Paths of the Heart:
Chapter XVI: The Final Duel
"You… do?" Nina asked quietly, tears like waterfalls raining down her cheeks, but they were happy tears.
"I… have. From… the very second I saw you… I knew that you…" Ryu trailed off, feeling nervous.
Nina smiled. "You don't need to tell me Ryu, I already know. Your face could tell me more than words ever could… and Ryu… I love you too." Ryu's nervous face broke into the largest smile that Nina had ever seen as they both lent forward, and at that moment Ryu knew that the woman in his dream was Nina.
"Sorry ta break up dis "Touching" scene, but I believe we have a duel ta continue Ryu?" Dawn hissed Ryu's name with pure anger and hatred, but that didn't faze Ryu. He shook his head.
"This is the end Dawn, I've had enough with fighting you, and this time we will finish this, once and for all." He said calmly.
Dawn smiled in an insane way. "Look's like ya finally got some sense boy." She looked at Ryu. "Shall we begin?" She said waving her hand at the clear space of the field. Ryu nodded but suddenly Nina shouted out.
"Why do you keep fighting us Dawn? Why can't you go away! You already look horrible!" certainly, Dawn looked absolutely atrocious. Her hair was matted and her face was singed and bruised, and her clothes were all ripped. But… this isn't the best thing to say to an already fuming mad insane psychopath determined to rip Ryu's head off and stick on her mantelpiece.
"Why, you little brat! How DARE you say that about me? Now your BOTH are going to die!"
Dawn wasn't happy. That was an understatement.
Dawn charged towards Ryu, almost frothing at the mouth. Thankfully Nina took to the air and lifted Ryu out of the way with great difficulty.
"Thanks Nina." Ryu said while dodging another dagger attack from Dawn.
"No problem." Nina panted out, trying to get her breath back.
But Dawn took this opportunity to attack Nina; stunned, Nina shut her eyes hoping she would disappear.
CRASH
She carefully opened one of her eyes, then the other. She was expecting a "slash" and lots of pain, but she felt nothing.
But her eyes widened at the scene in front of her, Ryu had stepped in front of her and took the hit. Nina took no time summoning a healing spell with all her concentration, praying it would work.
"Vigor!" She bellowed frantically and to her relief a large spiral of white light flew round Ryu magically healing his wounds.
"Are you OK?" Nina mouthed to him.
"Uh… I think so-"
"Watch out Ryu!" She shouted in dismay as Dawn lunged for Ryu once again. Nina swooped down, wishing her wings were larger and grabbed Ryu by the back of his shirt and lifted him into the air, parrying the attack.
Dawn growled "Come back down here!" She screamed in rage.
Nina mouthed a "No." not managing to get her tongue to pronounce the words. Nina quickly found the nearest roof and set Ryu down on it, collapsing in a panting heap.
"Nina? Nina? Are you all right?" Ryu asked shaking her.
"Huh?" a feeble voice replied "Yeah… I just need to rest a while…."
Ryu heard a scream of anger and peered down over the tiled roof seeing Dawn fuming around, Ryu smirked. "Having fun down there?" he asked.
"You jus' wait! I'll bay up dere in a sec!"
Meanwhile at the heap that is Nina…
'Oh, I wish my wings were stronger… then I could fly… I could fly to the moon!' Nina wished in her mind. What she didn't know, is that wishes sometimes, just sometimes come true…
Suddenly Nina was surrounded in a large ball of white light that nearly made Ryu slip on the tiles. "Nina!" Ryu yelled his eyes wide, but not as wide as Nina's…
Nina had a weird feeling on her back that made her turn around, and made her nearly faint. 'My wings… they're growing…" And indeed they were, they were no longer the tiny wings on her back but the large wings of an angel! They almost reached the floor.
The ball of light surrounding Nina slowly vanished revealing her to Ryu. "Wow…" he muttered staring at her. "Wow… wow… wow…" Nina flexed her wings and closed her eyes, wondering how it had happened.
She saw a figure in her mind and her eyes snapped open.
Pung Ryong… She was however denied any more thought as Dawn stepped onto the roof. "How the heck did you get here!" Nina shouted.Dawn tapped her nose "I have me ways…" She said being unhelpful, the stepladder at the side of the house was more of a clue.
"Now… Ryu… Nina. Are we gonna finish our duel?"
Ryu nodded at Nina as they joined hands and flew into the air with ease using Nina's new improved wings.
"Burn!" Ryu shouted.
"Typhoon!" Nina shouted.
"Gigaflare!" Together they roared as a spiral of fire flew up into the air.
Leaving Dawn rather singed and unhappy, It wasn't over though.
"Burn!"
"Cyclone!"
"Simoon!"
"…Ouch…" Dawn said wobbling around a bit.
"Burn!"
"Sever!"
"Firewind!"
Dawn fell over.
"…Did… we… do it?" Nina asked peering over at Dawn.
"… I think so…." Ryu replied. Nina smiled jumping into the air and giving Ryu a high five.
"…I think we should finish this though however…" Ryu said quietly stepping towards Dawn holding his sword above her.
Nina turned round closed her eyes and put her fingers in her ears, she didn't really want to see this. She waited for something, anything, then she heard it.
A muffled scream from Ryu.
Not quite what she had expected.
Nina swung round to see what was going on, Dawn more frazzled than ever holding her dagger to Ryu's throat.
"Ready ta say bye-byes to yer boyfriend?"
Nina shook her head furiously. "NO!"
However they were interrupted by four pillars of dazzling light appearing around them.
"We thought you could use some help." Ursula smirked.