Disclaimer: Ronin Warriors are not mine. I didn’t make them up. They belong to Sunrise Animation. Also, any new characters are my creations and if anybody likes them and maybe wants to use them, please tell me. (That’s wishful thinking, I hope somebody will like them that much.)

Note: I have no idea when this takes place or how the new Emperor came about (yet). The Ronins are in the middle of a battle with a new dynasty and new warlords. I make a few assumptions you need to know, like that Ryo was an orphan and grew up in an orphanage. I can’t think of anything else right now, but I use my own interpretations of dynasty magic and their powers. Keep that in mind and everything should make sense. I’d appreciate comments if it doesn’t.

************************************************************************

Matar walked through the empty passages in the nether world. Plague was off somewhere, no doubt working on his ‘pet project’ as Desharian called it. Desharian, on the other hand, could be anywhere, although he enjoyed talking to the current inhabitants of the dungeon. Talpa’s former warlords entertained him to no end. He sat there and insulted whatever he could think of from their armor to their friends. Once, he had even started making fun of Talpa. Desharian thought of the late ruler of the dynasty as an incompetent failure. It never occurred to him that Talpa had come closer to taking the mortal world than they were ever going to. Matar knew, as did Tane, that while their master may be more powerful than Talpa, he did not have the power required to join the two worlds. Unfortunately, that was something unique to Talpa.

However, the situation was not hopeless for the new emperor. He had Matar, and Matar knew how to solve that problem. In the last battle, when Ryo of Wildfire had formed the Inferno and merged with Talpa for that short while, Wildfire had inadvertently bonded his armor with Talpa. If, afterwards, Wildfire had died and allowed his armor to simply wait for its next wearer, the mortal world would never have been threatened again. Unfortunately for the Ronins, the Jewel of Life brought their leader back safe and sound. The bond was irrevocably sealed for Ryo and all the future wearers. Matar believed that once the emperor had the Armor of Wildfire, Talpa could be resurrected. Talpa would not be a danger as the armor could easily control him through its bond. Therefore, Talpa’s power could be used to combine the two worlds and the New Emperor would reign supreme.

Matar ran over the plan over again in his mind. It had seemed flawless, until that girl had killed Wildfire. Idiot, he thought. Apparently the Emperor confided in Lady Dementia more than Matar had suspected or she would not have known the damage Wildfire’s death would do to his plan. Matar would have advised against that but even so it should not have happened. Dementia should not have been able banish that nether spirit. Someone else must have done it. Someone we didn’t know about. The emperor thought he was aware of everyone with that kind of ability. Hmm… If we weren’t aware of them then they probably didn’t realize their power either, which means he, or she, probably wouldn’t have had the skill to pull it off from a distance. This means that the person had to have been there. It couldn’t have been one of the Ronins, could it? I thought Halo was the only one with that kind of ability but Dementia sucked him dry. He didn’t have any power left. Perhaps it was the possession of his power that destroyed the spirit? Is that possible?

Matar had been walking down a long hallway. He took a few steps back and turned up a narrow staircase carved into the rock, planning to check the Emperor’s libraries. Matar was determined to know just what was going on.

* * *

Rowen was grateful for the peace and quiet. He leaned back into the pillows on his bed, rolled over, and reached for his book on the bedside table. It wasn’t there. Rowen frowned and looked around the room. He sat up. His book was still nowhere to be seen. Rowen got up grumbling. He wandered downstairs into the living room.

Kento was playing the latest version in a long line of what was essentially the same gore-o-mania game. Rowen didn’t know what it was really called, but then he didn’t care either. He walked over, picked up the remote, and muted the TV. "Hey!" Kento looked up.

"Have you seen my book?" Rowen looked around the room trying to spot it.

"No. Gimme the remote." Kento made a grab for the remote in Rowen’s hand.

"Uh-uh. Help me find my book." Rowen easily moved his hand out of Kento’s reach.

Kento glared at him. "Alright. Where’d you have it last?"

"In my room, I think."

"Well, you’re obviously wrong since it isn’t there. Duh!"

"Thanks for the help Kento," Rowen muttered sarcastically.

"Come on. Think, Einstein."

"Yesterday…"

"You haven’t read your book for a whole day? Weird."

Rowen ignored him. "Yesterday when Yulie came down…the kitchen!" He dropped the remote and bolted for the kitchen. Kento just shook his head and reached for his remote. Rowen came back in with his book. "Thanks Ken-"

"TAKE ONE DOWN, PASS IT AROUND, 49 BOTTLES OF BEER ON THE WALL!" Yulie burst through the door singing. Cye came in also singing although he hadn’t quite reached Yulie’s unique level of enthusiasm.

"Hey, Ro, Sage wants to talk to you."

"Why?"

"Don’t ask me." Cye was slightly annoyed.

Rowen shrugged, "Where is he?"

Sage walked in and hit Rowen on the shoulder. "I need to talk to you." He walked up stairs. At the top he turned to Rowen, "Coming?"

"Uh, yeah, sure." Rowen shrugged again and followed Sage.

Rowen followed him into the room they shared. "Okay, sit down." Sage said. "Cye’s been having some weird dreams lately."

"And you need me why?"

"Well, at first I agreed with Cye that they were useless. He keeps dreaming episodes from a little girl’s life. She’s about four or five. Lives at an orphanage. I thought I might have recognized one of the kids."

"Again I come in where? You think I would know him?"

Sage nodded. "Sit still. I’m going to show you what he looked like. He’s six right now, but Cye said he’d tell me if he gets older." Sage reached over and touched Rowen’s forehead. A picture of a playground came up in front of his eyes. I don’t recognize this.

Oh, okay. You don’t have to tell me twice. Finally he could see two boys across the playground.

Him. Sage directed Rowen’s attention to the shorter boy.

Let me know when you find out. Rowen thought sarcastically as Sage withdrew from his mind. Sage blinked.

"I don’t get it," he said.

"Me neither. Let’s go downstairs. Maybe Cye or Kento will have an idea." Rowen left the room with Sage close behind.

* * *

Kento stopped his video game to watch Sage go up the stairs. Rowen quickly followed after him. "Cye, what was that about?" he asked.

"I don’t know, he was being very difficult. I think he did it on purpose." Cye made a face.

"Huh?"

"Well, he said he hadn’t figured out anything and then he’d say ‘unless’ and then tell me it was nothing again. Now he’s upstairs talking to Rowen about ‘nothing’."

Kento turned completely around on the couch. "Ah, forget it. You’re just stressed out." He grinned. "But you know how calming cooking can be."

Yulie tugged on Cye’s sleeve. "Yeah Cye, make some cookies, please?"

"Help, it’s Kento jr.!"

"Pleeeeeeeeaaaaaaassseeee, Cye?" Two pairs of eyes begged him to say yes.

He threw up his hands in defeat. "Alright, alright, but you have to do the dishes."

Kento had an injured expression on his face. "Don’t I always?"

"No."

Yulie laughed and ran for the kitchen door. "I get to help with the cookie dough!"

"I don’t think so. I remember last time. I don’t want anybody eating it all before it’s cooked this time."

"But Cye…"

"Out of my kitchen!"

Yulie wandered back to sit next to Kento. He looked up at him. "Can I play?"

"Maybe."

"Please?"

"Whatcha gonna do for me?"

Yulie thought for a few seconds. "I know what Sage is talking about."

"So?"

Yulie thought some more. "I know why Cye’s been having trouble sleepin’."

Kento paused his game and turned to the little kid. "Okay, cough it up."

Yulie shook his head and reached for the controller in Kento’s hand. "Lemme play."

"Nuh-uh. Cough it up."

"Same reason Sage is talkin’ to Rowen." Yulie really wanted to play. Kento deftly grabbed the remote and turned off the TV.

"Doesn’t tell me anything. Keep coughing it up." Kento waved the game’s controller in front of Yulie’s face.

"Cye’s been dreaming he was a four-year-old girl. Now, gimme!" Yulie grabbed the controller as Kento paused, startled.

"A girl?"

"Uh huh. Sage said somebody’s memories or something."

"Oh." Kento got up and headed for the kitchen door.

Cye looked up as Kento entered. He had gotten out all the ingredients and was mixing something in a small bowl. Cye put the bowl down. "No food Kento. Not before it’s done."

"Not hungry."

"What?" Cye was confused.

"I hear you haven’t been sleeping very well."

Cye frowned. "I’m fine."

"What about these dreams?" Kento was getting pissed.

Cye looked embarrassed. "It’s nothing, Kento."

"Nothing? Nothing that you needed to talk to Sage about right?"

"He’s one of my best friends Kento."

"What about me?" Kento was almost yelling.

"Yeah, I know…" Cye was really becoming unintelligible.

"Know what? That my best friend in all the world can’t talk to me about his problems but he can talk to the flirt?" This time he was definitely shouting.

"Kento…I just didn’t want you to make fun of me." Cye was embarrassed to have to admit that to Kento. It almost felt like betrayal to doubt him.

"Jeez, Cye if I knew it was important you know I wouldn’t do that. Come on you’re the one that teases me."

Cye turned and looked Kento in the eye. He was a little angry now too. "Kento, look at me and tell me that if I told you I dreamt I was a girl you wouldn’t poke fun at me. Not even a bit. How long would it take me to convince you it really bothered me?"

Kento was taken a back "Well, Cye...uh…maybe a bit…."

"Exactly," Cye cut him off. " So when I say it’s easier for me to talk to Sage, wisdom, the healer, then don’t get offended because maybe there’s a reason." Cye was getting quieter as he went on but no less serious.

Kento decided to defend himself one last time. "So you’re telling me Sage didn’t ‘poke fun’ at you, at all?"

Cye got even angrier but then he actually remembered his conversation with Sage. Suddenly he grinned, "Well, maybe a bit, but you know Sage, if he makes a joke, half the time it’s so obscure nobody notices but him."

Kento tried to laugh. "Listen, Cye, I’m sorry, but just know that you can always tell me. If I’m being too mean just, I dunno, kick me or something," he suggested sheepishly.

"Can do."

"But, Cye?"

"Huh?" he asked suspiciously.

"Can you please tell me what this is all about?"

"I’ve apparently been dreaming some girl’s memories, and Sage is upstairs making sure of something. Don’t ask me what. He wouldn’t tell me. I think he was taking some sort of revenge because I took so long to tell him." Cye shrugged. "Now, outta my kitchen!"

"Sheesh!" Kento did his best to hurry out of the room. He was relieved that Cye was okay, but he it still stung that Cye couldn’t trust him, especially since Cye might be right. Well, I’ll just make sure he’s not, Kento promised himself.

************************************************************************

Not much happened in this chapter by way of advancing the plot (::imitates Brian’s whiny voice:: character development...ewwwwwwwwwww…) but I like interaction between the people better than any battle scene. Don’t expect too much action out of this story. If that’s what you you’ll have to skip ahead, but I haven’t even written that yet. Oh well. Alright, alright. So YOU all knew who that stupid kid was. YOU all knew that the dreams were important. (Why else would I put them in there?) But THEY didn’t. So if you’re pissed that I kept stating the obvious, deal with it cuz it was necessary. Anyway, hope you enjoyed it. =0.0= (my new favorite face, tiger ^_^) Second longest Chapter by the way, so far. 9 ½ pages, yipeeeeee. Wait, I was wrong…more like 6 ½. Oops. Heh heh heh I just had a great idea! Hee hee. This should be interesting. Very interesting. ::rubs hands together and chuckles evilly:: Buh bye now. (Note from future self: I swear I don’t remember what’s so funny anymore. Maybe Matar n Mia? Hmm…Also if you as "aC" with weird little marks on them it’s supposed to be dot dot dot… but whatever web thingy screwed it up.)

Chapter Five
Home
Fan Fic Palace

Hosted by www.Geocities.ws