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Chapter 8: A Powerful Foe
Jack jumped back in fright, then said, "Um, what in the world is that?!" The spirit looked down at him. "That? I am a spirit, mind you! My name is Dralkin. I was sealed inside that cursed jewel of Asmatak for years because of those Bladebearers!"
Del then remembered something: something that happened at the time when he was training as a Bladebearer. He had been practicing his sword moves in the Ministry of Bladebearers. All of a sudden, he heard the door open. He saw a person followed by a wagon with a cage that was clear enough so that you can see a red spirit. Confused, Del had asked, "What's that?" The man said, "That, my friend, is an evil spirit that we trapped in a cage. It's made of pure Multanian steel. No living entity can escape from it. Not even a spirit."
Another man had walked in, carrying a red jewel. "All right, this jewel should do it." said the man that just entered. The wagon man said, "Perfect. Time to trap him in that jewel." Del could see the spirit knocking against the cage, pleading for mercy. "Please, no! I know the error of my ways now! Don't leave me in there for all time!"
But, it was too late. The men had threw the jewel, which had passed through the cage like thin air. The wagon man smiled at Del, who looked confused, and said, "I said no living entity. That wasn't an entity." Del looked again and saw the spirit looked like it was being dragged towards the jewel by an invisible force. Then, his spiritual body was disappearing into the jewel. The jewel shook and made a loud thud, then stood still.
Del returned from his flashback and said, "Now I remember you, Dralkin. You're the same spirit I saw those two men put inside the jewel of Asmatak." Dralkin then widened his eyes, then evilly grinned. "Why, I remember you too. You're the lowly brat that never tried to save me. Oh, I'll definitely enjoy this."
Gastro, apparently now knowing what was going on, said, "Well, I don't think he's giving us gumdrops and ice cream, guys. Let's take him down before he makes a move!" He lunged forward, then jumped into the air, stabbing his blade into Dralkin's chest. "Ooh, ooh, the pain. It hurts." said Dralkin sarcastically. "I'm a spiritual body, I can't be hurt by a blade." He slammed his fist into Gastro and sent him flying!
Del had taken a deep breath, then said, "Well, I'm not one to foolishly attack my opponent after knowing what will happen. So..." He raised his blade, closing his eyes, and concentrating. His blade was shining brightly and was shooting towards Dralkin! It pierced him in the chest and clutching his hand over his chest, he said, "Ow...ha. That actually hurt a bit. This will be fun." He held out his hand and emitted a red blast from it, blasting at Jack! Jack flipped sideways, landing on his feet with his hand on the ground, and dodged it. He looked at the pile of rubble the blast made, amazed.
"So, I guess that's the power of an evil spirit, huh? All right, let's do this!" Powering up in his Super Bladebearer form, Jack shot a magic blast at Dralkin's pierced chest wound and made a direct hit! More hurt by this, Dralkin yelled in pain, "ARGH!! That's it. No holding back." Knowing what was coming, Jack gulped and said, "Uh-oh..." as a hand of Dralkin's slapped him into the wall.
Dralkin shot two blasts at the group of pirates as they all scrambled to dodge the attack.
Knowing that he can win, Dralkin laughed and exclaimed, "What fun!" Then, his smile faded. He felt a sharp pain throbbing though his back. He twitched once, then fell to reveal a hooded dark figure behind him. "Weakling." said the figure.
Bart Gunshot stood up and said, "Nice work, Michael. Everything is going according to plan." Michael lowered his blade and said, "Yes, master." without even a chuckle. He stood there, not noticeably, but actually shaking.
Jack looked at him. Something had changed about him, but he couldn'tquite put his finger on it...he thought he felt a sense of guilt from his brother emanating from him, but thought this was absurd.
"Master, shall we put the last parts in the world core?" asked Michael. Evilly smiling, Bart replied, "Yes, Michael, please do." He stepped over to Michael, then said, "You have proved yourself worthy, servant. Now, I declare you Dark Master."
With a faint, not meaningful smile, Michael replied, "Thank you, master." Bart held out his hand and made a rip in space again. He walked through it, beckoning Michael to follow. He nodded, then started walking. Jack yelled, "NO!!! YOU'RE NOT GETTING AWAY AGAIN!!" He jumped after his brother and pushed him through, knocking him off balance! Distracted, Bart forgot to close the portal and the crew jumped through after Jack!
"It's over, Bart. This ends here." said Gastro. "This is destiny, not fate. We will defeat you, and bring balance to all worlds. We will bring back the community of Bladebearers." He pointed his blade at Bart. "We will win."
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FINALLY got around to a chapter. Hope you like it.
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