Chapter 8: Revenge and Justice
We arrived back at Primp Magic School where everyone else was waiting, more people than I expected too. I guess that there were others that wanted to help out too. "Where were you guys? You've been gone for like an hour!" Amitie was pouting and everyone else tapped their foots in impatience and irritation. "Okay, see here guys, Ringo isn't doing too well. She was targeted by one who works for Klug's father, he had beaten her to where she became defenseless." Everyone reacted to this immediately. "*gasp*" Klug continued for me. "It's fine though, we stopped this worker bee and rescued Ringo, thanks to this Jace fellow." I finished the updates. "Through interrogation, we discovered the exact location of the person we have all been looking for in the forest…" "Uh excuse me, but who was the "worker bee" of Klug's father?" Lidelle asked. "Anyone here know of Maguro? He was the one responsible for not only hurting Ringo, but also being an accomplice of setting Suzuran High ablaze." I said and everyone exclaimed. "What?!" What followed after was a series of voices in chaos, all of them discussing in confusion. "Everyone! Please calm yourselves!" It all stops at my spoken words and silence returns. "This is not going to get us anywhere. We need to hunt this criminal down, we cannot let him get away with this terrorism in both Primp and Suzuran. Who's with me?" I asked. "We are!" Everyone replied. "Good, follow us, we know the location that-" I get cut off. "Hold on! I need you to know who I am first before we strike." I was confused. "Who is this? Come to the front of the group so that I can see you." It was a girl's voice, sounded somewhat tomboyish. Then she came to view, this girl had lightly plated armor and looked to be adventurous. A cape flew behind and her hair was a bright orange with a ponytail. "It's so nice to meet you finally, Amitie told me a bunch about you. As a fellow mage, I say hi to you, I'm Arle Nadja!" "Uuuum, hi… Did you mean to say that you're a friend of Amitie's and a mage, Arle?" I questioned as she smiled and giggled. "We go back a few years as friends, let's leave it at that…" "I see… AH! Wh-what is that thing Arle?!" She realized what I was reacting to. "Aw, hahaha! You mean Carby? Don't worry, he's my little friend here." Carby stares at me and smiles blankly. "Gu! Gugugu!" I assumed that he liked me. "Um... alright then, introductions out of the way… can we all move on to what we truly are here to set out on?" I asked and everyone else nodded. "Then let's go into the damned forest then, before it gets dark out…" We all enter in as the large group that we are.
The forest was dense, but we knew where to find Dioge. It only took us a while, but other things happened on the way. "So... hey Dave, how good are you with magic? Amitie told me that you are one to shock the world with your spells, but I haven't seen them." Arle wondered. "Oh, you'll surely see me in action once I brawl with the criminal. I have three spells that I can use right now, they're potent but I still lack absolute control of them. The only things changing the power of these puppies are my emotions. As you might expect... when I fight for others as an example, I release true power." Arle was in awe. "Wow, so you battle to protect your friends? That's very noble of you, you're kind of like someone else I know, Schezo, except not sounding as perverted as him…" I didn't know who Schezo was at the time. "Hm, who is that Arle? I'm sure that he's cool beyond that trait, I'd like to meet him someday…" We marched until a silhouette came to view, it was the building by the largest tree. All just like what Maguro said to be true. "Alright, we found it guys, but I see guards surrounding the perimeter. I'm going to split everyone up into separate teams. Me, Arle, and Amitie will be Team 1. Lemres, Feli, and Klug will be Team 2. Raffina, Lidelle, and Tarutaru will be Team 3." I kept constructing teams for the group so we can cause some mayhem. Since there were other people that I did not know of, they introduced themselves to me. Some of them felt more significant than others. "Hi, I'm the lovable Draco Centauros and can I say this? Maaaan you look handsome!" She flattered me a little as I observed her looks. She was half-girl, half-dragon. It intrigued me to say the least, with her beautiful looks, green hair and all. Then this guy came up, he didn't seem to exhibit much emotion. One eye, as well as one hand on his were red. "Who are you?" He looked up at me "Sig... just Sig." He said in a monotone voice. "Oookay then…" I said awkwardly. And then lastly I meet yet another friend of Arle's it seemed. "Why hello there, my name is Rulue, so Arle wanted to me to help in this cause… I decided to go for the greater good of it all. By the way, I'm known to many as a beauty with incredible martial arts skill. My kicks can easily crack a boulder in two... behold, the power of the fighting queen!" I was stunned at her fighting spirit. "I-I see, I'm impressed."
So I now had organized all of the teams, which there are now six. I laid down the pathway for everyone right here. "Alright, here's the plan. Teams 1 and 2 are to go through the front entrance, but not before a little diversion takes place… Teams 3 and 4 will distract the guards at the front part of the building. Meanwhile, Teams 5 and 6 will do the same for the back side, any questions?" No one had anything ask beforehand it seemed. "Okay, let's do this guys, get into your positions." I commanded. We all went to our designated locations to wait. I eventually waved a signal to Teams 3 and 4 to go, and then they made one for Teams 5 and 6. My plan was officially in motion, the guards noticed and took the bait. "Alright Teams 1 and 2 let's breach the criminal's hideout!" I yelled. We ran as fast as we could to the double-doors and rammed them with all our might. "Hwoooooogh!" We all yelled. *boom* The doors opened and we successfully entered the building. There were a few rooms on the side, but we kept heading straight. I saw a door at the end of the hallway labeled Mr. Stanford. "This has to be it guys, follow me!" We bashed through the singular door and we're met with surprise from the man himself. "What the hell?! How did a bunch of brats get in here, who are you, and what have you done with my underlings?!" He clearly looked steamed. As I said something in response, I noticed that he had quite the mustache and beard, as well as wearing a black suit. "Dioge Stanford… I take it you are? We've been tracking you down for a while, you can thank your subordinate Maguro for allowing us to find this location. And just for the record Mr. Stanford, we are not brats. We're here to take vengeance on you and have justice deliver you to prison where you belong!" He panicked for a minute. "Damn you! I won't have you children capture me so easily! If you truly know who I am, then you should be afraid of the magic that I carry… Tectonic Shift!" The ground started to shake beneath us. "Whoa-oh-oh-oh!" We all exclaimed. All of us collided with the ground hard as we groaned in agony. "Hahahaha! Now you know the consequences of messing with me…" "Hold it right there!" I heard a voice, it was Klug. "I have some personal business with you…" He said. "Ha, who are you to tell me that?" Dioge questioned. "I see, so you do not recognize me after all of these years…" "Recognize…? Who are you, specifically?" Klug told Dioge the truth about himself. "Father, it is me... your son, Klug… I am here with my friends to make you repent for the sins that you have created throughout these years!" "WHAT?! I thought I disposed of you the day that I left the family…!" Dioge was boiling and seething with rage. "Well you didn't, I am still alive. That day was your biggest mistake of all, Father... because that was when you decided to turn to a life a crime. Not only that, but you brought shame to the family by leaving, tearing up honor and dignity. You were so fixated on achieving perfection... that you forgot human morale! To me, I no longer see you as my father, instead just an empty shell that is occupied by a ruthless demon. You know, originally I wanted to kill you for your transgressions, however very much has changed. I knew that if I were to get blood on my hands, I would be no better than you. Additionally, it'll be more satisfying seeing you rot away in a cell for the rest of your life. Dave here has shown me the way. He showed me that there is more than one way to resolve a criminal issue. And if you cannot see one, then improvise with the best of intentions! I used to be scared of you, Father... but that has changed since that day. As a matter of fact, I'll no longer call you "Father" at this point. You disgraced the family too much, prepare yourself Dioge!" Dioge was angrier than before. "You insolent excuse for a son, you dare cast my relation to you as parent away?!" I decided to cut in. "It seems you still don't understand Mr. Stanford, Klug doesn't want to be associated with one who turned his back on his own family!" "SILENCE! This has nothing to do with you, what would you know about the Stanford family?! They are a bunch of pansies that don't strive for perfect results!"
Dioge casts another spell, directly targeting me this time. "Fist of Might!" He yells. "Oh… shit…" The magic fueled fist struck me hard. "OOF! AHHH!" I flew around and made impact with the wall before falling back now on the ground. "Oooooh…" I was barely conscious, I couldn't move my body, but I was still able to hear voices clear as day. "DAVE!" Everyone yelled. Then I heard footsteps from the other teams enter the room and then, reactions upon reactions started. Some people came up to me, Arle, Amitie, Klug, Sig, and Draco. "D-Dave?!" Arle cried. I saw her tears as well as Amitie's, they were truly concerned for my well-being. Everyone else roared out a battle cry and began fighting bravely against Dioge in my absence. "Even more of these brats showed up, how many are there?!" And so, Dioge was kept busy. "A-Arle… Amitie… Klug… all of you… *cough cough cough*. I've never... felt pain like this before… I think… my vitals will... give in." "Don't say that! I wanted to know who you were on the inside, I'm not gonna give up on you like this!" Arle said. "Me too, I liked you being at Primp Magic School with us, Dave…" Amitie added on. "I'm sure that our friendship will pull through somehow…" Klug hoped. "You're too cool to lose at the hands of this dick." Sig inspired. "I can't say goodbye to a hot guy like you, Dave…!" Draco pleaded. "Well… if you guys... believe in me... not to die here now… then does someone here have healing magic?" Arle spoke up. "I do, but it's not enough, I need other powers to combine it with to completely heal you right away." "Wait, I have this dragon stone that is meant to help relieve pain…" Draco pulled out the stone and I smiled loosely. "We have the powers then... in this little circle. I have an idea… of mine… that I wish to see work." I discussed the idea to them, basically stuffing the dragon stone with a one time heal, combined with specific attributes. All for me to take into my body, one attribute from each person. I asked each of them what their single greatest strength in battle is currently. Arle's was hope, Amitie's was optimism, Klug's being wisdom, Sig's being resilience, and finally Draco's was ferocity. I told them to exert that one attribute into the stone, to which they did. "Okay… Draco, what… is next?" I asked. "Hold the stone close to your body, it should start to seep in through your skin by itself. She responded. The stone will then do the magic and fix you up." I did what she told me to do, and it worked like a charm. Any wounds or broken bones that I had before were gone, and I felt more empowered than ever before. I stood up and discovered a new power deep inside, it called out for me. "Come, you must take your stance as the new Demonic Dragon Warrior. Otherwise, you might not be able to save your friends from destruction." A deep voice in my mind said. "Very well, I accept the pact to be this "Demonic Dragon Warrior", so that I may defeat those I hate for all the right reasons." I finished saying that in my mind and I received this most recent power.
I stood up as though no pain had been brought to me."Alright everyone, I'm fine now, you may cease your fighting so that you can save your own lives!" I alerted them as they all were relieved and rushed back behind me for safety. "H-how is this possible? I knocked your ass all the way to a wall, YOU SHOULDN'T BE STANDING!" Dioge yelled. "Well Dioge, there's something that you did not account for, my friends. If it weren't for them, I wouldn't be still alive. That's something that you don't have... you don't have others to rely on for help. And back to the whole "perfection" thing, you should know that humans aren't made for perfection. We are sinful by nature and have limitations that shackle us from anything that we are not meant to do. However, we try to do the best we can with good intentions, despite that. It's not perfection, hell no it isn't, but I think it's better off that way. Obtaining power that is not meant for humans can be world ending. That's why I fight for what I believe is good, to purge out evil before it consumes us all. Case and point, you are a part of that evil that shouldn't exist in this world. If you truly have a change of heart, then I will forgive you. So what is your response to my words of wisdom, buddy?" I asked as Dioge continued to rage. "Like hell I will change who I am, I will never leave the way of perfection, you bitch!" He screamed at me. "Alright Mr. Stanford, you asked for this, you have sealed your own fate! Hrrrrrrrrrrr… RAH!" A black and red colored armor covered me up to my neck. This armor kind of looked like scales of a dragon, I was awed by the look of it. "Woah… This is fucking cool… Anyway, time to take this on a test drive, Raaaaaaah!"
I threw out a punch towards him, noticing that my agility is greater than before. He didn't have time to react before I made contact. "UOGH!" He screamed. I then roundhouse kicked him toward the wall behind him. "Ack!" He limped while trying to stand up. "Give it up Dioge, you can't win, this is checkmate." "This… isn't over yet… brat! I still have one ace up my sleeve, and it's right here." He moves over to a nearby lever, which he proceeds to flip. "Hehehe, you all have a nice trip now..." "What do you mean by that? Answer me damn-AAAAAAAAAAH!" I heard everyone else scream behind me, he activated a trap door. I fell into what seemed to be a dungeon, all of my friends followed along. "That… bastard! He had that trump card just in case he was going to be screwed! Everyone, are you okay?" I hear a response from Arle. "We're fine Dave, barring a few bruises or so." We all began to worry. "I-isn't there a way out of here?" Lidelle asked, frightened. "I hope there is, otherwise... everything that we've done up to now will have been for nothing. Let's start looking for a way out." I told everyone. We started looking for a possible exit out of here, but to no avail. "No way! We're stuck down here?!" Amitie yelled. "Looks like it, Amitie… got any other ideas, Dave?" Lemres asked. "Hm… well if I see where we fell from… I got it. If we can't find an exit, we'll just have to make one! Rulue, I need your martial art expertise. We're gonna be punching holes upward through this wall until we feel a breeze." Rulue was happy to help out with a nod. "I don't mind getting myself dirty if it means that we can get out of this hellhole." She said. "Alright, on a count of three, we'll starting drilling through… one… two… three!" We started to perform this arduous task. At first, it went by slowly, but once we got past the concrete... the rest of it was like a hot knife going through butter. We were panting and whatnot, but we didn't care. All that me and Rulue were concerned about was freeing everyone. By the time that we were done, dirt covered us in a layer. "Everyone, the pathway to escape has been created, follow us!" Everyone else cheered for us as we guided them out. Once that was taken care of, I was hellbent on stopping Dioge. "I do have to say Dave, your technique is quite admirable, I'm impressed." Rulue complimented me. "Aw, come on, you're making me embarrassed…" I said bashfully. "Um hello, we have something important to do…" Klug reminded me. "Oh yes, let us finish what we intended on." We arrived back at his office where he was heard speaking to himself. "Ah, things are so much better when there aren't people trying to ruin my crime life…" I decide to act like a smartass and smile. "You wanna run that by me again, Chief?" Dioge jumped and turned around. "WHAT?! How did you-?!" I cut his questioning off. "I told you Mr. Stanford, it's over for you. Time for you to realize that, Heavenly Flare!" I flashed the strong light to distract him. "Rrrrr! It's so… bright!" I got close to him and used a new spell of mine. "Klug! Use your gravity spell on him now!" Klug yells out his spell. "Gravity's Strength!" Dioge was held in place. "Wh-what? I can't move!" He exclaimed. "Claw... of Shadows!" I yelled. "ARGH!... oooough…" Dioge screamed. I knocked him out after slashing his face.
Dioge Stanford was at last, defeated. I came out victorious in the end. "And that's how you properly stop a criminal…" I said. I heard cheers from all around me as well as stuff like "Great job!". My dragon armor faded away automatically. "So… who can call the police to get this guy?" I asked. "I can…" This came from a voice that I didn't expect. "Jace, you're here?" "I have just arrived to see that the guards have been knocked unconscious, and now Dioge as well… Anyway, I'll take him off of your hands if you don't mind…" He proceeds to call the police of Primp Town. "Very nice, good job everyone, for helping me and Klug." I say as Klug goes to face me. "Dave, I just want to say… thank you for everything…" I smiled to him. "No problem, not just us, but everyone else is happy too. We have re-established peace in this world and in Suzuran. Klug, I am just as grateful to you as you are to me…" We all begin to leave from this place. We may have had wounds and hardships throughout the battle… however with hope and friendship, we pulled through in the end. And now, we looked forward to what the future holds for us all, whether it is good or bad. Little did I know though, this would only be the beginning of my crazy new life.
Author's Notes: This is the last chapter that'll have a big focus on story for a little while. The next few chapters at least will be more… humorous and less serious. I mean, I can't have all of this be just action filled. What I'm saying is that there needs to be some downtime for the characters. All to either bring lighthearted fun or different character development to fruition.
