"I’m not sure how…Cory was doing. But he didn’t want me to stay, instead he wanted me to relay the news to all of you.” Marianna continued on. TJ looked at the others and then back at Marianna. "We’ll have to fight him then.” Hikaru and Lianna looked at TJ with seriousness in their eyes. "You can’t be serious?” Both of them said. "You’re in no condition to go out there and fight another fight.” Hikaru added on. TJ shook his head. "I’ll be fine. I’ve actually healed a great deal since then. I’m not 100% but I’m fine.” Hikaru looked at Lianna, "Please make him understand!” Yuriko climbed on the bed and sat beside TJ hugging him. "Hikaru’s right! You can’t go out there! I’m sure your friends can handle it!” Yuriko pleaded holding him tighter. "Handle what?” The voice came from the hallway. Three shadowy figures came into the room which turned out to be Matt, Erik, and Ralph. "Is there something else we missed? More bad news on bad news I bet.” Ralph put his hand to his face. Zen turned to Ralph sitting against the wall, "Yep. Apparently there’s some new threat in the vicinity. Cory was fighting but Marianna said he might not have beat him.” Matt facial expression turned surprised. "Whoa! Someone he can’t beat? He turned Viper into puppy chow in one attack? How is that even possible.” Marianna sighed, "It was magic…pure magic.” Everyone in the room looked at her. There were no more pure magic people in the world. "He was using magic. The purest form of it. Far greater than mine. Cory’s attacks were being neutralized.” Erik began speaking silently, "Could this mean he is a Azral?”
Everyone looked at Erik now. "An Azral?” Yuriko said. "They were an ancient race thought to be extinct. At least that’s what the text books say at my school.” Erik looked at her, "I’m not sure if they are extinct or not. But from Marianna’s description, it’s what this person sounds like.” Marianna nodded. "I kind of agree with Erik, lets treat this as if it was an Azral.” TJ attempted turned to the side and sat on the side of the bed. "Troy’s incapacitated still. I got out lucky. So how are we going to go through with this? I say we all just jump him together.” Most of the room nodded their heads in agreement with this plan. "He can’t possibly take all of us right?” TJ added on. "Don’t know about that, if he’s really an Azral.” Erik said. "With minimum effort on his part, he can wipe us all out.” Marianna finished up what Erik was saying. TJ sighed and looked down while Matt got in the center of the room. "Come on! We can still try! Let’s just ask Muhammad and Shina can they help and try to combine our attacks to bring this guy down!”. The room was silent for a minute. No one thought this was a good idea except for maybe TJ. Everyone looked at one another and nodded. It’s not like they had much of a choice. "Agreed then.” Marianna said. "We’ll at least plan then. I’ll warp to their ninja clan and ask for permission. In the meantime, go to the path at Garrochia mountain and wait for us there. It shouldn’t take to long.” The group nodded while leaving on their way there. TJ suited up and hooked his sword on his back and turned around to a worried Yuriko. "You’re still going to fight…aren’t you?” TJ nodded and smiled at her, patting her head. "I’ll be fine, so no worries okay?” He looked at her with an easy smile seeing her still looking uneasy and her eyes welling up with tears. He kneels down in front of her and looks her in the eyes. "No worries right?” She stared at him down eventually giving in and nodding. "Promise you won’t go it alone. You have friends there to help you now. So please…use them too.” TJ stood up and gave her an approval by putting his thumbs up. "I promise Yuriko. Now I want you to stick close to Hikaru, wherever she goes, you go. I don’t want you near the battle field. Can you promise me that?” Yuriko looked away but gave her light nod as well. TJ smiled and began walking out into the hallway. He stopped halfway to the steps thinking about something else to say to her. "Nothing’s going to happen to me. I have too much I’m fighting for. I won’t let you down.” He then began to start his way down the steps to meet the others at their chosen rendezvous point. Yuriko started shedding small tears, wiping them away so her vision would get clear. "I know…nothing will happen too you…because…”
Marianna arrived at the Starlight Ninja Clan through the spell Warp and began walking through town asking around for their village elder. She was told from a few of the higher ranked ninja that the elder is in the dome in the back of the village. Marianna nodded and hurried along to meet with him. She entered the dome building and went into the inner chambers and on through the ascending stairs that seem to go to the roof. The stairs led into the main chamber room where the elder resided. He was there, sitting in a large wooden chair. He noticed Marianna way before she even came into the room but waited for her to come to him. "What is it that I can do for you?” He asked her gently while she caught her breath. Marianna looked up at him, "We need your help sir. Well some of your finest ninja help anyway. You see…” Before Marianna can finish he held up a hand to her motioning her to stop. "You do mean that sorcerer that has come through these parts right?” Marianna nodded wondering how he was able to tell what she was going to say. He noticed this and smile gently. "I had sensed the abnormal energy surges over near Garrochia Mountains. The other one, was he someone you knew? It was just as different than your average auras.” She looked at him with her head tilted to the side slightly. "The other one? I’m sure you must be speaking of Cory then. Yes I know of him. He is my…partner…” The elder walked past Marianna who continued to watch him as he walked up to a giant glass window that showed the whole village. "I see. There is one thing I can tell you. If you go now…you may still be able to ensure his slow recovery.” She began looking surprised. "W-What…do you mean?” The elder continued looking out of the window. "His aura is there but faint and fading quickly by the second. If you are to go now using your spell, you can make it and hopefully stabilize him. You’ll only have a shot at that though. So make it count. That’s how far he has faded now.” Marianna looked down and began to understand that she won’t be able to help the others with a moderate fair fight. However, on the upside, if she could stabilize Cory and find a way to cure him quickly, even for just a bit, the fight might be tipped in their favor. She looked at the elder and was about to speak. "No worries, I will send Muhammad and Shina to aid your friends. Where is their location?” The elder said. Marianna began to blush, feeling a little embarrassed, "They are at the Garrochia Mountain Path.” The elder nodded. "I’ll let them know. You go rescue your friend immediately before you are too late.” Marianna smiled and nodded waving goodbye. She sighed and closed her eyes glowing brightly for a few seconds. "Don’t worry Cory…I’m going to make sure I save you!” She thought this too herself before vanishing away in a beam of light. The elder laughed to himself. "That woman’s resolve is strong, I have no doubt that she will succeed in her rescue of her friend.” He then turned to a radio sitting upon his desk in the center. He pressed a button on the radio and began to speak. "I need for you to send me Muhammad and Shina…I have a new mission for them.”
The group sits at the mountain pass spread out in a wide formation awaiting the arrival of Meta. "What do you think he’s going to look like?” Matt asked breaking the silence. Ralph shrugged his shoulders and Zen shook his head. Erik simply sighed. "It wouldn’t matter anyway, you and I can sense any aura signals, so if we catch something we’ll ask Tierre to survey the area.” Zen looked at Erik, "Wouldn’t he be able to "see” us too?” Every looked at Erik as he nodded. "I’m pretty sure about that if he is an Azral.” Lianna has been silent ever since the wait. Not exactly sure what to expect. She thought she was pretty strong, but the things she has seen outside so far has been far powerful than anything she has ever imagined. Zen walked over to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "No worries sweet heart, I’ll protect you.” Lianna looked at him and felt a warm smile appear on her face. "Thanks, I’m just not sure what’s going to happen.” She turned to the side of the path that is where the entrance of Ruthann City can be located seeing if she saw TJ show up. Not seeing anything she frowned and turned around and looked back at the other half where the mountain was. Ralph drove his sword back and forth through the ground in an attempt to alleviate the boredom. "God I wish this guy will hurry up!” Everyone looked at him. "It’s bad enough he’s making us wait but the fact that he might actually kick our asses sucks pretty bad too!” Everybody turned away from him as if to ignore him. "I’m actually just not digging the suspension” Matt said. "It’s killing me in…” Matt and Erik turned their heads toward the path at the same exact time. "Shit…it’s real this time…” Everyone looked at the both of them and then turned toward the path. "Is it him?” Zen said. Erik nodded silently. "Yeah, no doubt about this…he’s here. Coming directly this way.” Matt added on. "So he…sensed us too?” Lianna asked while beginning to feel the tension get worse. Ralph gritted his teeth. "Damn! If he is what you guys think he is, he probably knew we were waiting for him and came to meet us anyway.” Erik sneered as he saw the black figure getting closer and closer to them. Zen drew his twin dual barrel handguns while every one us began to draw their weapons and get ready. The figure came into view and stopped halfway between him and the people in front of him. He appeared as an middle aged black cloaked figure. His gray beard and gray hair shined brightly in the night sky underneath the stars along with his bright necklace. He glanced at all of the people standing before him defensively. "Will you not let me pass?” he asked gently. Erik stepped up in front of everyone and closed just a little bit of the distance between him and the man. "Not exactly…” The man sighed, "Must I go through this again?” Erik continued to stare him down. "You are a Wiley are you not?” the man asked Erik. "What of it?” he answered back. "I figured, you look just like a man I used to know. By any chance was your father named Malkuz…?” Erik was shocked a bit that someone knew who his father was. There was no doubt in his mind now, this man was an Azral. "You must be his son, Erik. I saw you as a child a few times. You may not remember me well, my name is Meta. But since it’s unfortunate we meet again as enemies apparently, it will be the last thing you hear.” Erik continued to sit there stunned while everyone else was ready. Matt looked at Meta intensely, "It doesn’t matter who the hell you are! You attacked one of us! So now we’re going to put you out of your misery old man!” Matt and Ralph dashes at him with readied attacks.
