The Dragon of Metal Chapter 9

The Dragon of Metal Chapter 9
Old Habits Never Die

It is said that the weather is at its calmest point right before a storm...

Jack was sleeping comfortably, having dried off and changed into his pajamas (he'd simply die if the others saw his smiley face pjs).

He snored softly, drool seeping out onto his pillow. His dreams consisted of the normal delusions he'd had since joining the temple: doing better than Raimundo in training, mastering each of the basics of being a monk, even becoming a Shoku warrior.

And training in his underwear. He always had that dream.

He didn't notice a figure slip through his window, he didn't notice a darkness consume his room, he didn't notice the glint of a sharp toothed smile in the pale moonlight.

He did, however, notice when a cold hand clamped over his mouth, containing his shrill scream.

"Time to wake up, Jackie."

Jack threw his arms out, sending the figure flying and crashing through his wall with a sound like an explosion. He hadn't touched them.

'Armor.'

Jack stumbled to the giant hole in his wall, frightfully peering out into the courtyard where the figure lay on their back, though they were quickly getting to their feet. Their long blueish green hair tumbled away from their face, showing the deep scowl they wore.

"SHADOW?! Why are you here?!"

Jack hadn't seen her since that day in the woods, when she threatened him.

"I was hoping to not cause a scene." Shadow spat at him, growling.

Before Jack could respond, the other monks, along with Aeris, raced outside, all clad in sleepwear.

"What happened?!" Grace yelled, her waist length raven hair flying behind her as she ran out. "We heard a-"

She stopped when she saw the Heylin apprentice, now drawing her Blue Moon Blade from its sheath.

"Shadow!" Kimiko yelled, getting into a fighting stance. "We should have known it was you!"

"Don't worry, lass. You can get back to your beauty sleep soon enough." Shadow sneered.

"You have no business here!" Aeris yelled. "State your purpose."

Jack was surprised. He'd never heard Aeris yell before.

"I'm here to collect something." Shadow said. She smirked at the sightless dragon. "Tell me, what's it like seeing your replacement - the one who Chase has devoted himself to now? Oh, that's right, you can't see me, can you? Pity. Too bad you can't see the face of the woman you lost to."

Aeris directed a beam of light at the woman, who easily dodged it, hissing her anger.

"I don't need to see you to stop you." Aeris warned.

Jack frowned from his position behind his crumbling bedroom wall.

'What does she mean 'replacement'?'

"What are you here to collect?" Aeris asked, already ready to strike again. "I am in no mood for games."

"A person." Shadow said. She paused, toying with the monks' curiosity, taunting them as she paced back and forth. "One who belongs not only to the Heylin, but with them."

"How many times must I tell Chase Young I will not join him!" Omi yelled. "Neither I nor Ping Pong will stoop to your villainous standards!"

"No offense, Mr. Ego," Shadow sneered, "but I wasn't talking about you"

Her gaze fell upon an utterly confused Jack Spicer, still hovering by the hole in his room. When he noticed, his heart nearly stopped.

"Oh crap..."

Shadow smiled knowingly, barely taking one step towards Jack before a dark mass lunged at the woman. Shadow dodged it and glared at Ginger, whose shadow writhed protectively around her.

"If you want to get to him, you'll have to get through us."

Shadow smirked, eyeing the girl. "It's a shame you've sided with their lot, dearie. You could have done well on the Heylin side."

She rushed at the girl, slicing at her with her sword. Ginger swiped her hands forward, bringing them together and sending a blast of dark matter at Shadow, which she sliced through before kicking her back.

The red-headed girl was caught by her animated shadow, which she sent out to ensnare the woman, just as Jade launched herself at Shadow, dark serpentine masses leaping from her arms to attack her throat. Shadow's whip like hair swung forward, wrapping itself around Jade's waist before hurling her into Ginger.

"WATER!" Omi cried, sending a wave towards Shadow. Catching her in the torrent, Grace blew a gust of icy breath, freezing the woman in place, incapacitating her.

"No worries, Master Aeris." Omi said proudly."I have stopped her."

"We stopped her." Grace said, more than a tad bit annoyed.

A crackling behind them caught their attention, but before either could react, Shadow broke free of her frozen prison, sending razor sharp shards of ice in all directions.

"FIRE!" Kimiko yelled, throwing a fireball to melt the projectiles before anyone was hurt. Grace froze the water again and sent the ice shurikens flying back at Shadow, who merely shielded herself with her hair before having it knock Grace into Omi and Kimiko.

"Who's next?" Shadow smirked.

"EARTH!" Clay bellowed, sending his fist crashing into the ground, opening up a crevice that threatened to engulf Shadow. Jumping out of the way, she was instead pummeled with a boulder, sending her right back into the hole that had opened up.

She clawed at the ledge, hissing in anger as she was wrapped in thorned vines, directing her glare to Renai. Renai commanded them to tighten their grip on Shadow as more vines entwined around her. Struggling to break free, Shadow resorted to slicing through them with the Blue Moon Blade.

"Not bad." she said. "Now it's my turn."

She disappeared in a puff of smoke, sending the dragons of earth and nature frantically looking about. A darkness, only broken by two glowing white eyes, appeared behind Renai before grabbing her by the neck and lifting her high off the ground, a jagged smile ripping through its face.

"Renai!" Clay yelled. He tried attacking Shadow, but his hands only went through her, doing nothing. Clay's anger dissipated into fear as Renai's face became an alarming shade of purple. Everything he did was useless to help her.

Two bolts of lightning hit Shadow directly in the chest, eliciting an inhuman scream from her as she dropped Renai, who Clay caught.

"Let go of her, you ugly freak!" Amanda yelled, electricity dancing around her fingers. Jaydi stood at her side, static forming around her eyes.

Another blast of light was sent forward from the girls' fingertips, which Shadow deflected with her blade.

Jaydi sprinted forward, her index and middle fingers dragging on the ground, generating electricity before she shot the bolts directly at Shadow. The Heylin woman dodged, growling at her, readying her blade.

"Praying Mantis Striking Bully!" Ping Pong yelled, soaring through the air as he aimed his attack at Shadow's back. She smirked before whipping her hair around, trapping the young monk before tossing him high into the air.

"Ping Pong!" Jaydi yelled, losing her focus and allowing Shadow to knock her onto her back, landing by Amanda.

Ping screamed as the ground seemed to fly up at him, squeezing his eyes shut so as to not see the inevitable impact.

A sphere of air encased him, making the young monk open his eyes. Raimundo stood to the right of him, holding him in place with his power before setting him down.

"Stay with Jack." he ordered before racing ahead to help Amanda.

Amanda was kicking at Shadow, sending currents of lightning streaking up at her.

"Don't make her come out." Amanda growled, dodging another swipe from Shadow's sword. Seeing Raimundo out of the corner of her eye, Amanda generated a sphere of electricity.

"Rai! Thunderstorm!" she yelled, throwing the lightning ball to him.

"WIND!" the Brazilian cried, trapping it in a swirling ball of air before sending it flying at Shadow. When she tried deflecting it, it exploded into mass of lightning and wind, nearly blinding her. She fell to one knee, lifting her head and glaring murderously at the pair.

"I've had enough of your games!"

Shadow sliced the ground with her sword, crating a shock wave of blue energy. Every monk that had recovered were sent flying back into the temple, crumpling helplessly to the ground. Even Jack, who'd been cowering in his room, was sent crashing into his dresser, sliding down it as he felt a familiar silver ball fall into his hand.

"Then fight me." Aeris said, approaching Shadow. Her eyes glowed and had an almost... inhuman look to them. "Instead of attacking my students like a coward, take me on." She got into a fighting stance, one arm outstretched behind her, the other in front of her as she motioned with her fingers for Shadow to attack. "I think you will find I am more your speed."

Shadow smirked, her reptilian tongue darting out between her teeth. "Very well, let's see what you can do."

Shadow dove at the Sightless Dragon, sword aimed directly at her. Aeris stepped to the side, knocking her arm away and sending a light filled punch into the woman's stomach before spinning and kicking her away. Shadow hissed angrily before directing her hair at Aeris' wrists, bandaging them. Aeris grabbed the locks before pulling the Heylin woman off her feet, into the air, and smashing her into the ground.

"Go Master Aeris!" Kimiko yelled. "Kick her butt!"

Shadow's eyes narrowed to slits before becoming an intangible cloud of smoke. Aeris stood still for a moment, unable to sense where she was. A darkness materialized behind her, snake like hair wrapping around her, encasing her like a mummy. A light shined through it, making Shadow retract in pain. Aeris turned, delivering a swift kick to Shadow's abdomen before sending a brilliant sphere directly to her chest.

Shadow clutched at her torso, scowling before her tongue shot out, tying Aeris' hands together. Aeris threw herself backwards, yanking Shadow with her before sending a debilitating elbow to her jaw, causing the grip Shadow's tongue had on her wrists to loosen and allowing Aeris to free herself. Shadow fell to her knees, her back to the Sightless Dragon.

"I have had enough of you." Aeris declared.

"Funny, I was just thinking the same thing." Shadow hissed. "Let's see how Chase feels about the death of his precious little lightning bolt."

Shadow swiveled to face Aeris, her sword a blue blur as she aimed for Aeris's neck. A chain, seemingly from no where, wrapped itself around the blade, just stopping it from decapitating Aeris, and yanked it from Shadow's grasp, unarming her.

"What?!" Shadow yelled, swerving to watch her beloved weapon as it skidded to a halt at the feet of the one who'd defied her.

"Jack, you idiot! What do you think you're doing!"

Jack stood trembling in the destroyed courtyard, catching the chain as it came back to him before it remolded itself back into the metal ball. His legs were shaking and he feared he would pass out on the spot. The look Shadow was giving him sent an icy chill straight through him, and he flinched away from her harsh tone.

"You don't need to kill her, Shadow!" he said.

The Heylin apprentice seethed, eyes piercing his very soul. "You're weak, Spicer. That will never change, and Chase is a fool to believe otherwise."

The prospect of Chase Young actually thinking of him as strong would have overjoyed Jack had it not been for his current situation.

"My quarrel isn't with you, Dragon of Light." Shadow sneered when Aeris prepared to attack her. "This doesn't concern you; though I am not finished with you yet.  Our battle is for another day."

"The moment you dared to attack my students, this became my concern." Aeris told her, eyes narrowing.

Jack noticed someone come to his side, though he didn't bother to look.

"Come on Jack, we can take her!"

It was Raimundo!

"Look at her, she's weak!" Rai said. "We can take her down, you and me."

Jack stared bewildered at the Brazilian. Just earlier, Rai had finally accepted him as a team mate. And now he was by his side, ready to fight with him.

"Now, I will ask you this only once." Aeris warned, her voice a harsh whisper as she formed a bolt of light in her hands, which she aimed directly  between Shadow's eyes. "Who are you here for?"

"Jack knows who I'm here for." Shadow smirked. "Don't you, Jackie."

The little color Jack had drained from his face.

'No... Don't do this. Not now!'

"What is she talking about?" Aeris asked. She looked at Spicer, once again able to peer right into his eyes despite her blindness. He couldn't meet her gaze.

"Brother Jack?"

Spicer's mind raced as his heart threatened to burst from his chest.

'This can't be happening! Everything was so nice, and now THIS! This has to be a bad dream, i-it just HAS to be! I can't be this unlucky!'

He felt all eyes on him, each monk expecting an answer. He could lie and say he didn't know why Shadow had come for him. He could just do as Raimundo had suggested and attack her - Shadow was panting, obviously exhausted and on her last legs. It wouldn't take much.

How could he tell them the truth? That all this time, everything had been one big ploy. He couldn't just turn on them like that - as much as he hated to admit it, they'd become his genuine friends. More than that, his family. He finally felt like he belonged and now here he was, feeling like he was being ripped apart.

He was torn between the life he was destined to have since before he existed and the life he had wanted to have for as long as he'd lived. Between good and evil. Light and dark... Friendship and power.

'...'

Jack pivoted around, knocking Raimundo off his feet as he kicked him onto his back, watching as he slid in front of a group of stunned monks. Amanda quickly knelt next to him, but the dragon of wind payed her no attention.

Dazed, Rai gave Jack a look of the utmost confusion.

"Dude, what was that for?!" he yelled.

One look was all it took for Raimundo and the others to understand.

That smile.

That old evil smile.

"Jack, no." Jaydi pleaded. "Don't do this! Please!"

Jack picked up the Blue Moon Blade before tossing it back to Shadow, who caught it with ease.

"Come to mama." she purred before knocking Aeris off her feet. Before she could do anything else, Renai and Grace rushed to her aid, Renai with visible tears while Grace was in shock.

"Jack Spicer!" Omi yelled. "What are you doing?"

"Oh, don't play dumb with me, Cue Ball." Jack scoffed. You had to have seen this coming!"

Omi didn't look like he comprehended anything Jack was saying, as he only shook his head repeatedly.

"No, no, no." Omi squeezed his eyes shut and clutched his head, yelling. "No, no, NO! This wasn't supposed to happen!"

"You no good, lying, lower than a snake-in-the-grass VARMINT!" Clay yelled. Kimiko and Ginger held him back so he wouldn't act out his anger. "How could you so this to us?!"

"After everything we did for you!" Kimiko added, eyes ablaze. "After all that, you go and backstab us like this?!"

"Uh, hello? Did you all forget?" Jack asked, stepping beside Shadow. "I'm EVIL! E-V-I-L, evil! Rotten to the core, bad to the bone, Heylin all the way! You think me being all buddy buddy with you was real? That I actually meant any of it? Cause if so, you're all a lot more stupider than I imagined!"

"We TRUSTED you!" Ginger screamed. "Why would you do this?!"

"It was all a joke!" Jack yelled. "I've been planning on double crossing you from the beginning! That day the Shoku morons told me about my powers, I talked to Chase Young. And he had me come here to learn how to use them, and how to defeat you. So that some day soon, I could leave you wannabes and be HIS apprentice."

"So it was all a lie?" Jade said. "From the very beginning, everything you did was just so you could turn on us in the end?"

"How many times do I have to repeat myself? Yes! It was all a trick, and you fell for it, hook, line and sinker! So how do you like them apples?"

A bolt of lightning that nearly burned him to a crisp was his answer, and he stumbled away from the smoldering block mark. Looking up, he saw it was Jaydi; tears rolling down her cheeks as an unparalleled fury burned in her eyes.

"You ungrateful jerk!" she screamed, literally trembling with rage. She was about to send another lightning strike when Amanda stopped her.

"He's not worth it, Jay." she said, glaring at Jack.

"Come on." Shadow said. "Leave them."

"So long, Xiaolin losers! Thanks for the training!" Jack said, smirking.

As Shadow began teleport them, Jack looked one last time at his former friends. Renai and Grace were at Aeris' side still, refusing to look at him. Aeris' face held such a look of disappointment and hurt that it literally pained him to look at her. Clay looked about ready to explode while Omi just continued to shake his head, still in a state of shock over what he'd just heard. Kimiko and Jade stared at the ground, and were now restraining Ginger, who looked more vicious than her shadow, which gnashed it's teeth viciously at him. Amanda looked on the verge of losing it, while Jaydi had already fallen over the edge. Raimundo just glared at him; a piecing, murderous glare. But the worst was Ping Pong.

He just stood there, dumbfounded, tears rolling down his young face at the idea of losing his best friend. His big Brother.

Jack couldn't even look at him for more than a second. Guilt, shame, horror and disgust - each of these buzzed like bees around in his head, stinging him, each more painful than the last as the poison seeped in. He felt like throwing up. He felt like screaming. He felt like just curling up into a ball and wishing it all away.

As he vanished with Shadow, one final voice rang through his head. A voice that belonged to a certain Brazilian.

"I knew we couldn't trust you!"