Disclaimer: I do not own Xiaolin Showdown and its characters… Also, I only own my muses and my own wu(s).
Me: Please enjoy!!
Chapter Twenty Four – The Bloody Hands
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((Previously))
Kobo closed his eyes tightly, not wanting to see the light coming at him. But he didn't realize the shadow blurred past him and stepped in the front of him, blocking the light orb.
"SHADOW BLADE!"
The sound of slashing from the sword's force and the sound of screeching in pain from the light orb, the both of white and black light clashed each other and spilling like rain, slowly revealing…
Kobo's silver eyes widened in surprise and happiness, seeing the back of the awakened leader stood in front of him holding the Shadow Blade. Khu!!!
"Kobo…" Khu whispered softly, baring the sword at the bewildered but calm angel as his hair bangs shadowing his eyes where everyone can't see them.
The were-cub blinked in confusion, hearing the undetected voice from his leader. That's not Khu's voice… Who…? A memory of the blurred man with gray ears appeared in his mind, whispering to him.
Khu turned his head slowly over his shoulder, his hair bangs shadowing half of his face finally revealed as the silver eyes instead of the amethyst ones, staring Kobo's shocked expression in them.
"Are you okay?"
His eyes had snapped widening, the last thing he had heard the icily voice from the fallen angel.
"Very well…" Luce whirled away from Khu stood holding the glowing Shadow Blade and Kuai was nowhere in seen and in fury, he faced Kobo who froze in terror, not knowing what's going on. "Dark Ranpu Orb!!"
Khu turned in the direction and ran after the Dark Orb and Kobo, he knew he was too slow to stop the orb and save the kid's life in time. "KOBO!!" He yelled in slow motion, his left hand stretching for Kobo while the Shadow Blade in his right hand.
The white fox in the air, looking emotionlessly at the fallen angel who looked completely shocked at the sight of the frighteningly, pure spirit with black eyes and without its iris or pupils, as he took a step back away from the creature.
The Kitsune stared at him for a second. The first time the fallen angel had felt a fear creeping inside him.
Suddenly, it lunged at Luce.
Gritting his teeth angrily, Luce bared his katana against the light energy that was pushing him backward and burning his hands at same time. He could feel the draining of his life finally caught up to him after many years; he was no longer an immortal thanks to the last battle he had against the former Heylin Tiger of Light…
As the silver flashed across the darkness, his blood tainting broken wings was suddenly shedding into pieces like as if they were just made of papers…
W-w-what…?
His eyes widened in horror, he turned his head slowly to staring disbelief at what was left of his wings. The bloody, broken wings was all gone and torn into pieces and falling down toward the floor like snow…
M-m-my wings…
The last thing he saw before the light swallowing him whole, there is a smiling boy stood behind the pillar watching him to die in the wrath of the white Kitsune.
He saw the smirk on that boy become widening like as if that kid was enjoying the scene and he knew what that brat had done…
M-M-Maijra… You bastard…
TO BE CONTINUE…
((Afterward))
Kobo!!
Quickly, Khu sprinted toward the child that falling down from released so much power of Heylin Light and caught him in the arms as at same time his stomach sliding on the ancient floor with a grunt.
Struggling to sit up half way, the leader looked down at the thirteen years old young boy in his arms unharmed yet had his hands bleeding without slowing down. His purple eyes widened at the bloody shattered piece of the mirror that child was clenching in semi tight, as if it were to holding the hilt of the sword.
Kobo… Khu thought worriedly, reaching for the blood shard of mirror and then suddenly, the loud shrieking torn through the air causing the Dark Shoku leader's blood turn cold.
"I… You used… Me… You… Brat…!" The cold, menacing voice echoed through the Ruin Temple as the shadowy figure slowly becoming more and more visible behind the cloud. "Those eyes…! With those eyes… I… Was betrayed…! You… How dare you…!"
That voice… That bastard's still not dead?!
Dark Shoku leader's skin turn into goosebumps upon hearing the dying fallen angel's cursing, he had a feeling that words wasn't aiming at them, but someone was here hiding in the shadow. What did he mean…? What is it…or rather, who is that he speaking of…?
"How dare you…!"
The claw-like hand appearing out of the cloud, reaching toward two boys as the dead skin hanging off on the skeletons-looking claw-like hand and the disgusting scent of a rotten corpse filled in the air. Everyone had to covering their noses with sleeves or hands, moving away from the horrible scent that dying living ghost gave away.
So it is what was like to be dying as a wraith… Khu thought covering his black sleeve while holding the Shadow Blade in his other hand, protecting the thirteen years old kid behind his back. Indeed disgusting…
"HOW DARE YOU!!!"
The claws lashed out toward Khu and Kobo with a shriek-like roar, the blazing sickening-looking yellow eyes of a hollow glaring upon the humans hungrily for revenge and kill.
Lifting the Shadow Blade in the air, Khu yelled his counterattack. "SHADOW BLADE, SHOKU VOID FALCON TYPHOOD!!" As the darkness came out of the sword but the black falcon suddenly diminishing into nothing after it's summoned, surprising the Dark Shoku leader and he looked at his blade in horror.
What the?
"YOU…! HOW DARE YOU…!!!"
Gritting his teeth in silent anger, Khu glared at the approaching half dead wraith upon them while holding the blade tightly in the case. Damnit… At the rate, I cannot summon it quick enough to stop him… We're doomed. He thought angrily.
The half dead wraith was about to lung upon the boys, the voice rang through the Brazilian's ears out of the nowhere.
"WUDAI METEOR METAL, STEEL SPEARS!!"
In the white flash, the silver spear impaled through the ghastly half corpse of wraith's skull from the behind spewing some its sickening scent of blood on the ancient library floor. After the spear disappeared, the now dead wraith fell upon the floor and turning into skeletons. Then it turned into ashes and was blown in the wind into nothingness.
"YO…!"
With a muted surprise Khu turned his purple eyes upon the familiar face, he relaxed almost immediately. You…
Yamato grinned, holding the new blade over the shoulder that Heylin Shoku leader never seen before. "Why are you stalling with your sword? Is the brat's heavy, huh?" He paused for a moment before he laughed.
"Nah! You're probably just too weak. You look pretty beat-up considering that you were only carrying that brat in your arms and holding the sword at same time." The metal wielder grinned, seeing Khu become annoyed.
"Hn… What are you implying? Aren't you looking a little wobbly yourself?" Khu calmly countered with a smirk as Yamato suddenly fumed upon the leader's words. "Shouldn't you be wrapped up in a bed somewhere instead of coming here?"
"WHAT!? IS THAT WHAT YOU HAVE TO SAY TO THE GUY WHO JUST SAVED YOUR ASS?" Yamato howled glaring daggers at Khu who scoffed back at him.
With his purple eyes closed and a sigh, Khu said quietly placing the Shadow Blade into the sword holder on his back. "Are you stupid? I was going to say thanks, yet you…" He was cut off by the sudden sound of small groaning as they turned toward the child in Khu's arms waking up.
"Kobo!"
"Brat!"
Blinking tiredly, Kobo looked at the Heylin Shoku leader, Khu and the second in the command leader, Yamato. "Wha…" He began to say but the memories hit him right on as his silver eyes widened filling with tears while the shard of mirror slipped out of his bloody hands, he moved out of Khu's arms and kneeled by his lifeless brother on the floor.
A shard fell onto the crimson pool of blood with a plop. He held his bloody hand, staring at his own blood as his tears continues falling and falling silently.
Big Brother…
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In the hidden mountain, the white longhaired female lycanthrope approaching slowly into the small town with her two guards leaving the ship behind in the dock.
"Lady Lei… I knew it."
She stopped quickly, recognizing the voice behind her. As she turned and saw the familiar face among the civilians, it was Captain Mal.
"Malia…You looked changed since more than ten years ago…" Lady Lei Wolf whispered in muted surprise seeing the Captain Mal who had letting her gray-blue hair grew down without a hair band and dressed in normal clothes, instead of a uniform of a captain. "Since he…"
Between both women's silence in the air, they knew Lei's husband and the leader of Wolf Clan's death since he saved the pups' life from their death.
Slowly, she closed her eyes as the sunset sunk into the ocean, disappearing completely. The cries of the seagulls from the above the sky and then followed by the sound of wings flapping against the air as they soared across the clouds. "Malia… I saw them."
Captain Mal blinked in surprise and confused at the Lady. "Eh…?" Then suddenly, she understood. "Oh…them. What are they looked like?"
She let a smile graced on her pale face at the sinking sunset beyond the ocean. "They grew to be handsome like my husband is… I believe one of them will be the Leader of our Clan with hope for future in peace."
Captain Mal stared quietly at Lei and then she let out an amused snort with a smile. Closing her eyes, she shoved her hands into her jean pockets. "I see… That drake-bastard better to take care of them."
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Back to the Ancient Heylin Temple in Ruin…
Everyone ran across the old dusty floor toward the three boys, plus Lobo's lifeless body. Raimundo was the first to reach Khu, Kobo, and Yamato, as he halted his track panting heavily looking at Khu and then at Lobo who was still had his eyes closed and looked lifelessly while Kobo was crying at his brother's side.
It had been last he remembered the young teen's laughing after the last showdown to won the Shen-Gong-Wu…
He remembered. "Khu! About the last Xiaolin Showdown, the wu is…"
Khu looked up sharply at his cousin in startled surprise. "…Crystal Wielder…!" As he seem to recall his memories from his dreams involving Xuan's past as well as Shinyu's.
Dojo crawling up to Raimundo's left shoulder, his tail wrapping around the Xiaolin Shoku leader's neck almost lazily looking at Khu. "Crystal Wielder…huh? A healing wu that heals a warrior's wounds… Quite powerful wu, indeed..."
Gojo appeared on Khu's right shoulder, his tail coiling down around the Heylin Shoku leader with a huff from all way from the hidden pathway to the leader of the Heylin Tigers. "…Unfortunately, Crystal Wielder cannot brought the dead alive… That's the problem, kids." He added struggling with his tiny shoulders.
"Oh… Kobo…" Ciara and Kimiko said in union, looking sadly at Kobo. The were-feline closed her jade eyes sadly, bending her cat-like head with ears pinned back and the were-drake placed his hand on her shoulders in silence.
Tucking his tiny hands into his deep red sleeves, Omi closed his eyes letting tears rolling down his childish-like cheeks. Next to his tall friend, the cowboy Clay took his huge cowboy hat off his head and placed it on his perfect strong chest in respect.
With an anguish snarl, Yamato sharply turned his head shutting his eyes in angry. Refusing to believe the idiot lecher was truly gone beyond the hope to come back alive, the cursed teen clenching and unclenching his fists at his sides. That…boob-drooling lecherous bastard… You idiot…
"What if there is a way…"
Everyone looked up with startling and confusion looks when Khu spoke almost in quiet, looking down at Kobo and Lobo.
Raimundo stepped forward staring straight at his cousin's dark purple eyes with silent questioning Khu's reason. "What do you mean what if there is a way…?" He asked curiously.
Gripping the something under his fist unconsciously tight, Khu continued. "What if there is a way…to brought him back… by using the combination of Crystal Wielder…" He looked up his purple eyes locking with the Dragon of Wind's deep forest green eyes. "…And Shard of Dreams?"
"NO!"
Everyone, including Khu, looked back at Dojo who looked so frightened with his yellow eyes widening in horror at Khu. "No, you can't! It is too risk using that dangerous combination wu!" The Guardian of Xiaolin Temple continued shaking his head violently.
"If you used that, you'll be drained almost to zero! Especially you're already exhausted after unleashing an enormous dose of dark energy you possessed into the black falcon at Luce… If you failed that combination of two wu…you'll be dead." As he finished seriously, looking straight at Khu.
The Heylin Shoku leader looked back at Dojo, as he mused silently over the words that small temple guardian dragon told him. After five minutes, he finally looked away clenching his fists quietly. "…I don't care, as long as my best friend lives."
So almost everyone gawking at the stoic faced leader in surprise, Ciara stood looking torn between worried for Khu and relieved for the answer that could saved Lobo's life. "…Khu…" She whispered quietly to herself.
Primo Aseso… Raimundo thought looking at the Heylin leader glanced down at the blue-green shard lay on his palm. As he seem to remembered the last fight with Chase Young in the cursed form, Wuya in the human form with full power, and Master Monk Guan in the cursed human form before he become a Shoku leader.
Now he understood the reason behind Khu's words.
"Kobo…" Khu said softly kneeling next to the young teen and looked at the child's tear-tracked face. "I'll bring him back… Trust me." With this, he pulled the Crystal Wielder, the crystal-like jewel shape of fang from the bag he was wearing and placed it on Lobo's bloody chest and then he added the Shard of Dreams on them.
With a deep sigh, the dark leader placed his palm on top of the two Sheng-Gong-Wu(s). "CRYSTAL WIELDER, SHARD OF DREAMS!!" He commanded loudly to the combination wu as they started glowing together in golden, white, light blue lights.
The glowing sphere suddenly surrounded the Dark Shoku leader and the lifeless Heylin Tiger of Shadow almost blinding the Xiaolin Dragons, Heylin Tigers of Light, Wood, and Metal, and Were-creatures.
Come on… You can do it… Khu thought both of his hands pressing the wu onto Lobo's chest as the four white spirit-looking patterns were seen in absorbing into the shadow warrior's wounded area and it was healing him.
The glowing sphere vanished after thirty minutes, as he suddenly stumped half over the white lycanthrope's body with an exhausted groan and then the two Heylin Tigers of Wood and Metal ran over to their leader to hold him in the place.
"L…ob…o…" Khu managed to say his best friend's name without blacking out, nearly closing half way his eyes as Yamato get hold of his leader's left arm while Ciara hold his right arm supporting him.
Far distance in the background, the white spirit of Kuai was watching Khu managed not to go knocked out cold, struggling to sit up being supported by the Heylin Tigers of Wood and Metal at his sides.
His silver eyes to the boy's purple eyes, as he concerned the youth's spiritual energy. He frowned when he felt the spiritual energy was waning off and on slowly.
What's happening to you, boy?
"He's still not moving…" Hiss replied quietly, keeping his eyes on the healed white lycanthrope probably to the now huge pink spider web-like scar on the chest.
Letting of Khu's right arm knowing Yamato can hold Khu, Ciara moved cautiously closer to Lobo's sleeping face, which was now returning to colors on his face. "Lobo…? Can you hear me?" Her slender hand reached for Lobo's shoulder and touched uncertainly if the werewolf would jump back and saying "Gotcha, hehe!".
"Lobo…?" She asked again, worriedly when Lobo didn't response and her tears filled within her hazel eyes. "…Lobo…?"
Suddenly, she feels a quite familiar pressure on her bum and her eyes bugged out in surprise/startled. As the silence filled through the air when she froze, twitching quietly. "Y-Y-You…"
Outside the Ruin Temple… The group of wild birds squawked in surprise, flapping their wings as they escaped into the sky when the voice bellowed across the world, startling everybody living in the planet including the wildlife animals, fishes, and insects.
"…PERVERT BASTARD!!!!!!"
SLAP! TWACK! SLAP! TWACK! SLAP!
And then the final sickeningly echo of the knuckles hits the skin caused everyone winced at the sound.
Back to the Ruin Temple…
The Heylin/Xiaolin warriors and the were-creatures stared frighteningly at the fuming teenage girl stood clenching her fists while the Doom of Fire behind her back, staring deadly down at the white lycanthrope laying knocked out almost unconscious yet conscious with covering of bruises, several bumps on his head smoking and the red fist mark on his poor nose while the deep crimson slap marks all over his cheeks.
"Ooowuch…" Lobo groaned in pain as his little brother panicking over him, asking if he was all right.
Suddenly, he heard the quiet sobbing close to him and looked up to see who was crying, but he was startled to see it was Ciara, the Wood witch, was crying. "Ciara…?" He began clearly confused upon seeing the tough, stubborn girl who refused to cry over a lecher like him. "You're crying…"
Ciara choked a sob, kneeling in front of the confused lycanthrope and hiding her tears with her slender, pale bared hands. "Y-You…stupid… So typical…" She gulped for air and then she continued. "And yet, you still act as if it was just nothing happened to you…so stupid…I can't believe I'm so worried over you… DON'T DIE ON ME YOU DAMN LECHER!"
Lobo stared mutely at the crying witch, unmoving an inch for fear to breaking the forbidden silence between them. Wiping the dyed caked blood off his lips with smirk, Lobo sat up and reached for Ciara to hold her chin to looked back at him. "Ciara…" He said smiling as his dark gray eyes brightened with happiness and relief.
"…Lobo?" Ciara sniffled, confusing what the idiot was doing holding her chin and wiping her tears away with her sleeve.
"Will you…" Lobo said trailing off looking serious for a moment and then suddenly, he grinned with his eyes closed grasping her hands with his hands. "BEAR ME A CHILD?"
Ciara froze.
Then five minutes later, Khu and Yamato glanced pityingly at the white lycanthrope lay unconscious in the crater with a HUGE bump on his head and swirling in daze in his eyes while the witch stomping angrily past the group crossing her arms across her chest, the dark cloud above her head thundering.
"STUPID LECHER…!" Everyone can hear her grumbling loudly and he or she sweatdropped.
Kobo let out a relieved sigh. "As usual, brother…"
A small chuckle escaped from the cursed teen, Yamato shook head looking down at the now conscious werewolf who was rubbing his head in pain. "Mutt, you had to ask for it, eh? Aren't you learned to quit?" He asked grinning fang-like at the lecher who was grinned back at him.
"Nah, never!" Lobo laughed.
Khu shook head smiling in relief that his best friend was now alive and talking. I'm relieved… Once a lecher… always a lecher… Always go for the chance to groping whoever when he woke up to. Idiot…
Suddenly, he sensed the evil presence somewhere in the fallen ancient temple library and he whirled sharply in the direction alerting the others as his purple eyes narrowed when he spotted the source of the evil presence standing on the shattered part of the roof, grinning like a mix of fox and snake.
"Oh, my…! Old man finally died, eh?"
TO BE CONTINUE…
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End of the Chapter Twenty-Four
Me: (peeking over Yanji's shoulder) The mob…are they gone…?
Yanji: At least I thought so. (grinning)
Me: (sigh in relief) Thank goodness… Time's sneak peek!
Yanji: Time for sneak peek about upcoming Next chapter: "The Smiling Fox"
"Who are you!" Yamato yelled angrily at the mystery teen stood on top of the shattered part of the temple roof.
The teen looked down at the hot head for moment and then he smiled widely.
Suddenly, he appeared at Yamato's left side resting his left arm on the cursed boy's right shoulder while still smiling. Yamato's red eyes widened in surprise, he froze.
"Wha… he's fast!" Rai exclaimed in surprise.
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