"Laurel Wreath"
By Roby Carr
Part Five: Enter the High Priestess
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"SWORD OF THE STORM!" Raimundo cried angrily, thrusting the sword forward and attacking.
Laurel grinned merrily and she shouted, "RABBIT'S EARS!", using her own Shen-Gong-Wu to dash out of the way of his attack. "You guys here at the Xiaolin Temple think that you're all that," she taunted, "But do you want to know something? You really aren't. I sort of expected more from you two. The Xiaolin Dragons of Wind and Earth, but you two really haven't done anything while I was around."
"You weren' here for long enough t' see us do anythin' real great," Clay protested coolly, "Y'all didn' even stay for more than one Showdown or we'd have really shown ya wha' we can do."
A troubled look came over Laurel's face as she listened to him and she glanced at Raimundo, who looked far more enraged than Clay. His grip on the Sword of the Storm was so tight that his knuckles were actually turning white.
"Come on, menina! You've gotta know that you're doing the wrong thing! So why are you doing this?" Raimundo asked, slashing the sword out in front of him to demonstrate his point.
"Why am I doing this? Why am I doing this? You can't fool me Dragons. The question is, 'Why are you doing this?'" Laurel paused. "I thought you guys seemed nice... I thought you was the good guys and you were my friends and you wouldn't lie to me... But I was wrong and now I'm going to make sure you pay for your crimes." Laurel looked furious and shouted, "Fonce kurayami tenebres!" 1
"Wha' in th' world are ya doin' now, Laurel?" Clay could help questioning. He noted that the only really big things that were going on were that the smooth, round piece of obsidian at the top of her staff was now glowing a silvery-gold and a storm was beginning to stir up above them.
Well, at least now the atmosphere was right for a fight against evil.
"Forget this!" Raimundo finally yelled, his self-restraint breaking, "Clay, you go behind and get her Shen-Gong-Wu. I'm going to keep her distracted." He turned and ground one sneaker into the now-wet dirt below him, "Eat this Laurel Nee: SWORD OF THE STORM!" He slashed out, Laurel dodged, and she countered with her Eye of Dashi.
As much as Clay wanted to keep watching the battle and do more to support Raimundo, he knew the Third Arm Sash would be best to pull off some of Laurel's Shen-Gong-Wu and use those. What confused him was what Laurel had been saying earlier about their 'crimes'." He didn't think there was anything that they'd done. Laurel kept saying that she was all about doing what was right and fighting for justice - so why was she fighting on the Heylin side?
Once he had edged far enough behind Laurel that he was sure she couldn't see him any longer, he activated his Shen-Gong-Wu, shouting, "THIRD ARM SASH!" The sash darted out and tugged the Jet Bootsu from her feet. The sash snaked back to Clay and he snatched them up, tossing them to Raimundo. The Brazilian pulled off his sneakers and shoved his feet into the Shen-Gong-Wu, checking to see that they fit comfortably.
Meanwhile, Laurel had fallen from her place in the air and now mud was splashed over both her shoeless feet and her skirt. A half-embarrassed, half-furious look made its way onto her face and she scowled.
"You guys are going to get it now!" she told them and held up her staff. She began spinning it, almost like a baton, and the wind around them whipped up. A loud crash of thunder was heard and the entire area seemed to darken considerably. "Sea a mhaistir!" 2
Both Clay and Raimundo tensed up as an uncomfortable silence settled over the trio, not even the crashes of thunder or the shouts from Jack, Kimiko, and Omi's battle breaking the unusual situation. Laurel was still spinning the staff over her head, until it had begun to look like there was a large golden-white circle hovering above her. Just as Raimundo was prepared to break the silence, Laurel did it for him. She abruptly pointed the staff towards him, the obsidian on the nearer end, and whispered one simple word.
"Trean." 3
A crack was heard before a flash of lightning streaked down from the sky, well defined against the blackened clouds. It hit the ground a mere second later, its landing point less than three inches from Raimundo. He looked horrified, his face slightly redder from being so close to the heat. 4
"You're going to hurt somebody!" Raimundo managed to stammer, still terrified. His hands were shaking violently as he attempted to get a firmer grip on the Sword of the Storm and Helmet of Jong.
"Paging Doctor Obvious. Should you say 'duh!' or should I?" Laurel sneered back, rolling her eyes. She slammed the butt of the staff into the ground and her gaze hardened.
"Why are ya doin' this, Laurel?" Clay asked, still confused. Raimundo and Laurel both stared at him in disbelief.
"Because she's evil!" Raimundo sputtered, stumbling back and slamming Helmet of Jong on his head, "SWORD OF THE-"
"Hold it, partner," Clay said, stopping his friend. Their opponent looked annoyed by this interaction for some reason.
"I'm doing this because you are the evil ones! Don't deny it anymore! Jack and Wuya told me everything about how you stole their Shen-Gong-Wu," she answered, flipping her golden curls over her shoulder. Now it was Clay and Raimundo who wore looks of incredulity displayed openly on their faces. Laurel raised her staff and looked like she was about to shout some more words that would lead to an attack, but Clay stopped her was another clarification.
"Y'all think we stole their Shen-Gong-Wu?" he asked.
"Of course, you did!" Laurel huffed.
"Come on, menina! I've been there, I've done that. Wuya's a liar," Raimundo told her, "Trust me- we are the good guys. We are the ones who worked hard to get our Shen-Gong-Wu. And they are the ones why stole all the Shen-Gong-Wu from us a while ago and we got it back, fair and square."
Laurel's grip on her staff was loosening and she bit her lower lip. "Really? Like, you promise you aren't lying?" she interrogated weakly.
"Yeah, menina!"
"Why would we lie if we're th' good guys?" Clay added and Laurel smiled a little.
"Thank you for not lying to me," she said softly and the boys were moved towards her when Laurel's eyes hardened suddenly. The piece of obsidian at the end of her staff began emanating the silvery-gold glow much more vibrantly. She spun around, dashing towards the front of the temple where Jack, Kimiko, and Omi's battle was taking place.
Raimundo and Clay exchanged strange looks and the former shouted, "Laurel! Wait up!"
The blonde turned to face him. With her curls now wet and matted down, Laurel looked surprisingly dangerous. The eye make-up she wore had begun to run and it was obvious that the attacks she was using were taking a lot of energy out of her. "I have unfinished business here," she told them slowly. She was beginning to shake and looked like she might collapse. Raimundo stepped forward and took up her arm, placing it around his neck to help her on her way to the front of the temple. Clay followed in suit and the trio quickly made their way with both boys helping Laurel walk.
"Laurel! What are you doing with those losers? I could use some help!" Jack told her as the group rounded the corner. Laurel pulled her arms away from Raimundo and Clay and stumbled forward on her own, using her staff as somewhat of a walking stick.
"Jack Spicer," she began solemnly. Kimiko and Omi both bore confused looks and Jack looked a little annoyed. "You are on trial for charges against the Miihallan high priestess of Roma Nova. Your judge will be Miihalla himself, called down from his eternal throne to decide your fate. Your crime is betrayal and deceit against the Miihallan high priestess of Roma Nova."
Laurel stopped to lower her head and there was a crash of thunder followed by a crack of lightning in the distance. 4
"Miihalla has made his judgment. You will receive a second chance. Use it wisely, Jack Spicer." Laurel's eyes darkened considerably and, with a great deal of effort, she pulled up her staff and pointed it at Jack. "My name is Andrah Aquilla, daughter of General Leigh Aquilla, daughter of Juliana Aquilla, the betrothed of Prince Sebastiano Mantegna, high priestess of the Temple of Miihalla in the capital of Roma Nova. You have cross my path one too many times. Go back to where you've come from and let the Xiaolin warriors be!" She paused. "Oh yeah. And Johnny? Tell Wuya that I quit."
"What the-"
"ASAHIINEH LYASEH MIIHALLA!" 5A brilliant white-gold light enveloped the entire temple and Jack and the Xiaolin warriors attempted to shield their eyes. When the light faded, the clouds were already beginning to lighten of their own accord and Jack Spicer had disappeared, leaving a pile of Shen-Gong-Wu in his wake. The blonde girl was shaking violently and breathing harshly in the middle of the area and Kimiko was the first to move.
Grabbing Raimundo's arm and pulling him with her, Kimiko moved towards her former friend. Clay and Omi followed after them. Kimiko placed a hand on her shoulder and the blonde turned to face her. Tears were streaking down her face as she offered them a half-hearted smile.
"My name is Andrah Aquilla," she whispered, just barely audible, "And... and..."
"And what?" Omi asked.
"And I... I'm sorry." With that the Roma Novan high priestess' staff fell from her hand and clattered to the ground, Andrah collapsing in exhaustion as soon as it hit.
THE END (If you don't want to read the epilogue.)
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In the epilogue of Laurel Wreath -
"We're going to be Dragons!" Kimiko cheered and flung her arms around Raimundo.
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1 ; 'Fonce' is French for 'dark'. 'Kurayami' is Japanese (I think) for 'darkness'. 'Tenebres' is French for 'darkness'. This refers to the fact that Laurel/Andrah is darkening the sky by summoning a huge storm.
2 ; 'Sea a mhaistir' is Gaelic. I forgot what it means. Aw well...
3 ; 'Trean' is Gaelic and it means 'strong'. I guess it's because the lightning attack is so strong? I just liked the way it sounded.
4 ; I know, I know. Lightning comes before thunder, but the first time it was Laurel/Andrah's magic that caused it to happen and the second time, I got lazy and wrote it incorrectly.
And then I didn't feel like changing it because it read well.
5 ; I don't even remember what language 'Asahiineh lyaseh Miihalla' is. Or what it means. It stood out in my mind for some reason, so I used it.
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- Roby Carr