Chereads / Valley Of The Kings / Chapter 25 - Chapter 25 - Not. Even. Close.

Chapter 25 - Chapter 25 - Not. Even. Close.

Seijuro and Lily stand there completely still, while the nightmare maintains his sinister smile,

A nightmare… we could barely handle a boogeyman on our own…

He begins to sweat and anxiety fills his heart, as he begins to shake. He glances at Lily, who has the same expression as himself. She finally breaks the silence,

"W-who are you?" Her voice cracks a little and she stutters, exposing her fear.

The creature simply lets out a deep chuckle and continues to stare at them without blinking,

"I have answered this question before, child. I am your saviour. The saviour, once I fulfill my purpose. They will reward me, with everlasting life."

"Who's 'they'? Are you referring to the Kings?!" Seijuro asks,

"You will see soon enough, if you survive that is." A shiver passes down their spines upon hearing this,

We're dead… there is no way out of this…

Lily's eyes remain widened, as her thoughts spiral and her hope begins to diminish. The creature doesn't stop staring at them,

"What do you want! You killed so many children and for what?!" Seijuro exclaims, as his fear was now starting to be overshadowed by his anger,

"Oh child… your mind is so closed. Ignorance is a curse. I have been given power and with it, I can finally please my Lord. I've took the souls of many children, even before my glorious transformation." That's when it clicks within Seijuro,

"You… are real. Jashin the ghost." Lily turns her head to face Seijuro,

"Yoshiki, you know this monster?"

"Our mother used to scare us with stories about him. He would sneak into children's rooms and kidnap them. I used it sometimes to try scare Ren."

"So, you know of me, but I can assure you. I am no monster. I am the saviour and I am here to offer you greatness! Join my clan! We can be united together in the Eternal Shadow, laughing in the face of death. Such a weakness will have no hold over us any longer!" Seijuro grips his sword tightly, his fear of Jashin has completely diminished and is now replaced with fury,

"I would rather die than join your cult!" Seijuro glances at Lily, her face still showing signs of fear, however she nods at him and readies herself for the worst.

Jashin looks at them both and his smile has now disappeared. He places his palm on his face and looks down, towards the grass. He lets out a long sigh and speaks, sounding disappointed,

"Such foolishness. You would give the chance of immortality and freedom for what? Just to die by my hand? You do not know a good deal when you see one, do you?"

"You speak of purpose, but what is the purpose of life without death?! I would rot in a ditch then serve you!" Lily finally speaks, snapping out of her shocked state from earlier,

"You speak well… for a woman." He says mockingly.

She glares at Jashin, her eyes now filled with hatred. His eyes move back and forth between Seijuro and Lily. He no longer smiles and just simply stares at them with a look of disgust and anger,

"Well then, seeing as my attempt to bring you to the light have failed, I guess I must remove your very existence off the face of this Earth. Such arrogance and blindness sickens me. It is quite funny, not a single person has ever accepted my offer." He cracks his neck and then his lips curl into a large smile, as he tilts his head.

He suddenly stomps his left foot in the ground, causing to crack and the ground to shake violently. He slowly lifts his hand above his head, still keeping his eyes on the pair of dreamcatchers,

"Thunder Type: Gates of Hell." They both look up to see lightning bolts raining down on them.

Seijuro and Lily evade, performing backflips and side stepping to dodge the incoming attacks. Jashin then charges in and swings his left hand directly at Lily's face. She quickly reacts, using her staff to block to the attack. Seijuro swings his blade, but a quick kick from Jashin sends him away, crashing into several trees. She swings her staff towards the right side of his head, however he quickly leans back and lifts his left foot up towards her chin. He performs a split kick, which Lily barely moves her head back. She feels the force of the attack on her face,

His speed and strength is unreal!

They start to trade blows. Her staff connects with his fists. Each swing of his was becoming stronger than the last,

Damn it! I'm getting pushed back! He's not leaving any openings! I can't use any of my techniques!

A quick left hook lands on her right cheek, causing her to let out a gasp and her vision to blur. Her head whips around, due to the impact, however Seijuro quickly intervenes, running on Jashin's right side. His head turns to face him, smiling at him,

"Ryu's Breath!" He swings his blade at his neck, however he quickly readjusts his footing and performs backflip.

He suddenly leaps into the air using his hands, his body position upside down. Dark purple lightning sparks out of his hands, as his hands clench together to form a fist,

"Lightning Type: Death Bolt." He jabs his fist forward violently.

A large dark purple bolt is released from his fist, charging directly at Seijuro. He blocks the attack with his sword, however the impact sends him flying through numerous trees,

"YOSHIKI!" Lily yells, but before she can say or move, from behind her she hears his voice,

"You should worry about yourself." Those words sends shivers down her spine and she swings her staff around, aiming for his head.

By the time she has turned around, he has vanished. She glances around only to hear his voice again behind her,

"Not. Even. Close." A sudden kick to her left side sends her flying to the side.

Lily crashes through several trees, before slamming into the grass. Jashin positions his left leg back and his right leg forward. He leans his body back onto his left foot, as both of his legs begin to emit dark purple sparks,

"Lightning Type: Night Flash." He swings his legs at Lily, each kick producing a bolt.

Each of his attacks connect, causing her to stumble back. The last strike sends Lily into a tree and she falls to her knees. She coughs and gasps for air. Her forehead is cut severely and her mouth begins to bleed. Jashin slowly walks towards her and he lifts her up by her hair,

"Be careful what you wish for, child." She spits on his face and that only causes his anger to elevate,

"YOU INSOLENT CHILD!" He throws her to the floor and lifts his hand above his head.

A blade suddenly pierces his chest causing his head to raise up. He looks behind himself to see Seijuro, breathing heavily and staring directly at him,

"Die… you sick freak…" He removes his blade and Jashin begins to gasp,

"Oh no! Help… someone… I'm sorry!" He begins to beg and Seijuro and Lily sigh in relief.

Suddenly, he swings his fist directly into Seijuro's stomach, forcing the air out of his lungs,

"Missed my heart." Jashin chuckles and looks in his eyes, smiling mockingly,

"Oh child… did you really think I would be that stupid? That I wasn't aware of you being behind me?" He kicks Seijuro in the face, causing him to fall and roll on the grass, landing flat on his stomach,

His power is insane… he doesn't have to worry about being hurt… he is… too fast… Mother… I'm sorry…

Jashin grabs Lily's head and lifts her up, her feet dangle in the air. Her body was severely injured,

It's over… brother… I'm coming to join you…

Seijuro slowly begins to get to his feet and he stumbles a bit, as he regains his footing,

"Hey!" Jashin turns his head around to see him standing.

He had a bloody nose and a large cut across his cheek. His haori and top were ripped, exposing certain parts of his abdomen and back. His pants were ripped from his knees. Seijuro breathes heavily and his arms dangle in front of him, still clutching his sword,

"I'm not… done…" He says inbetween breaths,

Damn it… just a few hits from this guy… has caused me this much damage…

Jashin throws Lily to the side, who has passed out due to fatigue,

"I am impressed, boy. You are quite resilient. Maybe death doesn't suit you."

"Just… shut up… and fight…"

"Very well." Jashin teleports directly in front of Seijuro.

He swings his left foot in his face, however he lifts his blade to block. He pushes his leg back and swings directly at his torso,

"Ryu's Breath!" It cuts his chest open, however it begins to regenerate,

"You are stronger than this, boy!" A jab lands on Seijuros face causing his head to whip backwards.

Another right hand lands and he stumbles back, however he refuses to fall,

"Such commitment! Such bravery!" Jashin lands a front kick on his abdomen and he is sent flying into a tree, spit flies out of his mouth.

In an instant, he appears directly in front of Seijuro,

"Thunder Type: Hell Storm." Jashin begins swinging at an alarming rate.

Each blow causes Seijuro feel more dizzy and weaker. He stumbles and tries his best to keep his balance, however the final blow causes the tree behind to break and he suddenly collapses on the ground, on his back,

I'm done… I cannot move… anymore… I can't let this guy… take the lives of anymore children… Ren… I won't… let you down… again… by letting anyone else… go through what you did…

"You lasted quite a while. I am impressed. I might keep you over the girl. You definitely have potential." Seijuro begins to grit his teeth and slowly sits up.

Blood trickles down his forehead and his body is bruised. His rib cage was cracked and it hurt to breathe,

"Still persistent. You really are too valuable to let die." Seijuro grips his sword and slowly lifts his head up.

He positions his sword behind him and glares at Jashin, who stares back with a smug smile,

I have one more idea… but… I don't know if it will work…

His right eye was badly bruised and he now coughs a bit of blood out of his mouth,

"May I know your name? Such determination should not be dismissed."

"Seijuro… Seijuro Yoshiki…" He says inbetween breaths,

"Seijuro Yoshiki! Give me your best shot!" He says enthusiastically, as he now begins laughing,

"That name… will be the last thing you hear…"