A/N: I have been participating in the Ronin Warrior Summer Writing Challenge all this month; and since I just completed Chapter Twenty-Three for Book 4: The Ending of an Era; you guys earn a two chapter update. Enjoy :) Oh and I would love for someone to review after reading either of these chapters. ;) You'll get why.

Chapter: Twenty-Six

The Ronin of Hardrock had not been anywhere near as shocked to hear Elayne's admission. Kento had always assumed that she had been able to pick up on what had happened. Only because over the years, and with each time they talked about it, she let certain things slip. Things he knew no one else could know.

Yet, even with that knowledge, he was still surprised to hear that she had been hospitalized because of it…Becoming medically dead to the world for a few moments of time, before the doctors were able to revive her.

Kento knew her well, and for her to have waited to say this now…She was only saying it because there was nothing left for her to lose. That thought alone, was enough to scare him.

He turned his attention to the Ronin of Torrent who let out a heavy sigh, "I don't believe it…I just…I don't."

"Neither can I. I knew she was sensitive, but I didn't think it was possible to be that sensitive," the archer admitted. Then again, Rowen had never held too much stock in what he couldn't recognize with one of his five senses and logic. But after dealing with mystical armor for so many years, he kind of had too.

"Probably has something to do with the fact that she was close to us," Ryo said to them quietly. Not saying what he really wanted to say on the matter, he knew better than to do that.

"Is, Ryo," Kento corrected his leader…His eyes narrowed when Thanos cut the girl, "Why that-"

Sage had still been struggling with his breathing; his eyes had been closed throughout Elayne's confession….But they shot open when he heard his four friends swear…And loudly.

His violet eyes widened as he watched Thanos throw the girl practically half a cavern away...A second later the shields protecting them faded away completely.

The swordsman of Halo and bearer of Hardrock had already started to move, leaving the other three to gape and then play catch up.

"Oi, Sage! Plan B or C?" Kento queried of the man.

The Ronin of Halo thought it over for half-a-second, "C."

"I'm cool with that," the Warrior of Strength then summoned his weapon, and charged Thanos, preventing the demon from being able to do anything further to the girl. He forcefully shoved, gritting, "You better leave her alone."

Sage came in from the side, and got in a well aimed shot to the ice demon, "Your fight is with us!"

"Hell, if she doesn't manage to bring out their overprotective brother sides," Rowen remarked in amusement, as he notched off an arrow.

Thanos let out an irritated growl, and jumped back, avoiding the projectile completely. He was getting really tired of the Ronin jumping in to fight him, it had been amusing before, but now it was starting to aggravate him.

Cye let out a chuckle, having cast a glance to the girl's still form, and recognizing the fact she was, indeed, still breathing, "I happen to think she and Ryo bring that out in all of us."

The Wildfire Ronin rolled his eyes at this, jokingly commenting, "At least I'm good for something."

He carefully picked up the blade that had clattered to the ground, and withdrew the other. His blue eyes burned as he glared at Thanos, saying, "You've gone too far now."

"And you are boring me to death," the ice demon said with a snort. "Why don't you five just die already?"

The Outer Senshi where the closest to where the girl had fallen, and had quickly moved to see if she was all right.

Uranus was ahead of the others, and tentatively called out, "An?" Her eyes went slightly wide when the girl didn't move, "Ah, man-"

Just as she was about to go forward kneel down and try and wake her, a staff was placed in her way.

"Huh?" Uranus turned to look at the Sailor of Saturn with confusion clearly written on her face.

Saturn, on the other hand, was calm if not solemn, "Don't. You can't."

"What are you talking about, Saturn-chan?" Neptune queried with a frown.

The Senshi gave an impatient sigh, "If you wake her up before she is ready, you're going to hurt her."

"Hotaru?" the Guardian of Time's voice was sharp, like it normally got when she was unsettled. A scowl had settled onto her features, "Are you serious?"

Saturn pulled her glaive away from Uranus, who was also staring at her in disbelief, "I am."

"But that's not possible," Galaxy shook her head, argued it. "She can't be, even Queen Serenity said it couldn't be her..." Now the woman paused, asked somewhat helplessly, "How can she?"

Uranus looked back to the unconscious girl, still not wanting to accept the possibility, but starting to wonder, "And if so, why hasn't she-"

"Because she isn't fully awake," Saturn explained quietly. "And she wouldn't have woken up though her life was in danger, like most of the other Senshi did."

"Of course not, it'd be like what happened with you," Neptune murmured out, though she was just as skeptical as Uranus, Pluto, and Galaxy. "She'd only fully awaken if someone else was in danger."

The words no sooner left her mouth when she snapped her attention to the side, watching as Thanos knocked the Wildfire Ronin off his feet having put a good dent in the red armor.

However, when Galaxy let out a sharp intake of breath the Scout of the Deep Seas quickly turned her focus back to where it had been, and let out a gasp in surprise.

"It is her," Uranus breathed out, eyes wide in shock.

The girl's body was largely still, her breathing only short bursts…But as each moment passed and Thanos continued to fight the over exhausted Ronin, something started to appear on her forehead. The symbol was faint at first, but slowly was growing in intensity.

She felt herself waking up, though her body felt as though it had no desire to do such a foolish thing. Both her body and mind ached for some reason, and something felt…Wrong somehow. But what?

She couldn't focus, didn't want to…Then all of a sudden she was seeing a fight, and she couldn't understand why. It just didn't make sense to her.

The reaction couldn't have been avoided for her mind had gone into a temporary state of shock, rendering her unable to recognize anything or anyone.

Three of the five fighters were on the ground, a fourth soon joining them…Before the demon turned his attention to the fifth and practically pummeled him. The Ronin!

In an instant it all clicked back into place she abruptly awoke and then vanished not more than half-a-second later…The Senshi never saw her leave.

Thanos had wasted no time in getting the Ronin back to a similar position they had been in before…Totally and completely beyond help, with no potential way to survive. And while miracles seemed to keep happening, he doubted very much one was just going to magically spring up now.

Akemliek had, more or less, given him permission to kill one or two of the Ronin…Had made the comment it didn't matter if a few didn't make it after Thanos got through venting.

Now Thanos' eyes drifted in between the Ronin of Halo, and the bearer of Hardrock…He had limited it to them, simply because they had been in such a rush to fight him, and protect the girl.

His current dilemma was which of them needed to go first, and no the Senshi were not going to be able to aide the Ronin as they could barely stand up as it was…The Seasonals and Kayura were too far off.

After weighing his options for no more than half-a-second, he decided Hardrock needed to go first.

"Well, it's been nice knowing you," Thanos offered up in comment as he walked towards the young man scimitar held at an angle already.

Kento was struggling to stay conscious, forget him being able to defend himself. Thanos had managed to smash him in the ribs, and Hardrock's bearer was sure one or two were broken. The lack of adequate breath had immediately started to affect him.

Warrior of Strength he might be, but he was still human. All the fighting had taken it's toll on him just as it had the others, there was nothing more he could do.

"Farewell to a worthy opponent," the ice demon murmured, moving to bring down his sword. A moment of déjà vu overtook him abruptly, as the shadows just to his left sprang up. A second later a foot connected with his stomach, and a fist to his jaw, sending him spiraling backwards.

He landed on his back with a wince, his sword falling out of his grasp and to his side. He let out an annoyed growl, knowing the move, and looking up to throw a vile glare at the person who attacked him. …It just wasn't who he had been expecting.

Elayne now stood protectively in front of Hardrock's bearer; within easy distance of the other four should she need to move. Her eyes were closed, her body in a relaxed fighting stance. There was no need to voice her comment…Get the hell away from them.

Silence settled over the cavern, and Thanos got to his feet, warily eyeing the girl as he picked up his sword. Just what was she trying to pull?
Elayne was quiet for some moments, before saying, "Ryo-tachi Out of everyone, I owe you the biggest apology. There's a lot I should have told you, things you needed to know…I just couldn't say anything. If I had a choice, I swear I would have…But, I never got to make that choice. Perhaps, one day you can forgive me for keeping the secrets from you."

Rowen could only helplessly stare at the back of the girl…A million thoughts were running through his head as he tried to pick apart and piece together what she had just said so that'd make sense. All of a sudden, it hit him and his eyes nearly tripled in size, 'NO WAY!'

"Ouch," Cye moaned out, close enough to smack the archer in the helmet. "I heard that, tone it down. What's the matter with you? And, oi Elayne what the hell are you going on about?"

Sage let out a sigh, and gave a soft shake of his head. So, that was it then. The one thing she had wanted to tell him, but couldn't…Meaning, his earlier suspicions had now been proven to be correct.

"Mei mei," the Ronin of Hardrock had fought with himself, managed to force his body and mind back into a fully conscious state. He had seen what she had done to Thanos, partially gaped at it. Now? "You have got to be kidding!"

The girl offered no response to them, her next comment was for Thanos, as she coolly remarked, "You want to get to the Ronin, it's going to be over my dead body. Go ahead and comment that you can see to that," her eyes snapped open, her face calm, but the look of annoyance fully there. "But this time? You're not getting past me."

"Oh damn," Cye grumbled, having caught on after a few minutes of being coherent, to his comrades' disbelief. "She wasn't joking."

The ice demon fumbled to make a reply, the moment she had opened her eyes he had been stunned by the cold violet which now bore into his skull. The illusion that had added the green and brown was gone.

"Well," Thanos finally remarked, "This is an amusing little development, though I barely believe it."

Elayne gave a snort to this, "I can kick your ass just fine without wearing a mini-skirt." The girl's stance remained relaxed, even though he had now slipped into a more aggressive one. "I don't need to transform."

In one instant she was relaxed, in the next she was already in front of him, slipping to his side bringing up her first and ramming it into his gut. Though he wore armor, he still felt the force of the hit. Thanos was quickly starting to revise his opinion.

Elayne dropped back, once more standing in front of the Ronin. The ice demon was permitted to catch his breath, and that's when he felt it.

He could only stare at her; now for the first time he could sense it…The energy that she had access to.

It wasn't radiating off her form though, it was leaking. Little by little the walls forcefully placed on her powers were coming down. The ice demon understood she was not joking, or some stand-in.

His steel gray eyes hardened, the green flecks burning as he moved to fight her, "Well, isn't this a nice little cliché, the innocent turns out to be a warrior."

Elayne let out a chuckle while avoiding his scimitar, "Oh, I've been a lot of things in my live, but never an innocent. Further, Akemliek didn't bother to tell you much about me, did he? I might be a warrior, but I'm not like the others. I was bred for fighting that of assassin work, hardly the noble savior type like they are."

'Kayura, please tell me you're almost done!'

The Lady Ancient heard the urgency in Elayne's voice, and exasperation leaked it into her own, 'I'm trying the staff still won't respond, it's even ignoring Anubis. We both think it's waiting for something, but who knows what? Blasted temperamental object!'

'Waiting still?' Elayne sighed through her nose, keeping the comment to herself. Really, it shouldn't have been this difficult to get them all out of here. The staff had no reason to keep them there, other than it just didn't feel like it. So, more or less, she was going to have to give it a reason to go.

"Seal gone or not," Thanos gritted out finally, after five minutes of heated fighting, "After the beating you took earlier, you shouldn't be this well off."

"You just don't get it, do you?" the girl shook her head, slipped around him completely. "Almost three quarters of my power were tied into that road block the Council left. Plus, you've had my charges down here for a long time. My powers rely on their strengths, and how united they are in spirit. But, there's a loophole, if they are drained of energy like they are now? Well, let's just say I've gotten a definite power boost."

"Quaint," the ice demon grunted with an eye roll. "That doesn't explain why you are up and moving, and moving this well."

Elayne was getting as tired of this pointless fighting as the ice demon. But, she had needed a reason to carry out her decision, acting on her own wasn't something she could do…Not yet anyway.

The girl withdrew the henshin pen from her back pocket, "Well, if you want an answer to that…Maybe, if I properly introduce myself, it'll make sense. Though I won't pray for a miracle."

She held the ancient ornament in front of her with a light hand; the pen was ivory and showed the scars of earlier fights if one looked close enough. All Elayne did was touch her index finger to the center of the pen, before black flames sprang up around her form and then just as quickly died down.

A small smirk had graced it's way across her face, and Universe's one hand rested lightly on her hip.

She gave a light bow of her head, saying, "I am the Lady Universe, and like the Senshi of Saturn and Pluto, I am a scout of Cursed Fate…The ones that represent the darker side of nature."

The smile left her face as her eyes narrowed and sparked, "I am the Senshi of Pain and Sorrow." Here she cracked her neck, "But a less dramatic way of putting it, is while you and the Raikken might be an advantage due to the energy down here, so am I."

Suddenly her head snapped up, and to the right of her. A low growl permeated her throat, as she had picked up Akemliek's presence coming their way.

'Time for you all to go, Kayura!'

The Lady Ancient now opened her eyes and mouth to angrily protest…Nothing ever came of that though.

'Simoria, override that useless twig and get them out of here, NOW!'

'Understood and will gladly oblige,' the woman responded. A second later the only ones left in the cavern were Thanos and the guardian Senshi, plus the two tigers. They had lingered, waited for her to make her move, and now that she had, they wisely turned around and started to make their way out of Akemliek's domain…They happened to know the way well enough.

"What's the matter?" Thanos was slightly annoyed that she had encouraged the Lady Ancient to get the warriors out of the line of fire. More so, that the woman had been successful in accomplishing the task this time around. Even though he was annoyed, he was still smart enough to hide it in a taunt, "Don't want them to see you lose?"

"Technically, I already lost once today," the Senshi remarked not rising to the bait at all. "And I learned from Shuu to never lose two fights in one day." She tossed several shards at him, which he dodged with a practiced ease.

"I hate meddlers, especially ones that are supposed to be dead," the ice demon commented as he made move to strike her.

Universe slipped past his sword and punched him in the gut, then did a back-flip and landed away from him, barely avoiding another sword swipe. Her silver fuku was already stained with blood from her earlier injuries, that fighting was slowly starting to affect her now.

Thanos was quick to cover the distance, and then tried to bring his scimitar down on top of her, but she slid around him and quickly tripped him up.

Universe gave a shake of her black-silver head once more, the bitter amusement present in her tone, "Didn't Akemliek, even bother to tell you what I am?"

Thanos looked at her suspiciously, if he had one thing in common with the Ronin it was the fact he hated losing, or even remotely getting put in his place. "Enlighten me, what are you?"

She laughed quietly, it was hollow sounding, "I am a weapon."

"What?" the ice demon quickly picked up his slipping guard, slightly confused by her statement.

The response she gave was one filled with resentment, "I am a weapon, a tool for war. I was taught how to fight, how to bleed, and how to die. Living was something I had to figure out on my own."

"Explains a lot actually," Thanos said with a snort. "Your anti-social behavior for one." This time when he struck he managed to cut into her arm, but she did not even give a wince in acknowledgement.

Universe saw him pull back and scowl, "It's bothering you isn't it? I'm not reacting the way I should, and it's making you anxious. I'll share a little secret with you Thanos. I have tasted death, have seen it occur before my eyes, and truthfully it scares me about as much as you do."

"No wonder Akemliek finds you an intrigue," the ice demon commented, their fighting had not paused or stopped for more than a few brief moments here or there. "You're more of a worthy opponent than all those fools put together, yet you defend them when you shouldn't be doing so. That and the added fact you're an odd being for a human."

The Senshi permitted herself an amused chuckle, but made no return comment. She was currently weighing her options on how to resolve this so she could go and look after her charges, and preferably before Akemliek started to harass them.

'Aarde said earlier the ceiling in here was unstable, but would only fall if it was directly hit.' Her powers were back, that was true, but there was no telling how long it'd take her to use her main attack. Thanos could probably easily get out of the way, and if he did…Well, at least she had an idea on what to do.

The Senshi closed her eyes, the five jewels in her tiara flickered slightly, as she extended her left hand and pulled out the power she needed. A loose breath escaped her lips as the sphere of darkened energy and electricity formed and crackled.

"Chaos Strike," she murmured before tossing the energy at him. It sped quickly to it's target, but not to her surprise he managed to avoid the thing completely…Yeah she had been afraid her power's reaction time was that far off.

Universe quickly directed her gaze to the ceiling, "I had a feeling you'd do that. So," she snapped her hand in the upward direction, causing the energy to shift that way in response.

"You'll kill us both!" Thanos cried out, just before the attack made impact with the cavern's ceiling.

The Scout shook her head snorting out as she avoid the falling shale, "Yeah, and I'm sure there are so many who will lament our loss." She took pause, "But, I don't plan on dying today."

"Neither do I," Thanos growled in irritation, "I'll make sure some of your charges do though."

The Senshi let out an annoyed hiss just as the demon teleported away, she slipped into a shadow and quickly took off after him. He needed to learn when to quit, she figured she was just going to have to teach him.

"I would love to know, what the hell is going on around here!" Glacia gritted out in high agitation. She did not like having her feathers ruffled, and they had definitely been ruffled.

She had scanned the girl the minute they all realized she had the Cimmerian Cyrstal, Nova had too, and even Queen Serenity! The energy had not matched, had never matched, and still didn't match.

"Don't like being wrong do you?" Sekhmet queried with a raised eyebrow. "Is it that big of a deal?"

"Yes!" Aarde then clamped a hand over her best friend's mouth to shut her up, saying, "It shouldn't be possible is what the problem is, her signatures never matched, still don't."

The Ronin Warriors had managed to pick themselves back up enough that they were standing, weapons safely tucked away but within easy reach if they were needed. The five young men exchanged glances with one another, and shrugged.

"The fact that she was putting out a false signature in the past never crossed your minds did it?" Sage finally queried, after five more minutes of heated bickering.

Everyone went dead silent, and then stared at him. Yeah, that pretty much answered his question. Apparently, the Elemental Senshi hadn't thought about it.

Suddenly Ryo snapped his attention to his left, and let out a low growl, "Get lost Akemliek."

Everyone was silent, their attention focused on the being now standing amongst them. All of them tensed at seeing the nearly seven-foot-tall being, with his arms lightly crossed over his chest.

His skin was a pale ivory, his eyes were black at this moment, and his hair was almost pure white.

He seemed rather amused at Ryo's comment, "Nice to see you Rekka. Honestly, I'm quite impressed you all made it out of that alive. It would seem this lifetime has better prepared you. Though, I do wonder if it'll be enough this time?"

Rowen had made a certain observation, and mumbled out, "He's transparent."

"He's projecting his image," the Ronin of Halo's eyes were narrowed as he had been able to detect the energy that went along with such type of a projection.

"Astute of you Tenku, Korin," Akemliek said with a chuckle, grinning when both looked shocked. He let out a snort when all five young men slipped into defensive stances, "Oh calm yourselves, would you? I don't have enough power back to do anything."

"I on the other hand-" Thanos' voice rang out.

Universe appeared from a shadow, and pulled a move she had learned from the Halo Ronin, taking her elbow and ramming it into the ice demon, sending him flying backwards.

"Would be successfully annoying the hell out of me," she finished his statement, teeth gritted. "I told you, you weren't getting past me I meant it."

"Universe," Akemliek greeted biting down a laugh. "Spirited as always."

"Spirited nothing, short fused much," the Senshi said in a growl, glowering at the pair. "I highly suggest calling him off Akemliek, or you're going to be down two ice demons."

"Please, you barely managed to pull off getting the energy, the-" Thanos paused mid sentence when the Ronin armor glowed, and the jewels in the Scout's tiara lit up in response.

She was quick to form the energy they had just given her, and it started to amass in size…Though the pressure it was putting on her hand caused it to start bleeding, "The armors happen to be on my side, and this time? You're not going to be able to dodge."

Akemliek knew the woman well enough to know that she was not playing around. Universe had a habit of meaning what she said, and carrying out whatever plans she made. "You'd best return Thanos."

The ice demon gave a nod as he rubbed his sore jaw, and then vanished.

"Well," Akemliek mused. "I think we should call this battle a draw, don't you? I'm free, technically speaking….I did lose one warrior, and you managed to save those you have charge over. Though, they are quite badly beaten and-"

Universe had a bored expression on her face, as Akemliek spoke. She then sighed through her nose and tossed the energy at the projection causing it to shatter while Akemliek was mid-sentence.

"What?" she knew she was getting stared at. "I'm tired and cranky. I don't want to listen to someone ramble on. Especially, when he's been staring at the same four walls for over a thousand years."

The guardian now turned around to face them, a worried frown plaguing her face. The fact that they were perhaps shocked over the latest revelation was the furthest thing on her mind at this point.

To declare them a mess would have been a sore understatement, they were more along the lines of a national disaster. She bit out an irritated sigh, "I wish you guys would learn to listen to me. It'd do wonders for your health."

In a second she had whirled back around, shards already waiting in her palm…Though she would not get the chance to use them.

Queen Serenity was definitely amused by the reaction, "Sorry, we're already dead."

"Too bad," the Scout grumbled under her breath, before willing the power away, and addressing them. "Never Raikken around when I want to vent. Oh well. So, where exactly have you two been?"

The Ancient gave an annoyed sigh, before remarking, "The negative energy managed to disrupt travel and communication. There was no way for us to do anything."

"Ah, so is there something in particular you want?" the Scout sounded unimpressed and impatient. "I would very much like to get my charges back so that they can rest."

Serenity was slightly taken aback by the abruptness and the Scout's attitude, "Well, we'd like your report."

"When it is convenient for you," the monk cut over top of anything else the woman might have been going to say. "And bring your charges to us when they are ready."

Here the Senshi permitted herself an inward chuckle, having understood why Kaosu had placed the emphasis on those particular words. She was quick to bow her head in respect, "I will."

The minute the spirits were gone, the next words out of her mouth came, "I should have listened to my parents."

Now she was able to turn her attention back to the warriors, who she could tell were already starting to cave in on themselves. "Let's get you back. I can probably get you to your respective rooms. Think you can manage to fall into your own beds?"

To this she received a couple of grunts and grumbles in response, and she shook her head in belated amusement, before stalking over to where the Lady Ancient was and leveling a seething glare at the shajuko.

"Inanimate object or not, you don't transport my charges, all of them, ASAP? I'm breaking you down into toothpicks," she calmly stated.

Kayura was going to laugh at this, but her amusement became surprise when the staff gave an immediate chime, and the scenery around them faded away. They were in the living room at the Shinwako Mansion, or she and the Guardian were.

"I don't believe it," the Lady Ancient murmured blinking in surprise.

"That I threatened the armors into forming shields, the Senshi's powers to do the same, Akemliek that I'd off Thanos, or me threatening the staff?" Universe paused, thinking to add, "And is it also the fact they all listened to me?"

Kayura actually laughed aloud this time, saying with a grin, "Sent everyone to their rooms but me."

"Ah well, I can't have everything," the Senshi lightly shrugged, "Normally my luck sucks, it's a miracle that I was able to pull off what I did. At any rate, Kayura, you should get some rest as well."

A small smirk lit Universe's face, "I'll make rounds in about fifteen minutes to make sure nobody hit the floor instead of the bed."

"Well, I'll do that, but first," the Lady Ancient murmured, "I have a feeling I know why the shajuko left me here instead. This," she handed the Senshi the Cimmerian Crystal, "Is yours. I'll speak with you later, Universe."

She willed the staff and her power away, and slowly began ascending the stairs, before adding over her shoulders, "Thank-you. Elayne."

The Guardian Senshi gave a gentle shake of her head in belated amusement.

She let out a sigh as she studied the jewel resting in her palm, murmuring just after Kayura closed the door behind her, "It was definitely closer than what I like, but I managed to get them all out of there alive."

'Yes, but let us hope they can recover from this. The fighting, and the unwelcome answers they received.'

"Simoria, if you're trying to lighten the mood, you're failing," Universe groused, "Miserably."

'I think I'll just leave you to yourself.'

The Scout of the Universe sighed heavily now, placed the jewel around her neck, it immediately becoming part of her choker. She rubbed at the point between her eyebrows, before straightening up. Though the enemy would be tending their own wounds, she would stand guard anyway.

Just like she always had…