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Post by Lucille Bluth on Aug 29, 2006 13:01:41 GMT -5
Oooh. :D Wonderful explaination chapter, it certainly fills up the mysteries. XD Good job, can't wait for the next chapter! :3
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Iron Hand
Student
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Posts: 18
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Post by Iron Hand on Aug 30, 2006 10:30:40 GMT -5
Nice explanation. Good storyline. And... just plain awesome XD. Yeah, really informative. Good idea with CJ's blood, and likkkkkke it's like she diied... err.. yeah XD. I'm sorry.. I'm not in a review-giving-mood. Er, well, it's a great story still. Wish I had more to say.
-Kel
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Post by gojake on Sept 3, 2006 11:12:13 GMT -5
LOL IS SPUD ATTRACTED TO CJ
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Post by redemption on Sept 7, 2006 16:23:50 GMT -5
Chapter 5
Getting to the Academy was easy; calling on memory, Jake flew there, leading the others.
Getting in, on the other hand, was a different matter entirely.
“You can’t come.” C.J. pulled her mask on; she had dug out her old Huntsclan uniform hours ago, and wasn’t sure how pleased she should feel about the fact that it still fit. “I need a clear shot to get Rose out of there. There can’t be any cause for alarm.” “But…” “d**n it, Jake, they know what you look like. 88 and 89 aren’t that stupid. They’ll remember how you look in a Huntsclan uniform. Half the people in the Academy don’t even know who I am. They’ll just think I’m another hunter.” She tucked her dream charm into her pouch. “The only person who’d recognize me besides baby sister would be Huntsman, and I have no intention of letting him see me.”
Jake looked ready to continue protesting, but C.J. cut him off with a glare. “Look,” she hissed, “do you want Rose to stay alive or what?” “More then anything!” “Then back off and let me do this. You’re not the only person who loves her, believe it or not.”
Her temper was so similar to Rose’s that Jake took a step back; before he could recover enough to respond, C.J. slid the door open and quietly stepped into the Academy, turning briefly to look back at Jake.
“Follow me, and we’ll all be dead,” she warned. “You know it as well as I do.”
And with that, she shut the door behind her.
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The Academy hadn’t changed much.
Slightly amused by this fact, C.J. slowed her pace to study the halls. She had lived almost her whole life within these same walls, as had Tory before her and Rose after her. It was a comfort, somehow, finding everything just the way she remembered. A small comfort, granted, but comfort nonetheless.
Moving easily among the other hunters, C.J. snagged a Hunts-Staff from the rack and kept walking, her pace slow and steady. If she rushed, suspicion would rise. Even if no one recognized her, she couldn’t risk it. Not when she was this close.
She paused as the door to a classroom opened, and a young man stepped out. He was probably a few years older then her, and he pulled off his mask, shaking loose strands of raven-black hair out of cool, clear green eyes.
And C.J.’s mouth suddenly went dry. She would have recognized those eyes anywhere, the pale gold of his skin, the whiplash of cheekbones that were a gift of his Apache heritage. Her heart thudded painfully in her chest.
Her stride broke, causing her to come to a complete standstill as those same cool, clear green eyes locked with her chocolate brown ones. She forced herself not to tremble as his gaze swept calmly over her. After a moment, he nodded.
After all, he was the only other person who knew her identity. He had known she was alive for some time.
Sacrificing dignity for speed, C.J. all but shot past him, slowing and glancing back just in time to see the door swing silently shut as he reentered the classroom to continue teaching.
Her heart ached with longing, but she kept walking. Her time with him had gone and passed, and she knew her destiny was not with him.
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The hallway darkened and chilled as C.J. continued walking; she shivered but didn’t turn around. This hallway had been like this since she was a trainee, and it had never changed. This hallway contained the dungeon.
She paused in the shadows when she saw a figure leaning casually against the door; creeping closer, she recognized Marissa Conner. Disgust poured through her like a wave, and she came to the conclusion that Marissa was guarding Rose.
Not a problem. It just made things more interesting. C.J. shifted her Staff to her other hand, and her muscles tensed in preparation.
“You’re in my way.”
Marissa glanced up at the voice, but had no time to react as C.J. sprang at her; shock made her body go limp, and C.J. hurled her back against the wall, pinning her there with her Hunts-Staff against Marissa’s throat. “Scream and I’ll shoot,” she warned, a dangerous edge in her tone.
C.J.’s body pinned Marissa’s against the wall, but Marissa was willing to put up some kind of fight; she kicked out hard and struck C.J.’s bad ankle.
C.J. yelped as her ankle crumbled beneath her, and she staggered back; Marissa threw herself between the other woman’s arms and smashed into her chest, and both women went down in a tangled heap.
Her bad ankle all but screamed beneath the weight, and C.J. twisted her body, desperate to free herself and end the pain. She slammed the butt of her Staff hard into Marissa’s chin; the other woman howled in pain, recoiling, and C.J. wedged her Staff into Marissa’s belly and fired.
The blast flung Marissa back and slammed her into the wall; she crumbled to the ground with a soft moan. Panting, wincing, C.J. slowly rose, her bad ankle trembling, and she leaned against her Staff for support as she studied her fallen opponent.
Marissa wasn’t dead. C.J. had set her Staff on stun. With luck, she’d be out for ten, maybe fifteen minutes.
It would be enough.
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Rose heard the sounds of struggle outside, and it stirred her enough to make her look away from the wall, mildly interested. The sounds stopped abruptly, and for a moment there was silence; then the lock rattled, she heard a muttered curse, and the dungeon door was blasted clean off its hinges.
The door flew through the air and slammed into the wall with a vibrating clang; Rose shrank back against the wall, eyes wide, and looked at the doorway.
A woman stood in the doorway; she studied the door for a moment before limping into the room, favoring one ankle slightly. She limped over to Rose, knelt next to her. “You okay?” Rose swallowed, unsure of what the heck was going on. “Yeah.” “Good. Come on, get up. We’re getting you out of here.”
In the dim light of the dungeon, the mystery woman’s eyes seemed almost black; Rose frowned. “We?” she asked. “Yeah, we. Your boyfriend’s here. You know, the American Dragon.” “Jake?” Rose’s eyes lit up. “Jake’s here?” “Yeah, but you have to get up so I can get you to him.”
No other words were needed, as Rose immediately scrambled to her feet; the woman laughed. “Got it bad for him, haven’t you?” With another laugh, she led the way out of the dungeon; her limp faded slightly as they continued on their way.
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C.J.’s ankle throbbed steadily as she cut through the hallways, checking to make sure they were empty before leading Rose on. She winced, shifting her weight to soothe the pain. “Nasty little…”
She clammed up at Rose’s curious look, recalling that now was not the time to curse. With a soft grunt she led the way, reassured by the fact that the door was just in front of them.
“Almost out,” she called over her shoulder.
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Jake had dragoned up, more out of boredom then anything else.
He stirred at the sound of the door slowly opening; C.J. peeked out cautiously, then murmured softly over her shoulder; she nudged the door open.
Rose all but shot past her, a delighted cry escaping her throat as Jake pulled her close. Amused, C.J. leaned back against the building; Lao Shi and Trixie exchanged knowing glances, Fu’s lips twitched briefly, and Spud had a lovey-dovey goo-goo eyed expression on his face.
Jake aimed a look at the young woman over Rose’s head. Judging by the masked pain in her eyes, her ankle had to be bothering her; but there was also anguish within their chocolate depths, and he knew she had not revealed her true identity yet.
“Cute.” She straightened, winced as pain shot from her ankle up her leg. “But we don’t have much time, lovebirds. We have to go. Now.” “I second that.”
The voice was dark and sinister, and with a sinking feeling of dread C.J. recognized it, recognized who it was before she whirled and saw him, dark and hunched over on the roof of the building, studying them with smooth, cold emotionless eyes. Despite the way her heart hammered against her ribs, she smirked beneath her mask.
“Long time no see, Huntsman.”
End chapter 5
Not much to say, really....
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Post by superdoglac on Sept 7, 2006 17:19:25 GMT -5
Dun dun dun!!!!!!! Hehe Huntsman is going down given that there is two trained Huntstresses, two dragons, two kids, and a talking dog!Update soon!
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Post by crazy17 on Sept 7, 2006 17:31:12 GMT -5
O_______________O
WHOO! HUNTSMAN/CJ SHOWDOWN, BABY! *runs to get popcorn* All rigjht, Redemption, let's GET IT OWN! *does that thing Plankton does in the SpongeBob movie*
OOH! And I bet that guy CJ saw outsidfe the classroom was Taylors' dad, wasn't it? RIGHT???
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Post by Atecom on Sept 7, 2006 18:04:45 GMT -5
Looks like they have been caught, trying to escape. Good chapter and updat asap
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Iron Hand
Student
Get money.. by any means necessary..
Posts: 18
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Post by Iron Hand on Sept 9, 2006 0:51:35 GMT -5
Awesome, simply awesome. Wow... that chapter. The fighting was excellent, very detailed. I'm still wondering who that guy was.. wow, gonna be one hell of a show-down with the Huntsman Gonna be freakin' great Hehe, hope ya update soon.
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Post by redemption on Sept 23, 2006 10:36:29 GMT -5
Chapter 6
C.J. heard the click of charged Huntsclan weapons being aimed, and her heart sank. She should have expected this. Her uncle had never been a foolish man—you did not survive twenty years in the Huntsclan by being stupid. Her eyes flickered around the clearing.
There were rocks that could be climbed if worse came to worse. Although a swift pang of pain shot up her ankle, she made a mental note of the escape route before glancing back at Huntsman. “Never knew you to have backup,” she said smoothly. “I suppose old Huntsman’s losing his touch.” “For someone who is about to die, you sound quite confident.”
She shrugged, her voice smooth and silky. “I’m not afraid to die, Huntsman. You seem to forget, I survived our last encounter.”
Behind her, Jake’s eyes widened, connecting what she said to the battle she had told them about earlier. The Huntsman was silent as his gaze slowly swept over C.J., taking in her stance, the way her eyes gleamed with humor and challenge. After a moment, his eyes narrowed. “So,” he murmured. “You’re still alive.” “You didn’t kill me.” “My mistake.”
And he sprang.
And chaos, if there wasn’t enough already, ensued.
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The force of Huntsman’s attack flung C.J. against the ground; she twisted beneath him, trying desperately to break free. Her ankle screamed in protest, but she ignored it, managing to wedge her foot into his knee, and she kicked.
Huntsman let out a roar and stumbled back, his knee crumbling, and C.J. rolled away. Lifting her head, gasping, she looked around.
Jake and Lao Shi flew through the air, ducking and diving in coordinated attacks that only dragons were capable of. Trixie, Spud, and Rose were fighting; pride surged through C.J., however foolish, when she saw her younger sister successfully dodging and ducking attacks.
All thoughts were cut clean off when a glowing Hunts-Staff smashed hard into her bad ankle; she had let her guard down for a few seconds to long. C.J. screamed in pain, her ankle buckled, and she crumbled to the ground, gasping and whimpering. Resting his foot on her back, Huntsman gently pushed her down so she lay on her belly, and C.J. was in to much pain to stop him. His fingers closed on her mask.
“Let’s reveal your true identity, shall we?” He chuckled. “Though I’d recognize those eyes anywhere, Crystal Jean.”
He pulled her mask off.
“C.J.!”
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Time itself ceased to exist. Rose’s muscles seemed to lock and freeze, and all she could do was stare. Her sister—her sister—was on the ground in a crumbled heap, trembling with pain, but she was alive.
“C.J.,” she choked out. The Huntsman’s gaze swung from her fallen sister to her, and his eyes narrowed.
C.J. took the opportunity; reaching back, she closed her fingers on her Hunts-Staff and arched it forward so it slashed Huntsman’s chest; he jerked back with a howl, and she staggered shakily to her feet.
“Leave her be, Uncle.” Her voice was rough with pain. “You and I must finish this on our own.”
And with that, she raced towards the rocks. Without hesitation, Huntsman took off after her, enraged.
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C.J.’s ankle screamed in protest, a hundred and one reasons of why this was a bad idea raced through her mind, but she still pulled herself onto the rocks and began to climb. She knew Huntsman was coming after her; the thought filled her with terror, but at least he was away from Rose.
She slipped, her bad ankle giving way slightly beneath her, and she slid back slightly with a gasp. She heard a high, whistling sound, and she arched in pain, gasping as Huntsman’s Staff grazed her back. She saw the weapon slash into rocks overhead, and reaching up she closed her fingers around it, pulling herself onto solid ground.
C.J. glanced back down, and saw Huntsman climbing. Glancing up, she saw a boulder; ramming her blade into a corner, C.J. leaned into it, stumbling a little as the boulder tumbled loosely down the cliff side. Without hesitation, she raced down the path.
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Huntsman easily dodged to avoid the boulder, clinging to the rock side with one hand; face set like flint he continued climbing, pausing only to pull his Staff free from the rocks.
“You can’t run forever, Crystal Jean.” His voice was rough. “There’s no place left for you to hide.”
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C.J.’s legs trembled as she leaped onto the flat surface. She staggered, catching her breath, and turned.
Deep down, she wasn’t that surprised to see Huntsman standing there. Her fingers tightened around her Hunts-Staff; her eyes narrowed and darkened.
Huntsman leaped, his Staff arching through the air; C.J. whipped her Staff around so it blocked his, and their Staffs collided with a loud, metallic clang that echoed dizzily through the empty spaces.
C.J.’s bad ankle trembled beneath the pressure of Huntsman’s body, but she didn’t dare back up. Her whole body was screaming now, the pain bursting from her ankle up her leg to her stomach, from her stomach into her chest and shoulders, and her whole body began to tremble.
But she didn’t dare back up. She had no where else to go.
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Rose scrambled madly up the rocks, pausing when she saw the deep marks left by Huntsman’s Staff. She rested her fingers against the stone briefly, feeling the deep groove of the cut, knowing what would happen if that same Staff met human flesh.
“C.J.,” she whispered.
Without hesitation, she raced down the path that she knew would lead her to her sister.
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C.J.’s body was failing her in every aspect, her ankle being the start; the pressure forced her to fall to her knees, but still she kept her Staff locked tightly with Huntsman’s. Her breath was coming in heaving gasps, pain radiating from her leg into the very core of her being, but she didn’t dare think of surrendering.
Huntsman was close the edge, where the plain they fought on curved down into a steep fall, a drop into the shallow water below. C.J. didn’t have the strength left to try and push him; she focused solely on staying alive.
“C.J.!”
Huntsman jerked at the sound of Rose’s voice, pulling back as his head swung up. The younger girl stood saluted on the cliff edge, staring down onto the battle.
C.J. saw her chance; tossing her Hunts-Staff aside, she swept her leg across the ground so it smashed hard into Huntsman’s knee; he began to fall with a roar, but before he could she lunged forward, twisting her body, and slammed her shoulder hard into his.
The momentum was all that was needed to push Huntsman the last few feet, and he fell. But as he fell his flailing hands closed on C.J.’s ankle; briefly she was slammed into the ground, her bad ankle trapped between the stone and her body, and Rose heard a crack. But the force of Huntsman’s grab was too much, and wrenched her over as well.
“C.J.!”
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Rose leaped onto the plain, racing to the edge. “C.J.,” she choked out.
C.J. and Huntsman lay sprawled in the shallow water below; a few moments passed, and Huntsman slowly staggered to his feet, growling and gasping. His gaze swept briefly to where C.J. lay motionless before swinging up to Rose. He lifted his chin slightly.
Silent as a shadow, he turned and limped away, disappearing into the shadowed forest. Trembling, Rose gazed at C.J.
But unlike the Huntsman, C.J. didn’t stir. She simply lay there.
End chapter 6
.... Oh yes, I'm evil. I'm very, very evil...
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Post by superdoglac on Sept 23, 2006 10:48:16 GMT -5
Yes, you are very evil. Have CJ live please *make puppy dog eyes* XD
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Post by crazy17 on Sept 23, 2006 11:59:03 GMT -5
I knew you were gonna do that...>_< XD Anyway, continue sojon! This is getting good!
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Iron Hand
Student
Get money.. by any means necessary..
Posts: 18
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Post by Iron Hand on Sept 23, 2006 13:18:27 GMT -5
Heh, good goin'. Can't say I'm surprised that C.J. might be dead, but 'ey, it's great stuff Yeah, I liked this chapter a lot. Detailed fighting's my favorite Hehe, good job, hope ya update faster than.. um.. something fast :fup: XD -Kel
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Post by ADJLFanatic on Sept 23, 2006 13:21:48 GMT -5
Oooh, you really ARE evil. You a meanieeee. XD
NOOO! CJ! She can't die you maniac. Hah, *pokes Kel's review* detailed fighting. Hahahaha... >_>
Yeah, I kinda agree with him on that... Riiiiight. Awesomeeee. Update sooooonnnn...
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Iron Hand
Student
Get money.. by any means necessary..
Posts: 18
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Post by Iron Hand on Sept 23, 2006 13:28:35 GMT -5
^Weirdo XD
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Post by Atecom on Sept 23, 2006 20:59:56 GMT -5
Awesome Update, It really is, YOu need to update again soon
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