Splitting the Stone

"Splitting the Stone"

Season	1
Episode	7
Original Airdate	July 4, 1995
Running Time	No information
Directed by	No information
Translated by	No information
previous	The Counter Attack
next	Friend or Foe

"Splitting the Stone" is the seventh episode of Ronin Warriors. It was originally broadcasted on syndicated television during the summer of 1995, and was eventually aired through reruns on the SciFi channel, as well as part of Cartoon Network's Toonami programming block.

Summary[]

Sage and Mia journey north to Mount Dojo in order to find Kento. They are confronted by Kale, who aims to kill all three of them to further the Dynasty's goal.

Plot[]

Sage and Mia are on the road when she spots Mount Dojo just ahead of them. Mia's amazed by its beauty while Sage notes that the protected land won't stay that way if the Dynasty were to show up. She tells him that this is where they will find Kento. As they drive along the road, a wolf watches them and growls at the jeep. Sensing the disturbance, Sage glances out the window of the passenger's side only to find nothing there. The jeep drives on, it's passengers unaware of the danger the two wolves on the cliff above them represent. The sound of their howls carries across the mountainous region, where Kale awaits his prey.

The rocky ground prevents the jeep from going any further. Sage tells Mia to give him the information that will lead him to Hardrock and then head back down to wait for them. Mia is angered by his insistence to go it alone, but he believes she'll only slow him down and runs off. Dark storm clouds roll in, which doesn't help Mia's mood in the slightest.

Sometime later, a blizzard is raging across the mountains as Mia tries to find her way through it on foot. She hears the sounds of dogs barking and a fight before Sage suddenly appears, fighting off a pack of wolves. He jumps to Mia's defense as they turn their fangs upon her. They try to run for it and are pursued by the pack. Sage attempts to fight them off, only for him and Mia to end up surrounded. Kale's been watching them from a nearby cliff. He slices his sword into the ground, causing an avalanche. Sage grabs Mia by the arm and pulls her out of the way just in time. He tries to pass it off as a coincidence, but both he and Mia know the Dynasty is behind it. Sage admits that there's no way she can return to the jeep, so they continue on together to find Kento. Kale, meanwhile, plots to wait until Sage has led him to Kento before revealing his presence.

Sage and Mia make it to the top of Mount Dojo, where they come upon the Throne of the Gods. She knows that Kento's inside. Sage wonders how they're going to get to him. Taking his cue, Kale shows up and challenges the Warrior of Light. Sage summons the The Armor of Halo. Kale isn't intimidated by the armor, believing himself to be stronger than the Ronin. Mia reminds Sage that he needs to rescue Kento, but when he tries to slice through the rock, his blade encounters resistance. Kale laughs at the attempt, and then makes his move. Sage barely has time to dodge.

Kale is now standing next to the large stone. He claims to feel Kento suffering from inside and offers to end his pain. To Sage and Mia's horror, he plunges his Sword of Darkness directly into the rock. The sword slowly moves deeper into the rock, seeking out Kento's heart. With that out of the way, the Warlord turns his clawed hand on Sage and Mia. Sage meets Kale's strikes blow for blow, Kale pushing them further and further back with each hit. The Ronin leaps out of the way and lands at the edge of the cliff, which gives way under his feet. Mia reaches out to him, and so they both end up falling off the mountain and into the water below. Kale smirks, thinking that they didn't survive the fall. Meanwhile, his sword continues to push its way into the stone of its own accord, moving ever closer to where Kento lies sleeping.

Sage and Mia survive the fall but are both knocked unconscious. The Ancient One appears in the waterfall, calling out to Sage and telling him that force alone will not be enough to break through the Throne of the Gods. He will need to access the full power of the Halo armor through the unification of both mind and body. The Ancient disappears just as Sage and Mia regain consciousness. They consider the words of the old monk. Far above them, Kale's sword has fully entered the rock. Time is running out, so Sage decides to trust in the Ancient. Mia tells him to go for it while she distracts Kale to give him more time. Sage reluctantly agrees to let her go.

Guided by the Ancient's words, Sage meditates in the cave near the waterfall. Mia runs back up to the top of the mountain to lure Kale out. She spots the Ancient One standing silently on a cliff across from her. She realizes that he must have pulled her and Sage out of the river but doesn't understand why he won't save Kento. The Ancient turns his back and walks off. Mia chases after him, only to lose him in the sudden snowstorm. She's found by Kale, who captures her and dangles her in the waterfall to draw out Sage.

In his trance-like state, Sage sees the danger that Mia is in. She begs him to remain hidden and focus on saving Kento. When the Warrior of Light doesn't respond to his threats right away, Kale summons another snowstorm that freezes the waterfall, with Mia still trapped inside. Sage completes his meditation to save her life. As he uses his blade to shatter the ice, he notices that his powers of light are restoring the land Kale just darkened. The Warlord attacks him but is no match for the light of Sage's special attack, which isn't aimed at Kale, but rather the Throne of the Gods. Sage's blade slices right through it. The light of the Halo armor shines down upon Kento, who begins to awaken just as the Sword of Darkness reaches his chest.

Outside of the stone, it appears as though there is no change. Kale triumphantly declares Kento dead and promises Sage that the two will be reunited in death. Nothing comes of this threat, though, as the very Earth itself begins to tremble and the stone opens to a bright orange light. The Warlord of Corruption is shocked by this turn of events, catching his sword as it returns to him. Kento shoves his way out of the Throne of the Gods, his armor power shattering the rock and forcing Kale to retreat. Kento complains about having been woken up, and Sage cracks a few jokes at his expense.

Later, Sage, Kento, and Mia are back in the jeep, making their way back down the mountain.

Continuity[]

Ryo, Sage, Cye, Mia, Yuli and White Blaze continue to search for the remaining two Ronin Warriors, who were separated by Talpa in "Glory for Anubis."
Sage and Mia started heading to the north in "The Counter Attack."
Kale was ordered to attack Sage and Kento in "The Counter Attack."
This is the first time Sage finds the presence of the Ronin's companions to be a nuisance. In this episode, his attitude is directed towards Mia.
Mia recognizes the Ancient One from when he broke up the Circle of Power back in "Glory for Anubis."
This is the first episode where Sage and Kento's kanjis are translated: Wisdom for Sage, Justice for Kento.
Kento is the fourth Ronin Warrior to be revived.

Title[]

Kento's Armor of Hardrock sent him to revive within the Throne of the Gods, which is literally a large boulder. In order to free his comrade, Sage must find a way to cut through the solid rock with his Halo Sword.

Cast[]

Sage of the Halo — Michael Donovan
Kento of Hardrock — Jason Gray-Stanford
Mia — Lalainia Lindbjerg
Kale — Richard Newman
Narrator/The Ancient One — David Kaye

Quotes[]

Mia: "Mount Dojo. I didn't think it would be so beautiful and gigantic. This is a national park. All of this land is protected. Sage, isn't that great?"
Sage: "Yeah, but it's not protected against the Dynasty."

— Mia is astounded by nature's beauty while Sage is focused solely on the mission.

Mia: "Hold it. I'm not here just to play chauffeur. I'm going, too!"
Sage: "No! I've gotta go alone. And you, Mia, are going to go back."
Mia: "Sage! You don't even know where to start looking!"
Sage: "Mia, you'd just slow me down. I've gotta check it out by myself."
Mia: "Wait, Sage! What's the matter with you? I'm not like extra baggage you can just leave behind."

— Sage annoys Mia by treating her like a burden.

"Don't worry, I'll think of something. RUN!!!"

— Sage's not-so-brilliant plan.

Sage: "Do you really think Kento's in there?"
Mia: "I do. The clue in the poem was pretty clear to me. 'Burning within a throne of rock.'"

— Sage and Mia arrive at the Throne of the Gods.

"Now that I've seen your pathetic skill, I'll show you how a real warrior fights."

— Kale charges at Sage.

"Sage of Halo, now's the time to realize the full power of your armor - the Thunderbolt Cut. But to acquire it, you must achieve the concentration of both mind and body. You must believe the power is inside you now. You must conquer the demons within before battling the ones outside."

— The Ancient One, giving advice on how to free Kento.

Mia: "The only way you're gonna get a shot is if I can lead Kale away from that rock. Sage, we have to do it this way."
Sage: "You're nuts."
Mia: "You know I'm not!"

— Sage can't believe Mia would risk her life for him and Kento.

"Hey there! Warlord! The Ronin Warriors will beat you, Kale, and you can count on that. And they won't stop fighting 'til the very end, until you're gone from this world for good. So - so there!"

— Mia makes a brave statement.

"If he won't come, I'll see she meets a chilling end!"

— Kale's threat is more than just a bad pun.

Kento: "Why'd you wake me up? I was having this great dream."
Sage: "Yeah, and you need your beauty sleep."
Kento: "Hey, thanks a lot!"

— Some good natured teasing.

Cultural references[]

While threatening Sage and Kento, Kale makes a comment about mortal life beginning in a garden, referencing Adam and Eve's home from the Book of Genesis. Even the narrator refers to Mount Dojo as the "Garden of Eden."

Errors[]

Animation Mistakes[]

Dialogue Mistakes[]

The Ancient One gives Sage instructions on how to "acquire" the Thunderbolt Cut. By using the word "acquire," this implies Sage did not have this ability previously. But in fact, he uses the ability two episodes ago, immediately after being woken up from his own stasis, and in fact, he even attempts to use it earlier in this very episode. This plothole could easily have been fixed simply having the Ancient One instead give Sage instructions on how to unlock the Thunderbolt Cut's full power, not simply to "acquire" it in the first instance, but that is not what was said.

Splitting the Stone

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