Chapter 12
Raimundo could feel the power flowing through him. From every part of his being, he felt stronger than ever before. Wow!
He shook his head; he had to focus if this would ever work to his advantage.
He looked at Wuya, and instantly all human feelings left his heart. His voice was cold and emotionless, "And now…you will die sorceress. No more chances, no more puzzle boxes…it ends today. Though you will die in exactly 0.00000000000000039 nanoseconds, it will feel like 3 hours and 9 minutes, and it will be none less than you deserve."
The witch knew her fate was sealed, and all she could do was look to the other faces in the room to find some mercy. She found none, not even in Omi, who usually held life above all.
Raimundo unsheathed the Sword of the Storm and pointed it toward the witch.
He whispered, "It's over…"
He felt emotions he had never felt before, as he let go of restraint and let the power go on its own course. It augmented his every thought and sensation with keen preciseness. He could control the power with a single thought. It was like a dragon, roaring out its authority through him.
The dragon was in him…
He was one with the dragon…
He WAS the dragon!
HE WAS POWER!
Energy crackled all around him running down the sword. "SWORD OF THE STORM ETERNAL TEMPEST!"
Power shot through him into the sword. Which sent a blast bigger that a supernova into the room!
Dojo went up Omi's sleeve; the three warriors were blinded and knocked to the ground by the intense force…
White light and electricity is shot through of the cave ceiling in an effort to be released. The spectacle was seen for hundreds of miles…
Lao-Tai and the Temple monks are stunned into silence by the bright light that fills the sky. Not knowing if it's for good or naught…
Snake Eyes, though his masked face shows no emotion, is surprised by this impressive display of power—something his master will definitely be interested in…
A normal person hit by the attack, wouldn't have had enough time to scream, but Wuya was no ordinary person. Her scream filled every tunnel and cave of the cavern system, chilling any heart that heard it. Yet, most of that was an echo. Raimundo was true to his word. Wuya was destroyed immediately after he said the command; yet, for her, the moment was frozen in time as the energy slowly ate up her flesh…
The power receded just as instantly as it had been let out. Their strength returned to them, the three monks rose from the ground, brushing rocks off their back.
Clay whistled when he saw the damage, "Whew, that Wu sure packs a wallop! My ears are still ringin'!"
Dojo crawled over to the wall where Wuya had met her fate. Examining the scorched spot where her body disintegrated he said, "When that thing does its thing, it does it well. Her body fell apart faster than light travels, but to her, it must have felt like being tossed into the sun's core, then slowly cooked like a Thanksgiving turkey."
Kimiko could care less. Wuya was gone, that's all that mattered. Raimundo was forever free of her influence. But where was he?
"Guys? Where is Raimundo? I didn't…" she stopped in mid-sentence.
Omi and Clay looked to where she was staring. Underneath a pile of rocks and rubble was one visible human hand…and it wasn't moving…
The three friends rushed over and silently began to dig up the rocks. Underneath, they found Raimundo, unconscious, his body and clothes back to before, all his injuries slowly beginning to reappear.
Dojo went over to him, "He's not dead, but the FDS' magic is dissipating. We have to get him to the hospital before all his wounds reopen again."
Clay picked Rai's body as if he were a newborn calf. Turning to Kimiko he said solemnly, "I'll carry him as if he were my own baby son. Don't worry Kimiko, he'll be as fit as a well-fed cow before you know it."
She said nothing as she looked at her love. Sure, he was alive, but was his mind?
Dojo grew to full size, and Clay hopped on first, followed by Omi, then Kimiko. Dojo took off through the roof.
"There's a hospital three miles away from the temple, we can take him there." Dojo said.
Omi took out the Golden Tiger Claws, "I will go and get Master Fung. He will be worried about us." Quickly, he used the claws to rip a hole between points and jumped through.
Kimiko cradled Raimundo's head in her lap. She watched as the cuts and gashes on his face reappeared slowly, as if someone had taken an invisible knife and slowly carved up his perfect almond skin. Black and blue marks began to form again and blood began to flow from his mouth and nose, running down his cheek and onto her ruined clothes. The heavy rain only made things worse as Rai began to shiver.
Clay looked down at his friend. The one he had called traitor for so long… Raimundo had not been as selfish as all of them had believed, but was instead…selfless. He had given up everything for the sake of his friends, the only family he ever knew, and even though he had saved their lives (and the fate of the world), he was now only hanging on to life by a thread. How had he ever had the guts to call him traitor! It must have torn Rai apart, to see them scorn him so and never being able to explain. He looked down at his teal Wudai Warrior sash, and Rai's blood-splashed, white Servant Rank one, watching the boy reflexively shiver from the cold. If anybody deserved to be a Wudai Warrior, it was Raimundo.
Kimiko watched astounded as Clay removed his sash, then his red uniform robe. Using the sash, he tried to stop the extra blood coming from Raimundo's chest. Then placing his own robe over the young monk, he stopped much of the shivering. Then, he did the impossible. Taking off his cherished Stetson hat, he placed it on Rai's head to shield him from the rain. Now clad only in his white t-shirt, black pants, and shoes, he was instantly drenched in water. He smiled at her through his dripping blond hair and a twinkle in his blue eyes. "That makes me feel a little bit better. He'll survive Kimi, he's gotta." He turned around and looked fiercely ahead, "Cause I haven't made my peace with 'im yet."