Ronin Warriors Fan Fiction ❯ Past Meets Future ❯ Chapter 2 ( Chapter 3 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Hey I'm back and I would like to thank Harry2, Inda, and my first reviewerblueraven!Yay someone out there likes me *sniff* anyways one with the story

Rating: T

Pairings: You'll have to find out for yourself

Disclaimer: I don't own anything from Ronin Warriors and never will. *sniff*

SSSSSSSSS scene change

italics telepathy

“yap yap yap” talk

`yap yap yap' thoughts

Past

Meets

Future

Chapter 2

Ryo groaned as he reluctantly opened his eyes. Watery light stabbed into his eyes, and he threw his left arm over his face. Then he remembered Reika, the guys, Mia, the flames, and, and, the future? He snapped his eyes open and sat bolt upright. “Ryo?” a weak voice called from over to his right, he turned over to look. “Who is it?” he frowned. Sage staggered into view, one hand pressed to his forehead, “You okay?” he asked. Ryo nodded and climbed to his feet, “I think so, have you seen the others?”

“Not yet, we'd better get going though”

“Do you think we made it to the future?” Ryo asked.

Sage shrugged, “Take a look around, you tell me” The warrior of Wildfire complied and took a long look at his surroundings. They appeared to be standing in the middle of a city. It was absolutely deserted, and reminded him strongly of Toyama after Talpa had first made his appearance, the buildings were empty and the sky was full of those ominous dirty-grey clouds. The only difference was that these buildings had obviously been empty for awhile, vines grew along the walls and several of the skyscrapers were dwarfed by enormous trees whose roots crept along the streets, puncturing the pavement. “Spooky” he commented.

“Yeah, I'd say Reika did it, we're in her time”

“Sheesh, no wonder she's so serious, look at this place”

“I'd rather look for the guys” Sage reminded him.

Ryo nodded and the two began to search for Mia, Celena, and the other Ronins. They assumed that Reika would know her way around well enough to find them instead of the other way around.

SSSSSSSSS

Halfway across town, Cye and Rowen had met in a similar manner. Both had been knocked unconscious by the trip through time, but fortunately they'd landed close to each other. “Man, this place is totally trashed!” Rowen commented.

Cye nodded in agreement, “We've got to find the others before something finds us! Or vice versa, for that matter”

“Right” Rowen stopped and considered something for a moment, “Hey, shouldn't our armors lead us to them? I mean, they do link, after all”

“Good point, it's worth a shot”

SSSSSSSSS

A mere subway trip away, Kento was wandering in what seemed to be circles. “I swear, I've already passed that doughnut shop three times!” he sighed in exasperation and took a seat on a crumbling bench. The wood groaned in protest at his weight, but held firm, “and it doesn't help that this place is totally spooky”

“There's got to be an easier way to find the guys” he thought aloud.

Slumping over in his seat, he tried to think. Rowen was the one who came up with the plans, not him. For that matter, he wouldn't have minded Mia or Celena being there either. The sound of rock shifting alerted him to a presence nearby. “Who's there?” he demanded, whirling to his feet, eyes shifting around.

“Kento?” a familiar voice asked.

He relaxed as soon as he recognized it. “Mia!” he grinned at the approaching girl, “I was wondering where you'd gotten to”

“Ditto” she smiled back and walked up to him, “do you know where the others are?”

“Not a clue, not one clue” he shook his head.

“Hmmm” Mia's eyes narrowed as she pondered a theory, “do you suppose our armors are close enough to link up, why not give it a try?”

SSSSSSSSS

Ryo and Sage both stopped in their tracks as they felt their armors react to something. Their kanji's began to glow, and each murmured the name. “Wisdom”

“Virtue”

The two friends exchanged a glance.

“The guys?” Ryo asked.

“It has to be, our armors are connecting. They've got to be close” Sage affirmed.

Both Ronins took off at a run in the direction of the pull they felt.

SSSSSSSSS

Rowen and Cye felt the connection as well, and began to move towards where they knew they would find their friends. “I wonder why the armors wouldn't do this the first time we were separated in Toyama.” Cye frowned.

“I don't know” Rowen shrugged, “we're not even in our sub-armor and we can find each other, it could be that the longer we fight together, the easier it is for our armors to find each other”

They stopped discussing and concentrated on finding their way through the maze of crumbling buildings. The thud of their footsteps echoed eerily off the walls, making it sound like as though there were more than two people running around. “OOF!” Cye and Rowen both tumbled back to the pavement as they ran into what felt like a brick wall.

“Oh geez guys! I'm sorry!” Kento gasped, extending a hand to each of them.

“No problem” Rowen grunted as he was hauled back to his feet, “had any luck with finding Sage, Ryo, or Celena?”

“They're not with you?” Mia's worried voice came from behind Kento.

“No, sorry” Cye shook his head.

“Hey, if we can find each other, I bet they're all ready on their way here!” Kento suggested brightly, “it looks like our armors are drawing us to each other”

The sound of voices just ahead grabbed two of their remaining warrior's attention.

“Looks like we're a little late” Ryo grinned.

“Yeah, I bet everyone's there already” Sage replied.

“What about Reika though?” Ryo frowned, “our armors won't help us find her, will they?”

“I think she'll find us.”

They rounded a corner and saw three other Ronins and Mia.

“Hey! Did we miss anything?” Sage called out.

“Sage! Ryo!” Cye waved back, “what took you so long?”

“You didn't run into any of those bucket-heads, did ya?” Kento asked.

“No, nothing like that, we just landed a little farther away then you guys”

“This time travelling stuff is pretty iffy, doncha think?” Ryo chuckled.

“Speaking of which, where's Reika and Celena anyway?” Mia leaned over to look behind Sage and Ryo, as if expecting to find them there.

“We don't know, we thought they'd be with you”

“Man” Rowen shook his head, “no such luck”

“Well, if our armor could lead us to each other, it should be able to find Celena at least and maybe Reika's with her” Ryo reminded them.

“Cye, why don't you give it a try, after all you should be able to pick up Celena's armor, it should link up easily” Sage suggested.

“I'll try” Cye hesitated, but then began to concentrate.

For a moment, it seemed as if hazy outlines of his armor could be seen, flickering around him. The sky-blue glow intensified and a frown flickered across his face for a moment. Then his eyes snapped open, and the illusion of his armor faded. “I've found her, or a least her armor” Cye informed them, “she's over that way” He motioned to their left, and the group of teens set off through the streets.

SSSSSSSSS

Reika moaned softly and stirred in her sleep. “Don't worry White Blaze she'll wake up soon” Celena reassured him. White Blaze hunkered down beside Reika, he prepared to wait until such time as Ryo and the others found them, and he knew they would. He curled up next to the girls to keep them warm. Celena was awake but Reika had hit her head on some rubble when they landed, and had been out cold since, he and Celena had awakened. White Blaze jerked his head up in surprise; he'd caught the tail end of Reika's story, and now knew that she was indeed to inherit one of the future amulets when they found them. The tiger nuzzled at the girl's neck with his nose. He'd been told it was cold, and usually an unpleasant surprise for sleeping humans, and now he had proof. Reika's eyes slowly opened and she groaned as she sat up. “White Blaze, Celena?” she mumbled looking at them, “are you two okay?”

“Yes we're both okay Reika” Celena replied.

White Blaze rumbled in answer, nudging Reika's hand. She smiled wearily, her whole body shaking. “I guess time travelling had really been taking its toll on me, huh?”

The tiger butted her with his head, “Come on, get up so at least you'll stop shaking” he said.

“I'm working on it” she swatted him lightly and began to climb to her hands and still shaky knees with Celena's help.

“Reika, Celena!” someone shouted. They turned to see the others approaching them.

“Guys! We were afraid you'd gotten lost in the time stream or something” Reika called back, getting to her feet.

“No way, we're not that easy to get rid of!” Kento scoffed.

“No,” she grinned, “I guess not.”

Rowen took a look around at the demolished city and shuddered, “So this is your future?” he asked skeptically.

Reika smiled fondly at the wreckage; “Yeah, I'm finally home.”

The relief in her voice was quite obvious. But then her face fell, “It wasn't this bad before though, you've got to believe me” she turned pleading eyes on them, “there were so many people here before, the place was so alive, and I just want to see it that way again”

“Come on Reika” Cye said, “take us to the palace, we'll meet up with our future selves, come up with a plan, and defeat the Dynasty. It'll be that simple”

She smiled at him, “I hope you're right” she said.

The eight teens set off through the deserted city with Reika in the lead. She knew her way around better that the others, and began leading them through a warren of alleyways which she insisted were shortcuts. “Uh, are you sure you know where we are?” Ryo asked, sounding less than convinced.

“Sure I'm sure” Reika nodded, “I've used these passages a lot when sneaking out of the palace”

“Sneaking out huh?” Kento grinned.

“Uh, forget I said th…” her voice stopped as they rounded another corner and a scene of mass carnage met their eyes.

“Oh. My. God.” Both Mia and Celena gasped.

Piled twenty feet high in front of them was a heap of bodies, people. Their faces were twisted in pain and suffering and their eyes were wide in terror and agony. Mouths were open wide in silent screams. Blood trickled down the grisly tower, staining the pavement crimson. The Ronins realized that they were ankle deep in the liquid. Mia let out a squeak of terror and leapt onto White Blaze's back, trying to get out of the mess. “No” Reika whispered in horror, “this wasn't here when I left, what happened?” She couldn't help but take a step closer to the bodies.

Rowen grabbed her shoulder to stop her, “Reika, don't, don't go any closer near it”

She whirled around sobbing frantically. “This was a warning” she choked out, “that could have been my friends, they're warning me, I just know it. I've got to get home!” her voice rose hysterically. She pulled away and took off down another alley. “NO!” Ryo cried, “Reika, get back here!”

“Darn” Sage grated, “she's lost it, we've got to follow her”

The others nodded in agreement and ran after the fleeing girl.

SSSSSSSSS

Reika ran up the path that would take her to the palace. She could see the massive structure of her home looming before her, familiar and comforting. But for some reason, she couldn't banish the image of all those poor people. There had been infants in that pile for heaven's sake! She just kept seeing it, over and over, but instead of all those strangers, they were her family, her loved ones. If the Dynasty had been seeking to intimidate her, they'd done a great job of it. She slowed to a walk and headed up the road. The buildings had vanished now, behind her, the palace was in its own clearing. The steel of the entrance seemed extremely pale and worn. She took a step through, and cried out in surprise when she was slammed backwards by some unseen force. Lightning forked down from those creepy clouds and slammed into the ground barely three feet away. Greasy looking red smoke oozed out of the ground, solidifying into half a dozen soldiers. “This is Dynasty territory” one of them said in voice that sounded as if it hadn't been used in a few eons. It levelled a finger at her, “since you have trespassed, you will now become a servant to the Evil Dynasty”

“Dream on creep” Reika muttered, taking a fighting stance.

One of the soldiers drove its spear at her. She dodged to the side, grabbed the staff and yanked the weapon from her enemy's grip. Whirling it around, she skewered the walking tin can through the middle, taking a step back as its essence, greasy, foul smelling red smoke escaped to the sky. “You're not taking me alive!” she cried, bringing the spear up to block the downward swing of another. Reika wrenched it to the side, twisting her own weapon so the end of the spear knocked the helmet (and thus the head) off her opponent. She was just turning around to engage another enemy when a staff, swung like a baseball bat, collided with the back of her knees. She pitched forward, catching herself, but dropping her spear in the process. She was just raising her head when she saw the sword swinging down to chop through the back of her neck. Or at least that's how if would have gone, had a white blur shot out from behind her, slamming into the soldier's chest. The spirit's eyes widened in surprise as White Blaze tore through the chest plate of his armor, letting his soul escape. “White Blaze?” Reika gasped.

The tiger growled, “Yes it's me, now pick up your weapon over there and help me out” he said.

She nodded grimly and between them they finished off the remaining three warriors. The Ronins came running up behind the girl and the tiger. Reika's shoulders were heaving and the spear clattered to the ground as she lost her grip. “Man, I guess I was weaker than I thought” she mumbled falling to her knees. Mia knelt down beside her, supporting her. “Are you alright Reika?” she asked.

“Yeah they came out of nowhere literally”

“They've got control of the palace then?” Rowen frowned.

“NO!” Reika shook her head, “I can tell see?” she gestured towards the castle.

There was a break in the clouds above it, a shaft of weak sunlight shone over the lake in the back. “If the Dynasty had gotten control, that wouldn't be there”

“She's right” Sage nodded, “we've got to get over there”

“I think that we should be able to” Ryo said, “think about it, those soldiers were guarding the gate to keep Reika from getting back inside, but now they're gone, it should be open again”

“Ryo's right” Kento nodded, “let's get in there, this place is just too creepy”

“Thank you so much for that observation.” Reika rolled her eyes, getting back to her feet, “you're right though, if we don't get in there now, the Dynasty will have won this fight”

“Well then” Cye motioned through the gate, “let's go”

As Ryo had expected there was no more interference as they made their way through the gate and across the courtyard. The atmosphere was noticeably less chilly there, even though there seemed to be an absence of people. “Where is everybody?” Celena wondered aloud.

“I bet I know” Reika grinned and sped up her walk, “c'mon let's go inside”

She showed them in through a small door in the side-wall by the stables, rather than through the ostentatious double doors that obviously led to the throne room. That was a little too obvious, and they were trying to avoid detection. They headed down a rather dark hallway, and around several turns. “Uh Reika” Cye began.

“Before you ask, yes, I do know where I'm going. I've lived here my whole life, remember?”

He was about to answer when an echo of voices reached their ears. All eight teens ducked around a corner and lay in wait to see who it was. “I can't believe you want to make a kitchen run at a time like this” one voice groused, it sounded oh-so familiar too “don't you realize it's been over two weeks since Reika left?”

Another voice sighed, “Can I help it if I get hungry when I'm worried” it snapped.

The first voice sounded apologetic, “Sorry, I know you're upset too, but she's been gone so long”

“No kidding, Ryo would have had our hides if we sent her without his knowing, what if something happened, or what if …”

“Don't even think about that, she's coming back, you can bet on it”

“If you did, you'd have won” Reika grinned stepping around the corner to confront the owners of the voices.

“REIKA!” they both gasped eyes going wide.

The Ronins of the past stayed in the shadows. “Is it really you?” the first one asked. He had auburn hair, and bright emerald eyes. Sitting on the floor next to him was a light blue tiger with silver stripes and green eyes as well, obviously Icoro's future self, he just looked at his master and started to purr loudly saying that it was her. “Of course it is Cye!” the second laughed, swooping Reika up into a bear-hug, “haven't you ever seen anyone as pretty as Reika in you whole life?” he sounded really elated to see her. He had ash black hair and dark blue eyes. Both of them, like Rika had said, showed the youthful features of when they were 22 though they were much older. Reika giggled and returned the hug, “I missed you Uncle Kento, Uncle Cye” she said, the tiger growled, as if saying what's this you don't even say that you missed me too just them, well. Reika saw the tiger's look and realized that she didn't say anything to him “Oh sorry, I missed you too Icoro” she said giving the tiger a hug, he accepted he apology and licked her face. Kento and Cye, who were still in hiding, felt their eyes go wide. The others all stared at them in surprise. “I can't believe you actually made it back!” the older-Kento told Reika.

“Yes, we thought something happened to you” Icoro said quietly.

She just shrugged and turned back to the hallway where the others were. “I didn't just make it back; I brought some people with me I think you'd like to meet”

Taking that as their cue, the Ronins stepped from around the corner. The elder versions of Kento and Cye both stared in astonishment. “Reika, I can't believe it, you did it” the future Cye said placing a hand on the girl's shoulder. “Isn't that the truth” Kento grumbled. Then he took a step forward and regarded his younger self, “this is just strange” he commented.

“You're telling me” his counterpart replied, stunned at being faced with himself.

Mia giggled, “Well Kento, Cye, you both aged quite well” she said.

Cye took his hand off Reika's shoulder and stared at Mia, “Y-you brought your mother's past self too?” he asked quietly.

“I didn't think anyone would mind” Reika looked a little surprised at his reaction.

“Oh, we don't” he apologized to Mia, “just wait till your mother finds out you brought her past self”

He and Kento exchanged a glance thinking of the look on the future Mia's face. “Thank you all for coming” Cye continued, “we'd like to help you get rid of the Dynasty trash again when we can, but he thinks we're getting to old” he said pointing a Kento.

“Hey, that is not funny, and I didn't say that” Kento said ruefully but then he smiled, “but I can't wait to see Mia's face when she sees this she'll probably flip, right Cye!” he said hitting Cye on the back really hard, his friend winced. Cye glared at him, his emerald eyes going to a darker shade. “Oops, I did it again” Kento said with a guilty look on his face.

“How many times have I told you not to slap me, geeze Ryo was right you do have a short memory span sometimes” Cye said trying to keep his voice calm.

Reika looked concerned, “Are you heeling alright?” she asked.

He sighed, “From what Sage tells me I am, don't worry about it, I'll be fine” he said reassuringly.

“Anyhow, I bet Rowen and Sage'll flip when they find out that your back” Kento said to Reika, “why don't you go find them?”

Reika broke into a smile, “Great idea!” she grinned, but then sobered, “any idea where they'll be?”

Cye just rolled his eyes, “Where else? The library”

“Yeah, Rowen practically lives there, and Sage is usually with him, and Lady Saphy should be with them too” Kento informed them.

“Duh” Reika smacked her forehead with the palm of her hand, “I should've known”

“Lady Saphy?” Sage wondered.

“You'll see” Cye grinned, seeing that they forgot Saphrita's nickname, “but the library is the most logical place”

The younger Kento snickered and elbowed Rowen in the ribs, “Some things never change, eh buddy?”

“Oh be quiet, will ya?” the blue haired warrior gave Kento a death glare and then proceeded to act as if Hardrock didn't even exist. Amid the general laughter, Reika tuned to her uncles and Icoro, “Will you come with us?” she asked. Kento's stomach rumbled ominously, “Um, I think we'll see you over dinner” he replied, “unless you happen to have a sandwich stashed in there somewhere?” he raised an eyebrow at her twentieth century clothes.

“Fraid not” she replied.

“If she did” the other Kento grinned, “I would have eaten it already”

“You're absolutely impossible!” Both Cye's exclaimed, with identical looks of frustration on their faces.

Sage shuddered, “Geez, this is like some weird sci-fi movie”

Ryo nodded, “The Clones or something” he said.

“Come on, let's head for the library!” Reika prompted them.

Exchanging a significant glance, the Warriors from the past did as she suggested. As they walked down the maze-like hallways of the palace, the guys noticed a change in Reika. She seemed so much more cheerful. She looked as if she was about to take off down the passage and leave them all in her haste to see her friends. In fact, it was that same anxiety that created the accident. Reika had been humming something under her breath as she turned the corner, there was a crashing sound, of metal on stone, and the others rushed around to see the girl sprawled on the floor, a young boy next to her. “I apologize!” the boy said backing away as he tried to gather up the tray and its burden, several dirty dishes.

“S'okay” Reika shook her head like she was dizzy and began to help him pick up the plates.

“Are you two alright?” Celena asked, kneeling down beside them.

“Yes miss, I'm fine” the boy replied.

He looked up as Reika passed him a handful of silverware, and promptly dropped it all with a metallic clang as he saw her face. “L-lady Reika!” he gasped, “I did not know you had returned!”

“Actually, I only now got back” she admitted, scooping the forks, spoons, and knives up.

“A-and they…” his eyes became the size of baseballs as he caught sight of the Ronins.

“Correct!” she grinned brightly, “I brought the Ronins of the past with me”

He couldn't have looked more surprised if she'd told him the world was about to end. “I-I'd better go” he stammered, hurrying away.

“Darn” Reika muttered under her breath.

“What's wrong?” Cye asked her.

“I didn't want the people who work here to know I'm back, or that you're with me, it'll be all over the palace be dinner time” she sighed.

“Who would know?” Rowen frowned, “for that matter, why do you care?”

“Where do you think all the refugees from the city are staying?” she said rhetorically, “obviously they're here, and as for why I don't want them to know I'm back, well, never mind”

They continued down the hallways. Sage frowned and spoke up. “Why is it so dark in here?” he asked.

Reika shrugged, “This place is so big we usually don't go to the effort of lighting it all, usually the sun does it for us, see?” she gestured to the windows which were set high into the walls. Had the sky not been so overcast, the palace would have been very well lit indeed. “We're almost to the library, I just hope that I don't run into anyone…” she was cut off because as she rounded another corner she ran into someone, who was carrying a lot of books. The others saw it was a different boy this time; he looked about Reika's age, maybe a year older, and the books he was carrying were all over the place. “Sorry about that” the boy said as he picked up the books.

“That's okay” Reika said looking at him but his back was turned, she noticed that he had long auburn hair that went to the middle of his back, it was tied at his neck with a sky-blue band, she couldn't see his face but she recognized his voice. He turned to put another book on the stack only then did she see his face only for a brief moment though. “Caran?” she asked him.

He looked up, “Hello Reika” he replied helping her up.

“What are you doing here and when did you get here?” she asked him.

“Whoa one thing at a time” Caran said, “My dad wanted to come here since we haven't been here for awhile and we just got here a few days ago, and from the looks of you I'd say that you just got back here”

“How did you know that?” Reika said.

“My cousin told me.” Caran replied as he picked up the books and headed down the hall.

“Do you need any help” Reika called to him.

“No I'm okay, just watch it Reika my brother's here to, you know how he is around you” Caran said before disappearing around the corner.

“Who was that?” Kento asked, “is he one of our sons?”

“His name is Caran” Reika replied, “and he is not one of your sons”

“Whose is he then?” Celena asked.

“Well if he's not Cye's son then he's…?” Reika asked them.

“Let me guess he is my brother Cyoran's son isn't he.” Cye said.

“Yes he is.” Reika said as she continued down the hallway to the library. She led them to a set of huge double doors, at least fifteen feet high. “The library's through here” she explained, gesturing at the entranceway. “After Armageddon, Uncle Rowen made it his own personal quest to salvage as many books as possible, if there's a single copy of anything left, you'll find it in here, as well as prints of anything written since” Rowen looked as if he was about to tear down the doors. Reika smothered a grin and pushed lightly on them. They swung open easily on the silent hinges. “Whoa, I would have thought they'd be heavier than that” Sage commented.

“The hinges are rigged” she explained, “it's got something to do with weights and pulleys I think”

The eight young people strode into a huge room. Dozens of book-shelves stretched all the way up to the vaulted ceiling, at least thirty feet above their heads. Thousands of books were crammed into the shelves, no one was sure if there was some kind of order to them or not. “They should be somewhere around the center” Reika mused, leading them through the veritable maze of books. Celena and Ryo, realizing that Rowen was missing, spent ten minutes tracking through the place searching for their blue-haired friend. “Rowen, you can look around after we get through this, okay?” Celena compromised.

“Okay” he replied, sounding somewhat glum.

“This way” Reika beckoned them.

SSSSSSSSS

A soft glow from lamplight seemed to be just ahead; they rounded another corner to a rather surprising sight. Seated in several comfortable looking chairs were four people, two men and two women, like the other future selves, they showed the youthful features of when they were 22. One of the men had blue hair and bright dark blue eyes. He was flipping through a book at an amazing pace. The other man had golden blonde hair and pale blue eyes he was also looking at a book. One woman had floor length sapphire blue hair, which looked as if it had been separated into three braids then braided into one, and she had bright violet eyes. She wore a mint green dress and was seated with both legs crossed gracefully. The other women had long jet black hair that was tied up in two pigtails, the hair hanging down from them reached the floor, and she had sapphire blue eyes. She wore a dark blue dress and was seated two seats down from the other women; she was looking at a book and had on reading glasses. Reika cleared her throat softly; alarming the quartet of readers, “Am I interrupting anything?” she asked tilting her head to one side.

“Rei?” the man with blue hair gasped, setting aside his book, “is that you, you've made it back?”

She smiled and leaned against one of the shelves, “Sure I did, I told ya I would, didn't I?”

The blonde man pulled her into a hug, “You did at that” he admitted, “but I think we'd all given up hope”

She grinned and stuck out her tongue, “You should listen to Uncle Cye and trust me a little more Uncle Sage”

“I think I should have seen that one coming” the younger Sage murmured.

“What?” the man who was obviously Rowen's elder self (how many guys with blue hair can there be?) whirled to stare at the Ronins, “You?! I mean, us, I mean, oh whatever!”

“Yep” Reika nodded, stepping back with the others, “I brought them with me”

Both women stepped forward, casting inquisitive glances at the group of teens. They broke into sunny smiles. “It was good of you to come, we really are in desperate need at the moment” said the one with sapphire blue hair her voice was soft and warm.

“Yes it was” the other women said standing next to the future Rowen, she removed her reading glasses so she wouldn't look weird in front of the past Ronins though the future ones said she looked fine if it was to help her eyes but she took them off anyway. “Who are you two?” Ryo frowned. The women grinned at him. “We sorta figured that you wouldn't recognize us” the sapphire haired women said the other nodded in agreement, “and you don't have our past selves with you to give you a hint” Ryo wasn't sure what she was talking about at all. At Ryo's blank look Celena laughed. “What's so funny?” Ryo asked her.

“It's just that I'm surprised that you don't recognize them” Celena replied, “who do we know in the past that has sapphire hair and black hair besides you?” The sapphire haired woman slipped her arm around the waist of the older blonde man (obviously Sage) and kissed him, she smiled at Celena knowing that she recognized them. She sighed at the others, “Well if you must know, I'm Lady Saphrita Date.”

“And I'm Lady Leechiana Hashiba” the black haired woman said.

Sage and Rowen looked as it their eyes were about to pop out of their heads. Reika and Celena had to cover their mouths in an effort to hide their grins; the others didn't even bother with that. “Their WIFES!” they all shouted in unison, promptly breaking down into bouts of laughter. Tears were streaming down Kento's face; all he could do was hold onto his ribs and shake a finger at Sage and Rowen, whose faces were glowing like light bulbs. “To use your own words Sage, you both could have done worse” Ryo managed to say.

“That's not very polite.” Mia giggled.

“Mia!” both of the future Ronins gasped.

“Oh boy just wait till your mother finds out about this Reika she's going to flip” Rowen said.

“Flip about what Rowen?” said a voice from behind him.

Rowen looked as if he jumped three feet into the air. He whirled around to face the voice. “How many times have I told you not to sneak up on me like that?” he said.

“I don't know a hundred maybe?” said the voice, as its owner came into the light. There stood a woman. She had long light brown hair, and blue eyes. She wore a bright red dress. Reika recognized her in a second, “Mother!” she said as she hugged the woman.

“Hello Reika, its good to see you finally came home” Lady Mia said. Lady Saphrita and Lady Leechiana nodded in agreement.

“Anyhow” the future Rowen began, “thank you and welcome to the future”

Getting out of their state of shock from seeing Mia's future self, the others tried to appear serious. Reika spoke up again, “Uncle Rowen do you know where the guys are? I think the Ronins would like to meet them”

A mischievous smile appeared over both Sage and Rowen's faces, “Undoubtedly in the training area, I'm sure they'll be thrilled to see you” he said.

That smile appeared on her face as well, “I'm sure you're right” was all she would say.

“Where's the training area?” Kento asked.

“Across the courtyard.” Lady Saphrita replied.

“Oh no, not out there again,” he sighed, “it's creepy out there.”

Rowen cast a plainly longing look at the thousands of books surrounding him. Cye grabbed him and towed him out after the others. “Like we said, you can come back later” he said firmly. The air seemed too hung still outside, leaving a feeling of gloom and depression. “Never did like those clouds” Rowen murmured. A snort of amusement came from Sage's general direction. In an effort to break the ominous feeling inspired by the dirty-grey sky, Kento struck up a conversation with Reika. “So who are these guys you mentioned?” he asked.

A slight smile played over her features, “They're your eldest sons and daughters” she explained, “we've trained together since we were little kids, they're my best friends” a slightly reminiscent look spread over her face, “I never realized how much I'd miss them, their great guys”

“Nice to know we've got good kids” Cye put in.

A shrill cry broke the silence, “REIKA!” it screamed. Reika winced visibly and slowly turned around to face the palace. A graceful figure clad in green and brown (forest colors) and a brown cloak made its way toward the group. A moment later it was possible to make out a boy. He had short auburn hair, soft tendrils framing his delicately featured face with alabaster skin. He was amazingly graceful, for a boy, brown booted feet making no sound on the cobbles. Large dark green eyes narrowed in anger at the girl. All his handsome features could not mask that he had an ugly personality. “So” he sneered, folding his arms over his chest, “you actually had the gall to show your face here again, you disgrace”

“Sorry to disappoint you Ralon” Reika replied coldly, “but I don't die that easily”

“Ugh” the auburn haired boy threw his arms up in the air in disgust, “Why couldn't you just have gone back to the past and stayed there the way everyone expected you to?”

Reika's face went blank. Mia could tell she was fighting the legendary Wildfire temper, attempting to keep from hitting the boy. She balled her hands at her side. “At least I was out there doing something instead of sitting on my butt absolutely useless” she hissed. Ralon's eyes flared up in rage. Quick as a thought, he dealt Reika with a slap on the cheek, leaving a red mark on her face. He pulled his hand to follow through with another, but a hand reached out and caught his wrist. Ralon turned and saw Caran holding his wrist back, his eyes were cold and they didn't have the warmth they had in them before. “Careful Ralon” he cautioned, “you wouldn't want to disgrace yourself in front of the Ronin Warriors, now would you?” Ralon shook his arm to get his brother's hand off it didn't work Caran's grip was hard, then he did it harder and knocked Caran to the ground, “Leave me alone Caran I'll do what I want”

“You will not Ralon!” a voice stated.

He turned and saw four girls heading toward him one running, the others saw them too. His eyes flashed again, and he turned on his heel in a huff, only to disappear into thin air! “W-where'd he go?” Kento blinked.

“That's Ralon's talent” Reika replied tonelessly, “teleportation”

“What a brat!” Ryo commented, “who is he anyway?”

“He's my brother” Caran replied, getting up from where he fell.

The girls who had been coming toward them stopped in front of them. “You alright Caran, Reika?” one girl asked, she had red hair like a flame tied in a ponytail with a ribbon tied onto the holder, and bright emerald green eyes, she had on a purple shirt, white caprees, and purple boots with white laces. “Yeah, we're fine Sali.” Reika replied. The other girls where dressed like the first one was though they were different colors. One had long sapphire hair that came to her knees (in a style like Saphrita's), violet eyes, and she had on a dark blue shirt, purple caprees, and dark blue boots with purple laces; one had black hair in two pigtails that looked like rabbit ears, sapphire eyes, and she had on a black shirt, white caprees, and black boots with white laces; and the last girl had waist length dark brown hair, green eyes, and she had on a pink shirt, yellow caprees, and pink boots with yellow laces. “Should we go after him Sali?” the black haired girl asked.

“No that won't be necessary Leeanna” Sali replied.

“It's good to have you back Reika.” Sali said turning to face her.

“Ralon's been giving you a lot of trouble I see.” she said.

“Yeah, he's been a real pain.” the brown haired girl said.

“Just what kind of trouble has he been causing Nadeshiko?” Reika asked her.

Nadeshiko didn't answer so the last girl did, “Well he's been getting us into trouble by knocking things over, and like just yesterday he spilled ink all over my tiger Blaze” she said, “he said it was to make her coat turn black saying that tigers shouldn't be blue at all it made them look like freaks”

“Sakura's right, he also spilled it on my tiger Iyanna too, I've gotten it all out but I'm still mad at him for doing it and he didn't get into trouble for it we did” Sali said coldly, “but his dad didn't believe him, he found out that Ralon did it and punished him instead of us”

“Yeah, but Ralon found out he got so mad about it to” Leeanna explained.

“Ralon went to find Sali and the others but he didn't `cause I wouldn't let him” Caran said, “and if he doesn't find his intended victim he takes his anger out on me”

“Yeah, he found Caran and Ralon literally broke his arm, but father healed it and Ralon got in trouble again, he's been shut up in his room since” Sakura finished.

“Oh man he is a brat, big time” Sage muttered, utterly disgusted at what a spoiled brat the boy had turned out to be.

“We better get to the palace mother's expecting us to help with dinner” Sali said, “we'll see you later Rei” she called as the girls and Caran ran towards the palace.

“Who were they?” Rowen asked.

“They're your daughters” Reika replied.

“Any more unpleasant surprises?” Celena raised an eyebrow at the space Ralon had occupied a moment before.

“Nah, everybody else is fine, the littles tend to throw the occasional tantrum, but that's only natural”

“Littles?” Mia asked.

“Yeah, the little kids” her eyes grew thoughtful, “hmm, if Ralon knew that I had come back than the children…”

“REIKA!” this time the voice was shouted by a high-pitched childish voice.

“Huh?” they all turned.

“Now what?” Ryo muttered.

Four blurs appeared to be shooting at them, screeching to a halt before the teens. The blurs were revealed to be four young tigers, one was white with black stripes, one was blue with black stripes, one was light blue with silver stripes, and the last one was a purple, lavender, and violet mix with silver stripes, all of them had blue eyes. Perched on the white one's back were two children, both with blue hair of varying shades. “Kira, Tannin, Orion, Blaze, Ice, Iyanna!” Reika said as she dropped to her knees and threw her arms around the white tiger's neck, hugging him close while the other ones licked her face. White Blaze looked in puzzlement as the other tiger's their smells seemed so familiar somehow. The two children slipped off of the huge cat's back. Reika unwound her arms from around the tiger's neck, only to be caught up by the kids. The little girl had wrapped her arms around Reika's waist and clung there, while the little boy was glued to her neck. “You scared me!” the boy wailed, “I thought you'd gone away forever, like Uncle Cye almost did!”

“Yeah” the little girl sniffed, “why'd you have to go anyway? S'not fair”

Chuckling, Reika gently pried them off and got to her feet. She turned to the Ronins, who were by this point completely mystified. “Guys” she began, “I'd like you to meet Kira and Tannin, the twins I mentioned your youngest Rowen” she laid a hand on both blue heads. Rowen looked down at the little kids, barely hip high on the older girl. They had such sweet angelic faces. He felt a funny little lurch in his heart, those kids had a claim on him, he could feel it. The little girl giggled and blushed shyly. Her hair was a deep midnight blue (almost black), and fell in soft curls to her shoulders. Her sapphire eyes sparkled brightly. “I'm Kira” she whispered. The little boy grinned rakishly. He looked like his sister, only his hair was much shorter, and a slightly lighter blue in color. Instead of that one annoying lock which always dangled between Rowen's eyes, the child's were obscured behind a veritable curtain of bangs. What little could be seen of them showed that he had his father's clear blue eyes. “And I'm Tannin!” he said proudly. He ducked out from Reika's hand and snatched her wrist. “Reika's my f-f-, what's that word again?” he turned to her.

“Fiancée” she knelt down and hugged the little boy light, “we're betrothed”

“WHAT!” Ryo felt his jaw drop.

Reika winked up at them, “You heard me”

Then she mouthed, it's a game we play, reassured Ryo let out the breath he'd been holding. Sage was desperately attempting to hold back a terrible fit of chuckles. The look on Rowen's face was absolutely priceless. Finding out about the twins had to have shocked him, now he knew how he'd felt when Sakura had made her appearance. Sage shuddered a little remembering Ralon, and he looked over a Cye who shared a look with him and they started coming up with ways to deal with him if that ever became their reality. Kento chuckled quietly as he watched Sage. He could tell the blonde warrior was choking back laughs at Rowen's predicament. This was strange; no doubt about it, facing your future self was awfully unnerving. He was sort of looking forward to meeting his son in a few minutes. “Hmm,” Reika looked up from Tannin and gave both him and his twin sister a stern glare, “wait a second,” she said, “where's Gran*?” The twins began to fidget, “Uh, well, he's” They were cut off from a shriek behind them. A small figure could be seen running towards the group. About five feet away, the short, sturdy little boy tripped and fell flat on his face. He got back to his feet with a wail. “You guys always leave me behind!” he sniffed, tears dripping down chubby cheeks as he inspected a scraped knee. “Lookit this!” he pointed angrily at the blood oozing from the wound. Ash grey-purple hair was plastered to his forehead, damp with sweat. Reika pulled him over and began to look it over. “You're okay Gran” she told him firmly, but gently, “just a little tumble, you've done worse”

“Yeah” he admitted glumly.

The girl then turned to the twins. “Why did you leave him behind? There's plenty of room on Orion's back or he could ride on one of the other tigers”

Tannin began to grind a tuft of grass under the toe of his shoe. Kira fiddled nervously with a twist of hair. “Well?”

“He's too slow” Tannin said defiantly, “he can't keep up, and we both wanted to see you, so we couldn't wait for him”

“Next time Graham comes to” she told them, “let him ride one of the other tigers okay”

“Oookaaay” two voices coursed.

“Hey!” the little boy exclaimed, staring up at the Ronins, “who're those guys?”

“They're our daddies, silly.” Kira shook her head at Graham's ignorance.

“I'm not silly!” he screeched, preparing to launch himself at her. For a three year old, he was certainly very well-spoken.

“Hey there, cut that out” Kento leaned over and scooped the toddler up into his arms, preventing a scuffle, “didn't you mom tell you not to hit girls?”

He looked ashamed for a moment before considering the face before him, “You're gonna be my daddy, right?” he asked.

“The kid's quick.” Celena commented, surprised at how much these little kids seemed to know.

“No kidding.” Rowen murmured.

“Uh,” Kento looked a little stunned before replying, “well, I will be, in about three hundred years, is that okay with you?”

Gran seemed to consider for a moment before answering, “I like you” he said seriously.

The warrior of strength leaned over and gently deposited the child back on his feet. With a stern look at the twins, he said, “Play nice”

“Okay” they replied, a little intimidated by him.

“Hey now Kento, leave them alone” Rowen spoke up, “they're just kids”

“Yeah” Kira said, running up and hiding behind Rowen's leg. She peeked around and stuck her tongue out at him. Chuckling, Reika turned to Tannin. “Hey do you know where we'll find the guys?”

“They're still in the ring, you can find them all there” he answered. White Blaze gave a rumble and cocked his head at the other tigers. The five cats were peering at each other in unblinking gazes. Then they all turned and began to walk back to the palace. “Looks like White Blaze is going to get acquainted with his and Iya and Icoro's children” Reika observed.

“Hold on, two of those tigers are White Blazes children!” Ryo said.

“Yes, they are Orion and Blaze, they are White Blaze and Blue Fire's children, when the other two Ice and Iyanna are Icoro and Iya's children” she explained, “there are probably others but they chose to stay here with us.”

SSSSSSSSS

The stocky teen backed away cautiously and regarded his sparring opponent, a slim boy his own age and height, with wild blue hair dampened down on his forehead by sweat. The two of them were practicing hand-to-hand combat, off to their right were three people watching them, two boys and a girl. One of the boys had ebony hair that went to the middle of his back and was tied with a red band and he had tiger blue eyes, the other had long red hair and green eyes, and the girl sitting next to them on the rail had midnight blue hair tied in a high ponytail (like Kayura's hair style) and dark blue eyes. Off to the left of the sparring duo, another group of two teenage boys were practicing with staffs. One had sandy blonde hair and pale blue eyes and the other had auburn hair. The blonde had to keep shaking his hair out of his eyes as he thwacked away at his opponent with the staff of fire-hardened wood. The two were matched up in size and strength; though the auburn haired boy seemed to have a greater skill with the staff. The blonde found himself wishing he had a sword in his grip instead of the accursed wooden stick. “C'mon Touma, try me” the boy with ash-black hair taunted.

“That would be suicide Shu, and I'm not a kamikaze, ya know” he replied.

“Coulda fooled me!” the blonde spoke up.

“You keep out of this Seiji!” Touma snapped.

“Yeah, you've got to concentrate on me!” the kid with auburn hair reminded Seiji, smacking him upside the head with the end of the staff.

“Point taken Shin” he growled, rubbing his head and settling back into a fighting stance.

“Be careful Touma” the black haired boy said, “you don't want to charge in and not get a retaliating attack”

“I know Ryudo! You don't have to remind me!” Touma answered.

“Is he always like this?” the boy with red hair next to him asked.

“Yes he sometimes is, Anubis” Ryudo replied.

“Well if you ask me, he needs to calm down a little” the girl said, in a kind of snappy tone.

“He will when he's done with the fight, Katrina” Ryudo answered.

Anubis looked at his sister; she could be a little bit nicer when asking a question, but that's how Katrina was sometimes when watching someone fight.

“Who invented sisters who are smart alics anyway?” Anubis asked Ryudo.

Katrina turned, “What did you say!” she said.

“Oh nothing just that you can be a smart alic sometimes” Anubis replied, then he disappeared before his sister could hurt him.

“Grrr just wait till I get my hands on him!” she shrieked before she disappeared going after him.

Touma rushed at Shu, ignoring Ryudo's warning only to find himself sailing head over heels through the air, landing with a crunch on the sawdust floor of the arena. Shu gasped as he was his friend land in a crumpled heap. He hadn't meant to throw him that hard! Rushing over, he leaned worriedly over the other boy. “Geez Touma!” he blurted, “are you okay? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to, honest” he reached down and started to haul the other boy to his feet. About halfway up though, Touma dug in his heels and strained backward, throwing Shu over his shoulder. No mean feet, considering how much he weighed. Shu went flying into the rail which encircled the practice ring, head first. The next thing he knew, little birds were flying in circles around his head. He swatted at one in annoyance, he glared balefully through his blurry eyes in the direction the laughter was coming from. “That was a very cheap shot Touma” he growled, still trying to get back onto his feet.

“Not surprising” another voice, shaking with laughter said, “considering that's only kind of shot he knows how to do”

Blinking, Shu was able to make out a hand in front of his face. He reached up and clasped it, then followed with his eyes up the arm, to see the face, it was one he knew. “Reika!” he exclaimed, jumping to his feet, “it's you! It's got to be!”

She giggled and pulled her hand away seeing he didn't need it anymore, “Well the last time I checked”

He hugged her so hard her feet were an inch or two off the floor. Swing her around in a circle, he said, “I can't believe you're still in one piece” he exclaimed.

“Well I would be, if you weren't trying your best to break all my ribs” she managed to gasp in return.

“Yeah Shu, you don't want to break her in half do you?” Ryudo said.

“Sorry” he grinned sheepishly, setting her back onto her feet.

Reika just threw her arms around his neck and hugged him back, and then she hugged her brother. “That's okay I missed you too Shu, Ryudo”

“Hey, just them?” another voice teased. She spun around and stuck out her tongue at the blonde boy.

“Maybe Seiji” she retorted, “why would I miss you?”

“Awww” he mock-wailed, pulling a long face, “that's no fair”

“Just kidding Gold Hair” Reika reached over and ruffled his hair so it fell over both his eyes. Shaking it away impatiently, he too pulled her into a hug. “If I didn't know better, I'd think you guys were trying to break my back” she chuckled as she laughingly pushed him away, “either that or you guys just don't know your own strength”

“You know that we'd never hurt you on purpose, Reika” a soft voice reminded her.

“Yeah Shin, I know just teasing” the other boy smiled at her.

They were about the same size; same with the others, Reika was just a little bit shorter than all of them, though the boys were the same size. “It's a relief to know you haven't changed” he murmured into her ear as he hugged her.

“Hey, I haven't been gone that long” she protested.

“Could've fooled me” the last voice snorted.

“That doesn't take much” Shu smirked evilly.

“Oh ha ha” Touma glared at the boy.

“Cut it out you two” Reika put a hand on both they're shoulders, “you guys are impossible” she shook her head.

“But we wouldn't be as much fun if we weren't” Touma grinned, the last one to hug her, “how've ya been hot stuff?”

“You're a baka, Skye!” she pushed away, ignoring the sniggers coming from the others.

“Sorry Raven” he said apologetically, using her old nickname, “like you said just kidding”

“Yeah I know” she smiled softly at her friends and brother, reassured by how little they seemed to have changed. Ryudo frowned and grabbed his sister's chin. He tilted her head a little and peered at her cheek, eyes widening at the red mark. “Rei, what happened?” he hissed.

“I had a little run in with Ralon on the way here” she confessed, grinning wryly, “I always seem to tick him off for some reason”

Shu looked like he wanted to hit something, “That brat, you really need to do something about your cousin, Shin” he turned to his friend. The auburn haired boy raised his hands in self-defense, “Hey I'm not my cousin's keeper! And Reika's got my permission to whack some sense into him”

“Why thank you” Reika mock curtsied, “but I think I'll leave putting him in his place up to his father, but not Caran, Ralon even hurts him if he can't find the person he wants to hurt for real he just takes it out on Caran, I don't think anyone can trust him anymore”

“That's a good idea, I'm sure Sali and the others told you what he's done while you've been gone?” Seiji asked.

“Yes they did, and I don't want to see him hurt Caran again, I mean he shouldn't be hurting anyone at all but he is” Reika said.

“So Rei, what's the past like?” Shin asked, perching himself atop the guardrail.

“Why don't you ask someone who can explain it a lot better than me?” she asked, gesturing towards the shadows of the arena's entrance.

The Ronins had kept to themselves out of sight in the shadows since they'd entered the ring. For a moment, they and Reika had paused in the entrance, watching the boys sparing and the two boys and the girl watching them, then after an argument the boy with red hair and the girl both disappeared apparently the girl was going after the boy to teach him a lesson about making such a comment as he did. The boys were impressive, to say the least. It was fairly obvious just who each one was descended from, hair and eye color, not to mention the general build, was a dead giveaway. Reika watched them all with a funny look in her eyes, staring faraway. As the teen who was apparently Rowen's eldest managed to hurl the larger boy into the rail which encircled the arena, she launched herself over the bar as well, and made her way over to where the boy lay, sprawled and seeing stars. Deciding to wait it out, the warriors remained concealed and watched as the six were reunited. It was plain that they were all very close; the relief on the boy's was so plain to see it was almost alarming. Ryo wasn't too sure what to make of this. It had been alarming when Reika had claimed to be his daughter, but to see people his own age or close to it, who were apparently the sons of his friends and his own, well, anyone would be disturbed. He watched as his own son (Ryudo?), Reika's brother apparently, turn her face from side to side, frowning and voicing his dislike of Ralon. `Hmm, Skye, Raven? Nicknames, I suppose. It's not surprising; she did say that they all grew up together, so it makes sense that they should all be close. As close, perhaps, as me, the guys, and the others.' When Reika made the comment about asking someone else about the past, the Ronins took that as their cue and stepped into the light. “H-holy” Shu stammered, not able to believe what he was seeing.

“R-Reika?” Touma questioned, laying a hand on her shoulder and giving her an inquisitive look.

“Yes, it's them. I brought the Ronin Warriors”

Seiji shrugged, “I'm not surprised, you never break an oath Rei” he suddenly ginned triumphantly, “looks like Ralon owes me”

“Huh?” Reika frowned at him, “you bet against Ralon that I wouldn't make it?”

He just gave her an innocent look, “NO, I said you would make it, he's the one who said you wouldn't”

“Right” she muttered.

Shin was just staring at the younger version of his father in shock; and it wasn't too hard to see why. Out of all of them, except one, Shin and Cye resembled each other the most, to a startling degree actually. The only real difference was that unlike Cye's emerald eyes, Shin's were ocean in color. “Whoa” Kento blinked, his gaze flitting back and forth between the two, “now that's disturbing”

“Uh huh” Cye murmured, just as surprised as the other.

“Come on you two” Reika pushed between them, snapping her fingers in front of Shin's eyes, “snap out of it, it's not that strange”

“Oh really?” Touma crossed his arms over his chest. His eyes kept flitting back to Rowen. His mother always told him how much he looked like a younger version of his father, and now he had proof. Everything was the same right down to the bone structure in the faces, and that annoying lock of hair over the bridge of his nose. However, Touma's hair was a slightly deeper blue, like Kira's was but a little lighter. Reika turned to look at her brother, he and Ryo looked exactly alike besides the length of hair. “Stop staring Ryudo it's very rude” she told him.

“Sorry” Ryudo said to Ryo.

“That's okay” Ryo replied he looked from Ryudo to Reika and back again, “your Reika's brother I suppose?” he asked.

“Yes I am” was the reply.

Seiji seemed to be the only one not stunned by the recent turn of events. Shaking his head ruefully, he took it upon himself to break the awkward silence. Bowing low, he began to speak. “Thank you for coming” he said straitening up, “though I don't think any of us would admit it, but we really are in need of your help” he reached out and gripped Reika's shoulder, “Reika was brave enough to go back for you, and I realize you must all be tired from travelling through time” Seiji glanced up at a skylight in the arena's roof, tracking the amount of light coming down through it, “and now I think it's time for supper, would you like to join us?”

“Wow” Mia raised her eyebrows, “I suppose courtesy runs in the Date family” she commented.

“You may join us as well, Lady Mia, if you wish” Seiji smiled slightly.

“Food!” Kento grinned, “We haven't eaten since breakfast!”

“I suppose the appetite's hereditary” Shin commented, “I'll bet he's the only one besides your dad who can out eat you Shu” he elbowed his friend in the side.

“Oh ha ha ha. Your wit astounds me.”

Author's note: Okay there's the second chapter hope y'all liked it.

* his name is pronounced grahn as in GRANola bar. hee hee I thought it was a cute name that fit Kento's personality.

Well could you please press the little button below this note and review. Thank you. Ja ne.