Shinji looked up at the tall tower standing in front of him. It was made of a black, rock-like substance he had never seen before. And with all the spires and gothic-looking arches, it looked gloomy, somehow.
Shinji blinked in confusion. 'How did I know what 'Gothic' would look like? I don't even know what that is...'
"Looks pretty impressive, huh?" Artemis asked.
Shinji nodded. "Yeah... And in there is something that can help my friends?"
"Well, your elder said so. I don't know anything about that. Although I do know what the true purpose of these towers is."
"And what is that?"
Artemis gave him a smirk. "Well, I'll let someone else explain that to you."
"Stop speaking in riddles, it's irritating," Shinji complained. "And who should explain it, there's no one here?"
"I beg to differ," a deep voice sounded from behind the big gate. With a deep, rumbling sound, the gate slowly dropped, revealing an imposing figure that was clad within a dark armor and a waving cape. In the dark warrior's hand, a regal blade was lying.
"Who... who are you?" Shinji asked, taken aback.
The warrior strode forward. "I am Endymion, warrior of Earth. I am the protector of the towers, and I can't let you pass until you have proven yourself to be worthy." He extended his right hand, that holding the sword.
"But I don't even know what's in this tower," Shinji complained. "I only know that I want to need to save my friends."
"A noble cause," Endymion admitted. "Still, I have to test your skills. Only those that may be able to defeat me may hope to overcome the trials of the five towers." He then smirked. "I'll tell you something: Defeat me, and not only will I allow you to enter, I will even tell you the secret of the towers. What do you say?"
"All right, I agree," Shinji muttered. "As long as I keep your promise."
"Don't worry, he is a prince. If he says he will do it, you can trust his word."
Endymion looked down at the white cat in surprise, but then he smiled. "Why, Artemis! I didn't even see you down there. How have you been faring over the past few years?"
"Um, you know, not much, being locked up in a magical chest and stuff. You know how those things are. I bet your time as the guardian wasn't even half as boring."
"Maybe," the warrior sighed. "Still, it can be a bother. If at least Usag... um, I mean, the princess would be at my side..."
"I can imagine..." Artemis nodded. "I'm missing Luna, too."
Shinji got the feeling that he was left out of the conversation. "Hey, I hate to interrupt, but can we get on with it? I don't know if my frozen wife can wait forever, you know?"
Endymion chuckled. "No, of course not! Forgive me." He raised his sword and went into a battle stance. "You ready?"
"Um, s-sure," Shinji muttered, drawing his sword from the chest. It was almost as long as the one the black knight was wielding.
"On the count of three," Artemis said from the sidelines. He raised his paw and started counting. "One... two... two and a half... two and three-quarter..."
"Artemis!" the two swordsmen shouted in annoyance.
"THREE!" the tomcat shouted, and Endymion drew back his blade.
"Prepare yourself!" he yelled and stormed at the young warrior.
Shinji couldn't remember having ever held a weapon before, not even a knife or an axe for chopping wood. And this Endymion seemed to be quite the capable fighter. Still, Shinji felt he was able to parry most of the prince's sword strikes, as if deep inside, he knew what he was doing.
'As if he wasn't the first opponent I fought...' Shinji thought to himself while dodging a wide slash from Endymion's blade. He then slashed upwards, grazing the black armor of the knight.
"Not bad, warrior!" Endymion commented with a regardful nod. "But you still have to do better do defeat me."
And they met again in a clash of steel.
It went on for a while like this, until Shinji felt that he was stumbling over a small piece of coral that was stuck in the sandy ground of the Underworld.
Endymion used that to his advantage, drawing his blade back for a direct strike. Luckily, Shinji's farm clothes were made from hard and sturdy leather, so the strike only left a thin rip within the leather on his left side.
Shinji didn't really know what happened afterwards, but somehow he was reacting out of instinct. His sword arm made a curved motion, and suddenly, the long sword got yanked out of Endymion's hands. Shinji's blade, in the meantime, moved on and sliced past the dark warrior's unguarded face.
Both Shinji and Endymion gasped in surprise and backed off from each other.
A thin drop of blood trickled down from the cut on Endymion's cheek, and fell down on the dry, sandy floor.
Endymion looked over to where his blade was lying. He chuckled and relaxed his posture. "Well fought, young warrior! What is your name?"
Shinji lowered his sword as well. "Um, Shinji, sir!"
"Shinji, you have the potential to be a heroic warrior, as skilled as you are in battle." He picked up his sword and knelt down in front of him. "You have beaten me in fair combat, thus I allow you passage into the five towers of the Underworld."
"Um... good to hear that."
"And now, to keep my second promise," the knight said as he stood up from the ground.
He walked next to Shinji and looked up at the tower. "Originally, these towers were build by the rulers of the Earth. They were the rulers of both the Underworld and the Overworld. But after a long and terrible war, the kingdom of past times got forgotten, as well as the towers.
Lately, there have been some terrible occurrences on Earth's surface," Endymion continued. "Titanic, terrifying creatures started to arrive on Earth, so powerful that the usual defenders of Earth were powerless to stop them." He lowered his head. "I was one of them. Well, I can't tell you the whole story behind all this, but... In the end, all life on the Overworld was practically annihilated. All the humans, as well as the non-intelligent creatures, plants and animals alike, were turned into a strange substance that is now covering everything."
The prince closed his eyes, as if the memories of that day were too much to bear. "There were a few survivors, though. And they decided to do something, should the day arrive that the life would return to the surface. We - that is, I and several other warriors - sealed the souls of all living beings away, with the help of a few spirits of nature. And then, the other warriors sealed away their spirits into these towers that I still knew from my previous life in the Earth kingdom. And should one day a noble hero arrive, intent to help others, they would be able to use his noble soul as a focus, to cleanse the surface from that disastrous goop. Life can only return to the Overworld when it has returned to its natural state."
"And you believe that I... am that hero?" Shinji asked in disbelief.
Endymion nodded. "Yes, I think so. You are strong, brave and warm-hearted. You defeated me in combat and you only went on this journey to help your friends."
The prince gestured towards the top of the tower. "Go up there and meet the first of my comrades, called the Sailor Senshi. She carries the power of the planet Mercury, and she will be able to use a bit of her powers to free your friends."
"Really?" Shinji asked in a hopeful voice. "That's awesome! I can't wait to meet her."
"At the same time, you will be given the chance to save not only your folks, but also the Overworld. But that is your choice alone, although we would be glad if you decided to help."
Endymion then looked down at the white-furred advisor. "Artemis, please stay at his side. He will need a trusty advisor on his journeys, and you are adapt in those skills."
"You can count on me," Artemis nodded.
The prince then stepped aside and gestured towards the entrance. "Go forth now, brave hero, but beware: There are evil creatures roaming through the Underworld, and many of them have infested the creatures."
"Can't you come with me?" Shinji asked.
Endymion shook his head. "I am sorry, but I am the guardian of the towers themselves. I have to make sure that no one with bad intention enters them. It's bad enough that those mindless monsters were able to enter, but that's because there are so many of them, and I can't be everywhere at once."
"I see," Shinji nodded. "Then I will try to do my best by myself."
"Not completely," Artemis winked. "I'm still here as well."
"Good luck then, to both of you!" Endymion nodded as the twosome entered the tower. "And tell Mercury I'm doing my best to keep the beasts away from her princess' tower."
Shinji didn't get it, but Artemis nodded. "We'll tell her, don't worry! See ya later!"
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(Posted Thu, 05 Apr 2007 15:17)
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