The Secrets of Monasho's Castle
When Syaoran woke up, he felt worse than he had felt at any time during their whole ordeal. He was very ill and dizzy, and his arm was completely limp and unmovable, but not numb of pain. His head throbbed, but he was too dizzy and confused to really tell what it was that hurt, and it was much the same with the pain that pulsed from his limp arm and shoulder.
As soon as Sakura awoke, she looked drearily around her at their dark room. It seemed to be about noon by her mental count. She was tired, but surprisingly not as depressed as she had been. The new day brought new hope and confidence. When she first looked at Syaoran, she thought he was asleep, but after a few minutes she found that he was not.
Syaoran was sitting with his head down, looking unseeingly straight ahead of him. His eyes were dark and blank, but he stirred a bit and blinked when Sakura said his name. After a few moments, he looked up and stared at her.
"Are you okay?" she asked. Syaoran dropped his head again and sighed.
"For now," he managed to whisper. Syaoran didn't feel okay at all. He could hardly move because his muscles were so sore. Every small movement weighed him down. He was very ill and his face was flushed with fever and drenched in sweat.
"I can't stand this," Sakura said sighing, "We're helpless. We're chained and completely at their mercy. We can't get away."
Syaoran lifted his head and looked into her eyes for a moment. Then he sighed like someone would before he did something he knew he would regret. He closed his eyes and began murmuring a spell. Unlike Sakura, he could use his magic without any magical objects. Of course, most spells he could only use with his magical cards, but he knew some outside spells.
"You can't use magic!" Sakura said, recognizing his actions, "You're already so weak!"
Syaoran went on chanting, and with his last word, the chains fell from both his and Sakura's wrists and ankles, and the lock fell from the door of their imprisonment. Sakura gasped and slowly stood. "How. . . did you do that?" she asked.
Syaoran leaned back against the wall with his eyes closed, struggling to keep consciousness. "It's a difficult spell," he murmured. "Go find your key, then you must get the Clow Book," he said weakly.
"Hai," Sakura said, then she stepped out the door and into the hallway. She made her way down the long flight of steps and down to the main level. She often had to duck behind large statues of evil spirits to avoid the priest- like figures and soldiers that roamed the castle. As she ducked behind yet another statue, something in her mind clicked. Suddenly she knew why the castle seemed so familiar. She reached hopefully around the base of the statue, hoping to confirm her theory. Her heart jumped when she found the little knob, and then with one quick motion, she jerked the knob to the right and pushed it in. To Sakura's delight, the wall behind her began sliding open.
Sakura knew now that her suspicion was correct. This castle was an almost exact replica of the Kinimoto castle. Someone had obviously done a thorough inspection of the castle to create this. All of the Kinimoto castle's 'secret' passageways obviously were secret no more. Sakura felt very sure of herself now that she had discovered the secret of Monasho's castle, but it troubled her that someone had betrayed her father's secrets.
The rooms of Monasho's castle and the structure were exactly the same as her castle, but the decorations surely weren't. Actually, Sakura was very grateful that there weren't statues of evil spirits littering the halls of her castle. Since she had found the secret door, Sakura knew exactly where she was. She knew that the secret passage she had just opened was a hallway that led to a hidden chamber, which often was used to contain important items at her castle. Taking a deep breath and hoping that no soldiers guarded the inside, Sakura stepped in and walked quickly down the dark passage.
By the time Sakura reached the tall metal doors that guarded the inside chamber, she was breathing hark. When she opened the door, a dark room met her eyes. There was a lone table at the back that was lit by two torches at either end. In the middle of the table sat her key, still on its chain, alone and unguarded. Being as quiet as she could, she crept up to the table. Just as she was about to take her key, she felt a jolt of magic. She hesitated a moment, but then snatched up her key.
Sakura screamed as the room around her began to swirl and fade. Everything went black, and the next thing she knew, she was sitting on a carpeted hallway, breathing hard. The hall was dim and lit only by torches on the walls. Sakura saw that she still had the key in her hand and put it around her neck right away.
After a few seconds she stood and looked uncertainly around her. This area, whether it was still part of the castle or not, was unfamiliar to her. She didn't know how she got there, but assumed that someone had magically transported her. Sakura closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Then summoning all the courage she had, she began to walk through the eerie hall. Sometimes she would see doors in the walls on either side of her, but they would disappear before she got close enough to touch them.
Finally she reached the end of the hallway, which was not even visible from where she first started. She stopped before the door and reached out to tough the knob. Her fingers touched it, but it did stayed where it was rather than dissolving to nothing at her touch. Sakura took a firmer grip on the knob with her fingers and closed her eyes. By this time she was shaking, but after a mental count to three, she turned the knob threw open the steel door.
Inside, it was pitch black. Sakura soundlessly stepped in, and immediately the door and doorway disappeared, leaving only blackness. Sakura didn't know what was going on or what to think, but she was scared. Suddenly a light shone in the back of the room. Then another to its right, then another. One by one, the room was lit by torchlight by the torches, which weren't really torches at all; they were more like fires that burned from holes in the floor, lining the walls.
A deep, ringing laughter sounded from all sides of her, and she froze in terror. Then, in the middle of the floor, a figure formed from nothing. The dark gray aura hit her like a brick and she became so dizzy that her vision faded and she fell to the floor. She dizzily sat there as the laughter raged on until her awareness came back, then the laughter ceased. After a moment, she recovered from the strength of the aura and stood to face the man that stood now before her.
There stood the king of the castle, Kaito Monasho. She vaguely remembered him from their trial when she and Syaoran first arrived, but he was more terrifying than she remembered. He wore many robes of black that fell past his feet and folded on the floor. Everything was lined with gold and bore a symbol of fire. He wore a huge, thick black and purple robe over everything, and it and his hair blew wildly in a wind that came from nowhere and seemed to affect only him. He wore a golden crown over his jet- black hair and on his forehead glowed a dark symbol that was similar to the Seal of the Clow, and it illuminated his dark, excited eyes.
His staff was tall, at least double his height, and was black. A golden snake wound all the way up it and the large golden head of a cobra gleamed at the top. The cobra's mouth was open wide, and in between the fangs on the top and bottom of the mouth hovered a dark gas-like orb.
Monasho smirked, his young-appearing face twisting into an ominous smile. He fingered his staff and took his eyes away from Sakura to look at it. "Sakura Kinimoto, Mistress of the cards. . ." he said slowly. Then he looked up and fixed his eyes on her and gripped his staff tighter. "The title does not suit you. Soon you will agree."
Then Monasho held his staff far above his head and began murmuring a wordless spell. Gigantic versions of the Clow cards began appearing one by one like glowing paintings on the walls, until all of them were there, surrounding both of them. Monasho smiled confidently and raised his staff, holding it in front of him with his right hand; his right elbow bent, and his back straight; clearly indicating a challenge.
Sakura did the same, turning her key into its staff form and readying herself for anything. She felt fear no longer; only the rush and excitement of battle. With a wave of his staff, Monasho sent a flurry of icicles flying at her. Sakura used her staff as a brace to lift herself into the air and she agilely avoided his attack. As soon as Sakura landed, another attack nearly hit her but she dodged to the side just in time.
"Very good, Princess Sakura," said Monasho, unfazed.
Sakura gasped as something from behind knocked her staff from her hand. Then many leaves and branches and vines began to wind around her. "The Wood!" Sakura said as it pinned her to the wall.
"But, I'm afraid I'm out of time to play," said Monasho as he walked up to her struggling figure slowly. "I have always had a fondness for flowers," he said as he stopped a few feet from her. His staff began glowing and Sakura felt the pulse of his magical energy. "But I'm afraid this one must go. Pity for that boy that loves you so dearly. Oh well, he'll get over it in time. Goodbye!" Monasho reached his staff forward until the orb was inches from Sakura's forehead. Just before it touched her however, Monasho gasped and his eyes widened. He withdrew his staff and the vides around Sakura loosened and she used that chance to pull free and retrieve her staff. But when she faced Monasho, his attention was no longer on her; in fact, his back was turned.
Monasho reached around with his left hand to the back of his right shoulder, where blood was seeping through his robes. He drew back his hand and looked at the blood that was now on it and smiled. "You have strength, boy. After all you've been through," he said quietly.
Sakura looked, and to her amazement, in front of him stood Syaoran. He was panting, standing as straight as he could, and it looked as if the effort of holding up his sword was killing him. He was exhausted and in pain, but he bore a look of satisfaction at the wound he had dealt Monasho. Sakura gasped. "How did you get here?!"
"When I transported you here," Monasho said, "I couldn't do it without him being transported also. There was some sort of invisible bond between you, too strong for even I to break." Monasho winced. "I shouldn't have underestimated him."
Monasho switched his staff to his left hand and raised it. A stream of sharp crystals shot out at Syaoran, and he barely stumbled out of their way. After avoiding the attack he held his sword with the point on the ground, leaning against it. As another attack came his way, he was forced to evade that also, and this time fell to one knee, unable to support himself any longer.
"Syaoran!" yelled Sakura as she saw Monasho about to deliver a finishing blow. She yelled a short chant, holding her hands and her staff above her head. She had no idea where the words came from, but she felt the magic coursing through every inch of her body. With her last words, she twirled her staff around once above her head and grabbed it firmly with both hands. With amazing strength she screamed "RELEASE" and slammed the bottom of her staff down with all of her strength.
A wave of pink magical energy rippled from her staff and sprouted in every direction. She felt all of her energy draining as the powerful spell was dispersed around her.
Sorry! G2G, I'll give thanks for ALL the reviews next time!!!
Signed, DDG
~Servant of the Sea~
PS. Gomen for the long update wait! I'm REALLY sorry!
When Syaoran woke up, he felt worse than he had felt at any time during their whole ordeal. He was very ill and dizzy, and his arm was completely limp and unmovable, but not numb of pain. His head throbbed, but he was too dizzy and confused to really tell what it was that hurt, and it was much the same with the pain that pulsed from his limp arm and shoulder.
As soon as Sakura awoke, she looked drearily around her at their dark room. It seemed to be about noon by her mental count. She was tired, but surprisingly not as depressed as she had been. The new day brought new hope and confidence. When she first looked at Syaoran, she thought he was asleep, but after a few minutes she found that he was not.
Syaoran was sitting with his head down, looking unseeingly straight ahead of him. His eyes were dark and blank, but he stirred a bit and blinked when Sakura said his name. After a few moments, he looked up and stared at her.
"Are you okay?" she asked. Syaoran dropped his head again and sighed.
"For now," he managed to whisper. Syaoran didn't feel okay at all. He could hardly move because his muscles were so sore. Every small movement weighed him down. He was very ill and his face was flushed with fever and drenched in sweat.
"I can't stand this," Sakura said sighing, "We're helpless. We're chained and completely at their mercy. We can't get away."
Syaoran lifted his head and looked into her eyes for a moment. Then he sighed like someone would before he did something he knew he would regret. He closed his eyes and began murmuring a spell. Unlike Sakura, he could use his magic without any magical objects. Of course, most spells he could only use with his magical cards, but he knew some outside spells.
"You can't use magic!" Sakura said, recognizing his actions, "You're already so weak!"
Syaoran went on chanting, and with his last word, the chains fell from both his and Sakura's wrists and ankles, and the lock fell from the door of their imprisonment. Sakura gasped and slowly stood. "How. . . did you do that?" she asked.
Syaoran leaned back against the wall with his eyes closed, struggling to keep consciousness. "It's a difficult spell," he murmured. "Go find your key, then you must get the Clow Book," he said weakly.
"Hai," Sakura said, then she stepped out the door and into the hallway. She made her way down the long flight of steps and down to the main level. She often had to duck behind large statues of evil spirits to avoid the priest- like figures and soldiers that roamed the castle. As she ducked behind yet another statue, something in her mind clicked. Suddenly she knew why the castle seemed so familiar. She reached hopefully around the base of the statue, hoping to confirm her theory. Her heart jumped when she found the little knob, and then with one quick motion, she jerked the knob to the right and pushed it in. To Sakura's delight, the wall behind her began sliding open.
Sakura knew now that her suspicion was correct. This castle was an almost exact replica of the Kinimoto castle. Someone had obviously done a thorough inspection of the castle to create this. All of the Kinimoto castle's 'secret' passageways obviously were secret no more. Sakura felt very sure of herself now that she had discovered the secret of Monasho's castle, but it troubled her that someone had betrayed her father's secrets.
The rooms of Monasho's castle and the structure were exactly the same as her castle, but the decorations surely weren't. Actually, Sakura was very grateful that there weren't statues of evil spirits littering the halls of her castle. Since she had found the secret door, Sakura knew exactly where she was. She knew that the secret passage she had just opened was a hallway that led to a hidden chamber, which often was used to contain important items at her castle. Taking a deep breath and hoping that no soldiers guarded the inside, Sakura stepped in and walked quickly down the dark passage.
By the time Sakura reached the tall metal doors that guarded the inside chamber, she was breathing hark. When she opened the door, a dark room met her eyes. There was a lone table at the back that was lit by two torches at either end. In the middle of the table sat her key, still on its chain, alone and unguarded. Being as quiet as she could, she crept up to the table. Just as she was about to take her key, she felt a jolt of magic. She hesitated a moment, but then snatched up her key.
Sakura screamed as the room around her began to swirl and fade. Everything went black, and the next thing she knew, she was sitting on a carpeted hallway, breathing hard. The hall was dim and lit only by torches on the walls. Sakura saw that she still had the key in her hand and put it around her neck right away.
After a few seconds she stood and looked uncertainly around her. This area, whether it was still part of the castle or not, was unfamiliar to her. She didn't know how she got there, but assumed that someone had magically transported her. Sakura closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Then summoning all the courage she had, she began to walk through the eerie hall. Sometimes she would see doors in the walls on either side of her, but they would disappear before she got close enough to touch them.
Finally she reached the end of the hallway, which was not even visible from where she first started. She stopped before the door and reached out to tough the knob. Her fingers touched it, but it did stayed where it was rather than dissolving to nothing at her touch. Sakura took a firmer grip on the knob with her fingers and closed her eyes. By this time she was shaking, but after a mental count to three, she turned the knob threw open the steel door.
Inside, it was pitch black. Sakura soundlessly stepped in, and immediately the door and doorway disappeared, leaving only blackness. Sakura didn't know what was going on or what to think, but she was scared. Suddenly a light shone in the back of the room. Then another to its right, then another. One by one, the room was lit by torchlight by the torches, which weren't really torches at all; they were more like fires that burned from holes in the floor, lining the walls.
A deep, ringing laughter sounded from all sides of her, and she froze in terror. Then, in the middle of the floor, a figure formed from nothing. The dark gray aura hit her like a brick and she became so dizzy that her vision faded and she fell to the floor. She dizzily sat there as the laughter raged on until her awareness came back, then the laughter ceased. After a moment, she recovered from the strength of the aura and stood to face the man that stood now before her.
There stood the king of the castle, Kaito Monasho. She vaguely remembered him from their trial when she and Syaoran first arrived, but he was more terrifying than she remembered. He wore many robes of black that fell past his feet and folded on the floor. Everything was lined with gold and bore a symbol of fire. He wore a huge, thick black and purple robe over everything, and it and his hair blew wildly in a wind that came from nowhere and seemed to affect only him. He wore a golden crown over his jet- black hair and on his forehead glowed a dark symbol that was similar to the Seal of the Clow, and it illuminated his dark, excited eyes.
His staff was tall, at least double his height, and was black. A golden snake wound all the way up it and the large golden head of a cobra gleamed at the top. The cobra's mouth was open wide, and in between the fangs on the top and bottom of the mouth hovered a dark gas-like orb.
Monasho smirked, his young-appearing face twisting into an ominous smile. He fingered his staff and took his eyes away from Sakura to look at it. "Sakura Kinimoto, Mistress of the cards. . ." he said slowly. Then he looked up and fixed his eyes on her and gripped his staff tighter. "The title does not suit you. Soon you will agree."
Then Monasho held his staff far above his head and began murmuring a wordless spell. Gigantic versions of the Clow cards began appearing one by one like glowing paintings on the walls, until all of them were there, surrounding both of them. Monasho smiled confidently and raised his staff, holding it in front of him with his right hand; his right elbow bent, and his back straight; clearly indicating a challenge.
Sakura did the same, turning her key into its staff form and readying herself for anything. She felt fear no longer; only the rush and excitement of battle. With a wave of his staff, Monasho sent a flurry of icicles flying at her. Sakura used her staff as a brace to lift herself into the air and she agilely avoided his attack. As soon as Sakura landed, another attack nearly hit her but she dodged to the side just in time.
"Very good, Princess Sakura," said Monasho, unfazed.
Sakura gasped as something from behind knocked her staff from her hand. Then many leaves and branches and vines began to wind around her. "The Wood!" Sakura said as it pinned her to the wall.
"But, I'm afraid I'm out of time to play," said Monasho as he walked up to her struggling figure slowly. "I have always had a fondness for flowers," he said as he stopped a few feet from her. His staff began glowing and Sakura felt the pulse of his magical energy. "But I'm afraid this one must go. Pity for that boy that loves you so dearly. Oh well, he'll get over it in time. Goodbye!" Monasho reached his staff forward until the orb was inches from Sakura's forehead. Just before it touched her however, Monasho gasped and his eyes widened. He withdrew his staff and the vides around Sakura loosened and she used that chance to pull free and retrieve her staff. But when she faced Monasho, his attention was no longer on her; in fact, his back was turned.
Monasho reached around with his left hand to the back of his right shoulder, where blood was seeping through his robes. He drew back his hand and looked at the blood that was now on it and smiled. "You have strength, boy. After all you've been through," he said quietly.
Sakura looked, and to her amazement, in front of him stood Syaoran. He was panting, standing as straight as he could, and it looked as if the effort of holding up his sword was killing him. He was exhausted and in pain, but he bore a look of satisfaction at the wound he had dealt Monasho. Sakura gasped. "How did you get here?!"
"When I transported you here," Monasho said, "I couldn't do it without him being transported also. There was some sort of invisible bond between you, too strong for even I to break." Monasho winced. "I shouldn't have underestimated him."
Monasho switched his staff to his left hand and raised it. A stream of sharp crystals shot out at Syaoran, and he barely stumbled out of their way. After avoiding the attack he held his sword with the point on the ground, leaning against it. As another attack came his way, he was forced to evade that also, and this time fell to one knee, unable to support himself any longer.
"Syaoran!" yelled Sakura as she saw Monasho about to deliver a finishing blow. She yelled a short chant, holding her hands and her staff above her head. She had no idea where the words came from, but she felt the magic coursing through every inch of her body. With her last words, she twirled her staff around once above her head and grabbed it firmly with both hands. With amazing strength she screamed "RELEASE" and slammed the bottom of her staff down with all of her strength.
A wave of pink magical energy rippled from her staff and sprouted in every direction. She felt all of her energy draining as the powerful spell was dispersed around her.
Sorry! G2G, I'll give thanks for ALL the reviews next time!!!
Signed, DDG
~Servant of the Sea~
PS. Gomen for the long update wait! I'm REALLY sorry!