Merry Christmas everybody! As my Christmas present to you, you are getting not one, not two, but
three new chapters of this story in a row. I hope you enjoy them all.
Memories of the Dead, Sould of the Living
As Yusuke and his team climbed the steps of the Shen-Lo fortress, Yusuke turned to look at Rad, who
was holding his stomach and wincing every minute or so. "You okay, Rad?"
"A little winded, but I'll li... er... survive."
"Well take a break, we'll handle the rest."
"You won't hear any arguments from me."
"Interesting how the newest member is the easiest to get along with," Hiei observed. "Unlike SOME
humans."
"Hey Urameshi, did you hear what that demon said about you."
"I think he meant you, Kuwabara."
"Hey, I was able to pull my weight dealing with the Four Saint Beasts, the Toguro Brothers AND the
Dark Tournament. Yet you still treat me like the rookie."
"Look, Kuwabara," Hiei said. "The only reason you're here is because you have spirit energy.
You have no substantial connection to Spirit World. There's nothing you can do that any of us
can't do already."
"Well if that's true, then why don't you form a spirit sword like me."
"Because I want to save my spirit energy for something useful."
"Useful! Why I oughta..."
Yusuke and Kurama ignored this bantering. It wasn't anything that they weren't used to.
"How much longer are these stairs going to go on?" Yusuke asked.
"This might be an endurance test," Kurama said. "Trying to break us down mentally."
"Obviously, they don't know us very well," Yusuke commented.
Finally, the group arrived at a new roon. This room had a circular stone arena over a pit of
magma. A stone bridge was the only connection between that and the entrance.
"Looks like this is the next level," Yusuke said.
"Great, another fire pit," Kuwabara, who had given up arguing with Hiei when they entered the
room, groaned.
"It does seem to be a common theme with you," Hiei agreed.
"Pass no further, humans!" Came a voice from above. A gold-colored humanoid dragon descended from
the ceiling. "I am Kenryu, master of fire."
"Master of fire?" Rad asked.
"Each of us control a different elemental force of Spirit World. Armex, whom you defeated, was
master of metal. And I am master of fire." As if to prove his point, columns of fire rose from the
pit around them.
"Boy, this feels like a case of de'ja vu," Yusuke said.
"I agree," added Kurama. "Each opponent, a master of an elemental force. Just like the Four Saint
Beasts."
"Kuwabara had a hard enough time with Byakko, he might've bitten off more than he could chew." Hiei,
of course.
"And now, I challenge you!" He pointed straight at Rad who looked around to make
sure that finger was aimed directly at him.
"Who, me?"
"You are the one who destroyed Armex. I will not let such an action go without retribution."
"Big talk coming from a giant lizard."
"Zip it, Urameshi," Kuwabara said stepping onto the stone bridge. "I'll be your opponent."
"Don't be so eager to die, boy, I'll get to you just as soon as I finish off the one who killed
Armex."
"If you want him, you're going to have to go through me," Kuwabara said taking off his jacket and
throwing it to Yusuke. He ignited his Spirit Sword and walked to the center of the circle. "And
I mean right through me! You're not getting to him until there's a big gaping hole in my body!"
"As you wish." Suddenly Kenryu launched a fireball from his mouth. Kuwabara threw himself to the
ground and the others dodged out of the way as well. The fireball passed through the exit and struck
a portion of the ceiling causing it to cave in and block the stairs from the first level.
"Hey, I wasn't ready!" Kuwabara protested.
"You idiot, this isn't the Dark Tournament," Yusuke told him. "There is no starting bell or referee."
"Fine, in that case..." Kuwabara rushed at Kenryu and swung his sword. Kenryu flapped his wings and
escaped the downswing of Kuwabara's spirit sword. Kuwabara turned and swung three more times but
Kenryu dodged all of them. Backing up into the air, Kenryu launched a series of fireballs. Kuwabara
destroyed them by slashing them with his sword.
"A pathetic human is no match for the master of fire!" Kenryu declared. He flew down and slugged
Kuwabara right in the cheek. The human flew back and almost fell off the ring.
~Darn it,~ Kuwabara thought. ~I can't be beaten by him. Not only will the guys not make it to Level
3, but Hiei would never let me hear the end of it. I have to prove that I can do this.~ Kuwabara re-
ignited his spirit sword and charged Kenryu again.
"Kuwabra seems to be relying on brute force to win," Hiei guessed. "He needs to start relying on
strategy."
"Good luck," Yusuke said cynically. "When it comes to strategy, Kuwabara NOT an expert."
"Hey, I heard that!" Kuwabara called just before Kenryu nailed him with a left hook.
The punch made Kuwabara skid back. He put his hand on the ground to stop himself. ~We're evenly
matched when it comes to strength and firepower, but he can still fly. If only... that's it!~
Kuwabara put both hands on his spirit sword, raised it up high and charged Kenryu again. Yusuke and
the others sighed, knowing where this was going.
"Here I come!" Kuwabara announced.
"Go ahead, bring it on," Kenryu challenged.
He never saw it coming.
Kuwabara revealed a second spirit sword underneath his first one. He swung both swords and sliced
Kenryu's wings off. The dragon fell to the ground.
"Perfect."
"Whoa, I didn't see that one coming."
"What were you saying about Kuwabara relying purely on brute force?" Kurama asked Hiei with a sly
grin.
"He just got lucky."
Kenryu's wings flopped around like a fish out of water. They each flopped to the end of the ring and
fell into the lavabed.
"My wings, my beautiful wings! You decapitated them!" Kenryu cried.
"Now our playing field is even Steven," Kuwabara chuckled.
"Looks like he's grounded," Yusuke joked.
"Wow," Rad gasped, speaking up for the first time since the battle began. "He got rid of one of
Kenryu's main abilities."
"Just realizing that now?" Hiei said cynically.
"Hey, leave him alone," Yusuke said not taking his eyes off Kuwabara and Kenryu. "He's still new at
all of this."
"Now that I have sliced off your wings, there's no way you can escape," Kuwabara said combining his two
Spirit Swords into one again.
"That's fine by me," Kenryu said as his nails grew to about eighteen inches and two large spikes shot
out of his elbows. "I prefer attacking anyway." The two began their conflict anew, Spirit Sword
clashing against demon blades.
~This is getting us nowhere,~ Kuwabara thought. He quickly jumped out of the way as Kenryu launched
a barrage of fireballs. ~I can match him blow for blow, but that would only end in a stalemate. How do
I gain an advantage over him?~ Kuwabara ducked Kenryu's blades. "Hey, do you mind? I'm trying to think
here."
"Shut up and fight!" Kenryu snapped.
"Man, that sounds like I would say," Kuwabara commented. Then suddenly it hit him. ~That's it! Fighting
this guy is like fighting myself! So I need to beat him like how someone would beat me. Too bad I'm not
as strong as Urameshi, but maybe... Yes, that just might work!~
Too everyone's surprise, Kuwabara stood down and dissipated his Spirit Sword. He turned to face the others,
"Come on, guys, let's go."
"No, stand and fight me!" Kenryu ordered.
"But why, Kuwabara?" Yusuke asked.
"Shouldn't you finish him off?" Hiei added.
"Why bother, he's too weak to be of any threat now."
"TOO WEAK?" Kenryu shouted.
"Yeah, he's not worth my time."
"You must defeat me, otherwise you won't be able to go to the next level!"
"I'm sure we can find another way. Hey Hiei, you could scale the wall of this fortress, can't you?"
Hiei was beginning to catch on to what Kuwabara was doing. "With ease."
"There, see, there's no need to fight this weakling. Let's go."
"You will fight me or else!" Kenryu declared.
"Forget it, you're nothing but a first rate fighter, a real insult to true demons like the Four
Saint Beasts and the Toguro Brothers."
"NO! I AM THE GREATEST DEMON OF ALL TIME!" Kenryu declared.
"Oh please, you're nothing but a worthless has-been who can't even stop one single human." To emphasize
his point, Kuwabara pointed his thumb down like a roman emperor about to condemn a gladiator to the death.
With a scream of primal fury, Kenryu charged Kuwabara. Kuwabara took three steps back. Kenryu leaped at
Kuwabara.
Kuwabara slid to the side and Kenryu ended up going over the edge, literally and figuratively. Kuwabara
looked over and saw him hanging on by one hand.
"Without his wings to support his massive upper body, he can't pull himself up," Hiei explained to Rad.
"This can't be happening! I am the greatest demon in spirit world! How could a measley human beat me!
This isn't fair! THIS ISN'T FAIR!"
Kuwabara activated his spirit sword and leaned down to Kenryu. "This is the part where you fall down,"
he said smugley. He then sliced the rock that Kenryu was hanging on to.
"NOOOOOOOOOOO!" Kenryu screamed as he plummeted into the lava.
"Good riddence to bad rubbish," Kuwabara said.
"Wow, Kuwabara, that was really clever," Yusuke said as the others came onto the ring. Yusuke handed
him his shirt. "Getting him to fall like that."
"He must've been really angry if he fell for such an obvious trap," Hiei said crossing his arms.
"I guess I was just too smart for him," Kuwabara guessed putting on his shirt again.
"Or too lucky," Hiei muttered.
"Hey, you wanna say that again?" Kuwabara said steamed.
"I guess some things will never change," Yusuke said.
Suddenly the whole ring started to move. It began rising like an elevator.
"I guess we're going on to the next level," Rad said as Hiei and Kuwabara continued their arguing over
whether it was smarts or luck that beat Kenryu.
"Alas, poor Kenryu," Satoshi said. "I always knew his temper would get him killed one day."
"Satoshi, you will take the third level," Shadow instructed.
"As you command, Lord Shadow."
"Hey Satoshi, good luck," Reina called.
"Reina, you shall take Level Four. If Satoshi falls, you will be all that stands between them and me."
"Thank you for giving me this honor, Lord Shadow, I promise that I won't fail you."
"You better not, Reina, otherwise you will die." Reina gulped and quietly disappeared to go to her
level.
three new chapters of this story in a row. I hope you enjoy them all.
Memories of the Dead, Sould of the Living
As Yusuke and his team climbed the steps of the Shen-Lo fortress, Yusuke turned to look at Rad, who
was holding his stomach and wincing every minute or so. "You okay, Rad?"
"A little winded, but I'll li... er... survive."
"Well take a break, we'll handle the rest."
"You won't hear any arguments from me."
"Interesting how the newest member is the easiest to get along with," Hiei observed. "Unlike SOME
humans."
"Hey Urameshi, did you hear what that demon said about you."
"I think he meant you, Kuwabara."
"Hey, I was able to pull my weight dealing with the Four Saint Beasts, the Toguro Brothers AND the
Dark Tournament. Yet you still treat me like the rookie."
"Look, Kuwabara," Hiei said. "The only reason you're here is because you have spirit energy.
You have no substantial connection to Spirit World. There's nothing you can do that any of us
can't do already."
"Well if that's true, then why don't you form a spirit sword like me."
"Because I want to save my spirit energy for something useful."
"Useful! Why I oughta..."
Yusuke and Kurama ignored this bantering. It wasn't anything that they weren't used to.
"How much longer are these stairs going to go on?" Yusuke asked.
"This might be an endurance test," Kurama said. "Trying to break us down mentally."
"Obviously, they don't know us very well," Yusuke commented.
Finally, the group arrived at a new roon. This room had a circular stone arena over a pit of
magma. A stone bridge was the only connection between that and the entrance.
"Looks like this is the next level," Yusuke said.
"Great, another fire pit," Kuwabara, who had given up arguing with Hiei when they entered the
room, groaned.
"It does seem to be a common theme with you," Hiei agreed.
"Pass no further, humans!" Came a voice from above. A gold-colored humanoid dragon descended from
the ceiling. "I am Kenryu, master of fire."
"Master of fire?" Rad asked.
"Each of us control a different elemental force of Spirit World. Armex, whom you defeated, was
master of metal. And I am master of fire." As if to prove his point, columns of fire rose from the
pit around them.
"Boy, this feels like a case of de'ja vu," Yusuke said.
"I agree," added Kurama. "Each opponent, a master of an elemental force. Just like the Four Saint
Beasts."
"Kuwabara had a hard enough time with Byakko, he might've bitten off more than he could chew." Hiei,
of course.
"And now, I challenge you!" He pointed straight at Rad who looked around to make
sure that finger was aimed directly at him.
"Who, me?"
"You are the one who destroyed Armex. I will not let such an action go without retribution."
"Big talk coming from a giant lizard."
"Zip it, Urameshi," Kuwabara said stepping onto the stone bridge. "I'll be your opponent."
"Don't be so eager to die, boy, I'll get to you just as soon as I finish off the one who killed
Armex."
"If you want him, you're going to have to go through me," Kuwabara said taking off his jacket and
throwing it to Yusuke. He ignited his Spirit Sword and walked to the center of the circle. "And
I mean right through me! You're not getting to him until there's a big gaping hole in my body!"
"As you wish." Suddenly Kenryu launched a fireball from his mouth. Kuwabara threw himself to the
ground and the others dodged out of the way as well. The fireball passed through the exit and struck
a portion of the ceiling causing it to cave in and block the stairs from the first level.
"Hey, I wasn't ready!" Kuwabara protested.
"You idiot, this isn't the Dark Tournament," Yusuke told him. "There is no starting bell or referee."
"Fine, in that case..." Kuwabara rushed at Kenryu and swung his sword. Kenryu flapped his wings and
escaped the downswing of Kuwabara's spirit sword. Kuwabara turned and swung three more times but
Kenryu dodged all of them. Backing up into the air, Kenryu launched a series of fireballs. Kuwabara
destroyed them by slashing them with his sword.
"A pathetic human is no match for the master of fire!" Kenryu declared. He flew down and slugged
Kuwabara right in the cheek. The human flew back and almost fell off the ring.
~Darn it,~ Kuwabara thought. ~I can't be beaten by him. Not only will the guys not make it to Level
3, but Hiei would never let me hear the end of it. I have to prove that I can do this.~ Kuwabara re-
ignited his spirit sword and charged Kenryu again.
"Kuwabra seems to be relying on brute force to win," Hiei guessed. "He needs to start relying on
strategy."
"Good luck," Yusuke said cynically. "When it comes to strategy, Kuwabara NOT an expert."
"Hey, I heard that!" Kuwabara called just before Kenryu nailed him with a left hook.
The punch made Kuwabara skid back. He put his hand on the ground to stop himself. ~We're evenly
matched when it comes to strength and firepower, but he can still fly. If only... that's it!~
Kuwabara put both hands on his spirit sword, raised it up high and charged Kenryu again. Yusuke and
the others sighed, knowing where this was going.
"Here I come!" Kuwabara announced.
"Go ahead, bring it on," Kenryu challenged.
He never saw it coming.
Kuwabara revealed a second spirit sword underneath his first one. He swung both swords and sliced
Kenryu's wings off. The dragon fell to the ground.
"Perfect."
"Whoa, I didn't see that one coming."
"What were you saying about Kuwabara relying purely on brute force?" Kurama asked Hiei with a sly
grin.
"He just got lucky."
Kenryu's wings flopped around like a fish out of water. They each flopped to the end of the ring and
fell into the lavabed.
"My wings, my beautiful wings! You decapitated them!" Kenryu cried.
"Now our playing field is even Steven," Kuwabara chuckled.
"Looks like he's grounded," Yusuke joked.
"Wow," Rad gasped, speaking up for the first time since the battle began. "He got rid of one of
Kenryu's main abilities."
"Just realizing that now?" Hiei said cynically.
"Hey, leave him alone," Yusuke said not taking his eyes off Kuwabara and Kenryu. "He's still new at
all of this."
"Now that I have sliced off your wings, there's no way you can escape," Kuwabara said combining his two
Spirit Swords into one again.
"That's fine by me," Kenryu said as his nails grew to about eighteen inches and two large spikes shot
out of his elbows. "I prefer attacking anyway." The two began their conflict anew, Spirit Sword
clashing against demon blades.
~This is getting us nowhere,~ Kuwabara thought. He quickly jumped out of the way as Kenryu launched
a barrage of fireballs. ~I can match him blow for blow, but that would only end in a stalemate. How do
I gain an advantage over him?~ Kuwabara ducked Kenryu's blades. "Hey, do you mind? I'm trying to think
here."
"Shut up and fight!" Kenryu snapped.
"Man, that sounds like I would say," Kuwabara commented. Then suddenly it hit him. ~That's it! Fighting
this guy is like fighting myself! So I need to beat him like how someone would beat me. Too bad I'm not
as strong as Urameshi, but maybe... Yes, that just might work!~
Too everyone's surprise, Kuwabara stood down and dissipated his Spirit Sword. He turned to face the others,
"Come on, guys, let's go."
"No, stand and fight me!" Kenryu ordered.
"But why, Kuwabara?" Yusuke asked.
"Shouldn't you finish him off?" Hiei added.
"Why bother, he's too weak to be of any threat now."
"TOO WEAK?" Kenryu shouted.
"Yeah, he's not worth my time."
"You must defeat me, otherwise you won't be able to go to the next level!"
"I'm sure we can find another way. Hey Hiei, you could scale the wall of this fortress, can't you?"
Hiei was beginning to catch on to what Kuwabara was doing. "With ease."
"There, see, there's no need to fight this weakling. Let's go."
"You will fight me or else!" Kenryu declared.
"Forget it, you're nothing but a first rate fighter, a real insult to true demons like the Four
Saint Beasts and the Toguro Brothers."
"NO! I AM THE GREATEST DEMON OF ALL TIME!" Kenryu declared.
"Oh please, you're nothing but a worthless has-been who can't even stop one single human." To emphasize
his point, Kuwabara pointed his thumb down like a roman emperor about to condemn a gladiator to the death.
With a scream of primal fury, Kenryu charged Kuwabara. Kuwabara took three steps back. Kenryu leaped at
Kuwabara.
Kuwabara slid to the side and Kenryu ended up going over the edge, literally and figuratively. Kuwabara
looked over and saw him hanging on by one hand.
"Without his wings to support his massive upper body, he can't pull himself up," Hiei explained to Rad.
"This can't be happening! I am the greatest demon in spirit world! How could a measley human beat me!
This isn't fair! THIS ISN'T FAIR!"
Kuwabara activated his spirit sword and leaned down to Kenryu. "This is the part where you fall down,"
he said smugley. He then sliced the rock that Kenryu was hanging on to.
"NOOOOOOOOOOO!" Kenryu screamed as he plummeted into the lava.
"Good riddence to bad rubbish," Kuwabara said.
"Wow, Kuwabara, that was really clever," Yusuke said as the others came onto the ring. Yusuke handed
him his shirt. "Getting him to fall like that."
"He must've been really angry if he fell for such an obvious trap," Hiei said crossing his arms.
"I guess I was just too smart for him," Kuwabara guessed putting on his shirt again.
"Or too lucky," Hiei muttered.
"Hey, you wanna say that again?" Kuwabara said steamed.
"I guess some things will never change," Yusuke said.
Suddenly the whole ring started to move. It began rising like an elevator.
"I guess we're going on to the next level," Rad said as Hiei and Kuwabara continued their arguing over
whether it was smarts or luck that beat Kenryu.
"Alas, poor Kenryu," Satoshi said. "I always knew his temper would get him killed one day."
"Satoshi, you will take the third level," Shadow instructed.
"As you command, Lord Shadow."
"Hey Satoshi, good luck," Reina called.
"Reina, you shall take Level Four. If Satoshi falls, you will be all that stands between them and me."
"Thank you for giving me this honor, Lord Shadow, I promise that I won't fail you."
"You better not, Reina, otherwise you will die." Reina gulped and quietly disappeared to go to her
level.