Ronin Warriors Fan Fiction ❯ Love's Tangled Web ❯ Part 11 ( Chapter 11 )

Author's Note: Jade's been captured! How will the other Ronins react? Will Rhia make it back to the house safely? Now that we've seen into Sage's thoughts, what will he do?

 

Love's Tangled Web

Part 11

 

 

Sage rushed for the door, calling his sub-armor as he ran.

 

“No, Sage, wait!”

 

He was only vaguely aware of Rowen trying to stop him, grasping his arm before he wrenched free, dislodging him, not caring where or how he landed. He had to go save Jade. His Jade, who had called to him for help.

 

He reached the front door, a dark-haired figure standing in his way, arms crossed over his chest.

 

“Where do you think you're going?”

 

“Get out of the way, Ryo. You know very well where I'm going.” Was that his voice? It was so calm, so cold and collected…

 

“No.”

 

A hot rage flared inside of him, desperation at its core. “Dammit, Ryo. Move, or I will make you move! I have to go to her!”

 

Ryo merely raised an eyebrow and continued to block his way. Sage snarled at him and moved forward, intending to force his way past. And then he found himself on the floor, his head ringing, his vision slightly blurred. Ryo was standing over him, his hand still in a fist.

 

“Why are you being so hot-headed, Sage? Where's your coldness? Your composure? You're the last person I expected to have to tell to stop and think!! What good are you going to do her by rushing out and getting yourself captured as well? Do you have any idea how hard you threw Rowen off of you? I thought you cared about him!”

 

Sage glanced back behind him. /Oh, gods, Rowen, are you okay?/

 

/Yea, I'm fine./ came the terse reply.

 

Ryo had barely paused in his tirade. “How do you think I feel? Rhia's out there, alone, in an armor she doesn't know how to fully use, and our enemy is searching for her! She's vulnerable, and there's nothing I can do right now but tell her to hide and wait for us to come get her! I want to go get Jade too, but dammit, Sage, THINK! Getting captured won't do her any good! We need to find out where she's going to be held before we can do anything. I know it hurts, I know you love her, but use your head! We have to wait. We need more information. She's smart, and she's strong. She'll be able to handle anything they do to her, and maybe even escape on her own if they let their guard down around her.” His voice quieted near the end, and he knelt down on the floor next to Sage, helping him to sit up. “She'll be okay. I'm sorry I punched you.”

 

“It's okay, I deserved it. I needed it. Thank you.” He turned sad eyes up to his friend. “I'm worried about her.”

 

Ryo hugged him. “I know. It'll be okay, we'll figure something out. Go talk to Rowen. You're lucky you didn't hurt him.”

 

Sage nodded and stood, then walked over to where Rowen was standing, watching. They started to talk, and Ryo turned his thoughts inward.

 

/Rhia?/

 

/Yes? I'm here./

 

/Where are you?/

 

/I'm hiding in a house about halfway between there and the castle./

 

/You shouldn't have traveled so far without someone to watch your back./

 

He could hear her snort of derision. /I'm fine, I wasn't seen. Did you know I can call fog? Don't worry so much. And I know where he took Jade./

 

/How do you know that?/

 

/How else? I watched him./

 

/That was dangerous./

 

/Yes, but I know where she's been taken, and I didn't get caught, so it's okay. I'm safe for now./

 

/Okay, good work. Stay where you are for now, we'll come and get you this evening./

 

/See you then./

 

Ryo nearly sighed with relief. She was safe, and because of her, he knew where to find Jade.

 

 

Sage looked up at Rowen. “Are you sure you're okay?”

 

“Nothing really wounded but my pride. I'm lucky there wasn't any furniture around, though. You threw me pretty hard.”

 

“I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me.”

 

“Jade, that's what came over you. She called, and you went running.” A hurt look came into his eyes. “I know you love her, but would you really just cast me aside like that?”

 

“No, of course not. I've found I love you, and I wouldn't just throw that and our friendship away. She just… I don't know. I love her so much, Rowen. It's hurt so much to have this tension between us, to be apart, I could almost swear at times she never wants to see me again, but then, just now, when she was in real danger, real trouble, she called for me. Not Rhia who was right there and could have possibly helped her, not Sai, not her cousin Kento, not Ryo or you, she called for me. It means so much, just to know from her own lips that I'm the one she wants… It felt so good, and it hurt so badly because there's nothing I can do for her right now. She's out of my reach. And I want to go to her, to be there, to save her, because she called out to me. I love you so much, Ro, but she… she…”

 

He trailed off and Rowen embraced him, guiding the swordsman's head to rest on his shoulder. “I know, Sage. I know. I heard her. We all heard her.” He held him, comforting him, the silence between them weighing heavily on him until he spoke again. “There's something I need to tell you.”

 

“What's that?”

 

“I propositioned Jade before she left.”

 

Sage lifted his head off his shoulder and indigo eyes pierced his own with their gaze. “Concerning what?”

 

“Concerning you. You, and me, and her.” He paused, but Sage just continued to look at him patiently, waiting. “I told her that you still love her, that you love her more than anything. She didn't want to believe it at first, but I insisted, and she finally accepted it. She loves you too, but you know that for yourself now… She proved it a few minutes ago. And I told her that I love you, and that if she did decide to come back to you, that I come with you, because I won't leave you. I told her that I'd love her with all my heart if she'd let me.”

 

“And what did she say?”

 

“She didn't really say anything. She didn't accept it, but she didn't reject it. She told me thank you, and that she still needed time to think. She's keeping a secret, and she needed the time away from us on the mission to think about it.”

 

“Okay. I'm glad you did that. I would hate to have to end up choosing between the two of you. It would tear me apart. I couldn't do it.”

 

“I know. That's why I said something to her. Everything will work out, you'll see.”

 

He grew quiet as Ryo approached them.

 

“We're going to get Rhia this evening, right after sunset. She knows where Yoshitomo took Jade, too. We'll talk to her after we get back and see what she found out about their defenses, and make a plan to go rescue Jade. Go rest and compose yourself. We'll get them both back, safe and sound.”

 

The two of them nodded, and Ryo moved off to find Sai and Kento.

 

Sage gave Rowen a soft, sweet kiss before moving to lead him upstairs.

 

* * *

 

Late that night, they sat around the table, digesting what Rhia had told them about the defenses around the castle. After a long silence, Ryo spoke.

 

“Here's my idea. We wait a week to get them to let their guard down, to lose hope about a rescue mission, before we attempt to go get Jade.”

 

“A week?!” Sage's hand hit the table.

 

Ryo merely looked at him. “Yes, a week. At that point, we will launch the rescue mission. We will split into two groups. One will attack the castle wall head on, creating a diversion for the second team to sneak into the castle and rescue Jade. I only want two in the rescue team, one to help or carry Jade if she needs it, the other to cover their backs. Sage, you're in the rescue team. We all know how much she means to you, and your armor can heal her as you escape if you find her in bad shape. Who wants to volunteer for the other spot?”

 

“I will,” Rowen said. His hand gripped Sage's on the table, and Ryo fixed them both with a heavy stare. “Bring her out safely and as quickly as possible when the time comes.”

 

He expanded his gaze to encompass all of them. “This is a dangerous mission, and we all run the risk of getting captured. Rhia, I want you to be close by one of us at all times so we can help you if you need it. I know it will be hard to wait, but we must. Until we launch the rescue mission, we will continue our daily patrols. Any decrease in their numbers will help us. Agreed?” Everyone nodded in ascent. “All right, let's go get some sleep.”

 

They broke up, and did exactly as Ryo had decreed.

 

 

The day they were to go rescue Jade, right before they moved to leave the house, a piercing scream, Jade's scream, echoed through the armor link. It was filled with grief, anguish, and pain, and they all stared at each other as the link was quickly slammed shut again. Worry infused the entire group, and they set out toward the castle at a steady trot, eager to cover the ground as fast as possible without draining their energy reserves.

 

Something terrible had happened.