Graveyard of a Madman Part 28

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''Spike sat in the corner of the room, almost completely covered with bandages that were seeping through with red. He didn't exactly look angry, he was just mildly disappointed that he did not reach his record of beaten Marines. He was still raring to fight, but Aphro stopped him once he saw a very deep cut down his chest. He tried to convince the doctor that it was fine, but Aphro would hear none of it. The four doctors from every crew scrambled to get bandages from around the town and gather them all in a large, abandoned clinic that was far enough away from the fighting to where they could look at their crew members without being disturbed, though they did have a few mishaps where a few lowly Marines tried to attack their medical center, but they were straightened out promptly.''

''Ellis examined a very deep gash on Hakuryuu's arm, the rest of his body also rather severely beaten and battered as an explosion happened quite near him, sending him flying into a building that was now a rubble heap. He sat up in one of the beds that were lined up against the walls of that large bed-ridden area of the medical clinic.''

Ellis: Well the good news, this is your worst injury. The bad news, it's gonna get infected. [She flicked a hypodermic needle into her hand and stuck it into his arm, pushing down the back.]

Hakuryuu: Whoa, that's a weird vibe right there. [Looked as she pulled the needle out.] You gotta learn to mellow out, you know?

Ellis: Yeah yeah, heard it before. I'll rest when I'm dead. Right now, you sit there and let the medicine take effect. Then I might let you fight some more. Capeesh?

Hakuryuu: You're the doc.

Ellis: Already startin' ta like you. [Stuck a very large adhesive medical strip over the cut. Thankfully it didn't need stitches.]

Stormy: Ellis! I need you over here! [Waved at her from across the room.] I think this is one of yours!

Ellis: Eh? [Ran down the rows of beds to get to them, and was shocked to see three of their swordfighters, all of them cut up in a bad way, Usagi worst of all.] Holy screaming sheep shit!! What the hell happened?! [Looked at Wataru, who carried Usagi.]

Wataru: Two very strong adversaries double teamed Usagi in battle. She fought a great duel, and held her own against them, but they used under-handed battle tactics. Their honor was tainted with anger and greed!

''Ellis listened, but also examined Usagi. The blood-loss was great, but thankfully, as she laid Usagi down on the bed, she found that the cut on her back was not nearly as bad as it seemed. It did not come close to her spine, but it must have hurt something fierce. It was kind of deep, but it was done with such a fine sword, and the cut was clean.''

Usagi: It's not that bad. I can still fight!

Ellis: Yeah yeah, been hearin' that story all day. You've lost some blood, and lo and behold, you're AB. Rare bloodtype, but aren't you glad I collected some blood from you over that course of time? [She quickly went to her medical pack and started going through her blood bags.] We'll get your body stable, but you ain't going nowhere.

Stormy: Pura, Laura, both of you come on over here, and let me take a look at your injuries.

Pura: Will she be okay? [She asked, but saw Ellis smile and give her a thumbs up.]

Laura: I'm fine, I need to get back out there.

Stormy: NO! Both of you! Sit! Or I'll stitch the seat to your asses!

Spike: [From the back corner.] Can I go yet?

Aphro: No! [Said from the other side of the room where she was putting ice packs on his very swollen side.]

From the backroom, Jolly D. Hope brought some bandages with her and put them beside Ellis, who thanked her.

Sid: What about me?

Aphro: Once the swelling goes down, you should be good to go. [Then Aphro looked around.] Wait a minute, where is Sakura?!

---

''The sun was all the way down now. Sakura and Midori in the dead of night, and in the moonlight. Their katanas clashed in midair once again, the earth around their feet began to blow apart. Midori cringed as Sakura pushed off of her and both of them slid backward. They stopped for a moment, sweat covered their faces. No matter how hot she was, Midori would not take off her lower face mask, but she was starting to feel quite stuffed up in it. Still, she did not concentrate on that. Instead, both of them looked at one another in the eye, and Sakura sunk deeper into her fighting stance. She couldn't get over the cold, and lifeless the eyes of her opponent.''

''Just as she was thinking of making her next move, Midori held her sword in front of her. With one swipe, she seemed to cut the very air molecules in front of her. Then she brought the blade downward, and struck the ground, sliding her sword straight up toward Sakura. To Sakura's surprise, a gigantic point jutted up from the street, and stabbed right into her directly. She narrowly escaped the brunt of the surprising attack, but caught the tip of it on her stomach, puncturing her a little bit. She winced at the pain a little, but she had no time to make any reaction as Midori lunged forward and sliced at her once again. To her dismay, Sakura was more than ready, and she reached out and clamped her hand onto Midori's wrist, and with her elbow, smacked Midori right between the eyes. With no hesitation at all, their swords clashed once again. Their blades clanged over and over again, sometimes becoming faster than the eye could see.''

''In the blink of an eye, Midori brought her sword above head, and came crashing down into Sakura's blade with a devastating strike that caused her feet to smash deeper into the ground. To her surprise, though, Midori's foot came straight up and caught Sakura in the gut with a very powerful kick that sent her straight back, skidding across the street. Sakura was quick to kip up onto her feet and see that Midori was holding her head up tall, her eyes closed. Soon, she could see her aura coming about her, her body began to glow a bright shining white as she aimed the tip of her sword toward Sakura. The white slowly changed into a bright green color that engulfed her very being.''

''Sakura held her fighting stance as well, sensing that Midori's strength was far greater than she had anticipated. It was obvious she was, indeed, the strongest fighter of the seven that attacked their group. Sakura breathed in, closing her eyes and holding her sword out, stretching out with her senses and enhancing her focus on what needed to be done.''

''Midori, shining in her chi as it was enhanced many times over, brought all of the energy focused into her green-bladed katana. With that she came forward, her visage leaving traces in the air behind her as she readied her sword for an attack. Sakura kept her eyes closed, the peacock appearing in her mind's eye as her meditation took her abilities to their highest level.''

Sakura: Ittoryuu Ougi...

With the force of a thunder clap, Midori's sword swiped hard at Sakura, as she let out a roar of power!

Sakura: Susano'o! [Her sword lifted above her head, but then came straight down and met Midori's blade with a catastrophic attack, her aura of pink rising from her body to meet the green aura her opponent emitted.]

''The buildings around them blew their windows and contents apart, some of the fronts of them were imploded, causing the rest of the building's structure to collapse. The dust bellowed all around them, debris flew everywhere. After a moment, the dust began to settle, showing Sakura standing over a thoroughly beaten Midori. Sakura had to admit, her arms' nerves were shot, and beginning to tremor uncontrollably after such a clashing attack. She slowly, and carefully sheathed her sword, looking down at Midori, who was trying to keep her eyes open. Midori finally pulled her own mask down, revealing herself to be a lovely young lady. Blood trickled down the side of her mouth, and she was breathing quite hard. After a moment, her trembling hand lifted up her green bladed sword toward Sakura.''

Midori: Its name is Ryuukyo... the Dragon's Cry. I'm done with it.

Sakura reached down and picked it up by its sheath and held it.

Midori: I'm done with it...

''Midori's eyes closed, and she trailed off into a deep, much needed sleep. Sakura stood, still holding the green-bladed sword with a trembling hand. She slowly turned, and began to walk. It started to rain.''

Graveyard of a Madman Part 29