Wow! I never knew that my little project would get so big I'd get to 100
reviews! And be on the favorites list of ANY members. But I have a new
chapter here! I was going to make this the big boss battle, but I found a
new villain that was just so evil, I had to dedicate an entire chapter to
him, and it explains some plot holes! And Arigotou! Arigotou! Arigotou!
Arigotou! For all the wonderful reviews!
Chapter 32
The door slowly opened, revealing a room much like the previous shrines, only indoors. They all slowly stepped in. Syaoran drew his blade, prepared for the worst. "There's gotta be a trap here." Syaoran said. "Every time we get close to one of those statues," Syaoran said as he pointed to the statue at one end, "a demon attacks." The statue this time, though, was a little different. It was a towering golden statue of a man with his face covered by the robe of his hood. He had his hand stretched out, as if by magic, holding a bowl that hovered in the air. But unlike the other statues, the bowl didn't glow; it had a small portal hovering above it, similar to the one the traveled seven years into the future in. The rest of the room was covered in tapestries, spell books, statues, pieces of armor, and the like.
Eriol stepped forward. He pushed the glasses further up his face and said, "I sense a powerful force here. We are not alone." Sakura looked worried. "Is… is it the guardian of this shrine?" She asked. Eriol concentrated. "I… can't tell… but… whatever it is, it's—"
"HERE!" A deep voice echoed. A tall man with huge muscles and flaming red long hair and a red beard stepped out of the shadows. He had dark brown eyes, and appeared to be in his forties. The man chuckled. "I'm surprised to see you make it this far. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Nave. I am the supreme commander of all of Sadin's army. I am the highest-ranking soldier in Sadin's glorious road to a superior New Universe Order!" Syaoran pointed his blade at the commander. "New Universe Order? You're slaughtering thousands! You've destroyed countless families, villages, cities, civilizations… and you bastards dare say you're making the universe a better place? You sicken me… I should slit your throat right here and now!" Nave glared at him. "Hmph. I wouldn't expect little babies like yourselves to understand." Eriol stepped forward. "We understand that you have been fooling around with time itself. It isn't supposed to be this way!" He stammered. Nave drew a long golden sword and pointed it at Eriol. "No, this isn't the way it would have happened, it is better! Once Sadin has utter control of the universe, the world will be a better place! No more wars will be fought over land. No more corrupted governments will plague civilizations. No crimes will go unnoticed. It will be a glorious new age!" Sakura thought for a minute. "You sound exactly like Rosaria!" She said. "Talking about how great this new world will be… but you are both insane! We killed Rosaria, and we'll destroy you if we have to." Sakura said coldly.
Nave's right eye twitched and his face turned red. "ROSARIA?! YOU BITCH!" He breathed heavily. ""Rosaria… was the love in my life… she was my guiding force in life… She was the one who showed me the light… for you see, I was not created like the demons you have faced. I was once a drill sergeant for the United States Army those seven years ago. I knew our United States Army was the most supreme of all the powers… I tried to convince my superiors that this was true and that the United States had the power to rule the entire planet! Do you know what they did? They said I was crazy! They booted me out of the army, and I would never be allowed to join again. Those bastards… I swore I'd get my revenge from them if it was the last thing I ever did. A few days later, the invasion began. My family and me were taken hostage by the demons, just like hundreds of thousands of other families. The one who took us hostage was Rosaria. I asked her what she wanted alone. She told me of her plans…" He began to cry. "The collapse of the governments that have only softened our world. The way civilizations no longer lived in fear of one absolute ruler. That fear that made the universe great. That fear kept all living beings from doing wrong. I understood. I wanted to only help them. They were right. They were surprised by my sudden change of allegiances. So they gave me a test. So I obeyed. I looked my family right in the eyes…" His tears turned to insane laughter.
"…And I killed them. One by one, I shot my wife, my son, my daughter, I killed them all. I felt the power. They were weak. They didn't deserve to live. I knew I had done the right thing. I had a bloodlust. I needed to teach the miserable people of this world a lesson they would never forget!" Everyone was turning red in anger. Syaoran clenched his fist. "This… this guy sickens me… his own FAMILY?! He ENJOYED killing them?!" He mumbled. Sakura mumbled, "This is sick! How can this man be so uncaring?!" Eriol stood in silence, staring a whole through him. Kero and Yue seemed almost ready to strike as Kero growled… Nave continued. "I remember the look on their faces… the total horror… THAT'S THE FEAR I WANT! That's how the universe should be ruled. Over time, I went on to kill hundreds and thousands of more families. Sadin himself was so impressed by my leadership of the demons that he granted me the magic to become the most powerful being in the universe! And when Sadin comes to this universe, I will be his right hand man. With those powers though, I extracted my revenge. I single handedly destroyed the armies of all the super powers. The United States, Russia, China, Japan, England, and France… they all fell so easily. But my greatest moment?" He laughed insanely. He pointed to Sakura. "You!"
Sakura panicked a little bit. "Yes… Sakura was it? When the invasion began, Sadin gave me strict orders to find you, and kill you. The three demons sent prior to me… you had killed all three of them, but I would not failed. We had not realized you were gone. But I came to your house. There I saw your father and your brother in mourning… crying over a picture of you… apparently they thought two bodies in the woods were you and your little friend there." He pointed to Syaoran. "Well, I put those bodies there. They were of two kids who got in my way in the woods. They were to young bastard kids who called me names. I realized the world was in much worse shape when these kids verbally attacked me without reason. I killed them both. And I enjoyed it. You see, I was sent back in time from before the invasion started to look for you. So I killed them a week before the invasion began, even though I was recruited after it began. I spent the rest of the week searching for you. Or in other words, I arrived the day you left. I couldn't find your house until after the invasion began. That's when I walked in on your father and brother. Your brother put up a pretty good fight and managed to get away. But your father…" Nave smiled sadistically. "He didn't care. He was so heart broken he willingly accepted death…" They all stood in shock. Sakura fell to her knees, crying. Syaoran knelt down and hugged her, whispering, "It's alright Sakura… calm down… it will be okay…" Nave broke into sadistic laughter. "So, I was doing him a favor by putting him out of his heart broken misery… or at least since he didn't know you were alive. But then, you went and killed Rosaria… the one who showed me the truth…"
"SHUT UP, BASTARD!" Sakura stood up. Her face was burning red in utter hatred. "YOU! YOU KILLED MY FATHER! I CAN NEVER FORGIVE YOU!" Sakura clenched her fist. She mumbled, "God help me, I will kill you!" Sakura summoned her staff. She pulled a Clow Card out. Syaoran saw what she was doing and grabbed her arm to try and stop her. "Sakura, don't!" Syaoran said with a look of concern in his eyes. Sakura took her arm back and shoved Syaoran to the ground. "BACK OFF! I HAVE TO DO THIS!" Everyone was shocked. This was totally unlike Sakura. Sakura tossed the card in the air. "ARROW CARD!" A barrage of arrows flew out of the card towards Nave. But like lightning, Nave grabbed them in the air. He took one out of the group, and snapped the rest of the arrows on his knee. He took the other arrow and held it in the air. "That was a mistake." He tossed it straight ahead, and it stuck into Sakura's left arm, sending blood splattering onto Syaoran's face as he lay next to her on the ground. Sakura gave a shriek of pain as she squirmed on the floor. Everyone rushed over and kneeled down beside her. Syaoran crawled over to her. Sakura squeezed her arm with the arrow sticking out. Sakura continued to scream. Syaoran grabbed the arrow and quickly yanked it out. Sakura's screaming grew louder. Natalie asked, "Are you alright Sakura?!" But Sakura didn't respond. Syaoran ripped the entire right sleeve off his angle shirt and tied it around the wound. Sakura stopped screaming and stared at Syaoran for a moment. Tears were still flowing from her eyes.
"You're… you're helping me? After what I just did to you? Shoving you to the ground?" Syaoran pulled her closer. "Sakura… it's okay. Of course I'm going to help you… I know you didn't mean that. You were just angry. I would have done the same thing. Now tell me, can you move your arm?" Sakura lifted her arm. She squinted when she moved it, but she moved it. "Ow… Yeah, but it hurts…" The blood started to be absorbed into her dress, turning the left sleeve red. "That's good, then the arm will be fine." Sakura put her hand on his face and wiped her own blood away. "Syaoran… I'm… I'm so sorry!" She began to burst out in tears. Syaoran said, "Don't be sorry. You only wanted to avenge your father… anyone would have done the same." "…" Sakura was speechless. Syaoran put his hands on her delicate face. He slowly wiped away the tears. "Syaoran," Sakura said. "I'll understand if you hate me…" "No!" Syaoran snapped back. "I don't hate you! I understand what you're going through. Remember, I lost my entire family… but nothing you say or do will ever make me hate you…" He pulled her close and hugged her tight, ignoring the watchful eyes of their friends around them.
"ENOUGH OF THIS!" Nave screamed. "Are you cowards going to do anything?" They all at once got to their feet and slowly walked towards Nave. Sakura had the Cards in her hands. Syaoran drew his blade. Eriol held his staff. Ruby Moon and Yue formed swords of pure energy. Kero and Spinnel stuck out their claws and growled. Natalie and Kirei Kittie rolled up their sleeves, and prepared their energy to cast spells.
Nave backed away. "Nine on one? That doesn't seem fair. I guess I'll just have to even the odds!" He snapped his fingers, and everything went black. When the light returned, they found themselves standing on a huge rock floating in the air. There were groups of smaller rocks floating around theirs. Nave stood on the opposite end of the rock. "I would normally fight you all," he said, "but think it may be enjoyable for me to watch my pet do it! Oh come here, Behemoth!" The shadow of a beast appeared on the top of one of the rocks. The shadow leapt into the air, and landed in front of them.
It was the demon they saw on the sealed door. It was a purple beast-dog with a flaming red mane and black horns on its head and tail. Its bright red eyes glowed and its mouth dripped with blood and drool. Everyone prepared to battle the beast.
To be continued…
Chapter 32
The door slowly opened, revealing a room much like the previous shrines, only indoors. They all slowly stepped in. Syaoran drew his blade, prepared for the worst. "There's gotta be a trap here." Syaoran said. "Every time we get close to one of those statues," Syaoran said as he pointed to the statue at one end, "a demon attacks." The statue this time, though, was a little different. It was a towering golden statue of a man with his face covered by the robe of his hood. He had his hand stretched out, as if by magic, holding a bowl that hovered in the air. But unlike the other statues, the bowl didn't glow; it had a small portal hovering above it, similar to the one the traveled seven years into the future in. The rest of the room was covered in tapestries, spell books, statues, pieces of armor, and the like.
Eriol stepped forward. He pushed the glasses further up his face and said, "I sense a powerful force here. We are not alone." Sakura looked worried. "Is… is it the guardian of this shrine?" She asked. Eriol concentrated. "I… can't tell… but… whatever it is, it's—"
"HERE!" A deep voice echoed. A tall man with huge muscles and flaming red long hair and a red beard stepped out of the shadows. He had dark brown eyes, and appeared to be in his forties. The man chuckled. "I'm surprised to see you make it this far. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Nave. I am the supreme commander of all of Sadin's army. I am the highest-ranking soldier in Sadin's glorious road to a superior New Universe Order!" Syaoran pointed his blade at the commander. "New Universe Order? You're slaughtering thousands! You've destroyed countless families, villages, cities, civilizations… and you bastards dare say you're making the universe a better place? You sicken me… I should slit your throat right here and now!" Nave glared at him. "Hmph. I wouldn't expect little babies like yourselves to understand." Eriol stepped forward. "We understand that you have been fooling around with time itself. It isn't supposed to be this way!" He stammered. Nave drew a long golden sword and pointed it at Eriol. "No, this isn't the way it would have happened, it is better! Once Sadin has utter control of the universe, the world will be a better place! No more wars will be fought over land. No more corrupted governments will plague civilizations. No crimes will go unnoticed. It will be a glorious new age!" Sakura thought for a minute. "You sound exactly like Rosaria!" She said. "Talking about how great this new world will be… but you are both insane! We killed Rosaria, and we'll destroy you if we have to." Sakura said coldly.
Nave's right eye twitched and his face turned red. "ROSARIA?! YOU BITCH!" He breathed heavily. ""Rosaria… was the love in my life… she was my guiding force in life… She was the one who showed me the light… for you see, I was not created like the demons you have faced. I was once a drill sergeant for the United States Army those seven years ago. I knew our United States Army was the most supreme of all the powers… I tried to convince my superiors that this was true and that the United States had the power to rule the entire planet! Do you know what they did? They said I was crazy! They booted me out of the army, and I would never be allowed to join again. Those bastards… I swore I'd get my revenge from them if it was the last thing I ever did. A few days later, the invasion began. My family and me were taken hostage by the demons, just like hundreds of thousands of other families. The one who took us hostage was Rosaria. I asked her what she wanted alone. She told me of her plans…" He began to cry. "The collapse of the governments that have only softened our world. The way civilizations no longer lived in fear of one absolute ruler. That fear that made the universe great. That fear kept all living beings from doing wrong. I understood. I wanted to only help them. They were right. They were surprised by my sudden change of allegiances. So they gave me a test. So I obeyed. I looked my family right in the eyes…" His tears turned to insane laughter.
"…And I killed them. One by one, I shot my wife, my son, my daughter, I killed them all. I felt the power. They were weak. They didn't deserve to live. I knew I had done the right thing. I had a bloodlust. I needed to teach the miserable people of this world a lesson they would never forget!" Everyone was turning red in anger. Syaoran clenched his fist. "This… this guy sickens me… his own FAMILY?! He ENJOYED killing them?!" He mumbled. Sakura mumbled, "This is sick! How can this man be so uncaring?!" Eriol stood in silence, staring a whole through him. Kero and Yue seemed almost ready to strike as Kero growled… Nave continued. "I remember the look on their faces… the total horror… THAT'S THE FEAR I WANT! That's how the universe should be ruled. Over time, I went on to kill hundreds and thousands of more families. Sadin himself was so impressed by my leadership of the demons that he granted me the magic to become the most powerful being in the universe! And when Sadin comes to this universe, I will be his right hand man. With those powers though, I extracted my revenge. I single handedly destroyed the armies of all the super powers. The United States, Russia, China, Japan, England, and France… they all fell so easily. But my greatest moment?" He laughed insanely. He pointed to Sakura. "You!"
Sakura panicked a little bit. "Yes… Sakura was it? When the invasion began, Sadin gave me strict orders to find you, and kill you. The three demons sent prior to me… you had killed all three of them, but I would not failed. We had not realized you were gone. But I came to your house. There I saw your father and your brother in mourning… crying over a picture of you… apparently they thought two bodies in the woods were you and your little friend there." He pointed to Syaoran. "Well, I put those bodies there. They were of two kids who got in my way in the woods. They were to young bastard kids who called me names. I realized the world was in much worse shape when these kids verbally attacked me without reason. I killed them both. And I enjoyed it. You see, I was sent back in time from before the invasion started to look for you. So I killed them a week before the invasion began, even though I was recruited after it began. I spent the rest of the week searching for you. Or in other words, I arrived the day you left. I couldn't find your house until after the invasion began. That's when I walked in on your father and brother. Your brother put up a pretty good fight and managed to get away. But your father…" Nave smiled sadistically. "He didn't care. He was so heart broken he willingly accepted death…" They all stood in shock. Sakura fell to her knees, crying. Syaoran knelt down and hugged her, whispering, "It's alright Sakura… calm down… it will be okay…" Nave broke into sadistic laughter. "So, I was doing him a favor by putting him out of his heart broken misery… or at least since he didn't know you were alive. But then, you went and killed Rosaria… the one who showed me the truth…"
"SHUT UP, BASTARD!" Sakura stood up. Her face was burning red in utter hatred. "YOU! YOU KILLED MY FATHER! I CAN NEVER FORGIVE YOU!" Sakura clenched her fist. She mumbled, "God help me, I will kill you!" Sakura summoned her staff. She pulled a Clow Card out. Syaoran saw what she was doing and grabbed her arm to try and stop her. "Sakura, don't!" Syaoran said with a look of concern in his eyes. Sakura took her arm back and shoved Syaoran to the ground. "BACK OFF! I HAVE TO DO THIS!" Everyone was shocked. This was totally unlike Sakura. Sakura tossed the card in the air. "ARROW CARD!" A barrage of arrows flew out of the card towards Nave. But like lightning, Nave grabbed them in the air. He took one out of the group, and snapped the rest of the arrows on his knee. He took the other arrow and held it in the air. "That was a mistake." He tossed it straight ahead, and it stuck into Sakura's left arm, sending blood splattering onto Syaoran's face as he lay next to her on the ground. Sakura gave a shriek of pain as she squirmed on the floor. Everyone rushed over and kneeled down beside her. Syaoran crawled over to her. Sakura squeezed her arm with the arrow sticking out. Sakura continued to scream. Syaoran grabbed the arrow and quickly yanked it out. Sakura's screaming grew louder. Natalie asked, "Are you alright Sakura?!" But Sakura didn't respond. Syaoran ripped the entire right sleeve off his angle shirt and tied it around the wound. Sakura stopped screaming and stared at Syaoran for a moment. Tears were still flowing from her eyes.
"You're… you're helping me? After what I just did to you? Shoving you to the ground?" Syaoran pulled her closer. "Sakura… it's okay. Of course I'm going to help you… I know you didn't mean that. You were just angry. I would have done the same thing. Now tell me, can you move your arm?" Sakura lifted her arm. She squinted when she moved it, but she moved it. "Ow… Yeah, but it hurts…" The blood started to be absorbed into her dress, turning the left sleeve red. "That's good, then the arm will be fine." Sakura put her hand on his face and wiped her own blood away. "Syaoran… I'm… I'm so sorry!" She began to burst out in tears. Syaoran said, "Don't be sorry. You only wanted to avenge your father… anyone would have done the same." "…" Sakura was speechless. Syaoran put his hands on her delicate face. He slowly wiped away the tears. "Syaoran," Sakura said. "I'll understand if you hate me…" "No!" Syaoran snapped back. "I don't hate you! I understand what you're going through. Remember, I lost my entire family… but nothing you say or do will ever make me hate you…" He pulled her close and hugged her tight, ignoring the watchful eyes of their friends around them.
"ENOUGH OF THIS!" Nave screamed. "Are you cowards going to do anything?" They all at once got to their feet and slowly walked towards Nave. Sakura had the Cards in her hands. Syaoran drew his blade. Eriol held his staff. Ruby Moon and Yue formed swords of pure energy. Kero and Spinnel stuck out their claws and growled. Natalie and Kirei Kittie rolled up their sleeves, and prepared their energy to cast spells.
Nave backed away. "Nine on one? That doesn't seem fair. I guess I'll just have to even the odds!" He snapped his fingers, and everything went black. When the light returned, they found themselves standing on a huge rock floating in the air. There were groups of smaller rocks floating around theirs. Nave stood on the opposite end of the rock. "I would normally fight you all," he said, "but think it may be enjoyable for me to watch my pet do it! Oh come here, Behemoth!" The shadow of a beast appeared on the top of one of the rocks. The shadow leapt into the air, and landed in front of them.
It was the demon they saw on the sealed door. It was a purple beast-dog with a flaming red mane and black horns on its head and tail. Its bright red eyes glowed and its mouth dripped with blood and drool. Everyone prepared to battle the beast.
To be continued…