I don't own Ronin Warriors. OCs are mine.
Chapter 14
Two cars pulled into the driveway of the house and the guys got out from them.
"I'm so glad it's Friday," stated Kento, a big smile on his face.
"And that we all have the weekend to ourselves," added Rowen.
"What are we going to do over the weekend?" wondered Cye. "It's been a while since we've all been off."
"I was going to ask…" Ryo trailed off as his eyes landed on the side of the house. He saw that the ground looked shaken up, like it was forced up.
"Going to ask who? Ryo?"
Ryo walked over to the side and, as he got closer, the ground behind the house was destroyed. His heart stopped for a second as he stared at the mess.
Sage started walking over to him, wondering what he was looking at, when Ryo ran into the back. Sage ran after him for he knew something was wrong.
Ryo entered the backyard and was stunned by the destruction. He knew a battle had happened here, but he was more concerned about who won. He saw Yulie, which shocked him, who was by White Blaze. Ryo went over to them just as Sage and the others got to the backyard. They stared at the mess, also stunned.
Yulie was stroking White Blaze's back as the tiger stared at the forest. Both turned around when they heard something running towards them.
"What happened?" Ryo demanded once he got to them.
"These guys came in and fought Tiffany. It was weird because they wore the armor of the Warlords. Tiffany was winning until a woman joined and knocked out Tiffany, Kalana, and White Blaze," explained Yulie as his eyes lined with tears. "They took Tiffany with them."
Ryo's eyes widen as he took a sharp breath. No, this can't be happening.
"Where's Kalana?" asked Sage, standing next to Ryo.
"She took off into the forest when she came to."
"Probably tracking Tiffany," Rowen said, appearing next to them.
"Holy shit," muttered Kento. "Tiffany did this?"
"Yeah," Yulie answered. "I heard her say she was going to set the Warlords free before she was attacked. Before they left with Tiffany, the woman came to me and told me not to worry and that Tiffany won't bother you guys anymore."
"That bitch!" cursed Kento, turning to punch one of the earth spikes, causing it to crack in the middle and topple over.
This snapped Ryo out of his shocked state and his gaze hardened. Only one thing was on his mind. "We're going to get her back."
Tiffany slowly came to, lifting her head off the mattress. She was shocked, first off, that she was lying on a mattress and not a stone, cold floor. Also, she wasn't in a cell, but in a bedroom. Well, it wasn't really a bedroom. The floors were carpeted and the mattress she was laying on had sheets, but other than that, that was it. The room nothing compared to what she had back home, but the room she's in was simple. To her dismay, there were no windows, just one door and one mirror. Any chance of escape she needed was through that one door and Tiffany knew that it would be guarded.
"You're awake."
Tiffany quickly turned to see Asami sitting in a chair. Asami gave her a smile and then got up, slowly approaching Tiffany.
"Where am I?" asked Tiffany.
"You are in the Nether World. Karver and Malice dropped you off while they went to alert Sephiran of your "arrival." I stayed with you for I didn't trust the generals, especially Karver."
The door then opened and Karver walked in. "Finally, you're up." He walked closer to Tiffany until he was right in front of her. Tiffany glared up at him, not moving from her spot. She wasn't going to cower from him like he probably wanted her to. Karver smirked at her courage as he reached out to grab her chin. His thumb stroked her face while he stared into her eyes until they lowered to stare at her lips.
"Don't even think about," stated Tiffany.
"You don't call the shots here, sweetheart." Karver smirked at her, licking his lips.
"Karver," Asami warned.
He turned to glare at her and then released Tiffany's chin. "You don't order me around, woman."
"Remember that Sephiran doesn't want anything to happen to her."
"For now, at least. Once he gets what he wants," Karver glanced over his shoulder at Tiffany, "he'll have no use for her."
Asami moved to stand in front of Karver, blocking his view of Tiffany. "I will not allow you to touch her while I'm here. I will stay in the same room with her to make sure you don't try anything."
"You're a bothersome one." He pushed Asami out of the way, grabbing hold of Tiffany's upper arm and pulling her off the mattress. "Calm down," he said at Asami's opened mouth. "Master wanted to meet with her when she woke up."
"Let me go." Tiffany pulled her arm away from Karver's grasp, but he only tightened his hold, pulling her close to him. "I have no problem carrying you kicking and screaming." She glared at him but let him lead her out of the room with Asami close behind. They walked down the hallways and Tiffany checked her surroundings. There were no guards, no soldiers walking down the halls. No army, concluded Tiffany. Just the Master and his minions. They continued walking and soon, the doors of the throne room were visible. Tiffany prepared herself for what she was to face as the doors opened for the trio. They opened just enough for the three to walk in before closing again. Karver brought Tiffany to the front and then got down on one knee, forcing Tiffany down as well.
"Master, I've brought the girl for you."
"Very good, Karver." Tiffany raised her head and laid her eyes upon a suit of armor sitting on the throne, shrouded in darkness, its red glowing eyes staring deep into her soul. She flinched at its gaze, feeling the evil practically coming out of it. Her eyes trailed off to the side to see Mika standing with two other men. She narrowed her eyes at her and Mika did the same thing, but added a smirk which pissed off Tiffany.
"What's wrong, Temptress?" mocked Mika. "Upset that you've been beaten?"
"Mika," chastised Kai.
She glanced at him and nodded, but turned back to Tiffany, still wearing her smirk.
"What should we do to her, Master?" asked Malice.
"I have been dying to test this armor on something," added Naga, taking out his katanas.
The generals closed in around Tiffany as Karver held her in place. They brandished their weapons and they smiled at the fear creeping on Tiffany's face. Tiffany desperately looked for a way to escape, panicking when her window was getting smaller and smaller.
"Stop!" ordered Sephiran, causing the generals to halt and turn to him. "Kai, escort my generals and Mika out."
"Yes, my Lord." Kai bowed to him then gave a curt nod to the generals. They bowed before him and turned to leave. Karver pushed Tiffany away from him only to be steadied by Asami. Kai placed his hand on Mika's back and lead her out of the throne. She turned to give a puzzling look to Sephiran, wondering why he stopped them from hurting Tiffany, but at Kai's gentle shove, she turned back around and walked forward.
The doors to the room closed, leaving only Sephiran, Tiffany, and Asami. Sephiran got up from his throne and walked over to Tiffany. The further he stepped into the light, the more Tiffany got a good look at him. His armor was like the night itself was approaching and the only thing shown was a gold faceplate. No face was etched in it, not giving any emotion as to what Sephiran was feeling. He stopped before Tiffany as he stared down at her with red piercing eyes. A shiver went through Tiffany's body as she stared into the soulless eyes. It felt like all her strength went away and was replaced by fear. The cold touch of Sephiran's hands on her chin made Tiffany release a small gasp. Sephiran was silent as he stared at her. Neither of them moved, it was like they were waiting for someone to make the first move.
Asami looked back and forth between the two. The silence was unnerving her and she didn't know what was going to happen. She opened her mouth to say something but stopped when Sephiran moved his hand to Tiffany's cheek and stroked it with his thumb.
"My daughter," he mumbled. "You have your mother's eyes."
Tiffany held her breath, not daring to speak. Her body trembled and she hoped Sephiran couldn't tell that. Sephiran moved his hand from its place on her cheek to her hair, running his fingers through it. He then rested his head against Tiffany's which made the young woman flinch and squeeze her eyes shut. The cold metal against her skin took the warmth away from her body and all she could feel was the cold from the armor's touch.
Sephiran lifted his head and looked over at Asami, his eyes boring into hers. "You took her away from me."
"You wanted to use her," explained Asami, backing away a little. "I feared for her safety."
"But she's still my daughter!" Sephiran suddenly stood up and the action caused Tiffany to fall back. Asami cowered underneath his stern gaze. "I only saw her as a baby! I didn't get to see her grow up!"
"Nor did I!" Asami stood up straighter and glared back at him. She couldn't believe he was giving her this excuse. "I had to give Tiffany to my sister in fear of you! I saw her a few weeks ago and even then, it wasn't for my own interest! For twenty years, I couldn't see our daughter because I feared you would somehow escape and try to go after her!"
The two stared each other down as Tiffany watched from her spot on the floor. She watched as Sephiran raised his hand and smacked Asami across the face. Asami's head wiped to the side and she placed a hand on her burning cheek. "You do not talk back to me like that," he growled. "I am your husband."
Asami glanced at him with tear-filled eyes. "The man in front of me isn't my husband. He left a long time ago."
Sephiran glared down at her and then turned around to show her his back. He looked down at Tiffany and she got up from the floor, standing straight up and glaring at him. She moved her hand back, flexing her hand out to command the earth to come towards her. The ground slowly spiked up toward her outstretched hand like a magnet. Sephiran watched the exchange, not doing anything to stop it. Tiffany shot her hand out towards him and the earth moved towards him, forming a spike at him. Sephiran stood in his spot as he waited for the earth to get closer to him when he raised his hand and grabbed the earth. He twisted his wrist and broke off the end he was holding. Tiffany widened her eyes, shocked by this, but quickly overcame it, using her other arm to wave it in front of her, a blast of air rushing past her and over to Sephiran. The wind blew at him but he didn't move from his spot. He calmly started to walk over towards Tiffany who kept on throwing wind blasts at him to knock him off his feet. The attacks didn't faze him as he continued to walk over to her.
The closer he got, the more Tiffany got anxious and when he was close enough to touch her, Tiffany reached both hands behind her, willing the earth to come to her. Feeling pieces of the earth in her hands, Tiffany threw them at Sephiran but he crouched down, the earth whizzing past him and he ran towards Tiffany. He grabbed hold of her arm and knocked her legs from underneath her, pulling her over his shoulder and onto her back. Tiffany released a gasp of pain, dazed when she felt Sephiran holding both her arms to the ground. "Do not make me restrain you, Tiffany."
Tiffany struggled in Sephiran's grasp, kicking her feet wildly and moving her body around to try and through Sephiran's weight off her. She heard shouting but kept her focus on trying to break free. Her legs were suddenly pinned down and she thrashed even more, feeling hands grab hold of her ankle. Something snapped around it and all at once, the weight was lifted off her and Tiffany quickly jumped to her feet. She noticed that Kai was standing next to Sephiran and narrowed her eyes at them. Reaching out her hand, she commanded the earth to her but a sharp pain ran through her body and suddenly, she was on fire. It burned through her muscles and Tiffany screamed in pain and, just as quickly as it came, it dispersed and Tiffany collapsed to the ground again. Panting, she glanced at her legs to find a metal bracelet locked around her ankle.
"I didn't want to do this, Tiffany," started Sephiran. "But you left me no choice."
"This device will send an electric shock whenever you try to use your power," explained Kai. "You are powerless here, Priestess."
"I may be powerless, but I can still fight. You can't keep me here."
"You really think you can pass through our generals?" Kai laughed at her bold statement and walked over to her, crouching in front of her. "My dear girl, with no powers, you can't escape us."
"You only have four generals and no guards. How do you plan to keep me here with no forces to stop me?"
"I may not have an army now," started Sephiran, walking over to the two. "But I will soon. That's why I need you."
Tiffany shifted away, eyeing him suspiciously. "Whatever you have planned, I will not be a part of it."
"It doesn't matter." Sephiran walked past her. "You will do what I say." He glanced back at her. "Or there will be consequences."
Tiffany swallowed the lump in her throat. While there was the nervous feeling she had about what the consequences were, she was determined to not let that bother her. "I don't care if you are my father. I will not be some servant and obey my master's wishes." Something hit her back which made her fall to the floor.
"You respect Lord Sephiran you ungrateful child!" scolded Kai.
"Do not touch her!" roared Sephiran turning to him. His red eyes burned brightly into Kai's. "Send a message to the generals. No one is allowed to hurt or touch her. Anyone that does will answer to me."
Kai bowed before him. "Yes, my Lord. Should I deliver the same message to Mika?"
"Yes." Sephiran turned to Asami. "Take our daughter back to her room and give her proper clothing. I will not see my daughter in those disgusting rags."
Tiffany turned to yell at him but stopped at Asami's appearance. A black eye was forming on her right eye while a bruise was forming on her cheek where Sephiran hit her. Asami nodded and quickly walked over to her, helping Tiffany up from the ground. The two walked out of the throne room and back towards the room. Keeping her gaze set in front of her, Asami whispered out, "I'm so sorry, sweetie. I never wanted this to happen." Tiffany squeezed Asami's hand, letting her know she understood. As much as Tiffany hated to admit it, she was trapped and under the watchful eye of her tyrant father.
Kayura was busy doing her laundry outside the house, humming a soft tune as she worked. A howl ripped through the air that made Kayura stop her actions and turned to see Kalana racing towards her. Not seeing Tiffany on the wolf's back made Kayura's blood run cold and she dropped the shirt she was holding, not caring if it got dirty again. Kayura met Kalana halfway and knelt before her, holding the wolf's head in her hands. "Where's Tiffany?" Kalana whined in response and Kayura instantly knew something had happened. She hurried back to the house with Kalana at her heels, barging inside.
Mizuki looked up from her book, giving Kayura a questioning look. Before she could speak, Kayura said, "Something happened to Tiffany. Where's Dad?"
"I'm here," Hayate replied, walking into the room. "What happened?"
"I don't know, but call all the villagers back to their homes. We need to disappear."
He nodded and hurried out the front door. The ringing of bells soon sounded and voices could be heard out in the open.
"Kayura, what is going on," demanded Mizuki.
"We need to be safe." Kayura came back out holding the staff of the ancients. "From what Tiffany told me, I think her father is back."
Mizuki froze. "He wouldn't…"
Kayura brought Mizuki into a hug. "We will get Tiffany back but we need to protect our people." She hurried out of the house and into the center of the village, lifting the staff into the air. It started glowing and Kayura closed her eyes, the wind blowing around her, lifting her hair in the air and ruffling her clothes. Electricity danced around her and she leaned her head back, opening her eyes to look at the sky above her. Kaos, protect our village. She brought the staff to the ground, piercing it. Light exploded from the staff and it expanded over the village, creating a gold dome over the area. The dome hovered over for a few moments when a bright flash of light happened and the dome exploded. The village that was once there was now gone, hidden from view.