Dark Hounds
Part 1
"Here we go again" Rowen muttered pointing across the black top to where most
of Han High's cheerleaders were converging.
"I guess its time for the curse of Sage to take affect." Rio agreed sadly
"Every day the same thing how any other guy ever gets a date around here is a mystery."
"Hey" Sage smacked Rio "It's not like I ask for this they just seem to follow
me." He protested
"Yea well" Kento was clearly skeptical "it's not like you discourage them or
anything."
Sage buffed his nails on his shirt and made a show of looking at them "After all
who am I to argue with good taste" Rowen snorted as Rio and Cye hit Sage upside the head.
The girls who had been pretending not to notice them now turned and "pretended" to see Sage
for the first time.As if they hadn't been watching him since they got out there.
Koranna grinned to herself watching the cheerleaders. They were transparent
bimbos but they were worth a good laugh every now and then. There current target was
obviously Sage Date heartthrob of the female population of Han High. "God forbid, I going have to
listen to them talk about him again tomorrow don't I?" she muttered to herself as she crossed
the blacktop and headed for her car. Oh well she had more important things to do than worry about
them. After all gates, even dimensional ones needed watching and ones going into the
Dynasty required special attention. Nothing big had made a try on that gate since the latest
defeat of Talpa but other smaller things did show up from time to time. Big demons weren't her
problem anyway the warriors that had defeated Talpa, whoever they were, could deal with them. She
crossed the parking lot to her car. The white jeep had definitely seen better days as of
now it looked like it had been parked war zone. "I definitely need to wash you" she told it
as she dug through her bag for the keys. Finding them, her sun glasses, and a stick of gum
that was god only knows how old was she decided a miracle now if only her luck would hold
through tonight. Something was wrong and she would have to go take a look around all the old gate
sights.
Cat sighed did this have to happen every day. Well not every day she chided
herself but it does happen to damn often. The cheerleading squad had descended once
again on Sage completely disrupting practice. Not that she really minded anyway she was only
here because her mother had decided it would be "good for her". "Oh well" Cat thought
resignedly "at least this way I get a chance to talk to Rowen and the guys."
"Hey Cat" Rio hailed her as the other cheerleaders enveloped Sage "what's up?"
"Not much" she told him coming to stand with them "how about you?"
"Aside from enduring the curse of Sage you mean?" Cye asked looking on the
scene in front of them with amusement.
"Yea" Kento chimed in "we can't take him anywhere without this happening its
like all the girls have some kind of Sage radar or something."
"Don't ask me" Cat told them "I don't get it" she shrugged "besides I'd much
rather talk to you guys" she smiled sweetly at them.
"Ok Cat" Rowen sighed "what do you want?" Cat put on her sweet and innocent
look
"Well I wasn't going to say anything but would you help me with my astronomy
class please? You know all about that kinda thing." She mugged puppy eyes that could
give Cye at his best a run for the most pathetic award..
"Wow" Rio told Kento "I didn't know Cye gave lessons." Cye tries to hit Rio but
Rio has enough sense to move out of Cye's way.
"When I get my hands on you." Cye yelled as he took off after Rio.
"Well Rowen will you help me? Please?" Cat still hadn't given up. Rowen
sighed
"Alright alright I'll help you now please stop with the cuteness, your gonna
make me sick." Cat tried to hug Rowen but he was having no part in it so he managed to
avoid her. Cat was ok and come on you would have to be blind to see she wasn't hot what with
her dark red black hair and bright blue eyes but still her personality could be a little much. One
Cye was really all the world really needed..
"Your such a nice person" Cat positively bubbled.
"What time is it anyway?" Kento suddenly demanded out of the blue.
"I don't know, Rowen?" Cat looked at Rowen as he checked his watch.
"To be precise" he started when Kento broke in again
"Since when have I cared about precision?" Rowen smacked him
"You asked now shut up and it's almost four o'clock"
"Yipes" Cat jumped "sorry guys but I gotta run I'm way late" "Kor is so gonna
kill me" she thought to herself as she raced for the bus stop. She had better not have
missed it Kor hated it when she was late for training. Working with Kor was always fun except
when something set her off.
She was in such a hurry that she did not even notice the large black dog
watching them.Its ears tipped to hear every word.
Kor was sitting on the rail of the little bridge that they used as a meeting
point when Cat saw her. Kor had changed out of her school uniform into a white shirt and
jeans, the collar on her green cargo jacket was turned up against the cool breeze that had sprung
up. Cat was worried Kor was smiling and she never used that particular expression unless
something big was going down.
"Your late" Kor caroled cheerfully as soon as Cat got within earshot of her.
That to Cat's mind was another bad sign. Cat drew up to the end of the bridge and
stopped still a good two feet from Kor
"Ok who gave you sugar and how much?' she demanded positioning herself so that
getting away would be simple if sanity dictated she needed to. Kor just tipped her head
to one side and raised an eyebrow.
"Actually I haven't had any sugar, yet." with that she tossed a small black box
towards Cat
"Is this what I think it is?" Cat asked opening the box. It was "where did you
find these?" she asked in awe. In the box was a complete thought jack set. A pewter
dragon thought amplifier made to fit over an ear, the ear jack it self, and a microphone that
looked like a hoop earing with a single blue stone set into it.
"Congrats Cat" Kor was still grinning "your training is now officially over and
the powers decided that we needed to have a set." Cat looked at her more carefully
and noticed that she had a similar dragon over her own ear and that the microphone was
hooked into her jacket collar. Cat slipped the ear jack in and adjusted the dragon on her ear.
Picking up the mike she turned it between her fingers.
"Where do I put this anyway?" she asked with a look at Kor.
"Where ever, that's just incase you need to hear whet the other person is
hearing."
"I know that" Cat sighed exasperated "but where do I stick it?" Kor tipped her
the other way and thought for a minuet
"just use it as an earing for now I guess."
"So" Cat said coming up to lean against the rail next to Kor "now what do we
do?"
"Beats me" Kor shrugged "what do you wanna do?" Cat thought about this for all
of maybe five seconds
"I know lets go see a movie"
"sounds like a plan" Kor declared jumping off the rail "I'll drive" trailing
after Kor to the parking lot Cat wondered why that sounded like a bad idea. Five
minutes later after what should have been a ten minuet drive she knew why that sounded like a bad
idea. It sounded like one because it was.
"Are you coming or not?" Kor demanded as Cat sat blinking in the passenger
seat.
"Yea" cat growled releasing her death grip on the door handle. "Hold your
horses, you know" she continued "I'm not riding with you ever again you drive like a
maniac." Kor shrugged
"What'd ya expect?" she asked "sanity?"
"God forbid" Cat turned her attention to the movie posters "so what do you want
to see? How about something sappy?"
"I don't really care" Kor admitted "so long as there's melodrama, violence, and
comedy."
"Sounds good" Cat declared. She grabbed Kor by the wrist and towed her into
the theater.
A couple of hours later they emerge.
"Wow the sun sure is bright" Cat commented with her oh so firm grasp of the
obvious. Kor who had wisely put her sunglasses on pointed this out to her with her usual
wit.
"Yea well what'd you expect? The sun to turn green or something smart one."
"Hey Cat" Someone called from behind them "oh shit" Cat thought "it's Rio and
the guys"
"Cat" Kor said tentatively "what's going on?" Cat nearly fell over when she
realized Kor's voice was in her head.
"Nothing it's just some friends of mine" she told Kor who sighed
"good I was worried there for a second" that was all they had time for as the
warriors caught up with them.
"Who's your friend?" Kento asked.
"Let me introduce you all this" she gestured to Kor "is Koranna"
"Call me Kor" Kor put in.
"And these guys" Cat continued gesturing at the warriors "are Rio, Kento, Cye,
Rowen, and Sage." Rio offered Kor his hand and she shook it and everyone else's
however Sage with his usual dramatic flare insisted on kissing the back of her hand. This gesture
won him glares from the guys and one of Kor's rare real smiles. Sage defiantly liked this girl
who ever she was. Kor wasn't on the same level with Cat that was true but she had a grace
Cat lacked. Her hair was a rich golden brown highlighted with streaks of sun. She was almost as
tall as he was and he wondered what her eyes looked like behind her dark glasses. Sage brought
his attention back from Kor to pick up the conversation. Rowen and Cat were talking astronomy
apparently Cat was going to come to Mia's with them to get a lesson in Rowen's all time
favorite subject. Knowing that he would not be required to participate he turned his attention
back to Koranna.
Kor watched all of the guys as unobtrusively as possible. None of them seemed
to notice her really but then hanging around with Cat kinda got you used to going
unnoticed. The only one paying her any mind at all was Sage and that was a little disturbing. He was
dangerous she decided and that was that.
Sage caught Kor watching him and decided to make the most of that slim opening.
He dropped back to walk beside her and smiled. Kor silently damned the boy he was
to attractive and he knew it. "Oh well" she decided "I may as well be civil at least he's not
ignoring me."
"Hi" there that was simple he could interrupted that however he wanted Kor
decided
"Hey-la" Sage replied and then cursed himself the guys accepted this but well
hey-la was not a standard greeting. Kor pulled her sunglasses down her nose and stared
at Sage.
"You read Lackey?" she asked surprised. Sage shrugged "yea sometimes, why?"
Her eyes had thrown him entirely off balance. They were a deep green but they were
flecked with gold rather like sunlight through leaves in high summer. "Have you read her latest
book? oh what's it called?" Kor asked still looking at him with those eyes.
"Well" Cat observed glancing back over her shoulder at Kor and Sage who were
deep in a discussion. Kor had taken off her sunglasses and was gesturing expansively.
Sage was watching her and shaking his head. "It looks like they hit it off alright." Rowen to
looked back at them, still talking animatedly
"So it would seem." Cat agreed
"Every time" Rio sighed "we cant take him anywhere."
"You still want that astronomy lesson Cat?" Rowen asked "Tonight's supposed to
be clear and there's no moon."
"Yea I'd forgotten thanks." Cat told him absently. She stopped in front of
Kor's jeep "I've just got to run something by Kor."
"So" Sage was saying as he and Kor drew abreast of the others "It turns out
that being a mage channel blinded the boy and that's about all there is to it."
`"Did Florian decide to come back again or what?" Kor asked neither of them
noticing that the others had stopped until Cat reached out and pulled on Kor's sleeve.
"Wha?" Kor spun around to discover Cat grinning at her. Kor raised an eyebrow "well?" she asked
layering meaning on the single word.
"What are we doing tonight?" Cat thought at Kor as she moved towards the jeep's
door.
"Why?" Kor replied in like kind. "Well I asked Rowen if he would help me with
my astronomy homework and he says tonight would be good so I was wondering?" Cat
deliberately left the question hanging.
"Depends I'm not gonna stop you but I could use your help I think something was
testing the greater gates earlier" Kor sighed and rubbed at the back of her neck.
"So no one found anything?" Rio asked
"Kento and I didn't have any luck" Cye said
"neither did we" Rowen told them shaking his head "how about you Rio?" As one
they glanced to where the girls were talking just out of earshot. Rio shook his head
"I asked Mia to do a check, she may have found something."
"I hope so" Sage said "I don't like this at all"
"well why don't we head back to Mia's?" Cye asked
"yea" Kento agreed "we can get something to eat while we're there."
Having settled that debate somewhat satisfactorily the warriors turned to wait
for the girls. Kor had her back to them and Cat, who stood facing them, was chewing on
her lip in a most undignified fashion. They seemed to reach some sort of decision and Cat
came back over to them while Kor got into her jeep.
"Rowen is it ok if I come by your place later? Cause I promised Kor that I'd
give her a hand with something and all." Rowen sighed internally with relief
"sure Cat come by around eight o'clock or so it should be getting dark by
then."
"Will do" Cat agreed "see you then." She waved a hand at them before running
around to the other side of the jeep and jumping in.
"Well that will give us some time to try to get our facts strait." Sage
commented as they walked on towards the car.
"Come on Sage admit it you wanna see Cat's little friend again don't you?"
Kento asked elbowing Sage.
"Yea well" Sage said with great vocabulary skill.
"I think" Rio began but was cut off by Cye's
"really that's a first" Rio ignored Cye and continued
"that Sag the great girl mister is in love."
"How cute" Kento, Cye and Rowen caroled enjoying the chance to get back at Sage
a bit.
"Shut up"Sage snapped in no mood for there teasing. The Ronin warriors piled
into the SUV and headed to Mia's in hopes of finding some of their answers there.
"Well" Mia told them rubbing her eyes "This is what I got on dimensional gates"
she handed a printout to Rowen. "There's nothing helpful in there just some
reference to the guardians well I cross referenced them and I found that there is supposedly a
select group of people with the birthright to become gate guardians and they are supposed to
keep the gates between worlds closed.." Mia punched some buttons on her keyboard "now all I
could get on them is that they are usually stronger, faster, and more agile than your average
person also in externa cases they can also have some form of magik."
"Magik" Rowen snorted "really Mia this is the twentieth century." he shook his
head "thinks like that just don't happen."
"Of course not that's convincing coming from a guy with mystical armor." Mia
reminded him "now the only distinguishing feature I could come up with is that all known
guardians wear a variation of this dragon." Mia pushed some more keys and a picture of a pewter
dragon like the one both Kor and Cat were wearing fills the screen.
"Hold it" Sage told Mia "that thing looks familiar" he leaned over her
shoulder ignoring the look Rio gave as far as Sage was concerned if Rio was interested in
Mia he should tell he for crying out loud. "I know I've seen that thing somewhere recently."
"It would help if you knew where" Rowen commented looking up from the printouts
Mia had given him. Sage stuck his tongue out at the archer.
"You guys see what you can do I'm going to take care of dinner since Cat will
be here in like forty- five minutes" Cye told them all as he left the room. He didn't
care planning wasn't his thing anyway that was Rowen and Sage's department Sage moved to
lean against the wall opposite the computer and continued to think. Cye's mention of Cat had
brought his mind back around to Kor and that's when it hit him. She had been wearing one of
those dragon things. Sage was brought forcefully out of his revery when Rio hit him across the
shoulder.
"Wake up Sage this is not the time to meditate" Rio grinned "we're going to
have company." Sage gave Rio what he hoped was a threatening glare worthy of Rowen
before growling something uncomplimentary at him and leaving the room. Rio trailed after Sage
grinning to himself, it wasn't often you got to see Sage acting like he was short on brain
power ordinarily it was Kento who went off like this. Sage growled to himself how was he going
to explain this to the guys they were going to give him grief about this for sure. The fact
that he had noticed what king of jewelry Kor was wearing was going to amuse them no end and he would
defiantly never live it down. It was just a little past eight when they heard a car pull
up outside.
Cat climbed out of the jeep and looked at Kor "aren't you going to come in?"
She asked Kor .
"Na" Kor said shaking her head "I'll just do another run and head come back for
you later." Cat glared at Kor in silence for a moment.
"There's no way I'm letting you do a run alone when the gates are this
unstable." Kor gave her a killing glare but when Cat refused to give in she sighed.
"Alright alright I'm coming, happy?" she grumbled shutting off the car and
following Cat up to the house. Cat just gave Kor one of her most winning smiles over her
shoulder. Kor was like that and it did no good worrying about her.
Dinner was singularly uneventful and afterwards Rowen and Cat went out into the
back yard for an astronomy lesson, Mia headed back to her computer with Rio in hopes
of finding out something else about the guardians, Cye was occupied in the kitchen cleaning up,
Kento was watching some old horror movie on TV, and Sage was sprawled in a chair with a
book. Kor smiled to herself and slipped out onto the deck the stars were bright tonight indeed
turning the world silver she sat down on the deck railing her back against the side of the house
one of her legs drawn up and the other hanging off over the drop into the backyard. Kor almost
smiled she could see Rowen and Cat down in the yard looking upwards as well. They were covering
the names of the stars and constellations. She had never had any need to know the names of the
stars being able to name them all made the night sky lose some of its infinity some of its
wonder.
"It's beautiful isn't it." Sage's voice startled her and she nearly fell off
her perch with an undignified squeak. Sage couldn't help but laugh as Kor visibly tried to
reassume her dignity.
"I suppose it is" Kor agreed still trying to reclaim her lost dignity. "I've
always liked to look at the night, makes the day brighter somehow" she shrugged
expansively. Sage came across the deck and leaned with his arms on the rail next to Kor.
"I guess it's like how once you've seen the moon set all cold and hard the
sunrise seems that much warmer in its turn." Sage mused not realizing he had actually
spoken that thought out loud. If she had heard him Kor gave no sign and they remained like
that a moment longer looking up into an infinity to which they could put no name.
"the eyes of the skies" Kor whispered and swung herself down off the rail.
Sage did not move but as she passed him on her way he stopped her with a word.
"Wait" Kor paused half turning to look at him over her shoulder. "Where" Sage
asked her "did you get that distinctive dragon guardian?" Kor froze the way he said that,
guardian, he knew or guessed what she was, how she did not know, but he did.
"The time for that trust is not yet come" she said over her shoulder hoping
that would be inuff of an ansere. If it was Sage gave no sign he just continued to stare
out at the sky. Kor shrugged and moved off down off the deck and down to the ground something
was happening she could feel it now all she needed was to get out of sight of prying eyes for a
little to work the castings she needed to find out what that something was. She rounded the
corner of the house and went along the wall a little way. Droping into a crouch Kor pulled
her swithblade out of her pocket and opened it. The blade gleemed cold in the starlight as she
held it. Concentrating on the place she wanted to go she drew a l;ine in the soil with
the tip of the knife. This was her pass through, standing up she took a deep breath and steped
across the line. The world droped out from under her for a second and then she was
standing on a gravel covered roof top in the city. This was not the first time she had used this
roof as a terminus and she knew exactly how to get down off this roof. The first of the gates was
not far now, Kor headed for the fire escape compleatly sure of herself and her surroundings. She
did not notice one darker shadow among the others. The great hound had found its master the
prey he was seeking. Rising silently for such a large creature it followed Kor off the roof
and down onto the streets below.
Nearly half an hour later astronomy lession compleat Rowen and Cat returned to
the house to find everybody except Kor spralled around the living room watching
Kento's horrer filck.
"Anybody know where Kor is?" Cat asked looking at her watch "we need to get out
of here." the others all shook there heads or shrugged.
"Last I saw she went down into the back yard" Sage volentered after a moment
glancing up at Cat for a split second. Cat sighed this was so like Kor just to up and
dissepeare. She's probably sitting in a tree somewhere contemplating the meaning of life and no
amount of shouting is going to bring her out of hidsing if thats the case. So thinking
Cat decided that the best course of action would be to wait. It wasn't like Kor could leave, her
keys were in the pocet of her jacket which was still hanging in the hall. Cat get
comfterbale on the floor and pretended to watch the movie. Slowly she reached out looking for Kor with
the aid of the dragon amplifier rapped around her ear. She found Kor just not where she had
expected "Kor where in the hells are you??" Cat practically shriked when she relized that Kor
was no longer anywherre hear Mia's.
"For the love of god not so loud, do you want to deffen me" Kor snaped back at
her "I'm just doing alittle scouting no biggie, Calm down and look at this." Cat felt
herself being drawn into Kor's mind and then she was looking out of Kor's eyes. They were
looking down on a physical manifestation of one of the gates. What looked like chariots of war
were positioned one on either side but instead of horses it looked like there were hounds in the
harnesses.
"Something tells me we're out of our depth with this one arn't we?" Cat asked
much quiter this time.
"Most deffinatly" Kor agreed sadly "we don't have the chance of an ice cube in
hell against a force this large."
"Get back here Kor before something bad happenes to you" Cat begged suddenly
fearful I don't like this one little bit." A slight sound drew Kor around
"Don't look now Cat be something already has." Kor looked on her opponent tall
and armored his face obscured by a helm and around his legs a pack of black hounds.
"Hello my pretty little one" He addresed her in a voice that froze her to her
bones "the master is waiting for you." Kor turend and fled across the roof on which
she had been hidden but from the shadows came more of the dogs there teeth gleamed cold and
hard. This was the end Kor was sure. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a crystay
sphre a little biger than a marble. She could here Cat somewhere in the back of her mind and
yelled with all her strength to her. "The time is come for trusting Cat go to them the warriors
are with you now."
"Now?" Cat seent back weakly
"Yes" Kor stared hard at the orb and it began to glow with a soft light like a
small star "May the eyes of the skies smile on you till our netx meeting Cat." she
sent and cast the glowing orb high into the air. Cat watched through Kor's eyes as the orb rose
and then suddenlyshe was back in her own body the guys standing around her. Kor's orb fell into
her hands and she burst into tears.
Kor saw the men coming but with the hounds all around her she could not escape.
Instinct taking controle she pulled her knife and waited for her enemy. He came
within reach of the long staff and raised it above her. The last thing she saw was the glint
of the star light on iron as the staff decended.