CHAPTER 13 / Timeless: Part Two

I urged her hand. "Ladies first," I said.

She smiled politely. "How chivalrous. I'll try to make your death less painful, then."

She came at me and swung a fast kick, aimed for my temple. I ducked, and her heel skimmed my head. I reached my hand up to catch her leg, and threw my arm to trip her other leg from under her. She fell onto the floor. I prepared to bring down my heel onto her stomach, but she rolled out from under me, rolled backward and landed on her feet. I saw the small belt around her thigh that acted as a knife holster.

I saw one of her throwing knives nearby on the floor. I grabbed it and moved quickly toward her. She grabbed another one and used it to block mine. With her free hand, she pulled another knife and swung for my abdomen. I arched my body, moving my waist just far away for her to cut my shirt clean through, barely grazing the skin. I delivered a swift kick to her midriff, pushing her away.

"You're not bad," she said, smiling at me.

I nodded, as if to say, 'you're not that bad, either.'

/ / / / /

Marisa was still pounding on the steel door. She really wanted to help me. Was I wrong to keep her from my side when she wanted to assist?

/ / / / /

Sakuya ran for me, then pulled a quick blade and threw it in my direction. I stopped it in midair. "Gonna have to show me some new tricks, maid!"

As I said that, she had disappeared, and reappeared behind me. A spellcard was standing in midair in front of her, frozen in time.

"Perfect Maid!"

A circle of knives was around me, all aimed at my waist. They stayed there, as if frozen in time. I was too surprised to react fast enough. I dove over one side of the knife ring, but not before catching four knives in the lower half of my leg. I yelled in pain before crashing to the floor.

She stood there, smiling, with a hint of satisfaction in her eyes. I was injured and on the floor, bleeding even more.

"You're making a mess. I should wrap this up so it doesn't get any worse down here."

I looked up, and gave a small laugh. "Is that your best?"

I made sure to keep my focus long enough to hold onto the blade I stopped before. It had fallen to the floor, but I was still manipulating it. I swung my arm up at Sakuya, and the blade arched across, following my arm's movement, cutting her deep in the shin. She started to bleed pretty quickly. She couldn't keep her weight on her leg anymore, and fell.

"Doesn't...feel too good, does it...?" My leg was throbbing. Four knives were still sticking out of it. I did the only thing I thought to do at the moment. I pulled them out, one excruciating blade at a time. Each time I pulled a blade from my leg, an arch of blood followed from my leg to the tip of the weapon. I cringed in pain after removing each one.

I stood up. My leg was bleeding, but the wound wasn't terrible. The pain was agonizing, but I would bear it. I looked down to the immobilized maid in the floor.

She showed a furious scowl. "You think this is over!? I'm not through!" She was barking at me like an infuriated child that wasn't getting her way.

"It is over. Even though you can still stop time around you, you can't stand. You are a fixed target."

Sakuya looked down. "You're right. How can I be so arrogant?..."

I took my and Marisa's spellcards from her, and walked back down to the cell where I had locked Marisa inside. She wasn't beating on the door anymore. I unbent the edges so the door would move, and removed it, standing it up against the concrete wall in the corridor. Marisa was sitting there, on the floor by the wall.

"Marisa, are you okay?"

She slapped me.

I was stunned for a couple seconds, and the room went dead silent. Then, I turned toward her.

"What the hell was THAT for!?"

She was yelling. "What right do you have to force me to sit here while you fight her by yourself, ze!? I was only trying to help!"

"'Help'? You threw a knife and hit her with the wrong end!"

"What else was I supposed to do!? She had our spellcards! I was trying to get them back, ze!"

"You didn't have anything to defend yourself in case she attacked you! You could have gotten your ass beat!"

"At least I had a plan! Why the hell is it such a problem!?"

"BECAUSE I WAS WORRIED THAT YOU WOULD GET HURT!"

"I-" She started to say something, but what I just said had stopped her cold.

I was speaking softly now. "You could have been hurt...I was worried...scared..." Tears were welling up in my eyes. I looked through them, into Marisa's. She was beginning to tear up as well.

"I don't want you to get hurt. I don't want you to die...I don't know what I'd do without you by my side... I..."

Marisa looked at me, as I looked at her.

"I...love you, Marisa." A tear finally rolled off my cheek and hit the floor.

Marisa was crying now. She wiped her eyes on her sleeve, then looked back at me, now smiling.

She then stepped closer and hugged me, wrapping her arms around my neck and resting her head upon my shoulder. I held her.

She then looked up at me, blushing, with tears rolling from her watery golden eyes, and smiled.

"I love you too, Raz..." We both stayed there, holding each other, smiling.

"I'm glad that I am with you, ze..." She leaned toward me.

"Me too." I closed my eyes.

Our lips met; we kissed.

/ / / / /

After giving Marisa her deck, we proceeded out of the cell. Sakuya was gone. My guess is that she had stopped time and hobbled away, or even crawled. She would now probably be informing Remilia of our escape.

"Marisa," I said, as I took her hand, "we're leaving. Let's go."

Marisa and I walked to the door at the end of the corridor. I didn't know what would happen beyond this door, or even if I would get out alive. But I was going to make damn sure Marisa escaped safely.

I took Marisa's hand, and opened the door.