Last time, Kyo Sohma went on a raging spree, learning that Kagura Sohma is inside a huge building in St. Moritz, Switzerland. After Beth knew of a possible outcome that may lead to his death, Kyo ignores Mandy's orders, only to go at it, alone. Beth, Mandy, and Kaname all follow, heading to the moment of truth. Before that could happen, Mandy told the story of how Kyo Sohma was once a nice kid, to a hated cat of the Zodiac.
Episode XVIII – Chapter 1: The Curse of the Cat!
Kyo Sohma's Sad Story
Kyo was born in the Sohma Clan of Japan, a normal family, cursed with a spell that only turns people into their Chinese Zodiac animal, if hugged by the opposite gender.
Long before the Moji Mikisa, Kyo grew up in a family, in which he was ridiculed and treated poorly, because he was the cat of the Zodiac. The cat is not in the Zodiac. Legend is foretold from the folk stories. The cat was the last to show up, making it the thirteenth animal. But he was forbidden to enter the feast, because the rat tricked the cat into making the induction feast. In reality the rat would hop on the ox, making it the first in the line.
This was the reason why Kyo was the cat of the Zodiac, and not a very well-liked family member.
When Kyo was 6, his mother died in an accident, when it's rumored that she killed herself; not bearing the curse from her son. She died, walking in front of an incoming train. His father abandoned him, blaming Kyo for his mother's death, only to reveal later that his father drove his mother to the brink of suicide. After that, he was taken in by his grandfather, Kazuma Sohma, and loved each other, like father and son. As time went on, Kyo enrolled in high school, and was picked on for being lots of things, including how his hair is orange, and why is he so moody.
Throughout his life, he wore a black and white beaded bracelet called a Juzu bead bracelet. These beads were made from bones of a priest and warrior, making the perfect protective charm. Deep down inside, it was to hide his true form… of the cat…
But everything changed… when his former friend, Tohru Honda, ruined life that he wanted to have…
Following the turn of Tohru Honda's evil transformation, Kyo left Japan and trained in Italy, away from the Sohmas and Honda, herself. He became a rogue fighter, in which he fights alone. He even fights dirty, using weapons and dirty tactics to defeat his enemies. He even vowed that once he returns to Japan, he wants to defeat the rat of the Zodiac, Yuki Sohma, and to finally best him, making him one with the Zodiac. He did not know this, but he was already beginning to learn Ty Ko Ky.
And then, years later in Rome, he found a man in long gray hair, in a black robe.
"NO!" Kyo cried, "No doubt about it… It's him! Kazuma!"
After the worlds melded into a random-inducing multiverse, Kyo finally found his grandfather and teacher, Kazuma Sohma. At that moment, he was ready to meet with Kazuma, to ask what went wrong with the Sohmas, since the Moji Mikisa merged, thanks to Tohru Honda. But then…
Kyo gasped, seeing a stone wall of three women, with a stone mask over the right woman's hand. They were the stone carvings of the Jewel Women, Elsa, Anya, and Inga.
"What the hell is all that?" Kyo gasped.
He then spotted a massive diamond, and reached for it. He thought, "Hmm… This looks expensive. I bet I can use it for good luck."
But as he was about to grab it…
"NOOOOOOOOOO!" Kazuma raced towards Kyo, and then shoved him away from the gem.
Kazuma barked, "Are you crazy?"
Kyo gasped, "IT'S YOU!"
Kazuma said, "I cannot let you harm yourself… You cannot go risk your life, for this wall… Even if I let you, there are mysterious forces coming to get you, from within…"
Kyo asked, "What are you talking about, Kazuma? And why the hell did you pushed me away?"
But as he was about to explain, a woman appeared from behind and stabbed him in the back. She cackled, as Kyo recognized her face. It was…
"KAGURA?!" Kyo screamed.
Kazuma croaked, "STAY BACK! St-st-stay back, Kyo!"
Kagura cackled evilly, as wires appeared from the wall, piercing into Kazuma's flesh, and pulling both him and Kagura in. Kagura Sohma, at one time, when Tohru was alive, was one of her slaves, when Tohru Honda undergone the mantle "Onigiri", the most feared deity in all the alternate universes. Events had occurred, ten years ago, long before Kyo knew Tohru, and most were unknown to him. Kagura murdered Kazuma, after he told Kyo that his estranged father died tragically, while on an expedition. Kazuma took over the reins of the expedition, discovering the truth, soon after. But… Kagura knew of this discovery, first, or so she says. Kazuma and Kagura were finding a way to defeat the monsters from within, and unlock the treasures that they hide. But Kagura betrayed Kazuma, her old master, killing him in a bloody rage, and disappeared, and Kyo knew none of this.
Kagura walked away, as Kazuma was being pulled in. She said nothing, as Kyo cried, "KAGURA! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?"
After Kagura left, Kazuma was croaking, pulling in, "Kyo… I beg of you a favor… I can no longer teach you… for you have to go… Make your way to Venice, and meet a woman named Mandy. It's a matter of life and death. Kagura doesn't know this… She is the only one who has a chance of stopping this…"
Kyo was shocked and scared, seeing the man that was once his grandfather, and his adoptive father, being tragically killed by one of its own family members. Perhaps because so many years had passed, and Tohru Honda changed drastically, Kazuma does recognize Kyo. Kazuma had trained Kyo, Yuki, and Kagura, for several years. And it wasn't because Kyo's real father left him, because of the Sohma Curse; it was because that he doesn't want his son, cursed or not, to experience the nightmare of the Jewel Women of Mount Fuji.
Kazuma's last words were "Go… Please find her…" and he was pulled into the walls, drained of his blood and life source. Kyo reached for him, but was scared. He cried out, "Ka-. Kaz-…"
He cried, "KAZUMA!" bawling.
Back to present day, Kyo was inside the building, as he whispered to himself, in confidence, that he has to end Kagura Sohma, the woman that not only released the Jewel Women… but the woman that killed Kazuma Sohma, in sheer malice.
XXXXX
Back in the hotel, Mandy finished explaining to Beth about what happened.
"I see." Beth said.
Mandy said, "Since Kazuma died in Kagura's hands, his life changed… It grew into hatred, but changed, for pride of his father, grandfather, and the rest of his family. So, Kyo sought me out, and continued where his grandfather left him off… Of course, years later, he would meet your father, Steven Nevins, continuing to train what he learned, and everything changed for the best… except for one minor detail…"
Beth stated, "He's going, because he needs to avenge his father… Forgive me, Kyo. I didn't mean to speak ill of your family and clan… If you still wanted to go charging in, even though you know damn well that it's a trap and all, then you must've figured out some way to beat Anya… or Kagura… or BOTH! Changed my mind! Since you're going into that derelict hellhole, then I'm right behind you, Kyo Sohma!"
Kyo would see footprints and said, "Hmm… Kagura's feet match… They aren't big, but who says that she has big ugly feet… She's an ugly boar… and a murderer…"
He followed the trail and the doors suddenly opened. A figure appeared from in the wintry winds, and charged at him, calling out, "KYO!"
He vanished, as Kyo was on his toes, looking for the figure. He figured out it might have been Anya, playing the winds as a decoy for Kyo to lose his focus. He remained standing on his toes; The Cat Stance, a fundamental element of Kung Fu. Kyo has never learned or heard of Kung Fu, long before he met Steven Nevins. But instinctively relaxes and balances his limbs, ready for an attack from any direction. For him, it is not a technique, but a reflex.
Kaname called to Kyo, "KYO! WHAT ARE YOU DOING, ALL ALONE? GOING IN THERE IS MADNESS!"
Kyo asked, "YOU? Where's Beth?"
Kaname said, "After the order of me and her coming with, she forcefully declined, still not believing that you shouldn't go there, right now."
Kyo cried, "STAY BACK, KANAME! I know what's going on, but I cannot move, let alone enter in there… I sense a powerful force inside, and NO, it's not a ghost! Something's hiding just in the entrance of the building."
Kaname asked, "What are you saying? I can't see squat from in there!"
A single footprint appeared, as she cried, "Dios mios! What is that?"
He called out, "He's coming at us from above! He knows we're here! We have to stop him!"
The figure appeared, revealing herself. It was… Elsa.
"ELSA?!" Kyo cried.
Elsa appeared from inside her winds, and then…
SLASH!
Kaname shrieked, and was knocked down, when Elsa slashed off her left arm. Kaname cried in pain, as Elsa dragged her inside the building.
Kyo cried, "KANAME! NO!"
RIP!
He reached for her, but the doors shut. Seconds after the double doors slammed, Kyo's right upper arm got a small cut from Elsa's Divine Winds. Kyo growled, "What the hell is this? That guy is Elsa! She, Kagura, and Anya are in there… But wait, how can Elsa come outside, during the day? It made no sense!"
The doors opened, and Elsa reappeared, as she was in a windy aura, "WHERE IS SHE? That infuriating trash-talking upstart! It's not like Beth Nevins to disappear on me… But then again… I hear tell that she's learned quite a bit. Where is the girl that killed Sister Inga?"
Kyo thought, as he figured it out, "Wind… Elsa can control the wind… That's why she's difficult to see. Air is coming out of her chest, near her torso."
He was right. Four pipes appeared from Elsa's torso, on each side, two on the left of her, and two on the right of her. She was slightly visible, because the water vapors were swirling in the flow, around her body.
"That's it! She's created herself a suit of wind that coats herself, like a prism!" He thought, "She's cloaking herself in air, and coating herself in the mist, and then pumping it out with the pipes. It's refracting light, like she's made of millions of prisms! It's a suit that bends light around her, protecting her from the sun's rays, thus allowing her to be outside. That's why she's transparent."
Elsa said, "Seems it's a shame that Beth Nevins is a no-show… You are the Chosen Choujin, name of Kyo Sohma, are you not? Master Kagura told me much about you, and how much she loved you. Seeing from the look in your eyes, much like Beth Nevins, you've learned much from your ordeals of training."
She glared and roared, "VERY WELL! You shall be worthy for death, Choujin!"
Kyo roars out, "WE'LL SEE WHO'S DYING, TONIGHT!"
They rushed at each other, as he called out, "I did it, back then, when I was naïve and poor! Back, when you had a hand at viciously taken the life of Kazuma! And now… I'll use my viciousness TO DESTROY YOU!"
Elsa shot her winds out, but he held her stance. Kyo said, "Very impressive! But it looks like you can't stop the Cat of the Zodiac! Some cats hang on to the ground! I have mastered my grandfather's deadly technique, using my Ty Ko Ky and Mr. Nevins's training!"
His hands shone and fired out a small barrage of razor-sharp energy disks. He yelled out, "SOHMA CUTTER!"
He explained, "High-speed rotations turn even balls into deadly disks! Ty Ko Ky makes sure that they don't break apart, upon impact!"
The cutters landed on Elsa, nearly piercing her skin. He continued, "The wind you're protected by is nothing more than empty air! Instead of defending you, it will dissect you!"
Elsa screamed in pain, still in a windy aura, "His Ty Ko Ky has improved. It is far more than I bargained for."
She made a hasty retreat inside, but Kyo threw more energy disks towards her legs, preventing her from going inside. Kyo leapt up, about to finish Elsa off with a deadly Ty Ko Ky kick. But he was in for a complete shock! If you are tripped, you try your best to not fall; especially if you need sunlight, in order to survive. But Elsa was different! She bent over backwards, and attacked him, landing a backflip dropkick. At that moment, she crashed through the wall and escaped inside. Kyo panted, as he was moaning, "Shit! She got away, again! She's not just immortal, with incredible strength! This woman's a genius in fighting! But… my Sohma Cutter may have dealt some severe damage to her."
He called out, "The advantage is mine! I have a way of taking you down, even indoors!"
He stepped in, looking for Elsa. He looked around the rooms in the deteriorating building, as he was relaxed. Kyo suddenly found a body inside, on a table, with her left arm severed off.
"IT'S KANAME!" He cried.
Kaname was still on the table, shackled down, and still alive. Kaname's mouth was taped shut, as she moaned and muffled, "KYO!"
Kyo said, "Don't worry, Kaname! I'll save you!"
"Oh, no, you don't!" A voice called.
Kagura appeared from atop the stairway, as she smirked, grinning evilly. Kyo snarled, "First, Haruna… then, Subaru… and now, Kaname! How many more lives are you going to take from me? You've gone TOO FAR, KAGURA SOHMAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
Kagura growled, "What a romantic way to end this lovefest… We broke up, you never called, and you sided with my sworn enemy, Steven Nevins…"
Kyo smiled, "Don't worry… For Kaname's sake, I'll handle this one! Where's your entourage?"
Kagura grinned, as she said, "You want to know? They're in the Colosseum, awaiting Beth Nevins. But don't worry… I brought along… this!"
She held up a severed lip ring. It was Elsa's lip ring, as she said, "Moments after Elsa retreated to inside, after you cut her badly, I took the antidote from her, so that Beth can never get her grubby little hands on it, after she somehow defeats her. But don't you worry…"
She wore the lip ring on her lip, and said, "It doesn't hurt me good, since I'm already dead, losing my nervous system… That, or that I had my lips numb, after we broke up. YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO BE SO CRUEL, KYO-KUN!"
Kyo smiled, as he prepared to fight, "Cruel, yes… Only because you and Tohru Honda were demonic little whores! I can't wait to finally thrash you, once and for all! This is for everyone… for Michelle Nevins, for Haruna Hiyashi, for Subaru Mikage, and… AND FOR KAZUMA! I WILL END YOU, ONE WAY OR ANOTHER, KAGURA! YOUR VILLAINY ENDS HERE!"
Kagura waved her hand to him and said, "Then… Let this be our final battle, Kyo Sohma… Tohru Honda is dead… but her revival is imminent, as the worlds will fall into chaos, before the day is done… and it starts with the Red Gem of Fuji, as my mistress beseeches. And the reason why Anya and Elsa are absent… because I made the order. I long to eliminate you, first, before Mr. Nevins and his daughter."
Kyo said, "Well, that's all there is. Not once I have beaten that damned rat. But the boar of the Zodiac, I can do that… You undead pig!"
They stared down, as they were about to ready themselves. Kagura Sohma… Kyo Sohma… once rivals in battle, often times romantically link (in Kagura's words), now sworn enemies…
One battle to the death will decide everything. For Kagura, the Pig of the Zodiac, power and chaos… For Kyo, the Cat of the Zodiac Curse, revenge and redemption…
It comes down to this… Kyo vs. Kagura…
Be sure to tune in to the next chapter…
To be continued…