CHAPTER 6: The Mohan (Part 4)

CHAPTER 6

THE MOHAN (Part 4)

The creature is right in front of us. His eyes are wide open and filled with rage. I can see how he tenses his body, ready to bite our heads off. I'm scared, really scared, but I can't leave Miss Chía behind.

—Ofelia, leave me… please —says Miss Chía.

Then, the Mohan calms down and adopts a relaxed position. He even smiles.

—Hehehe, ok. It's my fault —says the Mohan —I should have beaten that woman up as soon as I took her to my room. But instead, I decided to sleep. Not the brightest decision, considering how sly Chía can be. But you know what? Never mind. Sorry for my "rude" behavior some seconds ago. As a matter of fact, I'm letting you leave right now.

The creature moves his hand, and the exit behind us reopens. I don't trust him and keep my guard up.

—What? Not enough for ya? Then how about this? If you leave me with Chía right now, not only do I guarantee your safety, but the entire town's as well. I will no longer kidnap women, and I'll take no retaliation against any of you. Even better, I'll leave my spell of prosperity here, and you'll never hear from me again. My quest for wives is over. Chía is the only thing I need. She's much better than you all, pieces of trash I've been taking over the years.

—Ofelia… take the offer, please —says Miss Chía.

—Why is Miss Chía so important to you? —I ask.

—Hehehe, my patience is running out, child. But if you wanna know, I'll tell ya. It may not look like it, but that little trash you see there was actually a goddess.

—A goddess?!

—Damn right she was... Chía, Goddess of the Moon… Or was it Huitaca, Goddess of Chaos? No matter. I was one of her underlings for centuries. I metaphorically and literally licked her feet and the soil she stepped on. I was one, if not her most loyal follower. And still, she never valued what I did for her… all my love and devotion turned into hate. I wanted to make her pay for her ingratitude, but how could a lesser demon like myself take revenge against an almighty goddess? Let me tell you, Chía. Watching you be banished to the moon was beautiful, but watching you here, as a simple, filthy, and weak human, is a dream come true.

My ears cannot believe what the Mohan says. Miss Chía, a goddess? No wonder he's so obsessed with having her.

—… I'm not giving her to you.

—Ofelia… what are you doing? —says Miss Chía.

—Oh really? You're seriously risking the safety and prosperity of an entire town just for a stinky fallen goddess? She used to hate you, you know? When she was a goddess, she used to see you as even less than trash. Compared to her, I'm the friendliest creature ever.

The Mohan takes a cigar from his loincloth, puts it in his mouth, and keeps talking.

—Let me tell you, child. It's a shame my wives escaped a few moments ago. Pretty sure they would accept my generous offer… Last chance. Leave, now, or I'll go back to your stinky little town and kill every single person in it, and the last thing they're going to hear is me laughing out loud and saying, "Ofelia made me do this." You will wish for me to kill you. But I won't do it. I'll tear up your limbs one by one until you look like pile of undistinguishable pulp of flesh, and I'm gonna keep you as a pet, watching how I torture that PIECE OF CRAP YOU'RE PROTECTING FOR ALL ETERNITY! YA HEAR ME?!

Mother… father… everyone… I'm sorry for what I'm about to do.

I clench my fists and adopt a fighting position…

—No! Ofelia!! —yells Miss Chía.

—OK, LITTLE TRASH. IT'S YOUR FUNERAL!!

Tired of me, the Mohan jumps right to kill me. Time slows down. The only thing I can hear is Miss Chía desperately yelling at me to move… Is this my end? Probably. I'm just a shy 14-year-old peasant facing a huge demon. But you know what?

—OFELIA, MOVE! 

—DIE, YOU FILTHY PEASANT!

… Good values were not the only things my parents taught me…

Before the Mohan can land a hit, I grab his arm and, with a sweeping move, throw the creature out of his lair, landing in a puddle of mud.

—W-WHAT?! —yells the Mohan.

The confused monster didn't expect that attack from me. While he's trying to recover his senses, I take Miss Chía out of the lair before the creature closes it again. We're finally outside. I can finally see the beautiful sky again. It's twilight. Stars are starting to appear. But I have no time to admire my surroundings. This battle is far from over, and I have to keep Miss Chía and the town safe. I quickly check on Miss Chía to see if she's fine. Her eyes are wide open, looking right at me. She looks really surprised.

—Miss Chía, are sumercé alright? —I ask.

—Ofelia… I-I can see you!

—What?!

Miss Chía puts her hands on my cheeks and keeps talking.

—My sight… it has returned! That means…!

—Good —interrupts the Mohan —that means you can witness how I rip and tear this insolent peasant apart.

—Miss Chía, I'm glad you can see again, but right now, I have to protect you.

—DON'T BE COCKY, YOU LITTLE PEST!

The Mohan attacks me one more time, but I dodge all of his swings easily. He's big and strong but has no style or coordination. It's just pure rage and violence. He throws a punch at me, but I dodge it again. He's slow. My small size is an advantage, but if he lands a hit on me, I'm done. Focus, Ofelia.

—STOP MOVING, YOU INSECT!

He got angrier. That's good. He's not thinking clearly. Remember your training. Remember what father always says: "The rage of an enemy is not their strength, it's yours." The Mohan throws another punch, and I dodge it again. He leaves his guard open, and I kick his face really hard. He loses his balance for a second. I grab his arm and throw him again as far as I can. I would have tried fighting that monster before, but without having a way to escape, he could have killed us in retaliation. It's good to see that I can finally put my training into practice.

—Whoa, Ofelia! —says Miss Chía, surprised —Where did you learn to fight like this?!

—Eh? Ah!! I-I'm sorry!... I-It was my parents' training! Th-They're good fighters!

—You're kicking a demon's ass, and you're still blushing and getting nervous? You're an odd kid, you know that?

—I'm so sorry!

—There's nothing to apologize for, kid.

—AAAAARGHHHHH!! —roars the monster while standing again —WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, MAKING FUN OF ME?!

I'm in control of the fight so far, but I'm nowhere near winning. That kick I just gave him hurt my foot, and I can't keep throwing him around forever. I have to think of a way to escape with Miss Chía.

—Forget about making you my pet, child. I'M KILLING YOU RIGHT HERE AND RIGHT NOW!

The monster lunges at me once more.

—Look out, Ofelia!"

—Here I come —I whisper to myself —Orchids Dance.

Once again, I dodge all of the Mohan's attacks, but this time I counter with a flurry of fast kicks and punches. Every dodge I make, every hit I land—it all makes my opponent angrier and angrier, which also makes him sloppier, throwing even less coordinated attacks. This gives me an easier opportunity to dodge and strike.

"Orchids Dance."

Mother created this move, and I named it. I thought it was a beautiful name for a beautiful attack. I would have loved for her to see me using her special move.

—ENOUGH!

—Ofelia!

The Mohan blows a thick cloud of smoke that blinds me.

—AGH!

—THIS WILL TEACH YOU TO STAY STILL, YOU LITTLE BITCH!

His powerful punch lands right on my abdomen, sending me crashing into a tree.

This is no good! I was overconfident... This is my first real fight. I should have taken Miss Chía and escaped while the Mohan was still down.

I feel dizzy. I can hear Miss Chía calling my name—she sounds horrified. I try to get up, but my body barely responds. I think he broke one of my ribs.

—Hehehe, now you don't look so confident, do you? What a pain in the ass you were, filthy kid.

The Mohan sneers.

—No, Mohan! Leave her alone! You already proved your point! Take me, take me now, but spare Ofelia's life! —Miss Chía begs.

—Now THIS is how I wanted to see you, Chía—helpless and begging for mercy. As I said before, a dream come true.

—Yes, whatever you say! But please, don't harm her!

The Mohan ignores Miss Chía's pleas and lifts me up by my blouse… That's it. We're doomed.

Mother… Father… I'm so sorry… I will never be as strong as you… I'm a disgrace of a daughter.

—Time to die, kid!

The Mohan is about to finish me off when, suddenly, Miss Chía jumps onto the monster's back and starts choking him.

—AGH! WHAT… ARE… YOU… DOING?! —the Mohan growls.

—"Dream Breath" —Miss Chía whispers.

With those words, the Mohan's body stiffens for a second, and he releases me. For a moment, it looks like he's about to lose consciousness, but he quickly recovers and grabs Miss Chía by the neck.

—NOT GONNA WORK THIS TIME, CHÍA!

The Mohan is about to strike her when, suddenly, a large rock hits him in the head.

—WHAT NOW?! —he roars.

To everyone's surprise, a gigantic mob wielding pitchforks and torches appears. It's the townspeople! Among them, I see the women we helped escape.

They actually came back!

I… I can't believe it.

—MOHAN! —a man from the mob shouts —YOUR REIGN OF TERROR ENDS HERE AND NOW!

The crowd yells angrily. A rain of insults and stones descends upon the Mohan, who grins as he lights another cigar.

—Hehehe. Good. You're saving me the trouble of hunting you down.

The final battle against the Mohan begins now…

TO BE CONTINUED…