CHAPTER SIX
Tomoyo wandered through the empty city streets as she saw the damage that had been done. Several cars were overturned and set ablaze as buildings were on the verge of collapsing. The smoke and fire filling the air made it almost impossible for the young girl to see through. She zipped up her gloves that belonged to her battle outfit and slowly tied her hair back, waiting for a sudden confrontation.
"Tomoyo..." A voice called out to her.
She looked to the right and only saw a pile of rubble. She heard the voice again and turned to the right. This time, she only saw a loose power line dangling over a puddle of oil.
"All right, this isn't funny!" The girl shouted. "Show yourself!"
Just then, several glowing red eyes appeared from the dark corners of the city and began to approach Tomoyo. She nodded with a grin then cracked her neck, as if preparing for a battle.
"Playtime." She said as five hooded men appeared from the shadows.
One of them took out a saber and swung it around Tomoyo but the girl proved to be too fast for him. She quickly dodged the blade, twirled to the side and grabbed hold of the man, breaking his arm instantly. She then stole the blade from him and defended herself from the other four.
Two of the fighters twirled a chain around with expertise but it didn't phase Tomoyo. She quickly moved to the middle and stuck her weapon in the air, tangling the two in the process. Tomoyo then lured the two fighters in and easily knocked them down.
The last two nodded at each other and rushed into battle. One of them took out a sword while the other held a pair of tonfa and attempted to double up on the young girl. She winked at the two as she back-flipped away from danger, causing the sword wielder to slash through his ally. Tomoyo continued flipping away from her remaining opponent as he desperately swung his blade at her.
When cornered by a nearby building, Tomoyo ducked her opponent's last swing and sent him flying with a massive uppercut. Tomoyo then looked around, pleased with herself, as she caught her breath.
"Okay..." She said. "I'm done!"
In a matter of seconds, the buildings, the fire, the five men and all the destruction faded away. Tomoyo was now standing inside an indoor tennis court as she waved at the protective glass across from her.
Sakura, Li and Kero waved back at the girl from behind that glass with proud smiles on their faces.
"Good job, Tomoyo!" Sakura said.
Tomoyo entered the room, wiping the sweat from her face and took a seat below the cooling vent. "Oh, that feels good..."
"Not bad for three months of training." Kero said.
"Not bad?" Tomoyo started. "Hmm. I guess not. But I'm sure I could do better."
"I think you've done enough." Li told her. "You've really showed a lot of improvement. I'm proud of you."
Tomoyo blushed. "Well. I had a good trainer."
"Oh, well..." Li was about to blush himself when Sakura wrapped her arms around him from behind.
"Li's the best!" She shouted.
Watching Li and Sakura's cutesy antics made Tomoyo feel a bit isolated from them. She looked down and grinned, thinking of someone she hadn't seen for a while. Sakura noticed her friend's expression and tried to cheer her up.
"It's Eriol, isn't it?"
"Huh?" Tomoyo looked up. "Oh. Right. Is it that obvious?"
"I don't see what the big deal is!" Kero butted in. "He likes you, you like him... but neither of you do anything about it!" He tapped his head for a minute. "What the hell, man!?"
"I always thought that the boy should be the first one to confess." Tomoyo defended herself. "It seems much more romantic that way..." She then started to display her signature starry-eyed look.
"Oh, hell." Li moaned. "I know that look."
"And what's wrong with her waiting for Eriol to go first?" Sakura asked. "After all, Li, you were the one who confessed to me first if I remember correctly."
Li was now blushing for sure. "Yeah, but... that was different! I'm not an idiot like he is!"
Sakura wrapped her arms around him even tighter and smiled. "Oh, I know that. I'm just glad you had the courage to do it soon enough."
"Unlike a certain someone I know who took four months to return the feelings." Kero said under his breath.
"Say what to me, cotton head!?" Sakura growled as she dangled Kero by the tail.
"Hey, whoa! Easy! I'm sorry!" The doll pleaded with her.
"Oh, well." Tomoyo sighed. "I guess I'll just have to keep on waiting for that special someone to come for me."
"You'll find someone, Tomoyo." Sakura reassured her friend as she grabbed hold of Li's hand. "And when you do, you'll always wonder how you managed to survive without him."
Sakura then leaned in and kissed Li on the lips, as Kero groaned and smeared his face against the glass.
"Oh, these two..." He said. "It's the same old shit day after day, after day, after day, after day, after day..." The doll then started to bang his head against the glass with the rhythm of his words.
"Okay, Kero. We're done." Sakura giggled.
"After day, after day, after day..."
"Kero?"
"After day, after day, after day, after day..."
"Kero, you can stop now."
"After day, after day, after day..."
"Kero, I mean it! Stop!"
"After day, after day, after day, after day..."
"Kero!" The three friends shouted, causing the doll to crash through the glass.
Moments later, Sonomi came running into the room and was startled to find the glass shattered about the tennis court.
"My tennis court!" She gasped. "What happened!? Are you all right!?" She then ran over to her daughter and checked for any bruises, cuts or scrapes. "Speak to me, Tomoyo! Are you bleeding! Do you need a doctor!?"
"Mom, I'm okay!" She said.
"Are you sure? Don't be afraid to tell me!"
"Yes!" Tomoyo then started to giggle. "I'm okay, really."
"Oh, thank God." Sonomi then saw Kero lying on the shards of broken glass. "Well? Are you going to explain yourself?"
"Uhh... I don't know my own strength?" Kero shrugged.
"Don't tell me you were using the Illusion and Create cards again, Tomoyo..." The woman crossed her arms.
"Of course not." Tomoyo smiled. "Sakura did!"
"Hey!" Sakura fell back.
"Why are you doing this to me, Tomoyo? A mother worries about these things!" She put her hands around her daughter's.
"I'm not going to be a valuable asset to this team if I'm just going along the sidelines, documenting everything. I want to actually do something for a change, mom." Tomoyo gave her that starry look. "And I can't do that unless I've got the proper training."
Sonomi looked down and nodded. "Oh, I know that. I just didn't realize how important this is to you."
As mother and daughter spoke, Li pulled Sakura away to another side of the room while Kero remained lying on the glass.
"What is it?" Sakura asked with a concerned look on her face.
"I'm going back to Hong Kong this weekend." Li told her.
"What? Why? I thought--"
"No, it's all right. I'm only visiting my family for a couple of days. I'll be back Monday."
Sakura sighed with relief. "Oh." She then hugged him tight. "For a moment I thought you were going to leave me again."
Li closed his eyes and smiled as he gently held on to her, breathing in her beautiful scent. "I'll never leave you again." He whispered.
"Promise?"
"I promise."
They exchanged glances then kissed again as Kero called out to them. "Hey, don't think I can't see that shit! Cut it out!"
THAT WAS A WEEK AGO. THIS IS NOW...
DOWN THERE. AFTER THIS PARAGRAPH THINGY IN ITALICS...
WHY THE HELL ARE YOU STILL READING THIS? SCROLL DOWN, DAMN YOU!
NOW! RIGHT NOW! READ!
Sakura and her friends were all sitting around the living room as Eriol explained--
THANK YOU.
Hey, shut up! I'm trying to tell a story here!
BITE ME.
Screw you! Anyway... Sakura and her friends were sitting around the living room as Eriol explained to them the origins of the Demon Knights, as Yue called them.
"The Demon Knights are the guardians of the Demon Realm. A place I have tried very hard to forget." Eriol started. "When Faust unleashed his army for the first time, it was on a small island in Spain. There, he brought down a magic family who protected a sacred weapon known as the Sangria Gauntlet."
"Sangria Gauntlet?" Nakuru asked.
"Yes. It had the power to open the Demon Realm and unleash whatever evil laid inside."
"What happened?" Sakura asked next.
"Faust killed the entire family and stole the weapon. Upon using it, he managed to tear a hole in the space-time continuum, thus opening the doorway to the Demon Realm. The Demon Knights were the first to appear from the realm and obeyed Faust's every command."
"What?" Sakura was confused.
"Not only does the Gauntlet open the doorway but it also gives its user the ability to command the Demon Knights. When Clow Reed and his court arrived to confront Faust, the Dark Lord tried to use it against him."
"Big mistake!" Kero joined in. "That idiot Faust tried to suck Clow Reed into the portal but ol' blue eyes managed to beat the living shit out of him in time! Too bad he escaped, though."
Eriol nodded. "Yes. Upon his escape, Faust removed the power gems and handed them each to their respective owners, thus renouncing his command over the Demon Knights."
"Power gems?" Sakura was still curious.
"The Demon Knights are given their power by the mystical gems that match their color of flame. The one Yukito described can only be the--"
"The Blue Knight?" Sakura guessed.
"Yes."
"Clow Reed tracked down the Demon Knights and sealed them away one by one. Until eventually, he managed to put away Faust and the Blue Knight at the same time. Probably near the same place, too." Kero continued. "Chances are, the Blue Knight's going after the Red Knight next."
"How do you know?" Tomoyo asked the doll.
"Because it's the only place he knows where the gem is kept." Eriol answered.
"And where would that be?"
"The temple of Xiang Zhou."
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Ooh, things are getting weird now! What will become of our heroes and what exactly are the Demon Knights up to? How's about showing me some love and I'll answer those questions in no time, huh? Please? Pretty please?