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Chapter 4
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A solitary gust of wind sang it's sad song of sorrow as it whiped through the dead branches of an old barren tree that overlooked Mia's large house.The pitch of it's lonely lament rising and falling as it snaked it's way through the crisp and frigid air.
Sage felt several strands of his soft,yellow hair brush against his face as it ruffled slightly in a passing breeze.He shivered and pulled his dark trenchcoat around himself tighter to fend off the chill.He hated winter.And the happenings of today only made the cold seem more bitter.
When he looked up,he noticed the sky was getting lighter,telling him that dawn was approaching.
None of them had gotten a wink of sleep since 12:30 a.m.-the time they first heard Mia's hysterical screams.But it didnt really matter.None of them were tired anymore.
The sound of a door creaking open came from somewhere close by and he turned around to locate the source of the noise.
Mia poked her head out the front door and called out to Sage in a small,meager voice."Sage......want to come in?"
Sage stood still and stared at Mia,trying to decide if he wanted to go into the house.
"I made some tea........we can all talk about......things."She added.
The thought of conversing with his friends in the warm house was comforting,but in a way he wanted to stay out here in the cold,to dwell on the deaths alone.He felt like he had to reach some kind of conclusion about the whole situation.......to come up with some kind of answer or plan.....
After staring into Mia's large brown eyes for a bit,he decided it would be best if he went inside to talk it through with the others.
"Alright,i'm coming."He finally replied.
Mia smiled and disappeared back into the house,leaving the door open.
Sage sighed deeply and watched his breath turn to feathery white steam that curled in the freezing air around him.
He tried thinking of something positive as he walked back to the house,but his mind kept wandering back to the day ahead of him,which would inevitably be filled with mourning,funeral arrangments,ect...He shuddered.The mear thought made him want to curl up and die.
He stepped into the warm house and took one last look at the rising sun before shutting the door behind him.
Only one lamp glowed in a corner of the large living room,leaving the rest of the room to be swallowed by shadows.
Sage gazed at the christmas tree that stood in the corner opposite the lamp.What was supposed to be a symbol of joy and celebration was now mearly a dark shape sulking in the shadows,a couple strands of it's tinsel twinkling in the sparse light,but otherwise drab.
He had almost forgotten that it was christmas.
He had almost forgotten the splendid party they had the day before.
Almost forgotten sitting around the tree,opening presents in the brightly lit room,talking and laughing................Now he wanted to forget.
He sighed and shut his eyes tight.What cruel irony that this had to happen on such a joyous occasion.It only made it worse.
The dynasty......The dynasty must be able to help......
He abruptly opened his eyes wide and spun his head around.He was being watched.He could feel it.
Large,glistening,brown eyes stared back at him.Mia.It was only Mia.She leaned against the entryway to the kitchen and watched him sympathetically.
Her figure was partially silhouetted by the bright lights that streamed out of the kitchen.
Inside the kitchen it looked warm and bright.Much more appealing than the dark living room.
Sage could see Cye and Rowen seated at the dining room table,drinking tea out of Mia's tiny florally decorated china cups.
Their arms and mouths were moving and it looked like they were deep in conversation,but Sage couldn't seem to hear a thing they were saying.It was as if he was watching a muted picture on the television screen.
He shook his head,trying to clear the cobwebs from his brain.He felt lost and disoriented.Tragedies could do that to you.
Looking back at Mia,he gave a quick smile,telling her that he was coming.
She returned the smile before turning around and heading back into the kitchen.
Sage frowned.Mia had turned away from him.but he still had the uneasy feeling of being watched.He glanced behind him and quickly headed towards the comforting glow of the kitchen.
As he walked across the living room,his heart jumped when he thought he saw a massive shadow,creeping across the wall behind him.A shadow with long twisted claws and a mouth full of hundreds of pointy razor sharp teeth........
He breathed a sigh of relief as he stepped into the kitchen.
Rowen and Cye noticed him come in and looked up,abruptly halting their conversation.
"Hey Sage." Cye said with false perkiness. "Sit down." He motioned to a chair on the opposite side of the table and smiled slightly.
"Okay." Sage replied dully.He put his hand on the chair and looked down at the large dining room table.A sudden reeling wave of revulsion washed over him and he put his other hand on the chair as well,to keep his balance.
Vague impressions of.......something,came to him in blinding flashes,not quite forming a full thought,but it was something about blood.......dark pools of blood spreading across the floor.
"Whats wrong Sage?" Rowen asked,concerned.
"Oh....uh..." Sage stammered,still recovering.He sat down and looked at Rowen. "Nothing.Nothings wrong."
Rowen turned away and frowned to himself.
Sage noticed the small gesture and figured that he probably realized it was pretty stupid to ask what was wrong.
Ryo and Kento were dead.Thats what was wrong.
"Want some tea?" Mia asked,suddenly appearing beside him.
"Sure."
"So,what were you guys talking about?" Sage inquired.
Stupid question,he realized.
"I refuse to believe they're dead." Cye blurted out "I just wont believe it."
"Thats how I feel." Rowen agreed. "Do you think.......mabey the dynasty could help us out in some way.....give us some kind of answer?" His gaze darted anxiously between Sage and Cye,waiting for their response.
"Shall we try and contact them?" Sage asked. "Its the best thing we could do at the moment." He lifted his cup of tea to take a sip and everything suddenly seemed to move in slow motion.
He could see Rowen begin to open his mouth in response,but everything seemed to be muted again.
Sage frowned.He felt it before it happened.The blinding flash of light illuminating them all for a split second before their surroundings began to bend and distort around them.
The last thing he was aware of was the panic stricken faces of his friends and Mia's shrill scream that peirced the silence and then faded to nothingness as reality collapsed in on them.

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

Cye opened his eyes,but all he could see was darkness.His mind told him to panic but his body wouldn't move.
Where am I??!
The sudden silence and darkness enveloped him.Suffocating him.He frantically tried to make some sort of noise.To call out.But nothing happened
Whats going on??!
With a frantic burst of energy,he tried his hardest to make some kind of movement,and finally,his body responded.He felt his fingers twitch and then wrap around something long and hard.It was his trident.He then became aware of the familiar feeling of his torrent armor around his body.
He tested his muscles to see if they would move and was relieved when he was able to lift his head.
"Sage??.....Rowen??"
He jumped slightly and gasped as a circular patch of light shone down on and around him,revealing Rowen and Sage laying unconscious and fully armored on either side of him.
Sage moaned slightly and began to stir,causing portions of his brilliant,emerald armor to gleam in the mysterious light.Cye noticed his movement and quickly rushed to his side. "Sage!C'mon,wake up!You okay?"
"Where are we?" Sage asked as he sat up and noticed their dark surroundings.
"I....I dont know" He answered,looking puzzled and worried.
They both looked down.The only clue to where they might be was the ground underneath them,which was dark brown and made of boards.
"I think we're being watched." Sage said,suddenly looking up and lowering his voice to a whisper.
Cye's heart began to beat faster and he felt as if his hair was standing on end.Suddenly he could invision it.Puppets on a stage,caught in the burning and voyeuristic glare of the spotlight.Millions of eyes watching them from the darkness.......
They both jumped when a small sound came from behind them.They turned around and saw Rowen groggily rise from the spot where he had been laying.
"Rowen!" Cye moved next to him and kept his voice a whisper. "You okay?"
"Fine.....I guess." Rowen answered,examining his armored body with a look of confusion and then looking up to take in his surroundings.
"We have no idea where we are." Sage began. "We just woke up here......" He stopped talking as he noticed the strange look that came across Rowens face.
"What?.....What is it?"
"I recognize the feeling of this place." Rowen replied. "Cant you feel it?.......That tension in the air...." He paused and looked at Sage and Cye before continuing. "I'm fairly sure we're in the dynasty."
Before they had a chance to respond,a deep and demonic laughter echoed throughout the dense atmosphere in all directions.
"Welcome back ronins.....Welcome back...."
The voice was deep and taunting and they imediately recognized it as belonging to Dais.
Rowen gasped and they quickly got up and stood ready for battle.
Dais' laughter echoed around them once more and then dissipated into the air as the small spotlight expanded and disappeared,illuminating everything around them and finally revealing their surroundings.
What greeted them was the vast and unnervingly beautiful landscape of the dynasty,spreading out in front of them like the sprawling panorama of heaven..........or hell,depending on who you ask.
They found themselves on a small,curved bridge that stood over a crystal clear and sparkling stream that flowed through one of the otherworldly dynasty cities.
Towering above them was the enormouse dynasty citadel,shrouded in blankets of darkness and radiating an essence of pure evil that chilled them to the bone.
"What the hell is going on here??" Sage yelled,looking around wildly.
"Dais?" Rowen called,trying to locate the source of the voice.
The sound of zapping and crackeling energy directed their attention to the dynasty palace.
Four black spheres of energy faded out of existence,revealing the four warlords perched high atop the roof of the palace.
"Welcome to hell,little Ronins." Dais yelled down at them from the rooftop.
"Nice day to die,isnt it?" Kayura added tauntingly,punctuating her words with a gleeful laugh.
"oh no.....oh no!I really dont like the look of this." Cye said in dismay.
"Dammit,I think they're being controlled!" Sage said,readying his weapon. "Be prepared for battle,guys."
Rowen shuddered as he heard the collective laughter of the warlords echo around him.Would he ever be able to think of them as allies?Would they ever really be allies?
"But how could this be?" He questioned to no one in particular."Talpa is gone."
The warlords continued to laugh,and then,without warning,they leaped in unison off their rooftop perches and high into the air.
Sage,Rowen and Cye gasped and watched the warlords vanish from sight as the laughter died down,letting the deafening silence once again envelope all.
"Oh,swell.Where did they go now?" Sage yelled in a frustrated tone.
"Look.....over there." Cye pointed to one of the distant dynasty fields where a coiling mass of darkness on the horizon slowly grew larger and larger as it approached the three ronins.
"Oh my god.What is that?" Sage asked in a stunned whisper as he started to back away in the opposite direction of the rapidly approaching mass of blackness.
"I dont know,but I say we get out of here now!" Rowen yelled as he quickly began to back away,but still stared,fixated,at the pitch black void spiraling towards them and swallowing everything,even the sky,in an enormous blanket of darkness.
The three panicked Ronins had barely cleared the bridge before the juggernaut of darkness struck them.
They screamed as they found themselves freefalling and reeling through a sea of black,with no perception of direction whatsoever.Like falling into an endless void,without substance or gravity.
Once again thrown into darkness,Cye began to panic.His friends were no longer visible to him.He flailed wildly,hoping to come in contact with something solid to support him,but all he felt was thin air underneath and around him.
"Sage??!.....Rowen??!" He yelled into the darkness.He was surprised when his voice echoed thunderously back at him.
"Cye?" Sage's voice called back from somewhere above him,sounding equally panicked.
Soon,Cye saw a sparkling speck of white appear below him.As he fell towards it,it imediately expanded outward into an enormous,shimmering,silver spiderweb.It spread across the endless blanket of darkness as a simple vision of beauty.An intricately woven mass of deadly and elegant threads,eager to ensnare it's prey.
Cye noticed himself falling helplessly towards the enormous web and braced himself.
He landed almost directly in the center,sending tiny twinkles of light radiating outward to the ends of the web,which disappeared into the darkness.
He felt the tinsely strands of silver vibrate as Sage and Rowen landed nearby.
"Well,c'mon warlords!" Sage yelled, getting impatient with their lack of appearence."If you're going to fight us,make it quick!" He then realized that wasnt the wisest thing to say as he made an attempt to move his arms and found they were stuck,leaving him open for attack.
He looked up at Cye as he felt the strands underneath him violently jerk and vibrate.
Cye was struggeling wildly to free himself but apparently not succeeding.
"Would you cut that out!" Rowen called out from farther up the web,sounding annoyed."You're only making it worse!Try to cut through it."
Both Sage and Cye fumbled with their weapons untill they were in a position where they could try and cut through the tough,sticky threads.
They tried without much luck for a while and were soon interrupted by a deep and sinister laughter.
Cye tensed and gazed into the darkness."Sekhmet?" He asked,recognizing the voice.
"Ah,what pathetic little Ronins." Sekhmet began,from somewhere within the sea of black."So naive and vulnerable.Just begging to be tortured."
Cye looked around wildly,trying to locate him and be ready for battle,but all he saw was Rowen,Sage and hundreds of strands of silver against pitch black.
His heart froze as he heard the subtle sound of metal sliding against metal and Sekhmet's wicked laughter.
Rowen and Sage heard it as well and anticipated his next move.They werent prepared for the crippling jolt of agony that abruptly surged through their bodies,and the blining flash of scalding red before,once again,everything faded to nothingness.

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

Jasmine.....the smell of jasmine drifted through the air and coaxed him out of the murkey depths of oblivion......
Rowen thought he felt his eyelids flutter open.Reality began to come back into focus.Hazy at first,but getting clearer.He saw figures.Bleary figures that he couldn't make out,moving around in front of him.Something was keeping him bound.He could feel it around his arms,legs,and all over his body.Not like the strands of a spiderweb,but hevier........like chains.He could hear laughter,evil laughter.It sounded like it was coming from somewhere far away.First,a laugh that sounded like it was coming from a female,but he couldn't be sure.Then there was laughter so deep and horrifying that,for a moment,he thought he was having a nightmare.But then reality came all the way into focus,and he knew this was no dream.
The first thing that caught his attention was the monsterosity that sat in Talpa's throne.Long and twisted,razor sharp claws tapping against the side of his throne.Large,empty eyes like blackholes,threatening to suck him in.Could that really be Talpa?
Then,the rest of the scene began to sink in.The strange looking woman standing beside Talpa,the black shadows that creeped across the walls,Sage,Cye and the warlords bound in chains along with him.Cye on his left and Dais on his right.
Rowen saw the strange woman lift her head to glance at each one of the seven captives,with cold,black eyes.He noticed how pale the flesh around those eyes were.So pale it was almost to the point of being pure white.Her face was framed with strands of black,undertoned in deep violet,which looped at the ends.She looked quite similar to a porceline doll......a scary porcelain doll,he concluded.
a shiver ran violently up his spine in the fraction of a second that her angry black eyes locked with his.
The next thing he expected was to hear her voice,but instead,the beast sitting next to her that resembled Talpa was the one to speak.
"Welcome to my empire,little ones.This is the deepest,darkest dungeon of hatred and dispair,and you are the prisoners.Will you stay captive here for eternity or find your way out of this labyrinth of trechery?Hmm?Come play my game and we shall soon find out!" He laughed.It was a cold and merciless laugh
After the last traces of Talpa's deep and thunderouse voice had died down,leaving the three ronins awestruck,he turned his attention to the warlords,as if he knew exactly what was going to be said next.
"What happened? What the hell have you done to us,demon?!" Sekhmet yelled,struggling in the chains that held him captive.
"Mind control........manipulation.Just like the past four hundred years.I used you,like my evil little toys that you are,just long enough for you to ensnare the three remaining ronins...........But you're useless to me now."
His words only resulted in enraging Sekhmet even more,which was most likely,exactly what Talpa wanted. "Let me out of these chains and i'll show you manipulation,you bastard!! You and your little pal are going to feel unimaginable agony,I assure you!"
Talpa listened,undaunted,to what Sekhmet had to say and then began to make that terrible tapping sound of his claws against the side of his throne.
Sage managed to speak next,still recovering from the shock and horror of seeing Talpa........knowing he was alive. "What have you done with Ryo and Kento?" He asked,hoping to get an answer.
"Ryo and Kento....." Talpa began,sounding amused."their bodies are quite dead,as you so gruesomely discovered.But their souls are still quite alive........inside me.Giving me strength.As I circulated through time and space,gaining power,as nothing but an energy force,I realized how easy it was to invade their pathetic little minds......to invade their dreams.......as both a mental and physical presence.
Sage's heart simultaniously lifted and sank.The whole situation had become a whole lot clearer.Like a huge piece of the puzzle suddenly falling into place.
Their souls were still alive and he believed there could be a way to save their bodies as well,which meant there was still hope.But the tremendous display of power that Talpa had already shown proved it would be quite difficult to save them.
He then thought to ask another question."So,what's with the insane looking chick?"
The woman stepped forward from her spot next to Talpa and spoke."I am Talpa's ally.I come from the depths of the shadow world.Fellow manipulator and demon.The overlord of darkness,but you can call me Azrael."
A massive black shadow collected behind her as she continued."A great deal of Talpa's power comes from us.This....." She waved her hand at the slowly dissipating mass of black before continuing."....Is my army."
The black shadow vanished completely,revealing four armored figures slumped against the wall.None of them wore helmets.And although it was difficult too pin genders to the perfect,ethereal creatures,two appeared to be male and the other two female."If Talpa can have warlords,so can I." With another wave of her hand,the four inert figures opened their eyes one by one and stood up.
The first one to stand was a female,wearing armor that vaguely resembled the armor of cruelty in style,but was colored in purples,greens and silver,and adorned with spikes.She seemed to be adorned with weapons as well,including many styles of swords,a razor sharp whip and some other more unusual and frightening weapons that no one recognized.She had ghostly pale flesh and large red eyes,shrouded by thick,black eyelashes.Her hair was a vivid violet that was lighter than Azraels.It was cut short on top and styled to taper to a spike on top of her head.On either side of her pale face,her hair hung in long tailes that swung just below her shoulders.
The second to stand was an attractive man with spikey greenish blue hair that fell into his pale and rather waif-like face.His slightly slanted eyes twinkled purple.From head to toe,his armor was made of glistening plates of gold and violet.At his side was a large gold bow and many razor sharp golden arrows.
Next stood a young looking girl with very dark skin.She had wispy white hair that fell in slight waves,just above her shoulders.On either side of her head rested unusually long and elven looking ears.Her eyes were deep emerald and lined with dark black makeup.She didnt seem to have any eyelashes.Her armor was gold and black.The feet and hands of her armor sported monster-like claws,and large,golden,metal wings sprouted from her back.In her right hand she held a large battle-ax.
The last one to stand was a rather frightening looking and tall man with long,jet back hair and black eyes with red pupils.His malliciously grinning lips were also painted black,contrasting deeply with his white skin.His armor was completely black and intricately crafted,with clawed feet and hands,and deadly looking spikes running along his arms and legs.He held a large,razor sharp,silver scythe with a black handle.
The ronins and warlords stared in awe at the four people that looked like carefully constructed,extravagant dolls,rather than natural human beings,which they most certainly were not.
Dais immediately recognized the strange looking armors.They had appeared in his dream with Azrael.
"My brand new soldiers." Talpa began gleefully."Powerful,deadly and ready to play.Why dont you introduce yourselves to our guests."
One by one they stepped forward and presented themselves in a way that seemed to be some sort of mockery of the Warlords.
The woman with the purple hair and red eyes spoke first. "With the grace of a butterfly,all things shall be demolished with my decimating touch,for I am Indra,warlord of destruction.
The man in the gold and purple armor was the next to step forward. "Caught in the web of infatuation and gluttony,I am a manipulating jaguar.Call me Mantus,warlord of desire.
The dark elf spoke next. "I am the bat,lurking in the darkness,ready to deliver your deepest,darkest terrors and nightmares.I am Vanth,warlord of fear."
Then the man clad in black spoke."I am a deadly dragon that shall bring your fate.All things must wither and die in my presence,for I am Mania,warlord of death."
Azrael flashed a dark smile at the seven captives."These are your opponents.The dynasty will serve as your playground and battlefield."
"What are you talking about?" Dais asked in confusion,not bothering to struggle in his chains,knowing it would be a futile effort.
"A game." Talpa roared. "a game in which every one of your lives and souls are at stake."
"A game?!" Dais asked.
"Yes,a game." Azrael responded."The rules are simple.If you manage to survive and defeat my warlords then the prize is yours."
"And what would that be?" Questioned Sekhmet.
"The souls of Ryo and Kento,and your preciouse little lives." She said as two small,glowing spheres of light drifted through the air and came to rest high above Talpa.One held the Virtue kanji and the other held the strength kanji.
"Ryo......Kento..." Cye called out in a tone of despair.
"And!" Azrael continued."If every one of you are slaughtered,then your souls belong to me and Talpa to take back to the shadow world."
"But why?! How do we know you wont deceive us and take our lives anyway?!" Rowen cried out furiously "You know this is a game we cant win!"
"Probably not.But it certainly is worth trying,isn't it?" She said,motioning to the two orbs of light.
Rowens heart sank.They had to do this.They had to rescue themselves,and Ryo and Kento.He only hoped the Warlords would choose to be their allies.
"By the way." Azrael added "There's one more thing you might want to know.You may be wondering what part Talpa and I will play.We are the,I guess you could say,the twisted and evil mediator and mediatrix.Be wary.We want your souls.Encounter us and the stakes will rise." She said,once again motioning suggestively at the spheres of light.
Dais watched the six surreal figures.An army of unnerving........unnatural perfection.He had that funny feeling of fear and anxiety that he had experienced in his dream.They had no choice but to fight along side of the ronins this time.There was always a way to untangle oneself from a mess,and he planned on finding it.He wouldn't let the dynasty once again be ruled by Talpa.
The seven prisoners gasped as the chains that held them loosened and trap doors opened underneath them.The last thing they heard as they plummeted into voids of darkness was Talpas demonic laughter and two words spoken in Azraels taunting and teasing voice.
"Have fun."