(no subject)

[sylvernyght]

Chapter 22

"I have got to find Benji and the rest of the Warriors of Light before the Evil Warlords do!" Angus said to himself as he, Tobockin, Sapphire, and Moncoo were running south. It had been three days since the encouter with the Evil Warlords, the sudden trap that they had all fallen into and the strange staff that had caused their friends to disappear. Angus had a good idea of where to find them. He only hoped that he wouldn't be too late. Ahead of them, they saw that a huge mound of rock was rising out of the ground. They looked as if they were ordinary caves, but they were not. They were the Crystal Caves that Angus had told Benji about. The four of them rushed up to the rocky caves and then stopped. They knew that something was wrong, but they didn't know what. They reached the caves and looked around at the baren wilderness about them. The land was bare and lifeless. There were no signs of life anywhere. Then they knew what it was that they had felt. Everything had gone black. The only parts of their bodies that they could see were their eyes. A Warlord here and they knew that they were in deep trouble.

"Hello, Angus, Moncoo, Sapphire, Tobockin." A voice called out to them from behind. The four spun around and were face to face with the Warlord of Destruction.

"We all know why you're here and you won't complete your mission. You should just go back to Evil and tell him that you have failed in your quest!" Angus said. He lunged forward and attempted to bite the man in front of him on the leg. Fireockin was too quick for him, though. He side-stepped and kicked the wolf in the ribs. Angus hit the ground and felt an immense pain running from his ribs to his head. He stood up and shook himself. He knew that the only person that could help them fight this human was Benji of the NightHawk. He had to find him and bring him back into the world to finish what they had started!

"Moncoo! Sapphire! Keep Destruction busy! Tobockin come with me!" He shouted to the rest of the animanls. Tobockin ran over to Angus and together they plunged into the Caves. They could hardly see anything; they had no torches and they didn't want to turn into their human forms. They would be slowed down if they had done that for they would have lost their sence of smell and sight. They would still be able to see and smell things, but their sences wouldn't be as strong as they are when they were in their wolf forms. They began to walk slowly, letting their eyes adjust to the darkness. Soon they were able to see clearly the crystals that gave the caves their name. Thousands upon thousands of colored crystal shapes filled the cavern that they in. Some were red and orange. Others were deep purple or blue. A few were black. Some were bright or deep yellow. The colors ranged from white to dark black. The two were truely amazed. They walked on farther and farther. Angus had been to Caves before. He had led many of his tribe-members into the Caves to hide from the evil that had threatened them all in the Second Quest for Peace. Now that his tribe was all but wiped out, he was the last of them. He knew the Caves well.

Angus led the way and he took them through many rooms filled with the smae type of crystals that they had seen when they had first entered the Caves. Suddenly Angus tripped over an out-jutting crystal and plunged head first into the darkness. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" He screamed as he went down into the dark bottomless pit. Tobocking rushed to place where Angus had gone down and looked down into the darkness. He couldn't see anything. He called out the wolfs' name, but got no answer. He then turned into his human like form and then began to climb down the side of the hole. Soon he reached the bottom of the pit. He dropped to ground and looked around. The place was aglow with a blueish light. He walked forward a step and tripped over something.

"What the devil did I trip over?!" Tobockin said as he climbed top his feet. He turned around and then saw that the body of his friend lay right behind him. He turned around and looked at the body of his friend. He walked back over to him and sat down besides Angus. He shook his friend and then Angus' eyes opened. He stood up and looked at looked Tobockin. They continued on their search. The two of them were silent. Cold was their look. Hate was their heart. They moved on in slow and painful determination. They just had to walk towards the blue glow and then they saw him. They had found the leader of the Warriors of Light. They had found Benji and the NightHawk Armor before the Warlords of Evil could stop them from finding him. Angus nodded towards Benji and Tobcokin walked up to him. He saw that he was incased in a pillar of blue rock. His face was peaceful and his look was one of peace and harmony. His eyes were closed. Tobockin reached upwards to touch the stone that bound Benji to his prison, but suddenly something his his wrist! He looked to right and before him was the Warlord of Destruction! The Evil Warlord nodded to to him and then jumped off of the rock precipice that he had been standing upon. He drew his swords in mid-flight and landed next to Tobockin.

"You weren't planning to let NightHawk go free, were you?" He asked the wolf. Fireockin slashed at Tobockin with his right hand sword, but missed by an inch. The wolf hit the man before him in the stomach and once in the face. The two circled each other and again the same thing happened. Angus then charged the Warlord, but was thrown backwards in the pillar of stone that held their friend. The stone cracked a little and Angus hit the rocky floor of the cavern. He was out cold.

"Benji, wake up and help me!" He heard his friend shout.

Benji looked out into the cave that he was inside of and saw that there were two people there. He knew them both, but could do nothing to get out of where he was and help them. The first person that Benji had seen was Fireockin! The second was Tobockin. "I have to get out of this rock prison and help my friend!" Benji thought. He knew that he could not move. He was in a state of suspended animation. While his Armor filled with new power to help him on his quest, Benji had entered this state so that he would not age during the long sleep, for he might have been stuck in that pillar of stone for years before anyone had found him. "Hang on, Tobockin! I'll help you! I just have to get out of this thing." Benji thought. In his mind, he was able to see that the pillar was cracked, but he could do nothing to get out of the rock prison. Then the pillar of stone cracked again and this time it shattered. Benji fell forwards and hit the rock hard ground of the cavern floor. He then stood up. He drew his swords and a light circled in his eyes.

"NIGHTHAWK SCREECH!" Benji said. He jumped up into the air and came back down with his swords together at the bottoms and lightning shooting from the blades. Fireockin was hit full in the face and was rocketed backwards into the wall of the cave.

"That does it! No more mister nice guy! Take this you imputident fool! I'd like to see how well you fight blind! HA! HA! HA!" Fireockin said and threw some sort of dust into Benji's eyes.

"What? AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! My eyes! They're on fire! AAAAAAAAAAAH!" Benji said as the dust hit him in the face. He fell to the ground with his hands over his eyes.

"Benji!" Tobockin shouted. He turned with anger flaring in his heart and mind. He jumped and attacked the Warlord. He punched him in the face and in the stomach. He kicked him in the grion and also in the knee. Fireockin came back with a kick to the face and a punch to the solar plexes. Tobockin fell to the ground. Benji lifted his head up and tryed to open his eyes, but more pain resulted by doing that. Suddenly his anger became so great that he could not control it. He jumped up into the air and prayed that he would hit Fireockin and not his friend.

"Flying side kick!" Benji shouted. The moment Tobockin heard those words, he rolled out of the path and Benji hit Fireockin right in the mouth. He fell to the ground and didn't move at all.

"Benji?" Tobockin said. He helped his friend stand up.

"Where are you?" Benji said. "I can't see anything."

"I'm right in front of you." Tobockin said. He put Benji's right arm over his shoulder. He then walked over to where Angus lay and picked the wolf up in the other arm. Together they walked out to the enterence of the cave. "Are you alright?" Tobockin asked his friend when they were outside in the shining sun.

"No. My eyes.....they are....on fire." Benji said. Tobockin could tell that whatever the dust was that Fireockin had thrown into his friends' eyes was doing its job.

"Do you think you can go on with my suport?" Tobockin asked.

"I think so. I just need you to be my eyes for me. How many of the Warriors of Light do we have yet to find?" Benji said.

"You are the first one that has been found." Angus said. He was sitting on the ground in his wolf form. Tobockin transformed into his wolf form and then began to help his friend walk. They had to get to the Canyon of the Wind and fast. Fireockin wasn't dead and he was still looking for the other Warriors of Light. They moved off into the afternoon dusk. Soon it was night fall and the pain in Benji's eyes grew to be unbearable. He could barely keep going becasue of it, but he knew that if he didn't help his friend find the other Warriors of Light then they would be killed by Fireockin or one of the other Evil Warlords. By the morning of the second day that they had found Benji, the small group came upon the Canyon of the Wind.

"Where are we? I can hear the wind howling and yet I feel no breeze upon my skin." Benji said. He had not yet realized that they had reached the place where his brother would be found.

"We are at the Conyon of the Wind." Angus said.

"How do we find Nate of the WindStar?" Sapphire asked.

"You and Benji will have to fly into the Canyon and see if you can spot any places that Nate might have been hidden in. If you do then see if you can get hinm out of his prison. He will be in a state of suspened animation." Tobockin said. He looked over at Benji and Benji knew what had to be done. He walked over to Sapphire and then climbed onto his back.

"Hang on tight, Benji. The winds down there will throw you from my back like a kite in a hurricane." Sapphire said.

"Sapphire?" Angus said. The dragon looked at the old wolf. "Be careful." The wolf said to him.

"I always am, wolf. Farewell for now." The dragon said and flapped his mighty wings and off they flew into the deadly Canyon of the Wind. The moment they had entered them, they both knew that were going to be killed if they didn't get Nate and leave the Canyon soon. The winds were too much for Sapphire to handle and he was thrown around the rocky walls like a kite. "Benji, I can't get under control! The wind is too strong! Hold on tightly, my friend! We're headed right for the Canyon's wall!"

"Just let the winds take your body and guide it! Don't fight it, become one with it!" Benji said. The dragon tried to do what Benji had said, but nothing worked. Suddenly a great pain shot up Benji's right leg. They had hit the wall of the Canyon and the bone had been shattered. Sapphire had been knocked unconscious. The two of them plunged towards the bottom of the Canyon! They only had sixty feet before they would be dead. Fifty. Fourty. Thirty. Twenty. Ten. Five. Four. Three. Two. One. They hit the bottom of the Canyon as if they were both a ton of lead. They didn't move a muscle. For hours they stayed where they were. Neither of them moved. Neither of them seemed to be alive. Then suddenly a man appeared before the two of them. He was holding a staff. Upon the staff was a golden ball with wings coming out of the center of it. Six golden rings the wings had; three upon each wing. The end of the staff was shaped into a small point. The man plunged the pointed end of the staff into the ground of the Canyon's floor. The man was wearing a blue and white gown with a bright yellow straw hat covering his eyes and upper part of his face. Around his waist was a white leangth of rope. Around the man's neck was a white bag that was worn in front of him upon his chest. Boots that were made of white cloth wrappings covered his feet and half of his legs. The man had long silver hair which flowed gentaly in the breeze of the wind.

"Benji of the NightHawk, listen to me." The man said with his mind. "Your brother and your friends are all in terrible danger. In order to save them you must use the NightHawk Screech. But to acquire it, you must achieve mastery over both your mind, your spirit, and your body. You must have total concentration in order to use this power. Farewell, NightHawk." Then the man disappeared, but before he did, he knealt down and touched Benji's broken leg with his right hand.A yellow beam of light came out of his hand and washed over his wounded leg. Benji slowly came awake.

"Ooooooh, what hit me?" He said. Then he remembered the flight into the Canyon of the Wind. He remembered their terrible strugle to try to find his brother, Nate of the WindStar. He then remembered their fall. Sapphire! He had been hurt just before they had begun falling towards their deaths! "Sapphire? Sapphire! Oh, my God! What happened to you?" Benji said when he saw the dragon. He knealt by his friend for a long time and then, as if someone had called out to him; spoken his name, he remembered what the man with the staff had said. He knealt down to the ground and folded his legs underneath him. He closed his eyes. He let his mind travle his body. He saw his past life on Earth, the moments of terror, the friendships that he had made. He saw everything. Then he saw his friends: Angus, Tobockin, and Moncoo. He also saw the evil Warlord Fireockin!

"No! Not them!" Benji thought. He heard a voice. It was cold and harsh and demanding.

"NIGHTHAWK, WHERE ARE YOU? COME ON OUT! IF YOU DON'T, YOUR FRIENDS WILL PAY THE PRICE FOR YOUR MISTAKES! GET OUT HERE!" It was Fireockin's voice that was calling him to do battle with him. "IF YOU WILL NOT COME OUT, THEN YOUR BROTHER WILL DIE!" He drew his swords and plunged them into a dark object.

"Nates' prison is rock! The Clouds of Winds can't get out of a rock prison! Oh, no! Nate......What have I done?" Benji thought to himself. "I won't let my friends die because of me!" Benji shouted. He opened his eyes and found that Sapphire was staring at him with wide eyes.

"Let's go, my friend. I have a battle to fight!" Benji said coldly. He climbed onto Sapphire back and the two of them fought the winds in order to get out of the Canyon. Once they had done so, they turned so that they could veiw the Canyon from the air. They saw that it was in the shape of a star. "There! That's wher we have to go! Fly to the north point of the Canyon, Sapphire and then leave!" Benji said. Sapphire flapped his powerful wings and then flew straight downward towards the north point of the Canyon. There they found a cave, the only one in the entire Canyon. They entered the cave and saw that fog was trapped within it.

"Hidden in the clouds of wind." Sapphire said. Benji nodded and then turned to his friend. He looked back at the way that they had come and Sapphire left him alone to fight Fireockin. Benji continued on his way and found that the deep he went into the cave, the colder it got. He soon found himself engulfed inside of a huge cloud. He looked around and saw that in the center of the cloud was the rock that he had seen with his mind. He looked then for his friends and saw that they were all tied to the wall of the cave.

"Alright, Fireockin, I'm here and ready for you! I know we'll beat you and I'm not afraid of you. Come on out, you coward, and face me!" Benji called into the mists of the cloud. Fireockin stepped out from the clouds behind Benji. He took a step forward and then stopped. He smiled. His eyes flashed pleasure and the anticipation that he felt.

"Hello, NightHawk. Glad to see me?" He said. Benji spun around. He looked at the Evil Warlord and nodded to him. He then drew his swords. Fireockin noticed that Benji's eyes were closed tightly and he knew why. "Oh, did my dust hurt you badly? How do you like the darkness of..................death?" He said and lunged forward. He kicked Benji in the stomach and then in the face. Benji hit the ground like a rock.

"Where is he?" He thought. He couldn't see his attacker and so had no way of fighting back.....or did he? "Alright, NightHawk, calm down. If I can sence where he is, I'll be able to fight back. Come on, think! The place that I would usually hit when I have a blind attacker with me is the....." Benji finished his thought with his voice: "Back of the neck!" He shouted and blocked a thrust to his neck. He spun around and kicked Fireockin in the mouth, knockin him down tot he ground. He then tried to grab him, but missed. Fireockin was up in a moment and he kicked Benji right he side of his head, sending him flying into the rock that held his brother.

"Augh! I've got to keep fighting!" Benji said. He then remembered just how little time he had left! He remembered that Fireockin had plunged his sword into the rock, hoping that it would kill his brother in his sleep! "Noooo! I won't let you kill him! You shall not prevail!" Benji said. he got up and clasped the ends of his swords together. He had turned the weapons into a solid staff weapon. He spun this around his head and shouted the name of his power: "NIGHTHAWK SCREEEEEEEEECH!" He shouted as he brought the weapon down into the rock. His swords disappeared! They had gone into the rock and were striving to beat those of the Armor of Destruction.

"Benji, help me!" Nate thought while he was inside of the rock. He could feel the pain of the swords of the Armor of NightHawk as they raced through the rock. Then something hit his chest and his eyes snapped open. A yellow light appeared before him.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! I shall return!" Fireockin said and was gone. The cave began to shake with fury and the rock that had held Nate of the WindStar, broke down the center. Nate climbed out and faced his brother. He gave him his swords. Nate saw the rest of his friends and he quickly freed them all. The group walked back to cave enterance. They climbed onto Sapphire's back and were off. Once they were back on the eastern point of the Canyon, Nate looked at Benji's eyes.

"I think I might be able to get your slight back. I just have to use the sword of the Armor of WindStar." Nate said. He drew his swords and pointed them towards the sun. The blades sparkled in the bright light. The light bounced off the baldes and went into his brothers' eyes. Then they fluttered and came open. Benji could see once more. "Well can you see again, Benji?" Nate asked.

"Are you Lord Cyclone?" Benji asked his brother. Nate laughed and they all made a camp for the night. In the morning, the small group was off to the next place of the riddle. The Volcano of Fire. They headed east. Soon they were able to tell that they were getting close to the place where the mountain could be found, for the sky was black with dust and smoke. Within the next hour they were able to see the Volcano. They headed right for it at a quick flight from Sapphire. He touched down next to the base of the mountain.

"Good luck, WindStar and NightHawk. We shall wait here for you to get your father out of there." Angus said. The brothers climbed down from Sapphires' back and began to climb up the side of the mountain. It was a very painful climb for them both. By the end of the day, they had reached the top of the mountain. The two of them looked down into its depths and saw a burning pool of molten rock far below them. Nate turned to his brother.

"Which one of us goes down into that molten rcok to get our father back?" He asked.

"Don't look at me! I guess we will have to try to do it together." Benji said. Nate nodded and then the two climbed down into the burning pit of the Volcano. They contiuned on their way down into the pits of hell. Soon the heat became too much for Benji. His face was a bright red and flushed with with heat rash. Nate knew that Benji couldn't take the heat and so he asked his brother to return to the surface of the Volcano. "Good luck, Nate. If you can't handle the heat, then make sure that you get out of there and quickly." Benji said. He started on his way up. Nate continued on his way into the Volcano. He reached the bottom of the mountain without having to turn back once or stop to rest.

"I don't get it.....Benji's Armor can't take this heat and yet mine can? WindStar is the name of my Armor.....wait. That's it! The first word in my Armor's name is Wind. The wind can blow out fires and cool things down faster than the Night can. So I should be able to cross the lava." Nate spoke to himself. He looked out into the middle of the huge pool of lava and saw his father. He was wearign his Armor, just like everyone else had done and he was incased in a cage of lava. Nate then tried his idea of crossing the pool of lava. He dipped the very tip of one his of swords into the pit and then pulled it out. There was no damage to the sword. It was only a bright white color. Nate then decinded that he would take the risk that he knew faced him. He slowly dipped his right foot into the lava and felt the heat hit his foot, but he still could feel his foot. He then walked into the lava and his face guard snapped across his face.

Nate took one step into the lava pit and the sank in well over his head! "What the heck?" Nate said as he went under. He opened his eyes and found that he was still alive! He then knew that he would have to swim for his father's cage. He did so and reached the cage of lava in record time. He then swam upwards and emerged from the lava pit. Something hit his helmet from behind. He turned and saw no one around him. He then looked upwards and knew that Benji had warned him of something. Nate climbed onto island of frozen lava that his father was trapped upon and then looked at his father. He seemed to be so peacefull that he wasn't really sure if he should set him free. Then Nate knew that he might not have another chance, so he walked up to the cage of lava and touched it. Nothing happened, his father was still in the cage and he was still in the state of suspened animation. "What if I use my Armors' power to set him free?" Nate thought. Everything went black. "Oh no! Not now!" Nate said and turned around. In front of him was Flamenessa!

"You've got to be kidding me?! Fireockin couldn't stop any of us, so what makes you think that you will?" Nate asked his advisary.

"I'm a woman!" Flamenessa said. "Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!" She shouted as she lunged at Nate. He dodged and took hold of her outstretched hand. He looked at her in her eyes.

"Yeah and I happen to be a Warrior of Light!" Nate said. He punched her in theface and let go of her hand. He then planted a firm roundhouse kick to her stomach and an ax kick to her solar plexes. She was on the ground now and the right corner of his lower lip was bleeding. She felt the blood with her hand and then stared over at Nate. Her anger rose so high that she jumped into the air and punched him in the face. She then kicked him in the groin and twice in the left temple. Nate hit the ground like a ton of lead. He drew his swords and clashed the ends of them together. He then spun the staff-like weapon over his head and jumped into the air. He called upon his power: "WINDS OF CHAOS!" Nate shouted. He pointed the weapon at his father's prison and the beams of lightning shout of his sword blades. They hit the cage and the it was gone in a flashed of blue light. Nate's father opened his eyes and took hold his spear and spun it around his head with one hand. He opened his eyes and looked at Flamenessa with a deep hate brooding deep within his eyes.

"If you have anything against my son, take it up with me first." He said. When they saw that Flamenessa wasn't about to leave, he took a few steps forward. She backed away from the two of them and looked at both of them. Then she crouched low to the ground and sprung at Nate. He jumped out of the way and attempted to kick her in the stomach, but missed. Chuck lunged forward and also attempted to do the same thing that his son had done, but he failed. He then knew what would get this woman; this evil human away from them long enough for them to get out of the Volcano. He stepped forward and shouted the name of his power: "FIRES OF DOOM!" He spun his spear around his head like he had done earlier and the beam of fire shout of the spear. Nate realized what he should do and so he also said the name of his power:

"WINDS OF CHAOS!" He pointed his weapon at his father's beam of energy and the two mixed. The beam of light that was made when this happened was orange and blue. It shot toward Flamenessa and hit her. She screamed her fury of being defeated and left before anything else could happen. Chuck turned to his son. He nodded his head that showed him that he was alright. The two of them climbed out of the Volcano and met up with the two werewolves, the elk, the dragon, and Benji. The small group made camp and Benji told his brother of how he knew that there was an Evil Warlord near by. He had told him that he had senced her presence and so had thrown down the rock when he saw his brother's head emerge from the lava again. Nate felt reasured that his brothers' sences were as keen and as sharp as they were. If they weren't then he might have been killed down there. They all slept peacefully that night and in the morning they left the Volcano of Fire. Theyt headed north this time and by the evening of that day, they were half way to their next stop in their new quest.

"Once we reach the Waters of Acid Ocean, what will happen?" Benji asked his friends as they all sat around the camp fire. His face was glowing in the orange light of the flames and his eyes shone with a deep concern for he knew who they would be trying to get to next. That person was the wearer of the Armor of Water, his mother. Soon the morning was upon the small group and Benji was awake with the crack of dawn. He watched the sun travle upon its tiresome path as it made its way up the mountains and into his eyes. His brother arose with the dawn as well and walked over to him. They looked at each other for a moment and then watched the sun climb the mountains into their eyes some more. For a long time the two of them stood silent by each other while the others slept. Then Nate turned to his brother. Benji glanced over at him and spoke before he could say anything:

"You don't have to say what you're about to say to me, Nate. I already know how you felt those past few days ago when I nearly died from the slashes that I had gotten." Benji said.

"You have to hear this. You see when you fell and hit the I didn't really know what was happening. I felt that I had let you down. I mean you're the leader for the whole group and I didn't really know if the others wanted me to lead if you got killed. I mean you're the strongest one of all of us." Nate said. Benji nodded and looked at him.

"There are others that have more strength than I have." He said.

"I didn't mean physical. I meant spirital and mental. You are the only one that has a really strong spirit and mind for everything that we've run into so far, you haven't really broken down....at least not your spirit." Nate said. Benji knew what his brother was saying. He looked into his brother's eyes and saw himself there. "Benji, you need to know that when you nearly died back there, I fell apart. I'm not as strong as you are. You can take the deaths of hundreds of people and still be able to keep going. I can't and you know it. I need what will happen should you die and perish." Nate said. He faced his brother dead on. His eyes were cold and serious for his age. His face was tense and hard. His features were carved out of a block of stone.

"You shall be the next leader upon this foul quest." Benji said. Nate's eyes showed shock and disbelief. He couldn't lead his friend through anything, much less take over for his brother when he lacked the mental and spirital strength that he had within him.

"Benji, I can't lead. I won't even try because I know that I'm worthy of such a gift." Nate said.

"There is more to you than you. There is more to all of us than we all know." Benji said. That seemed to end the discussion, for Nate couldn't think of anything else to say. They waited for their friends to wake. When they did they worked out what they would do should an Evil Warlord show up. They knew that one of them would.

"So, what you're saying, Benji, is that only one of us should enter the Waters of Acid Ocean while the rest of us try to fight the Warlords? Are you nuts?" Chuck said to his son. Benji nodded to him. Chuck rolled his eyes. He knew that the Evil Warlords would go after his wife and not them, so he felt that there had to be at least two people to go after her. One to free and the other person to fight the Warlord.

"Dad, listen to me. Only one person will be able to stand the acidic levels in that body of water. Any other....." He was cut short by his father.

"Benji, two people....." This time Benji cut him off.

"Any other person who tries to do so will be killed. The acidic levels of that blasted Ocean are negative two hundred and fourty. That water happens to be strong enough to bore a hole in a solid piece of titanium in less than one minute. Imagine what it'll do to whoever goes in there without the correct Armor on. Look. Think of it this way: NightHawk and WindStar have one thing in common: Air. Fire and Water have something in common as well: Fire. The only way, in this world, to make a pot of water boil is if you use fire. To put out a fire, we use water. Do you understand where this is going? The order of Armors, if you put them in order for what they each have in common, is this: NightHawk to WindStar, WindStar to Fire, Fire to Water, Water to Earth, Earth to Bear, Bear to Heart, Heart to Snake, Snake to Illusion, Illusion to Night, Night to Daylight, Daylight to Shadow, Shadow to Horse, Horse to Dragon, Dragon to Black Knight, Black Knight to Star, Star to Sound, and Sound to Light. Each Armor has one thing in common with one other Armor. That's how we get the Armor of Light." Benji said.

"What about the Evil Warlords? What do they have in common?" Nate asked his brother.

"I have no idea. If I knew then we would be better prepared for the rest of this quest. But it seems to me that they will be able to go wherever we go." Benji said. He stood up and looked at his friends. They all knew that it was time that they tried to rescue their next memeber of the quest. The conitued to head east and soon heard waves crashing upon a shore of sand and rock. They then heard a lound sizzling sound. They knew they had reached to Waters of Acid Ocean. They walked out to a large cliff that was hanging over the Ocean. The small group looked down onto the deadly waters. They saw that it wasn't blue like a normal body of water, it was a deep purple. They watched as a huge wave built up and took on speed. It charged the shore line and crashed with a thundering roar onto the sands of the shore. They watched as the acid water of the Ocean ate away at the the shore with surprising speed.

"Well, I guess I had better get down there and try to find Julia." Chuck said. "Benji are you sure that my Armor is the only one in the group that can stand up to the acid in the water?"

"Yes. Your Armor is Fire. This water in this ocean is fire. Thus you will survive. Its like a hot bath------a really hot one. Get going before anyone shows up. We'll keep watch here." Benji said.

"Alright. To make my death quick....." Chuck said. He ran towards the cliff's edge and jumped off. He fell head first down into the deadly waters of the Ocean and plunged in. The moment his head went under water, his face guard snapped into place. He opened his eyes and looked around. He was still alive!

"I guess Benji was right about my Armor being able to stand up to the waters of this Ocean. Now all I have to do is find my wife and the two of us can get the heck out of here." He thought as he swam around in the water. He looked around some more and saw that there were no signs of life anywhere. He swam further down into the Ocean. His Armor started to spark in the Ocean. Chuck stopped swimming and looked at his left arm. "My Armor....what...AUUUUUUUUUUUGH! The pain......what the hell is going on?!" He thought. He tried to go deeper, but the deeper he got the more the pain increased. Soon he got deep enough where there was life begining. At first it was just small bits of plant life, then it became a huge forest of kelp and fish. Chuck swam even deeper and then saw his wife. She was incased in a bubble. Her eyes were closed and she seemed to be asleep. Chuck swam a little further onward and suddenly an arrow shot past him!

He looked around and saw that there was a firgure before him, holding a metal bow and black arrow. The figure was dressed in armor like his, but this type was totally blue. The face guard that Chuck could see was covering the entire face, save the eyes, which burned a bright red. Another arrow shot past him and Chuck knew that his person, or whatever it was, was here to do his wife harm and he wasn't going to let that happen. He drew his spear and blocked three more arrows. Then he swam forward and jabbed his attacker in the face with his spear. Chuck tried to go for his wife, but was grabbed from behind. He tried to get out of the hold that was put onto him, but was failing to do so. He knew that if he couldn't get out of the Ocean with his wife quickly, he might die. He suddenly could feel his Armor closing in about his body and knew that the pressure was too much for it to handle. Finally, he broke free. Swimming with all of his might, Chuck reached his wife and saw that she was begining to awaken. Then out of the corner of his right eye he saw something that he never had expected in all of his fourty-two years of life.

A huge marine mamal was swimming at full speed for his attacker. It collided with him just as another arrow was let loose upon Chuck. It missed him by an inch. The person in the blue suit of armor turned around and fire an arrow into the flesh of the beast. Blood spilled out into the water. Then, when all seemed hopelessly lost, that the Warriors of Light might not get another one back upon their team of fighters, a beam of light shot farward and hit the person in the blue suit of armor. The person disappeared and in his place was a cloud of ashes. Chuck spun around and saw before him, his wife, wearing her Armor and her bow was drawn. She put it away and the two of them swam back to the surface of the ocean, but first Julia swam over to the wounded animal and pulled out the arrow. Then she placed her right hand on the wound and it instantly healed. The creature swam away and was gone. When they got to the surface of the Ocean, Benji and his brother were there to greet them.

"Now that we've gotten four out of the eighteen of us, what do we do now?" Julia asked.

"Make a camp and sleep. Then, in the morning, we'll go after the next few people. By the way, who was that person that had attacked me when I went in search for you?" Chuck said to his wife. She shrugged her shoulders. No one in the group knew the answer. They made a camp and then in the morning set out in search for the forests of the north. After two days had gone by, the group reached the forests of the north. They were desolate and cold. Nothing lived within them. They were a barren land of dead and rotting trees. They walked into the forest and the smell of death reached their nostrils. They knew it was from all of the dead trees that were lying on the ground and from the remains of the animals that once lived in the great woods. They continued on their walk into the forest. The deeper they got, the worse the smell of death got. Soon night fell upon the small group and they could hardly see because of the overhanging branches of the dead trees. They soon saw that they were nearing a large mound in the earth.

"Hey, what's that?" Julia said. She pointed to the mound of earth. Angus stopped at looked over at it. He knew it well.

"The Caverns of Earth. There is where Ilonton shall be found. Remember this warning: To enter is death, but do so not is still the same and one." Angus said.

"What?" Benji said.

"It's a riddle. Only one of us can enter that place and I knew who that person is." Chuck said. He looked at his wife and she knew that she was the only one who could get to their friend. They walked up to the mound of earth and then walked around it. They could see only one way in: Julia would have to use her power in order to drill a hole into the mound of earth. She took out her bow and put her right hand behind her back. A gold and blue arrow appeared in her hand and she put this on the string of her bow. She pulled it back and, just before she let it go, she called upon her power:

"WATERS OF DEATH!" She shouted and let the arrow go. It turned into a blue and gold orb with a five foot long tail at the end. A lound whistle was heard as the arrow flew into the mound of earth. The mound split open into a cave entry and Julia turned to her friends and her children. "Wish me luck!" She said and with that she disappeared into the blackness of the tunnle.

"Hello, Warriors of Light. Miss me?" A person said right behind Benji. He spuna round and saw before him the Warlord of Lightning!

"Lord Cyclone. What a......pleasant surprize. We both know why you are here, so just skip the formalities and get on with it!" Benji said as he drew his swords and turned them into the staff weapon. The others did the same. The wolves turned into their human forms and got ready to fight back with cold death in their eyes.

"As you wish. Believe me when I say this: killing you all will bring me no pleasure." Lord Cyclone said.

"You lie like a rug! Meet your own death here and now and trouble us no more!" Benji said. He jumped into the air and shouted the name of his power, but it never came. He fell back to the ground with a terrible look of agony and fear in his eyes and face. "Wha......what happened?" He said. He looked to the wolves and they stared back at him with blank eyes. Then Benji felt the presence of something sinister. Something evil. Something that meant death. Something that was alive and yet it was dead. Something that could be only what it was and nothing more, but it loved to kill. It like blood shed. Lots of it.

The others quickly became aware of the being that was with them. They knew that they were to be its prey. Its main meal for the night. Its sacrifice to please its hated appetite. Benji saw the look in Lord Cyclones' eyes. It was one of pleasure. One of hate. One of death for his enemy. It was one of anticipation for the death that would follow soon. Benji shook his head slightly and started to back away. He un-did his swords and then held them in his hands. He could feel the thing getting closer to them all. Nate's eyes roamed the blackness for anything that might mean them harm. He found nothing. He could not even tell where to start looking! Closer. Closer. Closer. Closer. With each passing moment; each second the creature got closer to its meal for the night. The group was frightened to death. They quickly formed a circle; each person facing a different direction, their backs to the center of the circle. Then Lord Cyclone lifted both of his hands above his head, fingers spread wide, arms pointed at an angle. A monstrous creature appeared above. It was in the form of a ghost long since dead and decaying in a grave of rotten wood and stone. Its body was completely clear; one could see right through it. The eyes. They were the only colored part of the ghost. Threy shined with a blood red hatred for the people before it. They had hate and death and sorrow filled within their bowls. The small group noticed that the creature didn't attack. It merely stayed where it was and that was above Lord Cyclone. Then, when they thought that they were going to live through this one and be able to finish the quest, they all felt another thing approaching. Closer. Closer. Closer. Closer it came to them all. They knew what it was this time. It was another one of the things that was above Lord Cyclone.

"We must flee from this place! The only way for us to go would be to enter the Caverns of Earth." Benji said. Within minutes, there were eight of the beings that Lord Cyclone had summoned to him.

"True. But what about those things? What are they?" Nate said. No one knew the answer. They were scared to death of the eight creatures before them and the ghosts knew it. Lord Cyclone dropped his hands and the ghosts floated forward.

"Great! Now what do we do?" Chuck said. The ghosts came closer to them. They could taste their adversaries fear.

"Don't just stand there you guys! Fight!" Benji said. He attacked the nearest of the ghosts, but his weapons flew clean through it! Fear boiled up inside of him when he looked at the ghosts. They could not be harmed by their weapons alone. They could not use their powers against such an enemy, for they were being blocked by the ghosts.

"YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA! DIE YOU VILE CREATURE!" Nate shouted as he slashed at one of the ghosts with his swords. They went right through the ghost without harming it. "WHAT? NO!" Nate shouted as he saw what had happened. Then in that brief moment he lost all of his hope. He lost all of his self-confidence. He lost everything that was important to him.

"Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! So, you have discovered the powers of being dead? They cannot be harmed by any weapon you have. They block your powers as well." Lord Cyclone said to the Warriors of Light. He then spoke to the ghosts: "Toy with them a little longer, my pets. Then crush them to dust!" He turned back to the Warriors of Light: "It might be of little concern to you, but what you happen to be fighting are Hell-spirits. Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Have fun, Warriors of Light! Can't say I'm going to miss you all. Hell-spirits, you may kill them all now." He said and vanished.

"That coward! Why doesn't he stick around and fight us himself?!" Benji said. He tried to slash at another one of the Hell-spirits, but again his swords went through the ghost without causing it harm.

"We'll be killed if we can't get out of here!" Nate said. He looked over to Caverns of Earth and saw that they could not even reach them if they wanted to: the Hell-spirits were blocking the entrance to them. Then, when all seemed to fail them, a staff flew down into the center of the circle. It was long and had a golden ball on top of it. Wings came out of the center of the golden ball and each wing had three golden rings hanging upon them. The rings started to turn in circles and a bright yellow light filled the night sky. The Hell-spirits suddenly felt a great pain in their eyes and they fled in terror. Benji breathed a sigh of relief. He had never come so close to dying before in his fourteen years of life. The small group moved towards the staff and suddenly a man appeared by the left side of the staff. The man was wearing a blue and white gown with a bright yellow straw hat covering his eyes and upper part of his face. Around his waist was a white leangth of rope. Around the man's neck was a white bag that was worn in front of him upon his chest. Boots, that were made of white cloth wrappings, covered his feet and half of his legs. The man had long silver hair which flowed gentaly in the breeze of the wind.

"Who are you? What is it you want from us?" Benji addressed the man before them. He turned towards Benji's voice and Benji froze in his tracks. There was something about the man that scared him. He didn't really trust him.

"Why are you here? What is your mission?" Chuck said. The man turned to him, but nothing was said.

"Will you please say something?" Nate said. He got the same looks as the others had gotten. Suddenly the man turned to Angus and the wolf bowed low to the ground. Moncoo, Tobockin, and Sapphire did the same. They knew all too well who this man was and what he was capiable of. They had met him before on another quest for peace. The man walked towards the wolf and touched him gently with his staff.

"Arise, Angus of the Draco clan, and serve your friends." The man spoke with a soft voice, but it was harsh and cold all the same. The wolf rose.

"Yes, master." He said. He walked back to his friends. Benji looked down at the old wolf.

"I had no idea you from the Draco clan of Were Wolves. I remember you telling me about that famous clan." Benji said. The wolf smiled.

"We can talk about it later." He said. The man turned to Tobockin. He did the same thing that he had done to Angus: He touched his gently with the end of his staff.

"Arise, Tobockin of the Tine clan, and serve your friends." The man said.

"Master, I cannot serve them any more. You know well what has happened to me. I feel ashamed to be the friend of these people. I betrayed my clan and saw them all slaughtered by the first of the Two Evils many years ago. When you summoned Benji of the NightHawk and his friends and family to this world, I was hoping that you would kill me and put me out of my misery. I am forever sorry for what I did." The wolf said. The man knealt down to him. He stroked the wolf's fur.

"You shall not be killed nor harmed in any way whatsoever. You had been turned into a slave of the Two Evils. They forced you to do what you did. They knew, as well as you did, that if your clan were alive and as strong as it was, then they could have been killed. So they killed them all, save you, first which is why NightHawk and his friends are here with you now. Go and serve them. You are still the good wolf that you once were. Go now, my friend." The man said. The wolf stood and trotted over his friends. The man then spoke with Sapphire the dragon.

"Sapphire, hear me. You have been loyal to Benji and his friends in times when you could have left them. You know that a dragon of your status should not be friends with a human. Yet you choose to stay with him and for that you were an outcast amoung your kind. You have served NightHawk well. For the times that you have saved his life and for all of the help that you have given to him, you shall be returned to your status as a Time Bearer, leader of your clan of dragons. Do you wish to stay with NightHawk until his darkest hour?" The man said.

"Yes. Yes I do wish that, Master. I will not leave him to fall prey to Evil and his henchmen. I will fight with him or for him." The dragon said. His eyes showed with a bright light of determination. The man before him nodded to him and he walked over to his friends. The man approached Moncoo.

"Moncoo of the Twin clan, you have done well to help NightHawk and the others gathered here. What would you like to have happen?" The man said. The elk rose and looked over to his friends and then back to the man facing him.

"Master, I would like nothing more than to stay with NightHawk and help him on the rest of his quest......even if it means my own death." The elk said. The man nodded and the elk walked over to his friends. The man followed him over to the small group. He looked at each of them in turn and his gaze fell lastly upon Benji.

"Who are you and what do you want with us? I will warn here and now: If you attack my friends, you have get past me first. I will fight you to the death if need be so that I may protect my friends. My life means nothing to me, but I hope you don't feel the same way about yours, because this might get ugly should you attack." Benji said. He looked at the person before him and saw the pencil thin mouth turn upward into a small grin. Benji suddenly felt that he had just made a big mistake. Benji got ready to draw his weapons and fight, should it come down to that.

"Those are acute words, NightHawk, but don't worry. I mean you no harm." The man said. Benji raised his hands to his swords and drew them out. He then turned them into the staff weapon to call upon his power.

"No offence, but I can't really trust you. Not until you show me that you can be trusted." Benji said.

"I wouldn't have said and done what you have said and done, Benji." Angus said.

"It is alright, Angus. NightHawk has good reason not to trust me. Your friend will be able to prove to you that I mean what I say: I don't mean to harm any of you." The man said.

"For future reference, at least tell me what your name is." Benji said.

"I am called The Ancient One." The man said.

"Is it all right if I address you as Ancient One?" Benji asked The Ancient One. The man nodded.

"Why are you called by this name? Do you not have a normal name?" Nate asked.

"I am called by this name merely because I am over a thousand years old." The Ancient One said. Benji's eyes widened with shock at his age. "I see that my age has shocked you a bit." He said to him. Benji looked the man up and down and then sheathed his swords. He felt that he could trust the person thst stood before him, yet he felt that there was something that he shouldn't trust within this man. He suddenly remembered his mother and what she was doing.

"Mom....oh, no! We have to help her. She may be in terrible danger." Benji said. The Ancient One looked at him. His face was blank and he could tell that Benji was determined to risk his own life to save that of his mothers'.

"Do not worry. She is all right. No harm has befallen her yet and none will. Stay here and learn." The Ancient said to him. Benji looked at the man before him with surpirze and anger flowing in his deep blue eyes.

"What are you? Nuts? She's my mother for crying out loud! Sorry, but I'm going in there to help her. I sence the presence of an Evil Warlord, buddy, and I'm not going to let one of them kill her!" Benji said. He turned and ran into the Caverns of Earth. He disappeared from their sight quickly and Nate got ready to go after him, but was stopped by the staff of the Ancient One. He looked over to him.

"Don't go after him. He has made his choice and you cannot drive him from it." He said.

"I'm not going to do that! I'm going to help him, you fool!" Nate said. The staff lifted from his chest and Nate ran after his brother. He, too, was lost to the others' sight. Chuck turned to man before him and spoke wit hate for him:

"Why do you not go after those two and stop them?! They'll be killed if you don't do something! Aren't you going to help them at all?" He said.

"It is not my place to decide the destiny of the Warriors of Light." The Ancient said to him.

"The least you could do is help them!" Chuck said.

"Like I said before: I cannot decide the destiny of the Warriors of Light." The Ancient One said. Chuck balled his right hand into a fist.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Chuck." Angus said. Chuck faced the wolf.

"You keep out of this!" He said. He turned to the man before him. "And you need to wake up and try to help my children!" He raised his hand and it hit the Ancient One square on the right side of his jaw. The Ancient One's head didn't even move from the force of the punch, but his lip did start to bleed a little. He raised his right hand up to the wound and pulled it back. He looked at the fresh blood upon his finger tips. He shook his head and smiled. He then laughed. He looked over to Chuck.

"You should work on your aim. Listen to me. I can't help any of you. I'm only here to guide you to your final fight with Evil. You have all the power you'll need to fight this menace. By the way, that was a good right hook. Next time aim for the neck and not the jaw. Farewell for Fire." The Ancient One said and vanished before their eyes.