Neo Comet Swordsman Setsuya: Second Origin (part 13 of 18)

a Original Fiction fanfiction by Kaiser

Back to Part 12
Downfall of Quetzacoatl  

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Circle of Stone, Eden, Island of Creation

In the area surrounding Neuschwanstein Castle, there was nothing but 
finely cut grass. A field of sparkling emerald grass that was known to 
those around the Island of Creation as Eden. The entire land mass of 
these grass fields took up about a tenth of the Island itself. Which was 
why it took so long to reach the Castle from the beach. At about three 
hundred metres into Eden (from the Castle) there was a huge formation of 
rock It was created in 230BC by unknown sources. Mighty and large slabs 
of stone had been dragged into each other and erected in a formation 
that was similar to the site Stonehenge of Neo-England. This formation 
was called The Circle of Stone. In truth, no one knew actually just what 
the purpose of this structure was but most guessed that it had something 
to do with the religion of those who had built it.  It was to be the 
staging ground of second Semi Final match of Ten Sekai Sentou Kyousou. 
The match that would decide who faced who in the Final Round. 

Setsuya strode into the Circle of Stone, passing by one of the large 
stone slabs that made him look so tiny in comparison. This was to be the 
place for his next match? The Japanese youth looked all around. There 
was nobody near here. At least not now. The only thing that Setsuya 
could see was something at the centre of the Circle of Stone. It was a 
long metal staff. It shone in the morning sun, looking rather beautiful, 
but in some ways, it gave off a glow of... hostility and evil. Tiny 
little streaks of power coursed up and down the shaft of the staff, 
glowing a pallid green, still beaming with a polished sheen. What on 
earth was that thing? Setsuya was at once repelled by the weapon. And 
for some strange reason, he felt something call on him to destroy it.

Until someone finally spoke, revealing themselves. "You are late!"

"Huh?" Setsuya looked upwards. That was where the voice was coming from. 
On one of those large stone slabs, to the other side of the Circle, 
stood a man. A man of what looked to Arabic descent. Dressed in a thick 
black trenchcoat that flowed down against his ankles and flocked in the 
cool morning wind. Around his legs were a pair of tattered light brown 
slacks and some random looking shoes on his feet. There was a dark glow 
of red in the man's soulless eyes; and the ghastliest expression on his 
face. It was a shadowy smirk of intention. Setsuya could guess that this 
was the guy he was supposed to fight. And that his weapon was the staff 
that had been thrown into the ground of the Circle. 

"So..." Setsuya nudged his hand closer to the Fire Cutter, "...You must 
be Ra El Khahid. The dude who took down the Female Descendant of the 
Mazda Family."

Ra grinned from his position. "Yes. I did defeat that girl. But she was 
weak. A fool so consumed with her own issues that she ignored the powers 
of the Quetzacoatl. I can feel that you are nothing like her. You have 
true strength. Strength enough to master one of the Four Sacred Swords. 
The only set of weapons that can stand against the Quetzacoatl's power."

"Quetzacoatl...?" Then Setsuya took a look at the staff in the centre, 
"I guess you must be talking about that thing."

Ra grinned again, then vaulted upwards off the stone stab he had been 
standing on. His body flipped around in the air with his trenchcoat 
whirling behind him. The youth began to inch towards the ground and he 
landed with great swiftness. Right before the point at which the 
Quetzacoatl had been staked into the ground. Ra El stood upright from 
his crouched landing position. His calloused hand grabbed the steel 
shaft of the Quetzacoatl and he yanked it from the grass of Eden. Ra 
then twirled the staff around and around his body with an unusual skill, 
till it came to rest behind him. Ra brought up the other hand and curled 
his fingers inwards at Setsuya rather provocatively. 

"Correct," Ra replied, "Now. The Quetzacoatl demands for me to defeat 
you. To overcome the swordfighter who can wield a weapon strong enough 
to beat us."

Setsuya wouldn't even bother to enquire what 'us' meant. He could tell 
this Ra character wasn't all there. Not that it was much his concern. 
All Setsuya was really thinking about now was Lin-Lin and the Shougatsu 
Financial Group. The Japanese man let his hand grip the hilt of the Fire 
Cutter and he awaited Ra El Khahid's first attack. Ra himself didn't 
seem to be all that powerful, but that Quetzacoatl of his was another 
story. There was something about that weapon that was just not right. 
And until he figured it out; Setsuya had to play this cautiously. 

"Byaaaaah!" Ra came at Setsuya with a powerful roar that filled the 
quietness of the Circle of Stone. Setsuya's eyes flashed and he kept his 
focus on Ra's Quetzacoatl. That nimble metal staff was swung around in a 
half-circle motion. The Yuuga-Fighter unsheathed Fire Cutter in reply 
and clashed with the Quetzacoatl mid-swing. The two weapons collided 
with each other for the first time. And the impact was startling to both 
Setsuya and Ra. A wave of force spread from the point of collision. It 
was powerful enough to blow back Ra's jet black bangs and Setsuya's 
ponytail. They then locked eyes as they fought to outdo the other. Both 
fighters forced as much energy as they could into the weapon lock. They 
both held each other to a stop. Until Setsuya's feet started to slip 
back a little. Ra grinned seeing this loss of ground, while Setsuya 
frowned. His Yuuga-style of swordplay was not really designed for this 
kind of fight. Power against power. In this way he was putting himself 
at a disadvantage. He had to get out of this situation. Setsuya gave 
just a bit more power into the weapon lock. Then jetted straight back 
from it. Ra stumbled forwards at the sudden loss of contact, while 
Setsuya span backwards and dragged the Fire Cutter up in slash motion. 
Ra blinked and growled hard as the blade of Setsuya's sword sliced 
upwards over his tanned light brown flesh. He was cut open from the 
abdomen to the centre of the chest. A trail of blood spilt into the air 
as Ra inched himself backwards. He kept ambling away until he got his 
bearings. And gripped the wound at his chest. A furious expression 
crossed the older man's face. This Japanese boy had actually drawn first 
blood! 

Ra grit his teeth at the younger man. "You... are... dead!"

His intention was to attack but Ra did not charge as before. He remained 
where as he was. Ra El Khahid stepped backwards again and lowered the 
Quetzacoatl to the dry green grass behind him. He pressed out his free 
arm into full extension, which just happened to point it at Setsuya. And 
he stayed in that stance. Setsuya did not understand it and so he did 
not interfere with it. He knew better than to attack someone when you 
weren't sure if they were able to lay down a defensive counter to it. 
But maybe there was something else he could do...

Ra's vivid blood crimson eyes watched the boy and his lips curled into 
another grin. While he stood in that position, a green glow began to 
enfold the Quetzacoatl. His fight with Ming Lo might not have been as 
thrilling as a kill would have been but he did learn a few things from 
it. One was this amazing thing called Chi. It was almost like a Fake 
Magic. A power that allowed normal human beings to perform astonishing 
feats. Quetzacoatl had not even known of it. But know that it did... 
that astounding power was at Ra's feet. The Arabic man sneered at the 
target of his attack as the jade colour glow around Quetzacoatl grew. 
One last flash indicated readiness. Ra gripped the staff even tighter 
then drew back his pointing arm. He jumped from the grass into the air 
and over; aiming himself at the Yuuga-swordfighter below. 

Ra brought the staff around his body in one swift, powerful motion. As 
it glided through the air, the Quetzacoatl left a trail of glistening 
green power behind it. Ra deftly called the attack  throughout the 
action. "Full Moon Staff!"

Ra span the staff around him in a full moon motion and brought it down 
on Setsuya. But his great surprise, Ra went straight through him. The 
Quetzacoatl smacked the ground and created a cloud of dust from the 
force. But the image of Setsuya faded as though he had never been there 
in the first place. Ra looked up with a scowl. Could that have been...?

"...An After Image?"

The Japanese youth could answer that question for him. "Bingo!"

Before Ra even got the opportunity to look back at Setsuya, he felt the 
steel of the Fire Cutter slice a cut across his back. Ra grunted with 
both pain and frustration as he slid forwards away from the blow. While 
Setsuya stepped back and sheathed his sword. The After Image was not 
something he picked up easily but it he mastered it with Aarin's help. 
By moving at great speeds you could leave behind a visual image of 
yourself as if you were still there. It actually had more to do with Chi 
than it did with speed because it was an optical illusion; but speed was 
still a necessity. Ra scowled without looking back. What was happening 
here? Was this upstart Japanese boy actually... beating him?!

"Damn you!" Ra looked back at Setsuya, "Nobody draws the blood of Ra El 
Khahid twice. I will make sure that the only blood you ever see again is 
your own! Understand me, boy? Time to die!"

Setsuya smiled at him. "You know, for a guy who's so angry, you sure do 
talk a lot."

"That's fine..." Ra turned his head and gave an angered smile, "Keep up 
the chastisement! You be choking on those words while you roil in the 
flames of hell!"

Ra then jumped away from that point. He landed about ten metres further 
way, his feet reaching the ground with a better placement than his 
wounded body might seemingly allow. Once he landed he stood quietly and 
took a deep breath. Setsuya was more skilled than Ra had thought he 
would be. Maybe more skilled than Setsuya himself realized. But there 
was one technique that could defeat him. The ultimate blow of the Arabic 
Man's Angel of Ra Staff Style. The boy would learn the true power of Ra 
El Khahid. Ra brought the Quetzacoatl to his body, keeping it vertical 
and aligned with his body. He held it with both hands while his blood 
red eyes slipped shut. Ra took another deep breath and concentrated his 
power. Centring it all on the Quetzacoatl and the upcoming attack. 
Thankfully Setsuya was retaining his defensive tactics and keeping back. 
If the action was interrupted now the entire move would fail. The 
Quetzacoatl soon began to glow again; catching the attentions of 
Setsuya. But Ra was not using his Chi. This was just his Chi taking on 
physical form as a reflexive action from Ra's brilliant concentration. 
Just what was he preparing? 

Setsuya was about to find out. Ra's eyes flashed open and locked with 
Setsuya's darker ones. For some reason, Setsuya couldn't budge an inch 
from that point. He almost froze in place. All because Ra looked at him. 
Hypnosis? But whether it was or it wasn't;  that was not the root of the 
attack. Because Ra El Khahid still charged him. Setsuya's eyes widened 
with urgency. He couldn't move a muscle. And Ra was on the attack. The 
older man scowled and brought Quetzacoatl as he begun his most powerful 
attack of all. The flagship skill of the Angel of Ra style. 

Before attacking, Ra bellowed, "Welcome to hell, scum!" 

The first blow came at the head. Setsuya grunted as he was struck with a 
scathing blow to side of his head. A second came at the face from the 
other side of the staff. A third was knocked against his right arm. 
Setsuya took another blow to the face. Then again at the waist. Another 
followed that at the right leg. A follow up to that came at the head 
again. Ra swung around Quetzacoatl and pounded Setsuya's other cheek. 
Then again at the head. Setsuya cried out as another came at his chest. 
One smack took him at the left shoulder. Another came for him at the 
other shoulder. Then Ra hit the previous shoulder again. And then went 
back to the other one. Ra twirled his staff so that Setsuya was hit it 
the chin and face six times in return, drawing blood which spurted into 
the air and over the ground. Ra smacked Setsuya's shoulder again. Then 
again at the face. Then struck him on the other side of the face. Then 
landed a cracking blow at the back. Which was followed back an attack to 
Setsuya's neck. Then against the head. The staff came again at the right 
arm. Then moved on to the left arm with an even more stinging blow. Ra 
struck again at the left knee, then at the side of the left leg. Then 
smacked the right knee and the outer-lower right leg. He pulled 
Quetzacoatl back up and smashed it against Setsuya's forehead, carving 
another deep gash with was beginning to surround Setsuya's body. Ra 
attacked again at the side of the face, then at the other side of it. 
Two more blows came down on Setsuya's neck, one on either side. Ra 
twirled his body around and the staff followed his path, battering 
Setsuya across the face in five times. Ra El Khahid re-gripped 
Quetzacoatl and spun back around, knocking into Setsuya with two more 
strikes. He then struck Setsuya with two blows to the waist. Then 
another seven smacks to the face. Ra pummelled the shoulders again with 
three blow to either one. Then turned around thrust the staff backwards, 
ramming the beaten boy's chest. Ra then turned back forwards with the 
Quetzacoatl in stride. Setsuya was struck another four more time in the 
face as the staff circled around his body. Ra brought another blow down 
to the cranium and two more to the side of the face. He took a stronger 
blow to Setsuya's left leg again. Then landed a twin blow to the other 
leg. Then pulled the staff upwards, knocking the Japanese youth's jaw, 
then back down again, hitting the cranium in reply. Ra swung his staff 
around and smacked the side of Setsuya's face, and did it again in the 
reverse opposite. He struck again with four more attacks to the legs, 
six more to the head and four more to the shoulders. Ra pounded the head 
with five more successive blows. Then one more to the shoulder. Another 
to the waist. And again to the shoulder. Setsuya was struck again at the 
leg. One came at the ankle. A following one hit the stomach. And another 
rammed the chest. Through each blow a fresh new bruise or cut was left. 
Setsuya could only kneel there (by now he had been forced to his knees 
from the battering) take the blows as best he could. With each hit came 
a grunt, while a new droplet of blood hit the ground. In fact, from an 
outside eye, Setsuya looked to be doing nothing more than get knocked 
around in a speedy blur of staff attacks. Ra pulled up Quetzacoatl for 
one last blow. It came down across Setsuya's face with searing 
brutality. Which finally knocked him out of his frozen stasis. One 
Hundred Blows in all. Setsuya collapsed to the ground. Face down. While 
Ra lowered his staff and drew in breath. He was just as tired as Setsuya 
would have been. 

But that devious grin did not leave Ra. "You are a fool. You have just 
been a witness to the sacred skill... of the Angel of Ra style. And I 
called this unbeatable modus operandi... The Forbidden Technique of the 
Hundred Staffs! There's no way to resist it! I have won!"

Of course, Setsuya wasn't one to be beaten that easily... The young man 
pressed his hands into the grass below him. And used that as leverage to 
push himself up. His somehow smiling face was covered in bruises, his 
lip was cut and the gash at his forehead was pouring his blood down his 
nose and cheek. But he was still raring to go. Ra stepped back in fear 
as he saw that Japanese swordfighter stand up under his own power. 

"There is..." A chill passed down Ra's spine, "No way... you could 
have..."

Setsuya rubbed that bruised shoulder of his. "I could have what? 
Sustained consciousness? That Forbidden Technique of the Hundred Staffs 
is pretty powerful. I admit it. And so is the Quetzacoatl. But you are 
just an ordinary guy. Oh sure, you invented your own style, but the root 
of your power is the Quetzacoatl. And you know it. But such a technique 
relies on the power of the fighter; not the weapon. Until you strengthen 
yourself you'll never be able to take down a serious fighter with that 
move. It's just like they say; 'The Weapon doesn't make the man'. And 
although I can't say that I feel pretty good right now, I know for a 
fact that you don't have enough strength left to attempt that again."

Ra scowled at Setsuya. "D-Damn you!"

"Hmm... you're just a puppet," Setsuya shook his head and looked at 
Quetzacoatl, "...For a superior power. So... as fun as this has been I 
think it's time I showed you what happens when a great weapon is used by 
a great fighter."

The Japanese fighter smiled and pulled Fire Cutter to one side of his 
head. While taking the repeating blows of the Hundred Staff Technique, 
Setsuya was not idle. He had focused his mind on the Fire Cutter and 
prepared for a counter attack. Ra was so distracted with trying to knock 
Setsuya out that he hadn't noticed it. Until now. Flames began appearing 
at the sword. They ran up and down the katana-type blade and leaked 
steamy smoke. It was time to put Ra El Khahid away. And break the 
control that the Quetzacoatl obviously had over him. Setsuya slashed 
downwards with the sword, screaming, 

"Burn Shell!" 

From the slash came a large twirling cannon-shell shaped cluster of 
Flame Magic. It breezed across the slight gap between Ra and Setsuya. 
And struck home with change to spare. Ra El Khahid screamed in agony 
from the searing heat and was thrown off his feet from the power. He 
dropped the Quetzacoatl and was thrown back towards one of the stone 
slabs that made up the Circle of Stone. Ra's body slammed into it, his 
clothes charred and his energy abruptly drained. He slumped from the 
stone to the ground and passed out. He had lost. But uniquely; his hair 
slowly began to fade from silvery to black. Just as his eyes turned from 
red to brown. Setsuya took a breath and sheathed the hot Fire Cutter. Ra 
might not have been a prized fighter but that Hundred Staff move really 
took it to him.

"Well," The Yuuga Fighter wiped some of the blood from his face, "At 
least I'm in the finals now."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Mizuhou Bar, Kuji, Neo-Japan

"Keep the change, fella."

Ayame chuckled to herself as the little boy behind the bar took the 
notes of yen to his pocket and brought out the drinks she had ordered. 
It was pretty unusual for such a young boy to be working in a tavern 
like this, but laws against teenage drinking had been loosened since the 
Genesis Comet bombarded the earth. Which was understandable in its own 
way. You had a short life to live, might as well enjoy it while you had 
it. The youth pushed two drinks (a pint of beer and a mug of hot cider) 
across the counter and to Ayame. The Dark Katana grabbed them and nodded 
her thanks, before walking from the bar towards the little table she was 
sharing with Julia at the other side of the tavern. It was a busy day 
today. Most tables were full by the time that Ayame and Julia had 
arrived here. But they had managed to kidnap a table for themselves in 
the corner, where they could just sit and talk for a while. To be 
perfectly honest, Julia really didn't feel like coming out tonight. But 
Ayame had told her that a bit of fresh air (if you can regard this as 
such) would do her good. In the end she caved in to the Neo-Japanese 
woman's arguments. Spending time with Ayame wasn't exactly the worst way 
to spend the evening, anyway. 

Ayame came up to the table and put down the drinks, positioning Julia's 
hot cider right in front of her. She then took a seat, while the 
Scottish youth mulled over her beverage. 

"Man, I haven't been drinking in ages," Ayame admitted, taking down a 
gulp of her beer afterwards, "The beer in Kuji is almost as good as it 
is in Nagoya. How's yours?"

Julia looked downwards at her cider. "It's fine, I guess."

Then Ayame mellowed out a little. It was still far too early for Julia 
to be enjoying herself. It was clear that she was still shocked over the 
death of her father, Simon, no matter how much she had pledged herself 
into following through on his plans for her. And Ayame could really 
understand how she was feeling. But what she didn't want was for Julia 
to close herself off from her. Until Julia got home to her grandfather, 
Ayame was all she had in the world. And though it might have sounded 
selfish, Ayame didn't want to lose Julia to her own sadness. 

"I know that it's hard," Ayame offered calmly, "But you should try not 
to let it overtake you. I'll bet that that's the last thing your Dad 
would have wanted."

Julia traced her fingertip along the ring of her mug. "I know. I 
understand that much. But... it's not just about my Father..."

"So then, what is it?"

"...It's you," Julia claimed, looking up, "...you're... part of my life 
now. And... losing my Daddy made me realize something. We... can't 
bottle things up. We can't deny what we want to say to people. Because 
before you know it... you're too late..."

Ayame put down her beer with a confused glare. "...What exactly are you 
trying to say?"

"...Ayame... I..."

Before she could even say what she wanted to, there was a huge bang from 
the other side of the tavern. An explosion. Screams of the women 
waitresses could be heard as the throbbing boom filled the entire hall 
of the tavern. Ayame and Julia dove downwards from the force of the 
explosion, as did the others, until it began to weaken. Ayame (who was 
now holding Julia in a protective embrace) peered up over the table and 
looked to where the explosion had come from. From the front door of the 
bar. The doors were now blown open. The doorway was surrounded by grim 
smoke and blazing orange fire, and the floor around it was littered with 
charred scraps of wood from the broken doors. But the cause of the 
explosion also stood at the doorway. In all its bio-mechanical fury.

"Ras es-Shamrah!" Ayame whispered with fury, "That thing is after us 
again!?"

Her grip around Julia grew in strength. The bio-tech monster was out of 
the bay and had followed them here. Their apartment was just a short 
distance from here. There was no way that they could go back there now 
if Ras es-Shamrah was still on the loose. And to think, Ayame had 
actually believed that the thing had drowned at Kuji Bay. No such luck. 
Ras stepped forwards from the doorway. Some women screamed at its 
appearance, but all of them attempted to run from it. Ras made no 
attempt to stop them. It was probably in its best interest to let these 
people go anyway. But it was getting closer and would eventually find 
its target. Julia. 

Ayame growled to herself. She knew that there was little she could do to 
stop Ras; but what choice did she have? She and Julia were in no 
position to run. She had to face that thing. Maybe to buy Julia the time 
she needed to get away. 

"Julia," Ayame kept her eyes on the searching Ras, though her voice was 
aimed at the older woman, "I'm going to attack Ras. Once I do, I want 
you to run up the steps on the other side of this room. Do you see them? 
Run up there and wait for me. If I don't meet you there by five minutes 
time, climb out the window and run as far away as possible. Do you 
understand?" 

Julia's bright emerald eyes shook. "W-What about you?"

"Don't worry about me. Just concentrate on yourself. You have to fulfil 
your Father's dream and make it back to your home, right? Don't let him 
down by worrying about me. The Dark Katana as her sword for protection. 
Got it? Okay!"

Ayame then released Julia and jumped straight over the table they had 
been hiding under. Ras looked over its shoulder to see Ayame jumping 
into the air and withdrawing that sword at her waist, Nobunaga. Ayame 
unsheathed it and rushed into Ras. The beast swung Baga'enka vertically 
and blocked the blow as hard as possible, a wave of power spreading from 
the point of collision. But far stronger than Ras might have been 
expecting. The creature released a surprised growl as it was slid back 
from the weapon lock, Ayame quickly bearing down on it. While she held 
Ras es-Shamrah off, she looked back at the table and yelled;

"Julia! Get out of here now!"

The brown-haired woman had little choice. Though she wished not to leave 
Ayame behind, she was right about her Father's wishes. If she got 
recaptured now, it would mean that her Dad's loss of life was all for 
nothing. Julia stood up from the underside of the table and then ran 
straight across the tavern, which was now empty aside from Ayame and Ras 
es-Shamrah.  She climbed the stairs without sparing a look back, just 
hoping and believing that Ayame would be alright. Ayame saw this and 
smiled. Now that Julia was out of the way she could fight this thing a 
little better. With one push she forced Ras out of the weapon lock and 
stepped away from the creature. Ras swung Baga'enka around him until it 
was positioned with one arm behind his back. The plasma Naginata was 
growing in its brightness. And Ras was evolving. Its wild bush of spiky 
straw hair was growing in size. The veins visible between its plates of 
armour were growing in thickness. And the glow of its eyes in those tiny 
slit holes of its metal mask were even brighter than before. It seemed 
that the more experience it gathered together, the more it grew. 
Fighting it over and over again would just make it stronger and harder 
to beat. 

Ayame growled and gave a two-handed hold to Nobunaga. Then rushed 
forwards to strike. She slashed as hard as she could at the monster. Ras 
blocked the attack with a swing of his Baga'enka, then did the same to 
Ayame's second slash. He made a reprisal, slashing around his body in a 
vertical arc motion. The plasma tip of it sliced open the front of 
Ayame's overcoat/kimono top, drawing a little blood. Then Ras twirled 
the Naginata around with one hand and brought it back around, leading it 
with the butt of the shaft. It slapped against Ayame's hand violently, 
knocking Nobunaga out of her hand. Ras swung Baga'enka and then slashed 
back down to strike. A rush of adrenalin filled the girl and she acted 
on nothing more than instinct as she backflipped straight out of the 
line of fire. The Plasma blade smashed into the wooden floorboards of 
the ground. And Ayame kept on flipping backwards until she got a fair 
distance from Ras. She landed in readiness, tightening her fists. She 
was a master of Kick-Fencing after all. Losing Nobunaga was a setback 
but not her end. Ras then charged ahead at her. With his weapon at the 
ready. It seemed to realize that Ayame was the biggest obstacle between 
him capturing Julia, and so was determined to stop her. Ayame remained 
focused until the very last second. Once Ras was in striking range she 
crouched down. With both hands pressed into the ground she slid to one 
side and extended one leg, sweeping under the charging monster's feet. 
Ras let off a growl of surprise as it was tripped up and hurled into one 
of the wooden tables of the tavern. The whole thing collapsed under his 
weight and broke it in two. Ayame smirked at this, then stood up and ran 
for Nobunaga. She rolled ahead and grabbed the hilt of the blade in her 
hand during the motion, leaping back up into a fighting stance. 

Ras climbed up from the broken table, unfazed. The glow of Baga'enka was 
growing to an even greater height. It seemed to be mimicking whatever 
emotions that the bio-tech beast could muster. So he swung the weapon 
around his body until it was pointed vertically at Ayame. Ras released 
another of those deafening screams, to a similar degree to the one that 
he had unleashed at Kuji Bay, then charged ahead. Baga'enka's plasmatic 
blade then un-forged itself and took on a longer form. One that 
spiralled around the upper shaft of the weapon. Ayame blinked at the 
attack, which came faster than she would have expected. The spiralling 
energy trail rammed into her with such overwhelming force that she was 
blown back instantly by it. Her body slammed into the side of the bar, 
which caused a few glasses and bottles of drink to fall off it and smash 
over the ground. Ayame's eyes slipped shut while a trail of blood 
dripped from the corner of her lips. 

Ras pulled back Baga'enka and spoke in that mechanical voice. "Code 
081902: Spiral Plasma Serenade."

It then began a slow march to the stairs. Ayame was down for the count. 
All that was left was for him to re-capture Julia. 

The Scottish girl herself stood in one of the three upper rooms of the 
tavern. Obviously the customers were not allowed here very often, but 
that didn't stop Julia given the present situation. All she was hoping 
for would be for Ayame's safety. It hadn't quite been five minutes yet. 
When she heard a hand clasp the door handle from the outside; a smile of 
joy came to her face. But it was instantly replaced as a thick arm 
smashed the door down in fury, busting open the metal lock. The door 
toppled over to the ground and left Ras es-Shamrah in full view, with 
his Plasma Naginata at the ready. 

Julia's heart fell and her anxiety grew all at once. "...Ayame... what 
did you do to her...?"

"Your defender is out of commission," Julia began to note that Ras was 
beginning to sound a lot more intelligent, "And the Research Facility 
grows impatient. You will come with me now. Back to the facility in 
Nagoya."

"Why do they still want me?!" Julia cried out, "They've experimented on 
me and taken my Father from me, what more could they want!?"

Ras pointed at her. "You know too much. And your power is too great. 
Therefore you will come with me. Your cooperation is appreciated but you 
shall be brought back with force if need be."

"I'll never go back with you! Never!"

"That is unfortunate," Now the energy blade of the Naginata grew in 
brightness, "But it is expected. It was why I was freed from the Ice. To 
complete my mission I must bring you back to the Research Facility."

"Over my dead body!" 

Ras looked back behind him and Julia's smile returned to her as they 
both heard the strong, commanding voice of Ayame Nakagawa. The young 
woman stood in the doorway and her sword was sheathed. But she had 
something else in mind. In her right hand was a bottle of gasoline. 
Ayame growled fiercely and chucked the glass bottle of gasoline at Ras. 
It burst over him and stained his armour, covering him in the flammable 
liquid. Ayame then ran straight past the thing and dove into Julia. She 
grabbed the girl in one stroke and held Julia tightly against her. Just 
before she threw herself and Julia straight through the window of that 
particular room. As they were airborne, surrounded by falling shards of 
glass, Ayame reached into her pocket and pulled out a silver lighter 
from it. The Neo-Japanese woman lit the lighter and hurled it through 
the broken window. 

Three seconds later, the upper floor of the tavern exploded. Ayame 
shielded Julia from the blast and landed with her on an artificial bush 
that had been put to the alleyway of the bar for decorative purposes. 
Rubble and embers were thrown from the blasted roof of the bar and down 
into the surrounding streets, decorating the night sky with a blazing 
fire. Ayame groaned to herself and looked down at Julia, who was still 
clinging desperately to her.

"Are you okay...?" Asked the Dark Katana.

Though she was bruised and had a few cuts, Julia nodded as a yes. Ayame 
smiled to herself and tucked Julia's head closer to her. "Thank God..."




Onwards to Part 14


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