Shadow Lands: Palace of the Spirit King - Kiharu's Plight

Senka jumped down from the beam on the ceiling and said "Yes my brother," Senka said leading Kiharu to her room, and asked her "Do you like the palace?" Senka asked her pink-purple eyes scanning Kiharu.

Kiharu didn't reply, staring fixedly ahead. They made it into her room, and she lingered at the frame for a moment, before taking a hesitant step inside. Already she hated the room, as beautiful as she was. She used to enjoy to snuggling up to someone (particularly her father or mother), and although she hasn't done that for years, she usually comforted in knowing her parents were in the next room.

Now ... where were they? Where was she?

Shit! She'd forgotten to ask that. She turned to the girl next to her. "Where are we?" she inquired, but not too kindly.

Senka stayed silent a moment then said "You are in Sasuno'o's old palace now Kaji's." Senka said slowly shutting the door.

Kiharu cursed inwardly. Sasuno'o's palace was located in the Spirit World ... or at least borderline. Kiharu's brow furrowed. She was confused. Was she here in spirit or ... completely?

The girl waited until she could no longer feel Senka's presence, before finally relaxing. She undressed and found some decent pajamas to snuggle into for the night, climbing and collapsing on top of the silk. Though soft and smooth, it felt like poison to her skin, and she had to pretend it was cotton to get to sleep.

Her sleep was light and surfaced. Deep in the night, she rose, as keen as if she'd been awake for a while. Climbing out of bed, the girl first checked the door. Locked, as usual, but she wasn't too worried about that. Since that morning she'd forced water out of the pipes. The water turned sour, slowly eroding and rotting the wall from the inside.

She made a few movements, freezing the water within the walls. She could already smell the sour, frosty, moldy scent. With a well-aimed kick, the entire wall exploded in a shower of ice and dust. Not exactly the quiet tactic she'd hoped for, but she was sure she could escape before the guards (or Kagutsuchi), knew what happened.

The girl ran swiftly, long legs empowered by her chi. The world blurred around her, and before she knew it, she'd come to a wall.

'Shit,' she thought, not anticipating this. She supposed she hadn't mapped out the palace as well as she thought she did. Slipping into a nearby room, she frantically searched for an exit. A window. Something.

But her eyes fell on something else entirely. Kagutsuchi.

She swore violently, already cornered. Just when I was so close ...

Kagutsuchi looked up at her from his desk "Going for a midnight stroll are we?" he said "I should've guessed....a water bender..." Kagutsuchi stood up and walked over to Kiharu "Would you like to sit?" he said pointing to a comfortable arm chair by the fire place "Or perhaps some more food...you barely touched your dinner."

Kiharu didn't move, standing rigidly. She stared him down, her dark brown eyes calculating. "Fight me," she finally said. "If I defeat you, you must let me go."

The blood pumped through her veins, her body almost aching with the adrenaline. She was prepared now -- her body felt empowered and fluid. Kiharu wasn't certain that she'd win, but she felt that she needed to try.

"If you truly insist...very well I will fight you" he said, Kagutsuchi waved his hand and the room dissapeared. It was replaced by a beautiful sandy beach in the distance a large house could be seen. Kagutsuchi stood there as the gentle breeze blew his hair out of his face. "Very well...now...come at me" he said.

Kiharu sprinted forward, sand flying up behind her feet. Her suspicion that their location wasn't an illusion was confirmed when the ocean water she attempted to control rose up in a high arc above them. Kiharu gracefully twisted her body, inhaling sparingly, and bringing the water upon Kagutsuchi with great force.

Her plan was to freeze it once it came in contact with him, stilting his muscles and hopefully (but doubtfully) trapping him in the cocooon.

Kagutsuchi smiled as the water enveloped him. He placed his hands to the edge of his prison and released a blast of air breaking the water. Kagutsuchi landed and place his hands on the ground, causing two hands of sand to grab Kiharu's ankles.

Kiharu leapt up as the hands shot from the sand, gaining height even as the appendages continued to reach for her. The girl whipped a lash of water, freezing it was it came near the hands, intent on slicing through them.

Then, somersaulting towards her adversary, Kiharu's foot shot out, surrounding in ice, into a roundhouse kick near his face. She crossed her arms in front of her in a block to defend her upper body.