The Last Conjura

Chapter 3

Chapter 3

RYUU

It was all too much. It was all too much to handle. The second she walked passed the door, I broke down.

“Why’d he have to save me?”

I crashed to the ground under my body weight and buried my face in my palms. After playing it off for six months, I couldn’t do it anymore. I just couldn’t. 

I wasn’t better than my brother. I wasn’t even half the man he was.

“You left me here to deal with all of this, you dick!” I muttered while my tears seeped through. “I couldn’t do it when you were here. I couldn’t conjure it back then. How do you expect me to do it now that you’re dead, you moron?” I wept even more.

It’s my fault.

Katana didn’t kill him. I did. I DID!

I’m weak. The fate of the Conjuras lied in my tear-drenched palms, and I couldn’t even conjure my—

“You crying?”

Hmm?

My eyes were still soaked with tears when I rose my head up to glance at the source of that light and fluttery voice.

“Let me guess, Jared?”

She softened her gaze, and it was almost like her purple pupils dilated. 

“No?” she flirted with her slick black hair, “… of course. It has to be Jennifer.”

“Who are—”

“Gabby” she crouched,l but didn’t take her eyes off me for a single second. “Tell me, was it both of them?” she smiled, and my sorrow was soon overtaken by embarrassment.

“Oh, it was both of them, wasn’t it?” she pouted. “You should’ve punched them. That’s what I did” she reached out to help me up.

“You landed a hit?”

“You didn’t?” she remarked as soon as I was up, and my unamused response made her giggle. “Sometimes, you gotta return the energy, new kid.”

“Ryuu. My name’s Ryuu.”

“Hmm. Sounds famil— Wait. Y… You’re a Conjura, aren’t you? Adachi’s little brother, right?”

“R… right.”

“I knew it. He talks about you all the time.”

“He d—”

“Where’s that devil hiding now?” she looked around in enthusiasm. “He still owes me a hundred—”

“Dead” I didn’t even have the strength to look her in the eyes. “He’s dead.” 

She glanced back at me, a little confused.

…

“What?”

“Luvius, the Katana guy. He came after us and umm…”

I didn’t look up, but her voice was enough to suggest her reaction.

“Katana? The third variant? That… that makes no sense. Adachi’s an upper rank. He’d kill Katana without… Oh…”

She’d fixed the puzzle with a single piece.

“He chose to save you instead, didn’t he?”

My silence was answer enough.

“That selfless bastard” I heard her mutter before she glanced at me, teary-eyed, “he still owes me a hundred dollars.”

Tsk

“You were close?” I asked

She didn’t answer, just stared aloof at the ceiling.

“You’re in big trouble, aren’t you… Ryuu?”

“huh?”

She glanced at me. 

“I knew something was up the moment I got that text.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Adachi’s death, and you on earth can only mean one thing. You didn’t come here alone. You brought them here, didn't you?”

Same thing Jennifer just said

HBut who's 'them'?

And... How? How’d she know that?

“More than half of the higher ranks probably want you dead… and with good reason. That’d explain why my probation was lifted just in time. They want my vote too.”

“Vote? Higher ranks? Proba—”

“The protectors want you dead Ryuu!” she said, with the most serious demeanor. “Today, they’ll decide your fate. With more than enough reasons to kill you, the only reason you were even given a trial and not a ‘kill-on-sight’ order is because Adachi was #6… an upper rank. Or mayve because you've caught the eyes of a superior, though the latter is very unlikely. "

“I… I don’t understand.”

“Hmphhh” she sighed, drying her eyes. “You see, most paranormals are tried before they’re taken in. It’s a long and complex story, but if I was to cut it short, it’s kinda like a court hearing, and the upper ranks are the jury. If more than half of them vote against you, you’ll be seen as a threat, and executed.”

WHAT!

“That makes absolutely no—”

“Listen to me” she said, even more serious. “There’s only one reason Adachi would send you here. Especially if he knew you’d bring along ‘the alternates’…” she stared a little deeper into my eyes. “You’re my responsibility now, and if you want to live, you’re gonna need to trust me. As a matter of fact, you don’t have a choice. YOU HAVE TO TRUST ME.”

I didn’t understand what was going on anymore. I was gonna be killed? Adachi intentionally sent me here? What? Why? Why was—

“Ryuu. Do you trust me?” she walked a little closer, now just millimeters separating us.

I hesitated for a bit, but…

“Mnnn” I nodded. “I trust you.”

“Good” she smiled. “You swim?”

“What?”

“Can you swim?”

“Yeah, why?”

“Hold your breath. Don’t ask, just do it.”

*HISS*

*HUFF*

“Amplification… Water” she whispered, and the room was dead silent, until a bubbling sensation began shaking the floor underneath me.

Huh?

Where was that coming from?

I turned back and looked down. Were those… my tears?

I turned back to her, and she looked at me with a smile on her face.

“Oh, I’m so bagging another probation for this stunt…” her eyelids batted for a split second, and I saw her pupils fully dilate. “…RIPPLE.”

*WHOOSHHHH*

The tear turned into a torrent and crashed through the room, engulfing everything in its path.

In moments, we both were overtaken by its powerful surge, and soon surfing through the halls of the building. 

“Gab—”

“Trust me” she repeated, not even glancing to look at me. 

Her attention was on something ahead. I looked forward to see it too.

“Shit!”

We were headed straight for the glass pane of a window.

Wait a minute, what floor were we on?

I looked back at Gabby, and she had the most sinister look on her face. Did she not see what I was seeing? If she didn’t do something soon, we’d be whooshed out of this building, and definitely—

“Quantum Control…”

Huh?

“…Harden.”

*SHHHHHHH-SMASH*

A long piece of ice shot out of the water behind us, smashing through the glass, through the window, and flying through the air.

Shit! That was the fifth floor. We’re dead!

“Dampening… Air” she said, clasping her hands instinctively.

*WWWWWOOOOO-OOO-OOOSHHHH*

I was calculating all possible ways to avoid a life-ending fall, up until that moment. That was when it clicked.

Quantum Control. It was the elemental ability to distort the size, shape and volume of the four basic elements. That was why she was able to amplify my tears, why she was able to harden those tears and form ice, and why she tampered with air molecules the second we broke through the glass. We were floating.

We… 

“Ryuu?”

“Huh?” I couldn’t take my eyes off her. What sort of power was—

“Ryuu, watch out!”

“Huh?”

TWATT

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

“Hey. Hey Ryuu. Yeah, I think you should wake up now.”

That was probably Gabby’s voice. I couldn’t really tell. There was this sharp pain at the side of my head.

“You gotta get up now.”

She helped me up way before I my eyes could bat open.

“What… happen—’

“You… you umm… you crashed into a bald eagle” she pulled me up. 

“How did I—”

“LADIES AND GENTLEMENNNN, LET’S GET READDYYYYYY TO RUMBLLEEEEEEEEEEEE”

Huh?

I looked up, and we were surrounded by a gathering of fierce looking characters, chanting and cheering their lungs out.

“Uhhhh Gabby, where are we?”

“Side quest.”

“What do you mean, side quest. What happened to my trial? And…” I looked around before turning back to her, “…what are we doing in an underground fight club?”

“I thought you said you trust me.”

“Gabby, I’m about to DIE!” I said, a lot louder than I should’ve, though with the screams surrounding us, no one except Gabby heard that. “Why are we here?”

“There are currently four active upper ranks. Four protectors whose votes will determine whether you live or die. Jared is #4. He obviously wants you dead. Koman is #7, and he’s Jared’s star student. They’re on the same team. The remaining upper ranks have already been posted out. They wouldn’t be able to make it to your trail on time. Even if you have my vote, it’s not gonna be enough. We need at least one more vote to keep you alive” she paused for a bit. “The Downtown Fight Club has a champion.”

While she talked on, I saw the exact scenario play out before me as the announcer kept milking it.

His hair was moon-white, his walk, domineering, and his mug, something out of a mortal kombat cutscene. He was an upper-rank? That’s got to be the biggest man I’ve ever—

“His opponent. That’s who we’re here for” Gabby said, and my head turned to the other end of the rickety ring.

Who the fuck was that?

“You can’t be serious.”

“He went M.I.A after a mission seven months ago. Kyou Ittetsu… #5.”

“5? This kid’s stronger than Adachi?”

“Kid?” she looked at me with sudden disgust. “Just watch” she said.

The announcer’s long and dramatic introduction went over my head. I just wanted to see them fight already. From their reactions, so did the crowd.

The second the bell rang, I paid him close attention. What exactly did this 5’9, scrawny-looking ‘Ittetsu’ have that—

*THWARP*

*THUD*

Did… did he just knock the big guy out? In a second?

The whole crowd went silent. That… that wasn’t supposed to—

“You…” Ittetsu called out, and his gaze shifted from his fallen opponent… to me.

“What?”

“Hey redhead…” a stranger shoved me. “He’s talking to you.”

“Gabby, I don’t—Gabby? Gabby!” 

Where’d she go?

“Kid!” 

“Go on!”

“Move it!”

“Don’t waste our time!”

I was pushed from the backline straight to ringside. 

“Go on, hop in.”

Hop in? I don’t want to di—

I was shoved once more, and stumbled into the ring.

*GULP*

“I know you, don’t i?” Ittetsu didn’t sound like he looked. Not one bit. That baritone wasn’t supposed to emanate from someone that looked like he was just finishing puberty—

*SLAMM*

I hadn’t even looked him in the eyes when I felt the full force of his right leg slam against my stomach. 

“My… God” that was way worse than Jared’s.

“You’re the one who caused it, aren’t you?”

“What? What are you talking ab—”

*THWARP*

Another kick in my direction was enough to get some blood flowing. 

“Shit! I’m just two hits in. He’s gonna kill me.”

I had to make a break for it. So much power had to mean that he lacked something. I just had to hope it was speed.

“Somebody get me out of—”

I’d sprinted off the ground, and turned to the crowd that surrounded the cage… but there was no one there. Not a single soul. It was bleak darkness.

Almost in slow motion, I turned back to look at Ittetsu. He was… right in front of me!

“Running? Your brother would be ashamed.”

*PUNCH*

A straight left pummeled me so hard, I clattered down to the canvas almost on instinct.

I… I couldn’t feel anything. I couldn’t see anything. My vision was blur—

“Because of you, more than a thousand people died on my watch” I heard him say, grabbing me by my collar. “I hated your brother, but at least he was a decent opponent.”

The grim look in his red iris, the way his jaw was clenched in anger... 

Did he get taller?

He didn’t look like what he did thirty seconds ago. “You brought Luvius here, and he killed my entire neighborhood. I blamed myself. Blamed myself for not being there. My cousins, nieces, five-month old nephew, friends… they’re all dead… because of you.” 

My eyes managed to flutter a little wider, and his face left me shook. That was no 16-year-old? How’d his face change so—

“My regards to your brother…”

His hands flew towards my face. If it connected, it’d definitely be over for me. 

I couldn’t get out of this. There was no way I could. I glanced to his face and once more our eyes met. I could’ve sworn, this wasn’t what he looked like thirty seconds ago.

Wait a second, was this his ability? I… I’d heard about them… 

THE JINZHENS!

*GRAB*

Just before his fist could connect, I held it.

“Enough!”

*POWWWW*

I hit him with everything I had, and it propelled him through the air, forcing him to crash down a couple meters away on the bloodied canvas.

The second my feet hit the ground, I felt it. An electrifying pulse that sizzled through my blood. Would this be my time? Could this be my—

“Simple Technique!” Ittetsu yelled with the meanest mug. “…Phantasm Duel.”

Ah yes, He was definitely a Jinzhen. Cause I remember the Phantasm Duel. A simple but efficient shred in the fabric of reality.