by Greg Dragon
“Pah! You give me more credit than I deserve,” she said. “You dragged me for about seven of those miles because my mind was somewhere else. I feel a lot better after that minor bit of surgery back there. Thank you, baby. I really mean it.”
He took her to one of the twin beds and tucked her in, then sat with her and fed her one of the sleeping pills. “I need you to rest to get your strength back. We can eat later and talk about the plan to get my CeeCee back, but for now, I need to watch your condition. Make sure those wounds aren’t really infected.”
“I’m having a wicked bout of déjà vu here, Jimmy. Please tell me you feel it,” she said.
“What do you mean? The motel room?” he asked.
“No, I mean you taking care of me while your daughter is kidnapped out in the world.”
“I hope its déjà vu because the last time she ended up okay,” he said to her.
“Alysia is not the type of girl that needs rescuing,” Tracy said. “If anything, she will probably be the one coming to save us.”
~ * ~ * ~
“Dibolosa is very good,” Isobel said.
“Very good,” Jasmine repeated. They sat atop a hill in Yalem as Alysia went through the motions of her kata.
“I’m surprised that you all are still talking about her,” Alysia said. “A few days ago you were afraid to answer my questions.”
“This is because Dibolosa always spies on us. She keeps us where she can watch us, and so we don’t get close to Lord Chaos,” Jasmine said.
“So, Chaos was telling the truth about the duel being necessary for me to save my world. But, Dibolosa is in love with him and is not ready to give up the sword to me so that I can save my people,” Alysia said as she spun and thrust her sword one way, then spun again and thrust it in the opposite direction.
“Yes, that is the reason why you will not win,” Koko finally said. “Dibolosa is very good, and she will do everything she can—including cheating to keep her seat by the lord, Chaos.”
“She’s a pathetic wench and I know I can beat her,” Alysia said.
“You are a very arrogant warrior,” Koko said to her.
“Says the girl that let a blue-haired harpy come into her organization and manipulate her leader,” Alysia said, annoyed by Koko’s attitude.
“I don’t deserve that,” The girl said to her as she stood up and walked in front of Alysia to interrupt her motion. “You take that back and apologize, because I do not deserve to be blamed for Dibolosa.”
“Oh, come on Koko, she didn’t mean it,” Isobel whined.
“She sure didn’t Koko; we all know that you aren’t to blame. Don’t be upset. We’re here for Alysia,” Jasmine said.
Alysia looked around at them and stopped. “How did you all get here? At first I thought you were demons like Chaos, but the more I get to know you guys, I’m thinking that you’re more like me. Humans tainted and made to stay with that monster.”
“We’re exactly like you,” Koko said to her. She hadn’t budged since getting up to demand a challenge. “We are the failed warriors that have tried to save our worlds. Isobel is from Dibolosa’s world. She is the eldest of us all.”
Alysia looked over at Isobel. “But she’s so young,” she said with sadness in her heart. “So young and stuck here. There has to be a way to get you all home.”
“Perhaps you didn’t hear me, Alysia Knight,” Koko said as she stepped forward menacingly. “We came here because we were chosen and we accepted our fates as warriors to fight Dibolosa.”
“Wait! Dibolosa defeated you all?” Alysia asked, and they all stood up and revealed the areas where Dibolosa’s blade had struck its fatal blow.
“The cuts from the Twilight Sword leaves marks that will not heal,” Jasmine said. “For you to beat Dibolosa, you will be accomplishing the impossible. You will do what the warriors of two separate worlds haven’t been able to do.”
Alysia thought of her bedroom back at her parent’s house, and the countless trophies that she filed inside of her closet for kendo and kenjutsu. James Knight had sent her to the most exclusive of sword masters to perfect her technique, and she found it highly unlikely that an upstart demon queen would be able to defeat her.
“How does Chaos keep you tethered to the temple, girls?” Alysia asked, picking up where she had left off.
“He killed our families, and Dibolosa slaughtered our friends. We have nowhere to turn,” Isobel said.
“The Bloody Garot is our family now,” they all said in unison.
Creepy, Alysia thought but then she wondered about Dibolosa, and how good she really was. Part of her training had dealt with sparring sessions against the girls and she knew that Koko was extremely good. Was this information another part of the training, and would her encouragement be seen as treason and lead to her failing?
Chaos had told her that all demons shared a hive mind. This was how he knew that the demon huntress had uttered her name, and it was how he knew they were after her. Wouldn’t he be able to read what Isobel and company were saying? Maybe not. They had not started out like him and were probably more human than they were demon.
“I have a strange question,” Alysia said.
“What is it?” Isobel perked up.
“Does Lord Chaos love Dibolosa?” she asked, and all three of the girls shook their heads.
“The Lord has a wife that lives within this realm,” Koko said. “He loves her very much, but due to the nature of the war, they seldom get to see one another.”
“I see,” Alysia said and shook her head. “So how is it that you guys pull me into the demon realm?”
“Oh, we merely have to touch your palms when your mind is not resisting it, CeeCee,” Isobel said, and the other two agreed.
“Could you all do it to Dibolosa?” she asked, and they quickly exchanged glances as if they were worried that she could hear them.
“Yeah, I guess we could do it, but she could just step back out as soon as we did it,” Koko replied. “It would be a hilarious prank, but she would thwart it as soon as we tried.”
“Not if I was waiting on the other side to fight her,” Alysia said, and the girls began to whisper back and forth to one another so she couldn’t hear it.
“You want to have the duel here?” Isobel asked, and Alysia nodded. “But why, CeeCee?”
“The human realm allows her to use the gifted power of the Twilight Sword to gain an edge on her challengers. It is a spiritual blade from what you tell me, and it draws from the power of the Bloody Garot. With all of you there to witness the fight, she will be stronger than ever and will cut me down before we even start. If I can bring her here, it will even things out and my old sword will be lethal against her, since she will be a mere mortal here just like me. Like you said, she will blink back to the earth realm as soon as I am getting the upper hand, but if I can get Isobel to bring me back with her, I can finish her off in front of everyone.”
“But Dibolosa is so good,” Isobel said.
“So, so good,” Jasmine repeated and Alysia felt like shaking them both.
“Listen, tomorrow morning when she is taking her walk to harass the members that clean up for her, I need one of you to grab her hand and bring her here.”
“I will do it,” Koko volunteered. “She won’t suspect me if I come close, since she likes to pick on me the most.”
“Great! So, I need you and Jasmine to return to the world of men. Whenever you are ready, send her here, and Isobel and I will handle the rest.”
~ * ~ * ~
It was during the early hours of the morning when Dibolosa felt the girl touch her hand, and she spun to chastise her for making contact with her. The touch was slight but sudden and as she spun she realized that the girl had taken her to the other realm. It was a prank and she didn’t like it, but out of instinct, she looked up to admire the dark yellow sky that was broken up by the dark clouds that moved slowly across its face.
> “Dibolosa!” Alysia called, and the woman looked at her with fire in her eyes.
“So, this was your doing, I take it?” she said to her and then tied her long blue hair back into an elaborate ponytail. She turned on Koko and stared daggers into her. “Once I’ve committed this outsider to death, you will be locked in the tower for a month!” she screamed.
But Koko wasn’t fazed by her threat and spat back at her loudly in a foreign language.
“What did you say to me, you filthy girl?” Dibolosa asked her.
“I said that you will not see me again since you will be dead, you miserable animal,” she replied. Dibolosa started for her, but Koko clapped her hands to return to the other realm.
The blue-haired warrior shook her head, then drew the longsword from her hip and held it out towards Alysia. “It doesn’t matter where I fight you, earth girl. You are no match for the hero of the Hanyk realm.”
Alysia drew her sword and put her support hand on the base of the hilt, bringing it down to rest above her hip as she shifted her stance to a traditional Japanese one. “We should be sisters, the two of us. You saved your world and now mine is in trouble. Why couldn’t you have chosen to mentor me, to help me to be rid of these things that threaten my people, and hand me the sword with honor? You let love blind you into cruelty and pettiness, and have filled your halls with children that could barely fight you back when the time came.”
“What of it?” Dibolosa said, and she smiled cruelly to reveal the lengthy canines at the corner of her mouth. “I will have you as my handmaiden and we will watch your pathetic realm fall into ruin … together.” She threw her head back in a maniacal laugh, and Alysia used her sword to knock the tip of Dibolosa’s extended blade to the side to signal that she wanted to start.
Dibolosa performed a spinning flourish with the sword ending up over her head, and then as she brought it around to swing at Alysia’s throat, it was met by her own sword and they locked blades and began to circle one another. After they separated, Alysia pulled her sword down and around to try to cut at Dibolosa’s exposed arm, but the white woman was quick and she read the movement. She brought the Twilight Sword up and then down, cutting Alysia’s shoulder instead.
Alysia backed up with her blade before her, deflecting the blows that Dibolosa kept trying as she again brought the Twilight Sword up, and then down, several times as if it would strike home again.
The blood flowed onto the black kimono that Alysia wore and she shifted her stance to where she held the sword low, next to her rear leg, and pointing away from Dibolosa. The blue-haired warrior lifted the long sword above her head and pointed at Alysia, and the two women stood like that for a time. Their eyes were playing a game of poker with one another as they both refused to move until the other made a mistake. The wound stung from where Dibolosa had clipped her, but Alysia was healing, thanks to the melding of the blood that Isobel had afforded her.
Dibolosa grew impatient and thrust her longsword at Alysia’s chest, but she was ready, and parried hard, knocking the sword to the side and moving in for the kill. She held the blade low from the parry, and moved to do a thrust of her own, but Dibolosa dipped low, putting a hand to the ground and spinning away to rise with her guard reestablished.
“I didn’t expect you to be this good,” she said to Alysia, with a sound of annoyance in her voice.
“Serves you right for taking advantage of your position for this long,” Alysia said, wincing from the growing pain in her shoulder. “Did you honestly believe that you would only have to face off against unproven warriors, when the man you love wants the world to be free of the lost? Like I told you, you are a fool, blinded by love. I bet he doesn’t even feel the same way about you!”
Alysia advanced with her sword pointed at Dibolosa’s abdomen, and the woman backed up, swiping masterfully at the extended blade to try to knock it out of the way. But Alysia needed distance for what she intended on doing, and with the deadly blade coming towards her, Dibolosa couldn’t do anything outside of retreating.
From her vantage point in the trees, Isobel could barely breathe. The fight was exciting but she couldn’t enjoy it since the ramifications that would come to her sisters—should Alysia lose—would be both devastating and painful. She wished and wished for Alysia’s blade to strike true, but Dibolosa was still as good as she ever was, so the fight went on for a very long time.
The retreating Dibolosa gambled and swung at Alysia’s throat when the girl advanced and missed her target by an inch. This prompted Alysia to thrust again and this time the blade went in, just to the side of Dibolosa’s abdomen, missing all of her vitals but drawing blood that spilled out brightly all over her silky, white nightgown.
Alysia did not waste time in taking advantage of the cut, and pulled it out and swung it hard into Dibolosa’s hand, forcing her to release the longsword and retreat, holding her throbbing thumb. Alysia moved in to cut her down, but Dibolosa threw dust at her face and clapped her hands to vanish back into the other realm. Alysia sheathed her sword and motioned to Isobel, who hopped down from the tree and took her hand.
“Ready CeeCee?” she asked with a childish grin on her face, and Alysia winked at her, prompting her to take them back.
They appeared in front of the chairs with Dibolosa scrambling to get on the platform.
“Don’t you try it, Dibolosa!” Alysia screamed at her, and she rushed at her from across the room and jumped into a flying kick, which knocked them both to the ground.
The room full of warriors formed a circle around them, and as they fought, Lord Chaos walked from out of the back room to sit upon his throne. He noticed that Dibolosa had lost the Twilight Sword, and a look of annoyance crossed his handsome features.
“Why not draw your blade and kill her, Alysia?” His deep voice boomed across the hall.
“Because despite my dislike for Dibolosa, she is unarmed! To fight her otherwise is not my way!”
Chaos smiled at her sense of honor and sat back to cross his legs. If either woman won, he would still have a powerful warrior at his side, but he favored Alysia, since she would be the one to stop the horde and bring in his holy war. He motioned for the warriors to spread out farther, so that the women could have more room to fight.
Alysia got up and touched the hilt of her sword, waiting for Dibolosa to surrender. But the wounded warrior held up her hand and one of the spectators threw her another longsword. She grabbed it out of the air and charged at Alysia, hoping she could get her before she could draw her sword. It was a telegraphed move borne of desperation, so all Alysia had to do was move out of the way to avoid the thrust.
She circled Dibolosa with her hand on the hilt of her sword, determined not to draw it unless it was a sure thing. Dibolosa took it as an insult, that Alysia didn’t respect her enough to pull her blade, so she came at her with chops and thrusts, all avoided by the limber Alysia, who danced away from her blows.
Dibolosa grew tired as she swung her sword—which lacked the balance and weight of the Twilight Sword—and after a while, her precision strikes had become sloppy swipes that she hoped would strike home soon.
“You need to stop and admit defeat, Dibolosa,” Alysia said to her after the woman lowered her guard and stood in front of her, panting. “You have lost your sword, which is a shameful thing, and with this new one, you are not the warrior you were before I cut you. You’re getting weak from your wound and I do not want to kill you. Bow before me and surrender the sword, and I will spare your life so that you can return to your home world with honor.”
Dibolosa looked as if she wanted to vomit and she stared up at Alysia with fire in her eyes. “I BOW TO NO ONE!” she screamed, and raised her longsword while moving in to deliver what she thought would be a killing blow. Alysia moved so fast that only Chaos understood what happened when Dibolosa fell past her unto her knees, and her stomach opened up to spill out on the floor.
The room was flooded with gasps an
d screams; some were crying but most were in shock. Before them lay a woman they thought was invincible but the life was gone from her eyes. Alysia wiped her blade and sheathed it quickly. It was a technique she had always practiced, the art of drawing the blade while simultaneously killing your opponent. She had never meant to use it on anybody, but with the situation and the threat to her life, she had simply reacted.
She felt sick for having to kill the woman, but then the room erupted into cheers, which didn’t last long as hushed whispers began to spread and the crowd parted to let Isobel, Koko, and Jasmine through. They walked up to Alysia and handed her the Twilight Sword and as she grabbed it, a surge of power ran through her body.
“You are to take this and free your world, CeeCee,” Isobel said with a hint of sadness in her voice.
“Not till I free you first,” she said to her, and then spun to face Chaos who was on his feet applauding with the rest of his warriors.
“Am I free now, Chaos?” she asked boldly, and the big man nodded with a smile on his face.
“You are free to return to your damaged world, Alysia, but now you have a weapon that can help you remove all of the lost.”
“Must it stay this shape?” she asked, holding it up to examine its artistry. “It’s beautiful, but I still feel like it belongs to Dibolosa. I prefer a more elegant blade, and I would like it to be a single-sided weapon; it is what I am trained in.”
“We will turn it into any weapon you want, Alysia,” he said, “but you must promise me that you will join us when it’s time. To defeat the lost, in my home world. You must take Dibolosa’s place by my side, but only after you have freed your world. Will you do this?”
“Of course, Lord Chaos, but you still owe me a few things, too. Release my father and my friends from whatever prison you have them in. And there is one final request,” she said to him.
“What is it? What is this final request?”
“I want my handmaidens to accompany me back into the world to fight. I want them freed from whatever you have keeping them here, and I want them to be extended the same privileges that you have given me.”