Ronin Warriors Fan Fiction ❯ Pitch Black ❯ One Down. Four To Go ( Chapter 9 )

Pitch Black

 

Chapter Nine: One Down. Four To Go

By: Demon Priestess Saturn

 

Sage drove down the mountain hwy. He had been on the road for at least two hours now. The conversation with his mother was a nice uneventful conversation, which made Sage feel a little better about his trip home. As he turned a curve he thought he saw something shine out of the corner of his eye. Seeing as no one was on the road he stopped and looked back. As he observed the edge of the road all he could see was the trees and the dark forest surrounding the long curvy roadway. He sighed to himself assuming that he was just jumpy and continued driving. Slowly the sky grew darker, and a chill came through the air. Some dark clouds formed in the sky above. As Sage continued up the mountain he soon found himself surrounded in fog.

 

“I don't remember the weather saying rain.” Sage thought to himself as he turned another corner. “This is odd.” As Sage reached the top of the mountain the fog suddenly dropped off. The glare of the sun hit him and Sage felt his senses jump. He turned his bike sharply and fell to the side. He skidded a ways down the road before coming to a stop just next to the bridge that crossed over the river that went through the mountain.

 

“Shit!” Sage cursed as he pulled himself out from under his bike. Pain shot up through his left leg as he glanced down he could see that it was covered hip to toe in blood. He could also feel a sting on the inside of his leg which told him he burned it on the exhaust pipe. As Sage tried to calm his nerves he suddenly realized the bridge crossing the river dropped off. Sage pulled his helmet off and stared wide eyed at the bridge. “It wasn't like this when I came down this road this morning.” He said to himself. “I would have fallen in the river if I hadn't been glared by the sun.” A chill ran up his back and he glared. He turned fast and took a fighting stance. “Alright where are you! I know you're behind this!” Sage shouted and looked around. When he was only greeted with the whisper of the wind he sighed and lowered his stance. “Maybe this was just an accident.” He thought to himself as he stared down that the river. He continued to ignore the mild pain in his leg as he limped over to his bike to inspect the damage done to it. “Where are all the cars? There was no road closed sign. Or was there?” Sage couldn't remember. In fact he was almost sure that the road wasn't closed when he came down it.

 

“I wonder.” Sage eyed the broken bridge with curiosity. It didn't look like it could have just fallen apart. Sage walked closer to the bridge. His sense suddenly became sharp and he heard a twig snap. Turning fast on his feet he just barely dodged the long sword that came flying at him from the forest. Sage fell sideways landing on his hurt leg. A throbbing pain shot up through his leg and he cursed under his breath. He looked up and glared at his nemesis, Cale. “Cale.” Sage narrowed his eyes.

 

“Halo. So you're the one that messed up my plans for Strata. I should have figured.” Cale smirked as he walked closer to him.

“So you did take out the bridge you scum.” Sage snapped.

“Are you sure I took out the bridge?” Cale asked. Sage looked at him with a confused expression on his face. And for a moment Sage wasn't sure what was going on. What was Cale trying to pull?

“Dais…” Sage whispered suddenly and eyed Cale. “So that's what you did.”

“Did what Ronin?” Cale almost laughed.

“Dais is making me think the bridge is out.” Sage stood up.

“Is he? I said I didn't take out the bridge that doesn't mean that someone else didn't do it for me.”

“Stop trying to confuse me. It's not working.” Sage took a fighting stance. Cale pulled his sword out of the ground and glare menacingly at Sage.

“It doesn't matter because I am going to kill you Halo.” Cale lunged at him. Sage predicted the move and dodged to the side but as soon as he did that he felt a strike to his back and pain shot through his nerve racked body. Sage fell forward and landed on the ground. Glancing over his shoulder he could see Cale standing behind him. “You're rusty Halo.”

“What's wrong with me? I should have known he was there.” Sage thought to himself. “How could his confuse me like that? He hasn't been able to do that since the battle in the subway.”

“You look so pale Sage. What's wrong? Don't know what to do?” Cale taunted him.

“Shut up Cale.” Sage stood up despite the horrible pain throughout his body. “I'm not going to fool around with you.”

“Then put on your armor and make this fight fair.” Cale frowned.

“ARMOR OF HALO DOU GI!” Sage shouted his armor call. Cale waited for Sage to finish his armor call before doing anything else. “Alright Cale I'm ready for you.” Sage held his sword out in front of him and smirked. As Sage continued to stare at his adversary he couldn't help but wonder why he let him transform in the first place. “What are you up to?”

“I am not up to anything.” Cale leapt at Sage and they crossed swords.

“It's not like you to make this fair.” Sage jumped back a little and swung his sword. Cale dodged it swiftly and lounged at Sage again. Sage moved slightly to the right and blocked Cale's sword with his.

“Your stance is off Halo.” Cale spun around and kicked Sage's left leg. Sage screamed out and fell to one knee. Anger flashed in the blonde's lavender eyes and he glared harshly at Cale.

“Now that was a dirty trick.” Sage lounged at Cale with all his force. Cale returned by crossing swords with him once more. Once they had done that Cale smirked sinisterly and shoved Sage back. Sage lost his balance and fell on his back. The pain in Sage's back felt like he had been smacked with a large rock. And he began to wonder if his armor was providing protection for him at all. Suddenly Cale grabbed him by the wrist and threw him as hard as he could into the cliff. Sage spit up blood and fell to his knees. Once he was down Cale kicked the side of his head and knocked him all the way to the ground.

“What's the matter Halo?” Cale said as he stepped on Sage's neck cutting off the oxygen to his lungs. Sage gripped on to Cale's leg and felt his strength leaving his body. Where was the power he always felt when wearing his armor? Why did his armor feel so dark?

“Get off.” Sage found a last spurt of energy and pushed Cale over. As Cale hit the ground with a loud clang, Sage stood quickly and just barely held his sword above his head. “Lightning Slash!” Sage's eyes went wide as nothing happened. Cale sat up and started laughing like a madman.

“It seems you lost your power Halo.” Cale sneered as he got to his feet.

“No… It's not possible…” Sage looked down at his sword and noticed its light had dimmed. “What is going on?”

“Simple. You have no power and you are going to loose.” Cale stalked up to him like a cat on the hunt. Sage's eyes went wide. His stomach turned over and his body wracked once more with pain.

“Sage!” Sage looked passed Cale to see Rowen and his friends on the other side of the broken bridge.

“Rowen! I need help!” Sage shouted as he dodged a punch from Cale.

“Damn it! We need to get on the other side of the bridge.” Kento looked annoyed. Suddenly Cale looked back at the other four ronins.

“Are you all watching?” Cale asked.

“Cale back off! I'll kill you.” Ryo snapped he was in no mood to put up with Cale today.

“Good.” Cale suddenly moved extremely fast. Sage began screaming out violently and his blood splattered everywhere.

“Sage!” His four friends shouted and they watched helplessly from the other end of the bridge. Sage gasped and fell to his knees. Cale stood a few feet behind him with his sword extended outward and turned slowly back around to face them. Sage stared a crossed the bridge and met Rowen's frightened eyes. Sage's vision blurred and he fell to the ground.

 

“No!” Rowen shouted.

“Listen well Ronins!” Cale came to the edge of the bridge. “This is a declaration of war. Rest assured Sage of Halo is not dead but I am taking him prisoner. If you wish to retrieve him come to the darkest place that sheds the light by noon tomorrow.” Cale held his sword out and smiled. “Or there will be bloodshed.” Cale lowered his sword and turned. He picked Sage up off the ground and disappeared with a cruel laugh. As soon as he was gone the bridge returned to its normal state.

“Damn it! Dais!” Ryo said in frustration as he kicked the tire of Rowen's car.

“They've gotten stronger with time.” Cye stared blankly at Sage's motorcycle.

“He took down Sage.” Kento looked at Rowen.

“Fine… They want a war. They have one.” Rowen snapped coldly. “Nobody messes with my friend's and gets away with it.” The other three ronins nodded in agreement as Rowen looked in the direction of the mountains. “Let's get Sage back.”

 

………………….

 

Sage could feel his pain wracked body. His chest throbbed and his back ached. His leg was searing in agony and his head was pounding. He opened his eyes and found he was staring into an on going blackness. How did he get in this position? Where was he? He went to sit up but fell back down as soon at the pain shot up through his back. Everything around him seemed to be spinning and yet it wasn't all at the same time. He stayed on the floor for a few minutes and breathed deeply hoping that the pain would somehow subside.

 

“Are you awake?” He heard a cruel twisted voice. And soon reality hit him. Sage forced himself up fighting off his pain he glanced around the dark damp room and glared.

“Who are you?” Sage snapped.

“You don't remember? The kitty is on the prowl.” The voice hissed calmly. Sage tried to concentrate. He felt that he should know who was talking to but at the same time his brain wasn't working. He felt a sting on his leg and suddenly his leg was pulled out from under him. Sage hit the ground hard and screamed out as the deep gashes all around his body ripped and seared with pain. Blood spilled to the floor and his body screamed in pure agony. Sage heard a voice, no it wasn't a voice, it was laughter. More pain spread throughout of his body as he felt his skin ripping more. Sage screamed out and tried to move out of his attacker reach. For a moment it stopped and Sage breathed heavily trying to calm his nerves.

 

“Had enough?” He heard the voice whisper in his ear. He turned quickly in an attempt to sub do his attacker but soon found that it was an unwise decision on his part. He felt his wrists get grabbed and forced to the floor. He felt something smooth and cold clamp around his wrists. He heard a slight click and then the pressure went away. Sage tried to move and found the he could no long move his wrists. Sage panicked, he couldn't see a thing, he knew someone was there, and now he couldn't move. Soon he felt the skin on his chest rip and sear with pain. Screaming out he could feel his throat go hoarse. He heard slight snaps followed by more pain and soon felt something wet hit his face. The pain was unbearable and every time he thought it would stop it started again. For a moment his body just throbbed, but then he felt something smooth play a crossed his skin. A flash of light blinded him for a moment as the small cloth was pulled off his eyes. He soon found himself staring up at his nemesis Cale.

 

“This is going to be your worst nightmare Ronin.” Cale sneered and held up a small silver knife. Sage's vision was blurring in and out but he could see Cale lower the knife. He felt a sharp pain on his left forearm and he cringed slightly. “See this?” Cale got his attention. In all the pain he failed to notice what Cale had done until his saw a long piece of white flesh hanging from his hand. Sage's stomach turned over and he felt the contents of his stomach come up through his throat. Sage stared at the wall away from Cale and still couldn't quite comprehend what was going on. He heard a lot of mixed noises. He vaguely made out Cale's voice in all the confusion. Though he could not comprehend what he had said. He felt something hot hit is skin and the worst possible pain shot up his arm. Sage screamed again unable to keep it contained. He soon felt more sharp pains and more burning hot sensations. It continued for what seemed like days before Sage's mind finally gave way. His mind was creeping closer and closer to darkness. He was so desperate for the pain to stop that he welcomed it with open arms. Soon he felt nothing and heard nothing. But he thought he saw the gleam of silver at the corner of his eye.

 

…………………

 

Sage felt cold, in fact he felt wet as he was suddenly forced back into reality. He opened his eyes slowly and could see the torch lit room. He felt worse then before in fact much worse. How long had he been out? Hours, days, or was it weeks? Time had no meaning here. He felt a stab to his stomach and then felt his insides rip apart like the insides of a pumpkin.

 

“Please stop!” Sage shouted but he received no reply, or did he? He coughed suddenly a felt something sweet in his mouth.

“Stomach injuries are the worst.” Sage heard from somewhere a far. Pain shot through his body and he felt something hit the fresh wound in his body. He coughed more and his blood poured down his chin. His vision continued to blur in and out as he felt a slight tug on his abdomen; much like pulling a string off a wooden fence. Then he could see Cale and his mad dark blue eyes. He seemed to be enjoying every minute of his suffering. Sage could see silver again and felt pressure down his chest. The pain was so mixed that he couldn't tell what was new and what was old anymore. He felt a pang of cold and then he heard a snap. He felt something touch his spine slightly. He felt pressure on his heart and for a moment it was hard to breathe. In his haze he thought he could see sharp white claws with blood on them sticking out of his chest. Sage felt the pressure on his heart again and he started convulsing.

 

“Fun isn't it.” Sage looked at Cale trying to figure out what was going on through all the pain. His voice was gone from all the screaming he had done. He felt light headed and his mind was drifting again. His breathing slowed and so did his heart. His vision went black and he drifted farther and farther into the black hole.

 

End Chapter Nine