Chapter 13
Remnants of the Fallen (Why are we this way?)
Cognizine's shield, Meikakuna (May-ka-coo-nah), twirled around and spun back into Christeenala's cloak. Christeenala jumped towards me and pulled me and Yoshimori away from the angry Tsurosa. Tsurosa growled and slashed Christeenala, taking off her foot. Christeenala's puppet's skin seems to be weakening, they can break it easier.
She set us down on next to Hiba and the unconscious others and regenerated her leg. She turned and Cognizine's shield appeared magically again and blocked a giant vine aimed to take out the puppet's torso. Lilium jumped up and Christeenala launched several golden shuriken from the endless-void-like cloak and they stabbed Lilium.
Lilium melted away into vines and suddenly arms grabbed Christeenala's ankles from underground and crushed them with brute strength. Christeenala collapsed onto the ground and she was suddenly carried away safely by a gently wave of water. The puppet's ankles regenerated and she stood up quickly. She ducked under a clash from Tsurosa and Tsurosa jumped over a sweep kick and grabbed Christeenala's leg. Christeenala cute her legs off and grabbed Tsurosa's head and slammed her face into the ground.
The leg regenerated and Lilium jumped behind her and wrapped a vine around her neck and snapped the puppet's neck. Linzang pooped out of a puddle of water and slashed Lilium's back with the bladed staff, Umi. He melted back in the water and pooped out of another puddle and slash Lilium as she turned to his previous location. He repeated the game of whack-a-mole until Lilium sent vines flying out of the ground, scattering the puddles all over the place.
Linzang flew out of the water and crashed against a muffin shaped rock mass floating around. Linzang ducked under Lilium's arm as it extended towards him and crashed into the rock. He jumped onto her arm and ran across it towards her. She gasped and retracted her arm and he jumped off and landed on her head, smashing it into the ground.
I looked at them and backed up and held onto Yoshimori. Suddenly a kekkai popped over us as Tsurosa caught one of the Sutaboruto kunai and tossed it at us. The kunai lodged itself in the kekkai and remained in place. Suddenly Tsurosa came flying into the kekkai from a kick from Christeenala and the kunai stabbed her back as she collided with the kekkai.
Yoshimori released the kekkai and picked me up bridal style and ran away as Tsurosa stood again and ran after us. She flung her claw at us and Yoshimori stopped it with a kekkai. She pulled her claw out of the kekkai, destroying it and flung it again. Yoshimori tripped and we fell. He quickly crawled over and covered me with his body. Suddenly I heard a loud clang sound and I quickly stood up with Yoshimori.
Gen pushed Tsurosa's claw back and the chain spun around Tsurosa, tying her up. She quickly span around, the claw flying out dangerously as it unwrapped. Gen jumped and avoided it, but landed roughly.
He's not healed yet….
Tsurosa retracted the claw and angrily dashed at Gen. Three vines wrapped around her and she collapsed onto the ground. The vines crushed her, sending the sound of cracking bones echoing through the void of floating sweets.
"This is what you deserve for kidnapping Gen!" Hiba shouted as he lifted her into the air and slammed her into the ground. His vines retracted and he ran over to Gen's side. Tsurosa stumbled out of the dust and glared at Hiba. Suddenly, Tsurosa started fading, her figure slowly fading away with pieces of her frame breaking of and floating away until they turned to dust and blew away.
She looked at herself and panicked, "Lilium! Another plant!" She looked back. Lilium turned to her and shot out her elongated arm to give Tsurosa another plant, but Christeenala cut the arm off and froze the plant. She stepped on it and crushed it into pieces. Tsurosa gasped and turned back to Gen and Hiba.
"I-I'm not going to d-die! I-I'll just take your hearts!" She shouted maniacally and ran after Gen and Hiba. They gasped and made to run away, but Gen stumbled on his bad leg. Tsurosa ran at them, claws outstretched to rip their hearts out.
I ran over and picked up the kunai from the ground and tossed it at Tsurosa. It flew at a breakneck pace towards Tsurosa and cleaved her arms off, the claws falling to the ground with the rest of her hands fading away inside them. Tsurosa stumbled onto her knees and looked at Gen and Hiba. She smirked.
"I guess it's over…., just enjoy your fucking love you bastards. I won't let the whores who killed me lose!" She shouted before completely fading away, with a smirk on her face.
I sighed and her claws suddenly vanished. I ran over to Yoshimori and hugged him.
"We killed her!" I shouted happily in celebration.
"It's not quite time for celebration, bitches." Lilium said, tossing Christeenala's puppet aside and standing. She shook her head, "It's just not right without Tsurosa saying it. Oh well, she will be missed… for a short while."
Lilium suddenly jumped up and vanished into a portal. "Until next time!"
I looked away and smiled at Yoshimori. He smiled back at me and we kissed. We stood up and looked at the remaining people/ayakashi here. Hiba and Gen were kissing as we just had, enjoying that Gen regained consciousness at the perfect time. Linzang was helping the still doped up Leo stand. Christeenala was cracked open and unmoving…. Wait…
"Christeenala!" I shouted and ran over to the woman. She protected us! If it wasn't for her, we all would have been dead! Suddenly, the cracked body started glowing and a figure emerged from it.
It was gorgeous, the second most beautiful thing I've ever seen, only bested by Yoshimori. It had glowing white wings with pure white feathers swirling around it. It floated gently of the ground, with a pure white robe waving around as it floated. A white aura covered the person as their light blue haired flowed gracefully around it. Its pale porcelain skin glowed with a godly aura and its white kimono's long sleeves flowed along with it perfectly.
It looked at us with pupil-less eyes. It looked away and back at the cracked body.
"My vessel is broken." She said solemnly. She made the vessel glow and suddenly the weapons of the deceased Guardian's appeared, floating before us.
"These powerful weapons could help you, and at the very least lock them away so they cannot be used again." Christeenala said, in her real godly form.
"Your true form is that of a ghost?" Hiba answered from behind.
"Yes, I'm a ghost. I was a human, a lonely human. I died when I was 21 years old. I had gone another day as I usually did, alone. I was walking home on Christmas; I had gone to look at the lights. It's the only thing I have to look forward to on a Christmas where nowhere cares about you. I was hit by a drunk driver moments after I entered my home, the man drove directly into my house." She said. I felt even worse for her. She gets, in a way, a second chance as an ayakashi and her life till ends up horrible.
"I became a ghost, but I didn't know what to do to pass on. Nobody could help me, not even the kind old woman who managed to see me. I, somehow, slowly became more powerful as I traversed the world aimlessly as a ghost. When I returned to this town, I met the woman again. She said she'd never seen something as powerful as me, and that I had become the lord of a land without even knowing it. That's when I discovered I was the lord of the Guardian's castle." She said. She walked over, looking at the weapons. I can swear I saw her shed a tear.
"All the ayakashi we let into the Guardians were ghost at some point in time, except for Xorin." She said, changing the subject form her past. She looked at the weapons.
"Zinzin was a lonely boy who was bullied when he was alive. He died when he was 16, when a prank went wrong with a confetti cannon and it blew his head off. He came to Karasumori as a ghost and became an ayakashi." She said, tinkering with the kunai the blonde ayakashi used before his death, at the hands of Christeenala herself. "He lost sight of his purpose, and he needed to die. To end his hidden suffering. He thanked me, telepathically."
I watched her as she walked over to the next weapon. I realized that the others had joined me in listening to the tragic tales of the Guardians. Christeenala looked up and back at Cognizine's shield.
"Cognizine was a scholar, who did everything he was told. He got perfect grades, was never absent or tardy, listened to what others said and never expressed his opinion. Secretly, he was miserable in the life he chose. He never did anything he wanted to do, always what he was ordered to do. He finally refused to do something, but in his proud stupor, he accidentally tripped and spilled his wire on an electrical outlet and was electrocuted to death. Karasumori made him into an ayakashi from a ghost as well." She said.
"Xorin and I met when I went to Karasumori. He was trying to become stronger, so he could prove to people that, with training, ayakashi don't need to be hunted and killed." Christeenala said, returning to the story of her and Xorin.
"I waited there with him, protected him from the ayakashi until he was strong enough to protect me. He was funny, and handsome, and sweet, and gentlemanly… I fell for him, and he fell for me. But his obsession, made us slowly drift apart." She said, before sweeping over to Gingross's sword.
"Gingross was a scientist fascinated with natural toxins, like the ones in plants and snakes. He made it his goal to become immune to them all, which he succeeded in. The only man in existence who could not be poisoned. One day, he created his own super poison, the very one that drenches his sword today. An incurable poison that only Lilium has survived, by severing her limbs. He created the strongest poison, strong enough to kill the immune man. He poisoned himself accidentally and became a ghost, at 24, and then, because of Karasumori, an ayakashi." She said.
"Cereza-Torina and Terratina are weaponless, but they deserve to be recognized." Christeenala said, as we tended to our wounds. We can't escape this world anyway, or we would have already. Obviously, Christeenala can't create a portal without a vessel.
"They were orphans, who only relied on each other. Cereza-Torina was always the stronger one, but she still thought that everything her older sister did was better than she could ever do. They were killed in a fire when the orphanage collapsed on them. They were going to be picked up by their foster parents that day too… They died when they were only 12 and 14. They became horrible, bitter ghosts, who became ayakashi on their own by eating humans. I still don't know how they managed that as ghosts." She said. She floated over to Tsurosa's claws.
"As for Tsurosa, she was an athlete. She was the best athlete around and became over confident, which created her foul mouth. She tried out a new sport, animal taming, and it failed horribly. She was killed by the beast at age 31. A depressed ghost, she stumbled upon Karasumori accidentally, and became an ayakashi overnight." Christeenala explained. She looked down at us from her floating spot.
"Are you done with tending to your wounds? Or shall I finish off the tales?" She asked. I stood up and looked over at Gen.
"You should continue... it's going to be a little while before Gen's ankle heals." I said. She nodded and looked up into the sky.
"Lilium was one of the most unique ones. She loved plants, she still does but in a different way, and was the kindest person in the world. She wouldn't hesitate helping someone, a part of her I saw when she desperately tried to give the plant to the dying Tsurosa. She used her plants to make remedies for anyone who asked. She had homemade cures to almost every disease. She, unfortunately met her match, she contracted cancer. She tried to make a remedy to cure it but failed, and cancer took her life at 15. She became a sad ghost who would always cry. He was a unique ghost; everywhere she went she spread infectious germs. She hated herself for it and searched out a way to pass on so she would stop harming innocent people." Christeenala said. She floated over to the puppet body, which was slowly regenerating itself and she floated onto the ground and sat on a rock shaped like a giant strawberry on the cake rock.
"She couldn't pass one, she concluded that she wouldn't be able to pass on until she cured cancer, and she said that was impossible and would take too long. So she became and ayakashi. Originally, she had planned to kill herself when she became an ayakashi hoping that she would finally pass on. But, she changed into the horrible person she is today. She gave into despair." Christeenala said. She looked over at Linzang and Leo, who were now making out since Leo had regained consciousness. She sighed and looked back at us.
"Lisnoir was another unique case. He was a mortician who enjoyed seeing the dead bodies. He turned into a serial killer who dressed as Death and decapitated his victims. One day, he chose the wrong target, and came after Xorin when he was a little boy. Xorin was too weak to fight back and had left Karasumori in search of food. I was with him…. Lisnoir died at age 16 as the serial killer who chose the wrong target, one with a guardian angel, of sorts." She said. "Since then, Lisnoir's had a never-ending grudge against Xorin for his death, and once he became an ayakashi and a guardian, I always suspected he was planning something." She finished.
Gen stood up and limped a little. She looked back at the puppet.
"The vessel is almost repaired," She said. "Linzang, Leo. Could you share your story, while I reunite with the vessel?" She asked. Linzang and Leo nodded.
"We were a young couple in a long time ago. We hid our love from our families and we secretly met, and married illegally. Back then, gay marriage was now where near being accepted. We were caught one day kissing, and I was hung, only when I was 15." Linzang said. He buried his head in Leo's shirt and whimpered a little.
"I still remember who much it hurt…" Leo said, hugging Linzang.
"They made me watch as they put Leo in the guillotine and then they…." Linzang whimpered from Leo's shirt and Leo hugged him tighter.
"T-They made me w-watch as Leo's head was lopped off…" Linzang finished just before he started bawling into Leo's robe. I teared up a little at their story. They died because of their forbidden love.
"We became ghosts together and we've been together ever since, but then Lilium manipulated Xorin into separating us. And now we're back together again." Leo said. He hugged the sobbing Linzang close to him and they shared their sweet moment.
I looked up at Yoshimori. "I hope that they don't separate us… your grandfather and Chief Metamora. I don't want that to happen." I said, hugging Yoshimori. He looked at me and shook his head.
"I don't know, but I'll run away to be with you." He responded before hugging me and taking me in a kiss.
"Ah hem." We broke away from the kiss and looked at Christeenala, now back in her vessel. She created a portal.
"Let's return to Karasumori." She said. "I want to check on Xorin."
We nodded and walked through the portal and we appeared in a hall in Karasumori. I looked over and saw Mr. Mino from the high school helping fight off an ayakashi. I also saw them nursing Ms. Kagami back to health from her injuries.
"I should probably apologize for attacking her; I was told that if I killed her, Leo would be free." Linzang said from behind us. Everyone glared at the arrival of more ayakashi. I immediately got ready to defend them.
"Why did you bring them here?" I heard as Masamori approached.
"Let go of him! You are going to wed a woman!" Shigemori ordered as he approached from behind Masamori.
Shigemori grabbed Yoshimori's arm and pulled him. I grabbed Yoshimori's arm tighter and held onto hit tighter. Soon, it became a tug and war with Yoshimori. Suddenly Masamori let go and I looked up. Linzang's staff was stabbed through Masamori's shoulder and was pushing him away. Masamori looked at Linzang angrily and they glared at each other. Suddenly, Shigemori created a kekkai around Linzang. Leo slashed the kekkai with his hands. Now, Masamori and Shigemori were having a glaring contest with Linzang and Leo.
Suddenly, more kekkais appeared they suddenly disappeared. I saw a ring of ice floating in the air around Masamori and Shigemori's necks, about an inch away from touching the skin.
"If you try to separate these boys again… 'Off with their heads'." Christeenala said from behind.
"And how are you?" Masamori said with his overly confident voice. Christeenala looked at him with a stare that made him shiver.
"I'm Christeenala, and, I very much want to kill you. Smug, I hate that." Christeenala said. Both Masamori and Shigemori's eyes widen and then lowered their heads.
"We apologize miss, we were unaware you were the lord of the castle." They said. She smirked.
"How do they know you? Masamori met you before though so I don't…" I said.
"I'm known as one of the most powerful land lords in the world," Christeenala said, "I'm the lord of over 20 different lands." She paused for a moment, "It's possible, just not very common." I nodded and she turned back to Shigemori and Masamori.
The ice ring disappears and she walks ahead and realizes something. Suddenly, all the weapons ejected out of her vessel's body and she gasps.
"What?" Yoshimori asks.
"The Guardians weapons are made to teleport to me once their wielder dies." Christeenala says between random gasps and whimpers. That's when I saw it.
Xorin's claymore was floating among the deceased members' weapons.