Whoop whoop! An update, heck yea! Well we are starting to get closer and closer to some answers about the Ninja Tribunal but sadly, at the end I'm sure you all will explode with even more (or at least that's what I'm going for) ha! Many many thanks to pokemonjkl, Snow Wolf Alpha, Livangel16, storygirl99210, ShotgunRedneck, and LovableAmethyst129 for reviewing! Keep it coming!
-yesiamweird
Staring up at the wooden ceiling was proving to be annoying, and not very helpful in May's task of falling asleep. She and the turtles had been resting quietly in their room for about an hour or so and it seemed as if the four were silently sleeping while May lay awake, quietly thinking of all that had happened since she was taken by the Tribunal a couple of days ago.
It was summer vacation, and as a teenager about to go into her senior year of high school she was supposed to be out having fun before her world became consumed from class work. Now, it seemed like she was being consumed by ninja class work. With a heavy sigh, she ran her fingers through her tangled blonde hair while sitting up from her mattress on the floor.
Sleep was not comforting her body tonight, but then again she hadn't felt a decent night's worth of sleep in a while so tonight wouldn't make much more of a difference.
"Ugh…" A moan from a raspy turtle on her side turned May's blonde head towards the orange bandana turtle. "I can't sleep!" A yawn on the other side of the room turned her attention to the purple bandana turtle, "Me neither!"
"Shhhh!" Raph sat up placing a thick green finger to his lips, "You'll wake the old guys!" He whispered.
"They're not sleeping, they're meditating! There's a difference, Raph." Leo disciplined his younger brother and causing May to smile. At least her best friends were just as miserable as she was. "Well not in my book." Muttered Raph. May giggled softly and causing the turtle to look flashing a warming smile at her.
"Splinter!" The Ancient One yelled to the five Acolyte's master, "I cannot meditate with you mumbling like that. And besides…my butt has fallen asleep."
"I am sorry, Ancient One, but the Ninja Tribunal troubles me more each day. I cannot allow their foolish judgment in the fate of my family again." Splinter answered back. "Well your sons are fully capable… sort of." A stern glance from the Ancient One pulled May and the other four towards the two masters.
"Um, hello?! We are like five feet away!" Mikey snapped stubbornly. "Master Splinter, when you say the Tribunal has cost you your family, what do you mean by that?" The human girl questioned walking over alongside of her friends.
The rat raised a hand, "I am talking about my Master Yoshi and of a time in the past. Yoshi-san was a guardian back then to protect the Utroms. He came to the Ninja Tribunal to enlist in their aid in the fight with the Utrom Shredder, but the Tribunal ignored his plea and because of the Tribunal's cold refusal one of the Shredder's victims was my Master Yoshi!"
"Yoshi was my prized pupil, but he insisted in being an Utrom Guardian."
"Had the Tribunal headed his warning," Splinter opened his eyes as two bulging tears ran from each eye, "He might still be alive today."
"But the Tribunal sees a bigger picture than we do." Ancient One answered, "Well at least I hope they do."
With a small shake of her head, May looked towards her green faced friends and shrugged. Just what the heck did any of this mean? This journey was getting harder and stranger second by second. "Uh, just what the shell does any of this mean?!" Raph grunted out loud what May was thinking internally.
"Real Shredder, True Shredder, Utrom Shredder!" Mikey complained, "Just how the heck many Shredder's are there?!"
Splinter and the Ancient One glance at one another for a moment and then back to the standing and more than ever curious students. "It is time you know the true story, my students, about how this all began. The true and evil Shredder!"
May smiled falling to the floor with her feet crossed Indian-style, "It's story time!" She grinned despite the curious looks she gained from her action. "What? Sooo, who the real Shredder?"
"No one really knows what dark evil sprung him up into the world…but back in the year 300," The Ancient one began, "The Shredder arose from a pit in the form of a Tangu- a demon ready to subjugate the world and turn it into his own personal empire. The Shredder Tangu spread his evil everywhere and seemed unstoppable but there were five great warriors in Japan at that time whose victories and courage was legendary and you have meet four of them: Hisomi, Chikara, Juto, Kon and the most vicious and courageous of them all, Orouko Saki."
"Saki?!" Leo gasped, "The identity the Utrom Shredder used, he was a real person?"
"Don't interrupt, Leonardo!" Ancient One spat out whacking the leader on the top of his bald head, although from the way Leo took the hit it almost seemed like he was used to taking hits from the fat ninja master, "Just listen! So, these fiver great warriors were summoned before the emperor, who informed them that they were the world's last hope."
Splinter continued with the story, "The Emperor provided them with amour, special amour with amulets and purity that would protect them in battle against the evil Shredder Tangu. And the warriors fought bravely despite overwhelming odds they continued to fight to the very end. While Saki's attacks were the most savage and striking, it was he that finished the demon. The Emperor held a great celebration and declared that the warriors would be called The Five Dragons and awarded them their own banner of the three-toed dragon foot-print as the highest honor."
"But the celebration was too soon, because during Saki's battle with the demon was fought on more than a physical playing field. The demon persuaded Saki that he could help him rule the world with his dark power, as long as the demon was allowed into his body." Ancient One rubbed his fat cheeks while shaking his head slowly as if he was disappointed.
"The demon's words ignited some dark part of Saki and he accepted the offer. The demon allowed his spirit to merge with Saki's, so even during the final blow the Tangu was only an empty vessel. Oroku Saki's betrayal led Japan into a world of darkness since the Shredder Tangu surrounded him and around him. There seemed no limit to the evil and he eventually created a stronghold becoming a Demonic Warlord throughout the land. The Dragon's needed to defeat the Shredder at all costs, so they decided to increase their power through mystical knowledge but they also needed to complete their title of the Five Dragons as well."
Donny suddenly shifted causing May to turn her head at the turtle, "So wait…they got someone else to take Saki's place?" May and the other pupils looked towards the Ninjustu masters curiously. The Ancient One and Splinter looked to one another for a brief and hesitant moment before sighing and turning their heads back.
"But who?" Mikey shrugged his shoulders, "There's only four of the Shisho's teaching us…well four that we have gotten our shells handed too us!"
"Quiet, Michelangelo!" Ancient One hit the top of Mikey's head, "You must learn the art of patience… there was one spot to fill of the Five Dragons, and the four Shisho sought out the sister of Oroku Saki… Oroku Sakura. And although she was nowhere near as strong as her older brother, Sakura was on a higher spiritual level than the other four Shisho's."
May felt nervous for a moment after the Ancient One had finished describing the woman…if there were still the four Shisho's around today then what happened to Sakura and Saki?
"The Dragons searched the globe for masters of the mystic arts who were willing to teach them. As their knowledge grew so did their power until they became more than warriors. They became beings of sheer power and persuaded by temper and purity of heart. Especially that of Sakura who only wanted to rid of the Tangu that controlled her beloved brother." Master Splinter responded as Ancient One continued.
"When they were prepared to confront the Shredder once more but this time when the Shredder attacked the Dragon's were ready until the Shredder manifested his dragon avatar. The Five Dragon's were not prepared for such as sight, however one of them had been and using her mystical knowledge Sakura helped lead the Four Shisho's into their own dragon avatars of light and purity to defeat the Shredder's. The four heroes defeated the Shredder, but though he was defeated…he could not be destroyed. His dark magic was too great."
Splinter sighed worriedly, "The Dragon's were left to deal with the question of how to stop the Shredder and as much as Sakura wanted to see her brother's safety, the love for her country was greater. Using one of the greatest magical spells Oroku Sakura knew, forfeited her own body to seal Saki's in what she hoped to be his final resting place. Since that fateful day, the Tribunal has kept a constant watch over the Shredder's helmet, gauntlet and body Sakura sealed with her magic. For if these three artifacts were together the Shredder could very well be revived since Sakura's soul was forfeited in her spell."As their master finished the story, May couldn't retreat her eyes from the sorrowful look consuming his face. She had seen Master Splinter in the toughest and stressful situations, but at this very moment was she nervous looking at his emotions.
"Wow!" Mikey gasped, "17 hundred years…that sure is a long time…"
"They knew the Shredder's evil could never truly die, and without the help of Sakura's magic they could not protect the world if Saki were to be revived." Splinter nodded slowly with a sigh. "So they began training others in their fight, Acolytes...Acolytes chosen for their potential and purity of heart. This is the ways of the Ninja Tribunal."
Leonardo rubbed his eyes trying to comprehend the story and the position he and his brother's were now placed in. Mikey and Don seemed to just be stuck in awe while Raphael seemed to cope with this stress by twirling one of his sais in his right hand. "So there was a real Shredder…" Leo started.
"And the Alien Utrom Shredder we fought was an imposter!" Donny exclaimed, "Who was just using the original name of the demon Shredder to gain respect!"
Raph nodded throwing his sai back into his belt, "And this original Shredder has some type of butt-kicking magic powers that almost destroyed the Ninja Tribunal?"
"Um," May bit her lip, "and now someone is trying to resurrect him? The only ones who even know about this story are-"
"Cute, green, and WAY the SHELL out of our league!" Mikey finished. "Any chance we can still go home?!" Master Splinter and Ancient One glared at the turtle evilly, "Nope…I didn't think so."
"Go, you all must rest. That is enough story telling for the evening…a ninja must have a well rested mind for a well rested body." The fat ninja master waved his hand for the students to retreat in which they all sighed. "You will learn more in the morning. Now go. Rest."
Crawling back onto her thin mattress, May looked back up at the wooden ceiling… annoyed and nervous of learning the truth of why she and the others were kidnapped to this place. It wasn't a helpful thought in the task of falling asleep.
The next couple of days had been disappointing for both May and Leonardo. Out of the bunch, the two had not been victorious on a single task given by the Shisho's. May was really starting to doubt herself and the fact that Don, Mikey and Raph had found friends among the other Acolytes didn't help overcome her worries. Especially Joy and Raph's relationship. It seemed that every lesson the group had, Joy was either by his side or they were saving one another from destruction. While May fought and escaped by the hair of her chin from the tasks and attacks.
Even now as the group walked down to the meditation room, May had to force herself to look away from the story Joy had been telling to him. It was apparently a funny one since in the next moment the two began to laugh. Her fists seemed to clench as their laugher echoed in her skull.
"You look tired."
May jumped from her angry stance and looked towards Furaigi. "Oh, yea…I haven't had a whole lot of sleep lately." She lied but then realized she wasn't really lying, only steering him away from what she was really thinking.
"Neither have I. I feel as if I have been failing my master."
May had to snort at that comment. "At least you've been able to pass some of the tasks. I haven't even passed one… And my master is here too…" She kicked her foot in the air briefly and then crossed her arms over the other. "I suck."
"I find that you are a brave and fearless warrior." Furaigi smiled genuinely. "I wish I had the same amount of courage you posses."
"Well thanks…" She nodded not really believing in his words. If one of the Shisho's were to say the same she might think something else. Everyone gathered around the room and sat in a circle surrounding Kan floating in the middle.
"Sit, Acolytes… while you walk on this Earth, your spirit walks in another world. What you see with your eyes is only one plane of existence. What you feel with your heart and Chi, that is the world of the spirit. With the threat of the coming evil you must be able to manifest your spirit with an avatar."
"Uhhhh, a what?" Mikey questioned as usual. His comments were going to get him into trouble- if they hadn't already- one of these days.
"A spirit avatar taps into a warrior's deepest inner being. Each of the members of the Ninja Tribunal have a dragon avatar. The dragon is the ancient symbol for wisdom and strength and it is a very rare avatar." May rolled her eyes. If it was a rare spirit to have then she definitely did not have it. "Let us see what types of avatars you all posses. Meditate and clear your minds acolytes and make your avatar's manifest."
Kon then flew away leaving the nine students looking at one another in the circle. "Ugh, more meditation…Wonderful." Raph moaned.
"Gah! Who invented this pose!?" Mikey complained after an attempt to sit up in the pose. "I think I'd meditate better lying down." Kon appeared right behind the turtle with a punch to the back of the head. "Quiet your mind to unleash your spirit!" He snapped.
Taking a deep breath and closing her eyes, May attempted to empty her mind. But the words of Kon distracted her from thinking in the spiritual world. "Tora, your avatar has become the wolf. It represents ferocity and speed. And Adam's avatar- the bear represents strength."
Shaking her head, May attempted to close her eyes and clear her mind once again in an attempt to do the same as her fellow acyolytes. Well, that was until she heard Kon congratulate a certain female. "Well done, Joy. The hawk represents fearlessness! And to you Furaigi, the lion is a symbol of honor and courage."
"Yup, well I'm feeling like a dud…" Mikey rubbed the top of his aching head with a groan. Like May, he had the same feeling of hopelessness that she shared.
"Not for long Mikey… come on and concentrate." She resumed her position while Kon continued boasting. "Clear your mind…concentrate…like you've always done before…" She thought silently when suddenly behind closed eyes, she felt a warm and glowing sensation overcoming her body. As much as she wanted to open her eyes to see her avatar, her body wouldn't respond.
For some reason, she was imagining a fierce dragon flying through the mountain tops of an unknown country. And then that one dragon turned into four. Confused but still astounded, she continued to go on with her meditation watching the four beautiful creatures float through the air. That was, until she heard a familiar voice in her head. "It has been confirmed."
"What has?" May stopped imagining the dragons and felt the warmth in her body fade from her core. "What are you talking about, Fate?!" She yelled in the shadowy depths of her mind.
"All will be told. Your fate has been confirmed."
With a startled gasp, May fell backwards not quite sure of where exactly she was in the current state. Glancing around she sighed at the familiar view of the meditation room and roll onto her stomach to look over at the others. "What did I miss?" She smiled as everyone had turned and gawked towards her.
"Leo's got a dragon Avatar…Show off." Raph muttered crossing his arms.
"Really?!" She smiled and sat up to look at her reptilian boyfriend. "That's awesome! What about me!?" Everyone gave her a confused stare. "Um, you didn't have one?" Donny was the only one brave enough to answer.
"May Gibson." Kon instructed, "Your presence as an Acolyte among the others has become questionable until now. You are to be judged in-"
"Kon!" Chikara interrupted the moment with an excited cry, "The second artifact has been found! Gather the Acolytes, we must be fast before the evil ones minions appear!"
"Yes, everyone assemble to the boat. Except for you, May Gibson." Kon looked to Chikara, Juto and Hisomi as the students rose from their positions with their weapons ready in their hands. "It seems as if our assumptions were correct. You will stay behind until you are judged tonight. Now go!"
Looking up into the Shisho's faces, May wanted nothing more than to tell them a real piece of her mind for kidnapping her and then wanting her to quit early. She glanced over to her fellow Acolytes hoping one of them would do the same. However, all she received were eight blank and nervous stares. Not even Leo or Raph were coming to her rescue this time. She turned her back towards the group with her shoulders slumped down and walked silently towards her bedroom.
"You are to be judged?" Ancient One must have heard the news through the grapevine somehow she thought opening her eyes from her mediation pose on the roof. Instead of going back to the room, she instead found a view of the sun from the rooftops to be more comforting as the sun began to set.
"Yea…guess I'm not Acolyte material…" She leaned her elbow on her knee while her cheek rested in the palm of her hand. "Sucks."
"Not always true. Being judged can mean very different things for the person." He attempted to help her feel better, but his words weren't helping. "Thanks Ancient One, but I'm really not in the mood…" She sighed, "I really thought I could release my avatar earlier. I'm mean, what is that supposed to feel like anyways when it happens?"
"Why do you ask?" His squinty eyes narrowed even more as he questioned.
"Well 'cause when I was concentrating earlier I could have sworn I felt warm… and then I had a vision. Four dragons flying around inside my head." She looked into the confused stare of the fat man, "Well I guess I'm just crazy then…but then he-" She cut off her sentence not wanting to explain Fate to Ancient One. "Kon, didn't even pass me a second glance…I guess I did it wrong."
Ancient One seemed to stroke his long beard as if he were contemplating a thought. Then he smiled, "Try it again… this time I will see if I can help." May nodded with a smile and closed her eyes once again. Deep within her chest she felt that same warmth cascading her body and limbs surrounding her core. She felt tranquil and at peace with her worries of the tribunal, her jealousy over Joy and the fear of all the unknown questions of the future.
As if her brain was like a computer, May deleted all of those worried files into the garbage and felt the weight of the world vanquish from her shoulders. The swirls in her dark and cloudy mind seemed to have a sort of control on their own and suddenly she began to see the same dragon she had seen earlier once again.
The creature roared victoriously over the shadows in her head and brought a gleaming light to her closed vision. And then suddenly the warm feeling faded and the light and dragon disappeared into the darkness of her eyelids.
With a startled gasp awake once again, May stared at the Ancient One looking for some sort of response to the madness. "Well?" She questioned.
"You have done well…your avatar is one I have never seen but have heard it is the most complicated to understand."
Smiling confidently May stood to her feet staring out into the red gleam of the sunset, "Oh yea and what type of heroic Avatar do I have then?!" Her blonde hair gently flew behind her shoulders from the slight breeze. Ancient One hadn't been quick to respond and instead began to walk away from his position alongside of the girl. "Hey? What does that mean?" She turned nervously as he continued.
"It means, you do not have one…"
Dun dun DAAAAAA! (muahahaha)