Somehow, Ryo wasn’t exactly sure how, but they had been able to get into the castle itself. So far this tour guide idea of Rowen’s was working. The eight of them stayed together, following the tour group through the elaborate spacious halls of the castle. Here and there were guards at least five feet apart, standing erectly at attention, their hard eyes staring straight ahead, and their mouths tightly closed, but their bodies ready to defend the royals in the slightest instant.

The group continued to walk down the hall, listening as the tour lady spoke about the castle and the interior of it. Never once did she ill-speak of the royals, in fact she seemed quite proud of the rulers of the country and encouraged everyone else to as well.

As they walked along through the halls, Rekino and Flash were discussing on how to get away from the tour without being seen by the soldiers. They knew they would need an illusion to do so, and that’s where Shades would come in handy.

“Alright, Shades,” Flash said. “You know what to do.”

Shades nodded and closed her eyes as she came to a stop right in the middle of the hallway. The guards looked toward her, their eyes widening, as they suddenly heard her shout, “Armor of the Warrior! Now Come!”

Ryo, Rowen, Sage, Rekino, and were all alarmed. What was she doing?! Calling her armor wasn’t part of the plan. But Flash and Scorpio didn’t seem to be too alarmed. Flash raised a hand, keeping them back. “Just wait,” she said.

Hana blinked, just watching. She looked up and down the hall, knowing that somewhere in this castle, was Thunder. Her heart seemed to beat a little faster. She had to keep still though. Whatever Shades was about to do, they would need it, to get to him.

Sage bit his lip lightly, as he stared at Shades. A green light enveloped the girl as her armor formed over her. Her helmet was round with the top breaking out into three rounded smooth stubs, her shoulder pads were rounded, her arm pads had a few spikes on them, her boots went up to her knees, her breastplate stuck out a bit and seemed to curve inward. Her gloves came up to her forearms and had two spikes each on them. Two large boomerangs appeared in both hands. When the light faded away, the soldiers were all crying out in alarm, speaking in German, and ordering her to halt, fearing she and the other teenagers with her, were plotting against their rulers.

“Shades, do it now!” Flash ordered.

Shades nodded, and raised her boomerangs, keeping them leveled to her shoulders, held in opposite directions. She concentrated, her eyes still firmly closed. Her symbol suddenly appeared on her forehead, a question mark that glowed brightly. She held that form for more than a few minutes as the soldiers got closer and closer, then when they were directly in front of Shades, her eyes snapped open and she brought her boomerangs together, creating a loud clapping sound.

The soldiers staggered and blinked, confusion written all over their faces. They looked around, seeing no one in the hall, except for themselves. And they wondered what they were doing in the middle of the hall to begin with.

Shades unarmored then. “There, they don’t see us.”

“Incredible,” Rowen said.

“Wow,” Hana said, her eyes widen. She had never seen anything like this before. Well, except for Dais, but that was besides the point.

“Let’s go then,” Rekino said.

“Right,” Scorpio nodded in agreement. And the eight of them took off in a different direction from that of the tour group.

Mia had awoken moments ago, and once she had seen the situation going on, and the trouble Josephine was having with her son, she kept a smile inward, and took her baby. “I’ll take over.” She glanced expectedly at Cye and Kento. Cye got the idea right away, but Kento was a bit confused. So instead Cye and Josephine just dragged him out of the room.

“Come on, Kento. Mia would like some privacy,” Cye said.

“Um, okay,” Kento said, blinking the entire time.

Josephine sweatdropped. “She’s going to feed Hiroshi, Kento.”

“I didn’t see any bottles,” Kento said.

Cye sweatdropped as they walked down to a waiting room. “She’ll be breastfeeding him!”

Kento chuckled. “Relax. I know. I was just playing with you.”

Cye and Josephine glanced at each other, then back at Kento. Sometimes, Kento could be really annoying.

Amaya had stayed in the room to keep Mia company and to help her if needed. She stayed in the chair, reading a magazine as Mia fed her son. So far everything was going well for Mia. She hadn’t had a single problem yet. But Amaya knew that once at home, everything would change. Mia and Ryo would constantly have to awaken several times during the night to tend to him. The others would help with him as well, but mainly it would be Ryo and Mia.

Amaya smiled though. It was so nice to have a new addition to the household, and she was certain that Hiroshi bore an armor as well.

Mia glanced toward Amaya. “Thanks, Amaya,” she said. “For keeping me company. You didn’t have to.”

Amaya smiled at her. “It’s no problem. That’s what friends do. They help each other.”

Mia nodded and sighed a little, her green eyes looking down toward Hiroshi, a frown on her lips. This caused Amaya to frown a bit herself as she set the magazine now.

“You’re worried about Ryo and the others aren’t you?”

Mia nodded. “I just keep thinking, something bad will happen to them. I’m not quite sure what it is, but for some reason in my heart, I fear they’re in danger.”

Amaya bit her lip. “We have to trust they’ll be all right. All of them are together, and the Warriors are a powerful team and when combined with the Ronins and with Lady Guardians, all of them are a strong force. Whatever comes up against them, I trust they’ll make it through. We just have to believe in them.”
Mia smiled. “Thanks, Amaya. I needed to hear that.”

Amaya smiled back. “Anytime.”

The whole time Hiroshi fed, his eyes closed, his little fists clutching Mia’s chest.

Thunder had to get away from his parents now. He had nothing against his mother, but his father… He just couldn’t believe it. The ball was tonight.. This could not be happening to him. He closed his eyes, keeping his hands to his head, trying to believe it was all just a horrible dream.

His mother frowned at him in concern. She knew he was bothered by this, but there was nothing she could do. And as the prince he would have to attend the ball. ‘I’m sorry, my son. If there was a way I could help you through this, I would.’ She thought to herself.

King Thaitus glanced at Thunder as well. “Are you all right, my son?” he asked.

Thunder shook his head. “I’ve got a headache.” It was true. Hearing about all of this had given him a headache. And he wasn’t sure how much more he could take, before he finally blew up.

“Well, then take something for it. Remember the ball is tonight, so I want you prepared early. You will escort Princess Bianca with her, and you will have the first dance with her.”

Thunder cringed. He wanted so much to say no, but he couldn’t bring himself to that. Already he had been struck twice in the face, and he wanted no more of it. Instead he nodded stiffly, and excused himself, and left the throne room, ignoring the guards that saluted him as he walked past.

At the same time Missy, the servant entered the room, and curtsied before the king and queen. “Your majesty and your highness, the royal family of Italy has been informed of the arrangements tonight, and they will arrive as due.”

The king nodded. “Thank you, Missy. You may go now.”

“As you wish.” The young girl rose to her feet, curtsied once more, and then departed.

Thaitus grabbed Lila again and spun her around. “Everything is working out so perfectly! I have waited years for this to come.”

Lila smiled up at her husband. She was glad of his happiness, but she also felt saddened for her son, and there was nothing she could do for him, and it pained her greatly beyond belief.

Sage’s eyes narrowed and he paused for a moment, looking down another hall, just 30 degrees west to them. Rekino, Flash, Shades and Hana who were walking ahead of him, kept on going. Ryo, Rowen, and Scorpio noticed that Sage had stopped and was focusing his attention to the hall.

“Hey, you guys, wait!” Ryo called to the others.

They stopped and looked back, and returned to the boys.

“What is it?” Hana asked.

“I’m not sure,” Sage said. “I sense someone coming.

They all became silent. They could hear footsteps now, and they got closer and closer. Rekino glanced sideways at Shades, wondering if they would need her illusions once again.

“What do we do?” Ryo asked.

Flash narrowed her eyes, waiting and waiting, as the footsteps continued to get louder and louder. And then they could see a figure coming toward them. The closer the figure got, the more they could make out the details. The blond hair, the dignified walk, the tall stature..

Their eyes widened with surprise when the figure finally came into full view.

“Thunder!” they all cried.

Thunder was equally shocked. He broke into a wide smile as they approached one another, and he found himself caught up in a moment of hugs from all of them, including the Ronin boys.

“I never expected you guys to get into the castle,” Thunder said with a small smile. “Then again I should have known you’d do something like this.”

“You know us too well,” Flash said. She looked at him with concern. “Are you all right?”

Thunder shook his head. “No. My father is really irritating me. I want nothing more than to walk out these castle doors with you, and never come back.”

Hana frowned deeply. This was really angering her. She was so tempted to search for Thunder’s father and tell him off, with loud curses and strikes, and with her armor on. She fought with herself though. She didn’t want to make things worse for him.

“Don’t worry, Thunder,” Rekino said. “We’ll find a way to get you out of here.”

“I wish that could be so, but I’m afraid it cannot be.”

“Why not?” Ryo asked, giving Thunder a quizzical look.

Thunder looked straight at him. “My parents have already received all of my records and all of my citizenship status has been counted in as the royal prince. If I was to leave with you, they would view it as abduction and if caught and captured, you’d get more time than one without royalty in them.”

Rowen frowned deeply. This was really tearing Thunder up, he noticed. So what could they do about it? There had to be someway to handle this without taking drastic measures.

“So what do you suggest we do?” Shades demanded as she crossed her arms.

“Is there a way we can talk with your father?” Rekino asked.

“There may be,” Thunder said. “But in order to see him, you’d have to make an appointment.”

“An appointment?!” Hana screeched.

The others grimaced. Thunder stared at her sadly. “I’m afraid so.. My father ordered that I wasn’t allowed to see or talk to you, but what he doesn’t know, won’t hurt him. If I were you, dress as royals would and mingle as one.”

“What?” Ryo was trying to figure out the meaning of that statement.

“He means we get ourselves disguises and get into the ball tonight to have an audience with his parents,” Rowen explained.

“Thunder, when is the ball?” Flash asked.

“Tonight at 8 p.m. It’ll last until midnight.”

“This sounds like Cinderella,” Scorpio said.

“Yeah, but the prince in that story got to choose who he danced with. I don’t,” Thunder said, as a scowl came across his face.

“Why not?” Sage asked him.

Thunder rubbed his head again. “I have to dance with the Princess Bianca of Italy. And I’m expected to lead the ball by dancing with her first.”

Hana’s fists clenched. Okay, she could handle this. She would not explode. She continued to stare at him. There was no use in denying it anymore, though she tried to. Her feelings for Thunder were growing stronger and stronger, and she knew she wanted to be with him. She didn’t care if he couldn’t love her. She loved him and she wanted to show him that love. How was another story.

Thunder looked behind him suddenly, sighing a bit. Two guards were on their way toward him. He grimaced and looked toward his friends again. “You guys better go now. I don’t want you caught here.”

“Alright, Thunder,” Flash said. “We’ll see you tonight.”

The others nodded in agreement.

Thunder nodded, and watched them head off quickly. Once they had disappeared around another corner, one thought entered his mind. How had they managed to get into the castle?

The two guards finally approached him and saluted.

“Young highness, we have been instructed by your father to lead you to the stables.”

Thunder blinked. “The stables, what for?”

“He wants to see how well you ride a horse,” the other guard explained.

Thunder sighed heavily and nodded. “Fine, let’s go.”

The two guards nodded, and they led Thunder through the halls and out to the stables which were several blocks behind the castle.

At the stable, Thunder was introduced to a beautiful reddish brown stallion with a black mane and tail. . The horse was muscular, and stood with ease beside the handler. His mane was done up in tiny braids along his neck, his tail was bounded up in a like a bob style, the hooves were wrapped in bandages to protect them, a saddle pad was upon his back to add comfort and protection from the saddle he wore, the bridal fit snugly and the bit didn’t seem to bother the horse one bit.

The handler saw Thunder and saluted him as well. “Good afternoon, your highness,” he said as Thunder was led toward him. “I am Rufus Kaufmann. I am the horse handler here of the castle. And this magnificent creature is Spirit Fury. He’ll answer mainly to Fury though.”

Thunder approached the horse, and the horse lowered his muzzle to smell the boy’s outreached hand. Once he got the scent of Thunder and knew he could trust him, he allowed Thunder to stroke his head and speak softly to him.

Thunder stroke him for a while, then looked at the three men. “Is this my horse?” he asked.

“One of them,” one guard said.

“What?” Thunder was incredulous.

“You have three other horses, young prince,” the second guard said. “But for now, you will ride this one. He is mainly used to thrill riding.”

Thunder nodded, and returned his attention to the horse. Though he stroke the horse and spoke softly to him, his mind was on his friends.

"Your highness," A young servant girl said as she entered the throne room of King Borya, "It's time to give your speech to the soldiers and citizens."

"Thank you," Borya said. He stood up from his throne and pushed his cape behind him. To his left side, his wife, Queen Alina, stood up with him. Together, they walked out of the throne room and towards the balcony, where Borya would make his country dominate of all others.

"My Lord, what is this for?" Alina asked as she walked with her husband.

"To give our people hope and strength that we will defeat Germany, My Lady," Borya replied. He stepped out onto the balcony to give his speech. He let go of Alina's hand and thrust them above his head, "My loyal people of Rome, it has come to my attention that many of the people have doubts about my ruling abilities. Well, I assure you that those comments will be swallowed by the mouths they came out of!" The skies turned dark and thunder rolled in the distance, "The war with Germany is about to be over. If my country doesn't give me their full support, I'll make you!"

Alina stepped back from her husband, scared stiff. He was now glowing a dark hue of red and black, "What are you doing?"

Borya turned to his wife, "Something I should've done a long time ago!" His body started glowing brilliantly. The crowds of people started to panic and run somewhere for safety, "You will not escape me! My power is forever!" His hands shot out towards the people, "Now, become my army! Become my slaves! We will conquer Germany…then, the world!"

Lightning came from the skies and enveloped the young king. In mere seconds, it shot out towards the crowd. Old men became young again. Armed with weapons of all kinds. Young men turned into older men, strong and ready. The women became slaves, ready to do anything the men order. In the streets, strays and house pets became ravaging animals, foaming at the mouth, ready to bit into human flesh. All at once, the simple country of Rome became a fierce, power-hungry nation, controlled by the devils magic.

Borya's laughing was uncontrollable. He heard a shriek and turned to find it was his wife, "Now…for you my beautiful mate."

Alina kept backing up as he walked towards her, "No…please…stay back. Borya, what has gotten into you? AHHH!" She had been struck with the same lighting. Suddenly, her whole body changed. She became a sorceress. Her elegant, light purple dress turned into one that was dark red with black strips. The sides were slit all the way up to her hips. Her facial features changed as well. Her dark blue eyes turned red and slanted. Her eye lids were covered in dark red and black eye shadow that went all the way to her eyebrows. Her once small, pink lips turned into big, red ones. In her right hand, she held a staff, capable of any sorts of damage.

The Roman king smiled at his accomplishments. He turned back towards the crowd, "Now, my lovely children, the Germans are your enemies. Go and destroy them!"

Thousands and thousands of cheers could be heard as the army of dark Romans thrust their weapons in the air and cheered for their king. They set off to do their duties. Some staying in the country, while others ran towards the battlefields, ready to destroy each and every person with German blood.

After Mia had finished feeding Hiroshi, Amaya stayed in the room to keep her company. The two Lady Guardians talked amongst one another until Amaya started feeling a little dizzy. She saw dreadful images in her head. A man, dressed in royal attire, changed a whole country within minutes. Mia hadn’t noticed anything wrong until Amaya clucked her head in pain and started grunting softly.

“Amaya, what’s wrong?”
The French maiden raised her head, “The peace…of the world…is…being disturbed…”
Mia shot up from her spot in the chair with Hiroshi in her arms, “What do you mean?”
”I can’t tell. A powerful force has taken over a country…”
Mia’s face immediately went pale. Before she could say another word, Kento, Josephine, and Cye came barging into the room. Amaya tried to stand, but the force of the power was greater than hers, and she fainted and fell on the floor.
”Amaya!” Kento screamed. He ran over to his girlfriend and picked her up gently. He placed her on Mia’s bed; not waiting for the approval of the person it belonged to, “What happened?”
“That peace is being disturbed,” Cye said, “With her Lady Guardian powers and her kanji of trust, she can feel when a disturbance is taking place. Since she’s my guardian, I felt it as well.”
”What does this mean?” Josephine asked, “Do we have to go and fight another war?”
Mia frowned at the thought, “No! I refuse to sit here and wait for something to happen! I knew trouble would brew up!”
Kento raised an eyebrow “You mean with Ryo and the others?”
”Yes! Now that I’ve had Hiroshi, I’m able to fight!” The kanji of Life started shining brilliantly on Mia’s forehead. All at once, the other kanji’s in the room shined with hers. A noise made them turn around and face Hiroshi, and they saw that the virtue kanji was being brought to life on his forehead.
”Well, looks like the next generation of Ronin Warriors has started,” Amaya said weakly.

<><><><><>

Back in Germany, Flash and the girls had returned to their suites to get ready while the boys went to theirs. After the group left the castle, they went shopping in the local formal shops to get ready for the party. Rekino has chosen a rather expensive dress. It was light purple, with lace and silk framing the edges. Her heels, where at least two inches tall, and was the color of the dress. After Rekino had gotten ready, she stepped out of the bathroom and walked into the living room to show all of her friends her outfit.
”Wow!” Hana exclaimed, “You go Fearless Leaderette!”
Rekino gave Hana her evil eye, “What have I told you?”
”Yeah, yeah, I know,” Hana sighed, “All you need now is makeup and you’ll be all set.”
”The hell you say!” Rekino exclaimed, “I hate makeup! It gives me pimples!”
Hana and the others laughed, “Well, not the kind I have. It’s oil free.”
Rekino scrunched her nose up, “If you insist.”
”I do!” Hana beamed.
Flash stood up, “While Hana fixes up Rekino, I’ll go change now,” The leader of the Warriors walked into the bathroom with her dress, shoes, hair ties, and shorts in hand. Flash emerged minutes later dressed in a silk cerulean blue dress that stopped right above her knees. Her shoes, which had no heels, matched her outfit. Her hair was pulled up in a beautiful French twist. She felt a little better knowing she had shorts on under the dress, “Okay, how do I look?”
Rekino looked towards her friend and smiled, “It’s tight! You look like a princess!”
Shades smiled, “She’s right, you do look like a princess.”
”Thanks,” Flash said.
Hana stood up from her place in front of Rekino, “Now that she’s done and Rekino’s ready, it’s my turn. Flash, are you gonna wear makeup?”
Flash shook her head, “I don’t need it.”
”Looks like she has some on anyways,” Shades said.
”Okay then. Be out in a few,” Hana said as she picked up her belongings, which was her dress, shoes, hair supplies, makeup, and pantyhose.
”Yeah, more like an hour,” Rekino said under her breath.
Hana hadn’t heard Rekino’s comment, but the Lady of Wildfire spoke the truth. Hana stayed in the bathroom forty-five minutes. When she came out of the bathroom, all mouths fell twenty miles. Hana has chosen the most expensive dress out of them all, but it looked good on her. It was a deep forest green color and it went all the way to the floor. The top was lace with the bottom was mixed with silk and cotton. Her breasts were pushed up and you could see her cleavage. She wore body glitter on her face and chest as well. Her shoes, which weren’t even seeable, were three inch green heals with diamonds on the toe, “Well?”
”One word. One syllable. WOW!” Rekino exclaimed.
”I’ll say,” Flash said.
”All right! Shades, it’s your turn,” Hana said. She sat down carefully as not to wrinkle the dress.
”Yeah, not by choice,” Shades muttered. She picked up her accessories and walked into the bathroom. The Ataxia Warrior came out minutes later in a dress that looked like a combination of a skirt and a shirt. The top part was a dark green while the bottom part looked like it had been faded into a lighter green. The dress came a little past her knees and her flat heel green shoes sparkled in the light.
”Not bad! I like it Shades! You’re gonna knock em dead!” Hana exclaimed.
”Yeah, maybe,” Shades said, “I wonder how the boys are doing?”
”Don’t know,” Rekino shrugged. Ryo said just to wait here and they’ll come and get us.”
”Sounds like a plan to me, but they better hurry up. The ball starts in thirty minutes,” Flash said.
In the boy’s suite, Ryo, Scorpio, and Rowen were waiting for Sage to get out of the bathroom. The Ronin Leader was dressed in a simple tux with a red tie and black dress shoes. Rowen, who had been the smart one, settled for a silk royal blue dress shirt with khaki pants and a pair of black dress shoes. Scorpio had chosen the same outfit as Ryo, except his was burgundy. His shoes were the same as well.
”Man, I hope Sage hurries the hell up. We’re running on a time schedule!” Ryo exclaimed.
Rowen snickered, “You know he’s doing this on purpose.”
At that time, Sage came out of the bathroom dressed in an outfit similar to Rowen’s, except his shirt was green and his khaki’s were darker, “I sure hope Thunder didn’t say formal dressing.”
”Uh…if a royal party is holding the ball, wouldn’t you think it would be formal?” Scorpio asked.
”Guess you’re right. Well, I guess everything will be okay!” Sage said, “Let’s go and get the girls.”

<><><><><>

Commander VanHoudnos ran through the halls of the royal palace. The war had taken an unexpected turn and he had to inform his majesties at once before it was too late. He entered the throne room and jumped right to the point. He didn’t even salute, “Sir, the Romans have taken our troops by storm! We have lost our defenses in points E, F, and H. Our resources have been destroyed and many of the troops have been either wounded or killed.”
Thaitus turned to the commander of the German army, “It doesn’t matter! You said just yesterday that we would win the war in a couple more days. So, don’t worry about it!”
”But King Thaitus, your men are dying and you want me to not worry about it! The Romans have gained some kind of new strategy. Either that or they’ve gotten very strong within a couple of hours!” Harry replied to the king, “If you ask me, we may have to surrender…”
”Surrender?!” King Thaitus exclaimed, “Stop your insolent mouth! I don’t pay you to sit around and tell me what we have to do! It’s not a big deal! The Romans may have gotten their spirits raised or something. Now, leave me be. I have a ball to plan for tonight. Go and do what I pay you for!”
”But your highness…”
”I said GO! No more talk of the war! Report back to me when we have won!” Thaitus replied.
Commander VanHoudnos saluted and left the room swiftly. Outside, he bumped into the king’s three trusted servants, Wendi, Jessica, and Missy, “How do you ladies do?”
The three curtsied, “We’re fine, Commander VanHoudnos,” Wendi replied.
”Please, don’t use such formal words. Just call me Harry,” The young commander replied.
”Well then, Harry, what brings you here?” Jessica asked.
”The Romans have taken our troops by storm, ladies, and the king is too arrogant to listen to what I have to say,” Harry snorted, “If this keeps up, we may lose our men to the Romans and force our younger men to fight, which won’t be good. They’ll be inexperienced.”
Missy raised an eyebrow, “So, we’re losing the war and King Thaitus doesn’t believe that we will lose. He’s too wrapped up in this ball and the marriage of Prince Thunder and Princess Bianca to pay attention to anything. His arrogance is going to get him or someone he cares for killed someday.”
”I agree,” Wendi piped up, “First, he ordered his son to come back and then he’s forcing him to marry Princess Bianca who, in my opinion, is a stuck up snob!”
”It’s a crying shame, really,” Jessica said, “Oh, while I was running errands for her highness, I saw the prince’s friends in a tour group in the castle. Maybe they came here to help with the situation.”
”Maybe,” Harry said, “Do you think they’ll be at the ball tonight?”
Missy put her hand to her chin, “Most likely. We were with the king and queen while they were retrieving Prince Thunder from the America’s. We caught a glimpse of a girl with brown hair running towards the car while we were pulling away.”
”If Prince Thunder’s friends are at the ball tonight, please escort them to me. The prince doesn’t want to stay here and if his father won’t listen, then we’ll help him with the kings approval or not,” Harry looked down at his beeper, “If you’ll excuse me ladies, I have an urgent matter I must attend to. It was a pleasure talking with you three ladies.”
The three girls curtsied again, “The pleasure was all ours,” Jessica replied. Commander VanHoudnos bowed and went towards the exit while the three servant girls made their way into the throne room to help decorate for the ball tonight.

<><><><><>

In Rome, the King Borya sat in his throne with Queen Alina to his left side. He had received the reports of the advancements in the war. He was ecstatic. Not only had his demon soldiers killed over three hundred men, but they had destroyed numerous campsites where the Germans supplies were. He glances towards his wife. She was as beautiful as ever. He did a wonderful job with her as he did with the whole country.
Let those German fools try to get into this country. They won’t have a chance. With my new found power, I’m going to rule the world!