Card Captors --???
Chapter 3- Reno and Sakura
The night was beautiful. Every star was visible in the sky, and the full moon shone brightly, overlooking everything. I stood alongside Crystal, facing a void of energy that could not be identified. Behind me stood a group of other people, but I could not see their faces in the shadows of the night.
As I raised the staff to the sky, the strange energy rippled and took a physical form; a beautiful woman with a dazzling outfit, her hair curling in all directions. She did not resist as I pointed the staff to her, sealing her into a card. The card floated down to me, but the image was blurred. I couldn't tell which one it was.
Crystal lifted her index finger, creating a pen of silver glass. I took it, and signed my name on the card with the mystical silver ink. It glowed, and the card joined the others in my little silk bag. It seemed that the book was finally complete.
I smiled joyfully, watching Crystal glow bright violet. She slowly evolved into her adult form, with her long hair and beautiful dress. I hugged her… and promptly stepped back to hold my hand over my heart. A sharp pain coursed through my very soul.. It was nothing that I'd even experienced before. I panicked, slowly going into a state of shock. And I fell backward into darkness…
I woke with a cold sweat on my forehead, sitting up in bed with the blankets on the floor. I looked around the room… there was nothing unusual there. The pain in my chest was gone, and Crystal still lay on her pillow, tiny as ever. It had only been a dream. But you don't feel pain in dreams, and the sharp pain in my heart had felt so real…
I got up, shaking the sleep out of my eyes. The Kaki and the Evolve cards were resting on my headboard, along with the violet book with my name on it. I stared at them for a long time, my gaze eventually trailing down to Crystal. Would the cards really end up hurting me? I sighed, and walked out of my room silently, trying not to wake up Crystal as I shut the door.
I stood in the kitchen, mixing ingredients into the blender and trying not to think about the cards. I had laid out the pretty cups for the strawberry shakes on the counter, along with all the syrup and ice cream, only because I needed to take my mind off of that dream. But no matter what I did, my thoughts would always wander back to that brief moment of pain, and I wanted to know what it meant.
My tension was broken by a soft, tired voice saying, "Good morning," I spun around to see Crystal dragging her pillow into the kitchen.
"Why are you bringing the pillow?" I asked, raising one eyebrow and turning back to my work.
"Oh… Sorry. What's for breakfast?" she returned, quickly discarding the pillow.
"Strawberry smoothie okay?" I asked her, tossing another ice cube into the blender.
"Yummy! My favorite! What is it?"
I lightly slapped my forehead in disbelief. "You'll see," I told her. Then I turned on the blender… and realized one second too late that I had forgotten to put the lid on. Pink bubbles splashed all over me, and I screamed and backed up.
"That doesn't look very good," Crystal commented, taking a piece of a strawberry off of the floor. "Are you supposed to eat these off the floor?"
"Crystal…" I began, but all of a sudden, a strange chill ran up my back. It felt like one of the cards… "Hey, can you feel that?" I questioned.
"No. I'm not the one with ice all over my shirt."
"Not that! I sense an Aurora card!" I explained.
Crystal looked up at me. "Are you sure? I don't sense anything at all," she told me. "You're sure you're not just cold?"
"I sense something," I sighed. "Maybe... if I use Evolve like I did last time, we can find the card."
"Whatever you say," Crystal said.
After getting changed and cleaning up the kitchen, Crystal and I headed out. I followed the weird sensations to a tiny little park close to the high school that I attended. There was a huge blue slide shaped like a penguin, and a nearby sign read, "King Penguin Park."
"That's cute," I commented. "So, do you sense it now, Crystal?"
"No!" she cried. "You're crazy."
"We'll see about that," I said, taking the key out of my pocket. I held it in my palm and recited the words: "Key of Crystal! By the power of the Book of Aurora, I command you to surrender your strength to me! Release!!"
As I said the last word, I tossed the key in the air, catching it as it came back to me as a staff. I spun it gracefully, stepping forward with the Evolve card in my other hand.
"Evolve!" I shouted. "Find the card that is in this area! Now, release!"
The tiny fox came forth, but it didn't run off as it had the last time. It stood in front of me, absent-mindedly sniffing the ground. It looked up at me with a confused look in its eyes.
"What? You can't find it either?" I said, amazed. "What kind of card is this?"
Just then, I saw two figures dashing through the trees; a girl dressed in a fancy outfit, and a lion with wings. I blinked as they took off into the night.
Wait… a lion with wings? That was definitely not normal. And I didn't remember one of the Aurora cards looking like a lion. But I could still sense overwhelming power in the area. I watched the trees closely, watching to see if they would return.
As I stared off into nothing, someone else watched me from the treetops. He jumped down, landing directly behind me, and I spun around to see the teenage boy dressed totally in black. He was holding a long black staff with a golden sun on the tip.
"Who are you?" he asked in a calm, menacing voice. "And where did these starnge cards come from?" I was about to reply, but he continued, "Well, no matter. I didn't come to deal with newbies. I'm here for Sakura. Now, get out of my way!" With these words, he pointed his staff at me, releasing a wave of blackness at me. I was out cold before I hit the ground…
When I woke up, I wasn't exactly sure how much time had passed. I looked at my surroundings; on my left side lay the Evolve card and the Crystal Key, both returned to their original state. On my right, Crystal lay fainted at my feet. And then… I made the mistake of looking up.
The girl was standing there, wearing her fancy pink outfit and holding a pink staff with a golden star on the tip. Not only was she standing with her golden winged lion, but another being floated at her side: a man with silver hair, two pearl-white wings and an absolutely lovely uniform. I couldn't help but blush at the sight of him.
"Eli! It's you!" the girl was saying. It was then that I noticed the boy in black standing on top of the penguin slide.
"I knew you'd figure it out, Sakura," Eli said. "I'm just surprised it took you so long."
"What do you want?" Sakura yelled to him.
"I want… to thank you," said Eli. "For giving the Clow Cards more energy for me. Now, I can reclaim them as my own."
"Sakura is the rightful owner of the Star Cards!" shouted the lion.
"Keroberos," Eli hissed. "I thought you, of all people, would like to see the cards returned to their rightful place."
Suddenly, Sakura stepped back quickly, stopping herself from falling backward. "I sense… Clow Reed," she whispered.
Eli smiled, raising his staff in the air. Darkness surrounded it, and it changed shape into a long, black sword. Immediately, the silver-haired man flew in front of Sakura, defending her.
"You will not hurt Sakura," he ordered. At the sound of this voice, I almost choked on my breath.
"Relax, Yue," Eli said. "I only want to challenge Sakura. If I win, I take all of the cards."
"And if I win?" Sakura asked, holding up one of her Star cards.
"Then I guess you keep them," Eli said.
Sakura nodded. "I accept," she said.
"Wait, Sakura," Keroberos whispered. "Do you really think you can beat him?"
"He does have a lot of magical powers," Sakura explained. "But not enough to beat me! Sword card!" she commanded, touching the card to her staff. Magical clouds surrounded the staff, and it emerged from the smoke as a sparkling golden sword. The blade was thin and lovely, much unlike Eli's frightening blade.
I watched in amazement as Eli jumped down from the slide, lunging at Sakura with the sword aimed straight for her head. Sakura blocked the shot, and the blades were locked in the shape of a cross. Both fighters struggled to make the other give in, but they seemed to be equally matched. Keroberos and Yue watched the battle intently; I was the only one to notice the other person approaching the park. As he got closer, I saw that he was also dressed in black, although his outfit bore no resemblance to Eli's. He was holding yet another staff… and he seemed to be staring at Sakura. I watched carefully… he reached into a pocket and pulled out a strange black card. "Thief," he whispered, holding the tip of his strange staff to the card. "Steal the Sword from her and bring it to me. Release."
"Look out!" I called to Sakura, but it was too late. A dark cloud surrounded Sakura's sword, and it changed back to the pink staff as the blackness cleared. The black energy returned to the mysterious new boy, and the sword appeared in his hand. But it looked much different than it had before. Instead of gold, the blade was black, and the tiny wings that had lined the handle looked like black claws reaching out from his hand.
"Finally. Back where you belong," the boy hissed.
"Give that back!" Sakura shouted.
"You think this card is one of yours, Sakura?" the boy asked with a laugh. "The Sword, in fact, does not belong in the Clow book. This card is one of mine."
"What? What are you talking about?" Sakura asked.
"And who are you?" Yue demanded.
The boy laughed again. "My name is of no importance," he said. "As for the girl's question, the Sword card was not originally a Clow Card. It rightfully belongs in the Kain book, the second set of cards created by Clow Reed."
"A second set?" Sakura questioned. "Kero, do you know about this?"
"Unfortunately, yes," he replied. "Clow Reed did create two books: the Clow and the Kain. The Kain book was his first project, but the magic was somehow infected with darkness, and the cards inside were very unruly. Clow sealed this book away, with hopes that it would never be found. But obviously, someone did find it."
"That is my fault," the boy said. "But not completely. When I found the book in my library, I knew exactly what it was, as I have carefully studied Clow Reed's records. But as soon as I touched it, it opened on its own. The cards were scattered… the only one I was able to salvage was Thief. The reason Sakura had Sword is because these cards have been free for a long time, but they have been in hiding. Except for Sword… that one likes to disguise itself as a Clow Card. But this is its true identity."
"So… what about the last Clow Card? If Sword is gone, that means there's one more," Sakura said.
"Oh, yes," the boy said softly. "I'd be on my guard if I were you, Sakura. Drain is nearing, and she doesn't seem too pleased that she's been abandoned from her book for so long."
"Drain?" Sakura said, looking up at the sky. At that very moment, a strange sensation ran up my spine. Judging by the look on everyone else's faces, they had all sensed it too. Then, out of the sky came a green beam of light, and a small girl stood in front of Sakura- the Drain card. Her hair was just as long as she was, and she was covered from head to toe in emeralds. Her outfit and hair were totally light green and pink. Her facial expression showed a variety of emotions; sadness, anger, and… a hint of relief.
"Come for me?" she asked.
"What?" Sakura returned. Drain repeated her sentence, but Sakura once again failed to understand.
"She does not speak in full sentences," the mysterious boy told her. "She is trying to ask you if you have come back for her."
Drain then turned to him with a look of pure rage in her eyes. "'Koora forget," she said. "Your fault." With that, she lunged at the sword, draining some of the card's energy.
"Get away," he said, swinging the sword at Drain. But she grabbed the blade and drew in another wave of energy, rendering the sword pretty much useless.
"Drain, come on. Come back to the Clow book now," Sakura said. For a second, she looked backward at Sakura, almost considering her offer. But before she could make her decision, the other kid drew another card from his pouch.
"Saiken," he commanded. "Combine with Sword the give it strength. Release."
Another black wave surrounded the sword, and it glistened with silver energy. The boy jumped at Drain, knocking her to the ground with a powerful swipe of the sword. She roared with anger, sending a flurry of emeralds in his direction. They exploded on his body with blue sparks, but they didn't hurt him as much as Drain had hoped.
"Windy!" Sakura said, sending a card into the air. "Form a cage and trap the Drain card!" She tapped the card, invoking the Wind magic. Swirls of white encircled Drain, cutting her off from her opponent and carrying her to Sakura. "Now, return to your power, confine! DRAIN CARD!" Sakura shouted, sealing the very last Clow Card.
"Very good, Sakura," Keroberos complimented.
"I can feel the energy," Yue sighed, taking in a deep breath. I blushed again, but my moment of pleasure didn't last long. As I let out a small sigh, the unknown boy turned toward me, immediately giving me an unwelcoming glare.
"Who are you?" he asked, taking a slow step toward me. Everyone else was watching me as well.
"I'm Kaita Katsy," I explained. "Now, would you mind telling me who you are?"
"I'm asking the questions," he snapped, pointing at Crystal (who was still out cold). "Now, what's that little doll over there?"
I hesitated. "That's…. Crystal," I said, hoping I wasn't making a mistake by telling them about the Aurora cards. I mean, they all had magic too… "She's… an Aurora card."
"Aurora? Clow Reed didn't create a third book," the boy pondered.
"I know. I kind of… accidentally created the Aurora book," I stammered. "They're my cards."
He looked at me skeptically, but eventually he realized that there was no alternate explanation. "Whatever," he simply said, completely uninterested. "Just stay out of my way."
I couldn't respond. I just watched as he turned away from me. Some attitude, I thought to myself. I was about to turn and walk away, since I was pretty much useless to everyone there. But as I turned my head, I heard Eli speak up. "Hold on. Just how many of these Kain cards have you captured?" he asked the mysterious boy.
"I don't see why it's your business," he replied, "but three. Sword, Saiken and Thief."
"Only three. Useless," Eli scoffed. "Those cards should belong to me. Hand them over, and I'll take over from here."
"Useless?" the boy said, giving Eli a stare of pure hatred. "I'll show you useless." He prepared his sword, ready to strike at any given moment. "I'm Reno, the Cardcaptor of the Kain Cards," he hissed. "You are totally unworthy of owning any magical powers. Now I'm afraid I'm going to have to show you how powerful I am."
"Try it!" Eli shot back, holding his sword at an angle. Sakura, Keroberos, Yue and I stepped out of the way. Reno and Eli faced each other; if looks could kill, they would have both dropped dead. I braced myself… I was prepared for anything….