The next morning I was awakened by a gentle shaking. I looked up at Rowen and then sat up
startled, I was back in my hut. "How I did I get here?" I wondered aloud.
     "Probably the Ancient," Rowen said and then he smiled. He lifted up his hand and showed me the
bucket of eggs he carried. "It's time to wake up the others . . . you never wake up in time so I decided to
skip you and have you help me get the others."
     "How so?" I asked stretching.
     "Well, I'm starting with Ryo, to see how he handles himself. Then after the other two, I'll send the
three of them inside to get you . . . and me and you can get them from behind . . .including Mr. Torrent."
     "That's not fair, but hey . . . I'm game!" I walked with him to the door but then stopped. "Wait.
What's the chance of Wildfire even waking up? None of us did for over a week."
     "The Ancient told me that with the Circle completed, he may just feed off our armors' strength until
he gets on his feet."
     "Oh great, he's a leech, too!"
     Rowen just shook his head and pointed to some nearby bushes. "Make yourself scarce, Hardrock.
I'll bring the lambs to the slaughter."
     I smiled and hid myself. I watched him walk over to Wildfire's hut. He took a couple of eggs out of
the basket and then walked in the door. "Well, I hope Wildfire likes his eggs scrambled," I said with a
smile. The next second the grin left my face as one angry red armored Ronin knocked Rowen out the
door. Rowen did some fast explaining and then the two of them walked over to Sage's hut. Blondie was
ready for them, but so was Wildfire. He launched himself over Sage and landed on the roof of the small
building. Then he dropped the white bomb into the mane of Halo. Sage looked up shocked and then
smiled as he shook the slime off . . . all over Rowen. Wildfire's confidence built and he went after Sai
before the others were even ready. Sai had never been hit with an egg, fruit, rock, or whatever we decided
to use. However, when he exited the hut with the others a few minutes later, telltale slime ran down one
cheek. "Damn . . ." I muttered and then joined Rowen and the other two when they sent Wildfire into my
hutch alone.
     I quickly grabbed a couple of oval missiles for myself and waited for Wildfire. As he walked out the
door, Rowen called out, "Get him!" We all launched our torpedoes at once. Not a single one found
Wildfire. The next second something struck my chest. I looked down to watch the yellow of the yolk slide
down. "Where's he getting the eggs?" I wondered aloud.
     "He's catching ours," Sai cried as he ducked under a missile and grabbed some more ammo.
     "Impossible," I said taking another egg in the shoulder. But it was true, Wildfire was catching what
eggs he could and then tossing them back at us. The spark inside me ignited when I caught one in the side
of the face. I grabbed a handful and began to throw one after another. We kept up the exchange until all
of the eggs were gone. Wildfire stepped out of the shadows laughing, his armor was unmarked. I gripped
the last egg I had in my hand and waited. As the others turned to go get cleaned up, I stood still and
watched Wildfire. "This isn't over yet," I said through clenched teeth. He raised an eyebrow and waited. I
went to join the others then turned quickly to throw the egg with all my power at his gloating face. He
reached up and grabbed the missile inches from his face. "Well, at least he'll have an egg-coated gauntlet,"
I thought smugly. Then I watched as he opened his fist to drop the unbroken egg to the ground and
walked away.
     Later when we were eating breakfast, Rowen asked Wildfire where he was from. "I come from a
small farming village at the base of the Himalayan Mountains."
     "Oh great," I moaned, "a farmer . . . humph!"
     Wildfire turned and glared at me. But before he could retaliate, the Ancient spoke. "Your tiger,
White Blaze, also comes from that region."
     "His tiger . . . since when?" I asked.
     "White Blaze will help protect Wildfire in the upcoming battles," the Ancient said. Then he stood.
"Come, there is much you all must do yet."
     We walked outside and found an array of weapons laid out. Wildfire walked over and cautiously
picked up one of the larger swords. "Careful farmer, that sword isn't a play thing," I said walking up to
select a long iron lance.
     "You're right, Kento," Wildfire said as he grabbed the blade of the weapon. "Now which of the ends
of this thing do you hold on to?" Then he looked over at the Ancient and asked, "Teacher, the armor I
saw had twin blades. I've never tried to fight before with double swords, may I?"
     The Ancient nodded and Wildfire picked up a second blade. He twirled the blades around and then
looked over at me crossing the blades in front of himself. I attacked. He caught the lance in the cross of
his swords and jerked it and me over his shoulder. I crashed to the ground and tried again. He jumped
over my lunge and ended up behind me as my lance buried into the tree. The blade was stuck so I
abandoned my weapon and went after Wildfire without one. Wildfire buried the blades of his swords into
the ground and joined me unarmed. The next moment I found myself on my back and Wildfire's fist
headed for my face. It was stopped inches above my nose, by an emerald armor-covered gauntlet.
     "Easy, Ryo," Sage said. "We never go for the face. The armor can absorb most of the other blows."
     The rest of the morning exercises went just as well. Whatever we could dish out, Wildfire could
counter and return it ten times worse. He was a force to be reckoned with or so it seemed. At times
though, another Wildfire would come out, one that was weaker and that one really bothered me. The first
time that one made an appearance was at lunch that initial day. We were sitting at the table eating lunch
when Wildfire pushed his plate away after the first couple of bites.
     "Eat, Wildfire," the Ancient instructed. "You must keep up your strength."
     "I'm not hungry." The teen in red started to stand.
     "We dine as a group," the Ancient said, stopping the teen. "You do not have to eat but you must stay
until we are all finished."
     Wildfire flopped back down and crossed his arms at his chest. "Maybe we should have Rowen feed
you," I said with a smile. Sage and Sai both looked over at me shocked. Wildfire looked over at Rowen
with a questioning look on his face.
     "When you were sick, I was the only one who could get you to eat anything," Rowen explained.
     I reached over and grabbed Wildfire's untouched plate. "Well, no use for good food going to waste."
     We finished the meal in silence. As I stacked my plates, Sai touched my shoulder. When I looked at
him, he pointed. I followed his gaze and smiled. Wildfire was out cold, asleep leaned against the wall. The
Ancient told us to get up quietly and leave the sleeping teen alone. But the minute Rowen pushed away
from the table, Wildfire woke up with a start, fully alert. We had to put up with his little catnaps for the
next three days. Anytime we sat still for more then five minutes we would lose Wildfire. In class you
could almost set your watch with him. He would no sooner sit down in front of the Ancient and he would
fall asleep. What made me angry was the Ancient tolerated such behavior. Anytime Wildfire fell asleep the
Ancient would just continue on with whatever he was doing.
     During class on the second day, I asked the Ancient why he let Wildfire sleep through class time,
mealtime, and whenever else he had five minutes to relax. "Unlike you four, Ryo of the Wildfire has not
had time to adjust to his armor," the Ancient answered. "It is very probable he will not complete his
training before you are called to protect the mortal world. You must promise me now that you will protect
and guide him. He will have many questions."
     "You say that like you're not going to be around to answer them yourself," Rowen said.
     "I will not, my battle is elsewhere. I will assist you when I can."
     Just then Wildfire jerked awake. He looked around and asked, "Did I miss anything?"
     "Not anything important," Rowen said, "but I'll let you look over my notes."
     Later that day when we went our separate ways to get in touch with the spirit of our armor, I
reflected on what the Ancient had said. Not only did we have to save the mortal world, but we also had to
protect our great leader too. The situation between Wildfire and me got worse with each passing day. It
was just one of those things . . . no matter what we each did, it always ticked the other one off. It all came
to a head the following day. We were in class after a hectic morning and the Ancient was describing the
powers of our armors. When he had finished, I heard the smart comment Wildfire made about wanting
me six feet underground. I had also been thinking along the same lines . . . something about Wildfire and a
can of gasoline.
     The Ancient interrupted my daydreaming and ordered us all outside. The Ancient instructed us to
show Wildfire the drill we did for trust and then appointed me in the catcher position, because I was the
best. We had done this exercise before, it was fairly simple. One warrior would run toward the catcher,
the runner would place his foot into the cupped hands of the catcher and then allow himself to be
launched into the air by the other. Then the runner would usually do a simple flip and land in a handstand
on top of the catcher's upraised hands.
     Sage went first. He was followed by Sai and Rowen. All three pulled it off with no problem and then
it was Wildfire's turn. "We can do this," I thought bending down to cup my hands. I nodded and the
dark-haired teen took off toward me. He planted his foot into my hands and I tossed him into the air. I
looked up to watch as he did a simple back flip and then began his descent. Everything was going fine
until the last second, I saw his eyes lose their focus. Both people involved needed to have their full
concentration and I obviously didn't have Wildfire's. He crashed into me like a load of bricks and we fell
to the ground in a heap. I pushed him off and stood up.
     "Concentrate, Wildfire . . . do it again," the Ancient told us.
     I did my part right, but the fragile line between us had broken. Wildfire missed. However, Rowen
and Sai were ready. Rowen jumped in and broke Wildfire's fall, while Sai caught me before I hit the
ground.
     "Wildfire!" I looked over at the Ancient startled. I had never heard him raise his voice. "Do you not
trust Hardrock to catch you? You've seen him catch the other three, he will do the same for you."
     "I'm sorry, Teacher, but I don't trust him."
     I jerked around and looked at Wildfire. Was he crazy? You don't second-guess the Ancient. If he
told you to do something . . . you had best do it. Then I figured it out, Wildfire couldn't do this simple
exercise. I laughed and said, "Admit it, Wildfire. You just can't do it."
     The Ancient stopped us from going at it and told Rowen to take my place. As we passed each other,
I whispered, "Good luck, don't forget to duck."
     Rowen caught Wildfire on his first try. I couldn't believe it . . . I was the best at this game. The small
spark inside ignited. "Wildfire missed on purpose," I thought. "He just wanted me to look bad . . . well, I'll
show him who's the greatest!"
     I waited as Rowen finished his turn and then it was Wildfire's time as the catcher. They sent Sai
first. He was the smallest of all of us, which isn't saying much when he's dressed in his armor. Wildfire
stumbled but steadied himself to keep Sai aloft.
     Then it was my turn. Our eyes met for a moment and I let my anger show through. Wildfire never
even flinched as he cupped his hands together. I ran forward and the next second found myself airborne. I
did a quick somersault and headed back with only one arm lowered. Sai and I had been working on this
trick for over a week, and I wanted to see how Wildfire handled it. You had to give the teen credit. He
tried and for a moment I thought he had it. The next second the support gave out and I found myself
falling. I quickly tucked and rolled, my armor absorbed the landing. I looked over at Wildfire, he was
holding onto his right shoulder grimacing. "Whoops, sorry about that Wildfire," I said, barely suppressing a
smile.
     Wildfire shot me a look of pure hatred and shouted, "Not as sorry as you're going to be!" He started
to move forward but the Ancient's voice cut him off.
     "Enough! Both of you retreat to your huts!"
     I tensed, since Wildfire looked like he was going to disregard the Ancient's order. However, in the
end, he brushed past me and headed for his hut. As I turned to follow, Sai reached over and grabbed my
arm. "Why?" was all he asked.
     I shrugged my shoulders, it was hard to put the reason into words. Behind us, there was a loud
crash. I looked over my shoulder and started to laugh. Wildfire had destroyed my hutch. "Looks like I'm
not the only one with a temper," I said. Then I asked the Ancient, "Now what?"
     "You can crash in my shack," Sage said. The Ancient nodded his consent. As I walked toward
Sage's hut, the blond teen added, "I said crash in my hut . . . not crush it, okay?" I laughed and gave a
quick wave of reassurance.
     I spent the rest of the day alone. Shortly after nightfall, the Ancient came to the hut and instructed
me to move my cot and personal items over into Wildfire's hutch. "Isn't that like putting two wild dogs
together?" I asked following him out. "Does this mean whoever survives the night continues their
training?"
     "Kento of Hardrock, you and Wildfire must learn to work together. The survival of this world
depends on all of the Ronin Warriors."
     "I know," I admitted as I started moving the broken frame of my hut off my stuff. "But Wildfire is
being so difficult."
     "Why did you deliberately injure Wildfire today at practice? What did he do to deserve that?" the
Ancient demanded.
     "I didn't mean to hurt him. I hadn't realized his shoulder wasn't healed yet. I just wanted to show
him that I was better than he was . . ."
     "This is not a game. There is no first place," scolded the Ancient as he turned away. "You have
disappointed me today, Kento of Hardrock. I thought you were better than simple revenge."
     I watched the old man walk into the night feeling about two inches tall. I finished gathering my things
and walked over to Wildfire's hut. He was asleep when I walked in. I dropped my cot and watched him sit
up startled. "Looks like me and you are roommates, Wildfire."
     Well, we started in on each other instantly. We were almost to fists when the Ancient interrupted
and told us to cool it. After the old man left, I stretched out onto my cot and turned my back on my
roomie. Then to make sure Wildfire didn't get any ideas or sleep, I warned him to sleep with one eye
open.
     The next morning before dawn, I was startled awake. Wildfire was up and moving. I tensed but he
made no move toward me and soon exited the room. I waited for a moment then followed. I shadowed
him as he and White Blaze walked through camp and then up a nearby hill, where the Ancient knelt. I
stayed back in the trees and listened as the Ancient and Wildfire talked about his shoulder.
     I caught bits and pieces of the conversation. ". . . must not suffer any more damage . . . Hardrock
did bruise . . . again . . . must be careful the armor can only heal you so much."
     I quickly backed away and headed down the hill. A horrible thought entered my mind, one that I'm
even now ashamed to admit to. "All I have to do is get Wildfire to injure his shoulder again and then he'll
be out of here," I thought. I went back to my cot and waited for the call to breakfast.
     Wildfire was not there for breakfast, or practice, or lunch. The Ancient told us he was resting,
recuperating from his injuries. The teen in red finally showed up as we were doing the same drill from the
day before. Except this time, the jumper was blindfolded. Needless to say, Wildfire took one look at me as
the catcher and refused to participate. Rowen interrupted and said he would do it.
     Wildfire placed the blindfold on. The minute his vision was cut off, Rowen gestured for me to take
his place. I smiled and moved over in front of Wildfire. Rowen stayed right behind me and called the
shots, so Wildfire was unaware of the switch. We pulled the stunt off perfectly.
     Wildfire gripped my hands while he was still in a handstand and cried, "We did it!"
     "We sure did . . . big guy," I said. Wildfire's grip shifted and I quickly adjusted my stance. "Don't
you lose it, Wildfire," I commanded. We steadied ourselves and then I pushed him away for a dismount.
As he began to fall, I tightened my fingers around his right hand. "This is where it ends, farmer," I thought
to myself as he arm began to twist.
     The falling teen froze in midair and then I was suddenly surrounded by a strange glow. The next
second the both of us were hurled up into the sky so that we hovered above the temple. I looked down, a
beam of light was coming out of the Ancient's staff and held us captive inside its field. The Ancient's voice
sounded like a whisper in my ear. "You two have failed again . . . you have left me no choice! But first
you must promise never to attack your fellow Warriors with the intent to do them harm."
     I heard Wildfire make his promise. "I'm not sure I can take that oath," I thought. Just then the field
around us contracted. "Alright," I growled. "You have my word."
     "I'm sorry it must be this way," the Ancient said.
     "What way?" I wondered. The next moment the world exploded into bright lights followed by the
darkness of sleep.