Red Hawk

Chapter Eighteen: Journey Through Kai's Soul

Rai placed a hand upon Kai's forehead, "To control Ragnarok is to control one's own soul. In order to activate this spell, one needs more than just Chi or Aura. It requires the use of one's own soul."

"Meaning?" Kai interrupted.

"Meaning, you must learn to convert your soul into pure energy. But I warn you, using your soul has prices." Kai's blank expression showed he cared little about what was being said. Something Rai seemed disappointed into. The ghost just growled his next few words, "Using this power will strip you of your lifeforce. The more you use it, the sooner you'll die."

"But how do I control it?" Kai asked, not caring that the power had the potential to die using Ragnarok. "I don't care what happens, I just want to learn how to control it."

"Arrogance is not courage boy." Rai rejoined the other phantoms for silent discussion. Every now and again, one of them would turn their attention towards him. But Kai was getting tired of waiting. Plus the throne was uncomfortable.

"Can we hurry this up?" he called out to the phantoms, which seemed to be the wrong thing to do. They just stood there for a moment, just staring at him. Wasting time.

Rai eventually came back over, "Now is the question of how we shall help you control that power. You have one of two options to-,"

Kai interrupted, "The quickest way. I have to stop Hibiki sooner than later. He's too dangerous to be alive."

"Then, we shall begin," eerily smiled Rai. The eyes of the phantoms all began to glow white, Kai now finding it harder and harder to stay awake. It wasn't long before his eyes fell shut. Rai's whispers were the last thing he heard, "Find your soul, defeat it or die."

Kai now found himself waking in a strange place, a void of white that stretched on indefinitely. Many doorways could be seen floating in the void. Looking down, Kai noticed a translucent orange platform beneath his feet. But there was no other walkway to use. Reaching a foot out over the edge caused a second platform to appear. Walking was safe, but barely. Taking a few steps forward, Kai paused, the grating sound of stone on stone echoed from above.

Stone steps fell from above, building three paths for him to take. One reach up towards a nearby door, the other two stretching out further into the void. Kai ascended the stairs. Pushing open the door, Kai now found himself looking at an open valley. Cautiously, he stepped in. When he closed the door, it vanished in a puff of smoke. There was no turning back now. Kai began to explore the valley, no signs of life could be found near where he appeared.

Should have gone down he laughed to himself. There weren't even any more of those strange doors. So far, it seemed he was trapped here. From behind, Kai began to hear laughter, "Who's there?" He turned to see no one. The laughter was once again behind him. Just like before, he turned to see no one. For now he would just ignore the laughter, continuing forward. Though it was hard to tell where he was going, as everything looked the same. Endless grassland with no distinguishing landmarks.

Out in the distance, Kai could make out what seemed to be a small town. He decided to make a sprint for the town, hoping there'd be something there. Smack! Kai ran into an invisible wall, the village still far out in the distance. Something was keeping him trapped. A hand reached out, grabbing his shoulder.

Kai turned to see a strange woman standing behind him. Everything about her was white as snow, her face filled with anguish. "Excuse me," she spoke barely above a whisper, "but you cannot go to that village if you know what's good for you."