Leokoni stood within his innermost sanctuary, reading an ancient scroll on the podium before him. It had been a least a century since he had last looked at the ancient scrolls; the scrolls of the Akuma. Powerful spells were known to be written in this book, inscribed into the scrolls by the greatest of demon masters that ever dwelt on the planet. The spells were known to overtake the very mind of any captured enemy and set them forth against their own kind. And as far as the spell went the only way to destroy the spell was by either destroying the person under the spell, or by someone who was willing to sacrifice themselves for the said person.

A cruel smile came to his lips as he studied that particular spell. He had wanted to do the worst thing to Rowen and now his chance would come. He would need a few ingredients for this particular spell. The blood of a bat, three slugs, the heart of a lion, two poisonous berries, and the bones of a cheetah. Mixed together, these ingredients would produce the potion that would give strength and power and cause the drinker to go against his own will. The most difficult problem Leokoni was going to face, was getting Rowen to drink it.

“If he refuses to drink it, I’ll threaten him,” the demon master muttered to himself as he took a parchment and begin to write down the ingredients. “Perhaps seeing Halo suffer more would make him think a little before he refuses.” He finished writing down what he needed and rolled the parchment up. “Dinsoneis!”

A large red demon with long black hair and two horns protruding from where his eyebrows should have been, appeared before Leokoni and bowed low. “What did you need, my lord?” he humbly asked.

“I have a mission for you,” Leokoni said as he thrust the list at him. “I want you to find all the ingredients on there and bring them back to me.”

Dinsoneis unrolled the list and glanced briefly at it. He rolled it back up, saluted and immediately teleported out of the room, leaving Leokoni to plan some more.

Leokoni flipped through the scrolls to see what else he could up with. He knew the Ronins were getting closer into saving their friend Halo, and after Halo was saved, they would unite their forces and come after Rowen. A hideous curl overcame his lips as he tightened his right fist. He had waited far too long to gain his revenge. Dayu would never let him forget that defeat, and the only way to make the spirit pay was by harming the only descendant who favored him remarkably.

Going through the scrolls he found a particular one for transforming a human into a wild beast. A sinister smile came to his lips. The spell involved an ancient language, spoken only when the light of the full moon shone on the victim. And he had the perfect victim in mind to perform the task on. Laughing evilly he shut the scrolls of ancient spells and teleported out of the room.

Ryo looked up to see Star still trying to fight against the eagle creature. He grimaced, knowing the monster could have easily destroyed her. Without proper training and learning how to rely on her armor’s spirit, it was difficult for her to do a well battle. He could see she was trying her best, but something was missing. If only she could connect with her armor and find her surekill. She had to have one, but what was it, and what did it do?

Kento was still fighting against the strange bugs as more seemed to spread out all over him and his fellow Ronins. It was getting extremely tough not to call his surekill. Every time the word started on his tongue, he’d quickly bite down on it. He could not call his surekill because the other Ronins were too close by. And who knew whether or not these bugs would have the power to cause one of his friends to fall into the debris.

Cye ducked down from another attack as two more flying insects came at him. This was starting to get out of hand. If Star didn’t do something soon, they could very well lose this battle. He managed to knock the two harassing bugs into a tree with his Yari and allowed his eyes to search for Star in the skies. There she was, hovering and darting in and out of the eagle creature’s reach. What was she waiting for? Didn’t she know her surekill? “Star!” he called desperately, “don’t you know your surekill?”

“No!” she replied back, helplessly. The eagle tried to peck at her as his head bombed down toward her. She flew back just in time. Her heart was pounding against her chest and she was getting scared. This creature could kill her any moment now. “I’ve tried to think of what it is, but nothing’s coming to me!”

Ryo frowned again as he suddenly dove face down into the ground. A cloud of flying insects came at him, but missed. Screeching in anger, they doubled back just as he was getting up. Swinging his swords sideways, they slashed through the insects. Immediately, the green odorous substance spat upon him. Instinctively, his arms shot up to cover his face and luckily enough, it splat against his arm guards. Though the acid of it sizzled into the guards, leaving burnt marks upon them.

Star was still dodging the attacks of the gargantuan eagle, and her bo flailed about as more of those biting insects came upon her. She could not think of anything in which to bring her surekill to life. She was beginning to lose hope. They were going to die, and it would be her fault. Why couldn’t she think?! Then suddenly a strange feeling overcame her. Everything seemed to turn to silence as if she could no longer hear. Somewhere deep inside her was a call. She hearkened her inner ear to this call, feeling herself at peace. No more worries entered into her mind. The eagle creature was still before her, but momentarily forgotten.

After a few minutes, her eyes refocused on the creature before her, and the kanji of hope shone brightly in her forehead. With a sudden cry, the words came forth from her mouth. “Heaven’s Torment!”

A sudden wave of thousands of stars and star dust quickly shot forth from the bo and covered the massive eagle. It screeched in terror, flapping its wings furiously against the air, sending air currents in Star’s direction. The momentum sent her tumbling head over heels and she struggled to remain in the air. If she fell, what were the chances that someone could catch her? Everyone else below was busy combating the insects, and it would be difficult to determine if they would get to her in time.

Star managed to pull herself right back up again and saw what her surekill did to the eagle. It had literally burnt the feathers off the bird and scorched the wing tips. Cawing out desperately as it tried to stay mid-flight, the sudden loss of control, caused it to plummet quickly toward the earth. The sudden screeching of the terrified eagle was enough to warn the Ronins down below of the sudden descent. Quickly, they scattered to either side, allowing the enormous eagle to fall to the ground right in their very midst.

Immediately upon the impact, all of the biting insects quickly dropped to the ground as if dead. Not a soul moved as everyone stared in shock at the eagle before them. Now seeing it up close, they realized just how large it was. Its size resembled that of a semi truck with a fourteen foot trailer. It was pretty amazing to think just how well this bird of prey could have killed them all with one swipe of its talons.

Kento was the first to venture forth to the unmoving creature. He stared into its lifeless beady glass eye for a moment, then slowly walked around it, checking every inch of the bare and burnt body. The bird did not move. It was lying on its back with its wings spread upward into a curl almost and its legs sticking straight into the air with the talons outstretched.

Finally, Kento turned around to face the others. By now Star was landing back down on the ground, and she saw the grin on Kento’s face. “Dead as a doornail,” he boasted, smiling proudly at Star for a job well done.

But then Ryo noticed something. Just as he shouted, “Kento, look out!” Kento was quickly grabbed around the middle by a very muscular claw. He cried out in anger as he struggled to break the grip of the talons, threatening to squeeze him to death. Turning his head, he saw, to his horror, that the eagle was not dead. It, apparently, had just been stunned. Now it was looking at Kento as if he were just mere prey.

“We have to do something!” Cye cried out. He grabbed his Yari and focused it on the eagle. He could feel himself shaking, but he would not lose his calm now. He had to think properly so he could help his friend.

Star leveled her bo again, but had a deep feeling of regret. Why couldn’t she have destroyed the eagle with her surekill? The other Ronins and even Firestorm had been able to destroy the other creatures with just one blast. What was wrong with her? Was it because the Ronins were more well trained into their armors, and because Firestorm was half dragon?

Ryo readied his katana blades and narrowed his eyes. He could feel the power of the Wildfire armor coursing through his veins. His armor had never let him down before. Even when things got tough, it had always been there for him, protecting him against all odds. And now he was ready to team up with the others and save Hardrock. With a sudden jump into the air and a twirl of his blades, he summoned his great power. “Flare Up Now!”

Upon hearing Ryo’s shout, Cye quickly responded. “Super Wave Smasher!”

Star hesitated a moment, but seeing the two combined attacks reaching out to unite against the monster, quickly moved her into action. She closed her eyes and shouted with every inch of her being. “HEAVEN’S TORMENT!”

The three attacks united as one and struck into the very heart of the eagle. There was a hideous screech that caused them to wince with pain, and then suddenly the entire eagle exploded, causing them all to either duck down or shield their eyes. When they opened their eyes and straightened up, all that remained of the eagle were a few bones.

“Whew,” Cye said in relief. “I’m glad that’s over.” He turned to Kento. “You all right?”

Kento nodded his head. “Damn bird,” he muttered.

“I wonder if I should take these bones home to White Blaze?” Ryo wondered out loud as he started to reach down for one.

Cye quickly grabbed his arm and jerked him back. “Ah, no, Ryo.” A quick shake of the head and a firm look in the eyes was enough to make the Wildfire bearer change his mind.

Ryo looked around in curiosity now. He had not seen Firestorm since she had left over an hour ago, and now thought it odd that she still hadn’t returned. He looked toward Star. “How long does it take her to find food in her dragon form?”

Star shrugged. “I don’t know. It depends really. If she finds something, well you know, she kills it and eats it. If she doesn’t, she’ll spend time looking for prey to catch and eat.”

Ryo nodded and quickly changed the subject. “Let’s get moving then. The more ground we cover, the faster we can get this Tiger’s Eye back to Kayura to save Sage.”

And so the four of them turned into the direction of the woods that would once again take them back to Kayura’s cabin. They could only hope they would make it there in time. If not, then each of them would feel the sorrow and regret at losing an important member of their team, and possibly another one who could be suffering in agony at this very moment.

As they walked along, Cye was in deep thought. Could they truly defeat this demon who was known as Leokoni? The information regarding the defeat of the demon by Rowen’s ancestor, stated that Dayu had defeated Leokoni with a curse and an arrow straight to the heart. But what chances did they have that this would work again? What if Leokoni had found a way to prevent his death from happening in the same way?

Cye didn’t know the answer and as time was running out, he was afraid the answer would come all too quickly. And then before another thought could enter into his mind, a great shadow was cast over him and the others. Raising his head up to see what it was, he saw a huge black dragon flying over them. Instant fear came to his being as he worried over fighting a dragon, but then one glance at Star calmed his nerves.

Star was jumping up and down and waving her arms in the air, shouting up at the great beast. “Firestorm! Land! Come on!”

Ryo paused in mid walk as he watched the dragon clear them, then circle around into the air. Her wings cupped forward as her legs stretched out, allowing her to descend safely upon the ground. Once her wings folded down at her sides, she quickly reverted back to her human form.

Firestorm dropped to the ground, breathing slightly hard. She felt exhausted and hated to feel this way. Often, she’d even become afraid to transform into her dragon form, but it was a fear she quickly had to learn to overcome. She could feel the others coming to her and made no move to get up. She needed to rest for a little while.

Ryo stared down at her with pity. He could see the fatigue in her eyes, and his conscious was yelling at him not to say what was on his mind. But he saw no alternative. “I know you’re exhausted, but we need to get moving. Sage might be closer to dying than we actually know.”

“Go… on… I’ll… catch.. up..,” Firestorm managed to tell him. Her body was begging for sleep and she was just starting to think she could succumb to it.

Ryo, Kento, Cye, and Star all frowned deeply. After the things they had experienced thus far, they could not leave anyone behind. Especially someone so worn out. Anything could happen and they weren’t willing to take that chance.

“We can’t leave you behind, Firestorm,” Cye told her gently, looking at her with concern.

“Cye’s right, Firestorm,” Star concurred.

“But… I’ll… slow… you.. down..,” Firestorm mumbled. She could feel herself falling asleep and struggled to remain awake.

Kento grunted. They did not have time for this. Reaching down, he quickly lifted Firestorm and placed her over a shoulder. She feebly protested, but he would hear none of it. Looking at the others, he said, “Well, let’s get going!” And they turned once again and headed off, hoping to reach the cabin before nightfall.

A/N: Yeah, it’s been a while I know. I‘ve been busy to the extreme, and plus I haven’t felt inspired to work on my fics. Usually inspiration keeps me going, but it’s hard to obtain anymore. Also I noticed something.. I may have been confusing Star’s kanji. At one point in the fic, I said it was hope, and another time I may have said it was compassion due to the poem. Since I skimmed through it and saw that I had written hope before compassion, I’m sticking with hope. Though I admit, I think compassion sounds better. If any of you agree, I may change it from hope to compassion. Let me know. Anyway, feel free to review! Ja.