Part 8: Armor of Storms

Everything had become quiet. The sky cleared up and the sounds of battle stopped. Jack came out of the house to see the yard littered with ninjas. These armored warriors had defeated them! They’d fought the lightning ninjas and beaten them! Jack didn’t know what to say. He hadn’t believed anyone could do that. And the strange thing was, they weren’t obligated to fight. The ninjas were after him. These guys could’ve turned him over or just done nothing. Instead they’d risked themselves for a stranger. Jack knelt down next to one of the ninjas, raking a frustrated hand through his own hair. They looked so…human like this—not like the all-powerful monsters he’d built up in his mind.

Zane and Zoe walked up behind him. Zane crouched down next to him. “Hey, man. Look. We’re sorry about yelling at you in the house.”

Jack’s voice was quiet. “That’s okay. I was being kind of…hysterical. This has been very hard for me.”

Sai walked up. “Do you think maybe you could tell us what’s going on here? Who are these guys and why were they looking for you?”

Jack sighed and stood up. “I owe you that…and more.” They all started back to the house.

Mia looked at the big hole in her dining room wall. “Well. At least we’ll have plenty of light and fresh air to eat dinner by.” She gave Gilgamesh a dirty look. He pretended he didn’t see it.

Everyone went into the living room. Ryo was impatient. “So? Who were those guys?”

Jack settled in and closed his eyes—he’d never talked about this stuff before. “They’re lightning ninjas. They work for the Lord of Storms.”

“You mentioned that guy a couple of times. Who is he and what does he want with you?”

“He’s my brother, my twin brother.”

Kento let out a whistle. “Your brother’s trying to kill you?”

“I don’t think he wants me dead. At least, not yet. I have something he wants.”

“What could be that important?”

“Power. I’m not sure exactly what he needs me for, but it has to do with power. I think there’s some great force he’s trying to access and he can’t do it without me for some reason.”

That got Mia’s attention. “Wait a minute. You said earlier that my armor looked like his.”

“Yeah. The style and shape are the same. His is silver and blue, though.”

Mia’s gut took her in a strange direction, but ever since she received her armor, she’d learned to listen to those gut feelings. She turned to the others. “Do you think…could it be…the fifth Sentinel armor?”

Sage spoke up. “No way! The renegade Ancients never finished the fifth armor. Talpa destroyed them before they could, remember?”

“But couldn’t someone else have completed it? Who knows?” Mia started staring at Zane and Zoe, but she was talking to Jack. Another thought struck her. “And he’s your twin?”

“Identical.”

“What if…I know this sounds odd, but what if he can’t use the full power of his armor without your help? Zane is the primary wearer of the Armor of Tundra, but his twin Zoe can access it, too. He can block her from its power with enough concentration, though. Maybe you’re somehow blocking your brother from the Armor of Storms?”

“Well if I am, I’m not doing a very good job. He can still make storms and lightning.”

“But maybe this isn’t the armor’s full strength.”

“I’d hate to see that! It’s been giving me enough trouble as it is.” Bad memories made him restless so he jumped up to pace the room. He ran a hand through his hair. “Maybe I should start at the beginning.” He took a deep breath and plunged ahead. “It all started about a year ago. My life was so normal until then. I went to school, did chores, hung out with friends. Then I started having these terrifying dreams. The Lord of Storms came to me in my nightmares, taunting me with how he was going to get me. No one could protect me, no place could hide me. Lightning attacked me as he laughed. I always knew I was adopted, but I’d never heard anything about a brother. Why would he want to hurt me anyway? And with some mystical armor out of a bad fairy tale? I thought I was going crazy. Then the storms started in real life. Everyday the clouds got closer until they blotted out the sun over our house. Lightning struck the house several times one day while I was at school and burned it to the ground. My parents were trapped inside.” Jack stopped for a minute to steady his voice. “I ran. And kept on running. Every time I thought I was safe, he’d find me and destroy wherever I was staying, hurt those who'd helped me. He was using his lightning and our connection through the dreams to locate me. I tried to stay awake as long as I could, but…When you guys found me in the park, I was near the end of my rope. I was sick, exhausted. I had nowhere left to go.”

Mia interrupted. “And you say this all started about a year ago?” He nodded. She continued. “That’s when all the dormant Sentinel armors were reawakened. I don’t think that’s a coincidence guys.”

Trace shook his head. “So some monster out there has the fifth Sentinel armor? How is that possible? The renegade Ancients deliberately made these armors so they would bond only with worthy people of good character. How could someone so evil have received it?”

Mia considered that. “Well, what if someone with evil plans got his hands on the unfinished armor? Couldn’t that be possible? Maybe with strong enough magic, he completed the armor and changed its nature for his own use.”

Anubis broke in. “There is another possibility. The armor may not have been meant for Jack’s brother in the first place. But being Jack’s identical twin, maybe he was able to usurp its power. I want to try something. I want the Sentinels to key their powers to each other.”

Mia went first. “ARMOR OF OCCLUSION!” Her forehead blazed truth.

Then Gilgamesh. “ARMOR OF WAR!” defiance

Then Trace. “ARMOR OF GAEA!” freedom

Then Zane. “ARMOR OF TUNDRA!” persistence

Anubis’s armor wasn’t a true Sentinel armor, but it had been made by the Egyptian Chaos Gods as a substitute and had forged a strong link with the others. “ARMOR OF CHAOS!” The symbol of balance burned on his forehead.

Then a strange thing happened. Jack felt a slight flush of warmth. A light was flaring from his head.

Mia’s armor gave her the ability to conceal and reveal the truth about things. Her feelings about him had been right—he could be trusted. Now she knew why. He was one of them. She looked at him, confusion and a little fear in his eyes. Anubis took hold of his arm and guided him to a large mirror on the other wall. Jack stared in astonishment at his own reflection. The symbol for compassion burned on his forehead. No armor appeared, though.

“Welcome to a very exclusive club, Jack. Welcome to the Sentinel Warriors.”

Jack continued to stare at the stranger in the mirror.