"So what do we do if Sage doesn't want to see either of us," Ryo cautiously asked as the two of them traveled by train towards the Miyagi prefecture. Ever since they had all felt the accident happen, once they knew their Sage would survive his injuries they made plans to learn to see how bad things were.

"Well, if he doesn't," Rowen asserted. "He can't say we didn't care enough to try." Ryo snorted through his nose, his blue-haired companion did have a rather dry wit at times. The mirth soon faded as the two of them watched the landscape pass by them.

"Too bad Cye and Kento couldn't come with us," Rowen commented. "I guess it's just as well considering what happened when he left. Still, they were just as worried as we were, heck Cye was aware of what happened before the rest of us."

"It's probably best if only two of us went for a visit," Ryo said. "It might be overwhelming for his family to have the four of us just show up out of nowhere. He'd understand they are with us in Spirit."

Rowen nodded his mind returning to the day Sage had left. It was just a normal day where they were hanging out. Sage had asked Mia if he could use his phone to check in with his family. It wasn't unusual to have someone contacting loved ones or checking voice messages, so they didn't think of it. What changed the mood, is that instead of rejoining them he seemed to almost regard them all like they were a group of strangers before heading upstairs. Mia at first started after him, but Cye had opted to get up and follow the blond warrior in concern. The older boy did have an instinctive way of sensing emotional issues and had often played a listening ear if not a shoulder to cry on when needed. He came back downstairs two minutes later looking somewhat like he was punched in the gut.

"Sage is leaving us," Cye stated.

"You feeling homesick, bud" Rowen asked in concern.

"My grandfather has summoned me back to Miyagi," Sage said as he descended the stairs.

"Okay," Ryo asked. He was noting the odd change in Sage's behavior. There was a note that said blond was conflicted. He didn't want to leave his companions, but he held ties to his family. If someone needed him home, then he couldn't refuse. "So...when are you coming back?"

"I won't be…" Sage said. "I won't be coming back."

"Oh no," Mia softly whispered.

"Hold on, Sage," Kento said as he got up. "What do you mean you aren't coming back? Have you forgotten that Dynasty creeps are still out there and wanting to take over the human world? Saranbo, Saberstryke? Those names ring any bells?!"

"Our purpose for being Ronin Warriors was to defeat Talpa and save the city from his evil," Sage said. A tone in his voice suggesting he was getting wound up. "We've done that...Talpa's been defeated."

"Do you need a ride to Tokyo station?" Mia asked. Everyone could sense things were rapidly starting to get ugly. If Sage needed to leave, then it was better to just let him go. They could figure out what to do in his absence, or maybe things could change and he could find a way to return.

"Thanks, Mia," Sage responded. "But no, I'm planning on walking to the city. It's just a few miles from here to Shinjuku."

"Come on," Kento nearly roared in irritation. "What if another maggot from the Dynasty shows up looking for a beat down. If we need the White Armor, you won't be there to add your powers to it."

"We don't even know where that White Armor came from," Sage pointed out. "It is able to manifest itself through our armors, and it's been helpful in the battles we have faced, but we still don't know if we can honestly trust it? Our armors were also created from Talpa's body and do still carry his evil. Have you considered the five of us just being together is what is drawing beings from the Dynasty to the mortal world?"

"He does bring up a good point?" Cye commented as Sage started to turn towards the door. "The beings that have been appearing only showed up after the five of started living here."

"Hey wait," Kento called out as the blond started down the drive. "Sage, we need you."

"Hey buddy, I wouldn't do that," Rowen tried to caution. Unfortunately, his warnings fell on deaf ears as Kento raced after the blond swordsman and grabbed him by the shoulder. What happened next was quicker than the other Ronin could react. Sage had paused for the briefest of seconds before he suddenly whirled around and delivered a punch that sent Kento crashing to the ground.

"Kento!" Cye and Ryo yelled in unison. Sage stepped back a couple of steps, all anger or irritation gone. Instead, he appeared guilty or sorrowful that he had to resort to hurting someone he had seen as an ally in battle. Before anyone could say anything he turned and ran down the drive and was gone.

"Do we go after him," Cye asked as he went to check on his best friend.

"No," Rowen said. "Let him go, he has his own problems to face, and I don't think his grandpa is the sort of person any of us want to get into an argument with. If he's able to come back, he will."

"Damn," Kento groaned as he sat up. "He's stronger than he looks, I think he actually wanted to lay me out."

"He probably could have," Cye commented as he checked his friend over for injuries. "A blow like that should have broken your nose at least."

The following days were quiet for the four remaining Ronin. They all felt Sage's absence and knew in their hearts he could feel the distance between them just as acutely. They didn't blame him for leaving, if it had been his choice he probably wouldn't have left. Still, they didn't feel it was fair that the blond was called home when they themselves didn't even know if Talpa himself had been truly defeated. Also, it was still summer vacation until the end of August, couldn't they enjoy their freedom together as friends. After all, you don't save the world from an evil demon empire with people you barely knew and not have any sort of familial bond with them. They were one soul in five bodies, they were brothers in battle, comrades in arms. The five of them belonged together, and one of them was miles away because one old-man demanded it.

It had been early afternoon when the accident happened. Cye had poured himself a cup of ice tea and was just joining his companions. Rowen had been reading one of Mia's grandfather's old books, while Ryo sat on the floor brushing Whiteblaze's fur. Kento was doing push-ups outside on the drive.

Suddenly there was a flash, it was like he was seeing things from someone else's point of view.

"Lookout" He heard Sage's voice yell before he raced out into the street towards a small child. A girl roughly four or five years old from the looks dressed in an elaborate kimono. The child had bent down to pick up a toy ball, completely oblivious of the motorcycle headed towards her. The driver had spotted the child but he was going too fast to swerve out of the way in time. At that moment two hands gently pushed the child out of the path of the oncoming danger, then there was intense blinding pain. Cye dropped the glass of ice tea as he fell back and braced himself against the dining table. The pain was so intense he almost thought he would pass out from it.

Rowen and Ryo looked up in concern when they suddenly screamed out in pain, a yell from outside told them Kento felt the pain surge as well.

"What happened, Hold on?!" Cye didn't know if he yelled that aloud, and he didn't care even if he had. All they knew was their friend had been badly hurt. A gasp from Ryo told him he knew this to be the case.

"Sage, no!" Ryo screamed aloud.

"Oh no...come on buddy," Rowen said pleadingly to nothing in particular. "Nonono, don't do this...not this way. I know you, you're better than this." Kento came into the house, his face was oddly ashen. He said nothing as he walked and sat on one of the couches and stared into space.

"What happened?" Mia's as she left her grandfather's office to see what the commotion was about.

"Sage was," Ryo said, trying to restrain himself from donning his undergear and racing to the Miyagi prefecture."Sage was in an accident...just now."

"Is he..." Mia gasped.

"He's alive…" Cye answered as he pulled out one of the dining room chairs and sat down as he regained his faculties taking care to avoid the broken glass on the ground. His mind was instinctively telling him he needed to clean up the mess at his feet, particularly since the tea was seeping into the wood of the floorboards. However his heart was reeling at what happened, Sage's connection to them was fading in and out like a radio station when you were going out of its signal range. "But his injuries are very serious, I think he may be drifting in and out of unconsciousness."

"We need to get to him guys," Kento said.

"How exactly do we do that," Rowen asked. "We aren't family so we can't see him at the hospital. And what do expect us to say to his folks about us knowing that he was injured? Just show up and say "Hi we are Sage's friends, we felt the accident through our armor connection."

"We can't just sit here and do nothing," Kento nearly yelled.

"Wait, maybe you can do something." Mia pointed out. "Rowen, you said you felt the accident happened through the connection. Maybe you can use the armor connection to help him."

"Everyone, get your armors crystals," Ryo said as he got to his feet and started upstairs. Rowen and Kento immediately stood up and raced to their rooms to get their armors.

~Don't die, Sage,~ Ryo mentally whispered as he grabbed the familiar glassy red stone that contained the spirit of his armor. ~Please, hang on...we're all with you. Just hang on...~


"His fever seems to have broken," Cye calmly confirmed from where he sat on the bed next to Sage's prone form.

Mia and Yuli had gone out to get some breakfast and also walk around town, while Ryo and Kento went to go check to see if Luna's body was being picked up. Leaving Cye and Rowen to watch over Sage.

"That's good," Rowen stated, though he watched as his friend continued to sleep. The blue-haired warrior had pulled the desk chair over to Sage's bedside and was lightly petting his fingers through Sage's blond hair. The Warrior of Torrent thought the gesture seemed almost affectionate for the normally detached Warrior of Strata. Then again Sage and Rowen had always been rather close to one another. The two of them were often quiet and preferred to keep to themselves much of the time. The way the two of them interacted it was like they found something in one another that completed them like how Kento and himself were practically life mates.

If Bearer of Torrent actually took stock in horoscope he probably would have pointed out that that the zodiac symbols they were born under involved seeking something. Gemini often sought out their twin, while Libra sought balance. Thinking about it, perhaps that was partially true. But what completed them wasn't the air signs they were born under...but their connection to Ryo.

While the Bearer of Wildfire did try to maintain a nuclear relationship with each of his companions as he viewed them as a surrogate family. He did hold a fairly close relationship with both Sage and Rowen. The three of them almost seemed to form a family amongst themselves.

Throughout their battles, both Sage and Rowen had made it their mission to guard and protect Ryo at all costs. Rowen was often guarding Ryo's back or offering advice to keep the wild tempered boy grounded. While Sage would put himself at risk to ensure Ryo's safety.

Ryo also had nearly died just trying to even reach the two of them when they all had been separated in the early days of the war with the Dynasty.

"Something on your mind, Cye," Rowen asked as he stopped stroking his best friend's hair and looked at his other companion in concern.

"I'm just wondering if things could be worse then we assume they are," Cye wondered. "I wonder if the power of Sage's armor was used somewhere aside from New York."

"You mean like that festival," Rowen said. "It looked like a bomb hit it."

"You don't suppose…" Cye started to say before he noticed that Rowen had turned his attention back to the blond warrior as he slept. His hand gently resting on Sage's forearm. The russet haired boy didn't need to ask, Rowen knew that Sage's power had been used on that festival.

"Why him…" Cye asked. That was a question that had been unconsciously floating through most of their minds. Out of all of them, why did Sage have to be the one to go through this. While the blond did have skills and techniques to help him endure such torment. But that didn't mean he had to be the one who had to. It felt like such a cruel twist of fate to have someone so kind-hearted having to experience let alone live with this. When he did wake up, the russet haired boy didn't know what sort of mess to expect, he just knew the healing process the blond would be going through would be painful for them all.

Sage was proud by nature and didn't always give himself over to emotion that easily. To people who didn't know who he was...who he truly was, he might come across as cold and emotionless. But that was just a front, he felt things that most people didn't even realize they were exhibiting. He could read and sense people's emotions and intentions better than anyone. Being prideful and refusing to give in to the emotional pain and suffering would only make things so much worse. But they knew what happened to him and experienced part of it for themselves. So he couldn't hide what happened to him, but at the same time, they couldn't force him to give in to it as that would do more harm than good.

"It's probably his power that attracted Shikaisen most," Rowen said. "It is a rather heavy one to carry if you think about it."

"The power of light…?" Cye said questioningly.

"It's not just light," Rowen said. "You know what the five core elements are, right?"

"Yes," Cye stated "Earth, fire, spirit, air, and water."

"Exactly, Ryo is fire, Kento's is earth, and you are water," Rowen said. "My power would be air but encompasses the very heavens itself. Sage is the only one of us with a direct counterpart among the Warlords."

"Kale the Warlord of Darkness" Cye stated.

"Both light and darkness are aspects of the human spirit." Rowen pointed out. "So while his armor is called the armor of light, it would be more appropriate to connect his armor to the light of human spirit, since his power glows with the light of the world. However, what makes that power difficult to carry is the forces of darkness want to corrupt the light or crush it entirely."

"If you explain it that way," Cye said as he eyed the blond with somewhat more of an appraising eye. "That makes so much more sense, Sage is the most spiritually aware of us. And Kendo itself is as much a spiritual practice as much as it is a sport."

"You certainly don't get many masters in Sage's age range, that for sure." Rowen quipped.

"Master?" Cye looked up shocked as he tried to mentally calculate how that would be possible.

"Yeah, Sage is a level 8-dan." Rowen said somewhat proudly. "Most people are in their forties at best when they get to that level."

"But that would be inordinately gifted," Cye stated.

"As I said, we were marked by the armors," Rowen said. "Even if I didn't have my blue hair to mark me, I'd still have my 250 IQ."

"You, Sage, and Ryo," Cye commented. "It's like the three of you were meant to be brothers."

"It's more we find companionship in our collective loneliness." Rowen sighed. "Ryo isn't completely alone, because he has Whiteblaze for company. But he has a similar situation to me in that he has a parent who is never really home. Most students are friendly towards me when it's time for exams, but most of the time no one really wants anything to do with me."

"And what about Sage," Cye asked. "He's generally likable and he has a sizable family."

"He's only likable *when* you get to know him," Rowen said. "He doesn't exactly warm up to people on the first meet. Most students at his school are afraid of him, and the girls practically throwing themselves at him doesn't exactly help matters. The way his grandfather brought him up possibly didn't lend to friendships forming either. The four of us, Mia, and Yuli are the first and only real friends he had."

"His parents, are they…" Cye hesitantly started to ask. Sage had certainly been more open about his life with Rowen then anyone else, and the same was probably likewise with Rowen as well.

"His folks are still in the picture, his grandfather just happened to take over Sage's upbringing specifically," Rowen stated. "Ryo and I even met his mother when the two of us went to Sendai after the accident. She's nice…" Cye noticed Rowen's tone seemed to shift. It was not quite jealousy of sorts, but there was a slight longing in the blue-haired warrior's tone.

"You know," Cye said understandingly. "Hagi's not far from Osaka, I can introduce you to my mother and sister next time I visit them. It could offer some people for you to check in with at least so you don't need to feel like you're alone." It was no secret that Rowen's parents were not a consistent presence in the archer's life. They weren't completely neglectful, but they were so focused on their jobs they were only an occasional presence at best. Rowen's mother certainly meant well and she obviously cared for her son. She also was overjoyed in knowing he had such caring friends as the four of them and Mia. Still, while Rowen was used to taking care of himself, there was part of him that wished there was someone familial who was there for him.

Cye himself could attest to how Rowen may have felt when he returned to his own apartment.

There was a sense of peace as he found himself in the place he knew exclusively belonged to him. But yet, while he knew the familiar walls of his small apartment were his home...they didn't feel like home anymore. Home was with the other four Ronin and Mia, being with them he felt like he was at home with mother and sister. He missed their laughter, the way they talked. He missed the comforting sound of Kento's snores coming from the other bed, and soft murmurs from Sage and Rowen's room as the two of them talked through the night.

For someone as reclusive as Rowen, it likely made everything he considered normal turn completely upside down. The feeling of knowing everyone else had loved ones to welcome them or at least people nearby or just a phone call away. To enter that empty high rise apartment he shared with his father only to find it empty...no one to greet him...no one to turn to.

"Thanks Cye," Rowen said with an appreciative smile. "I'd...I'd like that. Sage actually came to visit me after we all returned home. He just said he had a feeling I needed him right then."


Rowen sighed as he entered the apartment. After all this time..nothing had changed from when he left to face the Dynasty. Even the note he had left to let his father know where he had gone remained unopened on the kitchen table. It all felt so quiet...so empty.

As much as he had felt his life was being interrupted by his companions while living at the mansion. He found the silence of the apartment almost defining. He missed the voices of his friends, the way they interacted with each other. This place he knew was home, just didn't feel like home anymore.

He found he couldn't sleep much that night. He just found himself lying in his room staring up at the ceiling listening to the silence. When he got up in the morning he found himself wanting french toast. He whipped some for himself but didn't find them quite as good as Cye's. He ate mechanically as he tried to readjust to what he knew viewed as normal.

It was entering early afternoon when he received a call from the front desk.

"Hashiba-San," the desk clerk greeted. "There is someone here to see you, they say they are a friend of yours."

Rowen's heart leaped in his chest. "Send him up," Rowen said. He could feel one of his friends close by, but which of them was it? Who was it? He had stepped out into the hall just in time to see none other than Sage leaving the elevator banks.

"Sage," Rowen greeted.

"Rowen," Sage greeted back as he approached.

"Wow, it's good to see ya bud," Rowen said as he entered the apartment, though his demeanor quickly turned to question. "What brings you all the way here?"

"I had a feeling you needed me," Sage said he followed closing the door behind him.. Rowen paused slightly not sure what to make of that statement.

"I don't know, that seems like a rather long trip just based on a hunch." He replied. "You sure your family doesn't need you...it's not like they saw you all that much because of our battles"

"They're fine," Sage insisted, still not moving from the door. "My mother actually asked me about you."

"Really…" Rowen asked. "About what?"

"Have you seen your own mother since arriving?" Sage asked. He had stepped further into the room, but not still hadn't completely approached the blue-haired boy. It was like he was waiting for his companion to admit to something.

"Well...no" Rowen sighed despondently, she's probably on an assignment.

"And your father…" Sage inquired.

"Just a phone call saying that he was continuing his research at his lab in Kyoto," Rowen said, his voice giving a slight shutter. "He doesn't know when he'll be back...Not that he ever is even when he is here."

The statement triggered Sage's attention causing him to approach Rowen further. The blue-haired boy's back was to the blond, but Sage knew something in Rowen was breaking.

"I guess…" Rowen stated wistfully. "I thought I was used to being alone, it's always been that way for me."

"There's no reason it had to," Sage pointed out, his words gently prodding the younger boy.

"Easy for you to say," Rowen said almost bitterly. "You have a family that cares enough to be there for you. I just never understood what being with a real family was like until I met you guys...I...didn't want to come back here. I wanted to go on living in that house outside Tokyo, just the five of us, Mia, and Yuli. I knew we would all return home once everything was over, we would see each other when we could, but part of me just never wanted any of it to end. It..it.."

A hand lightly touched Rowen's shoulder, guiding him to the couch. Rowen clung to Sage as he started to give in to the pain and loneliness he had never known he had felt. He had grown up far too soon in his young life, he had never really known what it was like to have family constantly around you. No words were said as Sage held onto the younger boy, his arms enfolding around him the same way he would hold his younger sister when she was scared or upset. The only time he got up at all was when Rowen had fallen asleep and that was to find a blanket to throw over the blue-haired archer.


"Ryo arrived the next day," Rowen sighed with a soft smile. "I love all of you guys like brothers, but Sage and Ryo, it's…"

"Just feel like the three of you were crying out for each other," Cye interpreted.

"Yeah," Rowen said as he placed a hand on Sage's chest. He blinked suddenly feeling something wasn't right.

"I'm going to go find a coffee shop and get something," Cye said as he stood up. "Anything you would like…Rowen what's wrong?"

Rowen was bent over his head resting against Sage's chest as though listening to something.

"He's not breathing," Rowen gasped in concern.