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The Troopers thought they are done with their job after they
defeated Arago. They were wrong.
They knew something must've
gone wrong when Lady Kayura and her
three warlords appeared at the door, but when Nasuti returned
home
hot on those four's heels… in Shuten's arms, the Troopers
knew
something was very wrong indeed.
Every person, plus a white tiger,
stared at Shuten for quiet some
time, even Lady Kayura, who already knew about his return through
her linkage with the Ancient One.
Finally, Byakuen came over to
sniff Shuten's hand, giving him a
welcome. Then Ryo broke the silence: "Okay, we have guests
from
the Nether realm and we have people returning from the dead. What's
going on?"
"Very smooth, Rekka."
Rajura muttered sarcastically under his
breath, but he left the job of providing an explanation to Shuten.
Shuten gently set Nasuti on
her feet and cleared his throat: "As you
can see, I'm brought back to life by the Ancient One, in order
to
wear the Armor of Cruelty in the upcoming battles."
Seiji arched his visible left eyebrow: "Upcoming battles?"
Shuten decided he wants to get
Nasuti to a seat first, so he turned
to Lady Kayura: "Why don't you explain to them Kayura? The
Ancient
One spoke directly to you."
Kayura smiled at him as he guided
a tired Nasuti across the room to
a seat. She turned to the five Troopers and nodded: "As you
see,
Shuten is needed to wear the Armor of Cruelty. We have a new enemy
and his strength should not be under estimated."
Shu looked at her impatiently: "Who is this new enemy then?"
"His name is Muma. He is the king of the shadow spirits."
Nasuti gasped: "Shadow Spirit! That's the thing that attacked me!"
"What?" Ryo almost jumped.
Seiji looked at her intensely: "You've been attacked?"
"Yes. I was attacked by
one of those creatures on my way home. But
I'm fine now. Shuten saved me in time." Nasuti quickly reassured
her friends, then looked back at Kayura: "I heard of a legend
that
long ago, Muma and Arago fought for the reign of the Nether world.
Muma was stronger than Arago but Arago won the battle through
foul
play. Muma and his clan were banned from the Nether world since
then. Is the legend true?"
Anubis whistled as Kayura nodded
in confirmation: "Yes Nasuti. You
are more knowledgeable in the filed than I thought. Arago wasn't
powerful enough to destroy Muma so he forced Muma to sign a pack,
which stated that Muma should never return to the Nether world,
and
that Muma was to stay in the Shadow land as long as Arago live."
Touma rubbed his forehead: "I
think I get the picture. Arago is dead
so Muma is free to leave this… Shadow land of his, and he
wants to
take over the Mortal realm."
Kayura looked at him approvingly:
"Tenku no Touma, your logic
impresses me yet again. However, you are only half right."
Shin frowned: "So what's the whole big deal?"
"Well, as you probably
guessed, the Nether world is really a rich
land full of hidden resources. Muma wants it, yet he could not
just
invade us out of the blue since he swore never to return to the
Nether world. However, if the Nether world is somehow altered,
then
by logic he is no longer bound by his words."
Ryo frowned: "I don't quiet get what you are saying, Lady Kayura."
She sighed: "Think Arago.
What he tried to do? Besides getting your
armors that is."
Nasuti was the first to make
the connection and she gasped
involuntarily. The five Troopers soon realized it too. They looked
at each other in shock. Byakuen growled softly, sensing the tension.
Finally, Seiji whispered:
"I'll be damned… he
is going to try to fuse the Mortal realm and
the Nether realm into one!"
****************************************************
Nasuti clenched to Shuten fearfully
and whispered: "I know Muma is
stronger than Arago but… exactly how strong is he?"
Shuten answered her: "Powerful
enough that we need to call on one
more back up."
Kayura nodded and looked at
everyone in the room: "With Shuten
revived, we have nine armors in total. I am pretty confident that
if Rekka, Korin, Tenku, Kongo and Suiko combines their power to
call upon the Armor of Inferno, then, with the help from the other
four, Muma can be defeated."
Shu scratched his head: "Sounds good to me. What's the big problem?"
"When I say you can defeat
him, I mean you can defeat him, if he
doesn't wipe you out first. None of you has any kind of healing
power except Korin, but his power can not be used in battles.
Naza's poison can be turned into antidote, but from my understanding
Muma doesn't use a lot of poisons. Kao's staff can aid you by
giving
you strength, but it doesn't reverse any damage inflicted."
Kayura
shook her head and looked at the five Troopers, "What I am
saying
is, none of you possessed a special attack that is healing in
nature.
That is the reason why we need to summon the tenth armor."
The Troopers and Nasuti gasped
in surprise. Touma looked dazed:
"There's a tenth armor?"
Kayura nodded: "Yes. It
is an armor made along with the nine armors
of Arago. However it is not offensive in nature and therefore
it
does relatively less damage. Arago discarded it but Kaos by chance
found it and took it. Kaos improved it by expanding its healing
power. It's the Armor of the Angel"
Shin frowned: "Wait, if
this tenth armor is so good, why didn't it
show up when we fight Arago?"
This time, it was Shuten who
answered him: "The Ancient One expected
Muma to cause trouble after Arago's defeat. He had faith in you
that
you will be able to handle Arago, therefore, he decided to keep
the
tenth armor a while longer. As Kayura said, this armor is weaker
than the rest, therefore the one wearing it is more vulnerable
to
damage than the rest."
Ryo snorted: "Well, whoever
in that armor could just heal himself
then. So, when is this Angelic dude gonna show up? Next year?"
Upon hearing his rather rude
words, Rajura snickered, Naza grinned
wickedly and Anubis muttered: "You are gonna regret saying
this,
Rekka."
"What?" Ryo growled and looked at the three Mashos suspiciously.
Kayura sighed: "The person is right here in this room, Rekka no Ryo."
"Huh? Lady Kayura, you are the one?"
"No Rekka. It is her."
Kayura pointed her sakujou at Nasuti and
said quietly, "Tenshi no Nasuti."
All five Troopers stared back
and forth between Kayura and Nasuti,
their jaws about to join their feet at the floor. Nasuti made
a
choking sound: "I… I'm the tenth warrior?"
Shuten hugged her from behind
comfortingly: "Yes Nasuti, you are
the one."
She grabbed his hand tightly
and stammered: "But…but why? How? I'm
not a warrior! I… I don't even know how to fight!"
Shuten smiled: "It's not
about how well you fight, Nasuti,
especially in this case. Tenshi is to be the healer of the group;
therefore, it's more about inner strength than anything else.
You
were the chosen from the start. Think about it, your meeting with
the Troopers was not merely a coincidence. Why do you think the
Ancient One lend you the sakujou to protect yourself?"
He rested his head on her shoulder
and whispered into her ear:
"Besides, I really can't think of anyone more fitting of
the title
than you, my tenshi."
Nasuti couldn't help but blushed.
Anubis rolled his eyes and
muttered: "Love birds make me wanna puke…"
"Shut up, Yami Masho."
Kayura smiled amiably at the couple while
jabbing Anubis in the stomach, hard.
"Why do I have to take
this abuse from women…" Anubis rubbed his
side and groaned.
By now the Troopers had finally
recovered from their initial shock.
Seiji looked from Nasuti to Shuten to Kayura doubtfully: "If
what
you say is true, why Nasuti doesn't have a virtue assigned to
her
like the rest of us does?"
"She has a virtue, it's
just not awakened yet." Kayura rise from
her seat with sakujou in hand: "That's part of the reason
why I am
here, to help Nasuti awaken her power."
She smiled kindly to Nasuti: "Please come over here."
Nasuti bit her lips and walked over to Kayura: "What do I have to do?"
"Hold the staff."
Nasuti obeyed.
"Good. Now I want you to
close your eyes and concentrate." Kayura
turned around, "The rest of you, try to establish a communication
with her through your assigned virtue."
The room fell silent as everyone,
except Kayura, closed their eyes
and concentrated hard. Byakuen cocked his head to one side, looking
at the humans curiously.
Nasuti reached out with her
mind, nervously. At first there was
nothing, but after a few seconds, she saw.
Humanity, from Rekka no Ryo, fierce and passionate.
Courtesy, from Korin no Seiji, calm and graceful.
Faith, from Suiko no Shin, shy and caring.
Justice, from Kongo no Shu, honest and content.
Wisdom, from Tenku no Touma, intelligent and spirited.
Then, she felt a group of kai
that are not so familiar as the ones
of the Troopers.
Filial Duty, from Anubis the Yami Masho, bold and dashing.
Endurance, from Rajura the Gen Masho, cautious and mysterious.
Obedience, from Naza the Doku Masho, confident and sensitive.
And finally, she found it.
Loyalty, from Shuten the Oni
Masho, warm, soothing and protective…
His kai felt just like his embrace. Nasuti smiled as something
deep
inside her starts to stir. It strengthened, washed over her body
and continued to expand.
The five Troopers and four Mashos
all shivered slightly as they
suddenly felt the tenth kai joining, a kai of love and
determination. They broke the circle around Nasuti and walked
over
to see her face. She smiled at them as her sign glow brightly
on
her forehead. It is Hei, the kanji for resolution.
Kayura took back her sakujou
from Nasuti and said: "Now, summon
your armor."
She opened her mouth to ask
how, but then, words just rushed to her
lips:
"Buso Tenshi!"