Zatch Bell: Kolulu Story
By:CleruSonofShintetsu
[Chapter 12: Battle of the Dark Castle (Part 2)]
The battle raged on, as the primary strike force had made it through all but one last chamber. Meanwhile, the two snooping around the castle were sprinting for their lives while trying not to get punched from the shadows by the British Gentleman and Kikuropu, or beat up by the local criminals and remaining few ghost knights in the castle.
"Dang it, dang it, dang it!" Kory exclaimed as he ran, "Why did we have to get caught like that? Hey you!" he said, looking back at Kanchome.
"W-what?" Kanchome asked worriedly.
"Don't you have a guy who can read that book you've been carryin' around all this time? Or is he locked up with the rest of em?" Kory asked as they stopped behind a wall to catch their breath.
Kanchome huffed and puffed, but eventually said, "Y-yeah...Folgore is down there...he's gotta be...and I can't do anything until we free him!"
Kory grit his teeth, "Great...just bloody great...I'm stuck with a scared magical child who can't use his magic, and a gentleman who could assault us from any shadow of the castle just waiting to clobber us...damn that Steng!" he cussed, grabbing a rock and throwing it somewhere.
"W-wait, we can figure something out, can't we...?" Kanchome asked, nervous but not wanting Kory to be upset.
Kory threw his arms in the air and asked, "How the heck are we supposed to get our people set free when the castle is still crawling with-" he was cut off by the sound of booming thunder. "Darn it, now it's going to start pouring, heck, it might even cause a flood with how badly the weather report predicted it would be..."
Kanchome jumped at the sound of the thunder to begin with, but really started whimpering at the idea of a flood occurring.
Kory sighed, "Oh come on, man, don't soil your onesie for goodness sake...let's just go, we got plenty of ground to cover while we plan a course of action." he said, grabbing his arm and speed walking down the hall.
[Meanwhile, in the fourth and final chamber...]
Evil Kolulu was having the time of her life, having cut through every guard, trap, and ghost knight they came across and leaving little for the others to take on. She sharped her claws in anticipation of what came next. "What's next? What's next? What's next!?" she asked hyperactively.
Djem physically cringed at that, and Yopopo looked on in concern. This wasn't the same sweet-heart they saw before, this was a terrible beast of battle.
Lori noticed it and gave them an apologetic look, before hearing the gate slam shut behind them, and a rumbling sound coming from above. Lori and co slowly looked up...and saw a giant stone slab coming down to crush them to paste!
Djem winced, "No no no no no!" she exclaimed in fear, gripping her hair as the group collectively grimaced at the situation.
Evil Kolulu slowly pointed at the falling stone and said, "I'm like almost certain that even Kolulu could stop that, laaaaaaaaaaaaame." she said boredly. As the stone weight dropped further down, the whole group got on their hands and knees in a desperate bid to avoid it. Evil Kolulu, unamused, held one single hand out and stopped the stone with ease, a testament to her superior strength and the nature of the spell Zeruk.
Looking up in surprise, Lori could then hear the sound of the falling weight get softer and softer, until it stopped trying to crush the group wholesale, slowly rising up to the ceiling again as the doors on either side of the room opened.
The group slowly got up, dusted themselves off, and walked towards the other end of the room. Kiyo was dumbfounded at what happened there, and made it known aloud.
"So you wanna explain how a CHILD just held up a several hundreds or possibly thousands-pound slab of stone!? I know she's a demon but come on!" he asked, happy to be alive but still confused.
Evil Kolulu waggled her fingers and raised her arms, responding coyly with, "The magical power of cooooooooooow duuuuuuuuung! Oooooooo~!"
Kiyo, deadpan and rolling his eyes, said "Wooooooow, the logic is astounding and I've been put in my place."
Djem whispered to herself, "I'm surrounded by a crayon box of loons..." as she tightened her grip on her spellbook.
Tia tapped her chin in thought, "You know..." she started, looking up at Megumi, "...I feel like I could have blocked that with a shield spell, or helped her hold up the slab, or did literally anything that didn't risk her getting squished!" she said with increasing intensity, now blushing in embarassment for not trying to help her.
Yopopo nodded in agreement, also feeling shame at getting startled by the falling trap. "Yopopo..."
Megumi smiled in amusement, "I had a feeling that she had it covered." she said, pointing to the now-whistling Evil Kolulu who was sharpening her claws.
The group exits the last chamber and finds themselves standing in a particularly long, dark, and eerily quiet hallway, save for the sound of footsteps and other business in the far reaches of the castle.
Lori raised a hand and scanned the hall with her eyes, a serious expression forming on her face. "Hold on...I can hear something slowly approaching..." she said, the group stopping to listen.
Djem was confused, and struggled to hear what Lori claimed besides the distant sounds that could already be heard. However, she could see a glint of light from the very nook she stood next to, and just as she stared into this crevice in the wall...
"AMURUK!"
A giant and stretchy arm burst through the wall and nailed Djem in the ribs, causing her to spit out a little blood and cry in pain as she flew off and tumbled towards Kiyo, who tripped over and fell on impact.
Megumi immediately responded as two figures walked out of the crevice, casting a spell in response to their prior action. "How dare you do that to a child!? SAISU!" she yelled, Tia swinging her arms back and swiping forward, sending a thin crescent blast at the face of the British Gentleman.
"Gah!" the British Gentleman yelled in mild pain, rubbing his face with the back of his hand. "How unsavory! But..." he started, grinning as he looked at the crowd before him. "I simply wished to give you a warm greeting before I sent the finest cut-throats in all of England after you. I'm afraid I have other scoundrels to track down, but know this!" he said, raising his cane in the air as he prepared a spell.
"Even if you pass this final unit of thugs...you'll wish they butchered you when you face Steng, EMRON!" he ominously warned, Kikuropu's arms stretching out and punching the ground and causing a burst of fire and smoke to cover their retreat, further disorienting the group.
Evil Kolulu rushed into the smoke and slashed wildly, but to no avail, as the two had already slinked away into the darkness once more. She screeched angrily, "BOO! COWARDS, I'LL EAT YOUR SKIN!"
Evil Kolulu started to shrink back down and reform back into regular Kolulu, glaring at Lori. "C-cast the spell, cast the spell!"
Lori shook her head firmly, "Sorry, but Kolulu has to come out now, you played your part, you'll come back eventually I assure you!" she said truthfully, watching as Evil Kolulu faded away, and the true Kolulu returned.
Kolulu dizzily gripped her head as she took a deep breath to recover. "Mmmgh...big sis...a-are you okay?" she asked, walking over and nearly tripping in the process.
"I'm fine, don't worry..." Lori said, giving her brief headpats and looking back at Djem with a look of concern on her face.
Djem was wheezing and wincing, Kiyo and Yopopo trying to keep her comfortable and to make sure she was okay. "Ah...w-who...who has the nerve to do that to a child...!? I'm not even a Mamodo...I don't have that...unGodly durability of theirs...gh..." she said between breaths.
Before they could discuss things further, a battle line of the last remaining ghost knights, all of whom are wielding halberds, and flanked by knife wielding crooks on either side, approached the off-guard group. Armed to the teeth, they maliciously stare down the group, eager to tear them apart.
Djem, not wanting to give up yet, opened her spell book.
Kiyo put a hand on her shoulder and shook his head. "Hey, don't strain yourself right no-" he was cut off with a light smack on the mouth by Djem.
"Shut it, I can cast at LEAST a spell! Now if you don't...gh...don't mind..." she said, still stung by pain and now staring down the battle line defiantly, "...I have business to take care of...MIKER!"
Yopopo ran up, jumped, and opened his mouth, unleashing an initial blast of musical notes and causing the ghost knights to skid back. However, they stood firm and, despite some damage, continued their march, holding their halberds out, business-end first, ready to skewer the group without a care in the world.
Megumi prepared a spell of her own and said, "Djem! Cast it again, with all your might!"
Djem nodded and grit her teeth. "MIKER!"
Megumi casted, "SAISU!"
These two spells flew forward and, with that extra push, knocked the ghost knights clean over, causing the crooks to panic and rush over, knives swinging.
Lori saw her chance, and rushed to the side that Tia and Megumi weren't covering and cast her new spell. "The second spell, GINISHIELD!"
Kolulu held her hands out and projected the shining, rectangular, see-through shield made of light, the shield flashing and bouncing the crooks back upon contact.
Likewise, Tia and Megumi did the same by casting Ma Sei Shield, the spiraling and circular shield bouncing their group of crooks back all the same.
Taking a hint, and noticing the Ghost Knights aren't getting back up, the crooks simply retreat after one says, "Yeah screw that! We gotta pull back, boys! C'mon let's go!", and off they ran with their tails tucked between their legs.
Megumi gave Djem a high-five afterward and told her, "Good job out there!", before looking at Kolulu and giving her a thumbs up. "You too, Kolulu, you used that shield spell really well!"
Kiyo sighed in relief, before patting Djem's shoulder one more time and asking, "Hey, you good to go still, kid?", to which Djem wordlessly nodded and rose to her feet, rubbing her ribs and sniffling once.
Yopopo was eagerly hopping in place, punching the air in anticipation for the next fight. Djem smacks Yopopo on the head with the spell book and says, "No.", giving Kiyo a sense of deja vu.
As they make their way through the hall, they all felt a powerful presence up ahead. They were finally there...the throne room was only mere feet away from them, and before they knew it...they had arrived.
Stepping into the throne room, the lights were out, and it was very dark. Kiyo would then ask, "Goodness gracious, why's it so dang dark in here? Hellooooooooo?" he called out, "Anybody in here? Dad? Bad guys? Anybody?"
Two eyes glowed in the dark as footsteps echoed through the room. The footsteps, belonging to a human, would stop, and the sound of fingers clicking could be heard.
Right on cue, the room lit up, and their adversaries were revealed; Baltro and Steng.
"Welcome to the throne room, and the place where Baltro buries you little milksops..." said Steng with a wicked grin.
The group looked up at Baltro, shocked at how huge he seemed to be.
"That...THAT'S Baltro!?" Tia questioned.
Yopopo simply put up his dukes and glared at Baltro, "Yopopo yopopo yopopo!" he said in quick succession.
Lori took a deep breath, "No...you guys go check the rest of the castle." she declared, surprising them all.
Kiyo was about to question it, but he saw it in her eyes, a look of determination consuming them. "...Alright, I think I get what you're going for...everyone!" he said, motioning the rest to follow him, "Follow me! Lori's got this one!"
Baltro's eyes glowed bright and he raised a foot. "No you don-"
Steng held a hand up to Baltro, "No no no, I want them to have their fun. That way when they inevitably get captured and thrown in the dungeon, we can return the broken and battered body of these twits as well! It's fun to break the spirit of your foes, after all...heheheheh!" he said with an evil chuckle.
Nobody protested, but before they left, Tia squeezed Kolulu's hand and said, "...You better know what you're doing, dummy!", and ran off after Lori, clearly hurt that she has to leave Kolulu alone again.
Kolulu reached out to her, frowning but returning her focus to the battle ahead. "I'm ready Lori...let's topple this giant and clear out the castle's last defenses!" she said seriously.
Lori opens her spell book, flips to the page...and casts the spell. "ZERUK!"
Steng watched in amusement and morbid curiosity as he witnessed the grotesque transformation take place. "Thats it...bulk up and boast, that way the fall hits you all the harder, lass! You two are NOTHING compared to me and Baltro!" he said, posing dramatically and tugging on his coat.
"I'm the Goddamn KING of this castle, through and through! I'll show you what happens to every fool who dares to defy me, and you'll wish you were never born!" he said, followed by a maniacal laugh as he opened his spell book.
Likewise, Evil Kolulu laughed along with him. "Oh...oh heck yeah! This is the battle I was waiting for! GET READY TO FALL APART LIKE THE CHEW TOY YOU ARE, BALTRO!"
Baltro stomped, shaking the room and roaring viciously, the sound being heard throughout the castle. The climactic battle had begun.
As Kiyo's detachment heard the noise from the back end of the castle, they turned back around one last time, hoping that Kolulu could handle it.
"Kolulu...please...don't get your book burned..." Tia said, her anxiety mounting higher than ever.
From the top floor of the castle, Zeno grinned wickedly as he too would hear Baltro's roar. "There it is...whoever beats Baltro will surely be the one who amuses me the most before I torture them..."