Ack! Sorry I'm late! I was expecting to be able to go to the computer lab on Friday and didn't. So I'm updating today, Monday. One of my reviewers says that I put too much stuff before and after the chapters, so I've decided I won't do that unless I really feel like it, and today I really don't. So sit back and enjoy!

(I do not own Xiaolin Showdown or any of it's characters or locations/trademarks/mystic objects. The story is mine, but intertwines with the original, which I do not own.)

Chapter 8

Jack Spicer

"Jack! You failed again! WHY do you even BOTHER calling yourself a villain?"

"Nag, nag, nag, that's all you ever do! I can't even IMAGINE how YOU were an evil villain at all!"

"I'll have you know I was the greatest evil of all time in my day! I was feared by all, and I destroyed a great many!"

"Whatever. Obviously, you lost your touch if you're just floating around here as a ghostly disembodied head!"

Wuya and I bickered back and forth for a time. I can't believe that Xiaolin Loser beat me! And what's worse is he didn't even DO anything! Argh! Now Wuya hasn't shut up since we got home. She's always going on about how stupid and insignificant I am. If it wasn't for her ability to sense Shen-Gong-Wu, I would've kicked her out long ago. Of course, she hasn't been here that long. The truth of that matter is I'm not used to having someone around.

My name is Jack Spicer: Evil Boy Genius! Recently, I received a gift from my parents, who are on an archeological dig somewhere far away. I can't remember where. Anyway, it was an ancient wooden puzzle box. At first, I thought it was a cruddy gift. I opened it and there was this funky mask sitting there. Yep, a really cruddy gift. I had turned my back on it and continued working on my robots and when I looked again, the mask was floating and it had purple tendrils snaking out of it. I don't suppose I scare easy, but I was really freaked! That's how Wuya and I met. She's a ghost. Supposedly, when she was alive, she was this great evil witch. So she became my evil partner in crime. Or more like I became her new crony. As a ghost, she can't interact with anything solid. She can't do whatever it is that she wanted to do. So she's instructed me to do it for her. Supposedly, in order to rule the world, as is my ultimate dream, I must collect all of the Shen-Gong-Wu.

I want to rule the whole world! All of it! Not some of it! Not just Iceland or Fiji! I want to rule the whole world! And if collecting Shen-Gong-Wu for an evil Heylin witch-ghost is how I'll do it, then I will do it!

She had explained that Shen-Gong-Wu, known as Wu for short, are mystical and magical artifacts capable of amazing feats. But they're hidden all over the planet and impossible to find until they reveal themselves. I remember the first Shen-Gong-Wu being the Mantis Flip Coin. And of course, with the revealing of the Mantis Flip Coin, I met four dweebs and a puny lizard-looking dragon named Dojo, who were also in search of the Shen-Gong-Wu.

They are the force for good, and they really get on my nerves. I really like messing with the little bald-headed freak they call Omi. He doesn't get slang, though, so that's really frustrating. Wuya calls them the Xiaolin Warriors. Now I have to compete with them to get the Wu. I suppose I was lucky that I found a magical mime in Paris, even if he was super irritating. I used him to distract those Xiaolin dweebs when the Fist of Tabigong revealed itself. Speaking of mimes, that reminds me…

"Note to self: Destroy all mimes." I wrote down on a sticky note. I stuck the note on the wall behind my computer monitor. I had that wall dedicated to my notes of things to do when I rule the world. I turned around. Wuya was still muttering to herself.

I started my work of repairing some of my broken JackBots. Why do those jerks always have to dismember them? It would make my work a whole lot easier if they would just disappear. Or at the very least, let my JackBots destroy them. Honestly, I hate those guys!

Wuya screamed. I jumped with a start and stared at Wuya.

"Don't DO that! You startled me!" I shouted. Her purple mass was writhing around and a golden light glowed from her eyes, like she was sensing the revealing of another Shen-Gong-Wu. She screamed and wailed until the gold light was extinguished, then floated around in circles, shivering and hyperventilating.

"What's wrong with you, now?" I asked crossly.

"Something has happened. Something terrible! I would know that feeling anywhere only this is twice as painful! Oh what'll we do, what'll we do?" Wuya babbled.

"Wuya, what's going on?" I asked. Suddenly she was an inch away from my face, forcing me to lean back.

"Grand Master Dashi is back! Do you have any idea what this means? Of course you don't! HE'S the one who made me like this in the first place! And HE'S the one who created the Shen-Gong-Wu! What I just felt was the exact same feeling I had when I first sensed him!" Wuya screamed.

"But isn't he, like, you know, dead? If he came back, he would be a ghost. It must be someone else. Maybe someone related to him?"

"You fool! Dashi never had family! If he did, I would have found them and destroyed them!"

"Calm down! Don't the legends say that it was rumored he came from a different world? He just appeared out of nowhere one day and decided to fight you."

"Yes, those rumors are true. Dashi was sent from a different world, he told me so himself, arrogant little—"

"Well maybe he had family in that other world or whatever. If he was sent when you were alive before, maybe one of his descendants has been sent to combat you now. If that's true, then don't you think we should try and find him? If we capture whoever was sent, we can stop him before anything happens. Better yet, if we can control him, we can use him against those Xiaolin Losers." I suggested. Wuya looked at me in surprise.

"Jack, as ridiculous as you are, that is probably the most brilliant idea that you will ever come up with."

"Thank y— wait a minute! I'm sure I'll come up with a ton of other brilliant ideas in the future! You can't just peg me like that!"

"Sure I can. I'm older than you and I know what I'm doing." Wuya retorted.

"But- but- That's not fair! That's not even right! Besides, you're dead, so age doesn't count."

"Oh, stop your whining and let's go already. If I had to guess, Dashi's descendant will be at the Xiaolin Temple."

"Xiaolin Temple it is. Maybe I can steal back the Wu while we're there." I said as I gathered my things. Should we take the jet or the car? Or maybe I can just hover-pack over there…?

"Hurry up, jack!"

"I'm comin', I'm comin'…" Jeeze.

I climbed into my jet and strapped myself in. Wuya floated alongside me in the cabin. We took off and headed towards the Xiaolin Temple.

When we landed, we were just inside the wall. I looked at Wuya. She was looking kinda twitchy. She saw me looking.

"I can sense it. A change is taking place. He is vulnerable. If we strike now, we'll succeed for sure." She said.

"If you say so." I climbed out and maneuvered around the temple grounds. I started to head towards the vault, but Wuya stopped me.

"He's not in there! He's in the main house. You can go back for the Wu later. This is more important." She whispered fiercely. I nodded my head and crept closer to the main house.

Creeping through the halls, I let Wuya lead the way. We quickly passed the room where those Xiaolin Losers were eating their dinner. I stopped once we were around the corner. I could still hear them talking. I motioned for Wuya to stop so I could listen. She gave me an exasperated look, but she stopped. I listened closely.

Kimiko: What's gonna happen now?

Master Fong: We wait.

Raimundo: But for how long?

Master Fong: Until the egg hatches. I don't know when that will be, only that when it's ready, it will.

Dojo: Dashi went through almost the exact same thing. It only lasted through the night and part of the next day. He was injured too. When he came to, he said that most times, a Traveler will enter a world at the mercy of others and most likely injured and in pain. They´re quick healers, though and make speedy recoveries.

Omi: But what will we do when she wakes up? She'll need training.

Clay: Maybe she's already had training of some sort. She did say she took self-defense.

Kimiko: Yeah, but I bet it was just a RAD class or two. They might have those where she's from. You never know. Her world might be a lot worse than this.

Raimundo: Uh, what's a RAD class?

Master Fong: Rape Aggression Defense. I've heard of that before. It's a very useful class that women can take. It teaches them what to do when attacked and how to handle it.

Clay: Either way, at least she's had some training. It'll give us something to build on if she needs more.

Raimundo: You're forgetting something. She never said she would fight. Maybe her father did, but who's to say she will? Just because she was sent to help doesn't mean she'll actually fight. If she has magical powers, she may just use them to help us…

Kimiko: I'm sure she's gonna be fighting, Raimundo.

I motioned for Wuya to move again. So this descendant is a girl then. And they said 'her father', so she's obviously his daughter. I didn't expect that. I had never thought of there being other worlds, and when I did, I assumed that the time and pacing was the same. It never occurred to me that we'd have to deal with Dashi's daughter! And what was that about an egg?

I soon saw exactly what they were talking about when Wuya led me into a nearby room. In the middle of it stood a giant egg, the biggest egg I'd ever seen! It was covered in swirling designs and multiple colors that consisted of clouds and fish, leaves and flames, along with several hues of silvers and blues. Every inch of the egg was in motion!

My heart thumped in my chest. I felt something strange here, like something was off. There was a sort of invisible pressure in the room that pressed against my skin as I approached the egg.

"Hey! Get away from there!"

I jumped and spun around to face whoever shouted. All four of the dweebs were standing behind me in the doorway, as well as their master. I felt the pressure intensify.

"Ha ha ha! And what makes you think we'll actually listen to you?" Wuya cackled evilly. "Besides, you can't stop me anyway!"

"Guess what, dweeb-heads. We're takin' THIS with us!" I shouted, sweeping my hand toward the egg. They all started for me but the old geezer held them back.

"Wait," he said. "Don't approach them. Something is wrong in this room. Can you feel it?"

"Hmm, I wonder…" Wuya muttered, apparently not listening. She was floating above the egg. Then I watched her plunge into it.

Immediately, the pressure intensified to such a degree that my ears popped. Then an ear-splitting scream shattered the air and an intense light enveloped the room. Raimundo screamed, "NO!" and the Xiaolin Warriors' faces were all struck with horror. I turned to see what was happening. I gave a shriek of my own when I saw what lay before me.

Raimundo

My heart lurched in my chest. The egg seemed to explode when Melody screamed, but it still held together. It was as if it blew up in slow motion and freeze-framed so that everything was frozen in the middle of the explosion, leaving the pieces suspended five feet from their original positions. Every individual shell piece had a white, gooey-looking, tendril-like arm attached the back of it. A clear, watery membrane surrounded Melody, with the egg pieces floating on the surface of it, for the entire egg had expanded outward when it shattered, as if an explosion had occurred from within. The sight of Melody now was horrifying. She was writhing in agony again, but she couldn't move around as freely, for all the tendril-like arms attached to the backs of the egg pieces were tightly wrapped around various parts of her body, keeping her suspended in the center. I think some of them were actually attached to her!

Looking at the tendrils connecting her to the egg shells, I noticed that her clothing had been dissolved, leaving a thin filmy fog around where it had been. Milky wads of tissues floated around within the membrane and some were connected haphazardly between Melody and the membrane and egg shells. Blood mingled around with everything else, as it was steadily dribbling from Melody's wound.

Melody's screams were muffled through the membrane, but we could still hear them, loud and clear. Her eyes were wide open again, spilling light as well as tears and blood. Wuya, I saw, was stuck and suspended in the egg with Melody. As we all watched, stricken, white wads of tissue shot out of Melody's skin and latched firmly onto Wuya. A dark mass was forming at the center of Melody's chest, where her heart was supposed to be.

The dark mass was an ugly thing, bubbling up out of Melody. I couldn't tell if it was black, purple, or red, but I could tell that it was evil and dangerous. It sprouted black tentacles that snaked around with purposeful menace. They struck Wuya and latched a hold of her essence while she struggled. It was apparent that she wasn't going to escape.

Melody's screams made the membrane tremble violently and the egg shells shake along with it. The sound rose in pitch.

The dark mass was growing bigger, slowly pulling Wuya towards its center. Blood was dripping out of Melody more thickly now. Her eyes turned red as blood streamed out from them, making her scream even louder. The sound alone was seriously threatening to shatter the thin membrane that protected her. As it was, it rippled and wavered violently, pitching the egg shells around dangerously. The dark mass started to creep over Melody's body, tendrils cutting her and making her bleed wherever they touched, and it fed off the blood. The snaking tendrils were wrapping around Melody to bind and constrict her. Already, they were curled around her arms and legs and beginning to slice her throat. Wuya struggled even harder the closer she got to the core of the dark mass. The expression on her face was so terrified, I almost felt bad for her. But I was more concerned for Melody's sake. As it was, Melody's body convulsed uncontrollably

Remember your promise. Fate's voice resonated in my head. I wrenched myself out of Master Fong's grasp and ran past Jack, knocking him to the ground in the process.

"Raimundo, no! Stay away from her! She'll suck you in!" Master Fong shouted. I ignored him and did what my gut told me to do. I am her PureHeart, I have to protect her, I thought unconsciously. I stopped just in front of the egg's membrane and thrust both of my hands forward, slapping them to the rubbery surface and, pushing against it, I willed my strength and power into it. I heard the others gasp behind me. I didn't bother to look because I was too focused on trying to save Melody. I knew something terrible would happen if Wuya was absorbed by that mass of darkness. I can't let that happen. I felt my hands heat up. Gold sparks of light were firing out of my hands and into the egg. They formed thick streams, and the strong ribbons of power started to flow faster. I watched them shoot straight at the dark mass and at its core. I beat away the evil cords binding Melody and sealed her wounds in glowing light.

The dark mass started retreating into Melody. The golden light I threw at it continued to beat away and slice through it, but it only made it retreat faster. The black tentacles that held Wuya began loosening its grip, but they continued to haul Wuya in towards its center. Whatever evil this is, it's determined to swallow up Wuya. My golden light struck again and again at the pair, until finally, it sliced off a tiny bit of Wuya, at which she howled in pain. The black cords of the evil mass released Wuya completely and instead went for the small piece of her that I had accidentally sliced off and dragged it back to Melody. Before I could stop it, the dark mass disappeared completely, along with that small piece of Wuya. My golden light surrounded Melody in a cocoon as it filled up the entire egg with its power and light, pushing Wuya out at the same time.

I sighed, exhausted from giving away my strength and power. I went to pull my hands away, but they wouldn't move. I tugged on them. They wouldn't budge. I started getting worried, then remembered that Master Fong said that she would suck me in! As soon as I thought those thoughts, I felt a tug on my hands. I looked up from them and into the egg.

Melody had stopped screaming when the dark mass had retreated. She gasped and writhed. She was no longer bleeding, but with the force and the shock of the darkness, her chest rose and fell in rapid succession. Her eyes were wide open, from the shock, but the only light was the light that I had put in her egg. Her eyes, though open, spilled no light, but the whole of her entire eye was still red with unshed blood. Her hands were clenching and unclenching, like she was still trying to fight something.

Again, I felt the pull. This time it was constant. I could see within the egg that the golden light was gradually being sucked away; Melody was absorbing it. I looked at my hands again and saw that the golden light was tied into my fingers with tiny threads. I tugged at my hands again, but they still didn't come away. I kept up my own pull and said, "Um, guys? A little help, please? She's trying to suck me in! I'm stuck!"

Jack was sitting on the floor where he landed when I pushed him, watching in silence with stunned interest. I think he may have also been frozen with shock. Omi, Clay, Kimiko, Master Fong, and Dojo came and grabbed hold of me and pulled. By now, my hands were fully within the egg's watery membrane and they continued to be sucked in until I was up to my elbows in goo.

We were all straining to pull me out. I grit my teeth and tried to pull back with my feet. I could see a wad of white tissue starting to float towards me. If that thing latches onto me, I thought, I'm done for! I clenched my fists, still submerged in the goo that filled the egg.

The instant I did so, the gold threads of light that were attached to my fingers broke off with an audible Snap! and we all tumbled backwards into a heap on the floor. I stood up and flexed my fingers while the others stood and brushed themselves off. We all watched , transfixed, as Melody absorbed the remains of my golden light before the tissues and tendrils connected to her contracted and pulled both the membrane and the egg pieces back together. Before they closed, I saw her curl up in on herself and relax, closing her eyes. All of the cracks where the egg had been shattered glowed a blindingly bright blue that disappeared as each crack was sealed. Melody's egg was whole again.

Kimiko and Clay turned around to deal with Jack Spicer, while Omi and Dojo inspected the egg and Master Fong inspected me.

"You're extremely lucky, Raimundo. You should have listened to me." Master Fong said sternly. When I bowed my head, though, his voice was softer. "However, I'm glad you didn't. Something terrible would have happened if you did, I'm sure. You salvaged the situation and kept it from becoming a complete disaster. I doubt anyone else could have done so." Then, in a whisper, he said, "Fate has chosen you, hasn't she?" Master Fong said as he looked me over. He made sure my arms were okay before letting go. I looked up at him.

"I already know of your encounter with Fate, Raimundo. I believe she has entrusted to you a great knowledge. She wouldn't give that sort of thing to just any ordinary mortal, now, would she?" So he already knew. How did he even find out? Oh, duh. Fate probably told him. Oh well. At least it's not a total secret, now. It'll be easier to keep. And if Master Fong thinks that the others should know, then he'll tell them. I just hope he doesn't know the exact details of my encounter with Melody…

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