[i]Previously in Broken Honor…[/i] Rysko turned around with a grim look on his face, the danger of his situation finally striking him. “We need to warn the village. They obviously won’t stop until they get all the trainees… For one reason or another.” Arte stammered, then nodded, following him after the two of them fastened their new katanas to their belts, now with weapons should they need to defend themselves. [quote] Ronin looked up in the dark rain, clambering over the final ledge and standing before a razed mountaintop. The grass was blackened, the wind was sharp, and the rain pounded ever on. Jade and Mirage were soon to follow. Mirage let out a small gasp upon seeing what Ronin had dreaded seeing again: Upon the mountaintop sat abandoned ruins of a village, once grandiose and prosperous. Wooden buildings were half-destroyed, having been burned away. Skeletons of the inhabitants still peppered the roads and some of the houses, cowering in corners and cradling smaller skeletons as if holding a child close in their final moments. None of the houses seemed to survive the flames--all of them were blackened and burned away, the ancient wood warped from the lack of attention and being exposed to the elements. At one end of the village was a grand hall, still standing tall, but its emptiness cast a shadow on its former glory. At the other end of the village was a large field, with only a few stones and dummies being the only remnants left of the academy where trainees would spend their childhood. Ronin spared a glance at the ruins of the academy, before proceeding inside the grand hall, Mirage and Jade silently following behind him… [/quote] ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [quote] The sound of Ronin’s boots were muffled by the rain, squelching in the mud underneath. He looked around the empty hall and sighed softly, crossing his arms. “Mirage, Jade… Welcome to my home… We called this place Starhaven, for on a clear night, you could see the whole expanse of the sky above. An ironic name, now that I think about it.” He chuckled, then continued. “We were free up here, free and happy… For a time.” He sighed again and shook his head, stepping forward deeper into the hall. Mirage and Jade silently followed him, reverently bowing their heads as they walked the desecrated ground. The trio stopped in the center of the hall and made camp, setting up a campfire and pulling out sleeping bags once again while Mirage volunteered to cook a simple meal for them. As they sat eating around the fire, Mirage piped up. “Ronin… Why is this place so… destroyed? Was it because of those villains you spoke of?” Mirage looked up at him as she spoke, vainly attempting to peer through his dark hood and mask to judge his expression, see what his reaction to coming back was. Ronin slowly set his food down. “Yes and no. There’s more to my tale… Here, I better explain the rest of what happened to my home. To Starhaven. To my family.” [/quote] Rysko and Arte exited the academy, back into the night. The sun had fully set behind the mountain range, and the fog was slowly beginning to clear out and roll down the mountain into the valleys and forests below. The outside world was quiet, almost too quiet. The courtyard of the academy was empty, and not a single soul was patrolling the roads of the village. Rysko and Arte’s footsteps echoed on the cobblestone loudly as they sprinted toward the grand hall at the far end of Starhaven. The trip would’ve normally taken just a few minutes at this speed, but to them, it felt like an eternity. Every moment was filled with deafening silence, broken only by their panicked, ragged breathing. Not even a single door on any dwelling was open. It was dark, quiet, and dead. However, when Rysko and Arte neared a familiar home, the door creaked open and an anxious face peeked out. “Rysko…? Arte…? Is that you?” The pair of trainees stopped in their tracks and broke out into a grin. Rysko nodded slowly and beckoned to his friend. “Ichiro! Good to see you again!” Arte smiled as well, joining Rysko in inviting their good friend to their side. However, Ichiro impatiently shook his head and remained where he was. “Please… You’ve got to get to safety! Those men in black… They want the trainees!” He shook his head again and ducked inside, holding the door open for them. “Come on, get inside!” Rysko and Arte looked at each other curiously, but followed suit as they were bid, proceeding inside Ichiro’s family home. Inside the simple home, the hearth was warm with a fire, and Ichiro’s father, Ringivek, was tending to the meal that was cooking over it. Ringivek turned and gave a warm, familiar smile to Rysko and Arte. “Oh, Rysko, Arte, you’re alive! Make yourselves comfortable here, the light from the fire is hidden from outside.” Rysko nodded and sat down on the floor, since any furniture had been overturned and shoved against the walls to brace them. He laid his sheathed katana across his lap, staring into the fire as if he was pondering something. Arte and Ichiro sat down on both sides of him, and Ringivek continued stoking the flames. For a few blessed moments, all was quiet save for the sparking of the hearth and the breathing of safe friends and family. “I got lost in the fog… I didn’t know where the two of you went, so… I tried to help against those men in black… Cmirg, Aku, and Jain, they called themselves,” Ichiro spoke slowly, hanging his head in shame and guilt. “Jain, the one with the lightning, got past us… I was no match for him, and he blew by me, chasing the two of you into the academy. I wanted so badly to go after him, but I felt… heavy. I couldn’t move…” Rysko shook his head softly and embraced his friend. “Ichiro… We’re okay. You’re okay. Tell us what happened with the other two.” From how Ichiro was acting, it was clear to Rysko that he had undergone some major pain after the trio had split. Maybe it was physical, or maybe it was deeper than that, but Rysko knew he wanted to help his friend no matter what it cost him. Surely, any price was bearable for the sake of another, especially one who had stood by Rysko’s side for so long. Ichiro trembled for a moment, then shook his head, glancing over to Ringivek. “Father, could…?” Ringivek nodded grimly, leaning back against the wall as he spoke. “Lyra, Feu Pur, and Aeowin fought hard alongside Ichiro. My wife’s phasing abilities and Aeowin’s shape shifting abilities were being used to their fullest, but… That leader seems to possess some affinity blacker than anything we’ve ever seen. While Feu Pur was weakened, he crushed her body like Pancecé’s cooking. She died bravely, defending her trainees to the bitter end. His affinity left her almost unrecognizable… I can’t imagine what her final moments were like.” Ringivek sighed and clenched a fist before taking a breath and relaxing again, resuming his story. “The leader also overcame Aeowin and Lyra while the man with the vials easily captured Ichiro. They tied all three of them up again, and waited, I assume for the third to show back up.” Ringivek smiled slightly. “However, I happened upon the group and ambushed them, as it was clear they didn’t intend any good for my family and a dear friend of mine. I managed to free Ichiro here, and though I wanted to free Aeowin and Lyra as well, in a lull of the battle, Lyra convinced me to retreat with our son here, keep him safe. I escaped the villains and brought Ichiro here, to hide and to prepare for what’s next. Ichiro explained to me the events of what happened before I arrived, but we had no idea what had happened to the two of you, no way of knowing whether or not you had beaten the man with the lightning. Luckily,” Ringivek stood up and nodded, “both of you are well-trained.” Arte chuckled softly and nodded, standing up and stretching after the summarized tale. “Well… I suppose a lot happened while we were hiding out. That man, Jain, he found us alright. It was a difficult fight… He didn’t hold anything back, but lucky for me, Rysko had a few tricks up his sleeve that Jain wasn’t expecting.” She laughed and shook her head. “Rysko, you gotta teach me how to pull that invisibility trick at some point.Wait, is that your affinity?” Rysko shrugged and let go of Ichiro, scratching his head thoughtfully. “I don’t know… Sensei Pancecé said that my affinity might be like a void that needs to be filled… I think I’m able to learn affinities, if my training with him was any indication.” Rysko rubbed his head softly. “I don’t understand it either, don’t worry… Maybe I’ll have a chance to figure it out when this is all over…” [i]Continued below...[/i]