Mother
Alternate
Finality
Chapter Two: My Own Tainted Past
Dual Proghauser crossed her arms nonchalantly as she stepped towards the human party, flashing an extremely menacing smile as she did so. It’s time to have some fun, she seemed to say to herself, walking forth. Her opponents, in the meantime, were placing their things on the floor and taking up fighting stances.
“My, aren’t we cautious?” she chuckled. “You look as though you don’t like me.”
“Can, it, sister,” snapped Peel, who was tightening the strap on her bazooka with one hand while she pointed the large cannon at Proghauser threateningly with the other. “We’ve had enough games! We want to know everything, now!”
Proghauser stopped in her tracks and placed her hands in the pockets of her vest, and began tapping the ground with the toe of her sneaker. “Such anger…” she muttered to herself. “And I haven’t even done anything…” she removed her hands from her pockets, placing a finger on her chin while she rested that arm on the other. “I suppose I should grant you a little bit of information…”
Julian dropped his fists. For a moment, that same sensation overcame him…
Dual Proghauser sighed. “Oh well, it would merely delay the inevitable, so I don’t see why not.” She relaxed herself and took a deep breath, preparing to speak.
“As you have probably guessed, the World Device sits at the peak of this mountain,” she began “and, as you have probably also guessed, we were the ones who helped create it. The [key] you hold is the final component needed to fully activate the Device, allowing us complete control over its functions. Alas, we have tried to recover it, but have thus far failed in our endeavors. You may attest to that, ja?”
Julian remained silent, his eyes boring holes into the girl’s skull. Just what was it about this girl that seemed familiar?
Proghauser didn’t notice. “Now, the reason my associates failed was because of their gross underestimation of your abilities. At first they thought a Starmen or two would defeat you, but that was a mistake…Volt Punker was the first real victim of that erroneous train of thought. Rapper Flamestart wrongly assumed that he would be able to beat you one-on-one…he failed to consider that your companions would pose a serious threat to him. As for Earth Bluesman…I believe you know what went wrong with his plan.”
Vee tightened her fists and narrowed her fists. “And I suppose you have a better plan?”
Proghauser shook her head and began cracking her knuckles. “No. I prefer Volt Punker’s approach…simple, efficient, and violent.” All of a sudden her eyes narrowed and her smile disappeared, replaced by a snarl. “Now give me the [key],” she threatened, “or else.”
Julian’s fists came back up, and his tattoo began glowing. “‘Or else’ it is, then.” He said calmly.
Proghauser lowered her head. “I warned you.” She growled.
With blinding speed Dual Proghauser launched herself forward, her left hand reared back and ready to strike. Julian and his friends barely managed to jump to the side before her fist hammered itself in to the ground they were occupying just a few seconds before, kicking up dust and leaving a small indentation in the soil. Without even stopping to think Dual Proghauser picked out a target and did a forwards somersault, using the momentum to change direction. Vee’s form came into focus before her, and she readied her fists for another attack.
Vee was barely able to block Proghauser’s fist before her other leg was raised and swinging a wide arc towards Vee’s head. Vee ducked and let go of her enemy’s arm, rolling forward and out of harm’s way. Her recovery met with another kick, which she blocked with both arms. The force from such an attack caused a violent vibration that racked her entire body, and forced her to retreat backwards.
Suddenly, a large, yellowish beam shot out of nowhere and almost managed to strike Proghauser’s head, had she not moved her head to the side in time. Peel’s cannon fired again and Proghauser leaned to the right and twisted her body to the left, once again dodging the shot. A third shot whizzed through the air, and Proghauser jumped to avoid it. As soon as she landed she began running towards Peel, zigzagging so as to avoid the blasts from her bazooka. When she was too close to shoot, Peel swung the barrel at her wildly in an attempt to hit her; Proghauser was too fast, though, and managed to push the bazooka to one side with her hand, leaving Peel wide open. Peel reached into her pack with her free hand and produced an explosive, which she chucked at Proghauser. The latter covered her face with her arms as the contraption exploded, giving Peel a chance to retreat and group with Vee. With one hand Proghauser cleared the smoke, spinning around.
She turned to find Julian charging up PSI spell from afar, and her brow furrowed when she saw him. Once again she began to run towards her foe, who unleashed several beams of light at her. After dodging two of them and deflecting one to the side with her arm, she leapt into the air and came down hard with her heel, threatening to stomp him. Just before she did, though, Joshua teleported in, grabbed Julian, and teleported out with a yellow flash. As she was unable to change direction in mid-air, Proghauser was forced to land forcefully, creating a small crater with her heel.
“I see what you
are doing…” Proghauser flashed another devilish smile
as she stood back up, regaining her composure. “The same trick used on Earth
Bluesman won’t work on
A beam of iridescent energy blazed in a straight line towards Peel and Vee, who were completely unprepared for the attack and resigned themselves to watching in horror as the light swam closer to them. At the last second, though, Joshua and Julian managed to teleport to their sides just in time to conjure up a psychic shield. The beam hit the shield and was deflected skyward, sending many violent ripples through the greenish dome. Once the beam dissipated Julian and Joshua let the shield drop and sighed heavily. The beam broke and scorched the earth where it had been…but there was no sign of Proghauser.
Joshua’s eyes widened and he let out a gasp as Proghauser materialized to his right, apparently out of thin air, with her fist clenched. Everything broke into slow motion as he gasped in shock and looked straight into Proghauser’s calm, yet maniacally evil eyes. Very softly the girl then whispered…
“Don’t go to heaven.”
The right side of her mouth tilted up and she bared her clenched teeth as her fist began flying forth. Joshua placed his arms in front of his face in a cross formation and steeled himself as the fist of Dual Proghauser smashed into him, launching him off his feet and sending him careening into Julian, who caught him and wrapped his arms around him. His heels dug into the ground and his teeth gritted as the force of Proghauser’s blow dragged him several feet back. Eventually Julian lost his balance and the two crashed to the ground.
“Julian!” Peel’s
jaw dropped as she watched the spectacle, and then turned to fire at Proghauser with her bazooka. Unfortunately, she was no longer there.
“I have wasted enough time with these games.” Dual Proghauser reemerged far away from her enemies, her composure seemingly regained.
Vee ran over to help Julian and Joshua while Peel trained her bazooka on her enemy and put the aiming scope to her eye. “You think we’re giving up yet?” she yelled. “We’ve seen worse. We’re not scared of you!”
“Yeah, don’t think we’re fighting our best, either!” added Vee from behind, who was rejoining Peel after making sure her friends were okay. “We’re much stronger than this!”
Proghauser smiled. “I’ve no reason to
doubt that,” she said. “But you’re not as good as
“What is this?” Julian called out the Gleyd Aswer and raised it so as to illuminate the area. “What did she do?”
As if to answer Julian’s question, Proghauser emerged from the shadows. Her figure was mysteriously brilliant, and seemed to give off a strange light that illuminated her but shrouded everything else around her. When she appeared she was standing a few feet away from Julian, arms crossed.
“Und?” She said, tauntingly. “What do you think now?”
Julian growled, seething, and extended his palm face up, lightly jerking his middle and forefinger upwards. The Gleyd Aswer rose obediently and hovered before him, poised and ready to attack. Wordlessly Julian sent a wave of psychic energy into the Aswer. The glowing shield resonated with Julian’s energy briefly before shooting forward.
A mere
thousandth of a second before the Aswer hit, however, Proghauser
twirled gracefully to one side and her form vanished into the shadows, the
Aswer missing her completely. She then
rematerialized with a twirl a few steps to the side. She smiled again and crossed her arms. It was almost as if she enjoyed toying with Julian.
“Missed
Julian didn’t get the chance to attack again; Proghauser soon faded into the shadows again, leaving him and his friends shrouded in darkness. A trickle of sweat made its way down Julian’s forehead, and he began breathing through his mouth, nervously. That girl could be anywhere…she was just psyching them out, and then she’d strike…there had to be some way to get around this blasted darkness…
Just then Julian was hit with an idea. Maybe if he could….
He turned to Peel and very slowly began to beckon to her with his hand. He didn’t want Proghauser to catch on to his plan, so he had to be both quiet and discreet. He just hoped Peel would get it…
Peel noticed Julian motioning to her with his hand, and turned to look at him. When Julian was certain he had gotten her attention, he dropped his hand and shut his eyes tight. Peel looked at him askance. What the heck is he doing? She thought to herself as she watched Julian open and squeeze his eyes shut repeatedly, as if trying to convey a message to her. Why is he doing that thing with his eyes?
His eyes…
Peel drew her hand up to her mouth as Julian’s actions triggered a wave of memories within her. There was that one time, all those months ago…was that what he was planning?
Well, here goes nothing…Peel sent Julian a quick nod before slowly and silently pulling her mechanic’s goggles over her eyes and readying her bazooka. Julian took a quick look at Peel to make sure she was ready, and then began to concentrate as he took in a deep breath. The timing on this would have to be perfect…
There…Julian could feel it. A small sphere of psychokinetic energy formed in his palm and began humming softly as Julian steadied himself. Slowly he began to form a spell. Almost there…“PK…”
Now!
“…Flash!” The entire area was completely bathed in white light as Julian thrust his hand upwards and released the built up PSI energy. Joshua and Vee both fell to their knees and covered their faces, their eyes burning. At the same time, just above Julian and to his left, Proghauser was literally stopped in mid-air by the attack, her fist a few feet away from Julian’s face. Julian quickly whirled towards Peel and yelled, “Go! Shoot!”
Peel didn’t have to be told twice. She hefted the heavy weapon onto her shoulder and took aim, then pulled the trigger. “Take that, you overgrown bully!” she shouted as the bazooka fired a white-hot burst of plasma straight at Proghauser, who had no time to dodge and thus took the shot head-on. She gasped in pain and was knocked sideways, careening into the ground and tumbling a good ten feet before skidding to a halt.
Peel lifted her goggles, then holstered her bazooka and ran over to the others to make sure they were okay. After a few doses of Julian’s healing PSI they were up and feeling much better. The four then stood and walked over to Dual Proghauser’s prone form.
“Man, that was tough!” Vee wiped her forehead with the back of her hand, placing the other on her hip and heaving a profound sigh of relief. “That girl’s arms were like concrete!”
Joshua rubbed the spot where Proghauser had punched him earlier. “Yes, her strength does seem…supernatural, somehow.” He commented. “It’s almost surprising that she could be defeated so easily.”
Julian walked up to his opponent and crouched down next to her. He still couldn’t shake the feeling that he had seen her before…but where? Why can’t I stop thinking about this? Julian thought to himself as he looked her battered form over. What is it about this girl…?
He never got to finish that thought; Prohauser’s hand shot up from the ground and tried to grasp Julian’s ankle. Instinctively Julian jumped back and used a telekinetic boost to push himself back several feet. He made his way over to his friends and stayed there, hovering cautiously a few feet above their heads as Proghauser struggled to her feet like some sort of drunken prizefighter, her spirit battling for control over the pain. She was barely able to stand, her arms dangling limply and her head lowered.
“That was good…but not enough.” She said calmly, much to everyone’s stupefaction. “You were able to best the powers vested in me by Diva as one of her four best warriors…”
“Diva? What are you talking about?” asked Vee. “What do you mean by these…powers?”
Proghauser’s hand rose slowly to her mouth and wiped it clean as she spoke. Very slowly she was regaining her composure, and it became terribly obvious that she wasn’t as hurt as she seemed to be. “It does not matter now. Flueche sie...”
All of a sudden Julian’s eyes widened and he dropped to the ground, landing with a dull thud and kicking up a cloud of dust. Now everything was clear…he finally knew who this girl was…why hadn’t he seen it before? It all made perfect sense…
Very slowly Julian stepped in front of his friends and placed his hands in his pockets. Slowly and deliberately he spoke, so as to make sure every syllable sunk in…
“Lisa Schneider…”
Proghauser straitened up abruptly and furrowed her brow, her gaze becoming icy and sharp. “What did you say?” she asked, her tongue dripping venom.
“That’s you, isn’t it?” asked Julian. “I saw your picture when I went to visit your parents…at first I couldn’t place you, but then I remembered…”
Vee took a step forward and pointed at the silver-haired fighter before them. “So…when Mrs. Schneider said all that about her daughters getting killed…it wasn’t really true, was it? They killed one…and made the other into one of them!”
Julian nodded. “Yeah…I should’ve known sooner, given the accent…” he looked at Proghauser again, his eyes impassive and devoid of all hatred. “They…don’t really know, do they?” he asked.
Dual Proghauser reached for her neck and grabbed her necklace, ripping it off with one smooth motion and hurling it to the side. The time for games was over. “Yes…” she began, “I was once the daughter of that man…but not anymore.” Her fists curled into balls and her teeth clenched as her breathing became heavy and irregular.
“I am Dual Proghauser, the most powerful warrior on this planet!” with that she launched herself forward as she let loose with a blood-curdling war cry, murder in her eyes. Julian, in response, merely jumped out of the way and extended his hand, grabbing her and lifting her into the air with telekinesis. Very slowly he lifted her up until she was several feet above ground, then walked under her, his left hand still in his pocket while the other was pointed at her, palm facing forward. “You can’t keep this up forever.” He said as she struggled. “Now stop controlling innocent people and just leave her be!”
Proghauser stopped her struggling momentarily when she heard those words. “Con…trolling?” she asked. Julian nodded. “You heard me. You’ve been using Dr. Schneider’s daughter like a puppet…and I want you to stop right now.”
Proghauser’s head lowered and she relaxed herself, no longer fighting against Julian’s invisible grip. Slowly she became limp, and for a moment everything was calm. Julian saw this and let his guard down, thinking this particular conflict resolved for now. It seemed for a moment like this would turn out better than he expected…
That particular illusion was shattered into tiny fragments when Proghauser let out a scream and sent out a wave of power, breaking Julian’s telekinetic grip as well as knocking him and his friends down to the ground. A terrible wind began emanating from the argent warrior, and she was exhuming a great deal of power. But this power wasn’t the same as before…was this…PSI?
Her figure slowly touched ground and the massive power flux was dissipated with nothing more than a mental notion from Proghauser, who stood calmly on the ground, a sick smile creeping over her face and an aura of darkness enveloping her features. She watched as Julian got back on his feet, his friends a few feet behind him. There was a look of utter confusion on his face. Proghauser snickered and lifted a hand to brush a few strands of hair from her face.
“Fool. You don’t
know what you’re talking about, do you?” asked Proghauser. A blank stare from Julian was the only reply,
and all she really needed to strengthen her resolve. A sinister chuckle escaped her lips and one
hand went up to her hip. “Well, well…poor, naïve Julian…they didn’t take me
forcefully…I gave myself to them of my own accord.”
“What?!” Julian’s eyes grew and his jaw dropped to the ground. “That’s impossible! It can’t be!”
“It can.” Retorted Proghauser, her demeanor still suggesting that she was totally calm and convinced of the words she was speaking. “I turned to them willingly…and in return I gained a great deal of power. As a matter of fact…I was there when they reduced that…man you call my father to the shriveled little thing he is now.”
Julian gasped. It couldn’t be… “How could you let this happen? Why did you do it! Why didn’t you stop them…?”
Another chuckle. “Stop them? Stop them? My dear boy…I was the one who did it for them.”
Julian nearly fell apart right then and there. How could this be real? How could anyone want to hurt their own father so badly? It was impossible…and he said so to Dual Proghauser, who simply stood there and eyed Julian evilly.
“Why did you do it? Your parents loved you so much…”
The girl scoffed in response. “They loved only glory and wealth…and their arrogance was what led them to their downfall…” she cast her hand to the side in a brusque gesture, expressing anger and letting the rage of times past float to the surface. “He never loved me or my sister! He just used us! He destroyed us both!” her voice became raspy all of a sudden, and her eyes became glassy. “He was as much of a monster as the ones you’re fighting!”
Julian shook his head. “That’s not true…and you know it.” He said calmly. “He loved you very much, I know he—”
“Silence!” A beam of light shot out from Proghauser’s hand and towards Julian, who barely managed to call up a shield in time to deflect the sudden outburst. He had definitely hit a nerve, and the pent-up rage within Dual Proghauser’s psyche was being let out very forcefully.
Proghauser’s fists clenched and her knuckled turned white. Her gaze became steely again and her smile was now gone. “The only thing I have now is Diva…and for her I shall defeat you, Julian!”
Julian’s friends ran up to him and took up fighting stances behind their leader, ready for combat. They were just about to attack when Julian raised his arms and stopped them, shaking his head all the while as if to forbid them from proceeding. “No…I’ll prove to you that what you did was wrong…you had no right…”
The Gleyd Aswer sparkled and shone as it made its appearance and hovered cautiously in front of its master, ready for battle. Peel stepped tentatively towards Julian and touched his shoulder with her hand. “Julian…are you sure you want to do this?” Julian turned to look at her and managed to crack a weak, reassuring, yet completely empty smile at her. “I’ll be fine,” he said.
Proghauser closed her eyes and placed her arms to her sides. “I was given great power by the forces from beyond this world…but those forces are not enough to defeat you. I shall have to use the power that I’ve always had with me…since before I became who I am now…”
Julian’s eyes narrowed. Could that power be…
“PK Licht Saebel!” Proghauser extended her arm to the side, then brought it out in front of her and clenched her hand, as if holding something. Slowly a white streak of light began forming in her hand, solidifying and taking shape slowly until it became a curved blade. There was no hilt, no handle, anything; it was just raw PSI power shaped into a flat, curved sword.
As if sensing Julian’s questions before he could ask them, Proghauser spoke. “Yes…I too am gifted with this power. You are the first to see it…and you will be the last.” It was clear what she meant by that.
Julian took a deep breath. “I’ll show you…” he said. The Gleyd Aswer floated towards him and attached itself to his right forearm. “I’ll show you the truth…”
Then, the two
fighters launched themselves towards each other, ready for battle.