Lian's Peculiar Adventure: Starlight Paladins
Chapter 6
The Devil Went Down to Margia
The four paladins made their way to the swamp town that the trail led to.
It was a small town with few buildings, but the people there were very hesitant to interact with the newcomers.
"The Town of Margia." Zhin read the sign of the town, "Well, what a peculiar name."
"Perhaps we can find something to eat?" Sarah asked as she pointed to the inn, "I'm starving."
"When are you not?" Lian chuckled, "You're always eating, I wonder how you can maintain that figure."
"I burn the calories off." Sarah smirked.
Lian sighed and shifted her tiara side to side, "What a pain…" she shook her head.
The four walked up to the inn and entered inside.
"We could use a rest, you know?" Lian said, "That sleep on the grass thing was not so enjoyable." She strained as she stretched her back.
"You are correct." Lex told her, "Sarah, do you mind if we take a nap?"
"Hmmm…" Sarah murmured, "Well, if it revitalizes us, that would be fine, but let's eat first." She said.
"I suppose I can retrieve the rooms." Zhin spoke, "I am not very hungry myself, so I can set up."
"Oh good." Lian nodded, "Go and do that."
Zhin sighed and walked to the counter, "How much would it be for two rooms?" he asked.
"500 coins." The receptionist responded.
Zhin looked into his pockets and pulled out a piece of string and a peanut.
"That will not do." The receptionist giggled as she placed her quill in the ink bottle.
"Here." Lex appeared and set down a bag of coins on the counter, "You go and get it ready." He patted Zhin on the back.
"Looks about right." The receptionist grabbed the bag of coins and then turned around to reach for the keys.
"Who will this be for?"
"Mr… Pao-Pao." Zhin said.
00000000
Zhin walked to the rooms he was given the keys for and opened the first one.
"I guess this will be the men's room." He looked around and saw that it was pretty simple looking. He closed the door and walked to the next room.
This room had a balcony that overlooked the swamp land beside the town. Zhin took a moment to walk around and admire the scenery.
"Now that's a view… and a smell!" he chuckled and laid down on the bed, "This will definitely be the women's room." He took a whiff of the bog scented air that came in through the balcony.
The man put his boots up and sighed.
He then called out Thousand Hands and made it cut a rectangle shape on the wooden floor, revealing an open area under it.
"Come out now." He said.
Suddenly, a black hand came out from under the floor, and then a man with a wooden mask appeared.
"You are wiser than you look." The man cackled as he dusted off his green robes.
"When I was walking around I was listening to my footsteps." Zhin told the stranger, "However, when I got to that part, my footsteps sounded louder, as if the floor below me was hollow. Of course I took a glance down and saw a split on the wooden panels, and what do you know…."
"Perceptive…" the stranger chuckled.
"Now who are you and what are you doing here?" Zhin said.
"I will reveal my secrets to a dead man." The stranger twitched his fingers, "I am Mal'Damba, and I have been contacted by Seris to rid of you with the promise of freeing Wekono and gaining dark magic beyond the reach of mortals!" he cackled.
Zhin sighed and sat up.
"You're insane, you know that?" he stood up from the bed.
"More like… cursed." Mal'Damba shook his head.
"Now that I know you are with Seris, tell me the name of your fighting spirit." Zhin said.
"Haahahahahahaha… AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Mal'Damba yelled at the sky, "My stand was granted to me by my goddess Wekono, the mistress of sorrow and death!"
Zhin crossed his arms.
"And you'll be the first target!" Mal'Damba pointed at him with his trembling arm, "The first target for SERPENT SUPERSTITION!"
A large mystical snake appeared above the man.
"If that's the case." Zhin murmured, "Thousand Hands!" he called out his stand, which proceeded to strike the user directly.
"Why face against the spirit if the man is much weaker?"
Mal'Damba felt Thousand Hand's sword pierce his flank and his shoulder.
"Take this!" Zhin made Thousand Hands cut Mal'Damba's arm off.
"Yes! Yes!" Mal'Damba cried out in joy, "YES!" he fell back to the balcony and fell off.
"What the?" Zhin looked at the scene with confusion and ran to the balcony, "Where did he go!?" he looked down at the swamp and saw no one there.
"You are now cursed!" Serpent Superstition spoke and hovered above the bed.
The stand then hovered over to a left-over frying pan and entered it.
"What the?" Zhin saw as the frying pan gained two purple serpentine eyes and glared at him.
"YOU ARE NOW CURSED, ZHIN!" the frying pan cackled and swooped down and smacked the man across the face.
"What!?" Zhin growled and held his aching cheek, "Why you- Take this!" he called out Thousand Hands and swiped at it.
"HAHAHAHAHAHA!" the pan dodged all its attack and came to strike Zhin on the nose.
"ACK!" Zhin growled and shook his head.
"TAKE THIS!" the pan flew straight into the mirror, causing shards to shoot out and cut Zhin's arm and face.
"What the hell!?" Zhin gnashed his teeth in pain and looked around to see the pan, but it was not there.
"Where did you go you damn pot!" he looked around and saw the pan carry a thick book on itself.
"PERHAPS YOU CAN LEARN SOME MORE!" the pan yelled and swung itself, releasing the book from its grasp and sending it flying towards Zhin.
"Oh no you don't!" Zhin yelled, "COUNTER!" Thousand Hands appeared with a glowing blade.
The book hit the blade and was immediately sent back to the pan.
"HAH!" the pan smacked it back.
"HRRH!" Zhin countered it again, and the two engaged in a small tennis match with the book.
"Take your stupid book back!"
"NO NO NO YOU!" the pan cackled and hit it back with greater force.
"Mister Pao Pao?" a waitress came in through the door, "Are you a-"
Zhin countered the book, but when it returned back to the pan, it lay flat and avoided the attack.
"NO!" the man gasped in horror.
"AHHHH!" the waitress shrieked and was struck by the book at full force, her nose instantly broken and a couple of her teeth taken out. She, of course, was immediately knocked out after such a terrible blow.
"Why you!" Zhin yelled.
"OOPSIE DAISY!" the pan jeered and danced around in the air, "HEY! I DIDN'T DO THAT! YOU DID!"
"You damn piece of kitchenware… You're such a bother!" Zhin called out Thousand Hands to strike the pan, but it avoided confrontation all together by going back to close the door.
"You coward!"
"OH AM I!?" the pan called back and rocketed towards a crystal powered bulb, shattering it. It picked up the hot contents into itself and launched them at Zhin's eyes.
"AHHHH!" Zhin yelled when he felt the stinging, burning pain blind him.
"Damn pan! I'm going to kill you!"
"NOT IF I KILL YOU FIRST!" the pan appeared with a knives inside of it and then tossed them upwards. In multiple hits, the pan launched three knives, one that struck Zhin's right hand, the other that struck his left, and the last that struck his right foot.
"AGHHHHHH!" Zhin yelled in pain and saw that each part stabbed was pinned to something. His left hand, which was supporting itself on the wardrobe, was pinned to it. His right, which was in front of the wall, was pinned to that. His foot, well it was on the ground.
"I can't… move!" he looked at his bleeding hands.
Thousand Hands saw this and tried to cut the knives, but was hit from behind by the pan.
"Ack!" Zhin felt the pain from the blow on his head, "DIE!"
Thousand Hands faced its foe once more, but the pan avoided it and struck a cabinet that was above Zhin, making it keel over and fall on top of the man.
"What!?" Zhin yelled as he felt the weight of the cabinet on his shoulders and back, and it made him bow his head to the point where he was only looking at the floor.
"Where are you?!" Zhin made Thousand Hands cut around in an attempt to hit the pan.
"YOU SUCK!" the pan suddenly swooped down and appeared in front of Zhin, "Hey Zhin, how about if I hit YOUR MANHOOD!" it cackled, "CAN'T GET WITH THAT SMOKING HOT WHITE-HAIRED WENCH IF I DO!"
The pan swung on its side and struck Zhin between the legs.
Zhin's eyes widened in pain.
"AHAHAHAHAHAHA! WOAH!" the pan avoided a stab from Thousand Hands, "TOO SLOW!" it beat down on the cabinet, further bending Zhin's spine.
"CURSED CURSED CURSED WITH BLINDNESS!" the pan struck Thousand Hands on the head and chest, then flew over to the bathroom.
"Where did that cursed pan go!?" Zhin looked around, "I should remove this knife from my foot now that I have the chance…" he said and did so with Thousand Hands.
"NOT SO FAST!" the pan came back and smacked Thousand Hands across the face, "OH LOOK WHAT I HAVE FOR YOU!" he said and splashed boiling hot water on Zhin's face.
"You wretch!" Zhin shook his head, but then received more boiling water, "Ahhhh." He snarled.
"HOW ABOUT A LITTLE BATH!?" the pan cackled and continued its actions, "YOU CURSED LITTLE MUTT!" The pan flew out of the room.
Zhin panted and looked at himself, then removed the last two knives and finally the cabinet from his back.
"Once that pan comes back, I'm going to cut it to bits!" he said and looked at the open door.
The pan returned, but this time glowing red hot.
"HERE IT COMES!" the pan shrieked and struck Zhin on the chest.
"AHHHHHHH!" Zhin yelled as he felt the hot iron on his chest, "Get away from me!" he called down Thousand Hands to strike it.
"NO NO NO!" the pan avoided it and hit Thousand Hands on the shoulder, "IF I HEAT YOU UP ENOUGH, YOU CAN WARM UP TO CATCH ME!" it kept hitting Thousands Hands with scalding fury.
Thousand Hands kept receiving blow after blow to itself.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!? ARE YOU NOT GOING TO FIGHT BACK!? DID YOU GIVE UP TO YOUR CURSE?!" the pan taunted
Zhin smirked.
"Did you know that after being exposed to heat… Metal becomes soft?"
"JUST LIKE YOUR MANHOOD WHEN I'M THROUGH WITH IT!" the pan taunted.
Suddenly, after much exposure to heat and constant pounding, the pan started deforming.
"Wait for your enemy to falter even if you have to suffer long!" Zhin yelled and Thousand Hands charged with its sword.
"WHAT?!" the pan saw the stand's new burst of energy and tried to get away, but the fact that it was all folded made it less aerodynamically fast.
"Take this!" Zhin yelled as Thousand Hand's sword pierced through the pan.
"AGHH!" the pan shrieked.
"Dinner time's over, scrap heap!"
Thousand Hands swung its blade and cut the pan to pieces, forcing the serpent shaped stand to come out of it.
"I have you now!" Zhin said and made his stand stab Serpent Superstition in its underbelly.
"HWAK!" the stand cried out.
"Now since you said you were with Seris… Tell me, something…. Has she hired a duo from the lands of the East?" Zhin glared at the stand.
"I-I-I WILL SAY NOTHING!" Serpent Superstition responded and hissed at him.
"Hmm… I figured…" Zhin grunted, "Well… since you have caused me much harm, and I will probably not see some bathhouse girls for a few months thanks to you…. I think it is only fitting that this is your end! ZZZYAAAHH!"
Thousand Hands retracted its sword and cut Serpent Superstition to bits.
000000000
"There's where I heard that damn gator!" a man and his fried rode down the swamp on their paddle boat.
"Look!" he pointed his shotgun to a rustling in the shrub.
"GO GIT HIM!" his friend said.
"AUUUUGHHHHHH!" Mal'Damba suddenly shot out from behind the bushes and shrieked as his body fell pieces.
"WHAT THE HELL!?" the two hunters yelled and started to paddle out of there.
000000000
Zhin lumbered down the stairs and saw that his allies were still eating their lunch.
"Zhin, you look like a mess." Lian saw her ally walking towards them, "Did you get into fight with a stand user or something? Hahahahaha." she chuckled.
Sarah giggled.
Lex smiled and huffed out some air.
Zhin gave out a long sigh.
"Come, join us, you must be tired from your…. Cleaning the bedroom ordeal." Lex said, "Here, we had some left-over sandwiches if you want some."
"Yeah, don't want to waste your energy fixing pillows later on." Lian laughed and banged on the table.
Zhin sat down, said nothing, and ate his sandwiched while his allies laughed.