Kotohime grimaced.
“I had forgotten that I must annihilate every trace of this thing from existence if I am to defeat it.”
Ignoring the exhaustion seeping into her bones, Kotohime prepared to battle this thing once more.
***
It had been a long time since Kiara had felt this much pain.
Lying in the ruined remains of the building she’d plowed into, Kiara tried to figure out what had happened. How had she ended up here?
Ugh, let’s see. I was coming home from work and Heather greeted me at the door. Then I… I think I was making dinner… No wait. We went over to the brat’s for dinner, didn’t we?
Her thoughts slipped away from her mind like a 1965 Chevy Corvette zooming away from her at top speeds. The pain she felt, the ache in her body, the burns on her skin, kept her from being able to hold onto her thoughts.
A sound drew her attention back to the outside world. Straining her neck, ignoring the pain, she looked at the hole in the wall as a creature whose body flowed like quicksilver waltzed into the room.
Oh, Kiara thought with a sigh, that’s how I ended up in this situation. I was fighting this thing.
Kiara groaned as she climbed to her feet. The machine’s silver head rotated in her direction. Its red visor flashed, and it thrust out its arm, the hand shifting into a spear, which quickly extended straight at her.
Kiara bent her torso at the same time that she lashed out with her hand. The spear was pushed away and moved past her, piercing the wall behind her before the machine tried to retract it.
Kiara wouldn’t let it.
Her youki flaring, she grabbed the spear as it raced past her, her grip stronger than a vice.
“Not this time, you don’t,” Kiara muttered harshly, her vision sharpening to a fine point as she glared at the machine from beneath wild bangs of brown hair. “YOU’RE NOT GETTING AWAY FROM ME!”
Her strength fueled by youki and rage, Kiara pulled on the spear in her grip, yanking the machine off its feet and toward her waiting fist.
“HAA!”
With a roar of effort, Kiara unleashed the massive buildup of youki through her knuckles. The bright red aura of her energy slammed point blank into the machine, then exploded in a haze of brilliant tongues of fire, which engulfed the silver machine completely. The expanded wave of energy traveled on, slamming against what was left of the wall, tearing through it like a child kicking down a wall of Legos. It continued further still, tearing across the street, vaporizing ozone before finally dissipating into the atmosphere. When the wave disappeared, the machine she’d been fighting was gone, with only the spear she’d grabbed onto remaining.
I see… so that’s how you destroy it… I wish I had known that sooner.
Falling to her knees, Kiara grimaced as she felt exhaustion seep into her bones. It had been a while since she’d had a fight like that. She hadn’t been so thoroughly exhausted since her battle with Luna Mul. That machine hadn’t been as strong as the five-tailed kitsune, but then, she had also fought against Luna with Kotohime. This battle, she’d been on her own.
“Ha… Ha…”
Kiara wiped the sweat from her eyes. Her shoulders heaved as she took in great gulps of air. The aches and pains from her numerous wounds became more prominent as the adrenaline faded from her system. She could feel every burn and every bruise like lava on her skin.
“Kiara!”
Heather rushed into the room and over to Kiara, who grinned at the woman as she slung an arm over her shoulder and helped her stand.
“Heather,” she gasped.
“Don’t talk,” Heather cautioned. “You’ve sustained some serious injuries, and it looks like you’ve got internal bleeding. We’ll need to have Kotohime or Lilian heal you.”
“Speaking of,” Kiara grunted, “do we know where they are? Are they safe, or were they attacked too?”
“While I was on my way here, I saw Kotohime fighting against another one of those machines,” Heather informed her seconds before a geyser of water shot into the air from behind a building, “and it looks like she is still fighting.”
“Seems like it.” Kiara smiled as the geyser disappeared. “And it appears she’s decided to bring out the big guns. Come on.” She started to hobble, forcing Heather to move with her. “I would like to see the rest of Kotohime’s battle. It’s rare that I get to watch her go all out.”
***
“Kitsune Art: The Moon Goddess’s Surging Waterfall.”
The streets shattered as water pipelines broke, sending water shooting into the air. It gathered above them, hovering in the air like a thundercloud before, without warning, the water descended to the ground with the force of a raging typhoon. It struck the machine, which was unable to keep itself grounded and was swept up like a helpless bug caught within a surging riptide.
The machine slammed into a wall several yards away. The wall crumbled around it, burying it under chunks of rubble, though this did not keep it down. Cement exploded outwards from where it was buried, revealing her foe in all its silvery glory.
While the machine struggled to its feet, Kotohime slid her feet along the ground until they were shoulder width apart. At the same time, she reached behind her back and withdrew her wakizashi, holding it in a reverse grip in front of her.
Almost immediately, negative feelings emanated from her wakizashi as it shone with an almost ominous, malicious light. She channeled those feelings instead of ignoring them.
By this point, the machine she’d been fighting was rushing at her, its speed beyond impressive. Kotohime did not let herself feel anxiety, and patiently waited for the right time to unleash her next attack.
“Ikken Hissatsu. Hein.”
Rotating on the ball of her left foot, Kotohime made a swiping motion with her wakizashi. The air around the short sword distorted for a moment, as if it had been struck by a sudden heat wave. The ripple disappeared as it rushed past the machine, which continued moving forward—until it violently exploded from the inside out, silver “blood” flying everywhere. The machine was thrown backwards, and Kotohime chose that moment to unleash her next attack.
“Ichi no Ougi.”
She flew at the machine, her once more sheathed swords sliding out so quickly they only appeared as a flicker of light. With her speed enhanced by the battoujutsu technique, Kotohime was able to let her blades fly out in a countless number of thrusts and slashes. The machine, trapped within her web like a helpless fly, jerked back and forth as her blades bit into its body.
“Ikken Hissatsu. Bunkatsu.”
Kotohime gave the machine no time to recover. She narrowed her profile, sheathed both blades, grabbed the sheath and hilt of her katana, then unsheathed it and attacked her foe a split second later. Her blade moved from the ground up, biting into the road, and then into the machine. Her vertical attack carved the metal monster from its crotch to its head, the two halves slowly peeling apart like a banana peel.
“Kitsune Art: Dance of Timeless Erosion.”
Water coalesced around the two halves of the machine, quickly beginning to rotate, to spin, to grind away at that which was trapped within them. Kotohime watched the maelstrom-like power contained within the form of a whirlpool slowly grind away at the machine.
Or, it should have.
Eyes widening in surprise when the two halves burst out of the water, quickly combining into one whole again, Kotohime only just managed to block its initial strike. However, in doing so she left herself open, and its left hand, once more shaped like a blade, sliced open her stomach before she could leap backwards.
Kotohime felt the sting of the blade, felt the warm blood trickle down her skin. The laceration was not too deep, and her River Kitsune blood quickly healed it, but the pain distracted her, which her opponent capitalized on. More cuts appeared along her body as four blades bit into her flesh. Through her footwork and dexterity, she kept each cut from becoming too deep, but a million tiny cuts could take a person
down just as surely as getting one’s head sliced off.
If I don’t do something soon, then I’ll…
Sweat gathered on her body, dripping into her cuts and aggravating them. The machine’s attacks came at her in precise, yet reckless swings. Each one was a pinpoint strike—a slash to the deep femoral vein in her thigh, a stab at her jugular vein, an attempt at cutting open her clavicle vein. Kotohime pushed her body to the brink, all to try and stay ahead of her foe, but she knew that it was only matter of time before an attack found its mark.
“Kitsune Art: Water Bullet.”
As a last desperate bid to destroy this indomitable foe, Kotohime used a basic attack that she had learned centuries ago, back when she’d just been a two-tailed kitsune. A bullet of water pulsed from her tails and slammed into the machine’s chest. It stumbled backwards, the silvery substance rippling as the water was absorbed into its body.
Of course, this was only to give her some distance and buy time. The true attack was coming.
“Sword Art: Requiem.”
The words were like a death knell. Kotohime spun 360 degrees exactly, stopping on a dime. Her blade moved with her, too fast to be called something as mundane as “movement.”
And then the world around her exploded as the battle concluded.
“Gekido, Tsukiyomi-no-Mikoto.”
***
The car was more silent than a grave. It was a stifling silence, the kind that could physically choke a man if he was not careful.
Kevin drove along the road, skillfully weaving in and out of traffic. The newspaper distribution center wasn’t far, but it still took some time to get there by car since he had to obey the laws of the road.
Well, he supposed he could have disobeyed them, but that might have ended with them getting into more trouble, thereby costing them more time.
He checked on the others in the rear-view mirror. Lilian sat with her hands clenched against her thighs. Iris tried to appear unconcerned, but her eyes kept flickering toward her sister, worry clearly visible in them. Kirihime’s demure personality seemed mostly intact, but her left leg was thumping against the floor, the only sound permeating the tiny vehicle.
Camellia was sleeping.
“Zzz… hawa-hawa-hawa-hawa… zzz… hawa-hawa-hawa-hawa…”
Make that the second sound permeating the vehicle.
“I’m sure Kotohime is okay.” Kevin didn’t know if he was saying that to Lilian or to himself. “She’s one of the strongest people I know, and she’s beaten one of those machines before. I’m sure she can do it again.”
Lilian’s smile was reflected in the rearview mirror. It didn’t reach her eyes.
“Yes.” Her voice was soft and unsure. “I’m sure you’re right.”
Silence reigned for a while after that as Kevin, keeping his eyes on the road, did his best to drive. There wasn’t too much traffic, but there were more cars than he had expected. Was it because of the explosions?
“Gu, I’m so bored,” Iris exclaimed suddenly. “How long does it take to reach this distribution place anyway?”
“About twenty minutes without traffic,” Kevin answered. “We should arrive in ten, provided there are no unexpected stops along the way.”
“Here’s to hoping no one gets in our way, then.”
Kevin nodded noncommittally as Lilian’s ears twitched. The redhead looked out the window and her eyes widened.
“Kevin, look out!”
The shout was so sudden that Kevin reacted without thinking. He twisted the steering wheel hard. The car swerved left. Something fast flashed past them on plumes of fire as the car began to spin.
An explosion behind them let him know exactly what had been shot at them. A missile. The heat wave from the explosion washed over the car. He could feel his body becoming warmer.
Kevin grit his teeth, fingers fiercely gripping the steering wheel, trying to reign his car back under control. He heard screams behind him, including Camellia’s “HAWAWAWA!” as she was startled awake. He slammed on the brakes, the tires screeching as the car came to a stop, then he hit the gas. Rubber burned around him, causing plumes of smoke to drift in the air. The car squealed as it was launched forward and hopefully away from whoever was trying to kill them.
No such luck.
Kevin didn’t know what had happened. One second he was driving. The next something slammed into the side of his car like a Gundam kicking a tank. Everything spun around him in a dizzying blur. Shrieks filled his ears as he clenched his eyes shut. The car slammed onto something, his body jarring from the impact. The world spun some more. Kevin’s vision went black for a second, then white, before everything seemed to stop.
It took a second for Kevin to regain his bearings, but when he did, he quickly assessed the situation. They were still in the car. However, they were upside down. The seatbelts kept them in their seats, which explained why they hadn’t fallen to the roof yet. It looked like the airbags had also deployed in time to protect him. He heard four groans behind him. The others were alive as well. Good.
“Everyone okay back there?”
“I’m fine, Beloved.”
“Oh, I’m just dandy. I love hanging around like this.”
“I-I—this is a bit uncomfortable, yes, but I am not seriously injured.”
“Hawa…”
Kevin nodded and quickly unbuckled his seatbelt, grabbing ahold of the seat and rotating his body so he didn’t fall head first to the roof. He turned and slowly crawled toward Lilian, undoing her seatbelt and catching her before she could fall. With her help, they got the others out of their predicament quickly.
“Come on,” Kevin grunted as he crawled along the roof of his car, “we need to get out of here.”
Kevin pulled himself out of his car’s rear left window, hissing as broken glass sliced into his flesh. He ignored the warm ichor dripping down his arms and legs as he clambered to his feet, unsteady and shaken, but still alive.
He was about to turn around to help the others out when a voice spoke up.
“Hello, Kevin. It’s been awhile, hasn’t it?”
***
Kotohime woke up to the feeling of rain on her face. She looked up at the sky, a cloudless clear night. It shouldn’t have been raining, so why…? Ah, that’s right. Her technique.
It has been a while since I used that technique. She turned her head and smiled mirthlessly. Well, at least that explains why my kimono is soaked.
She was lying in a crater, one of her own creation. The bowl spanned a radius of at least forty yards and was shaped perfectly. The interior was smooth, almost glossy, as if the entire bowl had been glassed, despite the technique she had used being a water-slash-sword combination technique.
“Hey!” a familiar voice shouted. “You’re not dead, are you?”
Kotohime’s lips twitched. “No, Kiara-san, I am still very much alive.”
“Good! I’d hate to come down there to try and help, only for you to have kicked the bucket.”
Two people appeared at the lip of the bowl and slowly made their way down. They moved with caution, for the bowl was slippery, but it didn’t take long for the pair to reach her side.
“It’s been awhile since I’ve seen you pull out the big guns like that.”
Kotohime would have chuckled, but her ribs hurt too much for that. “Indeed. I haven’t used that technique since our trip to California. However, I believe it was warranted this time. That machine was a difficult opponent.”
“Ugh, I can agree to that.”
“I know you two were just in a major battle and are probably tired,” Heather interrupted, “but I think we should get moving. There’s been a lot of property damage done to this place, and I don’t think any of us want to be here when the news reporters come rushing in.”
“Yeah, you’re probably right,” Kiara agreed. “We should definitely leave.”
“I would love to leave. However, there is a problem with that.”
Heather and Kiara
both looked at Kotohime.
“What’s that?” asked Kiara.
“I tore my muscles, and I’m mostly out of youki, so I can’t heal them. I am incapable of moving right now,” Kotohime admitted, her cheeks flushing just a bit.
“Oh.” Kiara’s eyes widened. “Well, that’s not good.”
The sound of air being cut caused them to look up. Kotohime blinked several times to help focus her vision. Several helicopters could be seen in the distance, all of them traveling toward their location.
“No, it isn’t,” Kotohime said, her tone quite dry.
***
Kevin felt as if the entire world had suddenly come to a screeching halt.
Standing before him was a young man that he would have recognized anywhere. Scraggly black hair similar to a bird’s nest fell about a face that he’d not seen in several months. Steel gray eyes that used to hold a perpetually bored appearance now looked at him in amusement, soaking in his flabbergasted expression like a fine wine.
The young man before him wore an outfit reminiscent to what Kevin had last seen him in. Black spandex covered by armor—a Kevlar vest that looked more like a chest plate, matte black shoulder pauldrons, and bracers over his forearms and shins. Strapped across his back was a rifle of some type, and two handguns were holstered to his thighs. Kevin also noticed the knife strapped to the small of his back for easy access.
“Justin,” Kevin breathed out in shock.
Justin looked genuinely pleased. “It’s good to see you again, Kevin, though I wish our circumstances were different.” He paused to observe the kitsune who crawled out of the car behind Kevin. “I see you’ve been enjoying life with your mate and her family.”
“What…?”
“Is everything all right?” Justin raised an eyebrow, his lips quirking into a smirk. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
“A ghost,” Kevin whispered as something inside of him snapped. “You…”
“Hm?”
“Where the hell have you been?!” Kevin exploded.
“P-pardon?” Justin actually seemed taken aback.
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