Jet and Lorraine hesitantly went forward. It was a strange sensation to walk on the ceiling. The texture made it difficult to keep one’s footing, their new floor being a lot slippier than their old one. Jet took careful steps, paranoid that things would go back to normal and was partially bracing his body for the crash like it was an inevitability. Lorraine walked normally, more so confused than anything else. Were they the ones upside down or was it the hallway? Couldn’t be the former, otherwise they would feel the blood rushing to their heads right?
“So what now?” Jet asked.
“I…” Lorraine hesitated. “..have no idea.”
“I would leave but I don’t think I can. Rama and I tried to leave last time when the sky went weird and there was some weird barrier stopping us.”
“So running’s not an option. Things only went back to normal once we defeated the new girl. Must be the same thing here.” Lorraine concluded.
She stepped forward, taking in a deep breath.
“Hey! Come out so we can kick your ass!”
“Ow my ears” Jet complained.
There was no response.
“Well that didn’t work,” Jet said. “I guess we keep-”
The ground began to rumble. The sound of large thundering steps echoed throughout the upside down hallway, making Lorraine and Jet stumble. They both felt a threatening presence looming ahead of them. Around the corner came a golden hand that gripped the wall.
“Oh. This is not gonna be good” Jet predicted.
A figure came from around the corner. It was massive, standing around 6 feet, 7 inches. It was a large golden man, the statue of the Buddha that Jet had seen earlier. It gleamed as it stepped forward, walking with joints that it should not have. The golden robe around its body that shouldn’t billow did, acting as if it was made of silk instead of metal. It was lanky, its arms swinging wildly as it moved. It stopped about two dozen feet away from them, cocking its massive head.
“Siddhartha Gautama?” Lorraine said in utter surprise.
“Oh no we gotta fight Buddha.” Jet realized.
“How dare they turn our founder against us! He was a pacifist!”
The formerly motionless statue straightened its head, and placed one foot in front of the other, looking as if it was about to break into a sprint.
“Jet, you’re gonna have to go find whoever is doing this and kick their ass.” Lorraine told him.
“Wait, me?” Jet replied, surprised. “What're you gonna do?”
“I’m gonna hold this thing off, somehow. You need to go on without me.”
“That is an insane idea.”
“It’s the only viable one! We need to end this fast! I’ll be fine.”
“Will you?”
“Do you want me to say I’ll not be fine?”
“I dunno!? It’d be more realistic!”
“Listen! I-”
The statue ran. It came to them in long strides, its feet crushing the floor beneath. When it got close, it wound up a punch, aiming for Lorraine. She quickly put her arms up to block. She got knocked back, flying to the other end of the hallway. Jet stood motionless next to the towering being. He had to do something. He threw a punch, hitting the thing in the stomach and recoiled back in pain.
“That was a horrible idea!” he yelled, holding onto his fist.
He looked up, seeing the statue look down at him as if it had eyes. It punched down, hoping to squish Jet. Jet rolled to the side, dodging the punch that left behind a hole in the ground. He immediately got up, running away in the direction the Buddha statue came from.
The statue turned, preparing itself to chase Jet when something hit the back of its head.
“Hey bastard!” Lorraine yelled, getting its attention. “I’m not done with you!”
In her hands were small stress balls she had gathered from her exercise room. Given they were made to be squishy, the throw did no damage to the statue. She dropped them all as the statue glared at her. Her forearms stung a lot. It was like they had been crushed under a boulder but surprisingly, her arms were not broken. She was surprised her arms weren’t as damaged as they should be but she didn’t have time to think about that. She had to focus on the massive statue barreling towards her.
***
Jet ran. He didn’t know where he was going but he could hear crashes in the distance, indicating that Lorraine was fighting for her life. He couldn’t exactly tell where he was, the scenery being quite discombobulating. What was he even looking for? He knew he had to find someone, that much was clear. But where? He stopped in front of a door and kicked it open. Inside he found nothing he was looking for, only a supply closet. Realizing he needed a weapon, he grabbed a broom from it. He continued on his way, trying to think of what to do. It came to him. He pivoted around, trying to retrace the path he took back when everything was rightside up. The Buddha statue came from that room where the chanters were. Hopefully, whoever brought it to life was there as well. He went down the halls, moving with great haste. He could see the courtyard and surprisingly, it was normal. The ceiling was still the new ground yet the courtyard was the same. He sped past the fountain, certain of where to go now.
He entered the room. Unsurprisingly, the statue was gone, an imprint on the ground the only proof that the statue had been there in the first place. The room was devoid of chanters, except for one. In the center of the room sat the person Jet had bumped into before. They continued to sit on the ground, mumbling to themselves. Despite the long hair covering their face, their hands moved as if their vision was unimpaired. There were seven glyphs encircling them, and they were on their knees drawing like a kid making a doodle.
“Hey!” Jet yelled. “You did all this right?”
“Her will….must be carried out.” they said, not focusing on Jet.
“If you don’t change everything back to normal, I’m gonna have to beat you up ok?”
“False god. False house. Only one true god. The goddess born from embers. The Goddess of Smoke.”
“Who?”
“You’re not needed. Hero needed. You’re in the way. Must die. The 11th orders it. I will fulfill.”
Jet raised his broom like it was a bo staff. Did he know how to use a bo staff? No.
“Are you after Rama? Are you with Josephine?”
“The 12th? No, she failed. I don’t fail. The 11th doesn’t fail. I serve the 11th. Must kill. You are an obstacle to salvation.”
“And I thought I was socially awkward. I hope I don’t mess your head up anymore than it already is when I smack you with this broom.”
He charged forward, raising the broom’s rounded edge over his head, readying to slam it down on his opponent. The long haired stranger quickly moved their hand, placing it over one of the glyphs. Defying physics, the glyph floated off the ground, hovering between the floor and their palm. They moved their hand, placing the glyph next to another one.
A hole in the ground opened in front of Jet, too big to avoid given his momentum surged him forward. He fell through. He didn’t fall for long, quickly hitting the ground. His vision was blurred, and it took him a brief moment to adjust. His shoulder throbbed in pain as if he’d just ran into a wall. He groaned as he arose. Looking at his surroundings, he realized he was back in Lorraine’s exercise room. He sighed upon realizing he was sent all the way back.
“I hate this.”
***
Lorraine ducked the incoming punch. The statue’s fist went over her, creating a hole in the wall behind her. She zipped to the side, continuing to evade her assailant. She continued to run down the hallways of her home, dodging the metal being’s attacks. It was like she was being chased by a horror movie monster, except here the horror was all too real. Yet she wasn’t scared, she was angry. Her home had been attacked, her monastery defiled. She wanted to fight back but knew that punching would be ineffective. She thought of herself as strong, but she wasn’t that strong. Lorraine needed a weapon. She shoulder bashed her way into the nearest room, in too much of a hurry to open doors properly. Despite everything being upside down, she knew the layout of her own home. However, she didn’t find what she expected. Lorraine had hoped to find her kitchen so she could get a knife, but instead she found the room where her family kept their incense candles. Dozens of them were lined up on a wooden table in the back of the room.
“What the? This isn’t-”
The statue was behind her. She quickly spun around to see the being hit her in the stomach, sending her across the room, crashing into the candles. Her stomach tightened, the air having been knocked out of her. The statue continued its pursuit. It ran to Lorraine, winding up to punch her into the ground. She rolled out of the way, coughing but able to get up. On the ground she saw that there was an unopened set of matches that her family kept to light the candles at a moment’s notice. She got an idea. She quickly picked it up while she charged at the statue. When she got close enough, she unleashed a drop kick to the statue’s stomach. She and the statue fell to the ground. Lorraine bounced but quickly rose back up. Despite almost dropping it in the process due to her unsteady hands, she lit a match. The statue was on its back having been covered in candle wax, its face emotionless. It slowly stood up.
“Burn you bastard” Lorraine cursed, throwing the match at the statue.
It became engulfed in flames as Lorraine spun around, running out of the room.
She didn’t think she won. There was no way there would be enough fire to melt the statue but hopefully it’d be slowed down. It felt like a million thoughts went through her head at once. Why didn’t she find the kitchen as planned? Were the ceiling and floor not the only things that were switched? Were rooms too? She began to open door after door, hoping to find her kitchen. Would a knife accomplish what flames couldn’t? Most likely not, but it was better than nothing. What other weapons did she have? The thought came to her. There was something else. Her father was an avid collector, a collector of ancient weapons. Her father had a room just for them. She rushed to find it, checking every single door she came across. She could hear stomping around the corner, the statue resuming its pursuit. She got lucky. The door she opened yielded what she sought. Lorraine ran inside, closing the door behind her.
The room was large, with weapons put in glass cases like it was a museum exhibition. Her father was a strange one. He led a monastery but was fascinated with ancient weapons and history. It must’ve rubbed off on her for she was the same way, it’s what they bonded over. The weapons were aligned on the walls, categorized by time period. They were an eclectic grouping. There were bows and arrows, spears, but most importantly, swords. She headed to the back of the room, looking at the swords. Most of them were dull, having not been used since their respective time periods. A rusted blade wouldn’t be of any use but one sword caught her eye. By itself, in the very back against the wall, there was a blade that almost appeared to emit a faint green light. It must’ve been a trick of the light but it drew her towards it. She went up to it and saw that it was a katana from the Edo period, specifically 1600. It must’ve cost her father a fortune to obtain it. He always liked Japanese history the most. She smashed the glass and picked up the weapon. The first thing she noted was its weight. The blade was much heavier than a kendo sword. It wasn’t a surprise but she thought she was in better shape to wield it.
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The door crashed. The statue walked into the room, its body slightly melted. It looked as if it was sweating, the parts of it that melted looking like beads of sweat coursing down its body. The smell of smoke entered the room, making Lorraine realize that the candle room was still aflame. That was bad. The fire could easily spread and burn the whole monastery down.
“You couldn’t just burn huh?” she said to the statue, raising her blade.
It didn’t respond, only took more steps toward her.
“Alright let’s go you bastard.”
***
Jet crashed into the floor once again. How many times has he fallen through a hole? At least a dozen. It was very frustrating. He groaned in pain, getting up once more. This plan of attack wasn’t working. He kept making his way back only to be cast off to some random room. It was like he was a child being told to leave an adult alone. The only consolation was that he pretty much knew every room in the building. The biggest surprises were some sort of weapon room and Lorraine’s room. Both were equally disturbing. The former because it was surprising how many weapons a Buddhist family owns, the latter because Lorraine seemed to be obsessed with old Japanese warlords. Putting that aside, Jet needed to think of something. He sat down, rubbing his temples.
“Come on, think! You’re relatively smart right?”
He could faintly hear crashes and what sounded like metal grinding against metal. Lorraine was still going at it. He’d have to hurry, there was no way she could last forever.
The only thing he could think of was that person’s reliance on glyphs. Things only changed once the glyphs were drawn. If he got rid of the glyphs, everything would go back to normal right? Believing that’s all he needed to do was a gamble, but it was the only idea he could think of. He got up and ran out of the room. First he went to the supply closet he found earlier. He picked up an empty gray bucket, then ran to the kitchen. It was only two rooms over. He rushed in there and put the bucket underneath the sink. It was fortunate how the rooms themselves weren’t upside down, only the hallways. However, things could change at a whim, all the more reason he had to hurry.
Jet ran his way back to the chanting room, carrying his broom in one hand, his bucket of water in the other. He barged in, seeing his opponent in the same spot they’ve been in since the beginning.
“I’m back!” Jet shouted. “For like the 1 millionth time. My shoulder is killing me.”
“Mmmmm annoying.” they mumbled. “Get killed by your false god.”
They moved another glyph with their palm but Jet was prepared this time. He leaped to the side, avoiding the hole that attempted to swallow him whole.
“Aha! I got you now, sucker! I-”
Another hole opened, he barely avoided it. Then another, then another, then another.
“Stop it!” Jet yelled between breaths. “I’m trying to gloat about my genius!”
“Only one genius,” they hissed. “The 11th.”
“I-I don’t know why I keep trying to talk to you. I’m just gonna beat you now ok?”
While still running to avoid holes, Jet put the broom through the bucket’s handle. He stopped, twisting his body as he used the broom to launch the bucket. It flew across the room in an arc. His opponent moved out of the way in a flash, the bucket hitting where they once were. The water spilled out, covering the glyphs. The water didn’t make them completely go away, merely smudge them. Jet couldn’t tell if it was enough.
“Ugh…did I win?”
His opponent stared at the ruined glyphs continuing to mumble to themselves. Their head lifted up, glaring at Jet. They moved the hair from their face, revealing the face of a woman. Her skin was extremely pale, her eyes a light red. They were strained as veins bulged through her pupils. For the first time, she was focusing on Jet.
“Wow you look like a crack addict.” Jet said.
Her brows furrowed, her eyes twitching.
“You defy the glyphs” she muttered. “You seek to defy Her. Heretic. Must kill. Kill personally.”
“Ugh oh.”
***
Lorraine parried another strike. Sparks flew as the statue’s arm skidded along her sword. Her opponent didn’t relent. It kept punching as she continuously deflected each incoming blow. It was a torrent. She had to continuously step back, in order to ensure she had enough room to maneuver her blade. Lorraine had never been in a fight like this before. Using a real blade with real stakes on the line was a new experience. It was hard to adjust. If this was a standard kendo match in a tournament, the fight would’ve already been over. In a standard kendo match, there were rules. No such rules here. Only her and her inhuman opponent. The statue got the better of her. She deflected an attack but the statue quickly stepped in, punching her in the chest. She bounced against the wall but remained upright. She coughed up blood, shocked she had been going for so long. How? She should’ve died by now.
Lorraine looked down, noticing that green glow once more. This time, it came not just from the blade, but from her body. Her body ached, yet she felt invigorated. She always liked to fight, but never took herself for a battle junkie. Something had happened. No time to think. The partially melted statue came at her. She spun around it, hacking it with a large diagonal slash across the back. It appeared unphased, turning back round, launching a kick. Lorraine put up her guard, receiving the bulk of the blow in her forearms. She skidded back and bumped into another weapon display case. She recovered, running towards the statue. She dodged another punch, slashing it on the forearm. It wasn’t deep enough to sever the limb. The statue kept attacking and Lorraine began to deflect once more. Despite the continuous attacks, Lorraine observed that the attacks were becoming easier to deflect. It was getting slower, like a machine quickly becoming overcome with rust.
Jet must’ve done something. Good. It was time to start dealing some damage. The statue stepped in and threw a punch. Lorraine sidestepped it, the weapon display case shattering to her side. She hacked the limb off. The statue stepped back, almost as if it was surprised.
“What’s wrong? Scared?” Lorraine taunted.
The statue threw a kick. She blocked it with her blade but it still caught her off guard. Her vision became blurry. She jumped back to recuperate but the statue wouldn’t allow it. It threw another kick. She got hit in the gut, rolling across the ground. The statue continued its approach. It tried to kick her away like a soccer ball but Lorraine got on her knees and swung her blade upwards. The leg was cut in two, making the statue lose balance and collapse. She stood up, looking down at the once mighty being. It tried to stand but fell back down. Then it began to crawl. It looked like an animal on the verge of death. Lorraine spat out some blood, standing on the statue’s side. Without another word, she cut it to pieces.
***
Jet jumped out the way of the incoming knives. There were about five in all, thrown in a flash. He landed on his stomach and saw that they had all pierced the wall. The woman ran to him, wielding another knife. He scrambled to his feet, picking up his broom. She thrusted her knife which Jet narrowly deflected by smacking her hand down. His opponent immediately thrusted her other hand, twisting her body as she did so. An open palm slammed into Jet’s chest, knocking him against the wall. He felt his chest being crushed. The crack addict hit hard. She stepped back, whipping out another knife. He had to move. Jet swung his broom which she avoided with ease. She closed in. The knife came in fast, aiming for his head. He ducked and dropped the broom. He barreled forward, tackling the woman. She was surprisingly slippery, pushing and shoving to get herself free. Jet wouldn’t let go. He always had a tight grip and assumed it was because of constantly playing video games. Regardless, it kept the woman on the floor. She was way too strong for her size; it was like wrestling a grown man. They tussled until they were in the middle of the room, with Jet pinning her.
“Strange style. Heretical.” the woman growled.
“I don’t think this is a fighting style but anyway, stop resisting! Just like, give up or something. Go home, tell all your friends to stop and we’ll call it even. No more attacking people!”
“Fool. Can’t stop. Must fulfill. No compromise. Heretic. You defy Her.”
“Who!?”
“The one true god. I will not fail her!”
She began to squirm then put all of her might into a headbutt. Jet’s head shot up, his nostrils dripping blood but he didn’t get off her. He scowled.
“Ok if you wanna play it like that, fine!”
Jet threw his head down. His forehead hit the woman square in the nose, knocking her head into the ground. Her body stopped moving. Jet got off her, clutching his head.
“Ow!” he yelped.
Jet’s head throbbed in pain. He did not think that through and regretted it. Fortunately, that knocked his opponent out cold. After the pain transitioned from an intense pain to a mere sting. Jet got up. His opponent was motionless, looking like a dead body. He felt eyes staring at him. He turned around and saw that all the chanters had returned. They were shocked. Jet appeared worse for wear. His forehead slightly bled and was covered in dirt from hitting the ground so many times. One person stepped forward, about to say something when a smell filled the room. It was the smell of smoke.
***
Lorraine heaved another bucket of water over to the fire. The fire wasn’t large, only encompassing the candle room but the smoke filed out of it, covering the roof. The roof! Lorraine was so concerned with putting out the fire she didn’t realize that everything was back to normal. She should be overjoyed, but wasn’t. She was too fatigued, too stressed out to feel ebullient. She threw water in when she saw another splash of water go into the room. It was Jet, who somehow had gotten his own bucket.
“How did this happen!?” Jet asked.
“I started it. Tried to burn the statue. Didn’t work.”
“Well I won.”
“I’ve noticed. What happened?”
“Fought a weird long haired lady! Kept transporting me to different rooms. I stopped her using my superior intellect. What happened to the statue?”
“I cut it up.”
“Cool!”
Monks began to swarm the scene, using their own buckets of water. Jet and Lorraine were told to leave and await medical attention, the ambulance and fire department having been called. They went back to the chanting room, Jet wanting to show Lorraine his defeated opponent. It was just the two of them, the chanters having evacuated to get to safety. Unfortunately for Jet, his defeated opponent was gone.
“I swear she was here a minute ago.” Jet claimed.
“I believe you.” Lorraine replied.
“Where’d she go!? She was right here!”
“Probably what happened last time. Went through a portal.”
“Ugh I forgot about that. I should’ve tied her up or something.”
Lorraine walked to the wall, slouching against it until she sat on the ground.
“I’m exhausted” she said, making a huge sigh.
Jet joined her, wincing in pain as he did so.
“Yeah, not fun.”
“Why were we even attacked? Don’t they want Rama?”
Jet pursed his lips, recalling what the woman said before.
“The woman spoke in gibberish but she said something about us being obstacles.”
“Obstacles to what?”
“I dunno, pretty sure she was on drugs.”
It was Lorraine’s time to recall. She couldn’t forget that weird glow she saw. Was that real?
“Hey Jet, did you um…glow?”
“Huh?”
“I’m serious. Did you glow at any point during your fight?”
“No? Was I supposed to?”
“I have no idea. I think it happened to me. I felt this surge of energy from it. Well, first I saw it coming from the sword but it transferred to me. It was this weird green light.”
“Huh…weird.”
Jet looked at her, noticing something strange. She looked less damaged than him. The woman who fought more had received less damage? Did he just really suck at fighting compared to her?
“That’s not fair.” he said. “You barely have any scratches.”
“What are you talking about? If anything, I shouldn’t be moving right now. I took blows that should’ve broken bones.”
She examined her arms and legs. Jet was right. She had healed somehow.
“Ok that’s not right.”
They could hear sirens blare. The fire department and ambulance were incoming.
“We need to talk to some about this.” Lorraine said.
“Yeah.” Jet concurred. “We need to tell Rama there are more psycho people.”
“You don’t think they attacked him right? As part of some ambush to take us all out at once?”
Jet squinted his eyes.
“That might have happened. He could be in trouble huh?”
He reached into his pocket, taking out his phone. He tried to call Rama but there was no answer.
“Oh no.”
“Ok calm down.” Lorraine told him. “Do you know where he is?”
“He texted me something about taking his sister to the mall.”
“Doesn’t he take his kung fu classes there?”
“Uh huh.”
“That narrows down where he might be.”
Lorraine grimaced. She wanted to head off with Jet to go see Rama but she couldn’t abandon her house, especially after a fire. Her parents would be back soon and would need a good excuse for why the fire started. If she was gone, she’d be in big trouble.
“I got this Lorraine. You can meet up with us later.” Jet said, noticing the worried look on her face.
He stood, trying to crack his back.
“Don’t you need medical attention? You look awful” she pointed out.
“Yeah but my bro might be in danger right now and that’s more important.”
Lorraine nodded. Jet took a step away from her but stopped. He turned his head to her.
“You really like Oda Nobunaga huh?”
“W-what?”
“I got transported into your room. It was horrifying.”
She blushed.
“Jet get out! Go away!”
Jet laughed as he left the building.
Lorraine grumbled to herself. The fire department had arrived. She went out to meet them, her mind wondering how in the world she was going to lie her way out of this.