Chapter Nineteen:
Rowen managed to catch his breath for a brief moment, before having to jump back into the fray and help out the Ronin of Torrent, by keeping the Raikken off of him.
The archer's midnight-blue eyes moved rapidly across the cavern, and a scowl formed on his face. Once more they had become separated from one another, it had happened slowly this time but the fact of the matter was that it had still happened.
With every minute that passed their situation grew dimmer, and the five of them were starting to grow desperate. They could not last against these hordes for much longer as they were slowly starting to crumble under the pressure.
Things had only spiraled further downhill moments before, when laughter rang out in the cavern and Kali finally bothered to show herself. Currently, the ice demonness was fighting Cye, which was why Rowen was working so hard to keep the Raikken away from Torrent's bearer.
The demons, while for the most part dimwitted and useless, had no problems taking cheap shots, a truth they had all quickly figured out. The Raikken would fight as told, but they tended to only put in an effort if they had some sort of advantage. With their mistress here, they had an advantage because the Ronin would be distracted with trying to contend with her.
The Ronin of Trust was not backing down at all, any hit she gave him the man was quick to bounce back from, and return the favor. Cye was angry, and the bearer of Strata knew that all too well.
He was also very much aware that Torrent was at his fiercest when he was angered, and not someone you could take lightly. It had been building steadily, because Rowen felt that same annoyance himself.
Kali showing up now? It had only conveyed to them that she was prepared to force them into using Inferno. This fact had completely brought out the rage building up in Cye, and he was turning it loose on the ice demonness.
'Good,' Rowen thought to himself, as he took up his fighting a notch. He was trying hard not to expend too much energy while at the same time dealing with the Raikken that just would not stop coming. 'She deserves it.'
The archer paused, caught his breath again, then returned to fighting as hard as he could. There just seemed to be no end to them, but it made sense. Akemliek had plenty of time, far more than Talpa, to build up an army and then set it onto all of them.
It was no wonder this place was crawling with such despair, he just wondered how much longer it would be before that negative emotion got to all of them. Oh, he was certain it had already started, but he worried about what would happen with their continued exposure to this. Of course, none of it would matter if they didn't get out of this battle alive.
Before and during their fight with Suzunagi, if one could call it that, they had wanted nothing more to do with the armor…Almost nothing to do with each other.
They had thought their days as Ronin Warriors were over, even though the power of the armor still remained within them. In the end, they had come to accept the fact they would always be Ronin and that they did not have to take that burden on alone. It had given them a sense of self once more, and a slight peace of mind.
But now? Knowing that they had always been bearers of the armors, knowing that they had never really had a say in it, and realizing the fights they had already partaken in were no different than "tests"…They had become resentful.
'Or at least,' the archer grimly though, 'I have.'
Yet, he had also come to the realization that the armor itself was just as resentful of the truth as he was…Actually, Rowen understood that Strata's anger stemmed from the fact the real truth had been kept secret.
It did not appreciate the Elders failing to say all that they knew, nor did it like the fact its bearer was almost completely unaware of the past. Why the archer knew this, still was a mystery to him but the fact of the matter was he knew.
Rowen was getting tired of the endless fighting…He wanted an end to this, they all did. They just weren't going to get one anytime soon.
Kali suddenly left Cye and went right for Ryo as she could see he was fighting with almost no energy whatsoever. The demonness easily shoved the Ronin Leader to his knees, and she was prepared to do further.
"Back off, Ice Queen!" Kento snapped at her, smashing her back and off of Ryo with his staff.
The Warrior of Strength now stood protectively in front of his leader, his eyes narrowed as he quickly twirled his naginata, blocking her retaliatory strike with ease.
"You okay?" Kento queried not daring take his eyes off his opponent for even a second, knowing it could prove costly. The demonness wasn't playing games with them this time, she was serious.
Kali let out an amused chuckle, "Oh he won't be for much longer, if he is. We're surrounded by water, ice, and general cold. Really now Hardrock, how can you expect him to be all right?"
"Shut your trap!" Rowen bellowed at her, letting an arrow fly in her direction. No, he was by no means anywhere near the other two, but he sure was not deaf.
Kali slipped past the arrow with a bored expression on her face, but her attention was diverted long enough for Kento to get in a well aimed hit. She was shoved back several feet, and let out an annoyed hiss.
Ryo had gotten back to his feet and had been fending off Raikken for several minutes, but now he saw what Kento had done, and yelled, "Heads up guys!"
The four immediately knew what that meant, and if they were in the line of fire they were quick to move out of the way.
The Ronin Leader brought his swords together, and leapt up, calling out, "Flare Up Now!"
The energy released by the swords of Wildfire was enough to incinerate the surrounding Raikken, and it struck Kali head on. The ice demonness let out a scream, and steam abruptly rose into the air blocking the warriors' vision.
Ryo dismantled the single blade, so that it was again two. His shoulders quaked as he tried to gain back some of the breath he had lost. He had not used his attack often down here, none of them had.
It was risky with the low ceilings and the fact that after having been down here for so long, the drain on their energy was a great deal.
"Did he get her?" Sage was at wait, the Raikken having pulled back as if waiting to see if Kali was still alive. He had managed to move closer to the archer with all his fighting, a bit of irony that was not lost on the two of them.
The Ronin of Strata shrugged his shoulders, he couldn't see anything past the mist, and the dirt that had been stirred up when the flare had hit the cavern wall behind it.
Ryo's breather went back to normal, and he let out a sigh, perhaps in relief. Then, his eyes widened in shock as chuckling reached his ears, and the dust settled and the steam moved off.
Kali let out a laugh, "Oh wow that hurt."
"No way!" Kento exclaimed in disbelief, "He did not miss. She ought to be toast."
The Raikken stopped their staring and went back to attacking, Cye was ready for them and quickly moved through the ones in front of him, before going after the ones off to his right. "She isn't though," he remarked.
"Can't say I'm surprised," Rowen admitted, "She said it herself, there's water and ice down here."
"Ya, Wildfire's at a disadvantage," Sage commented. "She's got the advantage, plus this is home turf. But still there should be a scratch on her, and there isn't."
Kento had not strayed far from Ryo, but he was having trouble getting back to where he had been. This both annoyed and concerned him, "They're pushing us further apart. We keep trying to regroup and they're not allowing that!"
"We're running out of options you guys," Ryo said to them in an even tone of voice. "I think it's time we stopped playing."
"No Ryo! You can't be serious," the Ronin of Trust immediately knew what his leader was referring to. "Putting aside the fact it's what they need, there's no telling what that armor will do to you as it is now."
"Cye's right," the archer said. "It's a last resort, only."
"How many resorts do we have left Rowen?" the Ronin Leader demanded. "We're running out of options, time, and our energy is just going to keep fading the longer we fight like this without a break."
The bearer of Hardrock was annoyed, it leaked through into his voice, "Look Ryo, you conned us into killing you once. Luckily, the Jewel of Life saved you. But do not try and get us to do it again, 'cause its not happenin'."
The Wildfire Ronin's temper was starting to grow short now, and as Kali went after Sage looking to have the upper hand against him as well…It shortened further. They were getting slaughtered; his friends were going to die if he didn't do something.
Ryo knew this as being truth, it wasn't opinion he had been having the same nightmare for over a week now. His nightmares had never been wrong, if anything they had become more accurate over time.
And with his memories perfectly intact? He knew how to use his latent foresight ability, understood that his nightmares were projections of the future. One he could change if he invested enough will power into doing it.
He had seen it, seen them fall one by one at Kali's hand. Ryo was not going to let that happen, he would die first. But in order to avoid the end that was coming, he had to convince them they needed to call the white armor. In what he had seen, they had refused to call it even he had agreed with them…That had gotten them all killed.
"All I am saying is we have to use it," Ryo absolutely refused to give up on this. "We accepted the fact it might come down to this. But the longer we do this fight without it, when it becomes apparent we have no other choice, it'll take you energy to, not just your armors power."
"Ryo," Sage got knocked back into the wall by Kali, but managed to bring his sword up to block in time, and then shove her back, "Is that what your nightmares were about?"
Wildfire's bearer shook his head, slicing through a Raikken, "Not quite, but I know what'll happen if we don't use it. If we continue to do nothing, we are all going to die regardless of what might happen if we call Inferno."
"You know," Kali slipped away from Sage, turning her sights on Kento who was ready for her to strike. "Must annoy you that you can't do this mentally, and have to relay your plan in front of me."
"Shove it," the Ronin of Hardrock knocked her off her feet once more, and then slammed her in the ribs with his staff. He let out a yell when she got up, and formed energy into her palm blasting it at him. It connected and he ended up flying into the cavern wall.
"Kento!" Rowen and Cye hollered.
Sage froze in place for a moment, before he sliced at the Raikken. They were all apprehensive about using the white armor. Inferno could easily destroy the world and would most likely gladly do it if given the chance.
It had never had a guiding virtue and that had always made it dangerous. With the armors being free from whatever influence Talpa had on them, it had to mean the Inferno was closer to its true nature as well.
'Think,' the swordsman berated himself. 'If we use the armor there's no telling what it will do. But, if we continue on this path the only ending there will be is death for all of us.'
Using the white armor was risky, oh he was sure it would drain them, leave them helpless. It's not what they were concerned about, why they all kept fighting against this so hard. Ryo might have looked all right, but they all knew he was still recovering from what had happened to him months ago.
They were afraid that if he used the armor the strain would kill him, and yet…What other choices did they have left?
Sage closed his eyes for a moment, then reopened them his mind now made up, "My power's yours Ryo, take it."
"Sage!" the Strata Ronin cried in disbelief.
The blond swordsman vigorously shook his head; no he would not listen to the protest, "This is foolish, and unwise. But, it's even more so to let it end here without even trying."
"As always, I have faith in you," Sage told his leader with a small grin. "And in your spirit. You believe you can control it?"
The bearer of Wildfire gave a solemn nod, offering his friend a look of gratitude.
"Good enough for me," Halo's bearer stopped fighting altogether, and relinquished his armor's power.
Strata, Torrent, and Hardrock glowed in response to this. They patiently awaited their bearers' decisions on the matter.
Cye made a noise in the back of his throat, "Do not get yourself killed, understand?" He did not wait for Ryo to acknowledge the statement, merely let go of the power which he had been holding back.
"Ditto to what he said," Kento commented, before allowing Hardrock's power to leave him.
Rowen gave a sigh, "Good luck Ryo!" He too released his armor's energy.
As the energy reached him, flames quickly sprang up…The Armor of Wildfire faded and he was left in subarmor, which immediately went black. The flames suddenly engulfed his form, and then died down immediately after.
The Inferno had not changed in the slightest; the only difference was that the coloring of it looked darker. It was more silver than white, the red now crimson and the gold was more pronounced.
Ryo's eyes opened and narrowed onto Kali's form. The demonness looked fearful, but it was gone within the next moment.
The Raikken on the other hand, had absolutely no problem in showing they were scared. All of the remaining demons quickly vanished, they knew that armor and were not going to stay around and find out how much better Wildfire was at using it.
White Blaze had long ago joined Elayne and Black Blaze up on their little ledge…The Raikken had grown in number far too much, and when the Ronin started tossing around surekills the white cat had no desire to be in the way.
He kept watching Elayne out of the corner of his eyes, noticing that she had gone pale, and her breathing was erratic at some instances and fine at others. The tiger was aware that it was bothering her to be this close; it was also getting to him too.
Well, the fact he was there and that he could do relatively little was what was bothering him so much. The fact that the warriors should have never even bothered to come also had worked it's way to the forefront of his mind.
Suddenly he felt the change and he let out a low growl, and Elayne's breathing hitched. Instantly the white armor and swords formed on the black tiger and he leapt up. Then jumped off the ledge, and darted down the tunnel quickly heading for the Ronin.
"What the-?" Sekhmet demanded, as the cat had almost landed right on top of them.
Elayne's voice rang out from above the Seasonals, "That was Black Blaze. The Ronin are calling Inferno!" She and White Blaze jumped down from the ledge as well, making sure they didn't land on anyone.
"When did you get here?" Cale blinked actually surprised at seeing the two of them.
"A bit ago," the girl answered, nervously glancing the way the black tiger had gone.
"An, are you mad?" Sekhmet inquired, before starting, "You were told…"
"Nope," She cut the Fall Seasonal off, "White Blaze was told not to leave me alone, and to follow me wherever I went. So, I decided to come here. Nobody ever told me not to come; Ryo mentioned nothing of the sort."
"One day, Wildfire really is going to hurt you," Anubis shook his head, biting back a laugh. He offered her a small smile though, she could be something this one.
Cale gave a snort then chuckle, "Dais, give him the dictionary when we get back, he needs to look up the word 'foreplay.'"
Elayne caught that and glared daggers at the Seasonal of Winter, "Just you wait till we get back. You are so toast!"
"I already know what it means," Anubis coughed, slightly, to the looks of amazement he was getting, "Cale, you need to get a hobby."
'He needs to get a life first,' White Blaze dryly commented.
"Harass her for details on being down here later boys," Kayura told them, "We can't dawdle. I-"
Elayne immediately snapped her head to where she knew the five Ronin were at, and Kayura also looked in that direction. It was done; the Ronin had successfully summoned the white armor.
"Blast it," Dais grumbled in irritation, "The power coming off of that thing is unbelievable."
"I sense the Raikken have left," Anubis commented with a scowl.
Kayura shook herself, "Like I said, let's move. Those demons won't be gone for very long and there's no telling how bad off the other four were before this."
The Seasonals gave nods in agreement, quickly following after the Ancient's descendant. Elayne had been quick to fall alongside Kayura, the white tiger having moved so that he was running slightly behind them.
"If you want to know," the girl commented. "They were worse than just "bad off." By a lot."
The Lady Ancient frowned at hearing this, "You were with them earlier? And their energy levels were that bad?"
The girl gave a nod to both those questions, so Kayura was quick to ask one more, "Can you sense them now?"
Elayne was quick to nod, and then she immediately shook her head as she anticipated the next question coming from the woman.
Kayura's eyes widened as they had come around the bend and the cavern was in plain sight, "Oh no."
The girl had accurately predicted the Lady Ancient's next question, as well as the answer that went with it.
..........
No, the Ronin Warriors were not all right.