The Barefoot Girl (Part III)

Both feet landed square on the heel and the butt of the battle-ax, he then bent both of his knees and focused all of his innate strength and a little mana on this next leap. Like an eagle, he soared, evading the bullets that pelted the ax below by a hairbreadth.

“Hup!”

He wasn’t nearly as high as he needed to be, so he called forth his newly acquired will-o'-the-wisps. The first wisp formed a flat platform, and the rest quickly followed suit, forming a makeshift staircase that lifted Amos higher and higher into the air. He gripped his sword and readied it as the spirits assisted him in rising high enough to charge directly at Nanaya.

“......!”

The girl exclaimed as a wisp from her arch instantly transformed into a katana. Its orange ‘steel’ flashed as it clashed into Amos’ Chokuto in one swift motion.

“......”

“......”

To keep Amos at Nanaya's level, his blue flaming friends formed a large platform beneath his feet. He swung again, this time aiming low, but the katana deflected it. He aimed high, then mid, and then low again. Same result. He then hurled a flurry of swings at the girl only to be matched blow for blow by the invisible swordsman defending her, sparks flying as their blades clashed fiercely.

No doubt about it… this spirit was a master swordsman.

Amos made for a diagonal slash, but the invisible swordsman parried the attempt with such force, Amos’ arms were launched upward, leaving his torso wide open. The swordsman wasted no time in thrusting its katana toward his midsection. Amos quickly spun to avoid the fatal blow, only to find himself surrounded by a new bevy of weapons appearing out of thin air.

What?!

The weapons vanished as quickly as they appeared, reappearing at a lower altitude before lunging in a sudden burst. Amos sidestepped, ducked, dodged, and parried weapon after weapon, but as each one fell, a new one appeared in its place. He’d only managed to avoid a few more before the rest of them ran through him from all sides, perforating his flesh like a pincushion.

His eyes widened. As he cried out, that searing-hot pain, worse than the last, coursed through him.

“Aaaaagh!!!”

His spectral platform gave way. Nanaya giggled playfully, raising her right arm in the air as she watched the boy fall.

“This... has been quite fun, Naragishi-san,” the girl smiled warmly. “The most fun I’ve had in a long time. Thus, I have decided that you shall become a part of my domain.”

Amos’ breath caught in his throat—as he noticed an even greater number of aura weapons were suspended in the air. Nanaya had rematerialized the weapons that had just pierced his flesh and added them to the collective. She seemed dead set on making quick work of the boy. He became aware of a few orange spheres encircling his body and realized he was no longer falling but being held in midair.

“This will only take a moment...we will be reunited soon...”

With that, Nanaya flicked her wrist downward as the weapons began to rain down on him.

Here they come…

As the weapons drew closer and closer, Amos fought through the pain and let his mana flow through his body.

Christy’s going to curse my name forever if I fail, huh? He thought of the turmoil he put his friend through the last time he returned with a serious injury. He then remembered that she installed a camera in his headset. Who am I fooling? She’s probably cursing my name right this second!

The aura weapons were only mere inches away from him now. He no longer had any other choice. I had hoped that I wouldn’t have to use this, but...

Amos shut his eyes and spread his limbs. Then, for a brief moment, all sounds came to a halt, and he could no longer feel the cool night air as if time itself was at a standstill. After a few moments, his eyes snapped open to find himself surrounded by luminescent white walls that seemed to expand indefinitely. Without a moment’s hesitation, he began his mantra, calling forth an entity far greater than any spirit:

O’ Mother… O’ Mother of Terra... grace me with the phantom's reflection, so that I may embody your strength in my time of need…

Will-o'-the-wisps began to dance and swarm around him, eventually congregating and forming the silhouette of what Amos thought to be the visage of a woman with child. The boy had no need for confirmation, for he knew full well who his eyes gazed upon. After a long pause, the entity finally spoke:

Very well, child... I acknowledge your resolve... Heed my power with honor and grace.

The entity then turned to face the boy. It extended its arm and reached for him. The warmness of its giant index finger brought a tingle to his cheeks. Then, in a flash, Amos could make out a large face smiling back at him; bronze skin with hair as verdant as tree leaves in Springtime, and a massive multicolored eye of a brown, green, and blue variety. Its tone was so vibrant, that he could've sworn that he was peering in at the planet Terra itself. This bizarre yet beautiful sight, however, lasted only a fraction of a second, and any recollection of what the boy may have seen would soon fade from his subconscious. Gone from the ether and without a trace.

Huh? Where am…? Oh… That’s right…

Shaken from his momentary trance, Amos looked around. Grimacing, he rubbed at his forehead as the memory of where he was found its way back to him. With a nod, Amos turned towards the entity, now back in its silhouette form, and bowed deeply, giving his thanks:

O’ Mother… Dear Mother of Terra… for this, you have my utmost gratitude.

With this affirmation, Amos felt his being return to the waking realm as the hands of time began to move once more. Now back in the physical plane, his eyes shot open as he uttered the words:

“Spectral… Counter!!”

Just then, he noticed that the aura weapons closing in on him were no longer visible. In their place a large amount of spectral energy. It wrapped around his temporary arm, merging with the power bestowed upon him by the spirits of Holden Cemetery. To add to the craziness, Amos' ears were filled with a cacophony of voices. Love. Laughter. Tragedy. Sorrow. He didn’t even have the time to comprehend any of it as all of that energy quickly expelled itself from its host, forming a massive orange sphere.

“Wh-what… ?!” Nanaya's mouth hung agape as she stared down at the phenomenon. She couldn't believe her eyes. All told, neither could Amos. He'd used this ability against formidable opponents numerous times, but it'd never done anything like this before.

What is this…?

In seconds, the sphere emitted a rapid, tempestuous gale knocking Amos to the ground and launching itself with unrelenting force toward Nanaya.

“Aahhhh!!”

The girl screamed as the impact created an ear-splitting explosion. Its grand force pushed Amos back a few yards upon landing. As he recovered, he noticed Nanaya's body crashing to the ground a few yards away. He took this time to examine himself. He was losing a lot of blood, and his body ached every time he heaved in a breath. I need to close these wounds, he thought, seeking help from the spirits of his domain. However, not a single one responded. Amos also came to realize that he could no longer feel their presence either. Looking over to his left, he was surprised to find that his temporary arm had reverted to his usual stump of flesh.

Odd… I didn’t end the contract, yet they disappeared anyway…

This perplexed him. Normally when the energy thrown at him reached a certain threshold, his Spectral Counter would redirect it. The more powerful the energy, the more difficult the feat. This time, however, it did more than that; it also took the spiritual energy he had gathered before the battle. Something he had never known it to do before.

Was it because those spirits had merged with my domain?

“No!! This… This can't be so!”

The sound of someone crying interrupted his thoughts. He turned to see that it was Nanaya. Her sundress was torn, tattered, and covered in mud. She was on her knees, frantically sweeping her hands across the marshy ground near a slew of tombstones.

“No… no… I… I can’t feel them anymore… Where have they gone? Where?!”

The girl sobbed uncontrollably, nearly hyperventilating, as she surveyed the cemetery, becoming increasingly agitated with each passing second. Amos realized that this was his chance to complete the mission. He grabbed his sword with his lone arm and moved swiftly across the yard towards his target.

Sorry, Frida, I may not need your help after all.

Nanaya silently stood up, her back to him. Pressing on, he prepared to thrust through the girl’s trapezius, which would then penetrate her heart, an effective finishing blow. He was only inches away when he was pushed back by a turbulent force.

“Whoa!” Amos managed to catch himself and gather his bearings before glaring up at the girl.

“You…” Nanaya said, her voice cold and monotone. Her small hands knotted in fists and shook violently. “What did you do…?”

Amos stopped. Perplexed by her question.

“What are you talking about?”

The girl squared around to face the boy, her blonde hair adhering to her tear-stained face, shoulders heaving as she struggled to take in air. Her face contorted into a stony glare, a look that any of her previous expressions couldn't hope to match.

“WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY FRIENDS?!”

“—!”

Amos was taken aback by her outburst. It was rife with anguish and hatred. The girl was now brimming with mana, the flower-shaped rune sigil on her left leg glowing bright orange and the air around them began to shift. Amos couldn't detect any spectral energy; this was her power, and hers alone.

This bodes ill…

Nanaya lowered her head, scowling at the damp dirt beneath her feet. “My friends…My...precious friends…” she muttered, her voice trembling as she wiped the bottom of one foot on top of the other. “They’re gone...and it is all your fault…”

“What do you mean, they’re gone? You aren’t making any sense!” Amos didn't intend for that much bass to be in his voice, but he couldn’t piece together what this girl was getting at and it was wearing on his patience. Instantly, Nanaya’s head shot up and snapped in his direction. Her eyes shimmered.

“This was their place! Their home!!” Her voice shook even more as she yelled. She dragged an arm across her face, attempting to wipe away the tears. “We were but humble guests in their resting place…and you drove them away…How could you?!”

Amos couldn't believe his ears. The realization hit him. “No… No, no, no... You…You don't mean I—”

“This was the only connection they had left to this world… It wasn’t their time yet!” Nanaya's tears streamed down her cheeks as she gazed from the ground, eyeing a harrowed Amos with disgust. “... And now… Now they can never hope to pass on…” Her body shook with sobs. “You…Because of your actions…My friends…they are forever lost! I was mistaken…you are nothing like me… Leave this place!!”

Her harsh words pierced him like a hot dagger, cutting deeper than the aura weapons he'd taken moments before. Amos had no intention of banishing those spirits from this realm. He shouldn't have been able to do such a thing, as far as he knew. He felt his heart sink to his stomach. As horrid a revelation it was, he still had a job to do. Amos had mana to spare, but his proficiency in other forms of magic was lacking. His all-around specialty was soul magic, and with the cemetery now completely exorcised, he was barely stronger than the average human teenager.

Amos stood his ground, his sword in midstance. His act of defiance only seemed to incense the girl further.

“I said, leave!!” she roared. Before Amos could act, she was already upon him with shocking suddenness. Something jabbed sharply into his solar plexus.

“Gah!”

As a result of the impact, blood erupted from his esophagus, forcing him to lean forward and drop his sword. His gaze was drawn downward as a result of his new precarious position. He didn't have to guess what had hit him so hard. Nanaya was standing on one leg, her right knee pressing against his injured midsection.

Amos channeled the adrenaline in his legs and drew back, but only by a couple of feet.

The girl came in with a swift left hook, he dodged and grabbed her arm, attempting to throw her over, but the sharp pain in his side allowed her to quickly break away. She threw a right hook that was quickly revealed to be a feint before gutting him with another knee strike, this time with her left.

“Gahhh!!”

Although he stood at about five feet ten inches, his five-inch height advantage over Nanaya proved detrimental, making it easy for her to sneak in her knee attacks. That, combined with her incredible speed, turned her into a force to be reckoned with. Soul magic or no.

Amos knew it was coming, but enduring the pain was a necessary sacrifice in order to lower the target's guard. He coughed up some more blood. His body began to feel numb, senses fading.

No… not yet!

He quickly dropped to a knee before sweeping his right leg, taking Nanaya’s left leg from under her. The force of his sweep pushed her up a few extra inches. Before she could fall, he reached out and grabbed her right ankle, yanked her over, and slammed her face-first into the ground.

“Ahhh!!”

With his target's ankle pressed under his boot, Amos reached down and pulled a large bayonet from the holster on his right leg, bringing it down on Nanaya's back. A strong gust of wind pushed back at the boy's downward stab, knocking the weapon from his grasp. Nanaya then rolled away from her captor. She quickly rose to her feet and brushed herself off.

“......”

“......”

She dashed forward again in a burst of speed, but Amos was ready this time. Using all the strength he could muster, he struck the girl in the face with his stump before pivoting around to her back. His arm then encircled her neck, the crook of his elbow resting on her trachea. As he anticipated, she tried to push him away by expelling her aura, so he cast another defensive spell, this time a barrier around himself to soften the impact.

“Nice try…” Amos rasped, trying his damndest not to cough. “Like I'd fall for that again…”

“Be silent!!”

She then fought back physically, scratching, clawing, and biting through his flesh. He didn’t budge, but he could only resist for so long.

“Let... go!!” Nanaya grimaced, her fingernails digging deep into his arm.

She was starting to waver, Amos felt her muscles loosening as she struggled to remain on her feet, her heart was racing as it sought oxygen from her lungs. Her lack of experience with hand-to-hand combat had reared its head, just as the report predicted. Her affinity for aero magic gave her strength and speed, but without the discipline to back it up, she would be outmaneuvered every time she faced a trained opponent. If Amos still had his spectral arm, he simply could have snapped her neck and been done with it all, but he was already pushing himself far beyond his limits. Putting the target to sleep to weaken her before the kill appeared to be his only remaining option.