I don't own Ronin Warriors. All OCs are mine.
Chapter 20
Asami walked through the halls of the castle, her head lowered as she kept her eyes focused on the ground as she was walking. Her footsteps echoed throughout the halls and, when she reached the dungeon, she stopped to glance out of a small window which overlooked the courtyard. What was once barren was now filled with soldiers marching around, pushing the kidnapped people of the city to their destination. Asami placed a hand on the windowsill, releasing a loud sigh at the sight in front of her. If she had been braver, would all of this have been avoided?
A scream ripped through the air which sent a chill down Asami's spine. Asami turned around and set her eyes on the door. She opened it and walked through the dungeon, the screams getting louder and turning into wailed cries. Stopping in front of the door, she jiggled the handle only to find it was locked. The screams stopped and labored breathing along with whimpers came from behind the door.
"Whoever is there, go away," came Karver's voice. "I'm busy."
Asami's heart stopped when the screams started again. She started banging on the door, trying to break it down. "Stop!" Asami screamed as her daughter's cries stabbed her heart. "You're killing her!"
"Go away, wrench! I know what I'm doing."
The screams persisted and Asami stared at the door in horror, wondering what tortures Karver was doing to Tiffany. When the screams increased in intensity, Asami turned around and ran out of the dungeon, slamming the door to the dungeon shut behind her. She leaned against the door and her body trembled, not in sadness or fear but in rage. Tears threatened to stream down her face but ignoring all of it, Asami pushed herself off the door and started running towards the throne room. She didn't care if she got in trouble for entering her husband's chambers without permission, but she wasn't going to stand by and ignore the fact her daughter was being tortured.
Bursting through the doors of the throne room, Sephiran and Kai turned their attention away from each other, shock and anger present on their faces.
"Asami, what-"
"You need to stop Karver," Asami stated, interrupting what Sephiran was going to say.
Sephiran narrowed his eyes at her. "Why should I? Tiffany was being disrespectful and she needs to learn her place in my kingdom."
"By killing her?! If Karver continues to torture Tiffany, she'll die from everything she's endured! Do you not see what you've done?!"
"Silence, wench!" scolded Kai, glaring at the woman. "You do not question the actions of my Lord!"
Sephiran held up a hand to him, silencing whatever else Kai had to say to Asami. "Go to Karver and tell him I wish to speak with him. I will let him know how to take...better care of our daughter." Kai glanced over at Sephiran in shock, surprised by his Lord's sudden change of heart.
Asami relaxed, a smile spreading across her face. "Yes, thank you." She left the room and Sephiran waited to speak with Kai until the doors were closed. "Send word to Naga and Fuzen and tell them to come back to the castle."
"What about the Priestess, my Lord?"
Sephiran looked at him, a smile spreading across his face. "For now, let's give her a little break."
Kai bowed. "Yes, my Lord."
Naga and Fuzen walked around the city with an army of soldiers marching behind them. They had nabbed most of the people in the city but were making rounds to be sure there weren't any survivors hiding throughout the city.
Naga turned to Fuzen after an hour of walking. "Don't you think we have enough people?"
"Getting bored, Naga?" Fuzen glanced over at him and smirked when Naga looked away. "No." Fuzen chuckled. "We'll do one more patrol and then head back."
The army continued their march around the city, eyes alert for anything that might pop out at them or any sounds they might hear. As they walked closer to where the mall would be, the army walked through a street with stores on both sides.
Naga walked near the stores when he heard something fall in one of them. He walked closer and heard the distant sounds of whimpers. Smiling at his discovery, he signaled Fuzen over and waited till his comrade was over before bursting down the door. Screams of panic were heard and Naga smiled at the family of four huddling in the corner. An older woman held two young children while a man stood in front of them. "Stay away," declared the man but Naga detected a hint of fear in his voice. Naga walked up to the man and backhanded him across the face, sending the man flying into the wall.
"Akio!" the woman cried out and Naga turned to her and was surprised when she pushed her children behind her, glaring at the general. "Leave us alone, you demon!"
"My, my, what a temper. Don't worry, you'll be with your children. Your husband…" Naga trailed off and nodded to Fuzen and the general ordered the soldiers to grab hold of the unconscious man in the wall. "Will be serving your new ruler." Soldiers came over to the three and grabbed hold of the woman and her children.
"Someone will stop you," spat the woman as she was dragged out of the store. "You will pay for what you've done!"
"Who's going to stop us?" Naga laughed at this woman's antics then gestured to the soldiers. "Take them back to the castle."
Before the soldiers could follow his order, arrows rained down on them, killing some of the soldiers and freeing the family. Two roars ripped through the air as Kalana and White Blaze came charging in, pouncing on the frozen army.
"Attack, you idiots!" exclaimed Fuzen, brandishing his weapon.
"Thunder Bolt Cut!" A wave of light slammed into the general, sending him flying back. Naga started taking out his katanas when he heard rustling behind him. "Super Wave Smasher!" A column of water slammed into his back and could do nothing as a building rapidly approached him. The building crumbled underneath the force of the sure-kill and Cye hurried over to the family. "Is everyone alright?"
The woman nodded then gestured over to a man. "My husband."
Cye glanced over at him before slightly nodding. "We'll help him, but you have to get out of here." He gathered her and her children and lead them over to White Blaze.
"Wait, my husband-"
"We have to get you and your children to safety first." Cye stared into the woman's eyes, trying to convey to her the urgency of the situation. The woman stared at him then glanced back over at her husband.
"We'll get him, I promise, but you need to go."
The woman nodded. "Ok."
"What about daddy?" her youngest asked, tears welling in the child's eyes.
"Daddy will join us soon." She smiled at her child. "I promise."
Cye turned around and met Rowen's gaze, giving each other a nod. "Let's go." Cye took off with White Blaze and Rowen followed close behind.
Naga watched them go and narrowed his eyes, taking out his katanas to follow them, but Kento jumped in his way. "No, you don't. You're staying here."
"Get out of my way, boy," Naga spat, charging at him. Kento blocked his attack with his naginata, pushing the general back. Kento spun his weapon and pointed it at Naga. "You're not getting them."
"Like how I got your little friend." Naga grinned when Kento's face displayed anger, knowing he had hit a soft spot. But he needed to press harder for as he glanced around, their army was slowly dwindling and Fuzen was battling Ryo and Sage. It wouldn't be long until there were only the two generals left against three warriors. Glancing back at Kento, he said, "Give a message to your friends. Tell them the Priestess is getting very comfortable with Karver."
Kento froze and Naga used this opportunity to strike, knocking him back. He started going after the people that got away when Kai's voice rang through his head. "Naga, Fuzen, Lord Sephiran demands you return to the castle." Naga looked back at Fuzen and watched as he was able to get away from the two warriors. The two then vanished, returning to their master.
Sage hurried over to the man on the ground and checked his pulse.
"How is he?" Ryo asked once he got over to them.
"He's alive but unconscious." Sage glanced up at Ryo. "We should take him to Iris."
"I got him," Kento replied, hosting the man over his shoulder. Ryo stared at his friend, noticing he looked like he had seen a ghost. "You ok?"
Kento contemplated telling Ryo what Naga had said, but he didn't know if Naga was telling the truth. But he knew, in his gut, that Naga wasn't lying just to get Kento's attention off the general. While that might have been his plan, Kento could tell that wasn't the case. But if Ryo knew what was happening with Tiffany, Kento knew Ryo would start blaming himself or possibly explode in anger.
"I'm fine. We should probably go. That family is waiting for him." Kento started walking back to the direction of the mall.
Ryo and Sage shared a look, knowing their friend was hiding something, but they decided to let it go and follow Kento back to their place of sanctuary.
Karver marched to the throne and his face displayed irritation. It hadn't been that long since he had the Priestess and he was already called back to his master. Whatever it was, it had better be good.
He pushed open the doors to the room, the doors banging against the wall. Fuzen and Naga turned to him, shocking Karver. "Aren't you supposed to be in the city?" He asked as he slowly walked over to stand beside them.
"Master Sephiran called us here," answered Naga. "And just in time. The Ronins had ambushed us."
"What?!" Kai's voice rang. "How did they get in the city?!"
"Or maybe they never left." Eyes turned to Sephiran. "Remember, my daughter sent them out. She could have put them in a place we don't know of."
Karver bowed before Sephiran. "Master, give me a little more time. I'm sure I can have the Priestess-"
"No."
Karver froze then slowly lifted his head to look at his master. "No?"
"Karver, we're going to try other methods for my daughter." Sephiran turned to Fuzen and Naga. "With your added efforts, I think she will break faster instead of only having one person. You saw the fire in her eyes and Karver," Sephiran looked back at him. "You know it would have taken you longer to break her than your normal victims."
"I…I understand, Master."
"What would you have us do?" Fuzen asked.
"Use the powers of your armors and give her a taste of what happens if she doesn't submit. Leave her to suffer alone for a few days and see if she submits if you have to."
The three generals turned each other, smiling at the thought of all three of them torturing the Priestess.
"We'll have a lot of fun with her, Master. We promise we'll have her submitting to you after we're done with her."
Sephiran nodded. "Just make sure she doesn't make a lot of noise. I don't want Asami coming back in here and pleading for my daughter's life again." They nodded in understanding and then he waved his hand, signaling to them to leave his presence. The generals bowed before Sephiran then turned around to leave the room. Karver led the way to the dungeon where he kept Tiffany and when he opened the door, he stepped aside to let Fuzen and Naga look at her.
Tiffany hung from the chains around her wrists, her head laying against her chest. Various cuts lined her body as blood ran from her wounds, creating a pool underneath her feet where the blood dripped from. The kimono she used to wear was almost torn to shreds, the garment hanging from her body. Tiffany slowly raised her head, her eyes narrowed at the presence of the generals.
"You made quick work, Karver," praised Fuzen, walking into the room. "I'm impressed."
"She was in your hold for what? An hour?" Naga asked, turning to look back at him as he stood in front of Tiffany.
"More or less. I only got to use two of my toys before I was called away."
Fuzen whistled in approval and walked around Tiffany, stopping to stare at her mutilated back. Angry, deep wounds covered her back, but with all the blood seeping down her back, he couldn't tell if her whole back was ripped to shreds or if some wounds were bleeding heavily. "What else should we do to you?" he muttered, laying his hand on Tiffany's shoulder which made the young woman flinch.
Naga stared at Tiffany when an idea came to him. He motioned for his comrades to come closer and the two huddled around him as he laid out his plan to them. Tiffany stared at them while she tried to calm her trembling heart. What were they going to her? What torture would they inflict upon her?
Chuckles escaped from the men and then turned to her with wide smiles on their faces. Naga walked towards Tiffany as Karver and Fuzen parted for him. "I think you should know, Priestess, that your friends are in the city. We don't know how they got in the city nor do we know where they are. So, it'll make it easier for all of us to tell us where you sent them."
Tiffany lifted her head, meeting his gaze as she said, with a little difficulty, "I'm not telling you anything."
Fuzen and Karver looked at each other and Karver walked over to the still open door as Fuzen moved to stand behind her. Naga only smiled as he reached behind him to take out a katana and the blade gleamed at her, reddish-purple liquid forming at the tip. He walked towards her as Karver slowly closed the door.
Tiffany was submerged in darkness again as Fuzen grabbed her hair, forcing her head back as she felt the tip of the blade lightly graze her throat before it trailed over to one of her wounds. The tip of the blade was inserted into the wound and pain exploded in her shoulder as Tiffany screamed in pain. Something was shoved into her mouth and tears welled in her eyes as she was forced to suffer the amount of venom running through her body. She felt the sword in another one of her wounds and an image of a snake biting into her flesh ran through her mind. She could feel the snake slither over her body and coiling around her limbs.
"Where are the Ronins?" Karver demanded.
Tiffany shook her head and pain exploded in her hip, making her release a muffled scream. Tears ran down her face as more venom pumped into her system. The chains jerked at her movements to get away, but they wouldn't budge. This continued for who knows how long. Karver demanding where her friends were and then more venom inserted into her body when she didn't answer. Her body burned and Tiffany thought her body was on fire at one point.
Suddenly, everything stopped when she felt a pain surge up her body and out through her wounds the venom was inserted. Tiffany threw her head back, screaming in pain, as the generals laughed at her.
The pain left her body and Tiffany breathed heavily, trying to catch her breath despite the gag in her mouth. The gag was removed and she let it a huge gasp of air, releasing short bursts of air afterward.
"Are you going to tell us where the Ronins are?" Karver asked from somewhere in the darkness.
"I don't know where they are," answered Tiffany, her voice shaky. Something entered her side and then a punch was thrown at her face.
"Don't lie to us," growled Fuzen. "You were the one that transported them away."
"I don't know where they would end up." Tiffany was silent, only quiet breaths were heard from her as she waited for the generals to do something in the darkness. She heard shuffling around her and knew they were in front of her. A hand was placed underneath her chin, lifting her head up. "You're such a good girl, telling us this information," purred Karver as his lips pressed against hers. Tiffany squeezed her eyes shut as she fought herself not to gag at his touch. "Now, submit to Master Sephiran."
"I'll do no such thing."
Karver chuckled as he kissed her again. "Wrong answer, sweetheart." The gag was forced back into Tiffany's mouth and something pricked the side of her neck. Pain swelled through her body, not like the last pain she experienced but enough to cause discomfort. Shuffling was heard again and the door opened, the light blinding Tiffany a bit. Karver and Fuzen left the room but Naga stayed behind, standing in the doorway. He turned to her and gave her a cruel smile.
"I think a few days alone with venom in your system will change your mind." He laughed at the expression on Tiffany's face. "It won't kill you, but more like you've been stung and the pain will never go away. The pain will increase as time goes on, but I'll make sure to come back before you die from it." Naga stepped into the hallway, slowly closing the door behind him. He left it cracked open before saying, "After all, Master Sephiran still wants your powers." He closed the door, locking it up, leaving Tiffany to suffer in the dark, alone.