Same Warriors, New Love Chapter 12

Same Warriors, New Love

Chapter 12: The Lonely Battlefield

Chris felt something within him explode as Cthulu stomped towards him roaring. The creature was massive as it swung down at him ripping up shards of the ground with its sharp claws. The firecaster leapt over another swing as the Great Old One lashed out with its barbed tail. Chris’ skin burned brighter and brighter as he fought and dodged. Something was happening to him, something big.

Suddenly, he was in Cthulu’s grasp with the life being crushed out of him. Chris felt his ribs pop as the creature’s grip grew tighter and tighter. Screaming, the bespectacled teen focused as much of his power as he could muster. The darkness was soon flooded with a burning bright light as Cthulu let out a monstrous shriek that shook the walls and ceiling of the cavern in which they fought.

The teen’s body had become a white light burning with the intensity of a sun’s core and despite all its power, Cthulu couldn’t hold on. The creature turned throwing Chris with all its might sending the firecaster careening towards a far wall. As Chris neared the wall, it began to melt away from the heat his body was creating. Cthulu had not foreseen these events. The boy wasn’t supposed to have that kind of power! Not yet!

The Great Old One looked down at its hand and grimaced. The flesh had been seared and melted away, it had actually been hurt! That was impossible, no mere mortal should contain that kind of power! It looked at the wall the firecaster had flown into and saw that the light had died down. The boy may have had all of that power but maintaining it was another story…

Stomping towards its fallen opponent it decided that the heir to the firecaster throne wouldn’t live to see another day. Cthulu slowly reached into the hole containing its prey, but was only met with a blast of flame. The fire tore through the creature’s hand and scorched the air leading to its head.

Another shriek filled the cavern as purple blood gushed from the stump of what was once a face tentacle. Wearily, Chris stepped out of the hole, his skin still a blazing white. Quickly he looked up revealing his eyes were a fiery red. He took an unsure step out of the hole in the wall and found that he had gained another new ability. The firecaster took another step and another, looking down to see that he was standing on nothing but thin air. He was flying!

A grin crossed his face as he ran through the air towards his massive opponent. Chris had never felt so exhilarating! The power flowing through him was unlike anything he’d ever felt before! He yelled swinging up with everything he had punching Cthulu in the face. It was an unbelievable sight seeing something as small as a mere human punch one of the old gods that towered several stories high, but what was even more unbelievable was seeing the old god stumble backwards as the onslaught continued!

Chris punched and punched and punched sending Cthulu tumbling back. He didn’t care about anything anymore, he just wanted to defeat that beast! Finally Cthulu collapsed to its knees and fell to the ground. The cavern echoed with a strange coughing as the firecaster slowly landed on the beast’s chest. Each step he took left a blazing foot print along the old god’s chest.

The teen began to laugh. He didn’t know he had such incredible power or where it had come from, but he was going to enjoy this! Suddenly he realized where the power had come from…June! She was the whole reason he had gone to that place, the reason he had all of that power! He was there to free her, to bring back the girl he loved!

He was caught completely off guard. The blow sent him flying into the wall only this time his power didn’t cushion him. Part of the wall exploded with him as he slumped to the ground coughing up blood. Where had that come from? Slowly Chris looked up as Cthulu towered over him.

“You are truly powerful, boy,” the old god slowly said in a raspy voice, “but you lack the focus of a true firecaster!”

Chris pulled himself up trying to stand but the impact had been hard. His vision was blurred and his thoughts were fuzzy as he took a step forward and fell face first to the ground.

“Wa…wait!” he demanded spitting up more blood, “Where…where is she?”

Cthulu turned back and kneeled over the boy reaching down and lifting him by the collar of his shirt. His power had dwindled and the fire had died leaving him helpless. The old god twirled him until he was face to face with Cthulu’s glowing red eyes.

“Do you honestly believe I take prisoners?” Cthulu asked as Chris blacked out.

The old god dropped the firecaster and stood, turning back to the watercaster known as Yuoir. The red headed teen watched his master walk by and looked back at his fallen opponent. He could end it all here and now, he could kill the firecaster heir and end their reign…but he wouldn’t. Not here, not like this. When he killed the firecaster he was going to do it where he could prove to everyone that he was the best. Until then he would let his enemy live.

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Chris awoke several hours later. He couldn’t make out anything, but he wasn’t sure if it was because there was no light or because he just couldn’t see. His head throbbed…for that matter so did every inch of him. Suddenly he went wide eyed. June! Where was she? What had happened to her? In the back of his mind something that Cthulu had said came out.

“Do you honestly believe I take prisoners?”

The words shot through his mind as he fell to his knees. His hands fell limp at his side as tears welled up in his eyes. It wasn’t true! June had to be alive! She wouldn’t let some squid faced geek…his heart sank as the thought echoed in his mind. Suddenly the burning was back.

He leapt to his feet as his body once again became enflamed and screamed. His eyes were pouring out steam as he let his head back to release another scream of pain only this time something came out with it. Chris’ body had turned to white flame again and as he screamed, energy built within him until finally it exploded out like a bomb. The cavern walls melted away as the flames poured off the firecaster’s body until finally the light disappeared leaving Chris alone in a field of molten rock.

“June…” he said in a raspy voice as tears poured from his eyes, “You can’t be gone…”

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Ray-Ray looked out the window of his grandma’s house to the see a flash of light appear and then just as suddenly disappear. Outside, Chris stood just staring at the house. His eyes were blank, the emerald color now faded black. His skin even seemed paler as he stood there staring at the eldest Lee’s house.

Somehow, the youngest Lee just knew that something horrible had happened. June wasn’t with Chris, that alone told the boy enough. Slowly he emerged from the house and approached his friend. The air around the firecaster was bitterly cold instead of the usual warmth that normally filled the air around him.

“Chris?” Ray-Ray asked reaching for the teen’s hand.

Suddenly he looked down at the boy and Ray-Ray immediately felt uneasy. He took a step back and Chris just watched him.

“Where’s June?” the youngest Lee asked dreading the answer.

“June…” Chris said softly.

His head turned slowly as if he was looking over his shoulder in search of the Te Xuan Ze, but there was nothing to find. He was alone when he had stepped through that portal. His head turned back to Ray-Ray who was now on the verge of terror.

“June is…gone,” Chris managed to say bowing his head in shame.

He clenched his fists as tears ran down his face. Ray-Ray understood now…at least he thought he understood. His own heart felt like it was being torn apart. His big sister was dead. Why had he just said that? He shouldn’t have said that! It wasn’t true, it couldn’t be! Chris was lying! But…why would he lie about that? He loved June, he’d have done anything for her. Was it truly possible?

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Ah-Mah awoke to find Ashley and Ray-Ray at her side. Her bones ached, but she still pulled herself up. The door opened to reveal Monroe and a very disturbed look upon the pug’s face. One thought ran through the old woman’s mind…where were June and Chris?

“What happened?” the eldest Lee demanded in an angry tone.

No one answered.

“Where’s June?” she asked again in her demanding tone.

Still no one answered. That was when she saw Chris sitting in the hallway. He still wore the blank stare he’d been found with. His eyes were still black and his skin still pale. His condition told Ah-Mah enough.

“Oh God,” she said bowing her head and clenching her eyes. “Oh no… no this…this can’t be true! It…it’s impossible!”

Ashley had been doing her best to hold the tears back, but she just couldn’t hold them off anymore. She buried her face in her hands as she began to cry. Beside her Ray-Ray squeezed her arm doing the best he could to not let his emotions get the best of him. Everything had gone wrong. Without the Te Xuan Ze the balance had been shattered. It didn’t matter how much the others did, June was the key to keeping things from getting out of control.

“Jasmine,” Monroe said in a caring voice, “I know you’re hurting, we all are, but…we can’t let ourselves be caught off guard. With Cthulu and Dende still on the loose, now more than ever we need the Te Xuan Ze.”

The old woman looked at him disbelievingly. It didn’t matter how much it hurt, the pug was right. News spread fast and with June…with June dead, things were about to get a lot worse. Carefully the former Te Xuan Ze stood and walked to the door. She looked back at the children sitting at her bedside and stopped. They couldn’t help her anymore. Things were about to get a lot worse than they already were and she wouldn’t risk losing another grandchild.

Turning out to Chris she kneeled down in front of the boy and raised his head. His eyes were completely blank. She didn’t want to do it, but she was going to need his help. Begrudgingly, Ah-Mah reached back and slapped him across the face, hard. When he didn’t respond she did it again and again until he suddenly came to life catching her hand before she could hit him again. His pupils were red instead of his normal emerald green, but at least he was responsive again.

“Chris, you have to listen to me because everything rests on us now,” Ah-Mah stated in a very serious tone.

The firecaster swallowed and stood following her down the stairs leaving Ray-Ray and Monroe watching from the doorway. Chris was never going to be the same again. June was his whole life and now she was gone. Everyone knew how much she meant to him, they always knew the two of them would wind up together, but no one could have guessed about this. There was no telling just how bad it was about to get.

To be continued…

Juniper Lee is dead! No one wants to admit it and everyone hopes that it’s just a rumor, but it’s the truth. How will a powerless and broken Chris fight Cthulu and its army? Even with Jasmine Lee’s help he’s going to need a miracle just to survive the first assault!

The war starts next time as Cthulu sets its plan in motion! Will anybody survive?