Chapter 3

The finish

I was still in thought as I looked at my master. Several things were confusing me about him that I thought I knew.

I had found out that his name was Nichols, he obiously wasn’t Oriental. Then, of course, was the fact that he had a significant amount of magic. I mean, come on, he had handily defeated Krampus.

Oh yeah, then there was the fact that he was far older than I thought he was. Master looked at me, seeing the confusion washing over my features more and more.

“I promise you little one, I will try. I am afraid that your mind might not accept everything that will explain all. I was hoping for a few more years to teach you,” master said.

“Yes, we need to discuss this, you lied to...,” I started.

“No, I did not lie, I never lie. I told you what I could without confusing you. To do that would be worse than lying. You are far more important than you think you are,” master said.

“Far more important?! Master, I am nothing, I have always been nothing. To my family, I am a constant reminder of the death of our parents. To this city I am the holder of my father’s accounts, to the world I am even less. So, please do not tell me that I am important, never felt like I was, so I am nothing,” I told a shocked master.

Master was nodding his head. I wasn’t sure whether or not he understood my point of view. I was going to try and make damn sure he did before I was committed to something else.

“As I said, I was hoping to have a few more years to train you, before we reached this point. Though, as I saw, you have something that I am sure that he wasn’t counting on; your innocence,” master said.

“Innocence?! Are you sure you’re talking about me? I feel I am far from innocent,” I told him.

“Oh, I am sure, believe me, you have not experienced much. Though, even with the abuse you have, you are still a loving, believing brother that you were,” master said.

I started to say something, then snapped my mouth shut. I mean really, what could I say after that?

“So, you know your oldest sister far better than I do. Have you any plan, strategy on how to handle her, this situation in general?” Master asked.

I stood there contemplating the whole situation. Here I thought master had a plan to start with. I hadn’t thought he would be deferring to me.

“How much time do we have before that smoke thing shows up again?” I asked.

Master chuckled a bit, then turned serious. “I am afraid it won’t be as long as I’d hope, though enough to get ready.”

Hmmm I thought, as master quieted, I have an idea after all,” I said with a quirky smile.

Wendy was starting to get worried, with two of the best bodyguards with them, they should have returned. She went through all the monitors after Helen and Mandy had left. It was the second time though that Wendy spotted the watchers, then the followers.

She cursed, as she called her own bodyguard, Janice. After Wendy showed the recording to her, Janice shook her head. “This is not good, Miss Wendy. Even as prepared as we are now, I do not think that we have a chance. If they had this many following your sisters, they will surely have even more waiting for us. You and I are the most valuable, plus, we don’t know exactly if they have been taken or not,” Janice said.

“As if we have a choice, if they have my sisters, then we are defeated. I will not put them in jeopardy in order to save my own life,” Wendy said.

Janice was still staring at the screen, “perhaps we have an ally after all.” Janice pointed to a small area of the screen where several of the followers disappeared suddenly.

Wendy stared at the screen intensely, then blinked as men just seemed to blink out of existence. “Can you tell who it is?” Wendy asked.

Janice shook her head no, “they are far more trained than I. This seems to indicate someone very well-trained in the art.”

Wendy could only nod her head as she watched over and over, the men seemingly to just blink out of existence.

“I thought we were safe here,” Wendy said.

“This place is nearly impregnable, though you should remember that is in normal circumstances. We are most certainly dealing with very well-trained people. People that for whatever reason they have are dedicated to capturing us,” Janice said.

“What do you suggest?” Wendy asked.

“We should move out in all haste, to the place that your youngest and other sisters went to,” Wendy said.

Wendy sighed then nodded, “I just hope that they are watching out for us, whoever it is.”

I watched as both women started to move out of our home. I was surprised when I saw Wendy moving along with what appeared to be minimal martial arts skills. I mean, she wasn’t that trained, but she had more than most.

It was when she took out the first that appeared in front of her, then the second. I could see that she’d caught them off guard, and it wasn’t going to happen again.

I watched as Wendy’s mouth dropped open as the next five just seemed to blink into thin air. Thankfully, Janice got her moving faster than they had been.

“We need to move. That was, I fear, a feeler for us. The next time I fear they will send far more,” Janice said.

They were almost at the entrance to master’s dojo when a good twenty more appeared behind them. Janice pushed Wendy through the doorway into Mandy and Helen’s arms, then took up a defensive position.

“I am ready sir,” Janice whispered under her breath. She moved fairly well, though nowhere to the skill of master and I. She had five down when they moved in mass with another ten.

I’m not sure who was more surprised when the first fifteen seemed to vanish, then appear a few seconds later unconscious. Obviously, these were better trained as they didn’t stop their advance upon Wendy.

The last twenty suddenly formed a circle around where I was. I nodded with a smile, remembering my master’s warning.

As the five behind me fell, the last of them paused for the first time. This gave me a chance to secure the area behind me. As the rest started to fall, I could feel their boss start to reform himself.

Great, I thought, as I disposed of the rest there. I sighed when their boss waved a hand, making another hundred appear. “So afraid to face me?” I told him.

A toothy smile appeared on the face of the smokey-now solid creature. “Not at all, though I wish to give you all my power in our fight, that will make your defeat that much sweeter. OH, I am sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. I am Krampus. You, I already know as the next Guardian, Randy Seti. A very dangerous position, to be for sure.”

“I see, so you are the demon spirit that punishes the lives of little children,” I taunted.

“Hmmmm,” Krampus said, “Well put Guardian, though I have grown tired of that after so long. No, they do have the freshest, tastiest souls. After I have consumede enouigh I WILL have enough power to finally show Nichols the error of his ways. Helping and rewarding the young and innocent, bah what a waste of time.”

The more I heard, the madder I got, how dare this demented thing take the souls of the innocent?

My master appeared a moment later, not far away from me. “You will not interfere, you pitiful excuse for an immortal.”

“Oh, I don’t plan on interfering, I don’t have to. Have you forgotten the legend? I am not the only one here. It is a very, very rare thing to actually see the death of an immortal,” my master said with a huge smile on his face. “I will miss your arguments, among a few other things.”

A look of anger appeared on Krampus’ face as he looked around, seeing who ever I was not privy to seeing. He then turned back toward master. “That is all that it was a legend. There has never been anything to show that it was true. As you recall from the legend, it said that a new guardian would be the reason an immortal was destroyed. He is just a guardian, not an immortal. He could not destroy me. I will take a guardian’s soul when he is defeated. Then, we will see who is truly powerful.”

I was shocked a moment later when a very bright light shone out from in between Krampus and me. Then I heard a voice, though I wasn’t sure if it was from the air or in my head.

THIS IS A CONTEST BETWEEEN THE GUARDIAN RANDY SETI AND THE IMMORTAL KRAMPUS. THERE WILL BE NO ASSISSTANCE FROM ANY OTHERS. THIS WILL GARNER PUNISHMENT. AS STATED THIS IS ONLY BETWEEN THE TWO ENTITIES AFORE MENTIONED. IF THERE IS DESTRUCTION OF LIFE IMMORTAL OR MORTAL THIS TOO WILL BE PUNISHED. THE CONTEST IS ‘TIL ONE CAN NOT CONTINUE.

Immediately, a ring formed around both of us. “Is this contest restricted to the confines of this existence?” Krampus asked.

AS THE GUARDIAN IS NEWLY APPOINTED TO THE POSITION, IT SHOULD BE KEPT TO THIS UNIVERSE.

“It is not my fault that the guardian is unable to...” Krampus started.

WE HAVE SPOKEN DO NOT INCUR FURTHER RESTRICTIONS TO BE PLACED UPON THE BEING KNOWN AS KRAMPUS.

“I beg forgiveness of the council,” Krampus said.

Krampus then turned his attention upon me, “When I make you my slave boy, you will truly understand the meaning of true pain and suffering.”

I smiled as I recognized the trembling fear in the voice of Krampus. A fear that said he was unsure just how tough and powerful I was.

“Hmmm,” I said, “You really talk far too much.” This, of course, had a look of almost absolute anger on Krampus’ face. I was sure that this was all just a front by Krampus. He might not know what and who I was, but he still had confidence.

So I waited and waited for Krampus to make a move. I almost laughed when he got mad when I didn’t attack at first. Then an energy bolt flew toward me. I batted it straight up, then was amazed when my hand and half my arm went numb.

Krampus laughed when he saw my arm drop to my side almost useless. “Ah! I can see that this is actually going to be easier than I thought.”

I smiled again as I felt my arm rapidly righting itself. I wasn’t about to give anything away to Krampus. Again he shot out another stronger bolt as I took another stance like I had before. Krampus started to laugh, “still acting like a grown man, you have no idea what you are truly up ag...”

This time I ws more than ready as I smacked this one back toward Krampus. I actually laughed when the bolt hit him on his head, making him scream out in rage.

“There is an old human adage, fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me. I’d say in this instance, it’s actually shame on you. Oh yeah, another that you might want to remember? NEVER judge a book by its cover!” I told a now useless arm Krampus.

“You will pay for that guardian! You will suffer like no soul ever has. Death will be your only release and I will never grant it,” Krampus growled.

“HA!” I laughed at Krampus. I knew he was quick to temper though, with his power being more than mine, I was playing a dangerous game.

I could see that, like me, his arm was also righting itself rapidly. I decided I should make a show of power. I pointed toward Krampus, saw a bolt at half my power leave my hand. I opened my eyes, hearing Krampus scream again. I had apparently hit his other arm, burning it quite severely.

“So, the boy wants to play like an adult!” Krampus said, then seemed to grow to three times his size. “Now you shall see just how insignificant you really are.”

Krampus then tried to step on me, though try as he might, he always seemed to miss me. So much so that, I could see that he was getting more than frustrated.

I didn’t know how long I could keep this up, as he would eventually catch up with me, considering the amount of territory we had to move in.

Then a thought came to me as I concentrated. The next time he got close, I stopped. I concentrated more as he laughed and put his foot on me, pushing to crush me.

I laughed as he screamed, then he lifted his foot, trying to knock me loose. This, of course, caused him to scream even more as I twisted both my hands on his foot. I smiled as I head all the bones in his ankle start to break over and over. I could only imagine the sheer number of pieces that were his ankle bones.

When he hit the ground hard, I did a chopping motion with my hand, making where the femur bone in a human snap a few times. This in turn made him scream even more. “You forget who you are dealing with, I am a human that has been pushed far more than a human should be. I will not cause hurt to another, though you threaten my family? I WILL fight back.”

I waved my hand, making a chair appear, along with something to eat and drink. I saw all four of my sisters on the edge of the circle. All of them seemed to be slightly terrified I really couldn’t understand why. Unlike me, they had never loved me, nor wanted me. I had heard on more than one occasion their plans of what they would do after they didn’t have to worry about me.

So really, I couldn’t understand why the concern and worry. I looked at them expecting them to have the same looks of disgust, shame and pity. The last I didn’t think I could face, not again. I thought they understood that I was doing this for them. Once this was over, never again would they have to worry about my ugly, mishapen face bothering them.

I was glad that I couldn’t hear their taunts and jeers of abuse, that I knew that they were probably trying to hurl at me.

I shook my head, I knew how this was going to end. The only way that I knew that it could end. I just hoped that master wasn’t also disgraced by what I was going to do. Like master had said, had he a few more years to teach me, then perhaps this would be different.

Outside the circle, my sisters had been trying to get my attention for almost two hours now. Wendy, Helen, and Mandy were almost horse from yelling. Trish could only stare at me unmoving, deep within her chest she thought she knew what was happening.

Slowly she sank to the ground as tears started to fall with more frequency. Had they gotten closer to her, they might have heard her whispering. “Please Randy, please do not do this, there must be another way. Please, Randy, don’t leave, allow me to make it up to you, to truly apologize to you.”

I believe that Trish was the only one aware of what I was going to do. Then suddenly, Trish got to her feet, moving toward my master, who seemed to be in a conversation with something or one that no one could see.