by Aaron Oster
The man screamed, staggering back as his blood froze momentarily, causing his body to spasm involuntarily, as his own power tried to fight off the invading Chakra.
“What the hell did you do to him?” demanded one of the fighters. It was clear that none of them had ever seen a skill like the one he used.
“I’m a Water Artist,” Kaeru said with a shrug. “Blood contains plenty of water, so it wasn’t hard to develop a technique around that.”
Violet gave the man a sidelong glance but otherwise didn’t say anything. This man, if anything, was even more of a mystery to her than Ikari’s brother was. The way Kaeru spoke so casually of a technique that had never been seen before in their clan was disconcerting. Sure, in theory, the technique he described would work, but actually putting something like that into practice was completely different.
Even getting the freezing aspect of water right took a monumental effort, let alone being able to freeze the water in someone else’s body. It should have been impossible to take control of their blood, especially for Martial Artists who were nearing Gold! But this man somehow managed to do so, and even worse, he made it look easy.
But Violet was only here for one thing — to make sure Hermit wasn’t hurt. Although she had gotten there a little late, he was still alive. He was in a deep trance, though, and wouldn’t be coming out of it anytime soon. It was up to her and the odd man who’d tagged along to keep him safe.
“Last chance,” Violet said, raising her sword high.
The others, now recovered from their initial shock, moved in and attacked.
Kaeru grinned, then spread both arms out, extending his front arm out as far as it could go and crouching. His balance looked to be completely off, and of all the people there, only Aika recognized the stance as belonging to his martial art, the Kogoeru Kaeru – the freezing frog. It was an odd name for a fighting style, but it was one he’d developed himself, and because of that, had had it named after him.
Even so, taking on this many powerful fighters at once would be all but impossible, especially seeing as the strongest was even stronger than Kaeru at 2nd Dan Gold.
As they clashed, Aika pushed herself back on her rear. It wasn’t a very dignified retreat, but it was the best she could manage in her current state. She winced as her back brushed up against something solid, and when she looked up, she saw Ferry towering over her. The ferret didn’t look to be hurt, but it was clear by the look of worry on her face that she could see the same could not be said for Aika.
“Don’t worry about me,” Aika said, giving her a half-smile. “I’ll be fine.”
That may or may not have been true, seeing as she had a hole in her side that was still bleeding, no matter how she tried to staunch it. However, she decided to turn her attention to the fight. She couldn’t help but notice that her clan leader, a man who’d been stuck at Base Red for her entire life and many years before that, was now at Gold. She had no idea what he was even doing here or how he’d found them. But, right now, she wasn’t going to ask. She was just grateful that someone else, who was strong enough to handle this group, had shown up.
Is this what Roy felt like all those times I showed up? she wondered, understanding now why he’d been so frustrated.
It was hard to be unable to save oneself. It was even harder when one had to be constantly rescued. Aika really just hoped he was doing alright, and that wherever he was, he was managing to look out for himself.
Kaeru was a whirl of motion, using the Path of Water like Aika had never seen. His body twisted, turned, and flowed in a way that made her feel almost sick. His body didn’t seem to have any bones, and although his stance had initially been recognizable, his movements had now changed completely.
He turned and twisted like a snake, rather than moving in the abrupt, powerful way he had before. It was almost eerie, seeing the way in which he avoided taking any hits while returning blows with stunning force. He fought with open palms, slapping away hands and striking his opponents’ chests and joints.
They were wiser to his moves now, and though the blows staggered, they no longer had the devastating effects of the first strike. It seemed he could not control their blood when they were expecting it, and with so many of them fighting him at once, the head of the Tonde clan was hard-pressed to even keep up.
The same could be said of Violet. Although the girl was an obvious prodigy, she was still among the weakest here. She was taking three fighters on at once, and two of them were Red-Belts. It was no wonder she was losing, but the mere fact that she could fight all at once was absolutely astonishing, to say the least.
Aika watched the woman move, her sword held close to her body, the blade tracing intricate patterns of Darkness around herself as she fought against the onslaught. Lines of black power appeared in the air, meeting and diverting the more powerful strikes of the other fighters. Violet never met an attack head-on, always deflecting, redirecting, or dodging. She made it look easy.
But, despite their best efforts, the two of them were starting to take some hits. It wasn’t much at first—a small cut here, a bruise there. But, as the fight progressed, they began to take more serious wounds. Kaeru was first, taking an earthen spike through his shoulder from one of the Gold-Belts.
He managed to return with an explosion of icy mist that froze the woman’s shoulder solid, but the attack was a troubling sign of what was to come.
Violet was next, taking a slash across the forehead that leaked blood into her eyes. The distraction cost her, and one of the attacking Itachi managed to open a cut across her thigh. She returned as good as she got, her sword tracing a sudden flashing pattern in the air that drove two back and left the third with half a dozen cuts along their arms.
“Help,” Ferry said, watching the fight with a worried expression.
“I know they need help,” Aika said through gritted teeth. “But there’s nothing we could do. Neither of us are strong enough.”
Kaeru hopped back then, moving his arms in a complicated motion, then thrust them outward. The very air seemed to freeze, crystals of ice forming in place and catching two of the attackers in his trap. Aika shivered as the cold washed back over her, watching in shock as both fighters fell to the ground, unmoving.
As far as she could tell, they were both still alive, but the sudden drop in temperature had locked up their limbs, forcing their muscles to contract and effectively taking them out of the fight.
It was only then, when she saw Kaeru return to the fight, that she remembered one of the most important and fundamental lessons of the martial arts. You didn’t have to kill someone to take them out of a fight.
“On second thought,” she said to Ferry, slowly pushing herself to her feet, “I think there might be something we can do to help, after all.”
16
Aika swayed, needing to place her hand on Ferry’s arm for support as the loss of blood threatened to force her into unconsciousness.
“Help?” Ferry repeated, this time phrasing it as a question.
“We don’t need to kill them,” Aika said, breathing hard. “We just need to distract them enough so that the others can take them down.”
Ferry nodded, her hands closing into fists and black Essence flickering across her arms.
Aika nodded back, straightening to her full height and doing her best to ignore her injuries. She moved forward, flanking Violet and the fighters she was up against and taking up a position in one of their blind spots. Aika had no idea if Violet would be able to cripple someone who was a higher cultivation rank than her, but she was the most powerful eighteen-year-old Aika had ever met, so she was hopeful.
“Ready,” Aika muttered, cycling Qi through her body and strengthening herself.
Ferry tensed, preparing a technique of her own and waiting for her signal. One of the fighters, a Base Red-Belt, took a half step back, blocking one of Violet’s strikes. Aika shot forward, Ferry close on her heels. Her hand slammed into the back of the man’s knee, and
Ferry’s strike, which came a half-second later, took him in the back of the neck.
They dashed away almost as soon as they struck, and although neither of them managed to deal any lasting damage, the momentary distraction caused the man to stumble. His knee buckled as he staggered, and Violet took advantage. Her sword glowed with an ominous purple-tinged black light, and when she struck, seven blades sank into her target at once. The man screamed, dropping to the ground as lacerations appeared all across his legs, dropping him like a sack. He wasn’t dead, but from the looks of it, Violet had severed several important tendons, thereby rendering him unable to walk.
Now that they’d shown their hands, the other two were on guard, but Aika already knew that was a possibility and had moved on to help Kaeru. He was busy fighting off many more than Violet and was having a much harder time of it. But, with his speed and power, Aika knew that he should be able to handle more if given an opening.
“You go for that one, and I’ll go for her,” Aika said, pointing to the two Gold-Belts opposing him. “If we manage to get them both off-balance, the playing field will be even.”
Going after the two Gold-Belts would be extremely risky, even bordering on suicidal. Still, unless something was done quickly, Kaeru wouldn’t be able to last much longer. Ferry gave Aika a nod, and they moved into position once more. In this case, their Movement techniques were paramount. She briefly wondered if Ferry could use Qi techniques yet, but the opening presented itself before she could ask.
“Go!” she shouted, dashing for her mark.
Her body burned through her remaining Qi faster than she’d have liked, but she knew that now was not the time to try and conserve power. She wove through two fighters, then lashed out with a kick at the back of the Gold-Belt’s knee. The man spun, apparently detecting her in time and throwing up a subconscious block.
At the same time, Ferry struck at the other fighter, actually managing to land her hit and retreat. Kaeru reacted so quickly that Aika couldn’t even see what happened. One moment, the man’s fingers were around her neck, threatening to snap it like a twig, and the next, he was lying on the ground with a massive red spike running through his chest.
She landed on her feet, then dashed back, using up the last remaining Qi in her Core. Her entire body was trembling as the adrenaline rushed through, pounding in her ears and causing her chest to feel tight, as though she couldn’t get enough air into her lungs. Ferry appeared next to her in a flash of Darkness Essence, a small line of blood tracing her right cheek. It appeared that she hadn’t escaped unharmed, after all.
Kaeru’s lightning-quick reactions had taken both Gold-Belts out of the fight, although neither of them were dead, just incapacitated.
“Good job,” she said, patting Ferry on the back and looking for another opening.
Unfortunately, there were none. The remaining fighters were all on guard for attacks from behind, and Aika soon began to see that despite their efforts, the two of them were still being pushed back. Violet was still fighting two Martial Artists who were higher-ranked than her, and Kaeru was facing off against several fighters who were right below his level. Despite his best efforts, he just couldn’t seem to bring down.
They were pushed back, getting closer and closer to the still-meditating Hermit. The sun had already risen by now, making the injuries suffered by the two of them all too apparent.
“It looks like we’re going to have to try and make another run,” Aika said, her fists clenching.
She was exhausted, badly injured, and felt about ready to drop. Her Qi reserves were all gone, leaving her with only Essence at her disposal. It wouldn’t be nearly strong enough, especially with the group of monsters she’d have to face, but it was this or nothing. Kaeru and Violet were almost out of steam and were taking on injuries at a rapid pace. If she could even buy them another few seconds, it could make all the difference.
However, as she staggered forward, Aika felt her knees buckle. She’d lost too much blood, and her body was finally paying the price. Ferry was beside her in an instant, trying to prop her up, but she knew they were done for. She was on the verge of collapsing, Ferry couldn’t make any difference on her own, and both Kaeru and Violet were about to go down.
“Looks like everyone decided to throw a party while I was away. You can stop now.”
Aika looked up and felt a huge sense of relief as Hermit spoke. He looked the same as he had before, if not looking even shabbier and more exhausted. Still, his presence removed a massive weight from her shoulders.
They were going to be alright.
Hermit’s body twitched, and a second later, all of their attackers were down. Aika blinked, then rubbed her eyes to make sure she wasn’t seeing things. Both Kaeru and Violet struck out, landing on only empty air. Kaeru managed to catch himself, but Violet stumbled, only to have Hermit steady her by placing a hand on her shoulder.
Aika’s mind felt like it had been tricked. Hermit was moving so fast that he’d taken everyone out from where he stood and hadn’t even appeared to move. Then, he’d simply reached out and steadied Violet, who’d been standing more than twenty feet away.
Had Hermit always been this fast, or had the absorption of the Core done this?
Aika decided that he must have been this fast before and that she just hadn’t witnessed his true strength up until now. He was a Gray-Belt, someone so powerful that entire clans would bow before him. It only stood to reason that he’d have powers she simply could not comprehend.
“Well, it seems like we have a few guests,” Hermit said as Violet whirled in place, striking out at him.
He didn’t move, allowing the blow to land – not that it did anything to him. As soon as she saw who he was, her face flushed a deep red and she jumped back, raising both hands in a defensive posture.
“Calm down,” Hermit said, rolling his eyes. “I’m not going to hurt you…Although,” he said, looking all four of them over. “It looks like someone else has already managed to do just that. Care to fill me in?”
It took only a few minutes for Aika to relay her story. She told him all about how they’d been outmatched and how Kaeru, the leader of her clan, had appeared with Violet to save them.
“Well, I figured something like that had happened,” Hermit said, crossing his arms. “The only question is, what are the two of you doing here?”
“Well,” Kaeru said, flashing Aika a smile. “I’ve actually been on her trail for quite some time. There was a war back home, and although we believed you to be dead at first, my journey outside the Crater proved otherwise.”
“Wait, what happened with the war?” Aika asked, feeling her heart rate spike.
“Oh, we won,” Kaeru said. “The Beast King is dead, and what remains of his clan has backed down. Unfortunately, the Moramor clan was all but wiped out in the process and their dregs have joined us. By any chance, have you seen your grandfather?”
This question took Aika by surprise. Although she felt a huge sense of relief knowing that the war was over, it was strange that Irusaru was still missing.
“I haven’t seen him since I…Since I left the training grounds,” she said, not mentioning their falling out.
Kaeru rubbed his chin for a moment, then shrugged.
“This puzzle only gets stranger and stranger,” he muttered.
“If you don’t mind my asking, why did you leave the Crater in the first place?” she asked.
“Oh, just something the Beast King said before he died. The war was started without much cause, and I believe someone from outside the Crater was pulling the strings. Now, I’m out here, trying to find the truth.”
His eyes flicked down to her Belt then, and he gave her an approving nod.
“You’ve got a bright future ahead of you. Our clan will be grateful to have you back, and judging by your strength, I’d say your grandfather’s wishes to see you lead the clan one day may very well come to pass.”
Aika felt her heart skip a beat and her jaw we
nt slack with horror. She didn’t want to lead the clan. She had other things to do!
“You look like you’ve just been sentenced to life in prison,” Kaeru said with a laugh. “Not to worry, I won’t be making you do anything you don’t want to do. Besides, you’ve still got plenty of time.”
“Great,” Hermit said, interrupting their conversation and turning his attention to Violet. “Now that this little reunion is over, perhaps you can tell me what you are doing here.”
Violet fidgeted for a moment before squaring her shoulders and trying to meet his eyes.
“Ikari wanted you back, and I came to warn you,” she said, her words muttered and barely understandable.
“But why?” Hermit asked. “It’s not like I really made all that much of a good impression on my visit. Besides, we don’t even know each other.”
“Because we were supposed to get married,” Violet said, her face going red. “Besides, I don’t think Ikari makes all that great a leader. She’s becoming unhinged, and the knowledge that the Heralds are growing in power is only accelerating her madness.”
If Hermit was at all flustered by the marriage proposal, he didn’t show it, which Aika found to be quite impressive. After all, had a certain someone said that to her, she would be thrilled. She shook her head, getting rid of the thought before a blush could overtake her face.
“Listen, kid, I don’t plan on marrying you,” he said bluntly. “I’m too old for you, and I don’t want children. But I agree with you that my sister needs to be stopped. Right now, though, I need to find my student, Roy. He was taken by someone from his clan, but he managed to escape and is likely somewhere in the Windblight.
“If my guess is correct, he’s likely been captured by the Inu and is fighting for his life as we speak. I don’t know what your goals are, but Aika, Ferry, and I will be heading into the Windblight to find him.”
“Well, I have no complaints,” Kaeru said with a shrug. “It feels right, so I think I’ll be tagging along.”
