Chapter 8 [Rocky Mountains
High up in the Rockies, a lone stone citadel sat perched on a peak and shrouded behind its cloak of perpetual clouds. Despite being only a hundred miles from Middleton, it might as well have been a thousand.
And that's the way Monkey Fist liked it…..
The former aristocrat paced about the length of his impromptu sitting room while considering his next move. With the aid of the Matsui Marakawa, he'd definitely sent a message to the overrated sensei, the Buffoon and the other children. But that would be only the first salvo compared to what lay ahead. He grinned darkly in anticipation of beating Stoppable and his monkey hating tendencies to a pulp before claiming supreme monkey leadership.
Speaking of Stoppable, he'd sensed the boy's power rising inside of him.
Power that the monkey villain craved for himself.
He looked toward the door in the back of the room. For now, he would allow his ninjas their rest. After all, it had been an active night. With that, he headed for the door on the other side of the room. Opening it, he walked into a Spartan chamber with a very small window slit and a bed in the corner.
Yori lay on the hard mattress; her head bandaged from the previous night's injury. Leather straps restrained her wrists. She pointedly looked at the ceiling, ignoring him.
"Oh such manners! And here I was concerned about you," he chastised.
She shook her head. "Foul wind and air avails you nothing. It is the fault of your ninjas that I am hurt."
His eyes narrowed. "You chose to fight."
"I chose honor. Something you know nothing about, Monkey Fist," she countered.
He shrugged. "Perhaps not but once I claim my rightful place, I shall not need it! That time, Dear Girl, is coming sooner than you think."
"So you say. As the Americans say, do not count chickens before they hatch."
"You have too much confidence in your fellow children. Ah well, I will be back to check on you. Ta ta!" He slammed the door behind himself.
She put her head back on the worn pillow in back of her head. It should have been a nice dinner between her and Ron that evening. She'd set Rufus up as usual with his chips on the napkin before setting the table in anticipation of her BF's latest masterpiece.
Then Monkey Fist somehow appeared in her room with the stolen museum piece and six dark garbed monkey ninjas.
She had no time to go for her fans but made the mental shift as quickly as possible.
Rufus, to his credit, lashed out first, grabbing the flashlight to his right and using it as a makeshift staff to bash the intruders, buying her a few precious seconds.
As the waves of monkeys crashed over her, she carried out the whirling maneuver Sensei had taught her and the others only two days earlier. As she did that, the monkeys flew backwards, damaging many of her own precious heirlooms in the process.
Then she saw Rufus go down under the weight of enemy blows. "Rufus San!"
And that was just before Monkey Fist delivered a sharp kick, knocking her head back into the footboard and making everything go black.
She winced at the headache. Fortunately, as her captor had informed her, it was only a flesh wound. Still, she hated to be the bait especially since it meant potential danger for her friends. Be careful, Ron San!