Chrysalis

by Kayne Sampson

  Sephiel stopped moving, stance returning to neutral. “Hmm, well. I suppose it must come to this. Perhaps this might clarify things,” the small soldier said and lifted a hand. There was a small sound and the Xegin helmet fell to the ground.

  “Well? Now do you understand?” came the voice, now unhindered from the helmet.

  Keta’s eyes went wide. Standing before him was the face of a young girl, even younger than Pent. Her long flowing hair fell freely past her shoulders when her helmet dropped, and she brushed a few strands out of her face, piercing eyes locking into Keta’s own.

  “You...Sephiel, you are a girl?” Keta managed to stammer.

  He had only met Sephiel a few weeks ago with Tianna. But the entire time the young soldier had never once removed the helm. The way it muffled the voice, Keta had always assumed that Sephiel was a boy.

  But here she stood. Sephiel’s eyes slanted furiously. “Idiot! Is that what you take away from this? Look again, you fool” And to emphasize this, she pointed at her face.

  And indeed, Keta had known it, though his first reaction was to the fact that this girl was fighting alongside one of the fiercest armies in the world. However, this revelation was confusing. “A Kitaan? But how?” Her eyes and hair color mimicked his own, like looking in a mirror.

  Keta was awed by what he was witnessing. After the death of his brother, he had been the last of the Kitaan. And even then, their little mission to the lab back in the Darkrune Mountains had ousted him as nothing but a fake.

  Was this girl the same, a product of the Empire?

  The girl’s cruel eyes focused on Keta. “You understand, right? No, of course you wouldn’t. I have no idea what you are, but allow me to educate you. We Kitaan are servants of the Goddess of Light. When one of us pass from this realm, another is born to take their place. This is an absolute, an edict of the gods.”

  “What are you talking about?” Keta asked.

  “It means I was born eight years, two hundred and thirty seven days ago. Don’t know the date? You wouldn’t, since you seem to exist in some twisted version of our reality,” Sephiel explained. “You see, that was the day that the previous Kitaan guardian died. Now you understand? I am the heir to Kataro Tiansia, the true Kitaan.”

  Keta gasped, and stepped back. All this had been thrust upon him so suddenly, and he didn’t want to accept it. But even as he heard the words, something in his body had reacted to them, knowing that it was true. Even though he was a fake, his genes were real.

  “So how is it that you are here standing before me, when I should be the only Kitaan?” Sephiel asked, stepping forward menacingly.

  Keta didn’t flinch, and all he could do was muster a sad smile. “I...just found out less than a week ago. The Humans created me,” Keta said, and he explained everything that he had discovered in the mountains, the origins of his creation.

  Sephiel remained silent throughout the story, her lip curling in disgust from time to time. When he had finished, there was a slight change to her demeanor. “I see. Damn those Humans. This is an outrage.”

  The girl’s hardened glare had softened slightly. Perhaps this was the push he needed to speak amicably with Sephiel. But the look was quickly discarded and she moved into a battle stance.

  “What are you doing, Sephiel? You and I are both Kitaan. We shouldn’t be fighting,” Keta exclaimed.

  “You have my pity, Keta. However, duty demands that I slay you here.” Without waiting for his reaction, she charged at him, and aimed a strike at his torso.

  Keta quickly caught the blow, holding the girl’s wrist. “Slay me? What are you talking about?” He asked, but he was answered with Sephiel spinning, aiming a kick meant for his face. He was forced to let go of his hold and step backwards to avoid the nimble warrior. “Sephiel, you aren’t making any sense.”

  The girl looked confused for a moment, and Keta wondered if she would attack once more. But at last, she relaxed and looked at him with those same pitying eyes.

  “Very well, Keta, I will tell you. You see, you are an abomination to the gods,” she accused, pointing her index finger at him. “Your very existence serves to embolden the enemy, who would abuse that power.”

  Keta opened his mouth to retaliate, but Sephiel cut him off. “Be silent. You said you were created in a lab? Have you ever considered that when you die, they will use your body to recreate their experiments? And the way you rush about recklessly, your death could come at any time.” She smiled cruelly and added, “Better you meet your end here.”

  This girl was even more blunt about her actions than Pent. “So I’m just expected to lay down and die?” Keta muttered sarcastically.

  If the girl had noticed the mocking tone, she did not show it. “Ideally. However, I know you would never do it yourself. In that case, allow me to oblige,” Sephiel said.

  This girl, she was nothing like the heroic Kitaan she had heard about in legends from the old Master. And then it hit him. She was very young. She might not have heard of the legends. Perhaps he could appeal to her with that?

  But when he mentioned it to Sephiel, she waved a hand. “The Kitaan code should be honored, to be sure. But it is outdated thinking. The Xegin philosophies are much more practical.”

  Was that it? The girl had been disillusioned by the Xegin. Keta had seen the same fanatical attitude from Tianna. But they were in the wrong here. “In case you hadn’t noticed, the plan your soldiers are following involves wiping out all the people here.”

  “A calculated endeavor. Had they been left to their own devices, it would not be long before they sought to overthrow us.”

  Keta looked past the Xegin-Kitaan girl, to the others in the distance. The soldiers were fighting, both Human and Xegin, but he could make out in the distance the heavily decorated soldier - perhaps one of the Imperial Generals - making his way up the hill, with a transport following behind. That must be the weapon that Erisda had warned him about. Which meant that the person with it must be General Delta.

  Keta took a look at Sephiel. This girl was like him. He had spent so long thinking he was the last of his people, following the death of his brother. And yet, circumstances had placed them on opposite sides. And if he didn’t do anything, thousands of innocent Humans would lose their lives.

  Keta knew what must be done.

  “I’m sorry, Sephiel. But there are things I must do. I won’t let the world be divided into two camps forever. Even if I have to fight,” Keta exclaimed, reaching past his shoulder and removing his sheath. “I won’t hesitate any longer. I’m going to stop all this fighting. So move aside or I will move you.”

  Sephiel stared at him and he could see shock in her eyes. But they quickly hardened. “Very well then. But the end result is absolute. After all, how can I be beaten by a fake?”

  And she ran at him. Keta quickly analyzed her frame, trying to figure how she would attack. She did not carry any weapons from the look of it, and judging by her fight in the Frostclaw Village, she practiced hand to hand combat. He recalled the fact that Celran’s limbs had stopped working once Sephiel had made contact. He would have to be wary.

  But still, he was fighting an unarmed girl with a weapon. He held the advantage. He gauged the strength of her armor, and estimated how hard he would have to strike with Abyss to slice through. He didn’t want to hurt Sephiel, but he needed to get her out of this battle. Focused, he drew the blade from the sheath and swung horizontally at her chest, aiming to debilitate.

  But he was astonished when the girl reached up with her left hand and blocked the sword empty handed. Pushing it aside, she didn’t break speed and leapt off the ground to gain momentum, striking Keta with her palm to his chest, aimed right at his heart.

  There came an explosive burst from her hand, and Keta was lifted off his feet from the sheer force of it. He was flung backwards, his sword spinning out of his hand. Just before his entire body came crashing down, he managed to twist in midair to roll and try and mitigate some of the damage
of the fall. But he was hurting from that attack, no mistaking it.

  Sephiel had landed with grace, following her jump. She raised an eyebrow at his recovery. “Hmph. I won’t lie, I did not expect you to survive that,” she said casually, walking forward.

  Struggling to his feet, Keta knew that the girl wasn’t lying. She had just now tried to kill him. When Sephiel had blocked his sword with her hand, something nobody should be able to do, he had seen it. It had been brief, but to a trained warrior’s eye, an instant was all that was needed.

  The light that emanated from her hand had been spirit magic. Of course, he realized. It was a power of the Kitaan, the same strange and powerful energy he could control. But she had used it to shield her body from physical attack, specifically a sword. Keta had never dreamed it could be used for such a thing. The strength of her magic must have been impressive.

  Her second attack was just like the attack he used, the Dragon Fang that was taught to him by the old Master. No, that wasn’t right at all. Her attack had been far more potent than his could hope to be. Had he not realized she was using spirit magic and guarded himself against it with his own magic, his heart would have been torn asunder.

  Even guarding against it with his own powers, the result had been in her favor. There was no competing with her. This young Xegin soldier had more mastery of spirit magic than he did. Was this a result of being an artificial Kitaan? Would he never be able to match up to a natural Kitaan?

  “I’m impressed that a fake like you can harness spirit magic at all. It just goes to show how dangerous the Human’s technology is. All the more reason I can’t let you run around free. And now that you don’t have your sword, you are useless,” Sephiel said, walking up to where Abyss lay and reaching down to pick it up.

  But as she touched it, her hand recoiled. She looked up, and glared at Keta. “You...you call yourself a Kitaan and dare to use such a sword? This weapon is teeming with evil. If nothing else, it should share your fate. It must be destroyed.”

  Something inside Keta snapped when he heard this. That weapon had been the last gift he’d received from Master Inferno. Keta got to his feet and raced towards the girl. If Sephiel had shown off her Kitaan power, then he felt he must answer in kind.

  He hit her straight on with his signature technique; the Dragon Fang. The high speed palm strike that channeled the power of the Kitaan - spirit magic - into his enemies to disable them. His hit was clean.

  But something was wrong. Sephiel did not even try to dodge.

  Rather, she had that smile on her face again, golden eyes dancing with darkness. “That’s the difference between you and me, faker. My own power won’t work against me. You, on the other hand…”

  And Keta felt the double handed blow, simultaneously to his chest. He had not been able to guard properly this time and the magic pierced through his body and attacked his insides. Keta gasped for air as he was knocked away once more.

  This time he hit the ground harder, though he managed to avoid landing on his head. Sephiel’s smile had faded as he got to a knee. “What? When did you retrieve the sword?” She asked, as he leaned on Abyss for support to get to his feet.

  Keta was breathing heavily now. This was bad. He was wasting time and energy fighting Sephiel. But at least he had retrieved his sword. His plan had been to distract her with the attack and grab it. But because of the fact that his attack did no damage to her, he had ended up taking a hit. And it was going to cost him.

  If he didn’t finish this quickly, he would be unable to stop the Xegin from using that weapon. The casualties would be catastrophic.

  He closed his eyes, and slowed his breathing in a meditative way. He had to focus. And he had to end this here. There were other techniques taught to him by the old Master. Ones that he did not make use of due to their capacity for harm. But if he was to win...

  “I don’t understand you, Keta. If you were a real Kitaan, you would realize that I only do what I must,” Sephiel said, walking forward slowly at first, then at a run. “But if you can’t see that, then it even makes more sense that I end you here and now. You can’t keep this up.”

  Keta breathed, and opened his eyes. Sephiel was completely assured of her victory against him based on her mastery of spirit magic over his own. But he was not merely a Kitaan. He was also a swordsman. He would end it in one strike. He held his weapon’s sheath in his left hand, placing Abyss in it.

  Placing his right foot forward, he took a defensive stance. “I may not be a natural Kitaan like you, but I have trained myself in the way of the sword. Allow me to show you what I have learned in my life. Behold, Sephiel, the Sacred Dragon Style, taught to me by Master Xehemoth, Lord of Dragons.”

  “Shut up!” Sephiel yelled, and went for a heart strike. But Keta had already focused all his attention on the goal. He could see everything, and he was ready for it. And he drew Abyss from its sheath at blinding speed at an upward arc.

  Sephiel’s eyes went wide as blood spurted into the air. Her armor shattered at the impact, and a giant slash across her body had appeared from hip to shoulder. Her hand that she had been attacking with had went limp from the cut. Her face blank, she fell to her knees in shock.

  Keta let out a sigh of relief. The greatest defensive technique, the Zero Point Counter. The only one of the members of Sanction to master it had been himself. It relied on using the teachings of the Dragon Style to hone in on one’s surroundings to make time slow to a crawl, and unleash a counter to intercept an enemy’s projected attack.

  However, only Keta was able to pull it off properly, thanks to his incredible speed. It would never work on an opponent twice, once they knew it was coming. Master Inferno had always remarked that if done properly, the first time was the last time an opponent would ever see it.

  However, as Keta looked upon Sephiel’s crumpled body, blood staining her armor, he knew that wasn’t the case for her. Keta never aimed to kill and he wasn’t about to start. Despite his aversion to fighting, he was still a master of the sword.

  “You won’t be able to continue fighting, those wounds are too intense to do so. Still, you’d best seek out your medics after the battle,” Keta said, sheathing his blade and slinging it over his shoulder, “I’ve no doubt that Xegin have excellent first aid.”

  As he started to walk away, he heard the voice, barely a squeak compared to earlier. “I don’t understand...I am the true Kitaan. This is impossible.”

  Keta’s step faltered. The chaotic sound of battle was all around him. He really didn’t have time for this. And yet, he turned around. “You are right...and wrong at the same time. What I am doesn’t automatically define me, just as it doesn’t define you. I’ll keep moving forward, despite my past. Do I not deserve a future I can work towards as well?”

  The truth was, after the events at the Genesis lab, he had been questioning himself a lot. And in the end, he had come to a conclusion. “Regardless of the circumstances of my birth, I choose my own path. I will fight for those who cannot. It shouldn’t matter if I’m Kitaan or not. That’s what I think, anyways.”

  Sephiel’s head slumped, and she didn’t say anything. It was as if her spirit had been sapped out of her. Keta felt pity for her. Even though she had said some terrible things, it was clear that she believed it all with her entire being. His eyes darted to the side, realizing that the fighting was picking up. He had to keep moving.

  “You know, amongst all the hate and sadness of today, I do feel some happiness. Until now, I believed I was the only Kitaan. Now I know you exist. It may take a long time, but I hope that one day we can speak as friends.”

  He thought he saw her head rise slightly when he said that. He quickly added, “Well, there’s no point dwelling on that right now. Farewell, Sephiel. Until we meet again.” And he made his way towards the ominous figures in the distance, completely aware of Sephiel muttering “Fool!”

  12

  Tianna had been given specific instructions for this battle. She was to
protect the Destroy Cannon. The soldiers would attack the army head on to distract them, but the Imperial Generals were to prevent the enemy from disrupting setting up Destroy.

  And so, she had seen the Human general Erisda Walker head straight for it. She knew the man. They had been friends. She also knew she stood no chance against him. That was why they had brought their secret weapon, that Demon mercenary.

  Keta had appeared on the battlefield as well. Sephiel had asked for the chance to take him out, so Tianna had deferred to her on that. Tianna was in no hurry to ever face Keta Night in battle again.

  And so she had seen her ally fall to Keta, much to her surprise. Sephiel was one of the most gifted soldiers she had ever known. She had no choice now. She needed to come to Delta’s aid.

  Before she could move to intercept, she became acutely aware of a new presence. “State your business.”

  A calm and pleasant voice spoke. “I’m sorry, but I’m afraid that I must be your opponent.”

  The image of a Human soldier standing before her appeared in Tianna’s mind. He looked young, or at least younger than her. And yet, she noticed that he wore the same uniform that Erisda wore.

  Tianna didn’t have a moment to lose. “Out of my way, Human. I don’t have time to waste dealing with you.”

  If the person in front of her was intimidated, he certainly didn’t show it. “Oh, but I feel I must insist.”

  This Human had gall, Tianna gave him that. “You seek to challenge a Xegin to combat alone? Have you lost your wits, soldier, or is your army simply not proficient in tactical analysis?”

  And then she heard a chuckle from the young man, who walked forward closer. “Oh, but we are tactical. You see, that young man over there is doing great work for us.” And he pointed to where Keta was now climbing the hill.

  Delta had already set up the weapon, and it looked to be charging. But she needed to buy him time. As much as she hated Keta right now, he was playing right into their hands.

  She whirled around in outrage, pulling her gun from it’s holster and aiming it at her assailant. “Damn you! You Humans are taking advantage of Keta!”