| The Free Site | vBuddy - social networking for webmasters | Cheap Web Hosting - starting at $5 |
Standard disclaimer: I don't own the series.
AN: Sorry if the last chapter was very sloppy. I had a semi-hard time writing that chapter… for some reason. You would think that I would have been able to do better or something… all well.
Anyway, yeah. The party of wanna-be heroes are off to the Temple of Namanda with Rekks, a Shell clansman, as their guide, who may or may not want to wipe them off the face of the earth. Err, yeah. Sometimes the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry. Good thing I’m a girl, eh? Heh. No, really. I just don’t like how I set the last chapter up. All well. Too late to go back and change it.
Besides, I don’t think that there’s anything I can to do change the plot to make it better. I mean, I had a lot of ideas back when I was first thinking about writing this, but a lot of them have fallen by the wayside. Heh, too many ideas if you ask me. Either I didn’t have time to write them in, or they didn’t make sense. I mean, Breath of Fire is Breath of Fire and whatever ideas I had from other games are those other games. Right?
Oh, and here’s some more favorite reads. And they are multi-chaptered, too! A Second Chance, A New Darkness and Guardians of Fate. Good reads. Good reads.
Anyway, here’s the next chapter! Enjoy!
That man had been following her for the past hour. He probably thought that since she was a small child, she wouldn’t have been able to tell. Truth was, however, she could sense him from a mile away.
Such was her gift. To be able to see which can not be seen. It was a blessing… and a curse. She often saw things she did not want to see. She never told her mother, for she feared that her mother would be upset. One time she told her mother of the strange person was in her bedroom, watching her sleep. She said that she could see right through him. Her mother looked scared and told her she was just imagining things.
She was then sent back to her room. Later that night, she woke up again and saw the same person staring at her. This time she could see that the person was a man, and he had many wounds on him and he was very bloody. He also looked like he wanted to kill her. She didn’t know why, he just did.
She tried to scream, cry, anything, but her voice just would not work. She couldn’t move. All she could do was stare wide-eyed at the transparent man that was going to kill her. The next few seconds were a blur as the man made a grab for her. She had closed her eyes and braced herself for the blow, but it never came. She actually did scream when she felt a hand on her shoulder.
She opened her eyes and saw her father sitting on the edge of her bed, a questioning look on his face. He had asked her what was wrong. She told him everything. He hadn’t looked as upset as her mother, but he still looked a little troubled. He told her to tell her if she saw odd things like that.
She idly found herself wondering if the man that was tailing her would be considered odd. She knew that no one else could see him. She also knew that he wasn’t a ghost, either. She wasn’t sure what to do.
She had been walking home from school and that man had suddenly appeared. She knew that he was following her. She just didn’t know why. She only knew that she had to get away and not let that man know that she knew about him.
She rounded another corner and the man was starting to catch up. He was apparently tired of following her around. She was starting to wish that her father was there. He would make the man go away…
She was suddenly stopped in her tracks. She had bumped into someone. She looked up and saw a hunched over old man looking down at her. She barely noticed, but the man had stopped in his tracks, too.
“Confound it all!” the old man muttered darkly. He stared at the girl from behind wide glasses. “Watch where you are going!”
She wasn’t sure how to react. She ducked her head. “Sorry!”
The old man looked around and crossed his arms. “I see… well then, come one Assistant #2! We are late!”
The girl looked at the man like he had lost his ever-loving mind. “Um, excuse me?” the little girl pointed to herself. “I’m not Assistant #2. My name is Momo…”
The old man grabbed the girl’s upper arm and started to drag her away. “Nonsense, Assistant #2! We have a giant robot to build and you are just wasting precious time!”
Momo blinked. “Giant robot…? Hey!” Momo yelled as the man dragged her along as they walked down the street. “Evil spies are following you, Assistant #2. They wish to find out the secret of my greatest creation! We will not allow that to happen,” the old man stopped and looked down at Momo. “Will we, Assistant #2?”
Momo slowly nodded. She was slowly catching on. “Okay!” Momo yelled excitedly. “We can’t let the plans fall into enemy hands… can we… um…”
The old man looked irritated. “Confound it! Assistant #2! How could you forget that I am the great Professor!”
Momo glanced at the man. “Oh, right! Okay Professor! Let’s go and build the ultimate robot!!”
The Professor grinned slightly. “Of course, of course! Now come! Assistant #1 will be getting worried if we are late!”
Momo looked at the Professor. “Eh…?”
Momo glanced behind her and noticed that the ghost-looking man vanished. She looked back at the Professor and noticed that his bright blue eyes were glowing slightly. He looked down at her and grinned. “Let’s go, Assistant #2. We must hurry, or the bad guys will know of our plans…”
The Shrine of Namanda is located on the outskirts of Ceres’ capitol city, Rosethrone. The Shrine is a temple that is dedicated to the Earth Mother, Namanda. The shrine is more like a massive, enclosed cave, rather than a temple.
Namanda is the goddess of the Earth and patron goddess of the Shell Clan, Dirt-eating Clan, Grassrunners, and Builder Clan. She is the embodiment of the element of Earth. Namanda is said to be a very secretive goddess that few have ever scene, including her fellow gods. The only exception was during the War of the Gods, when she sided with Ladon to stop Tyr.
Not much is known about Namanda, except that she is the earth god and a very benevolent god. Followers of Namanda prefer to live in harmony with nature instead of relying on technology or magic. The Earth Shaman Solo was often considered her emissary during the second Cycle. Those who follow Namanda are very spiritual and are great healers. They are often called monks, though some had been referred to as druids. The followers of Namanda follow a strict honor code to do no harm. They mediate and train their minds and bodies daily.
The Earth Key itself is stored within the Shrine. And within the Shrine itself was a large slew of traps.
Yuki and Ryu were positive that they could worm their way out of any of those traps. Well, they were until Jin told them that even though they were familiar with most magical traps, Namandian and Ladonic high priests of the highest orders set up these traps. He explained that even though Ryu and Yuki were pretty good at disarming traps, they would need someone either on a high priest’s caliber to disarm the traps, or someone who knew enough about the Shrine to be able to locate each trap and be able to avoid it.
That was where Rekks came in. Jin had watched the Shell clansman very closely ever since they left the palace grounds. Ryu voiced concern to Nina and Yuki about the Dragon Tear changing to blood red, but none of them were able to explain why a Destined would want to hurt them.
Yuki off handedly mentioned something about it to Jin on their way to the Shrine, but all he said about the matter was that nothing was always what it appeared to be. Yuki had grunted that it was a typical response and that Jin himself needed to quit being so cryptic. Jin had nothing else to say on the matter.
Wyatt, on the other hand, seemed to be a little spooked ever since they left Rosethrone. When questioned by Nina, he mentioned that he didn’t like Harmony. He never explained why. He just said that she knew more than she should, especially for someone her age. Nina reminded him that she was an Avatar, but Wyatt still looked annoyed about the whole thing.
So, the group had finally arrived at the opening of the Shrine. Ryu remembered from that freaky dream that he had that this was where he had seen Harmony holding the Earth Key. He wondered if the dream he had was a clue as to where the Keys were located.
Rekks explained that he should he the one to lead the party, as he knew where the traps were. Ryu sighed. They had no choice. They had to follow him. Hopefully, it would not be to their doom.
They entered the dark cave. The only light source in the cave was either the torches that were placed along the cave walls, or the flashlights that Rekks and Jin were currently holding. The cave itself had guardrails along the sides of the narrow walkways to keep people from falling down and hurting themselves.
As the party walked, Yuki hung back a little bit and matched her pace with Nina’s. The princess had seems a little more cheerful that morning. Yuki wanted to know all the juicy details to what happened the night before.
“So?” Yuki began as Nina glanced over at her, a confused look on her face.
“So…what?” Nina asked. She didn’t like that eat-shit grin on Yuki’s face.
“What happened between you and Ryu last night?” Yuki giggled. “Anything… naughty?”
Nina was thankful for the dim lighting. Her face was at least three shades of red. “Of… of course not! What do you take me for?!”
Yuki nodded. “Ah, I thought you were a little prudish… I should have figured that you were a virgin…”
Nina choked. “What?! What does that… I mean why would that…YUKI!”
Yuki grinned all knowingly. “Yup, I figured as much… of course, I have to hand it to you, you did much better than I would have.”
Nina glowered at Yuki. “Why are we discussing this?” Nina said through gritted teeth. “Since when was my sex life an ideal topic to discuss?”
Yuki smirked. “Oh, I never said it was. And seriously… what sex life? You are way too prudish to actually do anything with Ryu. Of course, I can’t say the same for dragon boy.”
Nina looked a little panicked. “Wait! Do you mean that Ryu…”
Yuki grinned slightly. “I… don’t think you have to worry about Ryu. He may be a pervert… but I think he’s in the same boat as you.”
Nina actually looked relieved. “Did he tell you that?”
Yuki shook her head. “Didn’t have to. He was in bed last night with a really pretty girl. I bet he didn’t even touch you, did he?”
“Um…”
“Exactly. See, if he was a true pervert… he would have been on you like a…”
“OKAY! ENOUGH YUKI!” Nina snapped, her face changing to a shade of red that was not yet discovered on the color wheel.
Yuki gave Nina a sly smile. “Oh, did I say something wrong?”
“And… what about you?” Nina questioned. “Where do YOU fit in the scheme of things?”
“Ah… I can say I know what to do with a man,” Yuki grinned. “And… if my brother knew what those things were, he would cut off the guy’s balls for ever even thinking about touching me like that…”
“O-okay…” Nina said weakly. “Can we drop this topic… please?”
Wyatt grinned from behind both women. “Oh, but why? It’s such an interesting discussion!”
Yuki turned as red as Nina. She turned on her heel and clocked the redhead in the head with her fist. “How DARE you for listening in on a girls’ private conversation!”
Nina gave Wyatt a weak smile. “Sorry about that… you know how Yuki gets.”
Yuki turned back around and resumed walking. Wyatt looked at Nina and nodded while rubbing his head. “Eh, heh. Yeah, thanks for the reminder…”
Ryu looked back at the three stragglers. “Hurry up!”
Nina and Wyatt grinned slightly and ran to catch up.
Despite Rekks’ knowledge as to where each trap lied, he still needed the party to cancel out their effects. Ryu handled the physical traps while Yuki, and surprisingly Jin, handled the magical ones.
The group quickly made their way through the large labyrinth, trying to desperately avoid the many traps. Ryu just couldn’t shake the feeling that their leader was leading them into a trap himself. He figured that he would know sooner or later what would really happen.
After a few hours of downhill travel, the party finally came to a large opening. Rekks motioned for the party to follow. They entered into the large room. There was a banner that was hanging at the far side of the room. The banner was purple and had a large five-petal rose in the center of it, the symbol of the Earth Mother. In the center of the room was an altar and on top of the altar was a key. The Earth Key.
“This… can’t be as simple as this…can it?” Wyatt asked, scratching his head in confusion. “I mean, it’s just right out in the open.”
Ryu glanced around. “Well, it seems like we’re the only ones in here, so…” Ryu took a step forward. A sudden pain lanced through his head and caused him to stop. The room started to blur. He could feel his heartbeat pulsing throughout his body. Ryu screamed as he grabbed his head and fell to his knees in agony.
Ryu looked up and saw a young girl standing before him. She looked similar to Harmony, but the coloring was off. She looked much paler than the Avatar. The girl shook her head and glanced over at Rekks, who was just standing off to the side. Ryu tried to look at the Tear, but the stone was blank.
The girl then vanished. Ryu moaned and doubled over in pain. Yuki and Nina started to move over to him, but Jin stopped the girls. Yuki looked at Jin and was about to open her mouth and protest, but Rekks cut her off. The large Shell clanner took a step forward and walked over to Ryu. He knelt down and looked at the ailing dragon.
Ryu grunted and forced himself to his feet. “What…”
Rekks grinned slightly. “I will have to thank you for coming after the Goddess Key,” Rekks said as his voice started to distort. “The queen would have never let me come in here without reason, after all…”
“Oh, Ladon!” Nina screamed.
There was a bright light, and Rekks vanished. When the light died down, Rekks was no where to be seen. Instead, a massive armored demon stood in his place. Yuki looked up at the demon and drew her short swords. Jin nodded and unsheathed his katana.
Nina looked at the Uzuki siblings for an explanation. She received one from Wyatt. “He’s a demon! Rekks… he fooled us!” And with that, Wyatt drew his guns.
The demon grinned, showing a large row of fangs. Ryu staggered around and drew his long sword. Ascension was out of the question. He could barely stand, let alone think. The transformation from his human form to his dragon form was always painful. And besides, if he were to change in the room, the backlash from the fight might actually end up hurting his friends.
So, Ryu did the only thing he could think of. He charged the demon head on. He slashed with his sword, but the demon proved to be too fast. One massive claw swooped down and nearly lobbed his head off. The claw came down again, but was blocked by Jin’s katana. Jin and Ryu both jumped back and readied their swords once more.
While Jin and Ryu were attacking one side of the demon, Yuki went in for the other side. Yuki dodged and slashed her way around the demon. When Ryu would hit one side, Jin and Yuki would get the other.
While the three hitters were distracting Rekks, Nina pulled out her wand and started to charge up her spells. Rekks was a creature of the earth, so he had a natural weakness to wind. Nina when just what to do.
“TYPHOON!”
Nina let loose several massive wind torrents. Rekks screamed and started to slash as Nina, but Ryu was suddenly in front of her and blocked the claw with his sword. Ryu flashed Nina a grin and slashed at the monster again and again.
Wyatt grinned. He was not about to be outdone. He fired off a volley of bullets at the demon. They hit their target and Rekks screamed. Nina noticed a faint green color around the bullets. Could Wyatt actually enchant his weapons with elemental spells? Whatever the kid was doing, it was hurting Rekks.
Rekks turned his attention to Wyatt. Before anyone had a chance to react, a large claw impaled the little master and sent the child flying. He screamed as he was slammed against the stone wall. The demon released him and Wyatt slid down the wall. Nina’s eyes flashed as she prepared to cast Eternal Session. Ryu was by her side in a second and he placed a hand on her shoulder and signaled for her to stop.
Yuki ran up behind Rekks and slammed her short swords into the demon’s back. With a loud cry, the monster started to flash white and gold and then started to revert back to his normal form. Yuki jumped back and readied her short swords once more. The light died down and before them, knelt down, was Rekks.
He looked up as Yuki, Nina, and Ryu approached him, weapons drawn and ready to use. Rekks slowly glanced over at Yuki.
“What… did you do to me?” the Shell clanner demanded.
“It’s called Soul Embrace,” Yuki explained. “That means I can cause your sorry ass to revert.”
Ryu saw Jin approach a fallen Wyatt. Ryu then turned his attention back to Rekks. “Why did you attack us?”
Rekks smiled slightly. “It’s simple really. I want the Earth Key… you were simply in my way. I have nothing against you, after all…”
Ryu noticed the Tear change to a lighter red color. “Why do you want the key?”
“My… I am Rekks Counsei, Sword of Earth. My master wanted the key. That is all you need to know.”
“You work for Gideon?” Ryu snapped.
“That… Destined Child… is none of your business,” Rekks said.
Yuki readied her short swords. “Tell the truth, or I will tell it for you.”
Rekks looked at Yuki. “I see… so that is your power. Very well. What I do… I do for Harmony… I will not allow her to be harmed. In order to ensure her safety, I must get the Earth Key and give it to my master.”
“You know we can’t allow you to do that,” Ryu said.
“I know…” Rekks said. “But… I also cannot allow you to take me in, either…”
And with that, Rekks rolled up into a massive ball and aimed himself right at the trio. Ryu and the girls jumped out of the way, just barely missing being turned into pancakes. Ryu realized too late that Rekks was heading for the Earth Key. The Shell clanner unrolled himself and made a mad dash for the key, but was stopped right in his tracks by a well-placed lightning bolt, courtesy of Jin Uzuki.
Rekks glanced up and noticed Jin standing up, hand outstretched. Lightning was lacing itself around his hand. Rekks knew that Jin would attack before he could have another chance to get the key. Rekks growled and took a step back. He would not, however, allow himself to be captured.
And with that, Rekks vanished. Ryu ran over to where Rekks had been standing. Ryu looked down and spotted the Earth Key. Ryu looked behind the altar and noticed the young girl once more. She smiled and said something that only Ryu could understand. She then vanished.
“Thank you… Namanda…” Ryu mummer to himself as he picked up the Earth Key.
Nina and Yuki walked over to Ryu. “What did you say?” Yuki asked.
Ryu merely shook his head. “Whu? Oh, nothing…”
Nina turned her attention over to where Wyatt was lying prone on the ground. Jin had resumed his trek over to the little master, but Wyatt was shouting at him to not come any closer. She also noticed that Wyatt was holding his side.
Jin knelt down and stared at Wyatt. “I know what you are,” Jin whispered to the boy. “I need your connection gear for a moment.”
Wyatt stared at Jin. “What… how…?” but he handed him the gear, nonetheless.
Jin smiled slightly and tapped something on the gear. He held the gear over Wyatt’s midsection. “Ether drive, connect!”
Nina’s eyes widened as a strange light engulfed Wyatt’s midsection. The light died down and Wyatt inspected his side. It was good as new. Nina and the others ran over to Wyatt and Jin.
“Are you okay?” Yuki asked.
Wyatt nodded. Jin and Wyatt then stood up and looked over at Ryu, who was currently holding the Earth Key.
“One down… five more to go!” Ryu laughed.
“Now what…” Yuki asked.
“We report back to the queen and tell her of Rekks betrayal. I doubt he would attack them on the count of Harmony being there,” Jin said. “But we can’t be too careful. After that, we head back to Crete. You guys can plan what to do after that.”
Ryu, Yuki, and Nina nodded. They then headed for the exit. Jin started to follow, but Wyatt grabbed his arm and pulled him off to the side.
“How did you know about the Ether drive?” Wyatt asked bitterly.
“I… had a hand in its development,” Jin said. “You can ask Jonothan. I’m sure he would be more than happy to explain it to you.”
“You… know about me…” Wyatt said. “How do you know about me?”
Jin merely shook his head. “I was in Lahan… remember? I’m the one that shot that dragon down.”
Wyatt’s eyes widened. “That… was you…? Oh boy! What have I gotten myself into?”
Jin laughed as he pushed Wyatt towards the exit. “Don’t worry, my aim is excellent. I missed on purpose.”
“That’s always good to know…” Wyatt sighed.
To be continued…