"Shin No Ippo 2" by Brandon ´Red´ Christ

Shin No Ippo II

What have I gotten myself into? Jay thought, she has to eat at least twice a day and has to sleep every night. Plus, she won’t let me kill any animals for meat. I’m getting SICK of those rice balls! Jay turned around to look at the Mai. It had been five days since he had set off with her and she had changed clothes every day. Today she had on a gold and blue Gi, and was twirling her short pike In front of her. Then Jay heard it. First it sounded like a wind stirring a tree, but Jay knew better.

Water

Jay raced off the path, and Mai tried to follow Jay through the brush. "What’s going on?" she asked, but she already saw it. I was a crystal clear river, about five feet deep and ten feet wide. Jay had already ripped off his Gi and jumped in the water, pants and all. He pulled out his knife and tied it to a stick, and disappeared underneath the slow current. He came up with a fish in his mouth and one on the ‘spear’ and threw them at Mai.

"Kill them and put them in the shallows to keep them fresh." He said and he began to scrub furiously at his Gi. Some parts had turned to a dark green, but most of it was still the dark brownish color.

Mai leaned over and asked, "Is that all mud?"

Jay continued to scrub and said, "No, blood. But close though." She jumped up and exclaimed, " Why haven’t you cleaned it in so long?!"

Jay simply responded, “I haven’t found a river that flows into the ocean instead of a town."

She looked at him, and then helped him scrub the Gi as well. When he looked at her, she said, “You’re doing it all wrong, anyway. Now go cook those fish, I’m starving."

The sun had set, and Jay had a good blaze going. He had gutted and skewered the fish, and was now skinning them. He put them on a large, hot rock he had put in the fire, and began to mix some berries with some liquid in a small bottle and put a filter on top of the bottle, meaning only the liquid could escape. He poured out a little onto the fish, and then filled two cups Mai had brought along. Jay dug into his fish like he hadn’t eaten in three days, which he hadn’t, while Mai ate hers slowly, admiring the nomad samurai’s cooking.

"Where’d you learn to make this?" she asked.

"Well," Jay smiled, "when you have to live with yourself for six years you better learn how to cook!"

"Hey…"Mai paused, "You smiled! I didn’t think you ever did!" she exclaimed.

"Not to many times when my mind is taken off Stefan," Jay answered, looking at the fire as if he was remembering something from long ago. Mai looked at his eyes. He was missing something, the twinkle she had just seen in his eyes was gone, and that same sad, yet angry stare was back. "I have to end it. All of it. Then I can go back…. To her…" Jay whispered.

"Her?" Mai asked and smiled, as if she was going to laugh or make fun of him. “Who’s ‘Her’?" she asked.

Jay snapped out of his half-trance, "No one! Just a friend!" he said, moving his hands back in forth in a ‘stop’ signal.

"No one, huh? I’ll get it out of you. Is she pretty? Is she smart?" Mai continued, putting her head in her hand.

"Ghaa… Von Dagga…" Jay muttered, and fell backwards onto his back, while Mai chuckled. "But seriously, what’s she like?" Mai asked, laying down a couple feet from Jay on the small, sandy beach.

"She’s all right." Jay said, digging his feet into the warm sand and kicking it over the fire, turning it into glowing coals. Mai hit Jay over the head with the flat of her short pike. "Ghaa… what was that for? Jay asked, rubbing furiously at his bump.

"For getting sand all over my fish!" Mai exclaimed, and with that, Jay went to sleep.

It was dawn, and Jay was already up. He was under the water again, but this time he was swimming for fun instead of food. He looked around in the water and saw a smooth rock that was just under the surface. He laid down on it, waiting for Mai to wake up. When she finally did, Jay got off the rock and got dressed. When she finally looked ready, Jay said, "Let’s go. We’re almost there, anyway."

"Where are we going?" Mai asked.

"To Gargas, where dwarves are said to live," Jay said, pointing to the mountains. They were gray and bleak. Most believed nothing could survive there, but Jay headed toward them, not looking back. Mai sighed, and followed him.

They were halfway up the mountain, and the path they were on was very wide. "When I joined up with you, Jay, I didn’t think we would go to suck a bleak and gloomy place," Mai sighed, looking up the lifeless mountainside. Jay stopped walking, and put his hand on his sword.

"Shh," he whispered, while a human-like figure came out of the mountainside.

He looked strange indeed. The man was covered in bandages except for his eyes, but his pure red hair was covering his left eye, meaning that only his right, blood red eye could be seen. He wore light, purple armor with a figure of a man with six arms on his armor. He had a purple belt on with six, two-foot swords on it. The hilt was a crosstree with the eye of Osiris on each side. He stepped forward, his metal boots clinking against the rocks.

"Hmm," he said, "It was only a matter of time before I found you, Jay."

"Who are you, that you can speak in such a way as if you knew I was coming?" Jay asked.

"You will know me as Zordos, Jay," Zordos said, “By the way, I’m not here for chit-chat."

"Neither am I," Jay said, and struck at Zordos. But when Jay was about to hit Zordos, an unseen force stopped him. "What the…?" Jay exclaimed. Jay was pushed back, and set on the ground.

"Well Jay, there’s something you should know about me. You see, I’m a telepath," Zordos said as he rose off the ground about a foot. His right eye began to glow a purplish color and his swords drew themselves, floating in the air near Zordos. His blades made an ‘x’ in front of him, and at this, the fight began.

Jay was caught in a maelstrom of weapons, and he couldn’t get out. He would strike a blade away and two more would come from the other side. Jay tried to get close to Zordos, but he would just float farther away. Eventually, Jay just got a grip on a sword and rode it, blocking what came at him. He rode the stiletto until it came close to Zordos, and then flung himself at the telepath, slashing his arm. "Rraa…" Zordos growled, and began the onslaught again.

Jay continued to block the flurry of weapons, waiting for an opening to appear. He watched how Zordos struck, and figured out a strange, yet repeating pattern. After Zordos would fire three swords in a flurry of stabs, he would bring a fourth blade around to strike sideways, and after that he was open for a moment. Jay waited for the opening, and then stabbed at Zordos, cutting him across the cheek. Zordos stopped his weapons, holding them in a shield of sorts.

“I don’t want to do this,” Zordos began, “But if I must, I will read your mind."

"What?!" Jay exclaimed as he felt a stinging feeling wrap around his head. “Get out…" Jay whispered, "Get out… Get out…GET OUT!!!" Jay yelled as Zordos was slung into the ground. Zordos stared into the sky, eyes wide.

 By creating a link, he tapped into my powers! He thought, at this rate, I will lose for sure! I’ll just have to fight harder… Zordos rose from the ground, glowing deep purple and deep red. His weapons surrounded him, blades and spikes outward. They took on the same glow, and began to rotate around him. They spun faster and faster until Zordos was surrounded in a maelstrom of steel, energy and rocks.

Zordos kept trying to ram into Jay, but Jay would sidestep and run away from the edge of the path, knowing Zordos’ intentions. Jay just kept towards the rock, and realized there was only one possibility to strike. It was risky, and Jay didn’t want to, but he knew he had to.

Jay flung himself at Zordos’ maelstrom

Jay did take a few hits, but he managed to get inside the weapons. It seemed like Jay was in a hole with no sound or life, except for Zordos in the center. Jay rammed into Zordos, pinning him to the ground and holding the sword above Zordos’ neck. The weapons fell to the ground, once again becoming lifeless. The glow disappeared, and Zordos closed his eyes, awaiting his death.

But it never came.

Jay got off of Zordos, holding the sword at his neck. "Now tell me, why are you here?" Jay asked.

"Because the dwarves don’t want evil ones discovering their forges, you fool," Zordos said, "you use your sword to kill…"

"The men I lost my friends and family to," Jay finished, sheathing his sword. Jay sat down next to Zordos, and explained what happened while Zordos looked at his memories.

"… I see now why you’ve come," Zordos said. He stood up and walked over to a strange rock. It was a perfect cube, and had carvings in it. Zordos tapped the rock with his hand lightly. The rocks began to part, and a doorway appeared. "Come on, it’s only a short way there," Zordos said, and led the two into the catacombs.

The catacombs were very large and well lit, contrary to Jay and Mai’s thoughts. With a large fire near the ceiling, it looked as if there were a sun. The dwarves were very friendly, if a little gruff. The rock was carved into houses and buildings, and there was a forge next to each one. Many of the men were working, and the women were taking care of the young children. The older children were watching their fathers or mothers, learning the jobs they would do when they came of age. Zordos waved to the dwarves he knew, while leading the two towards a large building made of a shiny, black stone. Jay looked up at the building in awe. There were at least four floors of rooms, never mind the ones hidden in the walls of the cave. Zordos led them in, and gave them a key.

"Ask the dwarf behind the counter to take you to the room on the key. I will be back with friends shortly," Zordos said. He walked out of the building, and headed down the road.

Jay and Mai were in the room, and they stood in awe. There was a hot spring, three beds, and a pile of fruits and drinks in a box of ice surrounded in metal. Jay saw a pair of shorts that looked just his size and put them on behind the curtain. He stepped into the hot water and relaxed, knowing he had some time. Mai tried to figure out her clothes, and it took her a few minutes. When she finally got in, Jay had grabbed one of the fruits and was gnawing at it. It was like a large strawberry, but it was blue and had thorns on the top. Jay ate it, throwing the thorny skin in a garbage chute. By the time the chute closed, Zordos had entered along with a dwarf.

"Jay, this man… dwarf… is going to look at your sword to see if it can become more powerful," Zordos said, acknowledging the dwarf, "his name is Darwin."

"Pleased to meet you," Darwin said, bowing to Mai and Jay. Darwin waddled over to the stone table and sat down. "Well, laddie, lets see this mighty blade of yours," Darwin said while taking out an eyepiece like the ones jewelers use. Jay drew his blade, and set it on the table.

“In all of me life I’ve never seen such forgemanship. This is amazing..." Darwin trailed off, looking closely at the blade. He studied it with complete concentration, not looking up at all. When he was finally done, he took out the eyepiece and looked at Jay. "There is absolutely no way to make this blade any better, save having it blessed. A dragon forged this blade, no questions. The wave edge design, the hilt, everything about it says dragon. No dwarf alive could remake this," Darwin said, standing up and handing the blade to Jay. "Take care of it. It’s indestructible, far as I’m concerned," Darwin said, looking into Jay’s eyes. Jay nodded.

Darwin sat back down and asked, "Lassie, do you got a weapon?"

"Actually, I do," Mai said, and got her pike. Darwin looked at it with a frown.

"Ugh, what a horrible blade. The edge is dulled and it’s made of steel. It should at least have an orafalchon casting…" Darwin muttered, looking down it, "At least it has an orafalchon hilt. It looks like the blade was replaced for some reason. It probably cracked and they couldn’t find a good replacement. Oh, and this isn’t the original, or it’s a failed attempt. The markings indicate that."

Mai looked at it and asked, "Can you make it any better? Maybe forge a new blade in that shape?" "Hmm…" Darwin muttered, “I could reforge it, but it would take a few days. It’s a wave pattern and I’m not the best at those."

"Just follow the shape, Darwin, and make the edge its best," Jay said, and climbed back into the hot water, “I’d say an edge angle of 29 degrees."

Darwin stared in amazement at Jay for a moment, then said, "How’d you learn how to make an edge, Jay?" and Jay simply responded, "It’s the same angle as my sword edge."

Zordos looked like he was thinking for a moment, and then asked, "Darwin, is my new weapon ready?"

"Aye, laddie, it is," Darwin said, wrapping his beard around his left index finger, “It took a while to figure it out, but I have it forged. It’s solid orafalchon, so it won’t break anytime soon." Darwin took out a flute and played a tune into a hole in the wall. A tune came back, and two dwarves came in, carrying a large shaft wrapped in black cloth. Zordos took it from them, shaking their hands and Darwin’s, and undid the cloth. It looked like a normal Rapier, except that it was about four feet long and had a normal hilt. The blade was two inches wide, and it had runes written up the black steel of the blade. Zordos looked at it, and then whipped it around like it was a feather. He brought it down, and pressed the ruby in the hilt.

And the blade fell apart.

The blade separated into pieces, each one matching the other. A thin wire connected the segments together, running from the hilt to the tip piece, which looked like a diamond. I was probably seven feet long now. Zordos waved it around, the whip-like blade moving like a snake in repeating patterns. He pressed the ruby again, snapping it back into its solid form. Zordos wrapped it back into the cloth, and slapped his hand on Darwin’s shoulder. “You have resurrected my old blade," Zordos said, smiling at Darwin, "It’s just like I remembered, before I awakened my powers."

"It was nothing, laddie," Darwin said, looking up at him. Darwin turned to Jay, patting his shoulder, he asked, "I suppose you will be leaving soon, Eh?"

"Three days, probably. If this blade can’t get any better, then I’m going to storm the castle. I have no reason not to, I just have to make a plan," Jay explained, climbing out of the water once again. "Darwin?" Jay asked.

"Yes, lad?" Darwin replied.

"Can I keep these?" Jay asked, holding a piece of the shorts. Everyone was exasperated, and a bit confused.

“What the…?” Jay began, but was interrupted by Mai, yelling, “You made such a tense moment like that to ask for some pants?!” Jay took a few steps back, lifting his hands in front of him and widening his eyes.

"I just thought I would tell my plan and then I remembered that I liked these short swimming pants," He said, being forced into a corner. Mai whacked him over the head with her pike, sending him into a dazed expression. He fell back into the water, floating up face first. By then, Zordos had changed, still in the gauze, and was climbing in. "Well, before we leave, we should enjoy ourselves, shouldn’t we?" He asked, and everyone got dressed, grabbed a drink, and climbed in, avoiding Jay’s unconscious body for a few minutes until he woke up.

A few days had passed, and Jay had formulated a plan, though no one liked it, not even him, but it seemed to be the only option without starting a war. Jay planned to sneak into the royal palace and kidnap the prince; the only possible successor to the throne since the queen was dead and the king was in Silfortha on official business. Jay then planned on leaving a note, calling out Stefan and forcing a duel. Jay knew he couldn’t handle an entire army, but Stefan wouldn’t be a problem. He obviously didn’t have much weapon skill from his information collection, and his armor was large and cumbersome, meant for show, not fighting. If his plan worked out, then Stefan would be dead in one week. If not, well, that is why everyone would wear light veils and mantles. That way no one could be recognized enough to be put on a wanted poster. They had already settled that in no way would the prince come to harm. They would explain to him what was happening, but tell him not to act against him. Stefan would kill the prince the instant he heard he was onto him. Knowledge is power, but using it early is foolishness. Timing is everything, and having the prince on their side would be a great advantage.

Jay, Mai, and Zordos had said their goodbyes to the dwarves and had stocked up on food and water. The Royal Palace was at least four days away, and they needed to hurry.

They group had reached the palace, and were camping out outside the gate on the road. They had a fire going, making them obvious. No one would think a man would be that stupid to set a fire in front of the gate, hoping to attack later. A guard had come over before, but they just gave him a warm drink and some meat. He thanked them and went back, unknowing that they would be enemies later, then maybe allies in the future.

The sun had begun to rise, and Jay had begun to gear up his items. He had put on a black Shinobi suit, strapped two tantos to his right hip, and covered his sword with black cloth to hide any shine. He had rubbed powder onto his blades, making the edges a dull gray. The rest of the group had left towards an old dojo next to a field, where the prince would stay and where the fight would take place. Jay melted into the shadows, and he began his mission.