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| Part Seven: The Temple of the Damned | ||||||||||||
| By Richard LeBlanc | ||||||||||||
| Down amidst the carnage and devastation Talon walked and breathed in deeply the scent of death that surrounded him. Around him he could see the hundreds of souls that stood trapped between the land of the living and the dead. | ||||||||||||
| "For one hundred years - one hundred long years. I waited. Not by choice - but by the meddling design of others. But - the fault - was not wholly theirs. Oh no - I allowed myself to revel in my own immortality - the belief that I had forever to fulfill the prophecy - and my destiny," Talon said as the surrounding spirits began swaying back and forth as he spoke. Talon walked over to where a toppled truck was and stood atop it. | ||||||||||||
| "But - I shall wait no more. The foolish world - has forgotten - the dark legacy - my promise that I would one day return. From here - we shall expand like a ripple in a large unsuspecting pond," he began as he looked over to where the ruins of the Tendo Dojo was. "Here - is where stood my temple - here - shall it stand - once again!" he shouted out. The ground around him began to shake. A sinister looking onyx-black mountain rose up from beneath. | ||||||||||||
| Talon looked around at the swaying spirits and then at his temple. He remembered well the days of his dynasty - when his rule was near absolute. To this day - how they managed to rebel - how they managed to organize themselves so fast perplexed him. | ||||||||||||
| He remembered fleeing the capital of his empire with his top priests and fighters - and remembered looking back - seeing his once proud temple in flaming ruins. Now here - so many thousands of years later - once again he found himself standing in its glorious foreboding shadow. | ||||||||||||
| "At last my children - we are home," he said to himself as he hopped down from his perch. He was about to continue to his temple when he stopped. He blinked twice as he looked over his shoulder. "I - feel something is amiss," he began as he looked around the panoramic scene of destruction. He stopped. "Someone is here - someone is heading this way. I can feel the waves of hate her aura is pulsating," he mused. "Perhaps she is the one," he pondered tracing his finger along his chin. | ||||||||||||
| He walked over to the large spiraling staircase that led to the entrance of his temple and looked around at the large army of swaying spirits. | ||||||||||||
| "What better way - than to test her?" he said out loud. He clapped his hands together. The ghosts and spirits began to look almost tangible. Ethereal, glowing ancient armor appeared on them. | ||||||||||||
| His army was ready. | ||||||||||||
| "Among this devastation is a living soul. Find her - and take her down. She is not to reach here alive," he said as the unnatural army began to stager away. "If she is the one - she will survive them and continue here. If she is not - she will die," he mused as he slowly ascended the stairs to see which way the coin would fall. | ||||||||||||
| * * * | ||||||||||||
| A far distance away from the temple - Akane stopped and looked at the mountain that had just rose where the dojo - and her home had been. She clenched her fists as she got ready to continue on her way. It was then that she saw a small mob of ghost-like beings swaggering out from around a corner. | ||||||||||||
| "Not good," she muttered. "At least they look slow," she added. It was then that the eyes of the unnatural entities began to glow. Their postures instantly changed to those of seasoned martial artists. "I had to open my big mouth," she muttered as they raced in to kill her. | ||||||||||||
| Akane shouted out as she spun around - drilling her elbow through one fighter's armor - shattering it. She then threw a devastating punch at another fighter that almost took his head off. | ||||||||||||
| She knew that she was outnumbered. She knew that whatever these things were - were probably more skilled than her. But all she could see was her sister. All she could hear was the voice in her head saying how she let her down when she was needed the most. | ||||||||||||
| She shouted out as grabbed one fighter by the head and landed a backhanded punch so potent that the fighter spun around like a top - falling onto two other fighters. | ||||||||||||
| "If you think I am going to let any of you stop me from getting to this Talon person - you are sorely mistaken!" she stated as the mob hesitantly backed away. She was going to advance when she saw a larger fighter lifting up a toppled car. He rolled to the side as the car came crashing down where she was. | ||||||||||||
| Akane looked at the fighter and watched as he moved. His movements were not overly fast - but were very methodical. As she looked at him closely - she could swear that she saw the aura of a large bear surrounding him. | ||||||||||||
| "You must be their boss. If you think I'm scared of you - you are dumber than you look," she stated. A chill slid down her spine as she heard the large fighter laugh. She looked around and watched as the other fighters - the ones that were still standing - formed a circle around them. | ||||||||||||
| Her larger foe slowly made his way towards her. There was no subtlety to this one. But Akane knew that it wasn't needed. All this fighter had to do was hit her once and she would be toast. | ||||||||||||
| Akane rolled to the side as a arching blow shredded the rocky ground as though long claws were on his seemingly bare hands. She blinked and could see gravel and dirt falling from the illusionary claws. | ||||||||||||
| Over the course of the next few minutes - she had played a game of hit and run with her larger more powerful foe. It was then - when she believed she had wounded him enough that she leaped up and landed a powerful punch across the large fighter's jaw. | ||||||||||||
| As she gracefully landed - the fighter staggered back and fell down. As he dissipated like a fine mist - the fighters around her did the same. | ||||||||||||
| "They must have been connected somehow," she muttered. She took a few moments to catch her breath before she continued on her way. | ||||||||||||
| * * * | ||||||||||||
| In his temple - Talon watched in a large crystal as Akane continued on her way. | ||||||||||||
| "Has the power to withstand the bear - impressive - but you still have a long way to go before you reach my front door," Talon remarked. He looked over to the side to where an animated guard was standing. "If - she makes it to my temple - she is not to be stopped - disturbed or touched - go," he ordered. The guard nodded and slowly shambled away. "Your move - my dear," he mused with a quiet laugh. | ||||||||||||
| * * * | ||||||||||||
| A fair distance away - Akane encountered another group of fighters. Only these ones were faster. The small consolation was - that although they were faster - their hits didn't do quite as much damage. | ||||||||||||
| After a few minutes of sparring she managed to level the last of the small group. She shook her head as she got ready to continue on her way. It was then that a person with the body the size of a small child leaped out blocking her way. His arms were as long as he was tall as were his legs. Although he looked to be human - the way he moved - was clearly not. | ||||||||||||
| She watched as her new foe was leaping around - showing his speed and agility. As she looked at him she could see the aura of a monkey. He then raced at her and attempted to attack her. Akane closed her eyes and threw a punch. | ||||||||||||
| She heard a sickening cracking noise. She opened her eyes and saw her foe twitching on her fist as he fell to the ground. Although agile - clearly he was not the most durable of fighters. She chose not to question her good fortune and continued on her way. | ||||||||||||
| * * * | ||||||||||||
| About ten to fifteen minutes later - Akane found herself panting near the base of the temple. She felt more tired now than she had ever felt in her entire life. Every muscle ached and screamed at her. She had encountered at least seven more mobs and larger foes. Some hurt her - but she kept getting up. She refused to be stopped. She refused to give in until she got her hands on the person responsible for the death of her sister. | ||||||||||||
| "I made it," she muttered. Not focusing on her cuts - bruises and other ailments. She jerked her head to the side as she saw a guard standing by the staircase that led up to the inner sanctum of the temple. "If they think I will let some guards stop me now after I have come this far," she began as she walked over and prepared to fight the guard. Much to her shock and surprise - the guard merely stood there. | ||||||||||||
| Cautiously - she made her way around the guard and ascended the stairs. As she climbed she noticed more and more guards. All of them stood still - passively and let her pass. If the odd one didn't move - she would have sworn that they were statues. | ||||||||||||
| After a short climb up the long winding staircase she stopped and looked around at the scale of the destruction that surrounded this sinister place. She then looked down and saw what was left of her home - and the sign for her father's dojo. She scowled and remembered why she was there. She returned her attention to the stairs and continued upwards. | ||||||||||||
| Minutes later - she was at the top of the staircase and found herself at a point higher than the rest of the surrounding canyon. In her mind - she imagined the rest of Japan - and then the world resembling the carnage she was surrounded by. She turned and glared at the large doors that were covered in ancient markings. | ||||||||||||
| "How am I going to?" she began as the large monolithic doors began to slowly open inwards. She prepared for an ambush or something worse but nothing followed. Slowly - she made her way in. as she did - she saw dozens of guards kneeling with their heads bowed along the hallway that led to another set of doors. | ||||||||||||
| Cautiously she made her way inward - expecting the dormant guards to attack her if her guard dropped. Yet - no such attack happened. She reached the second set of doors and hesitantly reached for it. | ||||||||||||
| Like before - the doors slowly opened inward. Beyond the doors - was darkness. She heard a snapping noise. Then - dozens of torches began to light - showing the large scale of the room - as well as the numerous weapons and armor that adorned the surrounding walls. Slowly as if in a trance she walked in. | ||||||||||||
| It was then that she felt someone watching her! | ||||||||||||
| The doors behind her slammed shut. | ||||||||||||
| She shook her head - expecting a sneak attack - yet nothing - nothing save a quiet laughter. Slowly she looked over and a slender person sitting on a throne that appeared to be fashioned out of broken bones. | ||||||||||||
| "Talon," she hissed. | ||||||||||||
| "I have been expecting you. You are a most impressive young woman," Talon remarked as he slowly rose to his feet. A part of Akane wanted to run - but all she could see - was the man that was responsible for her sister's death. | ||||||||||||
| "Your lackeys couldn't stop me. Prepare to die," she hissed as she took on a fighting stance. | ||||||||||||
| To Be Continued... | ||||||||||||