“I’ve done enough,” said The Baggins, “to prove that I was right all along.” He strained to lift his hand up to point at the Creator’s face. Confused, he reached his hand up to his right cheek. He felt warmth against his fingers and a sting on his face. The Creator brought his hand in front of him and saw his own blood.
“It may be small, but it’s enough,” The Baggins said, his hand flopping down. “Even if it could cost me my life, it was worth it to prove that even you bleed as red as everyone else.”
The Creator’s hand trembled in a blend of horror and shock, followed by a desire for vengeance. He stormed over to The Baggins and raised his staff up again, prepared to bring it down on The Baggins’ soft and exposed head.
“That’s quite enough, Creator.”
The Creator paused, turning his head at the sound of a voice he had not heard in many, many years. Through the storm, another man appeared at the elaborate gate leading into the courtyard. At the sight of him, the Creator lowered his staff and the divine glow that surrounded him faded away, falling off of his body like dust. He had returned to the state that he had been when he first set foot on Earth, a weak, normal human. This was exactly what the new arrival expected to see as he got closer.
“Peter,” the Creator said his name. The swordsman smiled from behind his long black bangs.
“It’s been a long time,” said Master M. “Are you causing trouble in my quiet little town?”
“How did you know I was here?” the Creator asked.
“How could I not? I could feel the power coming off of this place like heat from an oven. With what that idiot double of yours told me, I figured he would be here fighting against his angry side. Of course, I never expected to find you here.” He peered behind the Creator and saw The Baggins and Cody lying in the snow and his tone seemed to change significantly.
“What’s really been going on here?” he asked.
“Iilil-ja went on ahead to find his angry alter ego, while I stayed here to deal with, well, this.” The Creator seemed almost ashamed to explain himself, and though The Baggins was hardly conscious he was finding it hard to comprehend why.
“I would think he’ll need all the help he can get,” said Master M. “That’s why I came here, but I think I’d be better off staying here. You should go on ahead.”
The Creator looked at The Baggins, who was harmless at this point. Even if he could keep fighting, someone like Master M was capable of dealing with him at this point.
“I’ll leave him with you,” the Creator said. “Peter, I want you to know I never wanted him to get hurt.”
“There’s no time to explain, and I don’t particularly care to hear it,” said Master M. “Go on.”
The Creator nodded to the swordsman and rushed past The Baggins and into the first building. Master M walked over to The Baggins and Cody and moved the earth up enough for him to sit down. He looked over Cody’s wounded and unconscious body as his face tightened and he let out a heavy sigh.
“Is it wise for the Creator to leave? It won’t take long for me to recover enough to stand.”
“If you’re the kind of villain who would strike an unconscious child than I’ll have no patience with you and cut you down myself.”
“You’re confident in yourself, swordsman.”
“That’s because unlike the Creator, I won’t fail to kill you if I try,” said Master M. “So do yourself a favor and get out of here as soon as you have the strength to.”
“The Creator might not have a problem leaving Moon alone with you, but I would hate to leave him alone with a perfect stranger.”
“Stranger?” Master M. “Don’t be absurd. There is no one on this planet more deserving of looking after Cody than I am.”
The Baggins stared at him with his exposed eye. “Just who exactly are you?” Master M didn’t answer, and he didn’t have to. The Baggins probed deeper into the man’s mind and saw the memories of a younger Cody and even a younger Maro. In the forefront of his mind, The Baggins saw his name and was no longer doubtful. This man was Peter Moon, Cody’s father.
The sounds of chirping footsteps resounded through the hallway. Adam exhaled as he and Dee took each step closer towards the final building of the complex. The closeness of the fight was getting to Adam, and Dee noticed. She walked a few steps behind Adam, giving him room to breathe.
“Are you nervous?” she asked after a long period of silence. Adam sighed again.
“Considerably,” he said. “You know, Dee, it’s only going to get even more dangerous from here on. I would understand if you wanted to turn back.”
“Come on, Adam,” she said. “I wouldn’t be a very good supporter if I left you at the big moment.”
Adam didn’t say anything else. They continued moving for another minute before Adam stopped abruptly. Dee looked up ahead and saw that their path was blocked by a door. Above it, crudely carved into the wooden frame, was the word “Abyss”. The fear of that night came back to Adam, and he took a step backward. Dee’s hand came to rest on his shoulder and kept him from moving.
“It’s okay,” she said warmly. “You don’t have to be afraid anymore.”
Adam exhaled once more. He extended his hand and saw the bracelet still affixed around his wrist. The trembling had ceased, and there was nothing left to fear. He slid the door open, exposing the final room of the complex. It was dimly lit by candles in all corners of the room, and in its center a single figure sat in a chair with his sword on his lap. The man’s thin eyes peered up at him, the look of hate he had long anticipated.
“Glad to see you made it, fledgling.”
Chapter Thirty-Six
The Long Awaited Battle
The doppelganger had changed quite a bit since the last time Adam had encountered him. It looked like he hadn’t eaten or slept in days. His eyes no longer looked human; they were bloodshot and his pupils were more like slits. The skin on his face seemed tighter as well, which exposed his pointed canine teeth.
This was the first time that Dee had seen the physical form of Adam’s anger. She had to deal with it while they were still in one body, but seeing the anger as its own separate self was completely different, especially since he was visually terrifying. The doppelganger saw Dee inspecting him and smiled wickedly.
“Well hello there,” he said to her. “Long time no see, woman. Did you miss me? I missed you, deeply.”
“Don’t speak to her,” Adam said, throwing his arm in front of Dee. “It’s me you want, anyway.”
“What’s wrong, fledgling?” He leapt up from the chair and sauntered closer to Adam, who gripped the hilt of his sword. His double saw this and smiled.
“Oh, so now you’re ready to fight?” he said. “Won’t even let me have a bit of fun first?”
“Shut up and draw your sword, you miserable thing,” Adam said. “I didn’t come here to play games. I’m here to end this once and for all.”
His angry alter ego laughed, a sound which disturbed him. It was different from what he first heard that day they met in Tokyo. His laughter, as well as his voice in general, sounded much darker and sicklier.
“What’s happened to you?” he asked.
“I’ve become better now, stronger,” the double said. “I’ve been allowing all of this anger to build up by waiting for you, and now I’m ready to let it all out and tear you to pieces.”
“Why would you want to hold that anger back?” Adam asked in shock.
“So that I could become stronger. You obviously would never understand, since you threw away your anger, but I understand perfectly well. Anger is the source to great power and strength. Those who let rage guide their attacks are the ones who are strongest on the battlefield; they’re the ones who live on with the title of the greatest. I am anger personified. That means that I am the personification of strength!”
“You’ve become blind,” Adam scolded him. “In trying to become the strongest, you’ve thrown away your own health, your own life!”
“I’ve surpassed life, fledgling,” he said with another sick laugh. “I’ve surpassed you, and I’ve surpassed the Creator. I have attained a new level of godhood.”
“You’re not a god,” said Adam. “You’re a demon!”
The doppelganger’s face shifted towards a scowl. He reached for his sword and began to draw it. Adam pushed Dee back and drew his own sword. Across from him, his double bore his teeth. “I hope you’ve made yourself worthy, fledgling. Otherwise I’ll be forever ashamed that I sprouted from the likes of you!”
The doppelganger rushed at Adam and drew his sword mid-stride to swipe at his stomach. Adam moved forward to block with his own. As the swords hit, Adam felt a surge of pain throughout his whole body. He gasped for breath out of shock and was unable to move. The doppelganger’s sword slipped away from their contact and came around to slice into Adam’s back. He cried out in pain and rolled to the ground. The doppelganger sneered at Adam as he struggled to stand.
“Pathetic,” he said. “You didn’t even attempt to use the Magid powers on the first swing. That was a fatal mistake, fledgling. The upper hand goes to me.”
Adam caught his breath and used the Sword of Magid to help support himself. It was slowly becoming clear to him what had happened. Of the ten elemental powers bestowed to the King of Magid, he had retained power over water, wind, earth, nature, and light. That meant that his other half had the powers of fire, ice, metal, darkness, and as he had just demonstrated, electricity. The pain he felt was an electric jolt delivered through the contact of their swords. That meant that his double had learned the truth about the element powers and had likely mastered them as he did.
“Problem, fledgling?” his double mocked. “Have I caught you off guard? I hope you weren’t relying on that as an advantage over me, because I understand your tricks now and have perfected my own.”
He must have planned it, Adam realized. The reason he wanted such a long time before their duel wasn’t for Adam to find his fighting spirit, but for the doppelganger to master his elemental powers. Had Adam fought him that night he would have likely ended it there, but now his advantage was gone.
“Adam!” Dee called out to him. The doppelganger turned and glared at her, gesturing his sword at her with a stabbing motion.
“Sit there and be quiet, or you’ll be the next one getting pierced,” he said. As he moved his sword forward again, there was a rumble beneath him and an earthen spike broke through the wooden floor at an amazing speed. The double’s sword was deflected and he jumped back, only to be caught by Adam behind him. Adam stabbed his sword forward, nicking his other half’s side and piercing the spike. The doppelganger roared and turned his sword back towards Adam, only to be blinded by a reflection of light shining brilliantly off of Adam’s blade.
The doppelganger cursed himself for falling for the same trick twice and searched for Adam’s shape through the light. This time he was expecting the attack, and held his sword up just in time to block the lightning fast attack of Adam’s Six Headed Wolf technique. He grunted as the tip of Adam’s sword cut into him and attempted to fall back onto his feet. Instead, an intense gale overcame his body and threw the doppelganger backwards into the wall with enough force to break through to the outside.
Adam stood panting with his sword still facing out as the last of the wind he invoked left the building. Dee rushed over to him to inspect the wound on his back, but he held her off.
“I’m alright, Dee,” he said. “Please keep your distance. This fight is far from over.”
“Be careful,” she warned him. Adam rushed over to the massive hole that was blown out of the wall and stared outside. The storm was picking up and visibility was starting to decline. The gardens of Nijo Castle were covered with snow, and the second part of the castle structure loomed over them in the distance. In front of Adam, there was a path of blood from where his double had rolled, leading to the villain himself, who was getting to his feet. His smug expression had been wiped clean off his face, replaced by a furious glare and clenched teeth.
He stabbed his sword into the ground, sending a line of icicles the size of stalagmites towards the building. Adam jumped up and landed off to the side, avoiding the attack only to be caught up by another. As his feet touched the ground, a wave of fire came out towards him and threatened to enclose him. The icicles changed direction behind him and Adam was now in the middle of the two oncoming assaults.
Adam stabbed his sword into the ground, raising a pillar of earth up below him. He was elevated out of the range of the fire and ice, which collided with the pillar and shattered its base. As Adam fell, he swung his sword and sent another gust of wind slicing through the air. His double leapt forward to avoid the wind as Adam descended from above with his sword ready to swing down. Abandoning another elemental counter, the doppelganger blocked Adam’s sword with his own and redirected it into his own swing.
The two faced off in the partially burning field with a series of rapid swings, each countering the other as the attacks became more and more intense. Something had changed within the doppelganger, and Adam noticed. His attacks were becoming faster, stronger, and wilder, each one seemingly more powerful than the last. Finally he gained the upper hand and managed to deliver a blow to Adam’s chest with his blade before kicking him to the ground.
“You see, fledgling?” he said with a growl. “It’s rage that’s the source of real power. The angrier you make me in this fight, the stronger I get!”
He stabbed his sword downward, but Adam rolled onto his back and flipped onto his feet. Before the doppelganger could pull his sword out from the ground, Adam plunged his own beneath the snow and called another earthen spike out. This one shot out directly beneath the hunched over doppelganger, impaling him and sending him flying. He was dislodged as the spike stopped moving and he fell back down to the frozen pond behind the gardens, crashing through the ice and disappearing beneath the water. Adam kept up his guard, waiting for the doppelganger to resurface. Despite the damage he’d taken, it wasn’t a matter of if he would emerge but when.
Behind him, Dee held her hand over her mouth in worry. The fight was getting intense, and Adam was putting himself at much greater risk than she had expected. If he wasn’t careful, he was going to get seriously injured or even killed during the fight.
Something stirred behind her, and she spun around with her wand pointed at the door. To her surprise, the Creator appeared in the doorway and seemed very relieved to see her.
“Are you alright, Dee? Where’s Iilil-ja?”
“I’m fine,” Dee said as the Creator walked over to the exposed wall. “Adam and his other half moved their fight outside. He seems to have the upper hand at the moment, but it’s been very close.”
“I expected as much,” the Creator said, taking his place as an observer next to Dee.
“What happened to The Baggins? And Cody? Is he alright?” Dee asked.
“It’s been taken care of, and Cody’s safe,” the Creator explained. “Iilil-ja’s fight is more important now.”
“Did you see Mathias on your way here?”
“He was lying on the floor of the third building, apparently he’s unable to walk but isn’t terribly injured. It’s nothing your healing magic can’t fix.”
“My Lord,” Dee said, “your face.”
The Creator had wiped away the fresh blood, but the cut on his right cheek was still quite visible. “It’s nothing, just a scratch.” Dee was still concerned, but the Creator shifted the subject. “Is that him then? Iilil-ja’s other half?”
The Creator pointed out into the garden as the doppelganger slowly pulled himself out of the frigid water, still holding his sword. His body flopped onto the snow and with the support of his sword he got to his feet. He was bleeding heavily from his abdomen but he didn’t even notice, nor did he pay attention to the water that was already starting to freeze on his clothes and hair. He breathing became labored, but not from fatigue; he was channeling al
l of his anger throughout his body. He lifted up his head and revealed the face of rage.
The veins on his temple protruded almost to the point of bursting, and his eyes were hardly even visible through the blood on his face. The whites of his eyes were so flooded with burst blood vessels it was as if they were the eyes of the devil. His mouth had contorted into a terrible snarl and a mixture of blood and saliva foamed from it. The only sounds that escaped him were harsh growls, more animal than human. Just as he’d wished, he had become the personification of anger. Slowly, like an animated corpse, he shambled away from the pond through the scattered flames that still burned, looming towards his prey.
Adam shivered as he looked upon his former self, who was much worse off than he had expected. He had gone beyond any point they ever did as one being, and without the seed of a conscience to direct him otherwise, the doppelganger had become something incredibly dangerous, the very thing that the Creator had hoped to avoid millennia earlier.
The doppelganger suddenly roared and rushed towards Adam in an inhuman gait. Adam gripped his sword and swung another swift gust of wind out at his double. Remarkably, his other half took the blow directly and continued moving even after blood sprayed from his new wound. Adam reacted quickly by blocking the incoming swing of his opponent’s sword, but he underestimated the strength behind it. His swings were unfocused, but they were swift and much more powerful than before. With each swing that Adam managed to block, another nicked some part of his body. The onslaught didn’t end as the doppelganger sliced away at him like a bloodthirsty predator.
If Adam could break away, he would be able to use his elemental powers to force the doppelganger back or disable him in some way, but the attacks were unrelenting. Each swing of the sword wore him down a little more, and each swing got closer and closer to striking him at his core. All the while, his savage opponent looked down on him growling, foaming at the mouth.
The Kyoto Ordeal (Tales of the Other Universe Book 1) Page 31