Disclaimer: I think you can guess.
Note: This story takes place about one year after Talpa's defeat. Due to instances of graphic violence, language, and sexual innuendos, I'm rating it PG13, so don't say I didn't warn ya.

Mia studied the tomes spread over the couch and open in her lap fervently, the warm light of midevening casting shadows across the room while washing her and the books in golden-orange shafts of light. Her mind was so engrossed in her reading that she nearly forgot about the eighteen warriors and trans-dimensional travellers laying all over the room in gentle slumber. Nearly an hour had already passed since they had all been participants in a ritual performed to drag eight of the beautiful dreamers into this realm.

Randi was the first to awaken from her long nap. She felt weak, her head heavy with migraine and her heart feeling lighter than she thought it should. She opened her eyes to a sudden brightness and covered them quickly to avoid being truly blinded. "Rowen?" she squeaked. She felt a hand take hers.

"You okay, Randi?" he asked concernedly. His head was throbbing, but it wasn't the result of the ritual. He could almost faintly hear Cat's words, though they sounded muddled, almost as if he and her were barely linked. And worse yet, it sounded like she was fighting someone.

Oh, man. Please don't tell me that I can hear her, too. I can't take this anymore! I've got to get out of here!

"Hey, Rowen? You okay? You look like you've seen a ghost," said Ryo as he too awoke, watching his friend's reaction closely.

"'Sides Anubis," added Kento groggily.

"Where the hell are we!?" exclaimed a very agitated young girl. She gave everyone a quick glance-over and then saw Randi. Her mouth dropped, eyes widened in startlement and her voice was barely heard. "R-Randi?"

"Hi, Maria. Miss me?" Randi gave a knowing smile.

"You're not in a coma?!" Maria squeaked.

"Naw, really?" Randi retorted sarcastically. Then her eyes met Tai's. Her heart went out to her best friend, staring back at her, shell-shocked. She wasn't sure what she could say to her...except... "Tai?"

Tai's emotions threatened to take over. Fear was in the lead, but its captain, Happiness, was close behind. Both raced to the top of the wall around Tai's cool exterior, and then one climbed over...

Tai ran to Randi, throwing her arms around her and crying all at once. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't stop it. "Ri! You're okay!" she managed to say softly through tears.

Randi threw her arms around Tai as well. She felt bad about leaving Tai in such an emotional state but being with Rowen in his world wasn't truly of her own doing. "I missed you too, Tai." Randi then pulled Tai off of her, giving a warm, happy smile. "There's someone I want you to meet." Randi turned to introduce Rowen but she gasped. "Rowen, you're glowing!!"

Rowen knew he was. His entire body was leaden with dread. He didn't know how, but he knew Cat was in mortal danger and he had to get to her - somehow. At the time it didn't even occur to him to wonder why he cared so much.

"Cat... Hang on!" Rowen closed his eyes fast. The silvery-blue glow swirled all around his body, like mist early in the morning hit by rays of sunlight. His armor appeared instantly and above his head a portal of the same colors shimmered into existence as well. "Guys...I've gotta go!"

"No, Rowen! Wait!" Sage refused to let his best friend leave him again. As Rowen jumped into the portal, Sage leaped in after him.

"No!" cried Ryo. But it was too late. Rowen and Sage were gone.

But then, a high pitched whine filled the room, causing everyone to cover their ears. Seconds later, Rowen and Sage appeared again, neither of them happy.

"What happened?" Sage asked Rowen.

"DAMN IT!" he cried angrily. "I did it wrong!" He closed his eyes again and tried to picture having the portal on the other side appear under Cat in order to save her.

Cat tried deperately to grab onto something to stop her fall but Candra knocked her hands away from all possible hand-holds.

The ground below was littered with jagged rocks and sand. And worse yet, Cat was terrified. She knew that she couldn't teleport away under these circumstances - she had never been taught to. It was a weakness for her too. She pushed her subarmor away, leaving her makeshift one on.

Candra smiled darkly at the sight of Cat's fearful expression. "I'd like to stay, Princess, but I have to obey Master Talpa. Good-bye, Catelyn!" With that, Candra teleported away, leaving Cat to fall to her death.

"Alex! Help me, please!" cried Cat, without knowing what else to do, pleading with the dead to allow her to live. "Please, Alex! I'll do anything!" She closed her eyes as she saw the ground coming to her too fast. She whispered softly, "Bye, Sapphire. I'm so sorry."

A portal appeared out of nowhere just feet above the ground and Catelyn fell threw it.

Rowen could sense that Cat had very little time to waste. "Kento! Get under the portal! Now!"

Unsure as to what was going on, Kento did as he was told. A scream shrieked from within the portal and Lady Catelyn fell through, and Kento fell with her on top of him and his arms around her. He could smell her soft, flowery perfume and her tangled braid fell in his face. He felt his body responding to hers and he didn't try to fight it. More than one lustful thought crossed his mind in the milliseconds in which he held her, but he hadn't the chance to act on any of them.

"Weren't you cutting that close, Alex?" she said, still disoriented. She pulled herself up to see who had caught her. She couldn't hide her shock. "Hardrock!?" She leaped away from him and had her ring in her hand in stunning time. "What the..? Is this your idea of a sick joke, Alex!?"

"No. Mine." Rowen approached her calmly. "Are you okay?" he asked, noting the small cuts and darkening bruises on her arms and face.

"How dare you pretend to care about me, Strata! Do not think that this makes up for anything between us!"

"I wasn't pretending," Rowen said with a cold glint in his eye.

Cat chose to ignore that and instead remarked, "So where is Alex? I was expecting him, but instead I've found the younger brother," with a knowing shine of darkness in her brown eyes. She turned to Kento. "And thanks for catching me, Hardrock."

"How do you know my brother?" Rowen demanded, doing his best now to look directly into her eyes.

"He's the reason I'm the Princess of the Dynasty."

Rowen was too stunned to say anything. "He...did that?" Hurt and sorrow filled his heart.

Catelyn ignored the question, but her eyes were dancing with malicious mischief. "Thanks for the rescue. We shall see each other again shortly." Her voice was so gentle that it could have been confused for kindness. With that, she left through the portal, which sealed itself shut behind her.

Ryo was so shocked that his question came out soft and full of hurt. "You...have a brother, Rowen?"

Rowen's other-worldly silver-blue eyes were hard and downcast with barely-contained hurt and betrayal as he answered grimly. "Had," he corrected. "He's dead."

Silence hung heavily in the air around them all for a few tense moments before a soft, weary, and - above all - stunned voice spoke up. "Can somebody tell me what the hell is going on here?"

"Manda!" Randi called joyfully, forgetting the disturbing scene she had just witnessed.

"Andi?!" Manda squealed in delight. Several other voices chorused Randi's name after Manda as they became aware of her. Soon everyone seemed to be talking at once, calling out any number of confusion-based questions, comments or greetings to one another. Samantha found herself almost nose to nose with Cale as she finally stirred and screamed in fright.

Randi tried to yell over everyone to get them to quiet down before her head split in half. Eventually a general quietness settled over them. "Now if everyone would just calm down, I'll do my best to explain. Keep in mind, you're not going to believe me at first." Randi watched the expectant, impatient faces of her friends. The rest of the Ronin Warriors stayed silent and calm so she could speak.

"Yes, it's really me, I'm fine, and nothing bad has happened to me. I'm not in a coma anymore (obviously), and I don't really know why I disappeared yet, but this is where I ended up. From what I'm told and what I can tell, we're in a dimension alternate to our own, at Miss Mia Koji's house in Japan," Randi gestured toward Mia, who stood behind her, still by the couch and her books. "I really haven't had enough time to learn much more. The reason we had to bring all of you here is due to a great danger imposed upon us all by the war these guys are fighting," she added as an afterthought.

There was a short silence, and then the circus started up again. "You've got to be kidding me!" one teenager cried out. "Is this some kind of joke?" said another.

"Whoa, whoa!" Randi yelled above them, holding up her hands to quiet them. "This isn't a joke!"

"Prove it!" Maria challenged loudly.

Randi stood blankly for a second, then thought for a moment. "Okay," she said, "I'll prove it.

"I'm guessing that about a year ago, more or less, every one of you found or somehow received a small, marble-shaped ball made of what seems to be crystal. Inside it, you can see a colored Chinese character. You always carry it with you or keep it near, whether consciously decided or not. For whatever reasons, you've never spoken to anyone about it. Am I right?"

Tai slowly pulled her hand out of her deep shirt pocket. Opening her hand, she revealed a small kanji ball. A green character swam inside it. Several of the world-hopping teens gasped, gaped, or gawked. Adriano and Chris both pulled similar marble-shaped balls from their pockets, and Manda removed one from her jacket after them. They looked at Randi expectantly, and she pulled her armor orb with the kanji of Life inside out of the pocket of her jeans.

"See? Do you believe me now?" No one said anything for a while.

"Randi," Chris said, his brow furrowed in thought. "What does all of this mean? I believe you, of course, but what do our marbles mean? What danger are we in?"

Randi hesitated. What was she supposed to tell them? Luckily, Kayura stepped in.

"Your 'marbles' are what we refer to as kanji balls or armor orbs. They are what give the Ronin Warriors their power and their armors. According to all that we've recently learned, you nine are Ronin Warriors, just like my companions and myself." Some of the arrivees looked like they were going to interrupt with more questions or objections, but Kayura cut them off. "I know none of you are aware at this time what that means, but you will be, I fear.

"An evil unlike anything you've ever imagined in your most horrible nightmares has forced us to bring you here. As she told you, Randi was brought here too, though we are not certain how or why - yet. But because our enemy, Talpa, found out about her arrival, we felt that he would try to abduct all of you himself and we brought you here. I hope that we can find a way to eliminate the danger to send you all home safely and quickly, but until then you are in only moderately less danger than you would have been if we left you in your world.

"And now that we are all here, and it would seem that we have some time on our hands and questions to be answered, perhaps we should all relay our account of the recent events that have led us to this point," Kayura said, glancing meaningfully at those in the room who knew what she was talking about. Most of their faces were lined with worry and hesitation, but none of them outrightly objected to the thought of telling the newcomers more about their situation. They seemed to have had the mistrust sucked right out of them for the time being. Kayura continued, "I suppose I should start with some introductions."

Kayura looked around herself at the crowd of faces. Anubis, Yuli and White Blaze had joined them at the doorway, so everyone was present. She gesticulated toward them and said, "That is Anubis, our resident spirit guide, Yuli, who lives with the Ronin Warriors here at the mansion, and White Blaze, Ryo's tiger and spirit animal." When she spoke at first, it was only to the nine newcomers who had yet to know the history behind their present-day troubles.

"You were already informally introduced to Mia. She owns this house and provides the Ronins with useful information and support." She shifted her gaze to Rowen and Sage, then proceeded to look at each Ronin Warrior and Warlord as she introduced them with a simple gesture and words. "That is Rowen, the Ronin Warrior of Life, who wears the Armor of Strata," Kayura had to struggle to not sound doubtful as she said that, "and that is Sage, the Ronin of Wisdom, who dons the Armor of Halo. Then there is Ryo, the Ronin Warrior of Virtue and bearer of the Armor of Wildfire. He also wears the combined form of the armors, called Inferno, when needed. Near him is Kento, Ronin of Justice, who wears the Armor of Hardrock, and finally Cye, the Ronin of Trust, who bears the Armor of Torrent.

"They five are the Ronin Warriors, though to be truthful the Ronin Armors include the four Warlord armors as well. They are the Armor of Illusion, the Armor of Darkness or Corruption, the Armor of Venom, and the Armor of Cruelty, normally worn by Dais, Cale, Sekhmet, and myself, in that order. I am also the last of the Clan of the Ancients, who helped in the creation of the Ronin Warriors and have long looked out for us with their power. Anubis bore this honor before me, and the one whom we only knew as the Ancient One bore it before him."

Kayura gathered herself thoughtfully before she launched into the full story, assuring herself that it was the right thing to do.

At length, she began again. "The reason we do not readily refer to ourselves as Ronin Warriors is due to our history. The four of us, along with Anubis as he was in life, were the Dark Warlords of the Dark Dynasty, ruled by Talpa and sworn to carry out all of his evil demands. We served him for four hundred mortal years, and may have forever had the Ronins not helped us turn to the side of good when we fought against them about one year ago. It was only when all nine of us combined our efforts against Talpa that we defeated him. We thought he had been killed for good until a little more than two weeks ago." Kayura paused, reflecting back on that day.

"Since Talpa was banished and this world was saved, Cale, Sekhmet, Dais and I have stayed in the Dynasty to protect and repair it from any further evils. Our worst fears were that another evil like Talpa would take it for himself and try to follow in his footsteps. What has happened is almost worse.

"Two weeks ago, give or take a few days, when all of us were asleep and off our gaurd, a group of his soldiers ambushed us. They imprisoned us in our own home, in the dungeons of the Dynasty, and took our kanji orbs. We knew nothing else and were not released until Rowen helped us escape only yesterday." Only yesterday? Kayura had to ask herself. It seems as if it's been years since then... "We have not been able to learn much else besides the fact that Talpa has returned and he has our armors. Little else is certain." She looked to the Ronins to continue, since she had covered most of her story.

Ryo looked at Sage. "Sage? You wanna tell it?"

Sage cleared his throat lightly and began slowly, with much reserve. "I don't really know what happened that day. The attack here was at about the same time as the attack on the Dynasty. Ryo and everyone else were in the city that day, I was out in the woods, and Rowen and White Blaze were here alone. We later realized that White Blaze must have been captured and replaced with a Warlord in disguise earlier that morning, when he went out to hunt for his breakfast. That allowed them to get into the house without anyone thinking anything of it."

Rowen blanched slightly at that. It had taken him days to realize that himself, and he had been the one the trap was sprung upon!

"In any case, while we were away, the Dynasty attacked and captured Rowen. The rest of us - Ryo, Cye, Kento and myself - were alerted that he was in trouble through the link we share as Ronin Warriors, but by the time we got back here he was already gone.

"We spent most of the last two weeks just trying to track him down and make contact with the Warlords. We pretty much knew it was the Dynasty, but there was nothing we could do about it. Talpa had his Nether Spirits keeping us from even communicating with anyone within the Dynasty, and only yesterday were we able to get in the gates for a while. We tried to fight our way into the castle, but we had to retreat. The rest of the night was pretty uneventful until Rowen...appeared," Sage trailed off. He really didn't wish to recall the rest of that night.

Ryo decided to bail him out. "There isn't much else to tell. Kayura and the Warlords arrived a little while later. After that, we were all by the front door and we saw a bright light like a shining star crash to the ground. When we got to where it hit we found Rowen unconscious and beat to little more than a bloody pulp. He would have died if Kayura, Sage and Sekhmet hadn't used their healing abilities to save him. Even after they healed most of his wounds he was unconscious until Randi showed up a few hours ago."

"There was something else," Kento added quickly, while he remembered it. "Rowen stopped breathing right before the battle. We had to perform CPR on him and get him to spit up the water in his lungs to get him going again. We would've told ya, but by the time that was over the Dynasty punks were invading again and we had to run out to help."

Ryo absorbed that slowly, seeing that even Rowen was shocked by that revelation, and Randi most of all. When he spoke again, he spoke slowly, as if in deep thought. "That was at about the same time the Dynasty soldiers attacked and the house started on fire. Kento was the first to notice the fire, and he went in to get Mia, Yuli and Rowen out-"

"That was when I found Randi and him in Mia's room," commented Kento.

"They all came out and joined in the fight, " Ryo took up the lead again, "and that was when Randi transformed into her armor and we first had a clue that she was a Ronin Warrior too.

"We fought for a while longer, until the ordinary soldiers all disappeared and Lady Catelyn made her first appearance. She's another one of Talpa's Warlords, but we didn't know about her until today," he added with a glance at the former Dark Warlords. "We never fought her the first time we had to fight against Talpa.

"We fought her off, but she could've handled all of us without much trouble. She only left when her lioness was thrown in the way of Kayura's staff and injured, and only then when another demon of Talpa's came and ordered her to. The other demon, who I think was called Azuren, tried to capture Rowen again but he killed her."

"When all that was over, they healed up my almost-severed midsection, dragged all of you fine people here, and decided to call it a night," Dais joked dryly.

"Actually, that's about it," Cye commented earnestly.

"What about Randi and Rowen's story?" Anubis asked. "I'd be very interested to find out what else happened to them that we don't know about. Randi's given us some intriguing hints." A general murmur of agreement sounded in the room.

Randi and Rowen looked at each other expectantly. Randi would have gone, but Rowen's story was obviously the more substantial, so Rowen sighed and decided he couldn't avoid the topic forever. The hardest part would be making them satisfied with his story while avoiding parts of it which he didn't want to tell anyone yet.

He chose his words carefully, baring a bit of his discomfort. "Like Sage said, I was ambushed by Azrael, the Dark Warlord who has Cale's armor, and taken to the Dynasty. They kept me there and tried to make me one of them, a Warlord, until one of my captors apparently turned good and helped me escape." Rowen added 'apparently' only due to his remaining disbelief that she could have been truly good after being so evil. "They tried to make me give in to what they wanted, and they tampered with my armor somehow," he glanced down at the silver kanji ball locked around his wrist and fought to hide the fear and pain in his eyes, "but I really don't have much else to tell.

"Syria - one of my captors - just told me where Dais and Kayura and the guys were and let me go. I had to battle with Azrael and some more soldiers to get them out and get White Blaze, and then we made our way out of the castle. We almost escaped without a hitch until the remaining Warlords - Candra, Venom and Lapin - confronted us outside in the courtyard. They had Syria hostage, but they killed her before we could stop them. I fought with them for awhile, and then..." A lump caught in Rowen's throat. "And then I tried to summon my armor and ended up teleporting away. Something went wrong when I called on it, and I was gone before I knew what I was doing.

"The next thing I remember was Randi saving my life," he lied. "We were in some weird dream realm between our worlds, and I guess I had been drowning or something. We had barely finished introducing ourselves when more soldiers attacked us. I used my...new...powers to freeze them and teleport back here, and that's when Kento found us." He wore a perfect poker face, but inwardly he was praying that no one would ask him any more questions.

"I guess that leaves me," Randi said softly, before anyone else could speak. She didn't know how much she had just relieved Rowen, though he visibly relaxed as she spoke. "I guess I should really tell this from the beginning as it relates to me, although all of my friends already know it.

"About the same time this Talpa guy and his Dynasty began to attack and capture some of you, I got really sick. I collapsed in the middle of school one day, with this humongous lasceration in my stomach that just appeared out of nowhere. It felt like I was impaled on a wooden stake, just like a vampire, only they sorta missed my heart. They put me in the hospital for treatment and observation, but no matter what they did I kept getting all of these painful bruises and cuts. They couldn't figure out what was wrong with me, and some of the wounds got really infected despite their treatments, but I wasn't really sick most of the time. I did have a really nasty fever for awhile 'cause of the infections, but it went away a few days ago.

"A couple nights ago, I guess it was only...last night, really, I fell into a coma. The weirdest thing about it was that I knew I was in one, and I could tell a lot of what was going on around me. I knew when people were in my room and who they were, but I had to try really hard to know what they were saying or doing. I was so tired, and it seemed like I could never focus on any one thing for more than a few seconds. I knew when my parents and my brother visited, and when Tai visited this morning; and Tai's cousin Chris came in a lot. He's my doctor, and he was with me almost the entire time.

"Anyway, to get to the important stuff, I suddenly found myself in the dream world that Rowen told you about. At first I thought that I must have finally died and gone to Heaven - or Hell, if you believe in either. Especially since all of my wounds seem to have magically healed themselves since I got there - they're still mostly healed. But then I heard someone scream. I ran through this forest, and had to dive off a cliff into this little lake that Rowen was drowning in.

"Actually, Rowen was being drowned by some nasty-lookin' ghouls who killed both of us before I could get him out of the lake. Even so, I woke up somewhere in the same forest. These cute little faeries were there, and I guess they were the ones who brought us back. They started telling me all thsi stuff about my destiny and how I had to help Rowen fight off some evil - I guess that was Talpa, huh?

"After they finished being all cryptic, they told me that Rowen was dead, and I couldn't save him. I ignored them, of course, and just barely managed to revive him. You already know what happened after that." Randi stopped talking, and the room fell into silence. It was a long time before anyone seemed to feel that they had at least partially digested everything.

"So...what happens now?" Chris asked, looking at Randi. Randi looked back at him, but there were only more questions burning in her bright eyes.

"That's a good question," Sekhmet said thoughtfully. "Now that we've brought you children here, what are we going to do?"

"We must neutralize Talpa's claim on them so we can send them home safely," answered Kayura. "They are safe here for now, but this war will continue for a long time, and it is not their fight. I hope a better solution may be reached, but until then I think we may find that the only way to keep them from harm is to destroy their armors. After that they may be sent home without worry of further involvement."

A loud murmur of surprise rippled through the room. Cye was the first to speak outright.

"But we already know that the armors can't be destroyed. Sage tried it a long time ago, and the Ancient One himself told us it was impossible."

"Impossible isn't the correct word," Kayura advised. "If you say that the armors cannot be destroyed by force, cannot be disintegrated from all existence, then you're correct. Perhaps they could, however, be changed in form so that they are things of pure energy, untouchable by man or demon, and unreachable by any magickal means. Their physical forms would be destroyed, but the quintessence of them preserved perfectly, their power unmarred and held only by the rightful bearers. If they will consent."

"This can't be happening," Tai mumbled under her breath, thinking no one would hear her.

"But it is," Randi said to her, equally quietly. "And you know it."

"Well, what have you to say?" Anubis spoke to them. "Will you nine agree to stay with us for a time, until we can figure out a way to change the form of the armors and return you home?"

Randi surveyed all of her friends closely. Most of them looked dazed and shell-shocked, still trying to comprehend the enormity of it all. Only a few of them seemed to at the least understand what was being asked of them, and be able to consider their options level-headedly.

"Whadda ya say, guys?" she asked softly, trying not to press them. Her own heart was filled with doubts, but she would agree to it if it meant her friends' safety.

"I'll agree to that," Amy spoke up, one of the first things she had said yet. "I can't believe that this is happening, and I'm still expecting to wake up from a dream at any time, but I trust you, Randi, and I guess that means I trust them."

"Me too," Adriano agreed. "This is beyond cool, and I wanna be a part of it. B'sides, what else are we gonna do?" A couple more voices muttered their agreement.

Chris couldn't believe what he heard. He spoke rapidly, his bright eyes intense, like fire. "Wait a second; let's think about this! I mean, we're talking about a once-in-a-lifetime thing here. I know the rest of you think I'm insane, but I know a couple things about the supernatural, and I say we consider what we're saying. Maybe we are in some incredible danger and we have to find a way to get out of it, but why destroy these armors? We don't even know what they can do."

"Chris has a point," Randi drawled carefully. "I can't imagine giving up something like this. We could do so much with it. Is it really neccesary?"

"I'm afraid so, Randi," said Kayura, "but that hasn't been proven yet. We may be able to find alternatives later, but for now I think we should know that you'll all agree to go through with it if it comes to that."

"I'll agree to it, I guess," Manda said, though not without a degree of reserve.

"Me too," Samantha and Rhianne said together, making a point that it was only 'if it came to that' in their minds.

"Me three," Maria said slowly, shrugging at Randi's surprise.

"Well I won't agree to it - not yet," Chris said stubbornly.

"I've gotta stick with Chris," Adriano admitted. "He knows more about this stuff than me. If he says no, I'm with him."

"I'll go with whatever Randi says," Amy said quietly.

Everyone waited for Tai and Randi's answers. Randi willed Tai to answer first, but the lost look of doubt and indecision weighed heavily in her eyes. Slowly, she spoke. "I don't want to destroy the armors if it can be helped, she said, "but I will agree to it when I know there's no other option."

"Same here," Tai said.

"So what do we have?" Ryo asked.

"Four will agree to it, two won't yet, and three will if it's completely neccesary," Dais tallied. "Overall it seems they all will if it's the only option available, perhaps with the only exception being young Chris and Adriano here."

"That's enough," Kayura decided. "If Mia agrees, we'll all stay here while Anubis and I come up with a permanent solution."

Mia bobbed her head in an "of course" sort of nod, as if she was surprised they would even ask at this point.

"Perhaps we should get our guests some food and a place to rest?" Aunbis suggested kindly after realizing how tired and overwhelmed they all looked. Not to mention his desire to acquire some time alone with his old friends.

"Of course," Mia popped up. She almost exited the room, then turned thoughtfully and said, "Kento?"

"Yeah?" he answered.

"Did you bring back the Chinese food from town?"

"Uh huh," he nodded. "I'll go get it."

"Great," Mia smiled. "That solves the food issue."

Randi giggled a little, realizing that Mia had just been planning to go into the kitchen and prepare them something. Then she chided herself quickly, remembering how horrible she had felt when her family's business had burned down when she was younger.

Nobody said anything more until Cye said, "So what are we going to do about sleeping arrangements? We have almost two dozen people to worry about, you know."

Mia nodded. "I was just thinking about that. I believe it won't be as large of a problem as it seems. This house has several dozen rooms, many of which are adequate for sleeping, at least for a short time.

"There're the four bedrooms currently in use, plus two others that can be fixed up without much trouble, and both the family room and living room have couches for at least two people to sleep on. All in all, I think we could arrange it so that there would be no more than two or three people to a room. Give me a little while and a couple hands, and all of you can be sleeping soundly."

"Sounds good to me," said Ryo happily, longing for rest.

Just then, Kento walked back in with his arms full of Chinese take-out boxes and a 12-pack of pop. In mere seconds, the boxes had been snatched up and passed around, and chopsticks handed out, which many of the newer Ronins stared at disdainfully. There was just enough for everyone to be satisfied, and they dug in immediately, still scattered all over the living room on chairs and the carpet.

For several minutes all that could be heard in the room was the sound of fumbling or clicking chopsticks and chewing, mingled with the occasional slurp of soda and happily grumbling belly.

Tai's brow furrowed as she watched Randi pick at her food.

"What's wrong?" she asked in a low voice, so as not to alert anyone else.

Randi frowned poutily. "Mine is beef lo mein."

Tai looked at her strangely. "So eat around the meat."

"I can't. It's nothing but meat!"

"What's the matter?" Mia asked them politely, hearing the rising voice.

"She's a veggie-head," Tai said, teasingly.

"Vegetarian," Randi grumbled. To Mia, she said, "I don't eat most meats. Just seafood, mostly. It's all right, really. I'll live."

"D'ya wanna trade with me?" Cye kindly offered her his take-out box. She peeked in and spied the Cantonese-style shrimp chow mein. Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped at the sight of the plump, delicious-smelling seafood and lightly-fried noodles.

"Are you serious? I'd love to!" she giddily accepted the small white box and handed over her own. Immediately, she began to eat as if she'd been starved for days.

A few minutes later, Rhianne piped up, "How the heck do you eat with these things?" while trying to pick food up with her chopsticks.

Sekhmet sat near her and kindly explained the process to her, but gave up when it had not only failed, but prodded some of the other American imports to ask for his help also, seeing as Randi, Tai, and Manda were the only ones who could at least pick up bits of food without much trouble most of the time. Rhianne was actually good compared to most of them.

Rowen ate slowly and disinterestedly, trying to make himself invisible as his mind wandered somewhere far away.

In a way, he was relieved and happy to be where he was, relatively safe, with his friends and allies. And there was no question that he was grateful. He was grateful to even be alive. But he couldn't help but feel...out of place. He was changed, in more ways than he could even place in his thoughts, and he felt encased in solitude and silence. He felt as if he belonged in the blackness outside the windows, alone to defend himself or die. It was a disturbing feeling, almost worse than any of his thoughts back in the Dynasty, because it left him without any hope or shelter. And yet somehow it felt right, meant to be, or simply what he felt in his heart that he needed to do.

Wouldn't everyone be a lot safer if he were away from them, so the Dynasty could leave them alone and concentrate on him? They wouldn't stop until they had him for good, he was certain of that. The feeling had increased with every moment he wore his armor in battle earlier.

A voice tugged him back down to Earth, calling his name in a familiar, comforting voice. He blinked and turned to Sage, who was watching him with fear in his grey eyes. Rowen suddenly realized that he had been so spaced out for a few moments there that he had simply frozen, his hand halfway raised to his mouth and his eyes staring blankly out the darkened windows, into the night.

He met Sage's gaze, but his eyes were still blank.

"What is it?" he asked.

"I...wanted to know how you were feeling," said Sage politely, masking some of his concern.

Rowen shrugged half-heartedly. "Fine. I'm just tired."

Sage couldn't detect any outright lies in that, so he turned back to his food and ate it silently, as if nothing had happened.

Light conversation continued as the food was polished off and everyone's stomachs settled. At length, the garbage was collected and disposed of, and Mia, Cye and Sage went off to arrange rooms for the night and collect enough blankets and pillows for comfort, seeing as the heat and electricity in most of the house couldn't be turned on due to the fried connections in the kitchen. Lucky for them it was an unusually warm Spring this year.

As the remaining people sat around as comfortably as they could be in as cramped of quarters as they had and waited for their chance to sleep, night blossomed outside. A large, sleek black horse neighed impatiently as he plodded around the lawn, wondering why he was being ignored for so long. A shaft of moonlight glittered on the stark starburst below his forelock and in his warm, intelligent eyes.

The time to fulfill his master's wish was nearly at hand, and the waiting game wore impossibly thin on his nerves as he watched the clear blue sky deepening into rich black, pierced all over with tiny pinpricks of light. A waxing moon rose high in the sky, its brilliance smeared only here and there by wispy grey clouds passing quickly to far-away lands.

Talpa roared angrily as his Dark Warlords finally entered his throne room. Mandilyn had failed him again in the short time since he had called for them, and his fury only fueled his impatience and dissatisfaction of his Warlords.

"Where have you been?" he bellowed.

A bashed and battered Candra bowed deeply in respect and fear. "Master, I apologize. We were...detained," she said as she wiped at a small trickle of blood at her brow.

"Have you fought out your differences enough to continue?" he asked, a threat on the edge of his hard, unnaturally deep voice. He wanted them to know that he would not accept any insubordination, which included 'promoting' themselves by killing off their superiors.

"Yes, Lord," Cat answered humbly, ignoring her undignified appearance. Her clothing was torn and dirty and she had numerous bruises, scrapes and small cuts from her fight and consequent fall over the edge of the Dynasty castle's roof, as did Candra. Her hair was tousled and strands hung in her face.

"Then you will be prepared to launch a full-scale assault on the Ronin Warriors and their friends in a few nights," Talpa ordered. No one dared to argue.

"I trust that none of you will underestimate your enemies this time," Talpa continued darkly. "You should know that they have more reinforcements. Nine armored children, to be precise." Cat's breath caught in her throat. She had barely even noticed the extra figures in the room when Rowen had 'ported her there, but now she realized what she had witnessed.

Lapin looked up at his master with curiosity. "Master, who are these children?"

"An inconvenience. I once hand-picked them to serve as assurance for my own victory and preservation over the Ronin Warriors, but it seems that I made a grave mistake in fashioning all of their powers after the original Ronin armors. It would appear that the bond shared by the wearers of both sets has lead my little warriors straight to the ones who have already betrayed me.

"But do not misjudge their advantage. These children are by no means true warriors. They have had no training and no experience with their armors. Legions will be gathered and at your disposal for the coming battle, and a complete victory is expected of you.

"Cat?"

"Yes, Sire?"

"You will lead the battle. If you are...opposed in any way," informed the demon lord with a glance in Candra's direction, "you have my consent to eliminate the resistance."

"Yes, my lord," Cat bowed.

"Leave me now, and do not come until I send for you," he commanded. His minions obeyed wordlessly, leaving him to his own thoughts and schemes, which had surely never been darker than in recent hours.

Instead of returning to her room, Catelyn found herself wandering the maze-like passages of the castle aimlessly, turning around the thoughts in her head. She strolled along at a relaxed pace, her gentle, easy footsteps falling without sound on the stone-blocked floors. It was dark within the castle, as always, and Cat found that it seemed to match her mood.

Master Talpa was giving her control of the entire Dynasty army in the next battle, as was her given right as princess of the Dynasty. But she could already feel the weight of his expectations and the responsibilities it carried with it. She was by far the most powerful and well-trained of all of his followers - save perhaps for Mandilyn - and yet she had virtually no combat experience. The soldiers would follow her without question - of that she had no doubt. But the Dark Warlords were stronger of will, and unpredictable. A seed of doubt was planted in her mind when she pondered whether or not they would be foolhardy enough to risk Talpa's wrath just to strike at her.

She grinned slowly, a small, joyless grin that brought no warmth to her face; she knew they would not only risk it, but provoke it just to throw her confidence off farther. They thought Talpa needed them too much to kill them for a little insubordination. They were cocky and foolish. And she would see that it cost them dearly if ever she had the chance.

Another matter entirely was Rowen of Strata. He was naive and completely oblivious to his situation. And yet he posed a greater threat to her master than any entity that had ever existed in the realms of man or demon. He had this raw, unstoppable power... A power that could turn Earth upside down and inside out tenfold at a whim... But he lacked the ability to realize and control it. Her only hope was that his naivete would provide her with the chance she needed to steal him for Master Talpa. Talpa said if he had Strata back again, he could make him one of them forever, one of his children. But first she had to reclaim him. And the easiest way to do that would be to lure him back. But with the other Ronins around, she was going to have quite the struggle ahead of her.

She paused suddenly, catching a foreign whisper ricocheting off the cold, stony walls. She strained her ear toward its origination and slowed her breathing to a silent movement in her chest.

"I want her out of the way," a menacing female voice snarled with hate. It was Candra, without a question.

"Yes..." Lapin hissed softly. "The child is favored by the Master, and casts a less than favorable light on all of us. Disposing of her would be beneficial. But killing her will incurr Master's fury and put us in even less favorable light, if light exists in the pits of the Nether World. How will we do it?"

"Covertly. No one has to know it's us whom cause her death. We are at war. We have enemies. It would be just as easy to have an accident occur in the heat of battle. If the Ronins were believed to be the culprits, Talpa's neccesity for us would increase just as much as his loathing for the Ronin Warriors. They wouldn't stand a chance. We would have everything we desire that much sooner." Azrael was milking one of his rare moments of insight, but the others found it to make more sense than they would admit.

Catelyn stopped listening. She breathed a heavy, thick sigh and crouched down with her arms wrapped around her stomach as if she'd taken a blow. Her mind was working like a hamster on a treadmill, only much faster. This only confirmed her suspicions. What stunned her was the truth they spoke. They could kill her that easily and Talpa was likely to be fooled without ever knowing the truth, just as long as they were careful enough about it. She'd have to make sure there would be no chance. Maybe she could force their hands, make them choose a time that suited her, so Talpa would witness their disobedience. And he had given her his permission to eliminate all who questined her authority in battle, given she was able to.

She stood slowly, preparing to sneak away the way she'd come. She moved a hair back, and felt something thick and unyielding behind her, like a wall.

"What's up, pussy cat?" Venom breathed on her neck. It was moist and hot, and she had to repress a shudder.

She spun to face him, keeping her face stern and cold. She would have tried to intimidate him, but Venom was too insane to be intimidated by anyone, least of all her. "What do you think you're doing? Were you following me?" She kept her voice low in case the others were still close by.

"Not at all, Princess. I was coming to meet my allies. We're planning your death, you see," he said it so nonchalantly it made a chill crawl down her spine. "But I suppose you already know that from eavesdropping on my comrades. No matter; all will happen as circumstance allows, I suppose. It's only a matter of calculating knowledge against ability and opportunity. We can be no more certain of our success than you can be of your survival." He took a step back from her, melting into the shadows as his emotionless eyes held hers with an intensity that could crush bones under its pressure. "Take care, kitty cat. You have no one on your side and no god to listen to your prayers. It's all up to you." Then he was gone, and she was alone.

After a time, she gathered up her strength and disappeared down the dank, dim halls to seek out a solitude she knew she wouldn't find in the castle; one that could grant her secrecy and safety for a short time; one that could only be found in the shadows of the mortal realm.

Ryo wiped the sleepiness from his eyes and blinked to clear his vision, wondering how much longer this day could extend. When he was refocused, he walked into the living room and gave a brief report to Mia and the others who remained there.

"All of our guests have settled in for the night - except Miss Randi, of course," he added with a wink at the young blond seated comfortably in one of the large, plush armchairs, her legs folded in a unique adaptation of the butterfly style that he thought only cheerleaders used. "And I think Kento's gotten all of the gas, electric and water outside of the kitchen running smoothly again. He just had to close off a few valves and check some wiring, but I think it'll be fine. All in all, I think we can finally rest easy and call it a night."

"I wish that were true," said Anubis ruefully. All eyes turned on him wearily, wondering what could possibly happen next. "I have been speaking with Randi a bit more about these dreams and mysterious ailments of hers, and I believe all of you gathered here are entitled to hear the truth - or what I am at my leisure to tell, anyway."

Rowen looked up with cold, steel blue and sparkling silver eyes that were narrowed, almost half closed from fatigue and agitation. Was it too much to ask for a few hours of peace without any major revelations or battles or anything? Even his coma had given him little peace while it lasted.

"So what is it this time?" Rowen asked sharply.

Anubis didn't seem to react to his edginess in the least, but simply answered, "It would appear that none of our new guests have formal training with any style of martial arts past a quite novice level, first of all. Randi is the only one of them who has even called on the armor in the past, and that was just today. I think you'll all agree with me that this may prove to be quite a concern when the issue of fighting battles and defeating the Dynasty while they're still here is taken into consideration. They are, after all, little more than children, and unexperienced in the ways of war. We cannot afford the luxury of letting them learn from experience, no matter how much they may help us."

"So what should we do?" asked Cye.

"Well," Anubis said emphatically, "there is also the fact that Kayura, Dais, Cale, and Sekhmet are unarmed. Their expertise in battle has awarded them victory so far, but the likes of the Dynasty will not be defeated while their armors are in Talpa's grasp. They are invalueable warriors, and I recommend that we do not go on as if their vulnerability is of no matter." The afforementioned former Warlords looked at him with mock betrayal, but they knew it would be pointless to argue, no matter how much pride was at stake.

"Then why don't we just take the armors back?" Kento asked. "Not like it'd be that hard!" He felt pumped just at the thought of another battle with the Dynasty dorks. Maybe he'd see Catelyn again too...

"Perhaps, Kento. But it may be much more difficult than you imagine. Another concern is how much stronger Talpa's forces are now. Lady Catelyn, for example. Every able person present fought her, often in waves, and she seemed quite nearly invincible to our efforts. I have no ready solution. I simply think it is an issue that should not be ignored. The Ronin Warriors cannot fight at their strongest if they have to keep a constant eye on a dozen weaker humans all around them."

"Then we just keep them away from the battles," Ryo said.

"It's not that easy, Ryo," Sage contradicted. "Talpa will want to use them against us. If they're not nearby, he'll attack them and try to capture or kill them. And these kids are totally clueless about the dangers. They'll try to fight them off and probably make the situation even worse."

"So what's your plan, then?" Ryo retorted.

Sage studied the patterns traced on the carpet listlessly, responding, "I don't know. It's not like this is anything easy to solve."

"We'll just have to manage it," Cye piped up. "It may not be easy, but we'll just have to keep them close while we fight and hope they can hold their own without too much help from us. If they do get into trouble, someone else will always be close enough to help out."

Cale cleared his throat, obviouslt irritated. "Do what you want with the children, but I for one will not submit to being babysat like a five-year-old. We are experienced warriors. Give me a weapon and a battlefield and I can do as much damage to them as any of you."

"Be that as it may, Cale, you are at a disadvantage. Do not look at it as babysitting so much as having your rear covered," Dais tried to reason levelly. He turned to the others, adding "Although I will admit, it feels a bit humbling to listen to myself be referred to as a 'weaker human' right in front of me."

A few of the boys snickered a little, but Anubis just smiled and signalled for them to listen again.

"If no one else has anything to add to the topic, I'd like you to think about something else. Perhaps I'm stating the obvious, but I believe there is a deeper connection between the recent events concerning the two alternate universes that have become involved in our plight. I have been speaking more with Randi, and from what she has told me, the bonds formed between the two sets of armors appear to be very strong. It seems as if she has been experiencing what Rowen has been experiencing over the last two weeks. Similar injuries, similar circumstances and times, inexplicable phenomena - almost as if she were directly affected by things happening to him while he was imprisoned in the Dynasty." Everyone was the picture of surprise, shooting quick looks at Rowen and Randi. They exchanged glances, Rowen wondering what she could actually know, and Randi hardly believing how familiar this all sounded. Except for the fact that Anubis wasn't a flock of fairies, of course.

"From what Randi has told me, I do not doubt her abilities as a clairavoyant, and I am increasingly intrigued by the peculiar conditions which she has fallen victim to. Not only has Rowen in particular been a prominent figure in her dreams and visions, but she can describe in great detail much of our past battles with the Dynasty from as far back as our armors' forging and the Ancient's banishment of Talpa into the Nether Realm. One of the more intriguing manifestations of her connection to our world is the rather large wound healing in her side, which originally ailed her at about the same place in time as Rowen's abduction."

At that signal, Randi lifted the bottom of her white tank top several inches to reveal the aggravated pink scar tissue that stretched across most of her abdomen. Several pairs of eyes lit up anxiously at the sight of it, turning their looks to Rowen.

"So what does that mean?" he asked, remaining introverted and still although his thoughts had strayed to the matching pink wound healing at the exact same location on his abdomen as on Randi's. It was the wound he had recieved in his very first encounter with Azrael, lifetimes past.

Anubis 'swallowed' his annoyance at Strata's stubborn behavior and managed to continue calmly, not speaking to anyone in particular. "It means that there is a deeper connection between Randi and Rowen than the bond between two armor bearers. There is an obvious psychic link of remarkable proportions, one so strong that one of them shares the wounds of the other. The same link pulled Randi through a dimensional barrier to come to Rowen's aid. The fact that they have never met, could never have met, makes it all the more amazing.

"Furthermore, a possible link between Sage and Rowen has come to my attention, however reluctant they are to talk about it. Rowen's condition would seem to be the cause of several interesting occurences involving Sage, not the least of which is the telepathic conversation they shared a while back and chose not to speak of." Anubis eyed them both sternly, especially Sage, who was surprised and even a bit angry to know that Anubis knew and hadn't said anything about it for so long.

"But what I have to tell you about the changes Talpa has made to Rowen's armor is even more disturbing than any of that."

He paused dramatically, gauging the reactions of his audience, which consisted now of all nine original Ronin Warriors, Mia, Randi, and himself, since the others had all been found bedrooms and clothing to serve as pajamas and were now resting comfortably. At Kayura's anxious coaxing, he began again.

"For the last year now I have been a spirit, one of the Clan of the Ancients, priveleged to certain resources unobtainable by the means of common mortals and immortals alike. In that time, I have learned many things, far too many of which I would sooner forget than ever repeat, but I'm afraid it has become neccesary.

"For millennia, the Clan has observed the trials and triumphs of the world. Only once have they directly interferred in its natural course, an event which has thus far proven to be our savior from the Dynasty's dark rule. The Ancient One created our armors that day that he defeated Talpa because he assessed that it was the only thing he could do to ensure that he never regained its full power again. More than once have we come to the point where that hope was nearly in vain. But in the end, the Ronin Warriors and the Clan of the Ancients have always managed to come through.

"Now the question is not, 'is Talpa able to reclaim his armor?' but more accurately, 'in what ways can he amass that amount of power?' One year ago, Talpa got a taste of that power, and has since discovered a way in which he could harness it for his own means.

"From the very beginning, I recognized a great power in all of you, but particularly with Strata. He has a strength, a genuine power that may one day surpass even that of the armors. Talpa has long coveted that. Behind every plan he has executed, there has always been an alterior motive. He knew that his attempts one year ago were doomed to failure. He always has. But he had to buy himself the time he needed to gather together his forces for the true war. What we have gone through up till now is only a taste of what is to come; that you can be certain of."

"Cut to the chase, Anubis," Rowen whispered hoarsely.

Anubis caught his eye, holding it in an intense exchange as he said, "He wants to control you, no matter what it takes. He wants to break your will and mold it to his twisted ways. He wants you to forsake everything that you hold dear and become his. And he has the power to do it. Unless you stop him. That is what all of this is about, ultimately. That is why he kidnapped you and did what he has to you."

Rowen's jaw clenched, his suddenly dark eyes piercing Anubis' with anger and masked fear. He stared at the apparition intensely, until any other man would have backed down at the sheer intimidation of his gaze. Suddenly, he sat back in his seat, averted his eyes, and said, "So what the hell am I supposed to do?"

"Tell us the truth, for starters," Anubis said, never taking his eyes off of Rowen. "Perhaps beginning with that bracelet around your wrist or what really happened to you in the Dynasty."

Rowen met his gaze again, angrily. "What the hell would you know about the truth?"

"I know that you're not telling it, Rowen of the Strata!" Anubis stated, using the title against him as he bore into him with a righteous fire in his eyes.

"You. Know. Nothing," Rowen spat, his anger barely under control. They were too preoccupied to notice several small items in the room that seemed to be vibrating with angry tension and the stirring of energy inside the marble held against Rowen's skin. It flashed vividly with the symbol of Life, catching several people's attentions.

"What are you hiding, Rowen? What is so horrible that you can't bear to even think of it? Do you think none of us could understand what it's like to be used and manipulated by Talpa's power? Do you think none of us have ever been hurt by someone so sadistic they did it just to see how long you could keep from screaming? Do you?!"

Rowen snapped. He jumped out of his chair, his whole body rigid and trembling. A bright silvery-blue glow surrounded his kanji orb, and the light spread faintly over his entire body until he was glowing. The window behind him cracked and a glass of water resting on a ledge near the fireplace shattered, spilling its contents. "You have no right to ask me those questions! You don't know the first thing about pain or sadism! Have you ever been tortured until you wished with all your body and soul that death would be kind and just take you already?! But you hold on, just for some vain hope that someone will come to your rescue, come and erase everything bad that's ever happened, only to find out that there's no such thing as rescue from the evil inside yourself! I can't escape this! Don't you see?" Tears rolled down his cheeks, completely ignored. "The darkness is inside me now. I can't fight it forever. Eventually it's going to win, and I'll be no better than Talpa himself! It's me he wants, and it's me he's going to get. Nothing you do now can interfere with that."

"That's not true," Randi objected softly, almost incoherently. But it got his attention. "Nothing has to happen if you don't want it to. You just can't let him have his way."

Rowen watched her, his eyes wild with anger and his muscles taut. Slowly, staring into her cool blue eyes, his heart felt calmed and his body and mind relaxed, just a little. With a last look of sadness and pain, he turned on his heel and walked out of the room.

"Rowen!" Mia pleaded, trying to stop him.

Ryo hugged her tightly, saying, "Let him go, Mia." A tear threatened to escape him, and he embraced Mia tightly, feeling more afraid now than he could ever remember feeling.

Everyone in the room stared in shocked silence, some trying their best to keep their emotions from overcoming them. Anubis and Kayura exhcanged fear-filled glances. "What do we do?" Kayura mouthed to him. Anubis just shook his head and looked away. With a sorrowful sigh, he cleared his throat and rasped, "You should all try to get some sleep now. There's no point in continuing without him tonight and we have much more to talk about. It's been a long, trying day and you've all earned the rest."

Kento groaned inwardly. You mean there's more?!

With very little spoken between them and hearts heavier than they had thought possible, they departed for their agreed upon rooms and tried to get what sleep would come to them.

Sage had avoided returning to the room he was to share with Rowen while the sleeping arrangements were as they were. He wasn't thinking of himself so much as he was of Rowen and his explosive behavior. It just wasn't like him, and the pain and anger he'd shown... What did he mean the darkness was inside him now? He'd sounded like an entirely different person, almost like he was accusing them of something. Anubis was right to think that he was hiding something, and Sage wanted more than anything to know what it was. In any case, Sage had decided that giving Rowen a little time would prove well for everyone, so he found himself hiding away in the attic sometime after midnight, sleep heavy in his limbs and thoughts whirling through his mind at a dizzying rate.

He sat on the bench of the antique grand piano of Mia's that had been stored there for an unknown duration, his legs crossed. He hunched over to lean on the surface of the piano as he thought.

"What's really going on here?" he thought aloud. "There's something more than what anyone's telling, obviously, but I don't think anyone really knows the whole truth. I bet Talpa himself is clueless to half of it. What could it be?

"First off, I know Rowen's not telling me everything. And then there's Randi and her entourage. And Lady Catelyn. Talpa's return. The rest of Anubis' story. Alex." Sage's eyes lit up. If there was anyone who seemed to know what was going on on both sides of the line, it was Alex. And what was it he had said? Legacy will show you the way?

Without a second thought, he got up and left the attic, being careful not to rouse anyone sleeping below.

The ocean was far below, tossing and turning with white-capped waves. Far ahead streatched majestic, snowy mountains and a long stretch of beach. The waves beat upon the shore continually, smashing into it with great fury. A lone rock stood tall and stoic at the shoreline, bearing the brunt of the ocean's cruelty. Again and again the hammer-like waves beat upon it, and the rock continued to resist the temptation to crumble before it.

Suddenly, as one great white wave bore down on the rock, a stunning light burst between them. A great wind swept up water and sands that encircled the stone in a giant whirlwind of light and the elements, combining stone, sand and water.

From out of the sight of any man shot many beams of colored light, each striking the whirlwind and illuminating the heavens in a glorious array. The lights faded, and all that remained was the rock, shining bright white with an inner light that pierced the darkest hearts and filled even the most foul of creatures with a sense of awe that could not be matched. All else paled before it.

It came nearer and nearer, until eyes could not withstand its brilliance, and then suddenly disappeared. The light faded and gave way to a dark wall of shadow. A cold, all-encompassing evil lurked there, with cruel red eyes glaring out with malevolent intent. A magnetic pull emanated from those eyes, dragging in its prey like a bug to lights, instilling an uncontrollable terror in the heart of any onlooker.

The scene shattered, and pictures of mass destruction and death flashed one after another in its place. Images of blood glistening coldly on metal blades and lifeless bodies littering the earth in bloody heaps filled her mind, until they seemed destined to be true. Now and again the cold, dark eyes would flash briefly amid the other scenes and strange, half-familiar symbols of blood red ran around like streams of stars in the sky.

Randi's heart leapt into her throat and her body shook as she awoke all of a sudden. She felt cold and her skin was covered in sweat that made her clothes stick to her body. Crystalline tears fell down her cheeks unchecked. She sat up and hugged her knees to her chest with the dream still clear in her memory.

"Andi? You okay?" a light flicked on as Tai's soft voice asked uncertainly. She and Mia were both sitting up in their beds in the room they were sharing, watching her with concern after hearing her cry out in her sleep.

"Notebook," said Randi in return.

Tai climbed out of bed and went to her friend. "Mia, do you have a pen and some paper?"

"Sure." Mia got up and rummaged in a desk drawer. She withdrew an open notebook and a black pen and handed them to Tai.

Tai set them in Randi's lap and said, "Here they are. Was it bad?"

"I don't know yet," she replied, taking the paper and pen and beginning to write furiosly in a quick, flowing script. Already she seemed too engrossed in the writing to pay any attention to Tai or Mia.

"Does this happen a lot?" Mia asked, still worried.

"It didn't used to. She's been getting worse. She has these dreams, and she always writes them down so she won't forget. She says they tell her things, like prophetic dreams and all that. I never used to believe her, but tonight I'm not so sure." Tai let her voice drop off uncomfortably, remembering the bits and pieces of heated arguing she'd heard from downstairs just before Randi and Mia had come up, as well as what they'd told her that day.

After a while, Randi's writing slowed and stopped. A great weight seemed to be lifted from her shoulders, and she looked up at Mia and Tai with a measure of relief.

"I'm okay now," she told them, implying that they should get back to sleep.

They all climbed back into their makeshift beds and turned the lights off, but Randi just laid there, consumed by her thoughts. After ten minutes or so, she slipped out of bed as quietly as possible and snuck out into the hall, grateful that Mia and Tai had fallen asleep so quickly.

She tiptoed down the long hall and to the bathroom at the far end. She poured herself a glass of water and drank it slowly while gazing out the window into the dark world outside. She just thought she saw a flicker of something moving, but it disappeared into the sparse trees in front of the house.

Randi tried to tell herself to get back in bed and go to sleep, but her curiousity got the best of her. Leaving the glass behind, she snuck back into the bedroom just long enough to grab her shoes and a blue cotton sweater from Mia's closet. Slipping them on, she snuck back out, down the hallway, downstairs and outside into the night.

She could guess the direction of the person or creature she'd seen, so she headed out and right, towards some high hills on the eastward end of Mia's property that were illuminated by the soft glow of the moon. She walked softly on the grass and dirt, over the torn-up lawn and among the shadows cast by the trees that still stood near the site of that day's battle. She climbed up some of the hills and into the moon's view, continuing forward cautiously.

When she climbed over the top of one of the higher hills, a cold hand clamped over her mouth and an arm wrapped tightly around her neck.

"Why did you follow me?" a harsh voice rasped in her ear. The breath on her neck was warm.

"I-I'm sorry," Randi choked out.

The grip around her throat lessened and disappeared. Randi spun around to face Rowen.

"What are you doing out here, Randi?" he asked, still suspicious.

"I thought I saw someone out here, so I came to check it out. Looks like I was right."

Rowen sighed deeply. He felt a lot older than he looked, and the entire ordeal with the Dynasty and everything that had happened that day had made him agitated and weary of everything.

"It's dangerous out here. We never know when an attack could happen. You should go back before something happens."

"What about you? Isn't it just as dangerous for you?"

"I can take care of myself," his voice dropped lower, defensively.

"And so can I," retorted Randi with an air of indignation, sitting down on the hilltop in her typical laid-back manner and gazing up at the starry sky. Rowen gave up and sat down next to her, keeping a couple feet of distance between them. Neither said anything for a long time, nor felt any need to.

There were many thoughts in Randi's mind that she only wished she had the words to express, but they didn't seem to want to organize into sentences, so she pushed them aside for later use.

For now, she stayed content to stare up at the heavens in awe. Somehow it made her feel like she was home again, star-gazing with her parents like she always had as a child in summer after sitting around the bonfire and listening to her dad's beloved Shawn Phillips tape, or some old blues or classic rock band's greatest album. Those had always been times of great happiness and contentment in her life, times when she could think freely and feel peace like she'd never known anywhere else. The stars here were different, but the effect was much the same.

She only wished she could make Rowen feel the same way. Somehow, whether by her enigmatic powers or her connection with the Armor of Strata, she could just feel the tension coursing through him, and it wasn't without a sense of pain and sorrow that made her feel like she had an obligation to make him feel better.

Randi laid back in the grass with a contented sigh, very characteristic of her kitty, Junior, back home. She scanned the ancient skies for something she was uncertain of, picking out half-familiar constellations and the occasional shooting star on the way. At length, she spoke softly.

"Rowen?" she waited for a sign that he had acknowledged her. He was laying on his back also and could have been asleep for all she knew. When he responded with a tired "hmm?", she asked, "If you could have one wish to make on a star and have anything you wanted, and you knew it would come true, what would it be?"

Rowen thought about it briefly. "I don't know, Randi."

"You wanna know what I'd wish for?"

Rowen humored her, turning his gaze to watch her moonlit eyes. "What would you wish for?"

"That I would never need to wish for anything ever again. Does that sound too corny?"

A bare hint of a smile curled Rowen's lips. "It sounds wonderful to me. You know what you want. That's more than most people can claim."

"I guess so," Randi said, still watching the velvet black cloak of night overhead.

There was a small, distant sound like a cry and Rowen sat upright suddenly.

"Did you hear that?"

"Hmm?" Randi sat up also, though reluctantly. "I didn't hear anything. Just the wind. What was it like?"

"I don't know. Stay here."

Rowen stood up and walked a few paces to the edge of the highest hill, suddenly very aware of how exposed he'd be to anyone looking in that direction with the moon so bright tonight. He crouched low and strained his ears to hear something more, and was rewarded by a soft, distant whinny being carried to him by the wind. It was coming from the edge of the woods on the other end of Mia's property. As Rowen strained his eyes to see what he could in the darkness, a sudden flash of sleek black and a streak of blond glimmered in the moonlight for a brief moment before disapearing again.

Rowen was startled by a cool hand on his shoulder blade.

"Sorry," Randi apologized sincerely with a slight smile of embarassment. "So what is it?"

"Sage and that horse, Legacy. C'mon, I want to follow them. I think Sage is up to something." Rowen set out westward across the broad expanse of land, toward the forest and where he'd last seen his friend. Randi felt obligated to follow, but gave a last wary glance at the house on their left as they passed by and disappeared into the dense forest themselves. Would this night ever end?

So whadda ya think? Don't forget to let me know so I can try to give you guys what you really want! It's still [email protected], so feel free to ask or tell me anything you want, okay? ^_^

I want to take a moment to thank all my fans who voted for me on Amanda Swiftgold's Readers' Choice Award. I tied for third place, putting myself among some *extremely* talented writers whom I've revered since before it ever entered my mind to write this story. I owe most of it to you, the fans, so I feel obligated and honored to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for voting for me and helping out with praise and encouragement at all turns. I'm writing this for you guys as much as for myself! ^_^

Okay, now that I'm done gushing with the cornies, I can talk about the chapter. Did you like it? Did you hate it? Am I carrying on too much with the whole thing? Do I need *more* details, or less? Do I need to stop asking your opinions and just write the damn thing? Does this hair color look good with my features? What about the pants? Too shiny?

ANWYWAY, I'm glad this one's over with. The next few should be fun. *eg* Oh, and I'm sending this one out along with a character guide that should help you all distinguish between the hoards of new peeps I have a habit of adding. Don't worry, there won't be many more (I hope)! In case you don't get the character guide and would like it, email me. Same goes for any chapters you've missed, which can also be obtained on Theria Krystal's or Amanda Swiftgold's sites.

^_^;; Ooh! One last thing I almost forgot to mention! The opening scenes with Lady Catelyn in this chapter were co-written by Janine, Malaur and myself. Gee, I'm beginning to think I should just make them official collaborators! jk Thanks again, you guys! ^_^

Okay, now I must sign off to squash my latest migraine - or is that schizophrenia? If I can spell it, I *must* have it! - and continue working on my stupid Geometry project for the dumbasstical MN Grad Rule standards. Baka education "authorities"... >.<

And remember: you may be my true love, but whiskey was my first! *g*

Aleksa ~~~<~~@
*dances away, humming a little Irish ditty to herself and doing a humiliating jig-type dance*