Zatch Bell: Kolulu Story
By:CleruSonofShintetsu
[Chapter 3: Kolulu vs Eshros, the Rocky Manipulator (Part 1)]
Another morning, another day to figure everything out. Some time has passed since the battle against Fein, almost a week in fact. Since then, Kolulu has been able to recover from her last battle and feel at ease, and Lori by proxy would also feel better now.
"It's friday! In two days, the concert will open up and we'll get to see those two pretty ladies in action!" Kolulu said in sheer excitement.
"Mhm! Exactly! So let's get this day done and over with, and this new weekend will be ours to enjoy!" she said, winking and packing up her school bag. "Remember Kolulu," she began, looking back to her, "if you need anything, you call me on your cellphone okay?"
"Okay, have fun Lori!" Kolulu said, waving her off. Once Lori left, Kolulu began to play around with her doll a bit more, enjoying this peaceful moment to herself.
Lori, meanwhile, on her way to school, was deep in thought. ("That form...Kolulu's passion...I know Kolulu is strong, but she's clearly been putting a face on for me. That transformation really does change her, it ravages her body and mind, and she can't keep it bottled up. Why? Were Zatch's words really enough to give her a drive to become queen? Or is Kolulu forcing herself to do this for my sake? I really don't know...") She thought, sighing deeply as she continued on her walk.
("At the very least though...she's doing better now. Hopefully we won't have to deal with another evil Mamodo for a good while. Then again, it seems Mamodo attract other Mamodo in this contest. Who knows anymore...?") she thought once more, before spotting a familiar face on the sidewalk. It was Kiyo!
"Oh, Kiyo! Kiyo!" Lori called out, jogging over to meet him as he looked up from his books and waved.
"Oh, hey Lori! How's everything?" he said, trying to drum up enthusiasm for the conversation.
"Everything is well, and Kolulu is doing better now. Sadly though...we got into a fight with a Mamodo at the movie theater yesterday." she explained, much to Kiyo's shock and bewilderment.
"You got into a fight that soon!? Well, did Kolulu get through it okay? Obviously she still has her book, but even still!" he asked, concerned about the situation.
"It's fine Kiyo, really! We pulled through and burned that mean Mamodo's book! Kolulu really pushed herself to her limit with that transformation, and she did well. I just..." she said, gritting her teeth. "I just wish we had a way to help her...she isn't like most Mamodo, is she?"
Kiyo tapped his chin and gave it some serious thought. "No...I guess she isn't, is she? Most Mamodo fight like normal from what I've seen. I'm sure there are some who even take on crazy forms in battle too. But Kolulu? She reeks of something dark and foreboding."
Lori nodded in reluctant agreement. "Yeah...something isn't right about her powers. Not only is she completely different, but it puts too much of a toll on her body. She was sore all day after that last battle, and furthermore it keeps tearing her clothes to shreds! I'm gonna run out of clothes from my childhood if she keeps transforming like that..." she said, upset about just about every fact she presented.
Kiyo sighed and rubbed his temples in mutual frustration. "Look, Lori, I no longer have Zatch, but I'm gonna do all I can to try and help. Maybe my father knows more about this stuff." he said.
Lori tilted her head in confusion. "What...would your father know about Mamodo?"
The young man raised a finger and began to explain all he knew. "My father is currently on a research trip in England, part of his job I think. He found Zatch somewhere in that country, and would totally have made an attempt to look into this Mamodo business. He's smart, smarter than me admittedly. If there's any hope of better looking into this stuff, it's him." he suggested, hoping this would reassure Lori.
Lori nodded and smiled. "Thank you for the advice Kiyo. However, we don't have the time to go to England right now. Maybe one day, in the future, we'll go to England with you and look for answers. So what if it isn't much? I just want Kolulu to be happy...to live a better life." she explained.
Kiyo pat her shoulder and nodded. "I understand, you're alright Lori. I'll see you around!" he said, waving goodbye as they went off on their own paths to school.
As the day ticked by, school would eventually end, with Lori returning to her house and greeting Kolulu.
"I'm home Kolulu!" she said, looking around for Kolulu, only to find that there was a bunch of loose yarn and unfinished patches of craft supplies left everywhere. Scared that she could have been attacked, Lori called for Kolulu around the house, until finding her upstairs. When she opened the door to their bedroom, she saw...Kolulu staring back at her, covered in craft supplies and trying to sew something.
"K-Kolulu?" Lori said, confused yet relieved at the situation.
"...I wanted to make you a dolly just like mine, but I can't do it right..." Kolulu said, putting down the half finished doll that was meant to resemble Lori.
Lori wasn't mad, she simply gave her a sweet smile and knelt down. "Want me to teach you how to make a dolly?"
Kolulu nodded, feeling relieved that Lori wasn't angry with her. The two would first clean up the messy room, and then they would start sewing a new doll.
Lori gave Kolulu step-by-step instructions, and thread by thread, the doll was slowly crafted. After finishing the body, they stuffed it and looked upon their completed craft. It was a small replica of Lori, down to the clothing choice.
"Lori, I...I love it! Now I'll have a piece of you even when we're separate! Thank you so much..." she said with a warm smile, cuddling the Lori doll, then hugging Lori herself.
"You're welcome Kolulu. Now let's get the rest of the house cleaned up, okay?" she said, to which Kolulu nodded in agreement. It would take them roughly thirty minutes to clean up the house, and soon enough, it was back to a pristine condition. It was a bonding experience just like the doll making, and the two were happy to have some peace and quiet for a while.
[Two days later...]
Lori and Kolulu were playing in the park, and the sun was starting to set. As they were about to leave, Kolulu spotted a small pony running around with it's head stuck in a bucket.
"Lori look! That poor pony, we have to help them!" she said, running over and grabbing the bucket from the other end. "Hold on little guy...we'll get this thing off of you! Hnnnnghh!" she growled, eventually pulling it off entirely and causing both her and the pony to tumble back a bit.
"Meru meru meru me!" said the pony, galloping over and helping her up.
Kolulu smiled and gave the pony a hug, before realizing that something was off about it. "Wait a minute...that book on your back...a Mamodo!?" she said out loud, surprised to see another Mamodo so soon.
"Meru meru!" he said, trying to explain his position to her in that meru meru language of his.
"Huh? I see...you haven't found a book keeper yet, have you? Well, here, let me give you something for the road!" she said, handing Ponygon a spare wreath and putting it on his head.
Ponygon blinks twice before clapping happily at the gift and licking her cheek once, causing her to giggle.
"H-hey! No problem! Take care now, ya hear?" she said, waving him goodbye and wishing him luck on his search.
Soon enough, Lori was calling her back over, ready to head home for the day. As Kolulu approached Lori, Lori knelt down and smiled. "Made a new friend? That small pony seemed to like you."
"Yeah, he did." Kolulu said. "He appears to be a Mamodo just like me, he has a spell book but no book owner..."
Lori was surprised, slightly raising her eyebrows at the news. "Oh dear, I hope he finds one soon. It would do him no good to be all alone in this cruel cruel world of ours. Come along Kolulu, let's go home now." she said, lifting Kolulu and letting her ride on her shoulders once again.
Soon enough, they were home again, and just as they entered the front door, the house phone rang. Lori picks it up and tilts her head slightly. "Hello? This is Lori speaking."
On the other end of the phone, Kiyo was in a slight panic. "Lori, you gotta help me man. Since I don't have Zatch, you're the only person I trust to help stop this problem from getting out of hand!"
Lori raised her other hand and responded. "Woah woah woah, slow down Kiyo...what's going on?"
"Okay, so I was trailing this duo earlier, and I THOUGHT that the Mamodo was actually a decent kid, but he's actually planning on destroying my school. Something is off about them, but we need you to stop this from happening." he explained, hoping Lori would agree.
Lori looked to Kolulu, who was playing with a doll nearby. Lori lowered her voice and said, "Kiyo...you know we don't want to fight if we can avoid it...I don't want to put Kolulu through that pain again, not so soon."
Kiyo sighed and said, "I...I know man. Look, I don't want to put Kolulu in pain any more than you do. Even still, I can't just let this happen. I don't know why I care so much to be honest, but maybe Zatch affected me too. So please, Lori, please consider stopping this maniac from destroying my school. Please..." he begged, begrudgingly.
Lori deeply sighed and, after a moment of thought, nodded. "I'll talk to Kolulu about it, stay safe Kiyo." she said, before the two bid farewell and hung up.
Kolulu stared at her and frowned. "...Lori?"
"Yes Kolulu?"
"...I have to fight again...don't I...?" Kolulu said, sounding quite upset about it.
Lori sighed, "I...I'm sorry, I won't force you if-"
Kolulu cut her off and shook her head. "It's okay, I heard what you were talking about over the phone. I guess somebody has to do it since Zatch is gone..." she said, trying to rationalize it and force a smile out.
"Ugh, Kolulu, you shouldn't have to fight again so soon! It's not your fault that those two are going to wreck an entire school!" Lori said, clutching her fists in frustration.
"I...I can't run...I need to fight, I need to fight..." Kolulu said, now zoning out and tensing up. It took all of her willpower to be brave here, but deep down, she hated having to fight again already. Lori would approach Kolulu and hug her, brushing her hand through her hair to soothe her adoptive little sister the best she could.
"Kolulu, let's just get some sleep okay? Your body will need all the strength it can get tomorrow." Lori said, letting her go and looking her in the eye.
Kolulu nodded, "Goodnight Lori, sleep tight." she said, jogging up the steps and heading to bed. Lori would head to bed soon after, and the two would have a good night's sleep. Whatever happens tomorrow, they would be ready for it.
[The Next Day...]
As if on schedule, the team of Mamodo and human arrived at the school, ready to demolish the place that caused Shin so much pain and anguish.
"Alright Shin, look long and hard at this stupid place. This is the place where your bullies pushed you around like no other! With my help, we'll tear this school to pieces and make an example of this horrid place, got it?" Eshros said with a wide grin.
"Eshros...I...thank you for being here. I still admittedly have doubts, but...perhaps this is the right thing to do. At least...there arent any people inside..." Shin said, staring at his book, contemplating the actions he was about to take.
"Of course big guy, we can do this! All we gotta do is aim well and lay low this place, then we'll be one step closer to achieving our dreams! Ready the first spell and fire!" Eshros ordered, his face morphing from the handsome young lad to the war painted ghoulish boy.
Shin nodded, closing his eyes and opening the spell book, light glowing from within it's pages as he focused on everything he had gone through. The bullying for all his life, the loss of his mother, and the meeting of this crass boy. "Mom...I'm not gonna let you down anymore. I'm not gonna let anyone push me around ever again! GRANDS-" he shouted, before being hit by a rock and stopping mid-way. "Ah! Who did that?" he asked, rubbing his head and looking in the direction the rock was thrown from.
"Who the hell is there!? Show yourself at once!" Eshros said, snarling in irritation.
Kiyo comes out of the bushes nearby, walking up to them with a glare in his eye. "I don't like this nonsense. I don't exactly like half the people at this school either, but you don't see me trying to blow it up or tear it down do you!?"
Shin would grit his teeth. "Y-you don't understand...this place, you surely understand how horrible it is, right? You said you don't like the people here, why bother interrupting me?" Shin questioned, his voice shaky and nervous.
Eshros shook his head. "Argh! We don't have time for this! Cast a spell and knock him on his stupid butt already!"
Kiyo smirked, "I'm afraid I'm not the one you should be worried about, kid." he said, chuckling confidently.
Eshros tilted his head and grunted. "Oh yeah? Because I don't see any book in your hand, nor do I see a Mamodo! You're messing with the wrong people, moron!" he said, now chuckling in amusement right back at him.
"You're right, I don't have a Mamodo...but a friend does. She'll be here in about five minutes, that's five minutes we have until she gets here and stops your crooked plan!" he said, only...something was wrong. He never told Lori the name OR address of his school. This made his heart jump and nearly his body in much the same way.
Eshros smirked, "Oh yeah? Fine, we'll give you five minutes. Once those are up, we're attacking the school if your friend doesn't show up, meaning they either missed the memo or you were bluffing."
Kiyo kept up appearances and shrugged, pulling out a comic book. "You know, that brat is just manipulating you. I hope you realize that..."
Shin would go wide eyed and doubt himself for a moment. "W-what? No! He's...he's just helping me, that's all. He was there for me long after my mom passed away. I can't believe he would manipulate me. Right, Eshros?" he said, staring at Eshros.
Eshros shook his head and facepalmed. "Shin, I like you, but STOP LISTENING TO THAT LANKY ARROGANT NERD! He is NOTHING, his word MEANS nothing! Stop getting so worked up! If it helps you get the stress out, why not trap him with a spell?" he said, grinning widely.
Shin nodded and looked to Kiyo, calming down now. "Sorry, but I need to focus on my mission, CLAYDO!" he yelled, blobs of clay entangling and latching onto Kiyo's legs, trapping him in place.
"H-hey! Let me go man, this isn't funny!" Kiyo protested, trying to get out of the magical mud to no avail.
"Alright, now that he's been thoroughly trapped...let's demolish the school!" Eshros said, completely breaking the promise of waiting immediately.
Kiyo gasped, "What!? You said you'd wait for my friend to get here!" he said, struggling desperately to get out of the mud even harder than before.
Eshros cackled and slapped his knee. "As if I would wait for Shin to man up and bust the school! But I'll compromise. I'll wait the rest of the...what is it, four minutes now? In exchange...we show you just what kind of damage we can do. Shin, if you would?" he said, Shin nodding in agreement.
"Forgive me...GRANDSEN!" he yelled, Eshros placing his palms on the ground and summoning four cannon-like structures. They all fire large stones at the school and inflict serious damage on the third story of the building, much to Kiyo's horror.
"You...I can't believe you! How could you do that!?" Kiyo asked, wondering just how far they would go if they attacked other buildings, WITH people in them.
Eshros shrugged, "Hey man, there aren't any people in there. I'm being quite merciful to be honest with you. Now then, let's wait for these...friends...of yours." he said, leaning back and stretching his arms.
Kiyo sighed and thought to himself, ("That isn't good...if Lori and Kolulu can't find the location in time, this school, and possibly elsewhere, is done for! It isn't the school I'm worried about, it's how much farther they'll go...") he contemplated, hoping that somehow the pair would find them soon enough. ("God, I feel like Suzy right now...")
[Two Minutes Later]
Kiyo decided to speak up. "Hey, Shin was it? I'm Kiyo, what's your story?" he asked, trying to start conversation with him.
Shin looked to Eshros, then back to Kiyo. "All you need to know is that I have been hurt...and this school will be gone soon enough." he said, refusing the respond to further inquiries.
Kiyo gets the memo and sighs once again, getting pretty antsy now. The mud has worn off by now, but it's not like they would let him run away.
[One Minute Later]
Eshros got up and creepily stared down Kiyo. "It's almost time Kiyo, your little friends aren't showing up! Of course, that assumes they even exist in the first place. Tell me, do you know what happens to weaklings who waste the time of those on top of the food chain?"
"No? I don't know, and I doubt a punk like you is on top of the food chain..." Kiyo responded, unamused by the kid's audacity.
"Hmph, weaklings like yourself get smashed. To be honest, when I become king...I'll make sure that no Mamodo ever grows up as a weakling ever again!" he said, folding his arms and smiling.
"...Pardon me?" Kiyo said, not fully understanding the kid's intentions.
"Be honest, most Mamodo are weaklings. I plan on using my kingship to promote the strong! There will no longer be weaklings who exist to be trampled, only strong, stronger and strongest! Then, I'll use that strength to conquer the entire Mamodo world, asserting my ultimate dominance!" he said, laughing in excitement at the thought.
Kiyo shook his head. "Jeeze, you ALMOST had something good there didn't ya? Too bad it's ruined by the macho man wannabe nonsense. Seriously, conquer the Mamodo world? I think you'd die of dysentery before getting one fifth of the way there." he said with a smirk.
Eshros blinked twice, before running up to him and kicking him in the face, sending Kiyo flying back with a bleeding nose. "SAY THAT AGAIN YOU LITTLE RAT! MAYBE YOU SHOULD CATCH IT AND DIE IN A DITCH!"
Shin would reach out to Eshros. "Eshros, please! Don't kill him, he has nothing to do with our mission anymore!"
Eshros turned around and nodded, checking the time on the school's clock. "Yeah, you're right, besides...it's time to finish what we started anyway." he said, walking into position and cracking his knuckles. "Cast the spell, it's time to put an end to this pathetic little school for good..."
Shin nodded, took three deep breaths, and opened the spell book. "This is for all the pain I went through...GRANDSE-"
But just before he could finish, he was interrupted by the uttering of another spell from behind him. "ZERUSEN!"