Awakenings
By Lady Halcyon

Author's note

    Here's the usual disclaimer: I don't own the Ronins or the Sailor Scouts; if I did I'd be rolling in money. However, I do own all rights to this story and the characters Kieren Hiroke, the Ronin of Heaven, and Sailors Heaven and Star. If you'd like to use any part of this story or any of the characters I own, please e-mail me.

    This story takes place in an alternate future. A powerful evil force conquered Earth, even though the Ronins and the Sailor Scouts fought their hardest. Their energy spent, the warriors were placed in a deep sleep, being hidden so that they would not be destroyed. A prophecy arose, saying that in the time of greatest need, the sleeping warriors would be awakened and would defeat the evil.

    A thousand years pass, and the Earth is a vast wasteland. Anubis was revived and told to awaken Lady Kyra, the Warlords, and the Outer Scouts. They were given the task of finding the sleeping warriors. The only clues they have to finding them are hidden within an ancient poem:

Torch of spirit through five

Drinking strength from immortal fire

Darkest prison sheds the light

Swirling beneath a sea of salt

Buried within a throne of rock

Floating amongst the eyes of ages

Unmoored in the stream of the sky.

Drawing power from sacred fires

Wooden prison bears the light

Sleeping beneath a sea of ice

Buried within a throne of sand

Floating amongst the ruins of old

Unmoored in the stream of the sky.

In a cave of crystal

Sleeps the one who shall seek.

They alone hold the key for peace.

They ran down the corridor, chased by several soldiers who were several yards back, throwing spears at them, shouting, 'After them! They mustn't be allowed to reach their goal!" The two of them ducked down a dark tunnel, resting against the walls while the soldiers ran past, fooled by the illusion of a wall.

'How much farther until we hit the main chamber?" he asked as the woman consulted her map.

'It should be somewhere down this tunnel," she replied, looking up to check landmarks. 'Hopefully, we should be able to find what we're looking for, before it's to late."

'Hopefully. Let's go. We don't have much time left before the main forces arrive."

They ran down the tunnel, she in the lead, he following, on the lookout for trouble. They came to a large cave made of crystal. In the middle was what looked like a coffin. Inside the chamber was a young woman in a dark blue dress that resembled the night sky. Her dark blue hair was pulled back at the sides, and the white streak at her temple seemed to glow in the dim light.

'What is this place?" he asked as she walked over to the chamber and began to recite a spell.

'This is the chamber for Lady Halcyon," she replied. 'She was the only one out of the group that we could find. She will know how to find the others."

'What are you doing?" he asked, going back to the mouth of the cave to search for anyone that might have followed them this far.

'I'm waking her up," she said as a mist began to seep from the edges of the chamber. 'Hopefully, she will be able to translate and decipher the poem so that we can find the rest of them."

'Yeah, but how?" he asked. The top of the chamber rose and the person inside began to stir. She sat up and shook her head groggily. As ten soldiers and their leader entered the corridor leading to the cave, he shouted, 'We've got company!"

'You protect her. I'll hold them off," she called. Handing a staff and a pair of swords to the woman, she said, 'Here, these belong to you, your majesty."

'Lady Kyra? What's going on?"

'Don't worry, your majesty, everything will be fine," Kyra said, as she walked forward. She thought, 'Anubis, take her out through the back exit. I'll take care of these pests.'

'What about you, Kyra?' he asked, guiding the young woman to a smaller tunnel at the back of the cave.

'Don't worry about me. Just get her out of here,' she thought. 'Take care of Lady Halcyon, Anubis. She's our only hope for peace.' 'Take that, scum!" Kyra shouted, as she attacked the soldiers.

'KYRA!" he shouted, as the ceiling began to collapse in front of us. Then, slowly turning away with tears in his eyes, he said softly, 'Farewell, Kyra, rest in peace."

'Anubis, what's going on?" he heard from behind him. 'What's happened since our battle with Turok?"