Kur, Part 1

**Kur, Part 1** is the forty-sixth chapter of Zak Saturday's Immortal Love Life. It was first published on February 15, 2016.

## Chapter

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**Zak's POV**
It’s been six months. Six months since I became Kur, and since the Secret Scientists have been in pursuit of me to try and cryogenically freeze me because they think I’m a threat.
And, most of all, it’s been six months since I last saw or spoke to Sarah.
Well, not really. It’s only been two months, but it didn’t go good. I know she saved my life, but I couldn’t allow her to be anywhere near me.
My family and I were in the Czech Republic, and Fiskerton and I were following a cryptid because it’s been causing trouble to the people of Prague. We ran down an alley between two buildings and came to an end that went left or right.
“Which way?” I asked Fiskerton.
He shrugged.
Then we heard a laugh to our right and ran down that way. We noticed a couple sitting near a fountain.
“There!” I said.
I grabbed the claw and we ran toward the fountain. The cryptid lunged out of the water, grabbed the man, and pulled him in.
“Let him go,” I said, then activated my powers.
I got in control of the cryptid and it let go of him. Fiskerton helped the man out of the fountain, but he and the woman looked terrified.
“It’s ok,” I assured them. “It’s called a Vitava River Sprite. We’re not sure why it left the river, but I’m taking it back there as soon as—”
The woman said something in a language I didn’t understand and she was freaking out.
“This isn’t helping, is it?”
They ran away in fear.
“No, it’s ok!”
Then my powers shut off once again for the millionth time on their own. The Vitava River Spirit ran off.
Fiskerton asked me what happened.
“Nothing,” I said. “It’s just my powers acting up again. Come on.”
We ran after the cryptid. We caught up to it and I activated my powers, but then some kind of spark went off and I blacked out for a moment.
Fiskerton was checking if I was alright.
“I’m fine,” I insisted. “I can still do this.”
I’ve had a really hard time keeping my powers from quitting on me, but I just keep pushing myself to keep going.
The cryptid was about to jump into the sewer, but I activated my powers to stop it and it worked this time.
“Told you.”
We took the cryptid to the river.
Fiskerton asked me if I was ok.
“Yeah. Yeah, I’m ok,” I replied. “The power’s just getting stronger since Antarctica. Like, harder to control. But I think I’m starting to—”
We heard a sound and the cryptid jumped into the river.
Fiskerton complained.
“That wasn’t me,” I said. “The river sprite got scared of something else, like—”
Then we heard a sound. We turned toward it and saw Beeman’s UFO aircraft coming for us.
“They found us,” I said.
They shot a beam at us. Fiskerton grabbed me and we dodged it. We ran, but Professor Mizuki and his pet white tiger with a dog’s brain intercepted us, and Dr. Grey and her robot, Deadbolt, blocked the other way.
They had us surrounded.
“The river,” I said. “We have to swim for it.”
We ran to it, but Dr. Beeman blasted the spot in front of us, stopping us.
“Do we get a peaceful surrender, Frankenhair?” he said. “Or do you and Fuzzy Wuzzy like your chances on a five-on-two?”
“You’re counting Deadbolt?” I asked, then chuckled. “Fisk, remember how easy the head popped off last time?”
He nodded and did a reenactment of it.
“He’s been upgraded,” Dr. Grey said.
“This is not a game, child,” Professor Mizuki said. “You hold a power too great to be left unprotected.”
“Protection?” I asked. “Is that what you call it to make yourselves feel better?”
“How ’bout we just call it five-seconds-’til-messy?” Dr. Beeman said. “Five, four, three, two—”
Before he could say “one”, my family submerged out of the river in our sub, hitting Beeman’s aircraft, and landing right next to us. My parents and Komodo jumped out with their weapons ready.
“Doctor Saturday, we have no intentions to harm the boy,” Professor Mizuki said. “We merely wish to freeze him in acrogenic storage until all of us together can find a solution to this problem of Kur.”
“And what on earth makes you think we find that ok?” Dad asked.
Beeman blasted us. “This is not a negotiation.”
“I guess not.”
He was about to attack him, but someone already beat him to it. Whatever it was moved very fast.
It knocked him into the river, then moved toward the other Secret Scientists and that person apparently had some kind of blade with them because a few cuts appeared on Dr. Grey and Professor Mizuki, and blood started to drop from them.
Then the person stopped, standing between us and them. “Next time, if you come after him again, it’ll be your heads I cut off.”
I almost couldn’t believe my eyes.
“Sarah?” I called.
She had her sword in hand and there was blood on the blade. Her Charizard and Plusle stood by her side.
I’m not going to lie, I was half happy and half terrified to see her.
The Secret Scientists weren’t backing down.
“Idiots,” Sarah said. “Hey, umm, doggy, can you attack your owner so they can get away? I’ll give you a big juicy steak if you do that.”
Surprisingly, the white tiger nodded and attacked Professor Mizuki.
Sarah’s aura was really strong.
“Go,” she told her Pokémon.
Charizard used his fire and Plusle used her electricity.
Sarah turned toward us. “I know I don’t really need it, but you guys could at least help.”
We shook out of our daze and attacked them. Deadbolt came after me, but Fiskerton jumped on him. Deadbolt began to spin him in a circle.
“Right there, Fisk,” I said. “Just hold him still.”
I aimed the claw and shot it at Deadbolt. His head turned up and he looked like he was going to malfunction.
“Get clear, boys!” Mom said.
She shot a blast of fire from her fire sword into the opening of Deadbolt’s neck. The head popped off.
“Nice one, Mom,” I said.
“Zak, I said get clear,” she said.
Too late.
Deadbolt blew up and his body hit me, sending me flying.
I hit a couple buildings, and I used the claw to help me land safely, but not without slamming into another building and I fell to the ground with a thud.
I stood up and rubbed my head. Then a hissing sound came from the alley in front of me.
“Who’s there?” I called.
A naga came out of the alley.
“What?”
He bowed to me. “Master.”
I hoped I heard him wrong. “What did you just call me?”
“I send the salutations of Rani Nagi, my queen,” he replied. “The nagas are, as ever, in the service of Kur.”
I sighed. “How did you find out?”
“The loyal ones will always know.”
“Zak!” I heard my mom called. “I hear something this way.”
“Mom?” I said, turning toward the direction her voice came from.
But when I turned back, the naga was gone.
Mom, Fiskerton, and Komodo appeared.
“Oh, thank goodness you’re ok.” Mom gave me a hug.
Fiskerton gave me a little lecture.
“Yes, I know you’re the Kur guardian,” I said. “You think I wanted to get blasted into an alley by myself?”
“What happened, Zak?” Mom asked. “I thought I heard hissing.”
“Yeah. Can we talk about this somewhere a little less creepy?”
Dad brought the airship to us. We noticed some graffiti on the side of it.
“Let me guess,” I said, reading what it said. “‘Argost Lives’?”
“You know, I never really appreciated how insane his fans were until he disappeared,” Mom said.
Dad threw a few ropes down to us. “Let’s move! They’re already regrouping.”
We grabbed the ropes and were pulled into the airship. We moved.
“Any sign of Beeman’s ship yet?” Mom asked.
Then the airship shook.
“Yes,” Dad said.
They were blasting at us.
“I can’t shake him off,” Mom said. “He’s got me locked in his sight.”
“Then let’s take his sight away,” Dad said, then looked at Komodo.
He didn’t look happy about it.
I strapped him on to a treadmill connected to the airship. He turned himself invisible and ran on it. Our airship was now invisible to the Secret Scientists.
Komodo was complaining.
“Dad,” I said.
“I know, and I’m sorry, Komodo,” he said. “We should only have to borrow your camouflage field for a few more seconds.”
Beeman flew his aircraft in the opposite direction that we were going.
“All clear,” Mom said.
Komodo became visible and I unstrapped him. Then he whacked Dad in the head with his tail.
“Hey!” he complained. “I only use it when it’s necessary.”
Then we heard someone laugh. “I gotta admit, that was pretty clever.”
We all were thrown against the wall by some invisible force.
Sarah and her Pokémon, including Espeon, who was using her psychic powers on us, appeared in front of us. Sarah unsheathed her sword, which still had blood on it, and held the tip of the blade to my throat.
“Hello, Saturdays. And Zak,” she said. “Long time no see.” I could really see the hate and hurt in her eyes. “Do you mind telling me what the hell happened six months ago, and why the hell you guys have been ignoring me and my family?”
My family looked at me. Nice to know they’re letting me deal with this alone.
Sarah pressed the blade further into my throat. “Zak?”
“Don’t you already know by now?” I asked.
“Yes, as a matter in fact, I do. I just don’t know why you never told me, even though me and my family helped you all last summer and this is how you repay us? Zak, I was so worried about you, especially when those assholes captured you. And when I saved you, you just turned away and ran from me. Why did you do that?”
I hesitated. “I was just trying to protect you.”
“Protect me? God, you’re such a hypocrite. You hated it when all your parents did was protect you, and now you’re doing the same thing to me? Zak, I can protect myself a hell of a lot better than you can. And who are you trying to protect me from, anyway? You?”
I didn’t answer and just turned away. Or, I tried to, but she was holding her sword really far into my throat that I’m surprised she hadn’t pierced it yet.
I glanced at her, and I no longer saw hatred in her eyes.
She looked surprised, and lowered her sword, then sheathed it. “Espeon, let them down.”
She sat down on the steps.
Espeon did what she was told and let us down, then Sarah put her and her other Pokémon in their Poké balls.
She kept her head down.
I sat down next to her. Then I noticed the scar on her right wrist and remembered that I had given it to her. I grabbed it and caressed it with my thumb, but she pulled away.
When she looked up, she had tears in her eyes. “So what was that naga talking about?”
“What naga?” Dad asked.
I forgot I hadn’t told them yet, so I did. Afterwards, Dad went outside to wash the graffiti off of the airship, which he didn’t like, and the rest of us went into the back so that I could practice my powers.
Sarah kept her distance. She moved away every time I got close to her, but she let Komodo go near her. I never thought I’d ever be jealous of him, but it’s not like I don’t deserve it.
“How’s it going in there, Zak?” Dad asked me from the earpiece we had to keep in contact with him while he was outside.
“I don’t know,” I replied. “It’s weird. Like my powers know that I know now. Almost like they really want to cut loose for Kur.”
I activated my powers and controlled Fisk, but only for a second, then it shut off.
“What do you think that naga meant, ‘the loyal ones will always know’?”
“I don’t know,” Mom said. “It’s ominous, sure, but not really specific or helpful.”
“Cryptid sightings have shot up in the past six months,” Dad said. “Almost more than we can keep track of. Especially now that we’ve lost the Secret Scientists help.”
“We can handle cryptids without them,” I said.
“You’re right,” Sarah agreed. “Have you really ever needed their help with a cryptid before? I’d say it’s their lose, not yours.”
I smiled at that.
I managed to control Komodo and had him attack Fisk.
“Yeah, we’ve pretty much got the cryptid thing nailed,” Mom said.
“What?” I said. “He’s always like that.”
Sarah laughed.
“I don’t see any of this turning a corner any time soon, Drew,” Dad said. “I think we have to find them.”
“But Doyle—”
“Doyle hasn’t found Argost yet. And they may know even more about Kur than Argost does. We put it off too long anyway.”
“Wait,” I said. “Who do we have to find?”
“The nagas,” Sarah answered.
I looked at my mom for confirmation and she nodded.
I looked back at Sarah. “How did you know?”
“Zak, I’ve known you were Kur since the day you became it, and how I found that out is for me to know and you to find out. Now let’s go find them.”
“You’re coming with us?”
“I’ve spent too long looking for you. I’m not letting any of you out of my sight again.”

Mom looked up information on where the nagas were located and the only place was in Thailand in the Pyraya River, so that’s where we went and we took our sub out again, standing on the top of it above the river.
“Look for some super natural balls of light rising from the Chao Pyraya River itself,” Mom said. “It’s suppose to be a naga phenomenon.”
“Because, again, we’re actually hunting for nagas,” I said. “The snake people who tried to rip the planet in half.”
“It was a negotiation strategy,” Dad said. “An insane one, but it shows they’re willing to make deals.”
“They’ve come after you once already, Zak,” Mom said. “At least, maybe, this way we can talk on our own terms.”
“I have a feeling that that talk is not going to go well,” Sarah said.
She was probably going to be right.
A ball of light came out of the river in front of us.
“Keep it tight,” Dad said. “Nobody moves until we see an actual naga. We can’t afford to get careless.”
The ball of light became blinding and we covered our eyes. But then I felt something grab me from behind, cover my mouth, and it pulled me into the river, my family too blinded by the light to see and I couldn’t make any kind of noise to alert them.
Whatever grabbed me dragged me underwater.
Whatever grabbed me dragged me underwater. I activated my powers to try and get in control of the creature that was drowning me. It let me go.
“Yes, show your power,” a voice said from somewhere, and I recognized it. “Let them all know Kur has returned. I know you can feel it, the darkness in you. You know what you must become. Kur, monster of cryptids. Kur, scourge of the human race. Kur, the destroyer.”
I slipped into unconsciousness.

When I awoke, I was in some kind of underwater cave. Rani Nagi and the nagas were waiting near her throne.
I grabbed the claw.
“Your weapon isn’t needed,” Rani Nagi assured me. “We have been enemies in the past, but now that Kur has been revealed, the nagas humbly place ourselves in your service.”
They bowed to me.
“What?” I asked. “You just tried to drown me.”
“I apologize to Kur, but it was necessary. We needed to push your power further, to send the call out loud and clear: Kur has returned, and the overthrow of the human race has begun.”
“Umm, you know I am human, right?”
“Are you?”
That response surprised me.
Rani Nagi came closer to me. “You are Kur. How do you think this happened?”
“My parents figured it was the Kur Stone,” I said. “My mom was pregnant with me when they dug it up and there was all this weird energy.”
“Yes. Kur would’ve kept his essence alive in something of his. When on earth it sought out a new form. Not another cryptid. Something more dangerous this time. Something to live between the worlds of human and cryptid.”
I took her words to heart and realized what she was saying. “Wait. So, I’m what? Half cryptid?”
“You are all Kur,” she said, wrapping her tail about me. “And your destiny is set. You have already felt a surge in power, yes?”
She wrapped her tail tighter around me. I struggled to get free.
“Let me go.” I activated my powers.
“Good,” Rani Nagi said. “The power wants to be used. It knows its purpose. Any false sympathy for mankind is simply your foolish human parents talking.”
“No,” I heard my mom say. “This is his parents talking.”
She and the rest of our family, plus Sarah, were standing about twenty feet away with their weapons ready.
“Get away from my son.”
She blasted at the nagas with a cortex disruptor. She hit most of them, and I was able to get away. We began fighting them all, but Sarah did most of the work for us.
She summoned a lot of fire from herself and hit all of the nagas, including Rani Nagi, with a strong burst of fire. Her powers seamed to have gotten a lot stronger over the past few months.
They all were knocked to the ground, having a hard time getting back up again.
Sarah was breathing hard. “That should take care of them for a while.”
“So are we done talking with the nagas?” I asked.
“Let’s go,” Dad said.
We all got into our sub and left the cave.
We heard Rani Nagi yell about the nagas starting a war for Kur on our way out. I could already tell that it wasn’t going to be good.

Yay! Zak's back! It's been forever since he's had a POV. Like, a week, lol. Anyway, we're back in the last of the episode chapters, so they're going to be longer again. What do you guys think is going to happen with Sarah and Zak?
Please review **here**.

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## Character Appearances

### Main Characters

* Zak Saturday
* Sarah Hollinger
* Drew Saturday
* Doc Saturday

### Minor Characters

* Miranda Grey
* Arthur Beeman
* Talu Mizuki
* Deadbolt
* Doyle Blackwell (mentioned)

### Pets

* Fiskerton Saturday
* Komodo Saturday
* White Tiger

### Enemies

* Rani Nagi
* Argost (mentioned)