Chapter 48 – Lamb of Longinus
Sai Summers / Death the Kid
Sai
The shadow jerked the sword from Kid's back aggressively, and drops of blood flew back. He or she held it up, and the moonlight reflected off of both the blade and Kid's blood which ran down the hilt. While being dressed in a long, black dress with light purple cropped hair, it was difficult to determine the Meister's gender.
As they tottered back a few steps, Kid had enough room to rise up and stand on the patio. His mental state switched from confusion to blatant anger; his black soul erupted out of his body and spread wide in a sphere. For a brief second I caught the sign of rage filling up his eyes as he turned away from me. "You…" He pulled his body erect. "How dare you interrupt us!"
Kid's hands went down to his sides but he realized quickly he was without a Weapon. It didn't stop him from then swinging his right arm back up, and punching the Meister square in the face.
The Meister stumbled a few steps backwards and put a white-gloved hand to its face. "Waa, how do I handle someone who punches me?"
I rose to stand on the patio, and watched the scene curiously. Who the hell is he talking to…?
A second, more nasally voice could be heard in the darkness. "Just kill him! You didn't do it last time and we got in trouble!"
Last time…this is the Demon Sword Meister!
Being in this kind of situation didn't appear to faze Kid, at least not on the outside. He put his bent-elbow arms up in front of him, and planted his feet a foot apart. It was easy to forget his martial arts skills with his Meister skills, but it seemed evident he planned to take the Sword Meister on without his Weapons.
Kid's gaze flashed to me momentarily and then returned to the enemy at hand. "You won't be able to cut through him…just stay back!" He yelled.
"No way! I'm not letting you…" I started.
The Demon Sword Meister was no fool and Kid's protective words backfired – the Meister came straight for me instead of initiating battle with Kid.
I swapped the scythe for a simple pole by shrinking the blade away, and swung it at the Meister's head as they closed in. It made contact with a smacking sound, but it only ceased his charge at me. He then fell back a mere step or two; it wasn't enough to cause any serious threat to him.
I took a step back and found my heel at the edge of the patio steps.
Think, Sai…come on! What did Maka and Stein do in this situation…? How did they stop it last time?!
There was no time to come to a logical conclusion. It had taken Stein and Spirit to restrain the Demon Sword.
Kid was suddenly at my left. "Sai! Duck!" He yelled, landing a right-kick to the Meister's head.
The close-combat forced me backwards, but there was no where to go. Seconds before I was due to tumble backwards down the stairs, Kid grabbed my left arm and tried to steady me.
Unfortunately for me, I wasn't anticipating his next move.
Kid threw me from his right, across his body, landing me at edge of the patio at his left. It was a feat of strength few others could have accomplished.
"Sai, run!" He shouted aggressively. "Do it!"
I landed with a thud against the patio wall and my vision vibrated upon contact. When I looked up again, I found Kid had planted himself between the Meister and me.
As I struggled to grasp the situation, my resolve held fast. Running seems stupid…I can't be like that! I don't want to make him have to save me again!
When I didn't immediately leave, Kid looked over his left shoulder at me. The Meister took it as an opening and charged at him. With the Demon Sword in his right hand, he brought the dark purple short-sword down in the space between Kid's neck and right shoulder blade. Darkened blooded spurted up from the entry point. His tie ripped apart and blew off; the Shinigami mask tie-tack he wore floated into my view.
The Meister jumped backwards a half-dozen feet, as Kid stumbled in place. His head hung down for a second, and I could see Kid panting just from watching his back.
Some part of me wanted to scream, but I remained frozen by the scenery.
Apart from the brutal attacks it possessed, it seemed that the closer the Meister came to me, the louder the screams filling the space in my ears were; the pain burned to the point where I swore my ears were bleeding.
Watching Kid being brutalized and the pain in my ears drove me to stand. If I can't cut it, I'll bash it to death instead!
I imagined a warhammer from the myths of Thor, made from smooth, dark purple stone and it formed in my hand. Heavier than the scythe or pole, I had to redistribute my weight to hold it. I only had to stand still for a moment however, as I opted to charge head-long against the Meister.
Kid reached out to halt me, but I avoided him with a side-step to my left.
I can make it be over…the pain will be over…
My vision bobbed with my movement and I relied on the purple hair of my target as my point of focus. Pulling the hammer back over my right shoulder, I let it swing around and smash into the Meister's left temple. He teetered both on his feet and on the edge of consciousness. The Meister lost contact with reality when he fell backwards and hit the pavers with a thud a few seconds later.
I stood over him for a moment, panting. Planting my legs a foot a part, I readied myself a second time to smash the hammer into the Demon Sword Meister's head. As I pulled it back over my right shoulder…
"Stop!" Kid's voice echoed. "Don't kill it!"
Turning and seeing a bloodied Kid on my right, I halted.
***
Kid
Putting my left arm around Sai's shoulders, I pulled the handle of the warhammer upwards, pointing the head towards the ground. "Don't…don't dirty your hands with this. He…she's not a Kishin yet. Don't do something you'll regret." I tried to hide the pain in my voice, but I doubted I sounded convincing.
The warhammer shimmered out of existence in her hands, and I couldn't help but feel a little safer knowing she wasn't carrying a giant mallet at the moment. It also spawned me to smile slightly. Maybe I don't need to worry about her safety as much as I do…
"Kid…" She reached towards my chest to soothe me, but I had to brush her hand away. Nothing could be a distraction at this moment; there was no way to guarantee our safety yet.
I knew I was visibly hunched over, and moved a little slower than normal from the pain, but I still did my best to hide it. "I'll go get Spirit and we'll have him arrested." I smiled once more and then took several steps away from her. "We'll do this…do it the right way."
There was a sudden swishing sound, like a knife slicing through the air. It drove me to stop in my tracks.
What's that sound…?
It rapidly grew louder; it now sounded like a hundred knives cutting the air.
I filliped around and saw something dark and reflective heading towards the area behind Sai.
I knew my eyes were huge, and I was frozen in place. All I could do was yell, "Sai! Don't move!"
Wind rushed behind her back flipping her hair up; impaling and cracking the stones at her right and behind her. Those illuminated by the moonlight appeared to be shaped like arrows.
Her face quickly lost color, and her voice shook. "Ooh…! That was close…"
I gritted my teeth. "I should have known someone this weak wasn't acting independently." I stormed back over to Sai as fast as my condition would allow for; I pulled her against my chest and held her there, despite the burning in my wounds from the pressure she placed on me.
To make matters worse, out of the corner of my eye I noticed the Meister stirring.
Sai tried to push away from me, but I held her fast. "Kid, go, hurry…get help." She begged.
"There's no time. It's too late." I tried to sound resolute, but even I wasn't prepared to face both the Demon Sword Meister and a Witch at the same time. "I won't leave you alone, I promise."
But how…I can't fight against both at once…
***
Sai
Damn it, we're sitting ducks…we need to make a break for it…
"Kid…" I begged. "We should run…"
If my words continued I didn't hear them. Screams erupted all around me. I covered my ears, as if it would shut out the noise
At that moment I was either dropped or pushed forward by Kid, and I hit the pavers hard on my hands and knees; the sounds continued to echo in my ears but had lightened for the moment.
Even though I couldn't see how it started, a glance to my right showed that Kid had managed to engage the Meister at the other side of the patio, increasing the distance between the two of us.
While it might have been coincidence, the distance seemed to lessen the screams in my ears – the farther away I was from the black-blooded Meister, the clearer my head was.
He had managed to get the Meister away from me, but I would have to keep the Witch occupied.
We need help! Why hasn't anyone figured out we're here?!
I created the warhammer in my hands, but upon looking down at my hands quickly changed my mind. Even though nothing outside of a shield would fully stop the arrows, something sharp and wide might deflect a few of them. I warped the hammer back into my standard scythe and swung it around in a circle above my head.
It was a move I had picked up from Maka, but I wasn't nearly as good at it.
When the sound of the arrows flying could be heard again, I brought the scythe up in front of my face. I pulled my left arm in and pushed my right arm out, putting the blade's widest part between myself and the arrows. Despite the odd position, using the scythe to block the onslaught initially worked, but with each jet-black arrow that made full-on contact it cracked a little more. Several slipped by around the blade's cracking edges, one slicing my arm and one my right leg; both burning on contact. I resisted grabbing at my wounds in hopes of blocking my face with what remained of my scythe. After a few moments the scythe disintegrated in my hands into shards. I put my arms up in front of my face as a few last arrows shot past me, digging into the patio's stones.
I went down to my knees once again, panting. This won't work!
I looked skyward as she began babbling about snakes again, waiving her arms up and down in the sky.
I tried to think of what weapon could stop the onslaught, but nothing I knew I could make came to mind.
Driven by necessity, I forced myself to stand once more, but the pain in my arm and leg warped my attention. She's going to do it again! Watch what's going on, fool!
The sound of air rushing could be heard, and I stumbled back automatically, as though distance would save me.
Kid slid in from stage-right a few steps in front of me, threw his arms up in front of his face, and met the piercing arrows head on. He used himself as a shield against the attack, his body absorbing the impacts.
Time seemed to slow down; it was as if I could see every hit, every mark the arrows made, and every exit wound. Blood droplets quietly splattered my clothes and skin, and shards of his blood-stained clothes floated away slowly in the wind.
He stumbled while trying to step forward, and went down to the ground on his right knee.
In shock, I lacked the words to express myself. "Kid!" Was all I managed to say while reaching out to him.
He coughed, and his voice was horse. "It's not as bad as it looks." Kid turned to look at me over his left shoulder; he attempted to smile but it quickly became a grimace. He fell over onto his right side, and I could see blood flowing freely from his wounds. I covered the two steps between him and me, dropped to the ground, and hovered over him. Any other hits he took could mean the difference between him surviving and not; I would have to take them for him.
I took a brief moment to look up, and found she was readying for another barrage. "Pardon…me children…it's time we finish this off."
She's goin' to kill us…we're gonna to die…we're gonna' die…
I started begging for his attention, shaking him gently. "Kid…Kid…wake up...please…please wake up…"
His eyes were half-open and he wasn't moving. I could hear him breathing, but it sounded raspy. Blood from the original injuries by the Meister seeped out onto the stones, filling in the gaps and cracks in the pavers. With only seconds to spare, I rested my head against his.
He protected me until his body gave out…it should be me this time…
I could hear the sound of the arrows rushing through space, but they never made contact with my flesh. Wide-eyed, I looked up.
Marie Mjölnir was standing in front of us, arms out wide. A convex neon-green barrier hovered in front of her. The arrows fizzled and melted when they came into contact with it.
"Miss Marie!" I shouted in disbelief.
She was certainly not pleased with the situation, even though I wasn't able to see her face. Her anger was visible in the leafy-green soul which twirled around her. "Witches like you are why Shibusen exists!"
I looked toward the sky. That's a Witch…?
The floating woman could be heard clicking her tongue. "I don't feel like playing games with Deathscythes right now, so I guess I'll be on my way." Her voice became thin and floated away. Darkness filled in the space where the Witch had been hovering, and she vanished from view.
Moments later, I could no longer detect her soul.
"Medusa!" Marie yelled, dropping the barrier in front of her. She dropped her arms and balled her fists in defiance of the situation.
When she realized her call was to go unanswered, Marie sighed and straightened the sleeves of her black and gold jacket.
Turning to me, she had to then ask me no less than three times if I was okay. I was in too much of a daze to comprehend her.
***
Having requested enough space to work,I sat a dozen or so feet from Kid. I had to watch Stein try to stop the bleeding in the field enough to transport him into the operating theater; Stein had assured me he would survive but it would take some recovery time. During this time, Marie made repeated attempts at comforting me while sitting at my side, but her words passed through me without effect.
The situation and horror appeared to be winding down. Having regained some composure, I rose and started to walk over to Stein. Doing nothing while Kid suffered wasn't something I was particularly good at.
At least, until the scene suddenly shifted in mood.
Unable to come down to the patio himself, Spirithadsent out a couple of uniformed guards to take the Demon Sword Meister to the basement's dungeon cells. Even though he was restrained, the Meister for the last several minutes had not been fully conscious. Suddenly he became hysterical at the witch's disappearance in the arms of the guards, who were trying desperately to restrain him. He stared up at the sky where the Witch had originally been, but only those on the patio could hear what came next.
"I got one! I got one of them! Did I do a good job?!" When the Meister screamed, abet infected by some sort of mania, the voice sounded distinctly feminine instead. Regardless of gender, they didn't seem to rationalize that Medusa was long-gone, and they had been abandoned to the hands of Shibusen.
Other screams rose up in my ears again, blocking out Marie's words and the Meister's tormented calls; my eyes shifted across the scene. Someone in black flickered briefly on the edge of the patio at my left, and briefly distracted me.
All I could understand was that it appeared to be a young man. Justin…? No, no blond hair… Who…who is that…?! More monsters…?!
However it wasn't enough to pull away my sudden desire to destroy the Sword Meister; it only seemed to heighten it. The screams pushed me further into violence.
But this time it seemed beyond my control to halt it. With clinched fists, I shrieked "Damn you!"
My ears rang. I covered my ears to no avail, and bent over at the waist in a thrash.
I could feel my erratic breathing in my chest and I became enraged. You… you did this! Die! Die!
Standing erect once again, I charged at both the Meister and at the pair of oblivious guards dragging him or her toward Shibusen's front door. Half-way across the distance I threw back my right arm and tried to replicate the mallet I had created earlier. But without concentration it looked more like a spiked, meat tenderizing mallet than the smooth, chiseled curves of my previous warhammer.
The two guards began to pull the Meister towards the front door of Shibusen as quickly as they could. Their jerky movement showed their awareness of how little their chances of escaping a trained Independent Weapon were…
***
Kid
It was difficult to focus under the pain. But even through my blurred vision, I thought could see Sai's soul growing and warping in colors, but there was no way to confirm it.
"Why is her soul changing?" I asked of Stein, even though speaking was a challenge.
Stein was staring at the scene, lost in thought. "She's… her soul is changing…" He blinked several times, and stared again. "She's trying gain control over her Weapon nature...finding the root of all of her abilities…"
I squeezed my eyes shut, and then reopened them slowly. "The screaming…why does the screaming…"
Stein adjusted his glasses on his nose. "It's an endless loop of Soul Resonance feedback." He adjusted a towel and bandage tape. "Hold still, please."
His words didn't correspond to my thoughts. "But…isn't it…she's hearing the souls…?" I muttered.
Is what I told her wrong? Did I give her false hope that it would stop someday?
Stein returned to trying to pull together the hole in my chest with temporary stitching, talking about anything else to distract me. "Independent Weapons on their own cannot Resonate – this is to keep them from overloading their nervous systems. But…" Stein stabbed an open area particularly hard, and blood squirted out. "The Shinigami blood is trying to repeal that restriction. And the Resonance that's being created has nowhere to go because she is both Meister and Weapon."
I tried to sit up after he completed a few stitches, but Stein pushed my shoulders back down. "I did this…I need to stop it." I protested.
"You're not in any condition to go anywhere." He retained his hold on me to keep me from rising farther. It was more symbolic than actual. I likely could have thrown him off if I was truly determined. Instead I simply lay back down.
Maybe I'm afraid to face this…this isn't what I expected…
"You can't stop it anyway." Stein smiled, which seems eerily out of place. "She wants the power, but can't yet figure out how to control it. It's something she will eventually gain." He looked back at her. "…I hope."
***
Sai
I could hear more background noise than previously, but who was there and what they were doing was beyond my consideration at the moment. Everything but my intent-to-kill was white noise.
Had things been clearer, I might have considered the look on Stein's face as he ordered my friends to stop me via brute force. I'm sure it would have been one of shock.
Or not, considering his sadistic nature…
I barely heard him over the pounding of my own heart, yell: "Black Star! Stop her!"
I was already three-quarters of the way to my target by the time Black Star attacked. Even though I couldn't see his attack, I was jolted as if hit with a Taser; Black Star had thrown his soul into a shockwave of energy to stop my assault.
I came to a sudden halt, my steel-toe boots scratching against the pavers.
However, he must have not received the reaction he was expecting – I turned to him and Black Star remained motionless; he stared back at me in confusion. I stood still for another moment and blinked.
My agitation level didn't drop; being halted was a little more than a thorn in my side.
I quickly scanned the patio with my eyes, but I no longer felt the soul of the Meister. My mind, in its demented state, concluded my plans to murder the Meister had been dashed. My tormented mind considered Black Star a hindrance in that moment. Horror spread to his face quickly; he must have realized the conclusion I had come to.
In reality, he was a friend who was standing at the wrong place at the wrong time. And even though I saw terror in his face in the brief moment before I did it, I wound up and smashed the hammer at the left side of his head. It sent him flying to the other end of the patio; he landed against the front door. The hammer broke apart in my hands from the impact and I was left standing alone, and confused.
As he lay on his back, he lifted his right hand, and made the "thumbs-up" gesture. I heard him mutter loudly: "Woman with giant hammer – very sexy." His hand then flopped back down.
Through my vision was blurry, it appeared that Tsubaki was kneeling over him moments later. Unfortunately, I couldn't hear her words.
The adrenaline that had built up from the situation suddenly plummeted; I was both calming down, and becoming more afraid of looking at Kid's condition up-close at the same time. I took several steps towards him and dropped abruptly to my knees, no longer strong enough to support myself physically or mentally.