CHAPTER NINETEEN – CLOSE

Raimundo, Clay and Omi were huddled around the fire in the cave, trying to keep warm. It was remarkable how much colder it was in the cave than in the Temple, especially at night.

"Raimundo, I do not think that is a very good plan." Omi said quietly, so as not to wake up Dojo and Master Fung, not to mention the other monks sleeping further into the cave. Clay nodded in agreement.

"Sorry partner, but I reckon Omi's right. We ain't gonna be able to win that way." Clay whispered.

Raimundo folded his arms defensively.

"What other choice do we have? Kim and Chase could attack another village in a few hours. We have to act."

Jimmy's voice came looming from the shady darkness of the cave.

"I want to help."

The monks snapped their heads towards him as he walked out from the shadows and sat with them at the fire, which seemed to be slowly dying.

"Jimmy, acting against Chase Young is most dangerous, especially for a villager like you. You should leave it up to us, highly trained Xiaolin Dragons." Omi puffed his chest up proudly.

"No, my family are in there. I want to help them, and your plan sucks. I've got a better idea." Jimmy leant forwards to whisper his plan, when Raimundo scoffed. Jimmy turned his head towards Raimundo and shot him a questioning look. Raimundo shrugged as if nothing had happened and Jimmy began.

"How about if I go in there, looking for this 'Chase'. I can demand for my parents, distract him and those cats long enough for you guys to get in another way. Then you guys can get him while I go and find my parents."

"I gotta say, partner, that's a mighty awful plan." Clay frowned. Raimundo nodded.

"You could be killed." Omi pointed out.

"I won't go down without a fight, and it's the perfect opportunity for you guys to get the upper hand. If you want that advantage, it's crucial that I stay alive long enough to help you all. So, I distract him, hopefully for long enough, then you guys can come in and help." Jimmy knew his plan was terrible, but he knew that the monks would kill 'Chase', giving him enough time to find Kimiko and get her to tell him where his parents were.

"Might not be a bad idea if we use the Shroud of Shadows on ourselves. That way, we can get in there and take down Chase before he hurts Jimmy too bad." Clay thought for a moment, lifting his hat with his thumb. Raimundo was sat with his arms folded, while Omi was scratching his head thoughtfully.

Jimmy watched them for a while, but he soon found his thoughts straying back to Kimiko. He hoped, although he wasn't sure why, that she was doing okay and that 'Chase' hadn't found out that Kimiko had let him go. He wondered what this 'Chase' would do if he found out.

He heard furious whispers and he was dragged away from his thoughts and brought back to the cave with an unpleasant bump. Omi, Raimundo and Clay were discussing the best way to get into Chase's home. They were so close to each other, all whispering over the top of each other so that they would hear their personal points of view.

"Guys… this 'Chase' character, how bad is he?" Jimmy asked, twirling his fingers, trying to look innocent and curious. "Just out of curiosity." He added on quickly to secure himself.

"Bad." Raimundo said, "Very bad. When we think of evil, that dude is who we think of. I just hate the bastard for turning Kim against us." Raimundo turned his head away. Jimmy averted his gaze guiltily. He wanted to tell them that Kimiko wasn't really evil, that she was good, sill trying to help them, but he remembered his promise.

Jimmy bit his lip and hoped dearly that Chase hadn't found out that Kimiko had let him go, if Chase found out what she'd done, Jimmy knew enough now to know that poor Kimiko would be in terrible danger. He hoped she was okay. But despite this, his parents were still his main concern. Jimmy hoped that she had kept her end of the bargain, just as he had done. He thought of his parents and prayed that they were safe.

Kimiko went left the dungeons silently. The prisoners were quieter as she moved to leave. Some of them seemed to realise that she was there to help them all out and gave her a slight smile as she walked past their cells. She slowly opened the dungeon door and peered through the crack to check the coast was clear.

Her heart skipped a beat, as she saw Chase and three jungle cats striding towards the dungeon's door. Panicking, she ran, as fast as her sore and aching body would let her. Her footsteps were loud and her breathing was heavy as she ran back down the dungeon, close to the last cells in the room. She dived for the small gap between the cell and the wall, forcing her body down the small crevice. She moved just out of the way in time, as light flooded where her foot had been moments ago. She heard the thudding of soft paws and shoes against the stone floor, slowly growing closer. Kimiko moved silently but quickly. The gap was getting smaller and smaller, meaning that Kimiko could not push herself into the gap any further. Kimiko could no longer see him; she could just hear him getting closer. Kimiko was panicking.

She knew, all too well, what could happen if she was caught defying Chase again. She would have shuddered if she had the room. She dismissed the thought, quicker than it had appeared and looked around for something to aid her. She looked to the left, where she could see Chase's shadow approaching. She reached her arm around to the right, hoping to reach the edge of the cell and pull herself along some more, but she couldn't reach that far. Being sandwiched between the cell and the wall was incredibly painful for Kimiko. Too much pressure was being applied to her bruised skin.

She turned her head to the left, waiting. Waiting for when he would appear in the crack between the wall and the cell, for when he would catch her.

Beat her. Hurt her. Rape her.

The seconds passed so slowly. His footsteps grew uncomfortably close.

Too close.

Any second now.

And then…

The footsteps stopped, and then when they started, they gradually got quieter. Chase's shadow slowly vanished from the wall. The door slammed shut, leaving Kimiko in the dark. She took a deep breath and steadied herself, before wriggling out of the crevice. She put her hands on her knees and took another breath, clutching her chest.

"Why do you work for him?" A small child had approached the bars of her cell, close to where Kimiko was standing. She was all alone in her cell, except from a small, tatty rag doll, which was dangling from her hand.

"Because I have to…" Kimiko said quietly to the small girl, bending down so that she was at eye level with her.

"Casey says that you're going to help us though." The girl whispered through the bars, holding up the small rag doll to show Kimiko.

Kimiko smiled, trying to hide her sadness, but she could tell she was doing a poor job. She took the doll from the small girls hands. Kimiko stared at the tiny doll in her hands for a moment. Her mind was taking her back to when she was a child. She was reminded how her father had showered with gifts of the latest technology and bags full of the latest clothes. She missed that life. Kimiko wondered that if she ever left Chase's home, she would be able to go home and say goodbye to her father. She knew that if she was ever allowed to leave, she could not go back to her old way of life. No matter how hard she tried to. If it came to it, or the Xiaolin Dragons failed to kill her, Kimiko silently promised herself that she could take her own life. Only this time, she would not be saved.

Kimiko passed the doll back to the small girl.

"Well, I'd better try to help then, hadn't I?" Kimiko whispered to her and she smiled.

She turned away from the cell and began walking towards the door again.

"Wait." Jimmy's mothers voice called. Kimiko froze and turned around to look at her. "What's your name?" She asked quietly.

"Kimiko." Her eyes stared into Jimmy's mothers' eyes. It was almost as if she could see right into Kimiko's soul. It would usually have made her uncomfortable, but it felt reassuring in her situation.

"Kimiko, if you really have saved Jimmy, then thank you."

She smiled politely and approached the door again.

After peering cautiously out, she left the dungeon. She half-hopped, half ran down the corridor back towards her bedroom. Her heart seemed to pound furiously in her ears; a rhythmic beat which urged her forward. She hurried as fast as she could.

"Okay, so, run me by this one more time?" Dojo folded his tiny arms, looking up sceptically at the four teenagers.

They were all stood outside the cave's mouth in the early hours of the morning. Master Fung and the older monks were still asleep inside and Clay, Omi, Raimundo and Jimmy were standing around Dojo, encircling him. They had been trying to convince him to aid them on their infiltration of Chase's home, but poor Dojo was terrified. He didn't want to ever see Kimiko like that again, if the truth was told, he was frightened of her now. Seeing Kimiko act like a female version of Chase had made Dojo realise how much he missed her. Whether she was hacking into someone's email or shopping online, Kimiko used to always be around, showing the other monks her finds on the Internet; Dojo wondered how Kimiko would be doing without all her gadgets and gizmos.

"Right," Jimmy started, just as Raimundo was about to speak. Jimmy's presence seemed to irritate Raimundo, which Jimmy found amusing. Although he wanted their help, he couldn't resist winding him up a little bit.

"I'll go into Chase's home and demand my parents back from Cha-" Jimmy was cut short by Raimundo.

"I'm altering the plan, if that's cool with you guys?" He looked at Omi and Clay, purposely leaving out Jimmy, who looked rather disgruntled.

"Instead of him," Raimundo flicked his thumb towards Jimmy, "going into Chase's home. I wondered if I should go. I'll be able to hold him off for a lot longer. Long enough for you guys to find me and step in if things get ugly. Then, you guys can take over, and I'll go free the prisoners and check for other things." Raimundo stared at Clay when he'd mentioned checking for 'other things', by this, he meant to find Kimiko and kill her.

"What if Kimiko is with him when you arrive?" Omi asked curiously.

"Then I'll hold them both off. Piece of cake." Raimundo said, folding his arms.

"Partner, I'm not thinkin' that's a great idea." Clay said,

"And Jimmy's is better, is it?" Raimundo snapped.

"Chase might take pity on me..." Jimmy said, "If you go, he'll know you're there for a fight." Jimmy was subconsciously frowning. He was suspicious of the way Raimundo had said 'other things'.

"I am not sure about this, my friends. I believe we should discuss this some more." Omi said, scratching his head, looking confused.

Clay raises his hat slightly with his thumb and nodded. He strode back towards the cave; Dojo and Omi close behind him.

When Raimundo turned to leave, Jimmy grabbed his arm. For a moment, Raimundo looked as though he might punch Jimmy, but he turned to look at him, considerably calmer.

"When you said 'other things', what did you mean?" Jimmy looked straight into Raimundo's eyes, ready to see if he would tell a lie.

"You know, just as much as me, that someone's going to have to kill Kim." Raimundo pulled his arm away from the teens grasp, narrowing his eyes suspiciously.

"You can't." Jimmy bit his lip and looked away from Raimundo, who stared.

"Why not? You saw what she did!"

"Because…" For a moment, Jimmy glanced into Raimundo's eyes and almost faltered. If he told Kimiko's secret, Jimmy would be breaking his promise – something that he swore he'd never do. "Because if there's a chance that she's not 100% evil, surely you should do everything you possibly could do to get her back before you kill her?" Jimmy spoke almost too quickly, putting extra emphasis on the word 'before' to try and make Raimundo feel guilty.

When Jimmy looked at Raimundo, he looked like he might burst into tears.

"I don't know what to do…" His lip trembled and Jimmy stood awkwardly, feeling guilty for keeping her secret. He bit his lip to silence himself, thinking of the promise he'd made.

Raimundo sat on the grassy floor, putting his head in his hands and running his fingers through his spiked hair.

"What would you have me do Jimmy? Kimiko could be exactly like him and I can't do anything to change that!" His voice was cracking, almost like he was trying to hold in his tears.

Jimmy was usually quite socially awkward and he didn't think he'd ever felt more uncomfortable.

"I think you should try." He said quietly, "When we infiltrate and you find her, I don't think you should kill her. You should do everything that is humanly possible to save her." Jimmy was trying to be tactful and hint that Kimiko wasn't evil and to motivate Raimundo enough for him to produce some hope, but he was still looking in his lap.

"I thought I loved her for a while, you know." Raimundo spoke quietly. He had no idea why he was telling Jimmy this. He blamed the tears that were threatening to leak from his eyes.

"When I first got here, I though I loved her. She was so different from all the girls back in Brazil. We were really close, maybe closer to each other than to the others. I never thought I'd see her fighting for the other side. It was always meant to be me that made the mistakes. I was the one who went to the dark side, not her. Why did he want her? Why couldn't he have taken me?"

Jimmy was stood, looking down pitifully upon Raimundo, when he suddenly slammed his fist onto the ground, sending mini hurricanes along the grass in different directions, pulling up plants in their path and discarding them behind themselves. Raimundo lifted his head slowly, baring his teeth.

"I'll kill him for doing this to her…" He growled, "Then, I'm going to get her back and I'm going to do everything I possibly can to save her. I'm not going to let her die, and I'm not going to kill her."

Jimmy smiled, crossing his fingers that Raimundo would keep his promise and let Kimiko live.

Clay, on the other hand, was deep in thought. Sat around the fire in the tent, which was slowly boiling a pot of water to make the monks some tea, he was scratching his chin. He had considered the possibility that Raimundo might not kill Kimiko. A fool could see that Raimundo and Kim had always had a special bond that she didn't have with himself or Omi. Clay wondered that if Raimundo was unable to do it, if he, himself would be able to still her heart.

It has to be done, and if Rai won't, I'm gonna have to do it myself.