"Shin No Ippo 6 Pt III" by Brandon ´Red´ Christ

Part three of three in chapter 6. This last part isn’t exactly a big revealer, so it…might be okay to skip it…maybe…

"Bah…" Owens muttered, twisting about. Numb, he waited to regain feeling, and then saw Zordos, floating in the air.

"You recovered very quickly," Zordos said, moving closer.

"You’ve been moving around before me," Owens replied, rubbing the back of his sore neck.

"Not really. My powers allow me to manipulate my body. I’m still as numb as you were," Zordos said, showing how his arm swung loosely, "It’s going to take a while."

"So, where are we?" Owens asked, looking around. He didn’t recognize anything. It was all large rocks and tall grass.

"Hmm…somewhere near that coastal town we were in a while back. I’m not sure exactly where," Zordos concluded, looking about from a large rock.

"Have you tried to contact the others?" Owens asked, sitting down and looking himself over. Oddly, he didn’t have a scratch.

"No need. Rayne’s the resourceful type," Zordos replied, throwing a note at Owens.

"Hmm…She’s smart. Seeking needles, huh?" Owens said, studying the paper.

"That’s the likely answer. It says to meet at the coastal town, so we should head off tomorrow. Unfortunately, Jay and Lyn’s needles…" He said, motioning to two broken needles with shredded paper, "Were attacked by a hawk, so we’ll have to wait until I have full control of my body to contact them."

"So, which way tomorrow?" Owens looked about. The sun was down, just shimmering over the horizon, setting the sky aflame in crimson at one end, and navy blue at the other.

"East. We were shot inland and closer to the city, compared to the others. Rayne and Mai went South-East, and Lyn and Jay went South. If we make good time, we can be there in, oh, a day and a half, as long as we keep moving," Zordos deduced, beginning to move his fingers, "It looks like I’ll be able to call them earlier than I thought."

"Rest for now. We might as well, since we got a headstart. Say, how long was I out?" Owens asked.

"You hit your head on a rock, so about a day," Zordos thought, counting off on his fingers.

"A Day!? Do you have any food!? Water!?" Owens exclaimed, suddenly becoming aware of his stomach.

"Plenty. I already found some a river and a few melons," Zordos motioned towards a small fire with fish skewered over it. Owens rushed over and dug in, and the knight went to sleep soon after, Zordos watching the horizon, waiting for his body to wake up.

"Well, I sent the message, so let’s get moving," Zordos said, opening his eyes. It was mid-morning, and the two had left their rock-sheltered home and were on the road. They had made about two hourse walk already, and Zordos, trusting his power had fully come back, had sent the message. Owens, leading the two, cut down the tall, head high grass, while Zordos, like a psycic lawn mower, widened the path and cleared the grass piles away. Soon, the two found a dirt road, with signs indicating the coastal town they searched for, and they walked down.

"So, you think he got the message?" Owens asked, attaching the axes to his belt, since he had lost the chains connecting his gauntlets. They had dissapeared after he had awoken, and assumed they lay broken, somewhere in the deep grass.

"I talked to him, so yeah, it’s there. He has a ship, so he’ll sail in," Zordos replied, shifting the long rapier about on his shoulder.

"A ship?’ Owens asked.

"It’s a long story, and he’ll does it better justice than I will," Zordos replied.

"Hm," Owens grunted, aknowledging the thought. Suddenly, a dark figure appeared about twenty feet away, slinking out of the grass.

"Wha…!?" Zordos exclaimed, surprised. He had been keeping close tabs on the surroundings, and nothing has pointed to there being anyone within fifty miles.

"…Bah…" Owens muttered, his face a cross between angry and annoyed.

"What?" Zordos asked,

"…Oroco…Joshiro’s apprentice…’ Owens muttered, stopping at about ten feet from the man. He wore a black Gi, with a black belt. His sword was black as well, polished, but with a metal brush, to remove shine and reflection. The blade was razor sharp, one edged, like a katana, but with straight edges instead of a curve to the tip.

"Owens," Oroco said, his young voice deeper than most. He had black hair, dark as the new moon, and steel gray eyes, hard as the metal whose color they shared. He clicked his sword shut as he said, "Report."

"We have located Crazy Jay, but were unable to follow him. Information points him in the Silfortha direction," Owens replied, having practicied lying for a long time. He had learned to lie as a soldier, mainly because he had been the one to give reports to the king, and, even thouhg he hadn’t learne dto lie that way, he had learned to keep cool under pressure.

"Then why are you heading away from Silfortha?" Oroco asked, knowing a lie when he heard one. At least I think it’s a lie, he thought, unknowing, If he is, I’ll rip him apart with my Black Raven and see how much he talks… but was interupted be Owens, saying, "We’re going back to our contact to get information. The Werefox has been traveling with him under guise, making it appear she’s siding with him, while she’s extracting information and sending it to us Via the shinobi network. I’m following in pursuit, and appearing to be an ally as well."

"That’s the biggest pile of crap I’ve ever heard," Zordos thought, Owens hearing it in his head.

"It’s working, so don’t mess it up," Owens replied, face still frozen.

"Who is this?" Oroco asked, his steel eyes turning to Zordos.

"He’s an alchemist that’s studied with Vyse Maxwell. He’s using a combination of alchemy and psychic powers to track down Crazy Jay and, hopefully, use a binding power on him, possibly freezing his body perminantly," Owens continued to lie, while Zordos nodded. He had actually met Vyse Maxwell, about a year ago, and had impressed the alchemist with his psychic power. Why Vyse had been there, Zordos didn’t know, but Vyse had passed back through the cave with a bottle, glowing amber with strange, wispy contents.

"So, you plan on bringing him back alive?" Oroco asked, watching them closely. He felt the strange, bandaged man was remembering something, so it seemed plauseable. Owens, as usual, was just annoyed by his prescence. Oroco wasn’t very respected by anyone, and he had only gained his position, according to others, because Stefan’s second man had recommended him.

"If we can," Owens replied, "If not, we’ll bring him back in as many pieces as possible."

"Hmm…I’ll relay this information. Oh, and as for you, psychic," Oroco turned, eyes still steel, "I don’t like you. Screw up, and the Black Raven will eat you."

"Glad to know that," Zordos replied, his red eyes locked onto Oroco’s. They stood for a moment, and then Oroco turned and began to walk away.

"Owens. Magvel was killed again," Oroco said, turning back, about ten feet down the road. Owens’ eyes widened, and Oroco continued, "He’s fine, though. Vyse fixed him."

"Hm," Owens replied, saluting. Oroco continued down the road, eventually turning into the grass.

"Killed…again…?" Zrdos asked, very confused.

"Magvel…isn’t an ordinary person, to say the least," Owens replied, "It’d be best to explain somewhere where we can have a good sit-down.

"Huh," Zordos grunted, ackowledging the thought.

"So…you think he knows?" Zordos asked.

"…No…not yet, leastways. I think we’ll be fine for now," Owens replied, Walking forward again. He saw a sign and turned to read it.

Palmacoasta: Twenty Miles East^

Aringosa Mountain Range: Thrity Miles North<

Southern Peninsula and Arcipelago: Ninety Miles South>

"Hm… " Owens studied the sign and the sun for a moment. He pointed, saying, "We’ll be there by sundown if we keep a decent pace."

"Let’s get moving, then," Zordos replied, walking ahead, already about fourty feet down.

"Hey! Wait for me!" owens yelled, speeding up.

Down the road, the two talked, mainly about their pasts. Owens explained his military career while Zordos explained life under the mountains. Zordos learned about the way Kitohasu’s army and royalty worked, while Owens found out where his armor and Axes had come from.

"…However, the amor Magvel wears, by it’s description, wasn’t made by dwarven hands," Zordos said, thinking aloud, " The patterns don’t really sound right."

"But mine, you think, was made down there," Owens replied.

"Yeah, probably," Zordos thought, looking carefully at the edges, "I’m pretty sure."

"But this one guy, Vyse Maxwell," Owens said, thinknig, "You don’t know much about him, either?"

"Just that he’s an alchemist with no equal, and I’ve barely looked at alchemy," Zordos replied, thinking back on his past studies. He had learned basic Aclemidal knowledge, but had become uninterested in the category.

"So, how far now?" Owens thought aloud, watching the road.

"A mile, once we get over this hill," Zordos guessed, trying to gauge the distance, "Yeah, a mile or two, I’m not sure."

"Good. We need to get back together, before we get cornered and killed," Owens said, flipping an axe into the air and catching it, then sliding it inot his belt.

"Damn right," Zordos muttered, and the two continued down the road, talking about many things, All of them important, and realized that the enemy wasn’t always what it appeared to be.