*Tales of Orenthia*

[Tetsuri Tokai]

The man in the middle chuckled and Tetsuri retained the cloth firmly in his mouth. With each passing second that he focused, his aura grew. He could feel his power surging through him like waves. The two woman opened their eyes slowly, and then turned to face Iliana and him. The moment that they were all face to face, another explosion went off, about two feet behind the Tyrants. Another huge fire erupted within the southeastern area.

It was horrible to see Herensho in such dismay and calamity, but their was nothing they could do now. The auras had faded away now. It was too late. All those people....gone in an instant...if only we had made it sooner......we could have saved them. Tetsuri wrapped the cloth tighter around his blade. He was now ready to fight, although he held back on power. It would have been a bad idea to use every bit of his strength.

Although he learned to control his power, it still did a great amount of stress on his body, mostly in the muscle regions. They tensed, almost as if they would tear. It would often happen during his training, but he learned a loophole around it later down the line. Even that loophole wasn't enough to jar up the extra power.

More explosions continued to rage and even more building crumbled. The Tyrants laughed menacingly and glared at them with a look of death and a smile. Tetsuri released the cloth from in between his lips and lowered his sword. The cloth fell slowly to the ground and his aura spiked at a medium point.

Now was the time to take action and destroy the Tyrants. Tetsuri unsheathed his other blade and swiped it once at an horizontal angle. He was ready to take those bastards out. The male Tyrant took a step forward and snapped his fingers. The sound echoed throughout every portion of the city. Tetsuri's ears flickered and he looked around.

The ground shook and shadowy figures appeared from any and every nook and cranny. They circled Iliana and Tetsuri, all eyes piercing at the two with looks like fire within them. Damn, so that was their plan....it was all a setup.... He stood back to back with Iliana and gripped his swords firmly. Her fire spraking, and his blue aura spiking. They were in for one hell of a fight.

"Ilana, lets go!"

At the moment he shouted, the group of Tyrants dashed towards them and the three leaders vanished. Tetsuri looked to his North side and dashed towards a group of about twenty out of the hundred that charged. He flashed out in a streak of blue and they flashed out in streaks of black.

~! There was a circle of black auras spinning around one blue one. The black auras began to close in and out on the blue one. When they closhed Tetsuri and The Tyrants would appear clahsing and swinging. Tetsuri would dodge and block, each position alternating, according to with Tyrants attacked from either side.~!

​

 

[Iliana]

Iliana could tell that something was off. Something was not right about the current scenario or the way it was playing out at that very moment. In all of the other Order battles, the Order would never send their infantry to come at both Tetsuri and Iliana at full force. There was always some kind of plan, strategy, tactic. There minds were ever working gears that tackled both of their defenses at any side they could probe into, but Iliana and Tetsuri was always quick to recover. During some of the fights, they would get injuries and even slip up on their fighting, but in the end, they came out victorious. Iliana learned to frame her own mindset: Never wait for them to attack. Show them that you were prepared. Well, the two of them had done it when the 3 Tyrants had appeared in front of them, holding maniacal smiles plastered on their unblemished faces.

When another eruption of fire erupted, something in the pit of Iliana's stomach did the same. It must have been the fire signaling that something was off about what was going on. She wanted to question Tetsuri on whether he had any idea what may have been happening, but he was just as preoccupied as she was. He took his time unsheathing his sword. Iliana had seen this method many times before in their training. It had something to do with the amount of power he used. His blue eyes were pierced with a tenacity that she had not seen before. Maybe it was because he had recollected some past memories after seeing the Tyrants in Herensho. Whatever the case was, Iliana knew that she had to keep an eye on both herself and Tetsuri. He was strong, yes, but he couldn't take down the three by himse--

SNAP!

Jolting to attention, Iliana suddenly felt an entire wave of dark, Tyrant aura compress around both her and Tetsuri while, simultaneously, a large mass of Tyrants appeared. The flames faltered for the temporary moment she was caught off guard. It was easily read in her face. She was nowhere near prepared to witness the onslaught of Tyrants. She regained quickly when she felt Tetsuri's familiar aura spike when he shouted for her to get ready. Instantly, Iliana gripped the hilt of her sword, swinging it to her side and coaxing the flames in a threatening heat.

Tetsuri was the first one to take off, causing most of the Tyrants to recoil when they were attacked. Iliana did not underestimate the brains of the Tyrants for one bit, catching one zipping at her from the corner of her eyes. In a last attempt to catch her breath, Iliana spun the sword at an awkward right angle on her wrist, switching hands as she struck hard behind her and into the arm of the Tyrant. A mechanical crunch was heard while Iliana jerked roughly, removing her sword just in time to crack the hilt across the head of another who was behind her. The Tyrant stumbled backwards, giving Iliana enough time sweep under her foot, kicking the next oncoming Tyrant off balance.

Her flames burned at her will, wrapping her sword in a fiery blaze that gave more strength to her hits. The Tyrants were piling on top of one another, scrambling in an organized fashion to claw at her. Iliana, however, was a step and a half ahead of them, thanks to the sense of black aura she could feel. A Tyrant swung the black stained sword above her burning orange hair. In the same second, she managed to block it with her sword, swinging a crisp backwards kick square in its jest, releasing its clash on their swords...

...until she violently pulled to the ground by a yank on her ankle.

"Ah!" she yelped, not in fear, just surprise. The weight had left her body, sending her crashing onto the debris ridden ground of Herensho. Her back scraped against the concrete, sending a burning pain at that same spot while the Tyrants swarm around her. Iliana knew of the swarming technique already and was more than prepared when 4-5 of them lunged their swords at her. Delicate enough, Iliana shot out her leg to kick one of the dark swords from the Tyrant's grasp. As it hovered helplessly in the air, Iliana used her unused hand to spring herself up, spinning on the ball of her foot while swinging her flame caked sword right into the hilt of the hovering Tyrant sword. The circular motion and speed combined sent the flaming Tyrant sword to rip across the pack in a circle. ripping them all in the middle of their electronic abdomens.

"...o-ow..."she rasped, stumbling only for a second but not leaving room for vulnerability. It was a minor scab. She had to push through it if she wanted to help Tetsuri defeat them.​

 

[Tetsuri Tokai]

The clashing between Tetsuri and the Tyrants raged on. But, they were starting to get the upper hand. Although his speed and strnght was much greater, the Tyrants still put up a fight. Tetsuri blocked as they came into view and the Tyrants could be seen holding their blades in a stabbing motion. Tetsuri grunted and then snapped his blades apart, pushing the Tyrants back. They all landed on the ground, about 5 feet away from Iliana and the scraps that laid before her.

The Tyrants immediately surrounded him and held their blades firmly.

He spiked his aura more and that in return, surround him with bits of light. He placed his right sword in its sheathe and held his left outward towards the Tyrants. The bits of light transformed and turned into rose petals. They floated all around Tetsuri and the Tyrants as well.



Three of the Tyrants dashed towards him, but felt an electric-like pulse his them whne they touched the rose petals. Tetsuri gripped his blade with two hands and breathed heavily, slightly. His blew eyes glistened as the aura spread. The tyrants continued to charge the barrier and Tetsuri moved forward slightly.

When the Three Tyrants dashed again. Tetsuri stepped forward on his right tiptoes and pushed towards the Tyrants. When they rose petals fell to the one on his left sides head, he dragged his blade up vertically and hit against the left side of its neck. The blade clanked and Tetsuri yelled out as he put more strength behind the attack. The sword began tearing through and sliced the Tyrants head off.

Tetsuri landed behind it and dashed towards the middle Tyrant and slashed horizontally through its mid section. The Tyrant fell to its knees as its body slide apart. When is exploded, Tetsuri looked over to the right as the other dashed towards him. It sliced downward, towards Tetsuri's left left shoulder. Tetsuri used his right foot to step outward and around the attack. The Tyrant floated forward and Tetsuri was positioned behind it.

He drew his left sword once more, and then slashed in x formation through the Tyrant's mid-section, crossing his left arm over his right. He surrounded his blades in his aura and they glowed blue. With one final move, he separated his arms and slashed through the Tyrant's lower and upper backs.

He flipped back and looked at Iliana, who seemed to be injured. The other two Tyrants disappeared and reappeared with the other remaining Tyrants. He disappeared and reappeared behind Iliana, back to back with her.

"You okay, Iliana?" He asked, as his blades returned to normal. He held them out at his sides and the Tyrants circlced them once more.

​

 

[Iliana]

"Better than they're gonna be."she answered, not trying to hide the pants that left her tiny lips. At first she thought that both she and Tetsuri were biting off far more than they could chew, fighting the Tyrants in a place such as this. The battle was taking both a physical and emotional toll on her, throwing off her fighting by more than an iota. For starters, they were strong. Very strong. Quite possibly stronger than anything she had encountered before. Even the Ramharts that they had encountered weeks ago, though she never battled them, did not seem as strong as these androids were. They had minds programmed to do nothing but taunt and kill, no emotion running through their diodes. If they swung their swords and missed, they only swung again. Iliana did all she could to keep her body intact and stable, her dodges becoming less smooth and more quickened and hurried. That meant that she was starting to falter in her strength. Unlike Tetsuri, she could not will her aura to come in bursts and intervals. Whatever she had, that's what she got.

Another tail of fire whipped from the end of her sword, burning into the metallic shoulders of two Tyrants that stood back to back. The slashes did little to defeat them, but the fire finished them off. Iliana's grip on the sword slipped several times, and it seemed like the Tyrants could tell that she was giving out. In her eyes was another story. She did not show any sign of defeat and weakness. There was still a blaring orange behind the glints of her eyes, even while her fingers trembled each time her sword clanged against the dark aura of the Tyrant's sword. Her flames were strong, not as strong as before, but hey gave her a tiny boost of assistance. Leaping away from Tetsuri, the leg of a Tyrant tore across her face and she lept backwards just in time. Too close. Any sooner and the robotic heel would have connected to her jaw and sent her straight on the train to unconscious.

Letting a roar speak for her, Iliana tossed her sword directly behind her, using her wrist to flick it on a steady pattern and, to her relief, the tip struck right into the neck of the Tyrant, a mechanic zapping and spark giving her a satisfactory adrenaline boost as she zipped to the falling hunk of metal, and yanking her sword out just in time for another Tyrant to swing his sword to her shoulder. Pull, pull, pull! In one final desperate attempt to yank the sword from the neck of the Tyrant, Iliana shot her right leg out to go for a swift kick to the oncoming one, hoping to buy her a second or two to retrieve her sword. The plan did not go as well. The Tyrant, too smart, reached out and grabbed her leg, yanking Iliana, thus helping her pull out her sword. Dark aura choking her, Iliana's eyes shut as she swung wildly, hoping to throw it off guard.

She did just that. With one flame infused swipe, her sword cracked against the head of the Tyrant, turning its lights out. Iliana growled in annoyance, shaking her leg free from the loosened grasp of the arm, holding her sword at the ready for the next onslaught. She was suddenly, once again, back to back with Tetsuri holding her sword, orange eyes flickering up and then...

...wide open. They shot wide open.

"....ek...." The sound was a struggled, choking sound that passed from her lips. Her facial features read no movements when the dark, black sword retracted from the right side of her stomach, leaving a river of blood behind. The pathetic cracks still left her mouth, standing on nothing but pure adrenaline. The flames around her died downed as a line of blood dropped from her lip, matching the snakes of blood that wrapped around her legs.

[SPOILI]

[/SPOILI]

The other Tyrants quickly dashed to her with the intent to kill, blood lust programmed in their eyes as they zipped forward to her, in a large group of 6.

"...s-suri..."she breathed, fearing more for him then herself, eyesight blurred and tainted with nothing but white, the matching fire of pain in her stomach. Nothing but white, only white, as she stood trembling from head to toe, hands still quaking on her sword, a sword she could not dream of swinging to stop the onslaught.​

 

[Tetsuri Tokai]

Tetsuri was unaware of what happened to Iliana, He had been so busy battle his set of Tyrants, that he had not noticed that she was hurt. He stood firmly back to back with her and gripped his blades tightly. They had to finish this battle and fast. He scanned the area around them. The Tyrants had them completely surrounded.

His ears flickered and his tail swayed, he had to do something. If they all attacked at once, Iliana and him cold take them down with their powers. It would have been risky, but the chances of them surviving was still high. It was worth a shot. That is when he felt a sharp pain in his chest. Something similar to the flames that Iliana manifested.

Tetsuri's breathing became heavy and he felt like his body was lead. What the hell was going on? Was the question that ran track through his mind. He parted his lips a little and felt as if he breathed fire as well. Something was wrong... He could feel an ongoing and oncoming dark aura fast. Though it was faint and slightly hard to read in his state.

A few moments after, the onslaught of more dark auras shot towards them. Tetsuri looked back, at the same moment Iliana called his name. There before his eyes stood Iliana, sword wound in her side and blood trickling from her mouth and wound, in a snake- like formation. Tetsuri's eyes widened and he sputtered words that couldn't be understood.

Even as the auras closed in, he dropped his head and growled.

"Iliana..."
His aura pulsated.
The dark auras closed in more

"ILIANAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Tetsuri's aura exploded in a flash of blue and trailed of into the sky.

Tetsuri's tears fell as he called out Iliana's name and his aura spiked more, wrapping around both Iliana and himself. The dark auras were pushed back and the Tyrants stood in place. Tetsuri raised his head as his eyes twirled with blue and his ears flattened.

​"YOU BASTARDS WILL PAY FOR THIS!!!!"
​

 

[Iliana]

"ILIANAAAAAA!!!!!"


The sound was loud in her ears but was slowly dimming down into nothing, just like her strength. Being the Oni, a simple stab in the stomach would not be enough to kill her on contact, but blood loss was taking its own toll on her. Half of it were stained around her thin, black stockings, dripping down into the cracked and paved road of Herensho. It was a hot liquid river on her leg, but the deep, gaping hole in her stomach was hotter than blood that ran from it. The pain was a twisting and burning fire, much like the one that had earlier wrapped around her sword. The burning, the stinging, and the struggle to breath was hard. It was tearing and ripping through her and every exhale seemed to be heaven while each inhale was hell to pay. Wide, shaking orange eyes landing on the burst of blue aura around her, Iliana fought to maintain consciousness.


Tetsuri's scream echoed through her ears as did the swirling and clashing sound of auras against auras, eventually sending her to her feet, even behind the protective barrier. The friction enough was enough to buck her knees, and the pain was only a plus. She hated knowing that at any given moment, she may have dropped straight to the ground, cold and motionless. Instead, she bit her lip, willing herself to fight through the storming burning of her stomach. Sword still very much in her hands, she drove the tip of it into the ground, throwing her entire weight upon it. In her mind, she saw that as a slight sign of surrender, burying her sword in the ground. The Tyrants, on the other hand, were to preoccupied on the raging, flat eared Neko in front of them.


Blood still on her lip, Iliana took hold of what little will power she had left and reached her right hand outwards. Even summoning her bow was a strain on her wound, but she would not stand, or tremble, idly by while Tetsuri had to take on the mass of Tyrants. Letting out a grunt of strain and agony, Iliana's blood caked fingers shook while a tiny typhoon of lilac grew in the middle of her palm, twisting and bending at her own will and determination. The bow was forming in her palm while Tetsuri's blue aura pulsed and shook around her. It was a makeshift barrier, nothing like her brothers, but, given the current situation, it was all she had to hold on to. Bow fully formed and weighing down in her hand, Iliana continued to ignore the excruciating pain in her stomach to aim at a Tyrant's head.

"Don't come near him!"she shouted in warning before flinging an orange flared arrow in that particular direction. However, much to her dismay, the single action was enough to bring her crippling to the ground in pain, screaming out into her knees, blood flowing freely from the wound.

​

 

[Tetsuri Tokai]

Tetsuri's aura was going out of control/ If he didn't regain control, he would be overcome with his own power. That would put him in a subconscious state and he would lose all memory and sanity. He held his swords firmly and took multiple, deep breathes. He relaxed his mind and cleared all hateful thoughts. No matter how evil his enemy was, to use hate as a fuel for power, would only cause chaos within himself.

His aura began relaxing more, to the point where he could control it freely. He closed his eyes for a few seconds, feeling Iliana's wavelength. It was dwindling, but not at a fast rate. He opened his eyes and looked at her as she yelled out, holding up her bow. His eyes widened and a bead of sweat formed as she shot the arrow, and then tumbled down to the ground.

Instinctively, he knelled down beside her and his ears flattened. He lowered his eyes and a sadness washed over him. Even in training, he would react the same way. Whether it was a little scratch or even the slightest bruise. He would be edgy and sometimes overreacted. But, now, this was an entirely different situation. This was a real battle, with real enemies, and a real battlefield.

He had let his guard down and at that moment, he lost track of the dark aura circle that lingered around them. But, he soon regained himself and stood up slowly. It would be risky , but he had to fight and protect Iliana at the same time. The Tyrants began to chant their bodies began to glow. Tetsuri stood up slowly, gripping his blades hilts with such an intensity, that his veins popped up in his arms. He gritted his teeth and turned to face the Northeastern direction. With the barrier around Iliana, he had no worries that the others could get close to her.

He placed his blades in x-formation out in front of him and then swiped them at his sides. He was now ready to fight. He looked back at Iliana will a serious expression now.

"I promise....I will protect you."
With that being said, he looked back ahead of him. Tetsuri stepped forward, and then shot in in a streak of blue towards the group of Tyrants.​

 

[Iliana]

She had nothing to show for her strength. She had nothing to show anyone that she was not down for the count. No, Iliana was in a bad way. She was in a really bad way and now it was up to the Neko to protect both her and himself. It was a burden she hated for him to bare, and bare alone at that, but it could not be helped. Her training had not been enough to prepare her for the Tyrants and their abilities in battle. Her meditation seemed whimsical to her now, heeding her no source of help or support in the least. Without Xavien around, she had no hope of being quickly healed and jolting right back into battle. It was just her, sprawled on the ground and bleeding profusely from her stomach, and Tetsuri, attacking the masses alone with no assistance.

"Don't come near..."

Iliana but her lip, trying her best to heave herself up, but there was nothing she could do. Each movement was hell to pay, stinging and clenching all of the muscles in her stomach. The blood loss was also taking a toll on her vision as well. Fire started to swirl into a sea of orange and yellow, burning spirals and smoke in her eyes. Tetsuri's blue aura was mingling with the fire and the zips of the Tyrant's bodies zooming towards him. It was all becoming a spinning, colorful bowl of soup in her eyes, hypnotizing her into a trance of pain, confusion, and a withering determination to hang on.

"Don't come..."she whispered again, eyelids growing heavier by the millisecond. The fire in her stomach build upon each passing moment, closing in on itself and opening again to take in the toxic smoke of Herensho. The next thing to leave was her mind. She was now drifting on the edge of darkness, stumbling around in her own mind, fully aware of the pain in her stomach and sounds of battle outside her ears. She heard Tetsuri...he said something...or did he? Was he there? Was he alive? Where...was he?

"D-don't..."she muttered again before slumping to the ground in unconsciousness, body white and solid, blood oozing from the large wound in her stomach.​

 

[Tetsuri Tokai]

Tetsuri dashed into a group of Tyrants. There was no way that he was going to let them take Iliana or him. The Tyrants eyes glowed and they stood firmly not moving. Tetsuri stopped three feet away and looked around him. There were still a good amount of them left. He want to get close, but not to close to the point where he wouldn't be able to reach Iliana if they attacked.

Tetsuri growled a bit. Something was off, very off. Why weren't they moving or attacking. He couldn't feel the dark auras moving behind him either. Tetsuri raised his swords in x-formation and glared. Now, he could feel the three auras again, but, where were they? Tetsuri focused and tried his best to seek them out. Finally, after scanning the area, he found the source. They were....

His his head shot up and he look to the sky, there they were, the three Tyrants that lead the pack. The male held up his left hand as he lingered over Iliana in the air and the other two did the same. Tetsuri turned around just as they manifested spear-like weapons. Tetsuri's eyes widen as the Tyrant lowered his hand.

The spears shot towards Iliana and Tetsuri dashed as quickly as he could. A split second before the spears hit, Tetsuri stood in front of Iliana. He held up his blades and was hit with the impact of the blades.


Tetsuri, coughed and he was badly injured. He gritted his teeth and spoke in a weak voice.

"Iliana...you have to move and f-fight... Don't give...up...hope...I belive in you!"
​

 

[Iliana]

She could hear him in the back of her mind, calling out to her, reaching out for her in a dark cage that he could not get through. There was no more pain as she was trapped in her mind. No more Tyrants and destruction and dark aura flying at her. She was in a dark, empty cage, not hearing anything but Tetsuri screaming out for her. Slowly, ever so slowly, she started to get some feeling back into her body, the first starting with her stomach. A twist of pain came before any of her senses. It came first and came hard. The second thing was her fingers, twitching in a sad attempt to reach out for the voice.

"Iliana...you have to move and f-fight...

She was trying. It was so hard to open her eyes, even though she knew she was conscious again. Something felt hot against her chest. Something she knew was there, waiting to be released, but if she couldn't even open her eyes yet, she had no hopes of releasing that power. And yet, Iliana fought on: through the pain, through the darkness. There was a dripping sound that she assumed to be her blood falling out of the wound of her stomach, but the sound was coming from above her. Someone else was bleeding...someone...in front of her.

"Don't give...up...hope...I belive in you!"

The power against her chest raged more, anxious to come out but Iliana had to wait. She had to take things slowly. First, was her eyes. If she couldn't open them, how could she ever wish to defeat the Tyrants and save Tetsuri? A blurred vision of ground came into view when she peeled back her eyelids, but they slumped close when the hole in her stomach expanded, leaking out more blood. A feeble whimper from her and the power against her chest rose and fell. Iliana, still able to move her hands, trailed her fingers down to her chest to meet a tiny chain in return.

Her necklace. Fairenz.

Eyes still closed, her body suddenly went mobile, legs unfurling under her. Ignoring the blood, she now had both knees on the ground and both hands laid at her sides, orange hair falling at both sides of her face. The necklace swung like a pendulum, a trail of flames flowing with it.

[spoili]

[/spoili]

She was compelled to call on him, but there was not enough time or strength in her to do. Slowly, she stumbled towards Tetsuri, half leaning and half falling on his back, as her bloody stomach pressed against his back.

"Fight...for me..."she hiccuped, tears dropping down the back of his neck and sliding their way down his back. The tears burned into his skin, trailing to each of his wounds and healing them in a burning acid like form. She did not cry out of her own pain, it seemed for she had ignored that it was there. The Tyrants summoned their spears again and Iliana did not move at all, still slumped against his back, healing him with her tears as phoenix's are told to do.​

 

[Tetsuri Tokai]

Tetsuri had taken on an intense amount of damage. He was still feeling the effects of the attack. His skin burned as his sweat seeped into his wounds. He grunted more and knelled on his left knee, placing his sword into the ground. Each breath was like a fight to gain air. It felt as if he could pass out at any second. The feeling wanted to take him away, as his eyes struggled to stay open.

The Tyrants laughter rang out through the city, and they watched the two of them. Their cold, heartless eyes seeming to pierce through him. The sound of crackling fire could be heard, and ashes filled the air. The burning smell as well added to the roughness of breathing. Smoke in the air, mixed with ashes, were not good for him right now.

He looked down at the ground as he struggled to move. Each time he moved, his body would feel like lead. This was not the time for his body to reject his commands. He had to get up and now.

Come on body! Move already! Damn it, why won't my body move!?!?!

Tetsuri gritted his teeth and struggled to stand again. He grunted and it was no use. He closed his eyes and dropped his head down. He was just about to give up, until he could here Iliana's voice. She slid onto his back and his head shot up, slightly and his eyes widened.

"Fight...for me..."

She said, as her tears fell down his body. He could feel a soothing aura and as the tears trailed his wounds, he closed his eyes, whispering her name softly.

"Iliana"
​

 

[Iliana]

The necklace was almost withering against her chest but she did not feed into it. She knew he wanted to help, and was probably burning to come out, but Fairenz would have to wait. The Tyrants were synchronized fighters, smart enough to use their strength in numbers against foes. If they were all planning to take down Fairenz, it could be trouble. So, for the time being, she had to ignore the flaming of her necklace. While her tears seeped into Tetsuri's body, healing him in a steady, soothing burning, they also dropped down to her own stomach. Iliana instantly felt the same heat in her body as she continued to slump against him. The feeling was different from Xavien's First Aid. It could be described as a bottle of acid was running over the wounds, reattaching skin and muscles back together while washing away the blood.

Suddenly, Iliana felt a dangerous aura approach and looked above her to see the many spears she had mentioned earlier fly down towards the two of them. Quickly, or as quick as she was going to get, Iliana detached herself from his back, pushing him to the right to avoid being impaled. At the same time, she managed to tuck and roll herself out of harms way as well. If not for the healing, she would have been shish-kabob. The Tyrants wasted no time in forming more spears. That was when she noticed it...their numbers were dwindling. When she was out and too unstable to fight, Tetsuri must have taken on more than half of them! Their numbers went from 100 to approximately 37, as far as she could see. Still, with repercussions, it was going to be hard to fight them all. Not to mention the three leaders that stood above them with mal-intent in their mechanical eyes.

"Tetsuri..."she called out, staring at the Tyrants. The healing had not completely did its work on her, but she was smart enough to know that she was not in the position to fight. Which only made her angry when it came down to it. "You can...always let them take me, you know?"she said, not looking to him even though her voice said it all. The fighting had to stop.
​

 

[Tetsuri Tokai]

Tetsuri's wounds were healing fast. Thanks to Iliana's help, he would be able to fight at full strength. That may have been the case, but he hoped that she at least healed as well. The tears continued to drip and heal him. He closed his eyes and let the soothing sensation relax thee tension in his body. He sighed slightly and then took a few breathers. The Tyrants were watching and he could feel their presences. They made no move. The dark aura's remained in one spot.

Soon after the healing he was pushed out of the was by Iliana after a bombardment of spears came again. He rolled on his side, and then alternated so that he slid on his left foot . His head quickly snapped over to Iliana and then back up at the Tyrants. He also noticed that the huge army had slimmed down. This was somewhat in their favor. They all seemed to stay still as well. Thats when the thought hit him. The reason they didn't move, was because the other three commanders gave no order to. They were pulling the strings.

He looked over at Iliana as she called his name. His ears twitched as they always did. He looked at he listened to her explain that she should give herself up and he only smirked as he stood up straight. His left hand rested on his hip and he spoke in a soft voice. He maintained his gaze on the three leaders above.

"There is no need to Iliana. You see, the reason these few Tyrants aren't attacking at all. Even with us in our weakened states, they have not made a move. During the healing process, it was the perfect opportunity for them to take us out. You see, the reason those three attacked us while were weakened, was because they could not beat us in full strength. So, after we were hurt badly they tried to take us out themselves. Their plan was is to finish us off when we are a few edges off of death. See, they don;t really need us alive, in order to extract our power. So long as the vessel holds the power within, they can still claim it.
If you notice now, even as we stand here defenseless, the army of their soldiers don't attack."
'
He looked back at Iliana. She was still injured, but he hoped that she had enough strength to fight.

"Instead of fighting the remaining 37, we will move around them and make our way to the leaders. You need to stay focused and ignore your wounds for now. I need your help on this, Iliana. I am strong, but my injuries are limiting me right now. The same applies for you. Together, we have the amount of strength needed to end this battle. So, don't give up hope. Orenthia needs us."
​

 

[Iliana]

She didn't take him as the kind of man who gave speeches during the middle of a drastic battle while bleeding out of wounds, but everyone is wrong sometimes. Tetsuri went on and on about the way the Tyrant's battle formation was. True, without the little insight, Iliana would've been charging out to attack them one by one. Now that he mentioned it, if he had enough time to give her a speech, then why weren't they attacking. The mass of Order minions were just standing there, exposing their dark auras but not making one single move whatsoever. Her eyes slid over them, looking at their eyes one by one to see if they hid any kind of secret attacks soon to be launched on she and Tetsuri. Turns out, there was nothing their but a smirk. A mindless, mechanical smirk plastered on the face of every single one of the androids. When it came down to it, it was scary.

"Orenthia needs a lot more than two wounded people..."she said silently, hoping that he didn't catch that. She knew good and well that Tetsuri didn't stand for that kind of talk from her, she just couldn't help it! The wounds were deep and the healing was much appreciated but not Xavien's chants. They were makeshift and probably would've done better if she had more time to cry and concentrate, but the Tyrant leaders supposedly had other things planned for the two. Iliana never knew that they would be that strong, and even began to wonder why Tetsuri didn't inform her of their strength. Had he forgotten? Was it some mental thing she was supposed to endure or something? Either way it went, he was right:

They both had strength enough to finish it.

She didn't feel so strong when the aura's of the Tyrant leaders intoxicated her lungs. The very atmosphere of Herensho was smoggy, feeling as if a cloud of pepper was lodged in her throat. The fire seemed to have a never ending supply of wood because it never ceased to burn. Time had slipped her mind as did many of the other things. The only things she was fully aware of was her wounds, Tetsuri;'s injuries, and the Tyrant aura. Her focus was dwindling and that was not a good sign. It was never a good sign.

"On your move..."she said, leaning into her stance as she pulled her sword out of the ground with a CRACK! of fire spewing from the hole.​

 

[Tetsuri Tokai]

He realized that now was not the best time to be giving a speech. Even if they didn't attack, he still let his guard down for a moment. That left him wide open to attack. The Tyrants were becoming and even bigger pain and he hoped that they could end this battle soon. There was no way that they could take on the rest. That would put them on the edges of death and make them easy to finish off, if they failed. This wasn't a good sign.


Something Iliana said, made him frown slightly. Why was she speaking so negatively? Right now, they couldn't think about losing. He wasn;t going to hear that. Tetsuri didn't answer her, only looked up at the Tyrants in the sky. Those three may have nee the ones pulling the strings, but who was pulling their strings? There had to have been another source around. He focused as best he could. The aura's danced and turned, twisting into one another. But, there was one that didn't match the others. One that was far stronger than the rest.


It was faint, but had enough shock to give him a slight chill. Where was it coming from? Who was there? Tetsuri looked left, then right. "Iliana, dont move. Someone else is here."
He summoned his blades and readied himself. The aura came from the group of brown, crumbling builds to the East. Below the three Tyrants. Someone was watching them, but who. He did his best to focus more on the aura and finally, he was able to get a lock on it. He growled and his ears spiked.

"So, you caught on to me, Tetsuri. Good Job. Your skills are just as sharp as ever."
A shadowy figure appeared through the fire and slowly made its way towards them. When he came into view, he stopped just below the Tyrants and smirked holding his blade firmly behind him.

"Well now, look at you. All beat up and against this army of Tyrants. This doesn't seem very fair now does it?"
He chuckled a little and looked around at the destruction and the remaining Tyrants. It seemed that he got some kind of amusement out of seeing the destruction. That was pissing Tetsuri off even more. Tetsuri lowered his head and the ground beneath him began shaking violently. He gripped his blades tightly and gritted his teeth, as his fangs overlapped one another.

Rave looked at him and tilted his head to the left, before lowering his sword with his left hand. He placed his right hand on his hip and straightened his head again. Rave seemed to wonder why Tetsuri was getting so worked up. At any rate, he wasn't going to back down either.
Tetsuri's aura twisted out of control as he powered up.


"RAVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!"

Tetsuri' growled as the ground pulsated in between shakes and he growled more. He had a murderous intent in his eyes, but it was also dangerous for him. He knew full well that using this much power could take a toll on his body. Tetsuri only brushed the thoughts out of his head as he stood straight and growled more.
​

 

[Iliana]

Iliana was weak, to put it in plain words. She was stripped bare, healed, and now left to fight while she was half shattered. If there was a time she wanted the Oni to reveal herself, the two of them might have had a standing chance then. The same thing went for Tetsuri. If the Neko could only tear through his body, those Tyrants would have been ripped to shreds in seconds. It was a bad way of thinking but with the amount of blood she had lost, she was living on a prayer, so to speak. No matter how bad her stomach hurt, it did nothing to her head and senses. She spotted a curious aura she had never felt before, but it held a slight similarity to Tetsuri's. That made her wince, a mixture of confusion and caution on her face. Tetsuri's ears perked up at the same second, meaning that he must have sensed it too. Whatever or whoever it was, they both new it could not have been good.

"So, you caught on to me, Tetsuri. Good Job. Your skills are just as sharp as ever."

The voice spawned before the body did and Iliana's insides twisted up. The aura wasn't the only thing that held a similar feeling to Tetsuri, the voice sounded just the same! It could have been slightly deeper but could not hide that Tetsuri and he were of the same blood. The sentence made her quiver despite her recent retraction of her sword in confidence. That confidence dropped when she finally saw where the voice was embodied in. A boy, just as tall as Tetsuri, with white hair and an unmistakable sword appeared through the fire. She could have sworn Tetsuri hissed which gave her the okay go to be worried.

Who...is this guy? Is he Tetsuri's brother that he told me about earlier? A deep churning in her stomach said that it as exactly who she did not want it to be. Then, everything went down from there. Iliana didn't know if Tetsuri had forgotten she was there, but that is what it felt like. It felt that the moment Rave had spoken, Tetsuri snapped. Herensho, the Tyrants, and the rest of Orenthia must have been nothing but a blur in his mind, including Iliana. A growing, pulsing, twisting color of blue past her eyes, until the ground exploded in an seismic eruption of aura, debris, and fire. The force knocked Iliana right off her feet, body becoming momentarily weightless. The scream was stuck in her throat before she could even register of being off of the ground.

"Ahhh!" The Tyrants finally snapped into play, dispersing in a flash of speed and black aura before her body toppled to the ground. Iliana's eyes were closed for a mere second and when they opened, her arms were being yanked behind her back by the Tyrants in mid air. She first feared that they were going to turn her into a human pretzel, twisting her limbs in intricate patterns, closing in on the edges of dismemberment. However, no such order came from the 3 high Tyrants or Rave, who had just said was calling the shots, though not directly stating it. With Iliana suspended by both her arms and legs by the Tyrants, Tetsuri's chances of defeating Rave were now halved.

Not that he cares about me...she thought to herself. His aura blast could've knocked her into a wall! Wasn't he being cautious about the health she barely had? Was he...even Tetsuri? Iliana squinted her eyes, never taking them off Tetsuri. She had yet to experience the Neko yet. She just hoped she didn't have to now.​

 

[Tetsuri Tokai]

His power continued to rise and spike. Just the sight of his brother alone disgusted him. What the hell was he doing here? Why did he destroy the city. It was bad enough that they had to fight all those damn Tyrants. He didn't have time to fool around with his worthless, traitor of a brother. Rave was giving him that same smug grin. The one he always gave him whenever he felt he did better. Which was normally true. Tetsuri couldn't explain it. That look was upsetting him now more than ever. Their was such a mixture of emotions and feelings. One of sadness, hurt, anger, hate and love.


Tetsuri's power continued to rise more and more. Rave however, only stood with the same smug look that he had earlier. That cocky bastard was looking down at him, even now. Tetsuri gritted his teeth harder. If he gritted any harder, his teeth were likely to shatter. His lips parted and pressed together multiple times. He gripped his blades, all while his veins seemed to crawl under his skin. His blood felt like it was on fire. The same feeling he had when they used to train.


One mistake Tetsuri had made. He had completely forgotten the fact that Iliana was right behind him! He had unknowingly blasted her off of her feet and Rave watched this. He looked on with cold, red eyes. Something seemed wrong about Rave though. It was more like he was being controlled. There was a glint in his eyes unlike before. although his eyes were normally red, there was a odd sparkle with them. Something far off and unlike anything he had ever seen before. While Tetsuri stood in a raging fit of Aura, Rave watched as his the Tyrants sprung at Iliana.


He chuckled, as the loud scream of Iliana Rang out. He ignored it. But, it wasn't intentional. Tetsuri wasn't himself right now. The power had grown far to out of control. It was controlling him right now. This is why he restrained himself. The power he held was that of something that he didn't fully understand. Rave placed his right hand over his face and let out a loud laugh, mixed with the cackling fire behind him. His head shot up towards the three Tyrants.
"MAN TETSURI! YOU'VE GROWN SO DAMN STRONG, BROTHER! ITS REALLY GIVING ME CHILLS! wHEN DID YOU GET THIS MUCH POWER!?! i'M LOVING THIS FEELING! THE THRILL OF IT ALL! COMEON, BROTHER! SHOW ME MORE POWER! AHAHAHAHAH!


The laugh echoed through the city. Rave removed his hand, looking up at the Tyrants with a twisted look. Afterwards, his face straightened and he now had a more serious look. Rave looked at Tetsuri and drew his blade. Tetsuri growled more. He was going to pounce at any minute, But, he could here a voice. Not only his but someone else as well.


"Tetsuri, why did you save me? Why did you risk betraying the Order?"

"They were manipulating me. I was being used to do their deeds."

"I understand that! But, if I turn myself in, it will all be over!"

"No! You saved me as well! I also made a promise to protect you!

"Tetsuri...!"

The memory faded.

That's right. I did make that promise. On that faithful day. When I saved her from that barrage of arrows. Iliana....

Tetsuri's aura returned to a medium height and he breathed a bit. He closed his eyes and began to focus his mind. Rave looked at him with a confused look, but waited to see what Tetsuri would do. A small smile crept up to his lips and he he raised his head up. At the same time, he slanted his eyes and stared at Rave, while his voice resonated softly, directed at Iliana.

" Iliana, I made a promise on that day to protect you. I cannot allow you to be hurt. I will protect you no matter what it takes."

Tetsuri looked back and up to Iliana, who was hanging being held by her legs and arms by the Tyrants.


"It will be alright, Iliana."

He said softly to her. Now, he directed his voice towards Rave, while his attention was on Iliana.

"Rave, I know you brother and I know you don't use cheap tricks to get an advantage over your opponents."

He looked back at Rave.

"Its just not your style, brother."

Rave chuckled and then held up is right hand towards the three Tyrants. He charged a red aura blast within it, and then blasted the three Tyrants above him. The Tyrants exploded into pieces and rained down do the ground with loud clanks. Tetsuri smirked and so did Rave. Tetsuri quickly turned around and then rapidly slashed the Tyrants that held Iliana's arms and legs, being careful not to hit her.

"Lucky for you guys, I'm in a good mood."

Rave and Tetsuri appeared back to back. Tetsuri gripped his twin blades tightly and Rave gripped his single blade tightly. They looked at each other and nodded, then flashed in lights of red and blue. With their combined strength, they made quick work of the Tyrants as they fell in bits and chunks. Rave and Tetsuri came back into view, facing each other.

Afterwards, Rave turned away and then walked off. Tetsuri watched as his brother walked off and a single tear fell from his eye.

"Brother..."

It wasn't too long after, that he walked over to Iliana and knelled down in front of her. He looked at her, and then pulled her into his arms, holding her close and tight, as he closed his eyes.

"I am so glad that you are safe, Iliana."


​

 

[Iliana]

She never stopped fighting the Tyrants when they grabbed at her. She used every ounce of strength she obtained in her upper body to do so, but in the end, it meant nothing. Tetsuri and Rave seemingly bonded for a fraction of the second to defeat the Tyrant while they exchanged words she could not hear simply because the sky was raining Tyrant parts. She hit the floor and scrambled to the left, right, and anywhere that was not about to get pummeled by some kind of electronic. All of that movement sprung a tiny leak in her stomach, a trickle of blood seeping out of the poorly healed wound. Again, she hissed to get her head off of the pain and to Rave instead.

"Lucky for you guys, I'm in a good mood."

"Good mood? You attacked us with these bots...and then you destroy them? What is with you?!"she snapped in anger. Tetsuri had appeared to come back to normal, slowly floating his diseased mind back down to Orenthia and normality. His aura had dropped down a notch to a medium level, not insanely high, but probably enough to avoid blasting her off of her feet again. His focus was on Rave for a moment before he turned to her and spoke. She half listened to what he was saying, not being very convinced that he knew exactly what had just happen. His brother had ordered those Tyrants to kill them and then he ended up killing them himself, which means that he basically helped his enemies out. It was a tactic used by most deceivers: pretend to play friendly to get closer and closer to your enemy. Iliana had been warned about that plot from Ritesa many years ago, which is why she wasn't so easy to trust others.

When Tetsuri held her close and spoke kind words to her, Iliana...felt nothing. She felt nothing there in that hug whatsoever. There was no comfort, concern, or happiness in the arms of Tetsuri, though usually, a single word from him would set her into an array of happiness! Hating to admit it to herself but Tetsuri was a hard one to understand. He talked to her as if she were a 4 year old, reminding her over and over again about what she had to do, what not to do, and everything else she already knew. When she had an idea, he tossed it to the side like trash. When she tried to cheer him up, he found something negative through her words. It was a different reaction than the one's Ritesa and her brother had given to her. The two of them always understood. Maybe didn't want to, but they did.

But Tetsuri....

"I understand that you are in shock about the truth. But, right now, we need to get moving."

"Iliana, don't let your guard down for a second."

"You need to stay focused and ignore your wounds for now."​

It made her angry. He stated the obvious as if he had not one ounce of faith in her and what she could do.

As if he knew what I am capable of...As if he would dare instruct me....

Iliana's fingers flinched but she said and did nothing, looking directly at the rubble beneath her feet while her orange bangs covered her eyes, eyes which had a dark, tinting purple swimming behind them.​

 

[Tetsuri Tokai]

The thoughts of his brother helping him still confused him. Why did his brother attack them, only to save them in the end. Rave could have also attacked him right after. But, he had also been selfish. He had put Iliana in danger and he didn't think twice about it. His rage had overcome him and he only had the intent of killing his brother.

Tetsuri held her tighter. He could feel his body trembling. The city was burning and they had to get out of their fast. But something was off. He could feel a darkness slowly increasing. But, that was strange. The Tyrants were all gone. Then were was it? His head snapped down to Iliana. Oh no....Iliana! I can't let her get angry!

He pulled back and looked at her with slanted eyes. Now wasn't the time for this. The dark aura was growing and rubble picked up beneath them. If he didn't do something now, she was most likely have went on a rampage. "Iliana, you must remain." It was no good. She could not hear what he was saying. The rubble only continued to rise and her aura slowly increased more and more.

But, why was she acting this way? He thought back from all the times that they had fought side by side. She always seemed like she had no problem with what he did. Then, the image of him going berserk played in his head. His eyes widened and he now knew what was wrong. It was his fault that she was like this. There was only one way to stop her, and that was by an act of love. Just as Xavien had told him, during their first battle together. Tetsuri gulped and then a blush flustered his face.

"Iliana, I am so sorry."

He said as he pulled her closer and held her tighter.
​

 

[Iliana]

Burning. Wrenching. Clinging. Dark.

This was something unlike anything Iliana had ever felt before in her life, an enjoyable, sinking, dark pleasure. There was power coursing through every fiber if her being so bad that it was creating wisps of dark purple aura around the soles of her feet. She remembered clearly of being angry at Tetsuri for treating her as if she couldn't take care of herself. As if she were some sort of dog that needed to be properly trained. Obedience was a training she wasn't used to and there was no doubt in her mind that Tetsuri knew nothing about that. He knew nothing about anything. That is what she kept telling herself as her eyes drowned deeper and deeper into the violent violet mask.

He knew nothing.

"Iliana, I am so sorry."

A softer yet more firmly established squeeze was given to her from Tetsuri making her pause in her thoughts, movements, and mobility. She was frozen in the moment. Somehow, whatever he was doing, was not...right. Why would the Neko hug someone he looked down upon? Why would the Neko hug someone that he didn't trust to beat a caterpillar let alone an Order member? It made no sense! It tore away ate her insides and poisoned her mind with thoughts and doubts, but still the fact remained: she was being held by the Neko. Suddenly, the purple in her eyes did not seem so dark anymore as it calmed down to a lilac, before shimmering red, then back to orange completely. The aura below her feet started to dissipate second by second.

"Tets..."

Iliana was finally coming to in her head before she eventually slumped into her arms in unconsciousness, not remembering a thing.
​