing Robyn.
"I was wondering when I would see you," Robyn smiled at her. "Which name do you go by now?"
Diana did not reply. Her expression was firm. "Minami please, don't do this any more. You're no longer the Guardian of Hardrock, let it go." She lowered her voice to a sad whisper. "Please, my friend."
Robyn's smile turned a bit more toxic. "What kind of friend are you?" she demanded. "What do you remember of Minami? What do you even know of her? If she was your best friend, then why can't you tell when she's not in front of your own eyes? Can you not feel that?"
Diana tensed as if Robyn were going to suddenly attack.
"What are you talking about, Minami? You are my friend. You will always be my friend."
Robyn's expression turned almost sad for a moment.
"I can't," she whispered.
"Why not?" Diana pleaded.
Robyn turned to don her cape and reclaim her massive sword. She swung it over her shoulder as she turned back to Diana.
"Because," she said. "I am not Minami."
Diana froze, too stunned to speak. How was that possible?
Robyn turned her gaze to Sage. "Time is running out. You have until mid day tomorrow, Lord Halo. You better have that sword."
The ground began sift below her. Sage could only watch her form sink. The moonlight caught those haunting green eyes that both knew him and did not know him before she was completely swallowed up.