A/N: Hello dear readers! Welcome to the world of my wild and completely unreal stories, which have been created for the sole purpose of putting the characters of Rurouni Kenshin in situations which force Kenshin to be as kick-ass as possible. Though if these stories entertain my lovely fellow fanfiction readers, then that's cool too….I suppose.

Disclaimer: The characters of Rurouni Kenshin are the sole property of the godlike Nobuhiro Watsuki-sama and Sony Entertainment….because if they belonged to me, I'd be charging you to read this.

Just kidding.

Chapter 1- Escape

Chaos. Explosions. Carnage.

Death.

Glowing amber eyes stared unblinkingly at the moonlit valley, even as his mind wandered far away to a blood soaked battlefield. That had been his last great battle, and the Dragon had been asleep for nearly a decade now. But the winds from the south whispered of dangers yet to come, of evil that threatened to take over the landscape and change the face of the world. The seeker would come to him soon to call him out on his final oath, he was sure of it. It was only a matter of time now; he felt it in the blazing, sword-sharp fire of his soul.

It was time for the Dragon to awaken.

A soft breeze blew through the air and fluttered the curtains of Kaoru's bedroom, causing her to stir fitfully in her sleep. It had been an unusually hot and humid week, like the heat before the first summer storms, and everyone had been especially restless. Kaoru's eyes snapped open, and she sighed. The hot and stormy weather of the past week, coupled with the stress of dealing with her overbearing cousins at the ball, having to constantly remember to act like a princess and Yahiko's increasingly frequent temper tantrums, made her feel too keyed up to sleep. She would really have to pay a visit to the arena soon. Maybe if she was lucky, she'd be able to get in a spar with Misao. She pushed the covers off and slid out of bed, pulling the coverlet around her. She walked to the closet and quickly pulled out her training clothes, the ones she kept hidden from Tae. She slipped them on, laced her boots and slid her beloved sword into her belt. Creeping forward on cat feet, she slowly opened the door and looked around, hoping that the guard outside her door would be sympathetic to her nighttime exploits. Someone like Hayao, or even Katsu.

The hallway was empty.

That's funny. Someone should have been here by now- I went to bed hours ago. Even Yahiko's guard is missing. Where is everyone? Come to think of it, she couldn't even see the sentries who usually stood at the gate. There were no lamps, no fires and even the mage lights that illuminated the castle with the King's power seem to have flickered out. Wait- what? Why aren't the mage lights burning? That shouldn't happen unless…unless…the realization hit her with the force of a hammer blow.

DAD!

If the King was sick or in danger, she had to go check on him. But first, she had to wake up her stubborn little brother. Trying her best to stick to the shadows, she crept to his bedroom and slowly opened the door-only for a small figure to come lunging at her with an ironwood staff. Only reflexes born of years and years of grueling practice saved her from getting brained in the head.

"I'll kill you!"

She snapped her hand out and grabbed her assailant by the wrist. "Calm down, Yahiko, you idiot! It's just me!"

"Get off me you- oh. It's just you, ugly."

She resisted the urge to smack him upside the head. "Yes, it's me. Something's wrong with Dad. I need you to get dressed and come with me. And keep the staff close."

For once, he listened to her. They crept silently along the corridors and made their way to the king's quarters. As they got closer, the sense of danger, the feeling of something fundamentally wrong that permeated the air, intensified. The air crackled with mage power, twisted and evil and immensely powerful. Kaoru drew her power around herself and her brother, cloaking their presence (hopefully) from whatever that was in there. Slowly she opened the door to her father's room and stepped in-only to nearly slip in a pool of dark liquid that seeped slowly across the floor.

The floor was littered with bodies.

Six men of the King's elite guard lay on the floor, torn to pieces as if by some savage animal. His personal aide, Katsura, was torn in half near the edge of the bed. Of the king himself, there was no sign. The drapes of his huge bed were shut, obscuring the person within.

Kaoru was vaguely aware of Yahiko trembling behind her- but only vaguely. Her brain was in complete chaos, unable to process the horror of what she was witnessing, because this was not possible, it just wasn't, who could possibly do such a thing-

And then she saw them- Enishi and Tomoe.

Tomoe stood in the center of the room, her arms raised as dark, oily tendrils of magic swirled around her, casting her elegant features into sickly shadows. Enishi stood next to her, his sword dripping the same dark fluid that coated the floor of the room. Neither of them had paid any attention to the newcomers, and Kaoru began inching towards the bed, keeping a firm hold on Yahiko's trembling shoulders. Somewhere in a small part of her brain that hadn't completely surrendered to blind panic, she felt a touch of pride for his courage in the face of this, this abattoir.

Almost there….almost…

"Hello, dear cousin."

Shit.

Please read and review….de gozaru.