Re: Monica's Vendetta: Chapter 15 Up!
In Mahanui, both Lee and Gauld approached the center of town. Gauld had summoned Spirit Sword – the sword with angelic carvings down its blade. Now, however, the blade had changed to a sort of glassy purple colour. Garu was present. He took his shirt off and revealed a well-sculpted body, despite only being young.
“So, you showed up,” Garu observed. People were gathering in the village.
“Now, listen to me, Lee,” Gauld muttered. “Everyone in the village will be distracted by this fight. Use that to your advantage. Spend the duration of the fight searching for the location of the Mask of Babylon. We don’t know where it is, but I’ll take as long as I can so you have time to find it.”
“Right,” Lee said firmly. On the outside, he looked determined and ready. On the inside, however, the young boy was crumbling away to his emotions. Gauld was putting his life on the line for him. But…all he should concentrate on was finding the Mask.
“Go!” Gauld shouted. Lee dashed off into the crowd of people. He turned, seeing a faint glow around Gauld’s pocket. Inquisition rising, Lee tried forgetting it and kept running. “Ok then Garu…what are the rules?”
“The rules?” Garu replied, laughing. “Gauld, the rules are simple. One of us dies.”
Stepping back in shock, Gauld let himself recollect his thoughts and regain a firm demeanor. Gripping the Spirit Sword, he frowned and shot a scathing glare towards his young foe. Garu gripped his sword. He had nothing on his torso, which was skinny, yet somewhat muscular. He was still tanned and handsome, with red scars searing across his face. He swept his messy blonde hair from his eyes.
“When a twin chime is heard from each sword…that is the signal for us to begin,” Garu explained. Gauld gave a nod. Townspeople gathered around the two, enclosing them in a spacious circle as glittering snow fell from the skies. Each was with their swords out, waiting in silence.
As seconds turned to minutes, and those minutes sluggishly rattled on, a cold wind picked up and whipped around the two fighters.
And then it happened.
A tingling filled the air. Slowly, each sword let out a long, ringing chime. The gentle, soothing melody reverberated around the metal of the sword. Both Gauld and Garu were bathed in this eerie sound.
“It is time!” Garu roared. Gauld watched firmly, gripping Spirit Sword. “BEGIN!”
Gauld waited, watching as Garu charged through the air. His sword pulsated with a strong surge of energy, and as the handsome young man leapt high up into the air, the energy dissolved into a fiery blend of oranges, reds and yellows. Slashing downwards, Garu sent the mass of fire down upon Gauld. He dived to the left, landing on his side and skidding through the gritty snow. As the fire smashed into the ground, it melted the snow around, creating a circle of dark earth.
“You’re a Fire Adept?” Gauld snapped.
“No,” Garu replied, sneering and charging up energy in his sword again. “Not quite, Gauld…”
Sending, this time, silver slashes of energy through the air, Garu let out a laugh. As they neared, Gauld used incredible reflexes to deliver counter-slashes to his foes attacks. As each slash of energy neared, Gauld blocked it with his sword. Gauld then started charging up energy.
“SOL SHINE!” He roared, sending a vertical strip of orange energy sweeping through the air. It gathered speed, snowballing into a wheel of hurtling energy. It smashed right into Garu and ruthlessly tossed him aside. He fell down but got right back up.
Gripping Soul Sword, Garu let out a roar.
“FISSURE!”
The ground shook. Gauld gasped as a huge rip sped through the earth atop Mahanui. As the ever-increasing crowd screamed and ran to either side of the large crack in the earth, Garu smirked and slashed more strips of energy forward.
How does he do that? Gauld asked himself. Trying to put this aside, Gauld charged up more energy in his sword and slashed feverishly. His attacks soared forward, but Garu slashed his sword upwards, and the attacks flew up that way, before exploding in the sky. Garu then charged at Gauld, sword ready.
“I’ll hack your head off,” he sneered, getting closer and closer. Gauld just watched. As Garu got nearer, Gauld ducked down, evading Garu’s sword, and swung his sword across, slashing across Garu’s stomach. The man gave a cry as blood wept from his wound.
“That was cheap!” he snarled. “But you’ll have to do better than that, Gauld…”
Garu pulled a thick, woolen cloth out from a deep pocket. He tied it around his stomach, tightening it and stemming the flow of blood. He grabbed Soul Sword again and gave a roar.
“LIGHTENING!” Garu roared, holding a hand in the air. Sparks jumped eagerly around his palm, and up in the sky, dark clouds began swirling together. It was as if Garu was controlling the clouds…provoking a storm…
And then it happened. A huge bolt of lightening snapped down to the ground. Gauld felt it smash into his body; searing pain flooded his senses, and he became a slave to the extremity and severity of the attack. Falling to the ground, Gauld panted for breath, or perhaps some sort of freedom from this overpowerment.
“Impressed?” Garu asked, smiling. Gauld lay there, gasping. Being a Metal Edgemaster, Gauld’s attacks generally focused on close-combat and sword mastery. When facing long-distance attacks like the ones Garu was firing at him, Gauld found it difficult.
“How are you doing that?” Gauld asked weakly. “Your sword seems to summon supernatural strength.”
“If I told you…” Garu began, pacing forward in his own time. “…then you might be able to stop me.”
“Then surely you’re altering the odds to our challenge?” Gauld continued. “Is this a true showdown of time if we are unevenly matched?”
“Yes,” Garu went on, still pacing leisurely to his foe. “You were armed with a sword, but not with the knowledge the sword has. You are, therefore, an unsuitable candidate to represent Spirit Sword. That is nobodies fault but fate. Fate has conspired to arrange this outcome.”
Gauld gave a shuddering gasp as Garu stood over him. Gauld lay there, looking up at the young man. He smirked, sweeping his messy hair from his face.
“Time for the final attack…” Garu smirked. “SOUL SWORD! SOUL CATACLYSM!”
A glow started to envelop Garu’s sword. An eerie, grey glow. Gauld watched in surprise, leaping up and observing. Garu slashed a long streak of energy, grey in colour, which eventually merged into a long, grey beam of spiraling energy. It smashed into Gauld, who was thrown back as the ground tore apart beneath him. All Gauld knew was that the ground literally parted from beneath his feet. As he fell, down into the shadowy abyss, he could clearly see Garu’s cackling, manic face from the top of the large crack. Not knowing how to avert this outcome, Gauld began to panic.
It was then that he did something rather odd. Holding both hands up, he summoned Faust – his trusted sword which was very large in size. It materialized, and Gauld then jammed it into the side of the rock and clung on tight as he hung halfway down the large gaping crack in the earth.
“DAMN YOU!” Garu screamed. “Had to live, did you?”
Gauld then realized something. Where was Spirit Sword? Turning his head sharply, Gauld could see the glimmering blade falling down below him, into the darkening blackness. Down it went, getting smaller and smaller…
The Metal Edgemaster wondered if it would still be in one piece at the bottom. He hung on tightly, wondering what he should do. As long as Garu believed Spirit Sword to be in Gauld’s possession, then he, Gauld, could continue the fight. He had to destroy Garu.
But how to get back up?
It was then that Gauld noticed a feverish warmth in his pocket. Wondering what it was, and wishing he had a free hand to examine his pockets, all he could do was hang there, and think of a solution.
“HEY! GAULD!” Garu snapped. “Come back up!”
Gauld said nothing, which seemed to amuse Garu.
“VERY WELL THEN!” he roared. “GEYSER!”
Gauld gave a gasp as he stared down. A rumbling could be heard. Knowing what to expect, the man held tight onto Faust as a huge column of water rocketed up from beneath him, pushing him up. Heaving as hard as he could, Gauld wrenched Faust out the rock and felt himself get thrown up to the surface again.
Soaring high up in the air, Gauld could see the swirling grey clouds of another lightening strike. Obviously Garu was planning this, and by making him wet, Gauld would be even more hurt. Gauld soared back down and landed on the ground. He was tired, and aching, while Garu seemed still rather strong.
“What are you doing with that sword?” Garu barked. “Where is Spirit Sword?”
“I have it in reserve,” Gauld said. “I’m going to kill you with my own sword first, then destroy your sword with Spirit Sword.”
“Liar,” Garu spat, slashing energy at Gauld. He was struck in the chest and stumbled back, giving Garu time to run to the edge of the large chasm and stare down it. Soul Sword glowed as he got to the edge. “My sword detects the presence of yours, all the way down in that chasm.”
Gauld was lost for words.
“I’d better just destroy it now, then,” he said absently, his back to Gauld. “And close the chasm up completely.”
Holding his sword forward, Garu prepared to close up the two fragments of rock, sealing the chasm and shattering Spirit Sword, which lay within. Gauld got up, and gripped his sword tightly.
“SOL SHINE!”
Slashing the vertical strip of energy, Gauld watched as it rolled into a wheel of charged power and smashed right into Garu’s back. As Soul Sword flew out his grasp, he fell down the chasm, screaming in pain. Gauld ran forward and watched as Garu descended. Holding a hand forward over the chasm, Gauld began picturing Spirit Sword in his mind. He imagined it…gently soaring upwards…still picturing it, hand quivering with expectancy, Gauld concentrated as hard as he could…
Finally, Spirit Sword was summoned from the chasm. It soared upwards to the surface, just as Garu flew down. There was a sickening slash, and as Gauld stood there, concentrating deeply, he saw Spirit Sword sweep up out the chasm, Garu’s body impaled on the blade. Gauld stopped his concentration and allowed both to collapse in the snow.
Gauld gasped as he approached the bloody corpse of Garu. He laid there, blood seeping into the pure snow and tainting it with a pinkish tinge. Gauld wrenched Spirit Sword from his foe’s body, and sent Faust back into badge-form. He turned to face Garu’s sword, Soul Sword, in the ground at an angle.
“One blow,” Gauld whispered to himself. He began sending all his energy into the blade, holding it with only one hand and approaching Soul Sword. He recalled Garu using an attack called Soul Cataclysm. Perhaps there was an alternative for his sword. Holding his sword back, he felt the words leave his lips…
“Spirit Cataclysm!”
A rush of howling wind picked up. The earth shook briefly as a huge beam of energy erupted out of the ground from where Soul Sword was perched. It was thrown up into the air, and shattered due to the intense pressure of the beam. Gauld watched as the sword disintegrated, shards of it sprinkling across the battlefield.
As the biting winds died down, and the storm clouds disintegrated, Gauld let out a long sigh, and for the first time since he started dueling, took a look at his surroundings. Most of the space they fought on was snow-less. The hard, dark brown earth was charred in many places, and splintered in others. A large fissure in the ground jutted forwards towards the village. The sun was hiding beneath layers of cloud. The village looked empty, but Gauld knew everyone would be in their houses.
“I did it…” Gauld said to himself. He looked ahead to see Lee running towards him. Excited, Gauld began smiling at the prospect of seeing a new, mask-less Lee, but the boy showed a look of fear on his young face as he ran, half-mask still on, sweat cascading down his face.
“I killed Garu!” Gauld said. “I defeated him!”
A group of townsfolk gathered, ranging from the very young, to the very old. Lee still looked somewhat shocked and worried.
“Are you ok?” Gauld asked him. “What is it?”
“It’s…the mask…” Lee said slowly.
“You found it?” asked his mentor. Lee was shaking his head rapidly, gasping… “Answer me!”
“Oh, he found the mask…” said a low, rumbling voice. Gauld turned. A rather posh looking man, around 40 years of age, wandered through the crowd. With a sneering, pointed face, the man was assisted by the woman Gauld and Lee met in Mahanui itself. After seeing the mans face, Gauld let out a cry of surprise.
On his face was the other half of the Mask of Babylon.
“I am Mayor Ihfra, and I’ve been searching…or rather, had people search for me… for the mystical Mask of Babylon so I can get my half off,” the man explained. “As you may or may not know, the mask can only come off, and the scars beneath healed completely, when it is fused with the other half.”
Lee gave a nod.
“And now, my dear boy, we have a dilemma,” Ihfra said snootily. “We each need each others half of the mask and our own. The only way to remove the mask, aside from fusing it with the other half, is by killing the one wearing it. Now then…which one of us will be brave and sacrifice ourselves for the other?”
He turned to the crowd building up.
“Who should die? This young, irritable ragamuffin? Or a popular, refined Mayor?”
The crowd was cheering. Lee backed into Gauld as he backtracked in fear. He felt a sudden warmth in Gauld’s pocket…what could it be? Before he had time to think, Gauld slashed a Sol Shine forward and caused the crowd to split. Both Lee and himself ran through the crowd frantically as Ihfra screeched and pointed.
“RUN!” Gauld cried. They tore around the side of a bakery. Both panting for breath, they turned to see the crowd searching the town for them. Gauld turned to Lee.
“There is only one option,” he said darkly. “We have to kill Mayor Ihfra.”
“We can’t do that!” Lee hissed. “We’d be…murderers!”
“I would be a murderer,” Gauld corrected him.
“You’ve taken the plunge for me once before,” Lee began. “Not again! You’re weak from the Cataclysm!”
“True…” Gauld sighed. “I could use a rest…”
Lee looked and saw the golden glow in the same pocket where an odd warmth emanated before.
“What is that?” Lee finally asked.
“Oh…” Gauld began. “I felt it when I started the fight with Garu. I never examined it…”
Delving into his pocket, Gauld clasped his hand around the small object and, feeling both the glow and heat in his large hand, he opened up his palm to reveal a shiny, golden AU badge. Lee’s eyes widened in disbelief. Gauld seemed intrigued.
“You got an AU badge!” he gasped.
“What purpose does it serve, aside from being a badge?” Gauld asked inquisitively.
“Well…I have one!” Lee explained, showing Gauld his badges. “I’m in this group called the AU – it stands for Adepts United. We vanquish evil and promote justice. We all started out together…but…well…I don’t understand how you just ‘got’ a badge like that.”
Gauld raised his eyebrows. He pinned it to his chest.
“So…I’m in this…AU now?” he asked.
“Yes, and it’s not really an optional thing,” Lee went on. “I’m just…shocked. A new member to the AU! This is great. Obviously your determination in the fight earned you the badge.”
“So…what does this all mean?” Gauld asked.
“When we’re done here, I’ll take you to my Adeptry Mentor, Mortimer. You remember me telling you about him? He’ll perhaps explain a bit better. He’s located in Crufia.”
“Then it’s settled,” Gauld announced. “First, though…we have an assassination to take care of.”
Lee looked up at him.
“Sometimes…” he began. “Good and bad is merely a perspective.”
Gauld agreed with him, and as Lee repeated the words of Mortimer, he felt an odd twinge that told him something, somewhere, wasn’t right. They pressed tightly against the walls and slipped through the village, avoiding being seen. They had to do this. There was no choice.
