Life and Soul Reunited
by CypherCA

Well, we finally learn something about the armor. Now, this chapter and the following ones will be a little faster than the last few. Enjoy!

Chapter 11: The Barrier’s Broken

Rowen woke to the smell of eggs and sausage. He noticed that Richard was no longer in bed. <Hope he’s okay with everything.> He walked out to the kitchen and saw Rich scooping some scrambled eggs onto a plate. “Morning Rich.”

“`Bout time sleepy head. It’s almost 10:30. Hungry?” Rich said smiling.

“Um....sure. You feeling okay?” Ro took a seat at the table.

“Fine. Well, except for the.........you know.” Rich replied, suddenly very interested in the china pattern.

“Look at me Rich.” Rich slowly looked into his brother’s eyes. “You can’t ignore something like this. Now, are you okay? Honestly?”

“I’m.....I’m.....” Rich’s voice faltered. He looked into his brother’s eyes again and his voice stabilized. “I’m fine. You’re here to help me, so there’s nothing to panic about. Now, how about some breakfast.” Rich set the plates filled with food on the table and sat across from his brother.

“Okay. But after breakfast, I’m teaching you about the armors. Anubis said our time was running short, so we’re going to have to train quickly.” Rowen signaled with his hand that the statement was not open for debate and the rest of breakfast was enjoyed in silence.

“Kayura, this book about the tenth armor,” Mia said, “what did it look like? It might be in my grandfather’s library. And why wasn’t it ever translated?”

“The Ancient couldn’t translate the language, even with the Staff. I think it was too old, even for him. As for the book itself, well, it has a black cover with a symbol on it.” She drew with her finger in the air a box and two semi-circles; one flat, one on the left.

“Well, come on. Let’s see if it’s there.”

“Alright.” They headed for the library.

“Okay, it should be safe to practice here.” Rowen stated. He and Rich had walked to a clearing in the forest, Mia’s forest actually, but far from the house and the city. “Now, first you need to call your sub-armor. Eventually you’ll be able to call it by will. Until then, hold your orb and say your kanji.”

“Umm....okay.” He held the orb and yelled “SOUL!” Light from the orb enveloped his clothes, and seconds later, he emerged wearing a black and white sub-armor. He looked at himself. “Black. Well, it goes great with my complection.” He looked to his brother, now in his own sub-armor. “What now?”

“Attack me. We need to practice fighting in sub-armor, since that is what we wear for most battles.” Rowen got into a defensive stance.

“Are you sure? I’ve learned techniques you haven’t.” Rowen nodded his head yes. “Okay.” Rich rushed his brother and faked a left punch. Rowen fell for it and ended up getting a knee in the chest. He countered by jamming his elbow into Rich’s ribs. Rich walked back a step before jumping over his brother and landing thirty feet away. “Wow. This thing is a great boost.” He ran back to Ro and slid right into his shins with his foot. Ro fell over and tried to kick Rich in the shoulder. He missed and kicked Rich in the stomach. They continued to spar into the afternoon, neither noticing the passing time.

“I think I’ve found it, Kayura.” Mia said, removing a leather bound, obviously old, black book. She came down the ladder and put the book on the desk. It had a strange symbol on its front cover and on the binding shaped like the one Kayura drew in the air. Kayura placed the Staff over the cover and it reacted by glowing.

“Yes. This is it. Open it up. Let’s see if we can decipher any of it.” Mia opened the book and looked at the very worn pages. The writing was similar to Hebrew, but there was a touch of arabic, and something else about it. She continued turning the pages until she came upon a page with a picture.

“That looks like Strata.” Mia commented. Kayura nodded in agreement. “Why would a book on a mystery armor have a picture of Strata, but not the others?”

“Maybe,” Kayura said slowly, “it shows that Strata is the sibling of the mystery bearer.” Their of eyes met before both called for all of the guys. After the initial rush of crowding everyone into the library, Kayura began speaking. “Sage, are you sure Rowen has no siblings?”

“If he does, he never told me.” Before he could say any more, the sky was covered with the grey clouds that everyone was familiar with. The Ronins and Seasonals ran outside in full armor seconds before Dynasty soldiers appeared. The fight had begun.

<Uh oh. The guys are in trouble.> “Rich stop.” Rich stopped the uppercut he was about to give his brother. “The guys are in trouble. I know because the armors are connected,” he said, answering Rich’s unasked question. “I know you haven’t had much experience, but the best way to learn something is to learn on the ball.”

“Can I quote you?”

“I’m serious. We have to call on our full armors. Watch what I do and then you give it a try. Armor of Strata, Dow Inochi!” Rich watched his brother transform before giving it a shot.

“Armor of Polestar, Dow Inochi!” Rich waited for something to happen. When nothing did, Rich looked to his brother, who had a humorous twinkle in his eye. “What did I do wrong?”

“You need to call your own kanji, not mine.”

“Oh. Armor of Polestar, Dow Ki!” Rich felt power coursing through and around his body. For just a moment, it felt like he had gotten third degree burns. But it lasted only a moment, and Rich watched with interest as armor formed around his legs, arms and torso. He grabbed a handful of, what he assumed was a form of mystical cherry blossoms, and the helmet formed. He put it on and looked towards his brother, who had somewhat of a stunned look on his face. “What?”

“Um....when we find a mirror, I’ll show you.” <His armor looks like mine. Well, kinda.> “Come on.” Both ran off towards Mia’s.

“The barrier has been broken.” The two figures on the astral plane looked down at the running warriors.

“I know.”

“Is he ready?” The monk indicated with his Staff at the one in black.

“Pretty much. His brother will help him through most of what’s left. I’ll help him when it’s needed.”

“I hope they can handle this.”

“They can.” The monk faded and Polaris was left to herself. “At least, I hope they can.” She returned to watching the bearer of Polestar, prepared to help him if necessary.

Alright! The armor is finally called upon. Of course, Rowen’s description of it doesn’t do it justice. I just wrote what I thought was the first natural reaction would be in a situation like this. So, here is an armor description.

Armor of Polestar

Kanji: Soul (Ki)

Element: Plasma

Weapon: Two Jittes

Sure-kill: Plasma Storm

Enhancements: Speed (faster than other Ronin armors, but this is unknown so far by Rich)

Star Vortex Destroy-another sure-kill, left over from the Dynasty wars (see below)

Description: Polestar is a copy of Strata with some minor details-

-In stead of Blue and Gold, it is Black and Silver (respectively)

-There is no arrow or arrow pack on the back, but two jittes, crossed in an ‘X’, with the hilts facing down

History: Polestar was created from Strata for his brother to help protect the world. However, when the Ancient hid the armors, he failed to hide Polestar well enough, and Talpa was able to access its power. He soon learned, however, that he couldn’t harness the armor itself. So he created Starlight to hold the corrupted power of Polestar. When Starlight was destroyed, the powers of the armor were returned to the physical armor and it was finally delivered to its rightful bearer. Because the armor’s power can be used for either good or evil, it retained some of the corrupted power. Thus, Kayura’s ultimate sure-kill, Star Vortex Destroy, is still an option for him to use. The remaining corrupted power also increases Rich’s speed (once he learns he can) to that of Kayura’s during the Dynasty wars. Later, he learns that he can fly, like his brother, by creating gravity wells. Like the other armors, it draws power from its element. Unfortunately, plasma from a star is very rare on Earth. However, when charged with plasma, it will destabilize any form of matter it touches (like real plasma), including mystical armor. Later, when all learn how to control their element better, Rich learns that he can actually call streams of plasma from the stars, but it takes a great deal of energy and although it charges his armor temporarily, once it wears off, he is left very weak.

Weaknesses: -Plasma Storm’s strength is directly proportional to his physical and mental state. It can only be used four times at most, since it has such a large radius that it effects, and there is none of his element nearby to recharge him.

- Star Vortex Destroy drain Rich of all of his strength, and he loses consciousness the instant the attack is completed. If he is weak enough and uses this sure-kill, he can kill himself, as he learns later.

-Speed is again directly proportional to his mental and physical state.

Special: Because of the design, Polestar can only be worn by the sibling of Strata. Anyone who isn’t a sibling and tries to call upon the armor itself can receive plasma burns (as a certain Ronin learns later). Also, the kanji’s Life and Soul are related in more than one way. As long as one is on the side of good, the other can’t turn. They also allow telepathic contact and when their sure-kills are used together, it can rival Inferno. Unlike the other armors, Polestar and Strata’s power can’t hurt one another, since the bearers are related (IE: Plasma Storm, Star Vortex Destroy can’t harm Ro much, and Arrow Shock Wave can’t harm Rich much). The connection also allows for some form of physical telepathy; meaning that if Rich is severely injured, Ro will feel it, though not to the full extent Rich is. The two armors also have ties to the D’ni and the Fates, but these connections aren’t explained until Beyond Life and Soul, the sequel.