*wimpers in a corner* This chapter was ssssssssssooooo long! I'm not used to it! D:
Maybe the fight scenes were too long? Please let me know!
Review responses -
Nutella: Hell yeah! I'm glad the romance portion turned out so well! :D Makes me all happy and junk. lol And I hope your cold has gone now. Mine has, though I still sometimes get mucus and blegh, but it's slowly going away. *cold buddy high-five*
Hunting
Despite how silent my surroundings where, they were much louder than what went on during my sleep. I hadn't dreamed at all. I barely remember closing my eyes. The morning sunlight trickling through the window curtains alerted my body to the current time. My eyes flashed open, and only then did memories flood back to me.
He was there. He had laid next to me in this very bed.
Now, Slender Man wasn't with me. I was alone in the pond of silken fabrics.
As I groggily slid out of the bed, my body reminded me of the aches and pains it had suffered the night before. I wasn't nearly as sore as I thought I'd be, but that was probably because of the healing factor within the mansion. My hand wounds, however, were still fresh; the bandages needed to be changed.
My first instinct was to clean myself up. No doubt, Sierra hadn't bothered with a shower during her rampage. So, I stepped over to the antique dresser and swung open its decorated doors. To my surprise, there was only one set of fresh clothes to wear. I was certain Slender Man had planted them there on purpose.
Neatly folded in the perfect traditional Japanese style were my gi and hakama, along with some underwear off to the side. It had been years since I last wore my old gi, and I hadn't collected them before escaping from my house. It was some sort of miracle that they were even here in such great condition. I knew they were mine due to the wear and tear on the corners of the rectangular back brace that attached to the hakama.
Well, I guess it wouldn't hurt to put them on for old time's sake.
After gathering my assorted clothes, I crept out of the room and into the bathroom down the hall. A relaxing bath would surely soothe my sore muscles, so I soaked myself in the heavily scented water. I had poured a bit of bubble mix into it. The chemicals stung my hand wounds, but I ignored the vague discomfort. Despite how fresh the cuts were, my adrenaline had taken over the pain sensory in that hand, so it didn't hurt nearly as much as the night before.
The running bath water had my thoughts drifting just as quickly as itself. Thoughts of the Oni brothers, thoughts of Slender and I's fight, thoughts of the conflicting emotions between us.
His touch. Though He aimed to intimidate me, Slender had been quite gentle, so far. He had still not given his all during out fight. Even when He seemed irritated by my antics, Slender Man withheld the urge to tear me apart. Deep down, I kinda hoped that He had some sort of feelings for me. Maybe, if things went right, I wouldn't have to be lonely anymore. I would be able to regularly feel the touch of a man – er, male being – who cared for me.
The strange fantasies of Slender kissing all over me, of us sharing intimacy through both willing sides, had me blushing heavily. There was no way that we could get along like that. Heck, I'm sure there was a category of sexual preference for this sort of thing. Was it morally okay to love a monster such as the Slender Man?
I shook off the silly thoughts as I climbed out of the bathtub, letting the water drain, and wrapped a towel around me. The fact that I was even letting them develop into thoughts was preposterous! How could I let someone such as Him into my life that way?
No, thank you.
Still, how long has it been since I had a lover? Years, for certain. It was some time before I moved to Arkansas, but I can't quite put a name or face to him. No, wait. Was it that man – the one from my dreams? I can't remember us breaking up, though. That surely would have scarred into my mind, right?
The thudding sounds of my skull cracking began to sound, a relieving release of pressure pointed out exactly where it was happening. My heart began to race as images of the British man began to flash before my eyes.
A large, dark figure appeared before me. "Stop it."
I immediately knew who it was, but I couldn't help jumping back in surprise, "Gah! Stop what?" My eyes glared up at the lacking face of Slender Man as I gripped the towel around me. The last thing I needed, after thinking all those awkward thoughts about Him, was for Slender to see me naked.
"Triggering Sierra," He said. "I'm growing weary of having these false intimate relations with you."
Tch. He says it like it's such a bad thing. "Yeah. Keep telling yourself that." I waved a shooing hand at the tall being, trying not to look at Him anymore. The awkward situation was getting to me. "Now, get out so I can get dressed."
It didn't take long for Slender to do as I told, which was surprising, since I said it like a command. When I was sure He was out of the bathroom, I quickly slipped on all of my clothing. The white gi and black hakama required some careful attention, since they had to be tied specifically. I was amazed that I even remembered out to tie on the hakama, considering that it needed two of the four ties to wrap around my waist twice, the knot in the back, then the other two ties had to knot in the front with a special style. This style was mostly from my dojo's preference.
The feeling of being in traditional samurai clothing was nostalgic. I hadn't worn anything like it in a long, long time. Even the flowing leggings of the hakama, despite how it looked like a dress, felt wonderful. My body felt brand new.
Then my stomach rumbled.
Really? After all the food Slender made me eat last night?
I shook my head amusedly and gave in to the hunger pains.
When I reached the kitchen, I found Masky and Hoodie sitting next to each other at the dining table. They were eating rather quietly, at least, until I walked in.
Hoodie was the first to look up from his plate of bacon and eggs, "It's the Ninja Bitch." He then looked toward me, "Hey, Ninja Bitch." He threw a half-hearted wave to me.
Masky, on the other hand, shook his head with an exasperated sigh. I could tell he didn't want to get involved.
Out of instinct, I reached for my swords, which should have been on my left hip, but they weren't. I mentally slapped myself as I remembered that they were still in my room. A faint growl of frustration escaped me. "You're lucky I'm still exhausted." I couldn't admit that I forgot my weapons, that would give Hoodie the upper hand of making a fool out of me.
"Yeah, from getting pounded in the ass by Master," Hoodie stated with an obvious grin under his ski mask.
Orange juice came spraying out of Masky's lips. He began coughing and hacking as he choked on his drink.
Absolutely flustered, I lost my temper and began charging at Hoodie. He was going down now! I was going to strangle him, beat his face in, break his arms and legs - all kinds of stuff! That was what I planned, of course; however, Slender Man had other ideas.
Clutching his head, Hoodie began to scream in sheer agony. This had stopped me in my tracks. "I'm sorry, Master!" He then fell out of his chair, writhing and screaming. I almost felt sorry for Hoodie, but he was asking for it.
Masky jumped out of his chair and held his partner's arms down. Something told me that Hoodie might rip out his scalp or something if he wasn't controlled. Man, his brain must be on fire! A smirk curled onto my lips, satisfied with the yellow-hooded man's punishment.
I turned around, having that strange feeling that someone was behind me, and sure enough, there was Slender Man. He looked pretty upset. "Aww," I cooed the monster, "Is someone embarrassed?"
"You know well that there was no 'ass pounding' between us last night," Slender Man growled. By this point, Hoodie had stopped screaming and struggling. I would have figured him to have passed out, but his heavy breathing made me think otherwise. Can you breathe heavily when unconscious like that?
Anyway, I rolled my eyes at Slender, partially amused that He understood basic curse words and at least some sexual slangs. "Well, duh. You still cuddled me, though." A sly grin replaced the smirk I had earlier.
"It was necessary to suppress Sierra," Slender stated bluntly. He walked past me without another word. I was a little disappointed that our argument was over, but then I saw Him pick up Hoodie by the collar. Postponing further punishment on Hoodie would just be a waste, in my opinion.
So, I shrugged it off and began searching through the fridge as though nothing had happened. From the corner of my eye, I noticed Masky backing away from his Master quite sheepishly. Slender was staring at Hoodie, holding him at eye level, for quite some time. As I took out a jar of fruit jelly and a jug of milk, Slender dropped the hooded man on his aft with a loud thump.
Hoodie scrambled to his feet and began to bow deeply to his Master, stuttering like a complete loon. "T-thank you, Mas-ster. I-it won't happen ag-g-gain."
Oh, egging them on was quite tempting, but I used my better judgment and stayed out of this one. Instead, I slapped some peanut butter and jelly onto some bread, then poured myself a glass of milk. Once I was ready to set everything on the table, I turned around and said to Slender, "After I finish eating, we're going hunt the Oni. No excuses."
"How are your stitches?" He never looked over to me, keeping his untraceable gaze in Hoodie's direction. Masky and Hoodie cautiously returned to their original seats at the table, finishing their breakfast.
I took a seat across from them. "Still holding. Your mansion's accelerated healing doesn't seem to effect the wounds, even for me." For some reason, Slender didn't respond to that; instead, He simply watched me eat. Then, I soon felt a headache grow within. He was trying to pry into my thoughts again. "You need to stop that." As soon as I said it, the irritating pain ceased.
"I must monitor your metal stability."
"Well, I can already tell you that if you keep it up, I'll be unstable and pissed." At that, I chugged down my entire glass of milk to add emphasis to my statement. Honestly, I kinda regretted drinking a whole glass of cold milk in one go. The sting of a brain-freeze kicked in, and I winced until it faded away.
During my short time of pain, tiny footsteps tapped into the kitchen. They stopped short of the doorway, then I heard the voice that went with them, "Miss Ella!" I glanced in the voice's direction, surprised at Jayden's excitement. He was running toward me, arms outstretched and a bright smile on his face.
Twisting in my chair to face the boy, I took Jayden into my arms and hugged him tight. "How are you, sweety?" It was so nice to feel his energy again – to be reminded of why I was cooperating with the Slender Man.
"I've been making Master happy with me," Jayden grinned up to me, proud of his successful missions of leading other children into Slender's grip.
Lovingly, I combed my fingers through Jayden's growing hair. The shaggy length caressed my digits with its smooth texture. My smile fell to a worried frown, though. "Oh. Well, at least He's not angry with you." I tried to look at the brighter side of things. As long as Jayden wasn't being abused or harmed in any way, I suppose this was the best for the time being.
Moving Jayden to the side, I got up from my seat at the table and picked up my dishes. I strolled over to the polished metal sink and began cleaning the plate and glass. "I have to go take care of some bad guys," I began to explain to Jayden, "Once I'm done, I'll get you out of here and bring you back to your mom and dad." So what if Slender was right there? He knew my plan. It was obvious. Hell, I expected Him to laugh at my statement, but He remained silent. Watching us.
"I don't wanna go back," Jayden whined from behind me. "They wouldn't understand who I really am. I wanna stay here with you and Master!"
His words made me flinch. I stopped with the gentle scrubbing of my dishes and gazed blankly at the now soapy water. Never did I plan to stay in this God-forsaken mansion. It was the last thing I ever wanted, despite my growing feelings that I continue to deny. "With me?" My lips quivered as I uttered out the words.
"Yeah! You and Master can be my new parents!"
I heard an amused snort from the table. No doubt, it was Hoodie trying to hold in a laugh. Further back, I heard the faint shuffling of Slender Man shifting uncomfortably. "That's enough, Jayden."
"Yes, Master." The boy sounded disappointed, as though Slender had just told him that such an idea was completely impossible.
Without a word, I finished washing and rinsing my dishes, pondering on whether or not I could fulfill Jayden's wish. He had been corrupted, shoved into madness, and taught the darker ways of life. There was little room for bringing him back to innocence, and such a reality was slowly sinking into my brain. I couldn't say anything to Jayden at this point. No way would I agree to be his parent with Slender Man. Still, I wasn't just going to leave the child to that monster's hands. If worse did come to worse, I suppose I'd just have to tough it out and live in the mansion. Not like Slender could stop me once I was already in there, right?
Lost in my thoughts, I was only awakened when Masky and Hoodie dumped their dishes in to the sink. I had stood there for some time, drying off a plate that was long finished. Jayden took a seat at the table, having already grabbed a snack from the refrigerator. I could still sense Slender Man standing off in the corner, watching, probably searching my current thoughts. Surely, He was thinking similar things. Neither of us liked the other, after all.
Neither of us would give up Jayden, either.
Later on, after Jayden finished his snack, I was dragged into the boy's room so he could show me his newest assembly of confiscated toys. I told him that I needed to get ready to fight the 'bad guys', so he should bring his toys into my room, which he happily agreed to.
As I sorted through a new backpack that Slender so generously brought to me, Jayden babbled on about the children for each toy. His carelessness for the other children made me feel a little sick, so I tried toning him out by focusing on how nice the new backpack was. Of course, I listened for key words to keep up with Jayden's stories, just in case he decided to ask me a question. The backpack, with its thick and durable material, was more than efficient to hold the wakizashi sword fragments until I could get it back into one piece. I dumped them into their new container, then tossed in some bottled water, wrapped food, and basic medical supplies that I snatched up around the mansion.
"Are you certain that you are in peak physical condition?" Slender Man quizzed me from the doorway. I had almost forgotten that He was standing there, still watching me. The darn creature hadn't left me to any privacy since the incident in the kitchen.
Before I could reply, Jayden exclaimed something about one of his victims claiming that they were worthy of keeping their toy, and that their parents really did love them. His dark giggling sent a shiver down my spine, but I managed to reply to him. "That's quite a story, Jayden." I then glanced up at Slender Man to answer Him before we were interrupted, "I can't waste any more time. I'll be fine."
"If this fails due to your curable disabilities, I will not allow a second chance." His unwavering figure was probably the most intimidating thing about Him. I didn't give a darn about his lack of second chances.
"Nor will the Oni," I muttered, zipping up the backpack after stuffing it with what I deemed necessary. With that done, I turned to look at Jayden, who had hopped onto the foot of my bed, playing with an action figure of some robot and a Barbie doll. "I'll be back for you. We'll discuss what to do with you then." Then, I stood up and pulled the boy into a tight hug, kissing his forehead. Deep down, I knew there was nothing up for discussion, but I was hoping he might change his mind from earlier.
Jayden only nodded in my arms. When I released him, swinging on my hefty backpack and equipping my katana and makeshift knife, he watched Slender and I walk out of the room. I honestly thought we would be going down to the foyer.
Probably just to prove me wrong, Slender Man grabbed my wrist, and before I could say anything, we were inside the edge of a treeline.
The sky was cloudy, and I feared that our search would not be very fun later down the line. There was civilization just behind the trees, the sounds of running cars zooming in the distance. Facing us were the rear ends of business buildings. Sirens wailed in the distance. A gentle gust of wind brushed the scent of blood into my nostrils. "They're still eating?" I gulped back the increased amount of salivation in my mouth. Now was not the time to go crazy.
"They were starved for quite some time," Slender Man stated matter-of-factly. "It requires large quantities of humans to power beings such as us."
My eyes drifted to the lanky being who stood next to me, curiosity and disgust written all over them. "How many children do you eat each night?"
Without hesitation, He answered, "I believe the average is four."
While that didn't seem to be so much at first, this was each night. That's a lot of kids. My hatred for this monster was undying, but I had to work with Him for the time being, so I changed the subject. "The Oni brothers should be nearby, right?"
"I took the liberty of tracking them down while you slept. This is the most recent location I witnessed their slaughter." At that, Slender turned and gracefully began taking long strides parallel with the tree line. "They were moving south. I'm certain that the mess left behind will lead us directly to the Oni." He dodged each branch, every leaf, with minimal effort.
Myself, being the human that I am, was not so elegant with traversing the thick terrain. Still, I managed to keep my footing; I'm not a klutz, after all. During that time, I followed close behind the Slender Man, trying to find out more about our battle plan. He never bothered to discuss it with me, but nor I, Him. "You're awfully eager to get this over with."
"Why, of course." Slender held his proud head forward as though He were some rich man leading his frilly poodle along a sidewalk. "I desire Sierra as soon as possible."
"That figures," I rolled my eyes. "She'll still put up a huge fight, you know." I recalled what I could remember of our fight the night before. Sierra attacked Slender without a single bit of consideration. Not that I could tell what she was thinking, but with one look at the guy, she considered Him the enemy.
"I have reasons to believe that she will be compelled to give in once your rebellious self is out of the picture." What He meant by that could go multiple ways. The most obvious was that Slender would extract my soul, thus killing me. The other is that He would brainwash me into a perpetual slumber, and leave Sierra to run amuck on his behalf. The other would be that He would brainwash Sierra, then get rid of me.
"You mean like a mindless zombie?" I couldn't help but picture Sierra stumbling around like a 1940s zombie, moaning and stumbling as slow as sin.
Slender Man stopped in his tracks, perhaps to consider my idea and absorb its humor. "If that is how you wish to picture it."
This was serious, though. "All right. Hang on a second. We need to clear things up." He seemed to accept my demand, turning around on a heel and facing me expectantly. My eyes searched the ground as though reading the fallen leaves. "When Sierra takes over, none of her actions are my own. All I get to do is watch." A shuddering reverberated through my body, fearing another episode of Sierra running rampant on so many innocent people. "When you and her fought last night, I tried screaming at you, but you never heard me – or you were ignoring me." I glanced up at Slender's nonexistent face, expecting some sort of reaction from Him. When He continued to stare at me in silence, I continued to try making my point. "She has a mind of her own. I know she does. Even if we are the same person, as you say, we aren't sharing the same mind."
Still, He stood there, never saying a word.
My blood boiled with impatience for a response. Slender Man's lack of any sort of answer only made my curiosity and confusion worsen. "You don't have any explanation?"
Finally, Slender made a reaction, though it wasn't what I desired. He turned away from me, returning to our stroll along the forest edge. "Not one that I am willing to accept."
"Well, maybe I am." My hands clenched into fists, and I followed after the tall being with heavy stomps of irritation. The fact that He was hiding things from me did not settle my frustrations. Slender knew something, and I wanted in on it!
"You're not ready to hear about it. We must finish this first." Slender began to quicken his pace.
I matched his footsteps, keeping close at Slender Man's heels. "I'll tell you when I'm ready to know something or not! Now tell me!" At that, I lunged forward and snatched one of Slender's dark and perfect sleeves, pulling it back to stop Him.
We needed to talk about this before moving on. What if something happened while we were fighting the Oni brothers? What if I could have stopped it if I knew what was going on with me? If hiding all this information from me was just to benefit Him, then I didn't give a crap.
At my tug of his sleeve, the fearsome Slender Man spun around, looming down over me with his darker-than-black tendrils swinging like swords. "If I tell you, I might lose you!" His deep voice boomed in the atmosphere around us. I'm sure He scared off a few wild animals with it, yet here I stood, only frozen by his sudden intimidation.
I honestly flinched, not expecting Slender to become so short with me. After all the crap I've given Him, though, I guess it was bound to happen. "W-what do you mean by that?" He was afraid of losing me? It almost sounded sweet, but there was no way the Slender Man had an emotional reason for keeping me. This was probably something else.
Tucking away his tentacles of eminent doom, Slender calmed Himself, looking away from me slightly. "I may need to keep you to control Sierra. Your condition is complicated, if I'm correct."
Disappointment ran through me. Part of me hoped that He had become emotionally attached to my pathetic self, but that was just silly. "Oh..." It was all I could mutter from my heavy heart. Perhaps I had fallen for Him?
No, that was stupid. I've been over this numerous times. There was no way I could care for a being who devoured children's souls and massacred people. We had absolutely contradicting personalities. It would never work out between us. At some point, we would surely kill the other - if that were even possible.
There were very little words traded between us after that. We continued following the trail of death from a distance, hoping to run into the Oni brothers soon. There were times that we had to Slender-walk across open areas since the forests or patches of woodlands would end. All that Slender and I discussed was about how fresh the kills looked or how frustrating it was that the police had already begun cleaning up the gory mess of clothes and spilled blood.
At one point, we lost the trail as it ended near an open crop field. My lanky companion decided to Slender-walk around for a bit, searching the nearest houses or buildings. He left me behind so not to wear me out from the uneasiness that his form of travel would place upon me. It only took a few minutes for Him to find the trail again.
This trail, like the last one, led to yet another crop field, surrounded solely of tree lines, save for the one road leading out for farm vehicles. On the opposite side from us, there was a small building sitting on one edge of the field. It looked like a shed, and I concluded that it was most likely a pump engine room for the water valves. I knew that farmers flooded their fields at some point during the sewing process of their crops. Not that any of that mattered right now, but whatever.
Near the center of this generally flat and grassy terrain, Slender and I noticed the Oni brothers walking toward the engine building. Considering how dark the clouds had become, I was sure that they planned to take shelter there. Hiding out in a public area wouldn't have been a very good decision for them, anyway. Knowing this, I became sure that these Oni weren't exactly the idiots that society made you think monsters could be. These were Japanese Oni; traditional, sly, and tricky.
"If we each take one," I glanced to Slender Man, who stood at my side, "then this should be easy. I'll take Tamashii, since you like to use your tentacles." No doubt they still had their powers and all. I couldn't quite grasp how the demons got their bodies back. Maybe it was due to so many eaten souls that they had enough power or something.
I shook my head, knowing that it was futile to ponder all of this. Everything had become so darn complicated after Slender showed up! I'll have to yell at him about it later, though I think I did that already.
"Must you compare me to those cephalopods?" Slender Man almost sounded like He had sighed in exhaustion, growing weary of my disrespect for Him.
"Yup." I gripped at my katana with my right hand, making sure to get a comfortable grip so not to tear the stitches. "Now, let's Slender-walk to them and catch 'em by surprise."
With a nod, Slender grabbed my left wrist. We appeared right behind the Oni brothers, soundless and furtive. As soon as I picked out which of the two were Tamashii, I unsheathed my katana and knife, then stabbed the shorter Oni in the back. At the same time, Slender summoned his tendrils, wrapping his two good ones around Karada's neck and lifting him into the air.
Karada choked, struggling and kicking his legs. He grabbed on to the tendrils around his neck, and began to dig his thick claws into them. Tamashii froze in his tracks, yelling out in a sort of shriek. As I pulled out my blade from him, the younger brother rolled away from me.
I had gone to slash down at Tamashii, hoping that if I only destroyed the their bodies, then their souls would retreat back to the swords. Unfortunately, my downward strike was a fail, and Tamashii answered it with a swipe of his outstretched leg to my feet. I saw it coming as he spun around, and managed to front flip over Tamashii's attacking appendage. At the point of landing, I tried slashing down at him again. The blasted demon rolled back, dodging my katana. Once he returned to a crouching position, though, he lunged right at me and planted a palm over the back of my blade before I could lift it up again. He swiped at me with his free hand, holding my katana down. I was reluctant to let go, but had little choice, hopping back just enough to have Tamashii's claws brush with my gi top.
The second that the Oni's hand passed over me, I jabbed at him with the makeshift knife. It was the only weapon I had at this point, and hand-to-hand combat would probably be a bad decision on my part. Tamashii swiped at me again with his other hand, leaving the katana to rest on the ground. He managed to hit my jabbing left hand, but I held the knife tight. In response to his persistent claws, I sent a forward kick in the center of Tamashii's chest. It wasn't enough, though. He barely shifted back, grabbing my foot with both hands. The demon began swinging me around and around until I had gained enough momentum to be sent tumbling several feet. My body rolled, despite my efforts to control it. Thank God I managed to keep the knife from stabbing me. Hell, at least I didn't land on the katana!
I scrambled to my feet, head spinning, and lowered into a crouch. With a glance behind the charging Tamashii, I checked to see how Slender was holding up.
Karada was entangled in the oblivion-like tentacles. He looked to have fallen into jungle vines. One of his arms looked gruesomely snapped, too. All the while, Slender Man stood there, probably enjoying Himself with how easy the fight was going for Him. Showoff.
As my jealousy for an easy fight swelled up inside me, Karada strained to lean forward. Eventually, he managed to overpower Slender's tendrils and threw himself at one of them. Karada's razor-like teeth sank into one of the tentacles, causing the tall being to retract it. I'm sure Slender was pissed about that. He even kneed Karada in the gut for it.
Oh crap. I'm fighting someone, too!
Just as I turned back to prepare myself for Tamashii, I received a fist to the side of my face. This sent me flying back a few feet, and I'm pretty sure I heard my jaw crack. Hell, I felt it! The very moment my upper back connected with the ground, I threw my legs over me and landed on my feet. Adrenaline was rushing through me now, heightening my senses and reflexes. God, I loved when that happened.
Gripping my knife tight, I took in the sweet feeling of my light-headedness. Tamashii rushed at me again. I was ready. He gripped my shoulders. I wasn't ready after all. He spun me around and tossed my struggling body in an unknown direction. Again, I went tumbling. This time, I lost grip of my knife. It fell somewhere between myself hitting the ground and my rolling around. With a hazy mind, I staggered to my feet, refusing to give up the fight. All Tamashii had done so far was throw me like a dog toy. Was he playing with me?
My vision soon cleared up, and I noticed the faint glimmer of my katana blade in the thin grass not far in front of me. Further ahead, I saw Slender and Karada fighting.
Karada was throwing a flurry of well-formed kicks at Slender Man. Tall, pale, and business man was patiently blocking the demon's attacks with his forearms crossed over his chest. Maybe we should switch partners. It seemed that Karada and I were the only ones taking this fight seriously.
Shaking my head in defeat, I snatched up my katana and turned around to face Tamashii. He was coming at me again, but I had time to react. I rushed at him, drawing back my blade to be level my hip. Just as we reached each other, I side-stepped around the demon, dodging his punch, and shoved the katana into Tamashii's waist. The blade sank into his flesh with satisfying effort – not too easy, not too stubborn.
I attempted to slice through Tamashii's abdomen, pulling with all my might to my left, but the flat side of the blade was facing my desired direction. Instead, the demon was pushed forced to stumble forward until he slid off of the blade. I'm sure none of that felt great, what with some alien force stirring his organs and all. I was disappointed that I couldn't throw Tamashii around like he had been doing to me, but this guy was much larger than the humans I was used to fighting. Still, I did damage, and that was a plus on my scoreboard.
It began to rain. No thunder, no lightning. Just sudden heavy droplets of water crashing onto the earth.
Gathering himself, Tamashii turned to me and came rushing. I lunged at him, readying my katana for an upward diagonal strike. He waited until the very second we would have connected, diving at the already soaked grass and mud feet-first. I went to perform my strike, only realizing what had happened when it was too late. Tamashii slid behind me. I spun around and began to strike downward, but Tamashii raised up his hands and caught the blade between his flattened palms.
Crap! I'd only seen this stuff in movies!
Twisting his wrists, Tamashii tried to snap my blade in half, but it wouldn't budge. So, he attempted to pull it out of my hands instead. Luckily, the rain water had everything slick. I leaped forward, pulling back a leg, and forced a foot into Tamashii's round gut. Using that as a foothold, I kicked myself up and planted the other foot in the Oni's face. I put all of my weight onto him and front-flipped off of Tamashii, twisting the katana that was tucked between my legs so that it would slice his hands, and pulled it with me. I felt the rattle of the blade breaking callused skin, then landed on the muddy surface of the ground, still holding the katana below me.
I heard Tamashii screaming through the roaring rain. As I rose to stand, hoping that he had become stunned, something slammed into the side of my head. For the gazillionth time, I went tumbling. Mud and rain splashed all over me, including my face.
My head was spinning, and a terrible stinging suggested that I had a cracked skull now. As I fussed to myself about how I was tired of getting hit in the head, I tried to wipe off the mud with my hands. All I managed to do was smear the darn stuff.
I was blinded.
Still, I did try to crack open my eyes, but the rain trickling down my face made the mud leak into my vision. It stung like Hell, too. Squinting my eyes closed, trying to will the irritating pain away, I strained my ears to listen for splashing from Tamashii's footsteps. I wasn't used to fighting blind. Probably something I should have practiced, but I never thought I'd be fighting Oni, of all things, in the pouring rain.
Before I knew what happened, I was tackled to the ground, mud soaking any inch of my body that wasn't already drenched. My katana was pulled from my grip, which I couldn't do much about, thanks to the wounds. It was a miracle I could even hold it.
All I could do was kick out in front of me, which succeeded in landing a few blows into what I thought were a torso, maybe an arm or two. Unfortunately, my foe managed to force down my legs long enough to sit on my stomach. He was friggin' heavy! The wind was forced out of me, and I coughed at the nauseating feeling of my organs trying to find a place to shift. Fists began to pound into my face one after the other. I tried to block them with my arms, but my opponent still managed to get around them.
This was it. Surely I would die soon. Maybe I'd fall unconscious first, then Tamashii would eat my soul. That'd be nice. A death without pain was something I always wanted.
I began to wonder what would happen to Jayden. Would he go on stealing toys and children? How much more corrupt would he become? Would Slender kill him if I no longer existed? I'm so sorry, Jayden. I tried to save you, but it looks like I found a fight that was too much for me.
All too quickly, I lost the feeling of Tamashii sitting on top of me. My face felt terrible, but I was sure that its discomfort would disappear soon, too. The last thing I hoped to feel was the rain. I cracked open my eyes, not wanting darkness to be the final thing I see. The mud and rain that mixed with my sweat stung at my eyeballs. Beyond the blurs of liquids, I saw a large black figure, discombobulated and mutated, swinging and flailing at my feet. It was then that I realized I wasn't dying. Tamashii had been lifted off of me.
My hands began to pat the ground all around at my sides, searching for the katana that was taken from me. An arm of some sort wrapped around my waist just as my hand landed on and gripped the blade, careful not to cut myself.
Right at that moment, the sounds of fighting stopped. Even the earth below me felt a little different. I could hear the rain crashing onto leaves on one side of me. Then, my body was lifted to its feet by the arm around my waist. A deep voice boomed, "What did I tell you?"
Ah. Slender Man saved me, despite what He had said last night. I rolled my eyes under their closed, irritated lids, "I'm sorry, dad. I need my eyeballs to fight." Now that plenty of rain had fallen on my face, I tried wiping at it again, hoping that the mud had been washed off. Luckily, I was right, though the punches from earlier had my cheeks and eyebrows swelling already. I kept my head down so that the rain wouldn't wash any other unwanted subjects into my orbs. From this position, I glared up at what I could see of Slender Man. "How's your battle?" I reached down and picked up my katana, which I had dropped when he lifted me up, then sheathed it back into its holster.
"I underestimated them. These beings are strong, fast. I'm sure it has to do with their massive diet." Slender then held out my knife to me. He must have picked it up while I was getting pummeled. "Try to keep hold of your weapons."
"Shut up," I snatched the knife from his large boney hand, sheathing it into my belt, too. "So, now what?" We both weren't having an easy time fighting the Oni brothers one-on-one. With the rain, I couldn't exactly see enough to hold my own. This was a mess; not that everything else in my life had become that way.
"I could enter your mind and be your sight."
"Screw off! You get in my head as it is."
"You have little choice."
He was right. Slender wasn't going to fight my own battle, so sitting on the sidelines was a no-go. Besides, I don't mind fighting the Oni, but at such a disadvantage, what was I to do? The last thing I wanted was for this guy to get further into my brain. What sorts of things would He uncover? Would I want Him to see what was inside me?
I bit my lip, hesitating my inevitable answer. "Yeah. I guess so."
Immediately, the world opened up all around me. I'm not just talking about what you would normally see in front of you. No, this was 360 degree everything around kind of vision. "Holy crap! This is so cool!" My jaw dropped in aw as I took in the incredible sight. So this is what the Slender Man sees. No wonder He's a great predator.
Then, I noticed the Oni brothers running toward us. They were behind me, according to where I stood. "Ready?" A smirk curled onto my lips. Slender Man nodded once.
I readied myself, stepping off to the side of ol' Slender so that we could attack at the same time without having to go around each other. I clasped my hand over the katana hilt, adjusting until the stitches didn't feel like they were stretching. Despite my hakama weighing me down from all the water and mud it had soaked up, I figured that it could still work to my advantage in some ways.
As the Oni brothers closed in, I noticed that Karada's arm was no longer broken. This didn't sink in well with me, and I thought about convincing Slender Man to take us somewhere to discuss a new battle plan. That idea was shot down when Slender teleported behind the Oni and used his hand to strike Karada in the back of the head.
Karada went tumbling forward, though he recovered quickly and twisted around to face his attacker. The moment he laid eyes on the tall being, he leaped up to maul Slender. Swinging another arm, the dark suited one attempted to block his foe, but Karada grabbed the arm and planted a foot into Slender's stomach. He then jumped up, flipping to the side, and landed on the ground with Slender's arm still in his grasp. The problem here, though was that Slender's appendage looked to have gained a new joint. I cringed inwardly.
Shaking my head out of focus from their fight, I locked on to Tamashii, who was much closer to me than before. Maybe if I wasn't so nosy, I'd have a better chance of winning against him. Details, right? I unsheathed my katana in a reverse grip as I broke out into a dead run at the younger Oni. Just as I went to slash my sword at Tamashii's throat, he ducked down and headbutted me in the chin. I thought my teeth were going to shatter, but they only ached for a bit. The fracture in my jaw complained a lot, though.
I took a step back, but Tamashii grabbed my head with both of his hands and kneed me in the stomach. Swallowing the puke that threatened to burst out of my mouth, I grabbed my knife with my left hand and slashed at Tamashii. Surprisingly, I made contact with his shoulder. Then, of course, as we separated, I puked. The stomach acid and breakfast debris quickly dispersed into the mud and rain.
When I looked up, Tamashii was sending an inner crescent kick to my head, but I raised my forearm to block it. I spat the remnants of bile onto his chest while flipping my katana into a standard grip. As he lowered his leg, I swung the long blade at him, but Tamashii back-flipped out of the way. His two large fangs on his upper jaw became more visible as the Oni grinned at me. He knew that I was having a hard time with this fight.
It was getting hard for me to see straight, even though Slender was helping with the whole vision thing. My mind was burning up, probably from the strain of being able to see all around me this way. It just wasn't meant for a human. I'm sure it also had to do with being knocked in the head so many times in the past twenty-four hours, too.
Honestly, I was beginning to wish Sierra would take over. I couldn't deny that she was much more powerful than myself. Maybe she could even handle the 360 vision. The problem with that, though, was that once Sierra did take over, I didn't know how to gain control again. I couldn't risk her going on another rampage because of my weakness.
Tamashii ran at me again. I stepped back at an angle just as he threw a punch, missing me. With him leaning forward from the attack's momentum, I raised my katana and swung down. To my amazement, I made contact with the Oni, slicing his forearm clean off. Not wasting any time, I tried to go for another attack, this time with the knife. I aimed to jab Tamashii in the throat, but he moved just enough to where I pierced his shoulder instead.
All the while, Tamashii had been screaming about his missing forearm. He held the blunt end with his remaining hand, staring at it in shock. I took this moment to check on Slender Man, hoping that He was done, because I didn't know how much more of a beating I could take.
He was holding Karada's head with both hands. The older brother screaming and kicking. One of those kicks landed firmly into Slender's torso, making him double over and release the Oni. The lanky being didn't leave any opening, though. He jabbed a hand at Karada, but the demon rolled to the side, unscathed. Once he returned to his feet, Karada made a low sweep at Slender Man's long legs. I actually saw Slender trip for the first time in my life. A graceful creature such as Him didn't seem capable of such a clumsy act, but there He was.
Still, Slender caught himself from completely falling. Then, He jabbed a tendril at Karada, but the Oni snatched it just before the black vine caused any damage. Karada jerked the tentacle toward him, pulling Slender Man down to the ground. Before He landed, though, Slender disappeared.
I focused back to Tamashii and noticed that his arm wound had stopped bleeding. Heck, the skin looked like it was already regrowing over the blunt end, too. I feared the worst: the Oni were unaffected by each other's powers.
"Slender! Regroup!" I called out, backing away from Tamashii.
Just as the demon went to charge again, the scenery changed back to the edge of the crop field. The Oni brothers were looking around in frustration off in the distance. I noticed Slender Man behind me; He had teleported us back to our regrouping spot.
Slender asked, "Do you have a plan?"
"Not one I'm gonna like, but I don't know how much longer I can last." My head hung low, not because of the rain, but because I felt the sensations of regret filling me. This was going to be a bad idea. What choice did I have, though?
"We should have waited longer. You have a fever." Placing a cool hand on my forehead, Slender leaned his body against mine from behind.
"It's too late now!" I'm not sure if my yelling caught their attention, or they simply noticed us, but Karada and Tamashii were now facing Slender Man and I. From what I could see, Tamashii's recently severed arm looked like it was growing back. "Are they regenerating because of all the souls and flesh they ate?"
"This is plausible." Slender took a step around me, facing my completely drenched self. I probably looked like some pathetic blind samurai. "It's how I regenerate."
I nodded in understanding as I gulped down a nervous lump in my throat. "Then I really have no choice. I'm gonna try something crazy." Yeah, I was repeating the same crap, but I didn't want to accept what was required of me.
"Do elaborate," Slender cooed.
"I'm gonna use the knife to release Sierra." From what I know about she and I, we were two different souls in one body, right? So that meant that if my soul was gone, she would have no choice but to be awake and fight the Oni brothers. Why she wanted to sleep at all was a mystery to me. There had to be a reason, but now wasn't quite the time for questioning it.
"It will devour your soul. You know this," Slender Man confirmed my ideas, though He didn't sound too convinced that He was correct, either.
I cringed, balling up my fists in an effort to stop my trembling arms. "Of course I do!" My heart began to race wildly, anticipating what was soon to come. "But she doesn't seem interested in showing up right now. It's not like this will break our deal. I mean, you're probably just gonna eat my soul after all this, anyway."
Placing a gentle hand on my shoulder, Slender tried to divert my plan with a concerned toned, "There are other ways to summon her."
Yeah, and none of them I liked.
"I won't let you lock me away!" I slapped his hand away from me, tears threatening to burst from my tightly closed eyelids. "It's my soul, and nothing's gone right with it! At least let me have this choice!" My whole body was shaking now, trying desperately to fight off what I was going to make it do.
This life I've had. Everything's gone wrong with it. I couldn't trust anyone. I couldn't save anyone dear to me. Hell, I was even starting to go crazy! What sort of life is this, where I have to fear watching myself go on murderous rampages? Heck, Cheryl and Dayle hated every fiber of my being. If I show my face in public, then I'd be thrown in jail in a heartbeat. There was nothing left for me.
The rain didn't let up at all. Hell, I'm pretty sure it poured harder now. Still, I heard Slender Man take a step back, nodding once. It was the first time I felt that He truly had an ounce of respect for me. For that, I now had respect for Him, too.
I switched my focus to the Oni brothers and saw that they were now running straight for us. "Hold them off. I can only hope that some of me stays around."
Again, Slender nodded, then placed Himself between me and the Oni. His tendrils flared out, stretching and writhing excitedly. The Slender Man looked far more intimidating than I had ever seen Him before. He looked taller, larger. Maybe it was just me and my fear-charged adrenaline, though.
Taking the knife into both shaky hands, I inhaled. "Promise me," I released a trembling breath, feeling my chest squirm inside, "that you'll be good to Jayden." It was all I wanted as my last wish. Since I wouldn't be around after this, Slender was the only one capable of fulfilling such a desire.
He didn't answer for a moment, almost flinching. Then, the Slender Man answered, nearly mumbling, "You have my word."
I heard his promise. It was enough for me.
Hesitation and second thoughts screamed in my head, telling me not to go through with this suicide, but I knew that there was no way I could keep on fighting the Oni like this. My body just wasn't made to endure Slender Man's form of vision while fighting such powerful demons. Sierra, of all people, was the answer to this problem. We needed her to win the fight.
Right?
My sight canceled out. Slender must have cut his connection with me. There was no need for it anyway.
The rapid splashing of the Oni brothers' footsteps grew ever closer to us. I begged to whoever wanted to listen that Slender would be able to handle them until Sierra woke up.
Then, with one last trembling breath, I inhaled deeply and pulled the knife into my chest, piercing my heart. The pain was familiar, at first. Some foreign object digging into my skin, reminding me of when the leader of the Chromes dug into my bullet wound. Rather than fading away, the aching sensation increased, and I felt something pull from me as though someone had shoved a straw into my chest and began to siphon out my blood. I fell to my knees, weak and growing numb. My body quickly gave way, and I collapsed on my side as my lips parted to release an agonizing scream.
To feel one's soul being ripped out; it was like no other.
My eyes cracked open, trying once again to have something other than darkness being the last thing I saw. Beyond the blurring rainwater that flooded my eyes, I saw Slender Man's vague form in all its mysterious glory. Two other forms lunged at Him, and all three beings became entangled in a fierce struggle.
Nothing.
I felt nothing.
I saw nothing.
I became nothing.
What's this? I can smell something? I can feel everything. Tap, tap, tapping all over my body; all around me. There's a chill on my skin.
Water.
Am I in the ocean again?
I can breathe.
Is this me? Am I awake? Me? This is me. Awake! I am me! I am awake! It's me! Me! Me! I am free! I am me!
What can I see?
Slender Man, ripping some demon off of his back with an arm. A larger demon is just beyond that tall man, crouching for an attack. Oh! What fun for us! I can't help but giggle at the thought of who I can lecture today.
Though my clouded head felt heavy, I managed to push myself up off the muddy ground. This definitely wasn't the ocean. Still, I could just faintly smell the salt.
There was a knife on the ground, a katana strapped to my waist. The vibrato in my throat and chest increased to a devious sort of laughter as I came to realize what had happened.
That girl. That scapegoat. My creation. My other me! She tried to kill me! Me!
"You can't kill me!" I laughed and laughed, though the three beings in front of me didn't seem to mind. "I have no heart!"
No heart, no mind, no sense of time. I had reason and rhyme, though. Oh, did I have reason for my ambitions!
Not now, though. This wasn't the time. No, not at all! There were threats in front of me. The dark one, Slender Man, seemed to be protecting me. I guess I'll let Him live in return.
The small demon scrambled to his feet, looking a little frightened by my appearance.
He should be.
With just a couple of weighted steps, I threw myself to the one called Tamashii and sent a flying kick right into his face! It wasn't as satisfying as cutting off a maiden's finger, but this would have to do for now.
I landed on top of Tamashii, crouching and grinning with pure excitement. "You can't escape me!" I laughed in his terrified face. His piercing eyes searched my own for answers. "I am your master!" I unsheathed the katana from my side, raising it high to take one last look at the demon's expression. Was this all that Ella had to deal with? How pathetic she was.
Something knocked my side, pushing me off of Tamashii. The smaller demon took this chance to get out of my reach as I untangled my legs from that accursed dress skirt. When I looked up to see what had hit me, I found the larger of the two demons, Karada, being swung through the air by Slender Man's tendrils.
A snarl reverberated through my clenched teeth as I glared up at Karada. Then, I returned my attention to Tamashii. His efforts to escape me were futile – pointless! He would soon come back to his cage.
I got up and chased after him. The demon turned around, ready to fight, after putting a gap between myself and Slender Man. He seemed to be having trouble with the rain, blinking and shaking his head quite often. Oh! How vulnerable this silly creature looked right now! I couldn't help myself. I closed in on Tamashii, never letting the mud suck my feet down. It sloshed and squelched in protest, but this was not its day to have me.
This was my day.
I was awake again.
Slashing at a downward angle, I aimed to slice Tamashii right in two, but the stubborn creature backed away, just out of my reach. Seems I'm a little rusty at fighting. I countered his dodge with a side-kick, forcing it into his shoulder. The delicious sound of bones snapping echoed through my leg. Tamashii wrapped an arm around my leg before I could retract it back, and he even tried pulling me off balance! Surprise, surprise, though! I swung my katana right into his leg, slicing it off below the knee.
Tamashii didn't seem very happy about it, but what should I care? His blood mixing with the mud and rain looked extravagant in its spirals of colors.
In his moment of agony, the demon released me, and I pressed my foot into his throat, forcing him down to the mud and grass. He sank so wonderfully deep, I almost thought that I could drown him. Little Tamashii clawed at my ankle and leg, gasping for breath, but never did I feel the pain of my own torn flesh. It would recover in due time. Silly wounds as those weren't permanent – not like the mind and heart.
Once again, I raised my katana, watching the life fade from Tamashii's eyes. I brought the sword down again and again, stabbing into his chest anywhere that my arms felt it necessary. The demon squirmed and kicked, but couldn't knock me off. My cackling matched the rainfall. It was a symphony! Beautiful!
Unfortunately, the fun had to stop when Tamashii's body began to dissolve into some sort of colorful light. This curious light trailed itself to my knife, engulfing it. As I pulled this knife out of my belt, it tugged toward my back.
I hadn't noticed a backpack there. It jingled with metallic fragments. One of these fragments pierced through the backpack and sliced a small portion of my ribs. No harm done, though. Just a small scratch. I did, however, find it fascinating that the fragment had attached itself to the knife. This had me rushing to take the backpack off, eager to see it form back the blade I expected it to be.
A blood-curdling scream from behind myself caught my attention, however. I couldn't miss out on such fun! What could Slender Man have done? Surely He taught Karada that his efforts were all for nothing!
Through the hazy sheets of rain, I saw Slender Man holding several torn limbs in his tendrils and hands. He had ripped the demon apart! Blood poured out of the separated appendages as heavily as the rain. Then, I saw the body dissolve into the same aurora light that Tamashii had become. Karada, though, danced his way to the katana in my hands, imbuing it with his soul once more.
I looked back to the knife, now finding it reformed into a wakizashi. Its shorter self was fitting for the Oni that had possessed it, just as his brother was for the katana.
The sudden muffling of rain on fabric filled my ears from behind. I knew it was that filthy Slender Man. He probably wanted another fight – or another kiss.
"You should have stopped her," I grinned, never turning to face Him.
"That's what I feared."
There was nothing more to say. I sheathed the swords into their holsters and began to walk away. This time, I would allow Slender Man to live, only as a reward for helping me be rid of the Oni. Something within me had been begging for their demise, after all. I assumed that it had been Ella's last wish for me.
That monster's large, boney hand gripped my shoulder, stopping me. "First, you must fulfill your side of the deal."
Deal? I giggled, knowing that Ella would be the one to make friends with someone such as Him. "Oh, that's not my problem. Ella should have thought about that before sacrificing herself." At that, I brushed Slender Man's hand off. He didn't need to know the details.
"She still lives. It's not possible for you to be so tame in Ella's absence."
His words stung colder than the water that soaked us. "Am I so tame? Or am I just patient?" I looked over my shoulder, eying Slender Man carefully. He was trying to get Ella back, but I wouldn't let Him have her. She was just a doll, after all.
As I turned my head to try walking away again, that horrid creature spun me around and pulled me into an embrace of warmth and softness. His nonexistent lips pressed into mine with a passion I had only felt from one other man.
The only one I had ever shared such fire with.
I began to giggle underneath Slender Man's poor excuse for a kiss. His efforts were all for nothing. Ella would not be coming back due to silly romance.
As I giggled, shocking the tall man, I unsheathed Tamashii and shoved it in to Slender Man's abdomen! It punctured so cleanly! It sank, just like his expectations!
"Only he can do that to me!" I pushed Slender Man away, screaming at Him, and pulled the blade out.
The tall monster stumbled back, genuinely hurt by both my words and my actions. Even his lack of a face was unable to hide his distraught. "And who is this man?" He dared to question me of my past.
My giggling wouldn't stop. They tickled my lungs and throat and chest so much that I began to shed tears, though they probably couldn't be distinguished from the rain. "Him," my lips trembled at the thought of the man I hadn't seen in years. "The only one who could ever own my heart." His light brown hair, his unkempt teeth, his chocolaty brown eyes; he was the man I had devoted my life to.
But life had other plans.
Woo! So, that was fun. My notes for all this didn't seem like that much, but then typing everything up turned out WAY longer than I expected. *cries* What do you guys think about Sierra's point of view? Is it distinctive? Is it descriptive enough to still feel like a story? Ella was easier to write with because she's not completely insane. lol I just know that I REALLY don't want to write any more fight scenes right now. I feel like this one didn't turn out so great, and nothing was very creative. :( For some reason, I really like the jumping up on the enemy's chest and kicking their face move. lol Thank you, as always, for reading!
Much thanks for reviewing!