Okay, it's time for a new chapter! I know it's been ages since the last, but I ask you, I BEG you to understand. It's kind of hard to find time to write, as for some reason I always find something else to do. Right now, it's 9:23 P.M. Let's see how long I can resist writing today. Writing the whole chapter tonight? We'll see…anyway, thanks to the reviewers, as always, and special thanks to Takari's Baybee (As always, too…) for that e-mail. Believe me; I have not forgotten this story! Oh, and I don't own Digimon, by the way…just a few characters (Mina, Ryo, and somewhere else…)
CHAPTER 8
Execution
Takeru Takaishi couldn't help but smile. He had a good reason to smile, after all.
Tomari…even from the Underworld you're still full of surprises…
He was in the remnants of the library. When he walked in what used to be a room filled with the delicious aroma of knowledge, book, and people; he realized all that was gone. Millennia of the Sorcerers' wisdom had been burned down to ashes with the library. It was almost tear-jerking, if it weren't for the anger and blood-thirst he was feeling at the moment. He couldn't help but remember the people who had taught and studied in the Academy, those he had buried with his own hands.
Don't worry…your deaths won't be left unscathed…I will avenge you, all of you…in fact, I've already started…
It was then when he noticed it. He had always known that the Director's office was directly connected to the library. After all, he had been in Tomari's office more times than any other student in the Academy, and not precisely to be punished. Tomari didn't give his lessons in public, of course. His incredible knowledge wasn't something that could be spread without care. It had been Tomari who had instructed TK in the real secrets behind magic, the stuff the other students didn't learn. Secrets so risky, spells so dangerous that thinking of their names was threatening death itself. And now, Takeru Takaishi enjoyed himself as he remembered the lesson from his now dead professor, words of wisdom that soothed his soul.
Yes…I remember everything you taught me, Master Tomari...you showed the darkest secrets of magic, things even the other teachers ignored. Thanks to you, I know things no one could possibly imagine. Secrets…secrets of magic, secrets of life…secrets of the Universe, of time and space…secrets of the Digi-Destined, yes…
But TK ignored the memories and paid attention to the scenery in front of him. In the middle of the devastation, the fallen stone and the burned wood, like and oasis of mysterious powers, a fountain of secrets; Tomari's office remained intact, as if nothing (or no one, TK thought) had attacked the Academy. If that wasn't remarkable, TK didn't know what was. He walked across the rubble, ignoring the sound of his boots on the ground, the white halo of his breath in the cold air, and the terrible feeling that haunted him, the feeling of something horrid around the corner, something corrupt, something putrid.
He extended his right hand to open the wooden door, although he was beginning to suspect it wasn't real wood (How else could it have survived the flames?), and walked inside the room, which remained almost the same as the last time he had seen it. How long has it been? He thought. After a few second of counting and remembering, he reached a conclusion. Ten months? Seems like an eternity to me… Of course, TK couldn't say the office looked exactly the same. The plants Tomari had right next to his desk had died long ago, without someone to take care of them. I guess humans weren't the only ones who suffered the wrath of the Hunters…
As he examined the small room (Maybe too small for a director's office…), TK realized that he hadn't really known a lot about his professor. Well, he knew Tomari had lived a long life; he would have probably lasted a few more centuries if he hadn't been murdered. He knew Tomari had been a powerful sorcerer, probably the strongest after Takeru himself (Usually when the student becomes better than the Master, the Master gets killed by the hands of the student…or maybe I'm thinking this just because I watched Star Wars yesterday…for like the twentieth time…). But TK was sure about something; in fact, he had two things in mind: that room was just too well preserved, and it was also too small for an important figure like Master Tomari. And for some reason TK thought those two ideas were related. TK examined the walls, the same walls that somehow managed to resist the flames. How is it that the Hunters didn't get here, in the first place? But he immediately found the answer.
He had read about such artifacts in one of Mina's books. That was probably the reason he never noticed it during the uncountable times he had been in that room: because he didn't know what it was. A small black sphere, that glowed with a mystical (and very dim) white light. Quite curious…and I haven't seen it before…but maybe...that's the idea…
It was a projector. To make people see what the owner wanted them to see. Those Hunters probably saw just a wall in here…they could have never discovered the trick, not without magic powers. Strong magic powers…like mine… He thought, with a little bit of self-glorification. TK grabbed the little artifact, and placed it in his pocket. I could really use a thing like this at home…besides, it makes a nice paperweight…
However, as soon as he took the object, it stopped working, and another illusion, an illusion Takeru hadn't seen before, faded away. The office's right wall, where Tomari's small library rested, was a complete fake. Now what do we have here?
Mina Kirahashi didn't feel secure. There was an aura of uneasiness floating in the air, and it sent shivers down her spine. If she had been alone, she might not have been able to take it. However, right if front of her, Hikari Kamiya read a book, right from Mina's library. But Kari didn't seem to feel the same as Mina, as she blissfully enjoyed her reading. Then, Kari noticed she was being watched, and offered Mina one of her trademark smiles.
"I thought I'd never find a normal book in that library." Kari commented, in a joke Mina did NOT find funny at all. But Mina checked the book, just in case.
"Isaac Asimov, huh? Never thought you were interested in Sci-fi, Kari." Mina said. I didn't know I had that book in my collection…
"I'm not. Just seeing if I can find what TK sees in this stuff." And that answered Mina's question. One of TK's books…I should have known…
"Poetry and Sci-fi…TK always had a strange sense of…everything." Kari continued.
"Yeah…like the hat…remember the white hat he used to wear?" And for a minute, Kari and Mina laughed together. "What happened to that hat, anyway?" Mina asked.
"Oh, Mimi couldn't stand it anymore and burned that hat to ashes!" More female laughing. After all, TK was the only thing those two girls had in common, and he's a great topic for conversation. But soon after that, silence returned. Kari resumed her reading, and Mina continued her chores. The later checked the time. The sun was just about to fall. And for some reason, she continued speaking.
"I think you're as good as new, Kari. You could leave tomorrow, if you want. I'm done healing you." Kari closed the book again.
"Really? Well, thanks, it's good to hear that…not that I didn't like staying here, I mean…" But Mina just waved a hand.
"I got the point, don't worry. Do you need to call Tai, or…?"
"Oh, no, I can go by myself. However, now that you mention it, I'd better call Tai…he's been forced to invent excuses and I don't think he'll be able to do that much longer." Mina smiled again.
"What did he say to your parents, after all?"
"He said TK had invited to spend a few days at his house."
"For a week?"
"Don't ask. Oh, and you should really pay more attention to the oven." Kari said, making Mina look back, where milk was pouring out of a pot as if there were no tomorrow. "Oh, crap!" Mina stopped the oven's flame, and look at the pouring milk, looking for a way to clean it.
"Oh, what the heck! Freeze!" And the milk stopped right on its tracks, making the cleaning job a lot easier. Kari smiled.
"Oh, I wish I could do that…"
"Well, I'm sorry, only those with appropriate training can try something like this." Mina explained as she cleaned the oven. "Too bad there are now fewer people with these abilities."
"A lot of your kind died that day…"
"TK thinks the 65% of the world's sorcerers died in that battle, if not more." Kari covered her mouth with her hands. She had heard it had been big, but…For God's sake…it was a massacre…
"I don't know, Kari, but I'm starting to think that this will be the last generation of magic users, if something isn't done."
But she knew that the seed of the sorcerers' resurrection was already growing, deep within the heart of Odaiba, right among them, right between them, a being who could save them, or completely destroy them. Someone (or something) even bigger than the Chosen One, as it was, like TK, both light and darkness, but he/she/it was also something more, something between the two opposite forces, something gray…because he/she/it…was balance.
TK exclaimed with admiration as he walked across the large passageway leading him further below the terrains of the Academy. He had walked for several minutes already, unveiling Tomari's darkest secret with each step, but the best was still waiting for him. Lighted with torches that TK ignited as he walked, with a single Fire spell, he could clearly see he was near the end of the passage. The urge of curiosity forced him to walk faster, until he reached a metallic door, not opened since long before the destruction of the Academy. Without a big effort, TK opened the door, just to realize that he had entered Tomari's REAL office, the place where he secretly controlled the Academy. And then, he saw something that left him with his jaw almost touching the stone floor.
Gold. Real, pure, and in immense quantities. There was enough gold in that place to maintain 10 –no, 100; no! A town of– people for the rest of their lives, without a problem. At the second he saw it, TK knew Fort Knox was nothing compared to that…treasure vault. TK was in front of the Academy's treasure, a treasure that answered a question TK had in mind since a pair of years before.
TK never had to pay a cent to study at the Academy. In fact, he had realized that no student of the Academy had to pay at all, even if they received not only education, but food and shelter. How could Tomari keep such an organization running? The answer was right in front of his eyes. But…
The Academy has been running for millennia. For it to survive, it must have needed way much more gold than what I see right now. Where does this gold come from? And the food they fed us with…and the book, materials, furniture, everything! Not even Tomari had the power to create something so…perfect without a secret source…not even I do!
There had to be a secret, and it had to be further beyond the mountains of gold, so TK continued ahead, at the same time he thought of some good uses for that money. But then, only more questions haunted his mind.
And what about those who already left the Academy? Mina, for example. She…no, we have lived in that house without a problem, and I've never seen her working for cash. My guess is that every single sorcerer in the Human world lives from that money. Tomari must have had some…indirect way to deliver the money to every single residence inhabited by magic users. Warp magic, or something…but…he's dead now, and Mina and I are still enjoying a peaceful life…we pay the bills in time, we always have food in the fridge, no problem at all…how's that possible!? But what if…Tomari found a way to control the transferring process, without him being there in person? Was if…he had an unlimited source of gold, flowing and flowing from this place to every sorcerer and sorceress in Planet Earth?
TK didn't stop walking. The answers had to be right ahead.
Ryo Asamiya smiled with satisfaction as he looked the might and pride of the Sorcerer Hunters in front of him. However, he knew that the hundreds of soldiers he was looking at weren't really preparing for battle, as those who would participate in the execution of the Plan had already been dispatched. But, regardless of that, the excitement and nervousness in the air was obvious. The Plan they had devised for years was now ready to be executed, and Ryo, probably the most excited one, was going to be a part of it. Being Number One, the strongest, fastest and wisest of the Hunters (even though most of the Hunters had serious doubts about his mental health), Ryo had the honor to stand next to the Master during meetings and speeches. But Ryo knew that the Master wouldn't give a speech that day. She had already talked to the ones she needed to talk. As if on cue, a messenger approached to him and gave him the message he wanted to hear.
"The Master wants to see you."
Ryo Asamiya was a walking mass of complexes and questions. For no reason in particular, he began to wonder how a woman was able to maintain total control of an army of several thousands, all men, scattered all around the globe. He ignored it was one of those moments when Ryo's strong mind tried to escape the Master's grasp. However, it was again unsuccessful, and the Master's "abilities" soothed the puppet's brain, giving him the answer he wanted to have, even if they weren't the right ones. Calmed and ready, Ryo walked into the Main Room, where the Master, as always, expected him, sitting on her throne. Ryo couldn't hide his excitement.
"Is it time?" he asked, almost pleading her to give him the answer he wanted. The woman, noticing the man's blood thirst, slowly replied.
"Yes, it's time."
Ryo's eyes gleamed with delight. His muscles tensed, warming up for the actions bound to come. His left hand closed, and the fist shook with energy, as the right hand checked the hidden weaponry he carried under his sleeves. In case Takeru proved to be a good enough warrior, Ryo had a special surprise prepared. Ryo tried to calm down, he knew he had to calm down, but he had never wanted to kill a man so much, and he would never find happiness if he didn't accomplished the objective.
"You know where he is, Ryo." The Master said. "Now, go!"
Ryo didn't need further indications. He turned around, and proceeded to leave the Grey Palace, home of the Sorcerer Hunters. He was ready. He felt ready. It was just a mission; it was something he had prepared for during his entire life. He was going to do it, not for the Hunter, or the Master, but for himself, the satisfaction of a job well done, of a dream come true. He knew he could do it. He HAD to do it. He had to kill Takeru Takaishi.
The woman addressed as "The Master" smiled as she changed clothes. It was about time, she thought. Growing tired of the long dressed and over-sized garments she had to wear everyday, to show her condition of Holy Being, she couldn't help but feeling happy as she changed to her battle uniform: normal, everyday clothing. Everything went as planned. Before dawn, sorcery would be nothing but a memory in the ancient book nobody read. If her failure-proof plan succeeded, very single sorcerer and sorceress in the world would die that night. She checked her watch (a Rolex, could you believe it!?). 9:50 P.M.
I should be getting the first reports from America in any moment. In ten minutes, every sorcerer in North, Central and South America will be dead.
The woman knew she could trust in her Hunters. After all, they were like machines, working with scientific precision. After all, that's what they really are…puppets.
Being the narcissist she was, she began with the make-up process. She had to look beautiful, even before killing someone. Besides, it had been her beauty what had attracted every single member of the Original Hunters at the beginning. That, and her mind control abilities. Men can't just say no to a pretty face…
An organization hundreds of years old, the Hunters had remained hidden in the never-ending darkness of the Dark World during most of their existence. To gather new recruits, she forced the members to reproduce proficiently, and the newborns were immediately added to the organization, much to the concern of the mothers, who usually "disappeared" soon after their job was done. However, now that I think about it, I never really "forced" them at all…I just allowed them to satisfy a basic necessity…
For a reason, she couldn't help but think of her own children. She didn't even remember how many were. But she remembered their faces, as they were all the same. As almost everything she had done during the last centuries, the birth of her children had been part of her plan to get revenge. Her children were the strongest, the deadliest Hunters, assassins that didn't need to be trained, as the need for blood was inherited from their evil mother. And each one was even more perfect, as the method she used to create them was the epitome of incest. Centuries ago, she had chosen the best from the Original Hunters, and forced him (No, convinced him…) to copulate with her, giving her a male child. That child had grown, just to copulate with a woman he didn't know was his mother, and over, and over, and over again, uncountable times, as in all those centuries, she had remained exactly the same. Her children were her grand-children, and their great-grand children, and so on. With time, the children carried a higher percentage of genetic data from her, and she had been able to give exactly what she had wanted to give them: strength, wisdom, and the most important, an infinite hatred for magic, and everything related to it. The fruit of her womb, they were her biggest pride, her family, the men who had been everything to her: children, husbands, lovers…she knew she was defying fate by committing what could only be describe as continuous incest, but her children had been the key to the victory she would achieve that night.
And then…after all these centuries, my children had grown, reproduced and died…while I remain, as the only constant, just like this castle…but this will be the end…the youngest of my children…my biggest success…will give me absolute victory.
If the plan were to be executed twenty years later, she knew she would have had to create a new child, but that wasn't the case, and she knew she was ready to complete her plan. However, there was a problem, something she hadn't taken into account.
To be honest, I don't know if Ryo will succeed. But I don't need him to kill Takaishi; I just need Ryo to delay him…
An inner conflict grew within her. The security of a plan well designed, and the preoccupation of a mother, fearing for her son to be okay.
Why do I worry, anyway? Ryo can take care of himself…
It would be a great night for her. It was time to get her revenge. Every sorcerer and sorceress, Mina Kirahashi included, would fall that night, if everything went according to plan. It would be her victory…no, THEIR victory. Hers and her son's. Because that was Ryo Asamiya, Number One.
Takeru was amazed. Nothing he could have possibly imagined described the discoveries he had made in Tomari's secret vault. He had found things that defied imagination, things humanity (yes, humanity in general) wasn't ready to experience. The first answer was found when TK found "The Machine". That was the name he called it, as he didn't know what its real name was. But he had found out what was it for: it made gold. Just like the alchemists from the Dark Ages, the difference was that Tomari had actually succeeded. He had actually found a continuous source of gold, by creating it from other materials. That also answers another of my questions…where did all the Academy's trash go?
TK had tried the machine, and successfully transformed sand into pure gold. The machine was (obviously) powered with Takeru's own powers. However, the important thing was that now he knew how sorcerers could live such easy lives. And I'm millionaire! It just can't get better…
Oh, but it did. In the moment we locate him right now; the same moment Ryo Asamiya enters the Academy's land, the same moment the woman also known as "The Master" warps from the Dark World to her apartment in the Human World, the same moment Mina Kirahashi gives a last sip to her coffee as she watched that night's news on TV, and the same moment Hikari Kamiya finally closes her eyes to drift away to her very own dream world; we find TK holding a tiny bottle in his left hand, and two manuscripts in his right hand. TK was reading the first manuscript, the short one. It explained the contents of the small bottle, and it was a very interesting content. TK skipped most of it, as there were some details he wasn't really interested in.
The bottle found next to this document must be treated with utmost caution, as it contains the result of decades of investigation…(hole)…the Elixir of Eden, the most powerful potion ever created, is unique and…(another jump)…It's ingredients are almost impossible to obtain, and the proportion they must be combined is vital to the potion's effects. Such ingredients are… (A really large jump)…The ability to obtain extended longevity must be kept a secret, as the ears of those who are Evil are always listening. For that reason, the Elixir will not be used for ANY purpose…
TK looked down the paper, and he found a list. He supposed it was a list of the people who had been allowed to drink the Elixir, for one reason or another. TK concluded not everyone could be allowed to drink such potion; after all, extended longevity can be a blessing, or a curse. But what really worried him was that Mina was actually NOT in the list. That could only mean…
Her longevity is natural!? But…but how? If Mina's longevity is normal, then…what IS Mina?
As we all know, finding an answer only leads to more questions, so he decided to stop his research for the day. He decided to leave the vault, still holding the other paper (the long one) in his right hand. As he walked outside Tomari's office, he examined the paper, and he found the reason that paper was so long (fully extended, it measured 30 ft long). It was a list of the Academy's students, from the first one to the latest one. However, TK somehow felt there was much more to it than just a list. TK could see most of the names were crossed out. What could that possibly mean? He stopped on his tracks for a minute, and looked further down the paper. As he looked at random names, he saw that approximately 95% percent of the names were crossed out. It was hard to find a clear one, and he couldn't help but smile when he found Mina's name. Moving towards the ending, he found his name and some other names he recognized, students he had met at the Academy. However, most of them were crossed. TK noticed most of the clear names were closest to the paper's ending, and then he realized what it meant. Crossed out names belonged to dead people. As almost everything in that place, the paper had magic powers, and it probably crossed the name as soon as the person died. His suspicions were sadly proved when a name was crossed out in front of him. It was like discovering a hidden message written with invisible ink. The cross appeared very slowly, out of nowhere. TK rolled the paper to make carrying it a lot easier, and proceeded to leave the ruins. However, he had to stop right on his tracks again. There was a man in front of him, and when TK recognized him, his blood started boiling. His eyes narrowed to tiny slits, and his fists tightened in anger. But that was only for a second, as TK listening to his training, slowly relaxed and prepared himself for whatever was bound to come, which he expected to be a fight (Oh, God, please tell me he wants to fight…).
"It's really good to see you again…" Ryo said.
Mina Kirahashi sighed as she walked to the kitchen. She had to wash the cup she had been drinking coffee from. She knew drinking coffee before going to bed wasn't really a good idea, but she didn't really care. If she couldn't sleep, she just had to take her sleeping potion (I could make a hippo sleep with that thing…). But then she realized she didn't really want to sleep. Once again, Takeru Takaishi would keep her up all night, but this time, there wouldn't be any sex involved. Mina sighed again. For a second, she thought she had been too harsh with TK before he left, but then she put those thoughts aside. She had good reasons to be mad at him. A mistake, my ass…if that was a mistake, it was the most delicious mistake I've ever made…but…
That wasn't the only reason she was mad at him. In fact, TK wasn't the only person she was angry with. She was mad at herself, for making a terrible mistake. A mistake…a mistake…he said it had been a mistake…maybe…just maybe…he was right…just a little…
Being a good nurse, Mina walked to the guests' bedroom, where Kari was supposed to be. Mina carefully opened the door, as it wasn't her intention to wake her up. For a minute, Mina looked at the woman on the bed, no, not the human, the mortal.
Beaten by a mortal…ha! How hilarious…let's see…
Mina tried to make a short synthesis of her life's soap opera. Let's see…TK and Kari know each other since the year1999, which would be…nine years ago? Yeah…anyway, they became friends, and TK fell in love with her approximately six years later, after the Dragon Emperor incident (N/A: We'll talk about that later…). Kari fell in love with him soon after that, although neither one of them wouldn't accept it, especially not in front of each other. Well, a month or two later, TK meets me, and I…well, you know (When did TK become such a Casanova?). Anyway, after the Dark Dragon of Evil, it seems like TK and Kari will finally be together, but then, a month after that, they have a fight I still don't understand, but for some reason they have a "breakup". To make things worse, Kari meets Ryo and becomes his girlfriend. TK goes angst, Ryo goes psycho, tries to kill Kari, I take advantage of TK's situation, we end up on the bed…man, I should make a script. FOX channel would pay millions for it…
Mina silently closed the door behind her, and walked back to the living room. She let go a gasp when she noticed there was someone waiting for her. There was a woman sitting on the couch. And this woman greeted Mina with the exact same words Ryo greeted TK, in the exact same moment. Déjà vu? Not really. I'd call it…genetics.
"It's really good to see you again…"
(N/A: I was listening to the Star Wars: Episode I soundtrack when I wrote this. If you can't guess which song, that's your problem…)
TK remained silent, his eyes fixed in the man in front of him. The same man he had seen at the party: black hair, black eyes, a little pale skin. This time, he wore a black, sleeveless shirt, which allowed anyone to look at his bulky torso. Of course, TK wasn't intimidated with such narcissism. The first thing TK thought was that Ryo seemed to be prepared to go to Vietnam or something, as his outfit was completed with camouflage pants and black boots, the same kind soldiers use. TK could see the handle of a knife in one side of the right boot, but he ignored that. What he really paid attention to were the two daggers he was carrying, one on each hand. The weapons he had used with Kari. But this time, there was something strange about them. TK noticed a slight color change near the edges.
Poison…a little cut and I'm a goner…quite…creative. No argument there. Trite, and dull as hell, though.
With a slight move of his hand, the daggers flew away from Ryo's hands to Takeru's. Ryo couldn't hide the surprise and frustration while TK examined the dagger a lot more closely.
"Interesting weapon, Ryo. But these toys won't work with me." TK said, throwing the daggers aside. The Number One Hunters had few words to say."
"I've been chosen by the Master to destroy you. I'm so anxious to rip you apart!" Ryo said, as he assumed a fighting stand.
"Anyway, before I kill you, I have this little question. Who's this 'Master', anyway?" TK asked.
"The Master is the Master. Let's just say I was sent here by a certain someone. I don't know the name, if that's what you want. Now, prepare to fight!"
"'Certain someone'? You take orders from someone without a name? Come on, get real!" TK's smile didn't disappear even when Ryo ran forward, ready to deal a killer blow.
"Who…who are you!?" And how did you get in here?
"Oh, Mina! I thought you would remember me! And I got here with a simple warp spell, by the way."
Mina's look sharpened. Since the moment she saw the woman, she knew she was with another sorceress, and a sorceress who entered a house without permission and using magic couldn't mean anything good.
"What are you doing here, whoever you are?"
"What am I doing? I'm a friend, visiting another friend."
"I don't think I've ever seen you before."
"That's where you wrong, Mina." The woman said, and Mina shivered when the woman's expression changed. From a fake smile to a cold glare, the hatred and darkness within that woman was frightening. The woman looked at her watch. "Oh, look at the time! The others must be doing quite well. No reports at all…"
"The others?" Mina asked.
"Oh, yes, my loyal soldiers. Right now, they're ambushing the remaining sorcerers in their respective places. Tomorrow, the race of magic users will be destroyed."
"What!? Are you insane? There must be tons of sorcerers left out there. It's impossible to kill them without the humans noticing!"
The Master chuckled. "Oh, they'll notice it, Mina. However, it will just be a coincidence. After all, they won't find any relation between the death of twelve Brazilian men and the terrible 'accident' of a gay couple in Taiwan. Everything has been considered, Mina. Everything. After all, I've had plenty of time to prepare it, if you know what I mean." The woman said, repressing the need to laugh. A few second later, she continued. "Now, Mina, dear friend, as I've just explained, my Hunters are killing every single sorcerer in the world. Where they're done, my revenge will be complete…"
"and the world will be ready for you to conquer it, right?" Mina said cynically.
"Oh, no, no!" The Master replied. "Don't stereotype me, please. I have no interest in taking over the world, not at all. I just want the sorcerers to die, it's that simple. Although, now that you mention it, taking over the world would be quite simple. After all, I have my army, and after tonight, I'll be the last sorcerer. Your idea is pretty interesting, Mina. I'll have to think about it. And to thank you for your kindness, I'll kill you right now."
However, the woman didn't expect Mina to have enhanced reflexes, and the Master ended up crashing against a porcelain vase, which broke in pieces.
"Hey! That was my favorite vase!"
"Oh, shut up, Mina, and let me kill you!"
"Yeah, right, like that's going to happen…"
Hikari Kamiya suddenly opened her eyes. The sound of something falling down and breaking woke her up. Her first thought was calling Mina to ask what was going on, but another sound interrupted that idea. An explosion. What the hell's going on out there? Kari silently got up, while she listened to sounds expected in a war zone, not a living room. She leaned on the door, and tried to get as many sounds as possible. However, she was too afraid to open the door. She sat on the floor, her right ear against the door, and she waited for the noises to go away.
Ryo first attacked with his right fist, aimed to Takeru's chin, but TK easily dodged it by moving to his left. Before Ryo could recover, TK hit his chin with his right elbow. Ryo backtracked a few meters, and when TK had the chance to look at him, he saw blood dripping from Ryo's lower lip. It seemed like Ryo had bitten his own tongue, too. TK chuckled a little bit.
"Did I hit you too hard? Sorry."
However, Ryo just lunged forward, with a loud yell that seemed more animal than human. He attacked with the right fist again, but TK grabbed it with his left hand, soon doing the same with Ryo's left fist. A second later they were holding each other's hands, trying to crush each other's bones. But TK realized too late that it was Ryo's plan, as the Hunter focused his strength on his feet, pushed himself against the ground, and used the impulse to lift TK over him. TK was going to land right behind Ryo, but the black-haired fighter turned back and hit TK's ribcage with his left heel, sending the Chosen One straight to the ground.
Okay, I admit it. It hurt. TK thought as he got up, just to be received with a jab, soon followed by a kick to the stomach that sent him back to the ground, his lungs begging for oxygen. And that was cheap.
TK looked at his opponent, who had a sadistic grin on his face, probably thinking "He's nothing without his magic…" However, TK's tranquil smile surprised Ryo, who never expected what happened next. Before the Hunter could react, TK placed his hands on the ground, and used the strength of his triceps to lift himself up; delivering a powerful kick right on Ryo's left cheek. But TK wasn't done there. Before Ryo could be sent away by the impact, he turned his body to the right, still in mid-air, and kicked Ryo's chin, with a strength that literally lifted Ryo off the ground. Finally, TK bent his two legs against his body, and used all of his arms' strength to thrust himself towards Ryo, kicking him on his crotch, right where it really hurts. And while Ryo fell on his butt, TK fell on his two feet, only to try to clean his cool black cape.
"You really should give up, Asamiya."
But Ryo, almost as if he didn't feel the pain, immediately got up and tried to hit TK with a series of attacks that were easily dodged by the sorcerer. Ryo then tried to make TK lose balance with a kick to the right ankle, but TK jumped and kick Ryo's gut in midair, sending him to ground for the third time. TK walked closer to the man on the floor.
"You just can't say 'I'm sorry', can you?"
Then, Ryo threw something at TK, who moved his head aside to evade it, and then used his right hand to grab it before it went too far. It was one of the poisoned knives. But TK spent too much time looking at it, because Ryo found the time to grab the other dagger and jump towards Takeru. In a second, he was on top of TK, who was completely immobilized and a poisoned dagger dangerously caressed his neck. Ryo's eyes were terribly close to Takeru's, and the look on Ryo's face showed absolute bliss.
"You're nothing without magic, and in a matter of hours all your friends will follow you…overconfidence. That's what finally killed you, sorcerer." Ryo said, his breath showering TK's face.
"Nope. That's what killed YOU." TK replied, at the same moment Ryo realized TK had actually managed to free one of his hands off Ryo's efficient hold. In that second, Ryo saw how TK's right hand had the other poisoned knife, which pointed right to his chest. Ryo looked for the last time at the blonde teenager, but the look on TK's eyes said everything: he would have no mercy.
Five seconds later, TK had pushed Ryo's dead body out of the way, and gotten up.
"Piece of cake." He said as he walked to pick up the manuscript with the list of students, reaching in a matter of seconds. However, his body froze when he noticed a change in the list. The name "Mina Kirahashi" had been crossed out.
Oh, God…please, God, no!
TK opened the portal as soon as possible. He had to return to the Human World, as it was obvious something had happened. However, a part of him wanted the rest to move very slowly, as he somehow knew it was already too late.
"Fire Storm!"
"Aaaahh!!! Don't do that inside my house!"
Mina didn't really have the time to worry about that, though, as she was too busy avoiding spell after spell. However, the reduced space made that task extremely difficult, and Mina knew she couldn't do that forever. Her only chance was fighting back, even if combat wasn't really her specialty. When was the last time I fought? She wondered at the same time a sharp icicle barely missed her face. She realized she hadn't fought since her Academy face. Yes, I barely passed that exam, mostly because my opponent excelled at fighting. What was her name again? Mina evaded a fireball as her mind traveled centuries to the past, trying to remember something as futile as a name. However, Mina somehow felt that it was important. And the reason hit her like a rain of bricks.
"Holy cow, it was you!" Mina shouted.
"Finally! Girl you're slow!" the woman replied. "You know who I am, that's perfect! Now you die."
The Master sent another series of fireballs, which Mina avoided by jumping aside. The fireballs hit the wall behind her, leaving black marks on it. Mina decided it was time to use the surprise element. With a demonstration of basic telekinesis, one of the kitchen's drawers opened, and its contents, mainly knives, rocketed through the air in the Master's direction. However, the woman's mind stopped them right before they could reach her face. Then, it became a matter of the strongest mind, and since the first second Mina knew she was on the losing side. At the same moment Mina let go a soft sigh, the Master revealed her evil smirk.
"And now you die…"
The knives suddenly changed direction, and pierced through Mina's body at incredible speed. Mina Kirahashi, sorceress from the Magic Academy, died before her body touched the floor.
Silence.
For five minutes, there hadn't been anything but silence. In any other occasion, Kari would have found that relaxing, but in that moment she found it terrifying. And the thing that frightened her the most was her own ignorance. The only thing she knew was that someone (or something) else had arrived to the house, and Mina what with him/her/it, whatever it was…or were, if it had already left.
In an act of bravery (or insanity, she didn't know), she sighed and opened the door. She couldn't bear to remain hidden any longer. First, she forced herself to adjust to the light, as she had remained in the darkness of her room for way too long. But what she saw made her think for a second that she was better off blind. Mina was lying on the floor, her clothes red from her own blood, and she was obviously dead, or at least that was she thought (No human or sorcerer could survive such a blood loss). Not knowing what to do, Kari stayed in the middle or the hallway, her eyes fixed in the macabre scene in front of her. Nothing could have prepared her to see that. But the scare of her life came when a door suddenly opened right behind her. For a second she thought the horrendous killer had returned, and now she would be her next victim, but her overwhelming fear became a partial relief when Takeru appeared in front of her.
"Oh, TK! Oh, God, Takeru!" Kari cried as she ran to her arms, not caring about anything, she just needed someone to comfort her. But TK wouldn't be the one. It didn't take her long to realize that his eyes were fixed on something else. Moving Kari's fragile body out of the way, TK slowly walked next to the dead woman on the floor. Feeling his strength fade away, the supposedly strongest sorcerer in the world fell on his knees, his hands on the now stained floor. He sweetly looked at Mina's beautiful face, as not even death could destroy her perfection. Immortalized in an image of light and darkness, good and evil, perfection and corruption, the blood on the floor was the antithesis of the absolute beauty Mina represented. Such image made Takeru wondered why such things had to happened, even though a single thought echoed as an unbearable truth in his mind.
She accepted it…she accepted her destiny was to die for me…the day she found me…
For a second, Takeru wanted to kiss her, as he found in her a hidden "something" he hadn't seen while she was alive. A beauty beyond appearance, a beauty beyond personality. A revelation of friendship, love, and hope. Something he still couldn't understand. Something that reminded him of the unfairness of her death. And his eyes wouldn't look away from her face.
I can't…I can't accept it…I won't accept it!
Not noticing that Kari had finally decided to walk next to him, TK suddenly got up, his expression revealing a powerful anger, something worse than anything he could have felt before. Not even his hatred for Ryo or his hatred for Evil itself could be compared to what he felt in that moment.
"I WON'T ALLOW IT!" he shouted.
But right after he said those words, the mask of anger broke apart, to be replaced with the mask of sadness. As the first tears began to flow, TK could feel a warm embrace filling him. It wasn't much, but he appreciated the effort. Ignoring everything that had happened: the fights, the arguments, the separations…for that night, it would be only him, Kari, and the dead woman on the floor. And TK cried.
A thunder echoed in the distance…
That's everything for chapter 8, probably the longest I've written. I thank everyone who waited, and if you want to be mad at me for taking so long, you've got all the right to do it. I sincerely hope I can work faster from now, as I've just realized that writing two stories and keeping a normal life can be really hard, depending on the person. Anyway, any type of comments can be delivered to me in your reviews, or you can e-mail me if you want, although I don't think that necessary. In any case, suggestions, question and any other comments are gladly accepted. See you!
Oh, before I forget, next chapter is a very revealing one, as TK will have to handle some revelations that could be pretty hard to assimilate. Now the question is: how far will TK go in his search for revenge? All of this in the next chapter of "The Last Sorcerer"…
Daneel Rush (daneel_ff@hotmail.com)