A/N: Okay so in spirit of Halloween (even though we don't exactly celebrate it) I figured I'd put up something semi-horror but mostly it's just tragedy since that seems to be my forte. This is actually the first part of what I plan to be a series of oneshots though there's no telling when I'll get around to the other ones so it can be enjoyed as a standalone oneshot as well. If the ending confuses you, feel free to ask. Oh and just a warning, since my Beta has been pretty busy these past few days, this might contain a lot of stupid mistakes but it'd be awesome if you could a) point them out or b) ignore them and enjoy the story. ;) ;)
Thunder rumbled across the skies as heavens opened up. People scurried around like ants and hurried to find shelter. Only one exception could be seen, walking through the deserted streets of the ghost town, the rain soaking him.
"Hey beautiful." The young warrior grinned at the lavender-eyed miko who merely frowned disapprovingly at him in response.
"Please refrain from addressing me as you would your lover, Kurogane-san." She said in a rather stiff tone as she turned her back to him, beginning to make her way towards the steps that led to the inner shrine, a place where no one apart from the priests and priestesses were allowed to enter.
"Then allow me to say that even the most radiant gems lose their brilliance before the beauty of your eyes," Kurogane said smoothly as he fell into step next to her. Plucking a delicate pink blossom from the Sakura tree they were passing by, he continued, stepping in front of her while beginning to walk backwards so that he wouldn't stop her, "and the finest silk threads seem coarse before your midnight hair," he said seriously as he tucked the flower into said locks before letting his fingers graze her cheek for a fraction of a second.
"Kurogane-san…" the miko bit her lip as she hastily looked away, refusing to meet his gaze as she felt heat creep up her cheeks.
"You captured my heart the very first time I laid my eyes on you, Tomoyo-hime." He said fondly, stepping closer to her as she took a nervous step back.
"I am no princess, Kurogane-san," she responded, trying to sound firm but found her voice quivering a little at the end. "I am merely a priestess here at the shrine."
"You will always be a princess to me, Tomoyo." Kurogane shook his head, smiling softly at the young woman as he trapped her between the tree and himself.
"Kurogane-san, this is… this is extremely inappropriate behavior. Please, step away from me."
Sighing, the red-eyed warrior complied, leaving the path to the shrine free for her.
"Tomoyo-chan? Are you still out there?" a sweet voice floated over to them in the trees. "You should hurry inside now, the high priest is about to start the prayer."
"Until the next time we meet, Hime," Kurogane bowed towards her slightly, before moving forward to plant a chaste kiss on her cheek. A blink of an eye later, he was gone.
"Tomoyo-chan?" the auburn-haired priestess, known by all as Sakura, climbed down the steps of the shrine only to find her best friend frozen beneath the cherry tree with a small smile adorning her lips as her right hand pressed against her flaming cheek. "Tomoyo-chan?" the other priestess questioned worriedly, seeing the dazed state of her friend. "Daijobo?"
"Huh?" the raven-haired priestess jumped ins surprise before catching herself, "Oh, Sakura-chan, umm… yes. I'm fine. Let's hurry inside, we mustn't keep Yue-san waiting for long."
The man moved past a shiny black sedan parked outside a posh looking house, his hands clenching into fists by his sides as he strode forwards, demonic red eyes narrowing in hate.
"Still no luck with Tomoyo-san, eh, Kurogane-san?" the young amber-eyed man grinned at his mentor as he rode beside the older man.
"Shut it kid," the older warrior grumbled in irritation, "it's not like you've made any progress with that pretty faced little Sakura of yours."
"As a matter of fact, Kurogane-san," the younger warrior coughed which sounded suspiciously like a laugh to the older man, "Sakura has accepted my offer of courtship and her brother has already given us his blessings."
"Congratulations, Syaoran-kun." Ryouh, the battalion's very own mischief maker, grinned as he casually brought his horse on the other side of the addressed man. "Now you seriously have to do something Kurogane-san," the red-haired male turned his attention to their captain, "if Syaoran has Touya-san's blessings, it means a wedding is in the near future. If that is true then…" he trailed off, not finishing the sentence knowing that the older man already knew. With Syaoran getting married to the kind-hearted, jade- eyed girl, Kurogane, the oldest warrior of their battalion would be the only bachelor left. "You seriously need to woo, Tomoyo-san. Did you recite poetry for her? Give her flowers?"
"Don't push your luck brat." The soon to be only remaining bachelor growled dangerously. "Go ahead and scout the surrounding area. Report back to me in twenty minutes."
"Damn it!" the red-head groaned while the rest of his friends laughed at his expense.
"Maybe next time, you'll learn to keep your mouth shut." Someone yelled from the back, eliciting another round of laughs. Kurogane allowed himself to chuckle at the younger boy's expense before growing serious once more, "be careful and keep your eyes and ears open. This is the area where they are said to have breached the barriers. Do not engage if you spot anyone, understand?"
"Hai!" the warrior saluted before riding on ahead.
A man with pale ashen skin, a gaunt skeletal face and stringy black hair appeared in a flurry of smoke and ashes across the street from him.
The village of Suwa was a beautiful place indeed. With vast, lush, green fields, rows upon rows of breathtaking cherry blossom trees and the majestic mountains that loomed over the haven in the distance, it was indeed a picture out of a fairytale. But this picture perfect village was located in the midst of what was known as the Demon Plateau.
It was only thanks to a band of brave warriors and a shrine of miko priests and priestesses that this village had managed to survive in one of the most dangerous places on earth for mankind. The hoards of bloodthirsty demon were kept at bay by the wards that were set up by the priestesses of the shrine. Sometimes a demon or two might be able to get past these barriers but they were taken care of by village's warriors who regularly patrolled the borders of the land. The full moon rose in the dark sky, like a radiant disc, illuminating and bathing the world in its silvery glow.
In the heart of demon valley, the people of Suwa gathered in the village square where a huge bonfire had been lit in the honor of the warriors and the attendants of the shrine. Yet another attack had been averted by those brave souls and the people were free to sleep in peace that night. The joyous music floated in the air, mingling with the laughter and chatter of men and women alike. As they arrived at the square, Kurogane cast a passing glance to his right to see his apprentice nervously fiddling with something in his hand.
"Kid, put that thing in your cloak for now." He couldn't help but smirk at the way the brunette jumped at the sound of his voice, "Her brother would kill you if he sees you with it out in the open."
"U-um… Hai Kurogane-san." Syaoran hastily stuffed the item inside his clothes, running his free hand through his unruly hair to push them out of his eyes as he looked around impatiently for a certain someone.
"They won't arrive for another half an hour," he shook his head at the eighteen year old before allowing a pleasant smile to rest on his lips as the villagers cheered upon their arrival. With a delighted whoop, Ryouh and the other warriors moved ahead to join the festivities while Syaoran hung back with his mentor. It was quite clear the boy had something on his mind and that something seemed to be troubling him rather noticeably.
"Relax," Kurogane told him in a slightly gruff yet kind tone. It had been years since he had last done this but Kurogane raised his hand to the brunette's head, resting it atop his messy mop as he ruffled his hair in an affectionate manner. "From the way I've seen that girl look at you, she'll say yes in a heartbeat."
"But what about Touya-san?" He questioned softly, politely declining the offer of a petite yet pretty girl to dance with her.
"He knows you make her happy." Was all he said as he watched Ryouh swoop in on the girl that Syaoran had just turned down. At first Kurogane had been sure that it had been a trick of light but looking closely he could see the blush adorning the boy's cheeks as he led the girl around. So she was the one that boy had been pining after.
Time flew by and before they knew it, the square erupted in an another round of cheers as the attendants of the shrine arrived, dressed in beautiful, intricately designed robes that despite their elegance and complexity, allowed easily, fluid movements for the wearer. Kurogane couldn't help but smile as he watched the boy he considered a younger brother approach the girl he loved with a flaming face. He stopped in front of her, speaking something softly as he shifted nervously from one foot to another. The girl must have agreed to whatever it was he said because the next minute an earsplitting grin was adorning his cheeks as he led her to the centre of the square, near the bonfire. Those that knew of the two sweethearts cheered loudly as the music picked up in tempo and the two started to spin around, occasionally tapping their feet to the ground before jumping high using their toes, landing gracefully before beginning the whole thing once more. Slowly others began to join in, clapping their hands to the beat, jumping and tapping their feet in synch with the small drums. Kurogane's eyes moved past the crowd and he found breath catching in his throat at the sight of the lovely goddess standing off to one side opposite to him. She appeared not to have noticed him, her lavender eyes shining with joy as she watched her best friend dance with the man she loved.
"I did not know that angels were to descend from heaven tonight." He said gently as he sidled up next to her.
"Oh, Kurogane-san," Tomoyo jumped, raising her right hand over her heart as she breathed, "You scared me."
"You look absolutely breathtaking tonight," he said, taking her hand and kissing the back of it.
"Kurogane-san." The lavender-eyed miko blushed prettily as she stared at the ground.
"My apprentice wishes to ask for her hand in marriage tonight," he informed her softly, knowing full well how much delight she took in that particular love story.
"Really?" she exclaimed, her eyes once more shining with joy as she as gazed at the pair fondly. Syaoran was now leading Sakura off to one side. The two of them were the only witness to how he knelt before her, digging through his clothes before pulling out a small artifact. The nervous way he fumbled with it, he almost dropped it before he could have presented it to her but he managed to catch it at the last moment. Next to him, he heard Tomoyo heave a sigh of relief.
He laughed at the way, the girl jumped at his apprentice, enveloping him in a crushing hug as she nodded fervently. His delighted laughter floated up to then through the sudden quiet that had befallen the square. Not caring about the fact that the whole village had noticed the proposal and was now watching the two closely, he took her in his arms, spinning her around as she shrieked in joy. Placing her feet back on the ground, the boy crashed his lips against hers and the square erupted in deafening cheers. Kurogane couldn't help but grin as he heard a delighted 'Kawaii' from the girl standing beside him. Silence fell over the village once more as the newly betrothed girl's brother stomped over to the couple. Everyone watched with bated breaths, wondering how the older man would react to it all. The beads of sweat dotting his apprentice's brow were visible even at this distance. For a few heart stopping minutes the two just looked at each other before the brother turned his back towards them, "Brat, you break her heart and I'll break your whole body." With that final warning, he left the two alone.
"I always knew he was a big softie at heart." Tomoyo laughed when the crowd began to disperse, the music once again floating all around them. In a sudden burst of inspiration, Kurogane turned to the miko. "Dance with me."
"What?" the priestess turned to gape at him in shock.
"Dance with me, to celebrate their engagement." He repeated earnestly, grabbing a tambourine, from one of the musician close by. Handing it to the still astounded miko, he led her towards the bonfire. "I hear you're very skilled with this instrument."
"N-not really," she blushed, taking a step back.
"She is!" Sakura yelled from the sideline, laughing at the look her friend shot in her direction. "She's is absolutely brilliant with it, Kurogane-san."
"So then, shall we?" the red-eyed warrior grinned, bowing slightly in Tomoyo's direction.
"You're going to pay for this one, Sakura." The lavender-eyed woman threatened brunette but Sakura merely laughed it off as she snuggled in Syaoran's arms, looking quite please with the beautifully carved betrothal necklace around her neck.
Taking in a deep breath, Tomoyo stood up tall, flicking her wrist lightly as the bells tinkled melodiously and the music stopped for a bit. Raising the instrument above her head, Tomoyo tapped it with her other hand and the crowd cheered loudly. Staring straight into his eyes, she took a step to the right, once again tapping the instrument. Rising to the challenge, Kurogane grinned, stomping his foot lightly on the ground as the two began to circle each other. Both the dancer and the player spun around, one clapping his hands above his head while the other tapped the tambourine. Her taps began to pick up pace, each one producing a different chime as she began to play with ever increasing skill and dexterity.
Kurogane inwardly cursed at what he had gotten himself into when she continued to pick up speed, barely managing to keep up as he stomped, spun and clapped his hands. Another brilliant stroke of inspiration later, he backed up a bit running in pace with her tempo before kicking off the ground in a double backflip. The crowd cheered as Tomoyo rose to the challenge. On her indication other musicians began to play along a she moved with fluid grace, spinning and jumping and tapping her feet lightly as he robes flew about her, the moonlight making her appear like a nymph of legends. The music kept on speeding up, Kurogane incorporating random martial arts moves with the dance wherever he felt like they fit till they both were moving so fast they almost appeared to be two vague blurs.
Finally the music reached its climax and then came to an abrupt halt as they both froze, Tomoyo with her hand raised above her head inches away from the instrument and Kurogane in a rather difficult looking crouch. They were both breathing hard, neither moving from their spot as crimson remained locked with lavender. The whole crowd was so engrossed in what was happening right next to the dancing firelight that no one noticed the dark shadow creeping up behind the mass, the silver moonlight getting smothered by its impure darkness.
A shrill cry pierced the night and it was only as a woman screamed in pain that the villagers realized the attack.
His eyes, darker than the dead of the night on a cloudy moonless night seemed to laugh at the other man, his thin bloodless lips curling into a cruel smirk.
Kurogane had no idea how they could have gotten past the wards so quickly without alerting any of the priests at the shrine but as chaos erupted all around him, his instincts took over. Leaping into action, he summoned his family heirloom, the demon slayer, Ginryuu. Moments later, his loyal band of warriors was at his side, each wielding their respective weapons.
"You four," Kurogane barked at seasoned warriors defending a group of helpless children from the bloodthirsty demons, "get the villagers and the priestesses to the shrine. Everyone else, let's kill these bastards!"
With a united cry, they all fell upon the demons cutting, slicing, blocking and parrying as the villagers rushed towards the safety being escorted by four of Kurogane's best.
It was only fifteen minutes later that his faithful apprentice was back at his side, "What the heck are you doing here kid? I thought I told you to get them to the shrine."
"Everyone is safely inside the holy wards. Kurogane-san needs all the help he can get tonight." Without waiting for his response, the brunette joined his best friend in the foray, fighting side by side with Ryouh as Kurogane parried with a rather strong demon. Kurogane lost sight of those two as his own fight with the demon drew him away from the square. The brave band of warriors fought against the creatures well into the night, managing to slay a large number of the demons and gravely injuring one of what appeared to be their leaders. As the dark skinned, yellow eyed creature fell to the ground with an inhuman cry at Kurogane's hands the other two leading demons gave the signal for them to retreat, taking the injured demon along as they went.
"Ready to lose your precious miko once again," his lips parted to reveal a row of pointed, yellowing teeth as he spoke in a cold, hiss that could freeze even the deepest pits of hell. "Captain?"
News of his apprentice's engagement to the girl of his dreams spread quickly throughout the village and the people began preparing for a wedding that was to take place at the next full moon. The girl's brother, Touya had pulled his apprentice away for a talk the very next day after the proposal and when the brunette had returned to his post, he had been reported to have appeared as pale as a corpse. Despite having retired from active duty thanks to an injury gained while protecting the village from the demons, Touya was known to be a dangerous and a very scary person when he wanted to be.
Kurogane's own relationship with the priestess, Tomoyo had progressed wonderfully ever since the night of the festival where he had convinced her to dance with him. It had only been a fortnight but when he proposed to the lavender-eyed beauty, the miko had accepted his proposal. At her best-friend's insistence, their own wedding was also set to take place on the night of the full moon. Kurogane was secretly glad at the suggestion since that meant he won't be the last of his band to get married. That cheeky brat Ryouh won't be able to laugh at him for staying single anymore. With a grin, the red-eyed warrior walked up to the small hut resting at the foot of the hill next to the forest. He figured he might as well pay a visit to his best-friend, who happened to be his fiancé's best friend's older brother, Touya Kinomoto. He had promised to help the man with his sister's wedding arrangements after all.
The next two weeks passed in a blur and before he knew it, Kurogane was standing in the shrine grounds, the sacred trees surrounding them bathed in the liquid silver of the full moon. Grinning, he moved forward to weave a wreath of blossoms around her hair, reciting his vows to her as was the custom in their village. Off to one side Sakura grinned, her arms linked with her husband's, her own wreath glowing softly in the moonlight. Once the red-eyed warrior was done, he stepped back as his wife to be stepped forward, weaving a small leather charm around his neck as she pledged herself to him. With the blessing of the High Priest and the village's Wise One, the two were allowed to leave the raised dais and join their friends for the feast.
They celebrated well into the night, the villagers returning home when the horizon started to turn a mixture of the shade of pale blue and pink.
As his wife leaned against him while they made their way back to the warrior's and now the miko's home, Kurogane smiled softly, thanking his gods for such a perfect life. Unknown to him however, things were about to take a turn for the worse… much worse.
"Ready to die," the man growled low in his throat, his lips pulling back in a feral snarl as he spat the creature's name, "Malcifer?"
Well into the afternoon, the group of brave warriors set out on their regular patrol of the border that separated Suwa from the rest of the Demon Plateau. The patrol went rather well, it appeared as none of the demons had bothered coming near the borders after their last unsuccessful raid.
"Syaoran, do you have anything planned out for dinner tonight?" Ryouh asked conversationally as they rode on their horses back towards the village, with Kurogane in the lead. "If not, Yuzuriha asked me to invite you all both to dinner."
"Sakura will be delighted." The brunette smiled fondly though a sudden choking gasp erupted from his lips causing them all to look back at the warrior that was bringing up the rear.
Alarmed cried called out his name as everything played out in slow motion for Kurogane. His apprentice had a surprised look on his face, his eyes wide as he stared at his comrades in disbelief before looking down at the claw protruding from his chest. A half choked gurgle escaped his lips as the bright crimson blood trailed down the side of his mouth to his chin as the claw was removed with a sudden jerk. Without even so much as uttering another word, his eyes rolled to the back of his head as he slumped sideways, falling off his horse.
"Syaoran!" Kurogane cried out his apprentice's name as he summoned his sword and leaped off his horse, flying at the yellow-eyed demon that stood grinning behind his apprentice's empty horse. Her midnight black scales rippled in the afternoon sun as she licked off the blood from her clawed hand.
"You pathetic humans will pay with your flesh and blood and your pathetic village for you did to my beloved brothers." The creature snarled in a gravelly yet distinctly feminine voice, "You shall all die!"
Everything went to hell after that.
"Nothing but empty threats, Kurogane," Malcifer laughed and for a second it wasn't rain that fell from the sky but shards of ice. "I thought you would have learnt your lesson after all these times."
The battle that followed was a blur in the warrior's eyes since all he could see after watching the boy he had come to think of as a younger brother die at the hands of this creature was red. He was vaguely aware of cutting through hordes upon hordes of demons as he made his way over to the bitch that was responsible for the death of his apprentice. That boy had still so much left to live for. He had only just gotten married last night. His sweet, jade-eyed bride would be waiting for him with a smile on her face back home. How would he be able to show his face to that girl after he let her husband die like that? Giving off a war-cry that sounded like a twisted call from death itself, the warrior was a blur of flesh and blade. He would not rest until he had slain that bitch.
"How many times has it been? How many times have you stained your hands with the blood of your apprentice? His girlfriend?"
Kurogane sighed, watching his pregnant wife make her way towards him, her hands empty of the wicker basket that she had carried over to the grieving widow. The once cheerful girl that was all sunshine and smiles was withering away right before their eyes as she refused to move from her fallen husband's graveside. Her grief had known no bounds when Kurogane had returned home with his apprentice's corpse. The red-eyed warrior could still see her face, her beautiful smile crumpling with a shocked gasp as tears had filled her jade-eyes. Hands flying to her mouth, she had raced over to the brunette's unmoving body, gently cradling his face in her hands as she asked him to wake up, her requests turning to broken sobs and desperate pleas when the corpse had not responded in any way. She had crumpled into a heap on the floor once reality hit her, falling in a dead faint. The healers had almost given up hope on her when she did not wake even after seven days, her older brother slipping into depression at the state of his sister. The crippled man had come to Kurogane that very first evening, hilted sword strapped to his side as he informed him of his decision to come out of retirement. The man was out for revenge. He wanted the blood of the ones that had dared steal his sister's happiness, not even caring whether he lived or died in the aftermath. Reluctantly, Kurogane had had to agree. Since he had slain one of their leaders and what he suspected to actually be the mother-queen of those demons, he was going to need all the warriors he could get. The demons would surely want revenge now.
Sakura had awoken a week later, refusing to talk or eat. It was only because of Tomoyo's tireless efforts that the girl was still alive because every couple of days, the priestess managed to coax the mourning girl to actually eat something. The jade-eyed girl had take up residence next to the kid's grave though, not even leaving in the dark of the night when everyone else left for the safety of their homes with only the village guards patrolling the borders to warn everyone in case the demons decided to launch a surprise attack. It had already been three full moons since that day now but there was no improvement in her condition. It was like the girl had completely lost her will to live without her lover there by her side.
The attack that he had been anticipating came only two weeks later when the moon had almost completely waned out of existence, the darkness veiling the creatures' advent from the patrol until they were almost at the village's inner borders. Rousing quickly from sleep and racing out of his house, instructing his wife to head to the shrine, Kurogane met with the rest of his men as he instructed half of them to escort the villagers to safety while the others got ready to defend their home. He could only pray that the mourning girl had had enough sense to head for the shrine when the alarm gongs had sounded.
An endless sea of black met his eyes as his small band of warriors reassembled near the border to face off their enemy. They were insanely outnumbered but he knew that every single one of his men would fight the creatures till their dying breath to protect their home. Kurogane clutched the hilt of his sword a little tighter in his hand in anticipation for what he wouldn't let be the last fight of his life, something unexpected happened. The horde of demons began to part as though making way for someone to approach their group.
"Goodnight Captain Kurogane," the demon that stepped forward was a little different from his underlings, his scales so fine they almost appeared to be human flesh, his dark hair shimmering in the firelight of the torches that lit up the streets of Suwa. He grinned and rows upon rows of yellow fangs greeted him, "I am Malcifer, the leader of this humble army you see before you."
"What do you want demon?" he growled, red-eyes narrowing in suspicion as the demon's grin grew wider.
"Oh, nothing much really." The creature, Malcifer, shrugged carelessly as he drew something out from behind his large frame. "See I happened to come upon something of yours. I figured I ought to return it back." He dumped what appeared to be a bloody body on the ground somewhere in between the two groups. The body rolled a couple of times in the dirt before coming to a halt a couple of feet away from Kurogane.
"No…" he heard Touya gasp from his right as recognition of what the body meant dawned upon the warrior. The limp figure was covered in blood, scratches and bitemarks but the body had not been devoured and as was visible from the unsteady rise and fall of its chest, still alive, possibly even still conscious but surprisingly enough, the figure made no attempts to crawl to safety, lying limp in the dirt, staring unseeingly at the sky with vacant eyes.
"Bastard!" Touya cried in blind rage as he broke the formation and raced at the demon, his sword swinging in a high arc from his left arm, the right one having been devoured by demons years ago. The warrior managed to land a blow on Malcifer, a slash that bled red starting from his forehead to the tip of his chin. Unfortunately, the demon retaliated far too quickly for the warrior blinded by his anger to react in time to. Catching his wrists as Touya made to swing his blade around, Malcifer twisted his arm as he threw the warrior away from him with a snarl, catching the sword and thrusting it through the warrior's body and impaling the figure that lay on the ground in a single hit.
Spitting on the fallen warrior as he and his younger sibling breathed their last breaths, Malcifer turned to look at Kurogane, a twisted expression on his face.
"Is this the thanks I get from your barbaric followers for returning what belonged to you?" Those evil yellow eyes glinted in the firelight, almost setting ablaze themselves as the demon gave him a deranged grin. "But then again… perhaps finding out that his sister was unable to please me in any way at all was a bit too much for him? I swear something is wrong with that girl, she did not even ask to be let go. Was she supposed to be some sort of sacrifice?"
Kurogane watched as the blood pooled around the bodies of the unmoving Kinomotos, slowly seeping into the ground to create an ugly stain on the dirt.
"I came here bringing her back to you as an offer for friendship but it appears to me as though you would rather we destroy you all. Hell knows you insects deserve to be crushed like the vermin you are for what you did to my beloved Alsetahr." Alsetahr must have been the name of the female demon that Kurogane had slain after his apprentice had been killed. "Tell me, which one of you is responsible for bringing my wrath upon this village?"
Kurogane stepped forward, crimson eyes narrowing in hatred as he growled like an animal. "I'll make sure you are reunited with your mate tonight, Malcifer."
"Ah, Captain, of course, I should have known." Malcifer frowned with a short nod, "no matter. You will be the last of your kind to die."
"I stopped counting five hundred years ago." he answered nonchalantly as he whipped out the enchanted, gleaming blade of a dragon hilted sword and took up a well practiced stance. "Now how about we cut down the chit chat and get down to business?"
Kurogane felt like his whole body was set on fire as the tattoo of a dragon was magically etched into his forearm. He throat felt raw and his voice hoarse from screaming as he writhed on the ground, rolling about in the ashes of his now destroyed home. His men had fought with everything they had but there had been far too many of them. True they managed to reduce the demon's numbers greatly but despite it all, Malcifer and some of his other minions had managed to get all the way to the shrine, tearing through the protective wards like they were nothing, slaughtering everyone and anyone who came in their path. Kurogane had been far too occupied with the five demons attacking him all at once that he did not notice that something was amiss until it was too late. He had been unable to do anything but watch, having been too far away from the shrine to be actually able to make a difference as Malcifer plunged his claw in his pregnant wife's stomach, tearing apart her flesh before devouring what he had torn from her. He had no recollection of the events that followed but when he regained his senses once again, only him and Malcifer stood in the burning ruins of his home. Aside from the crackling of the fire as it hungrily devoured the wooden structures, there was no other sound. Malcifer was badly injured, but Kurogane was in no good shape himself. Malcifer had started chanting away in his demonic tongue as Kurogane had advanced on the demon but before he could inflict any further damage a blinding pain had caught hold of his entire being despite the source of his physical agony having been his arm.
The fires had raged on for hours and hours but he had been unable to do anything about it as it consumed the bodies of the very people he had sworn to protect. His senses dulled as the pain continued to consume him. The pale moon had climbed higher and higher into the sky, his vision of the stars blotted out by the face of the last demon as he looked down at him saying something that Kurogane could not really comprehend in the state that he was. He had no idea how much time passed after that but Kurogane felt himself being lifted off the ground sometime after the demon had fled. In his feverish haze he was unable to make out much of the owner of the cool fingers gently brushing across his skin as a cold rag- probably drenched in some liquid- was placed across his head.
"I had hoped it would never have come down to this you know." He heard a gentle, distinctively male and slightly accented voice speak to him as he drifted in and out of consciousness. "Life will only get harder from here on out. But at least, you have a means to break this curse."
"Who… who are you?" he rasped weakly, looking at the pale, fleshy blob swimming in his vision.
"An old friend." The blob replied in a nostalgic manner and the last thing Kurogane registered was a pair of blue eyes as bright as the summer sky and a small, heartbroken yet reassuring smile.
The next morning, he woke up under the shelter of a tree a little ways away from the square where he had duked it out against the demon. He vaguely recalled a pair of blue eyes looking down at him but gazing around him, he found himself to be completely alone with no sign of the owner of those eyes for miles. As he gingerly got to his feet and made his way through the wreckage of the once proud village of Suwa, Kurogane felt like taking his own sword and committing seppuku. He had failed to protect them and thus death was the only punishment appropriate enough for a failure like him. He noticed a surprising lack of bodies as he made his way across the village towards the shrine and his dug his nails into the palms of his hand. Those bastard demons had not even spared the bodies. He destroyed them all. Knowing that there was probably nothing left in the shrine either, where his beloved wife had been murdered right before his eyes, he had to go there. Maybe… Just maybe…
The makeshift altar where she had been tied after the demon had tore open her stomach was empty and Kurogane felt his heart shatter. Tears blurred his vision as he turned around but then he caught sight of her. Lying so peacefully on her back, her pale face washed of any blood, lips pressed lightly together, an expression of serenity settled over her features. If he hadn't known any better, he would have thought her to be asleep. But the blood soaking her clothes was all too real, the blue tinge of her lips was something that only death could impart. Falling to his knees, beside her, he gently cradled her cold, stiff body in his arms, finally letting out a heart wrenching cry.
"But of course," Malcifer tilted his head in acknowledgement, his dark eyes glinting with hidden malice. "Save them if you can. But first…" Malcifer waved a hand and their surrounding changed from a posh neighborhood to an a dilapidated village with crumbling houses and moss covered, cobbled pathways. "Let's change the scenery a bit, shall we?
A hundred years had gone by, yet he had not aged a single day. His body was frozen in the prime of its strength. Yet being strong and healthy did nothing to ward off the cold that threatened to turn his limbs to blocks of ice. Still, he struggled on, his feet trudging in the deep snow. In some places it reached as high as his chest but in others it was a little below his knees. He did not know why, but for some reason his mind had turned suicidal. Why else would he be crossing a frozen mountain pass in the middle of winter?
Living the life that he was, was demoralizing to say the least. He had already seen them getting killed thrice.
The guilt of him failing them, building up each time. He still could not forget the way her eyes had looked at him as the claw had thrust through her swollen stomach or the look of shock on the kid's face as that demoness had ripped out his heart. And the girl… she had just withered away, not even fighting against the demons that had defiled her before brutally murdering her and her brother. As Kurogane had discovered later on after his three failed attempts at seppuku, one time throwing himself off of a dangerous cliff and once even taking a potent poison that he had been cursed to an eternal life. And not just an eternal life but an eternal life that was damned. The only way to break the curse was to defy the terms of the curse that Malcifer had set upon him. He was cursed to forever haunt the face of this earth, meeting the reincarnations of his loved ones whenever they were born only to watch helplessly as they were killed in tragic accidents and events. Malcifer himself normally acted as the initiator of those accidents so if Kurogane were to defeat the demon before he succeeded in killing them, surely he'd be able to free himself of the curse, right?
Kurogane looked around him with wide eyes as the scenery flickered and changed around them once more. It seems as though someone had rewinded time as the houses seemed to mend themselves and the moss seemed to recede into the earth, leaving behind the false image of a village that had seen a recent battle.
The kid had been a farm-boy in his sixth life and his love was the daughter of a wealthy lord. Kurogane's precious miko was a mere servant of the rich household. He had collapsed at the edge of the kid's farm after having traveled nonstop for almost a fortnight. He had not even stopped for any food or water. It wasn't like he could die of starvation or thirst. But despite his immortality going without food and water not a good idea as the two and a half century old warrior soon discovered. He was nursed back to health by the farm-boy who was in love with the daughter of his master. The miko's reincarnation served as the older sister-figure for the kid, sharing the living space with the boy, also acting as a means for correspondence between the poor farm boy and the girl who returned his feeling. It was hard, waking up to see her lavender eyes staring down at him in concern but there wasn't much he could have done in that case as he was too weak to move on his own. He needed time to recuperate as he had soon found out when he had tried to leave the three. It appeared as some of her healer powers had carried over to this life since the ex-priestess used the same familiar swirl of magic to heal him as his beloved wife. Kurogane ended up reluctantly agreeing to staying and helping out at the farm for a while. That while turned out to be over four full moons and somehow Kurogane found himself adjusting to this new life, however reluctant he might have had been initially about joining them. He figured that if he stuck close to them, he'd be able to catch Malcifer before the demon made his move to take their lives and maybe, he would be able to settle down on the farm with them once he broke his curse. There had to be a way to get out of this curse… somehow.
Time flew by quickly and he slowly found himself falling in love with this life of Tomoyo. But he knew he'd never be able to confess his feelings to her until his curse was broken. So he kept quiet. Later on he'd wish several times that he had actually not been so cautious and told her his feelings when he had had the chance.
Malcifer struck when Kurogane was sent out of the small town on a delivery business for the Lord. He bought a small, delicate looking necklace to give to Tomoyo upon his return but unfortunately for him, he was destined to carry the locket around with him for the rest of his damned existence as he soon discovered upon his arrival. The village was eerily empty, the guard telling him to head to the square for the public execution of the witch and her little helper devil who had been planning on seducing the Lord's daughter before turning her into a mind-slave. The pyre was just set to fire when he arrived, Malcifer's twisted face grinning behind the Lord's as he pointed towards the witch tied up at the stake. Tied up there, dirty and covered in bruises and scrapes, Tomoyo stared listlessly at her feet, not even looking up when he cried out her name. A little ways away from the pyre, the kid was strung up by his hands and feet on a wooden cross, the skin on his chest peeling apart like flaps of cut meat.
Snarling like a wounded animal, Kurogane summoned his sword, the villagers crying out in alarm as they saw the weapon materialize out of thin air, accusing the witch of having harbored another demon the crowd grew wild, people throwing stones and rotten vegetables and anything else within their reach at the woman that was tied atop the burning pyre, the fire almost licking at the hem of her dress. Like a man possessed, the red-eyed warrior fought his way through the throngs of villagers, felling anyone who got in his with precise strokes. The lavender-eyed woman screamed in pain as the fire started burning her feet. Somewhere in the distance he was vaguely aware of a female voice crying out their names, his, Syaoran's and Tomoyo's but that was lost on him as he slaughtered the villagers in his attempt to reach the reincarnation of his wife on time. Relief spread through his veins as he noticed that he was almost there, the Lord of the village cowering at the sight of his demonic appearance he continuously crossed himself and recited prayers in a foreign tongue. The man was dead before his third verse. With all the smoke and the stench of burning flesh, Kurogane could not really tell how much the fire had actually climbed but the heat prevented him from getting any closer to the pyre. Knowing that no matter what he did, he would not die, Kurogane jumped in, ignoring the pain as the fire licked at his flesh, burning him as he struggled to get closer to her. Kurogane had almost made it. The ropes had all but burned, only one tied around her neck holding Tomoyo in place. He could just cut it and free her from this burning hell. Malcifer, it appeared had other plans since the minute he drew his sword to free Tomoyo, the demon made the fire's heat grow in intensity. Kurogane's charred flesh cracked with the effort as he forced himself to move but he could tell the minute her screams stopped that it was too late. He was too late.
"Better luck next time, Captain." Malcifer grinned as he vanished in a puff of smoke. He had no idea how long he stayed there in the heart of the burning inferno but as night approached and the furnace turned into a smoldering heap of ashes, Kurogane felt his flesh and skin begin to grow back on his charred body. He should have been dead. By all means he should have been dead by now. He should have been dead two hundred years ago. The red-eyed warrior refused to move from his bed in the ashes, staring blankly at the charred remains of what was once a beautiful woman.
Tied to a pillar of the shrine, watching him through horrified lavender eyes was the woman he loved. His heart clenched painfully at the sight of those beautiful orbs as his mind flashed back to the images of all the times he had seen the light fade from them.
"My, my, why is it that I always end up finding you in a half-dazed state?" a voice that sounded vaguely familiar spoke from somewhere to his right. Kurogane lacked the energy and will to move from his spot on the ground as a set of brilliant blue eyes appeared in his line of sight. "Hello again Kuro-tan. I wish we had met under better circumstances." The man reached out with a pale, slender hand but Kurogane moved faster than lightening as he whipped up his sword and held its tip right below the man's jugular, freezing him in his action.
"You weren't a dream." He growled, gingerly climbing to his feet as the blue-eyed man with his hair that appeared to have been spun out of the sunshine itself, merely smiled, holding up his hands in a gesture of… something.
"Afraid not." The man responded with a shake of his head. "I'm quite real."
"Why did you save me that night?"
"Whether I had done anything or not, you still would have survived to live this life." The blond man replied, almost reading the thoughts racing through the warrior's head. "All I did was give you a chance to break your curse."
"What?"
"You guessed quite correctly, Kurogane." The man said, stepping away from his sword and turning his back towards the warrior as he continued, "the only way to break this curse," he walked over to one of the fallen villager's turning the corpse on its back with his foot before crouching down, next to it. "Hmm… this oughtta do it." he murmured, casting a glance towards the warrior out of the corner of his eye before nodding and undressing the body. "As I was saying, the only way," he grunted, struggling to remove the shirt as it had stuck to the dead man's flesh due to blood, "to break it is if you kill the demon that cursed you."
"Why should I trust you?" he growled, narrowing his eyes to signify how much he trusted the blond.
"Well, for one, I'm trying to help you out here." He responded simply as he brought the clothes over to the red-eyed warrior, "and two, like I told you the last time we met, I'm an old friend. Here, put these on."
"Why?"
"Well, if you prefer parading around naked, be my guest," the blond turned his back to the man again, "though I'm afraid no one is around to appreciate the sight." Either this man was a fool who did not know about the fact that you should never turn your back on potential mistrusting enemies or he was extremely unafraid of death. "You should get dressed. Wash off the blood in one of those troughs by the inn. I'm sure the owner won't mind. Plus, it is better manners to stay dressed in the presence of a lady."
Lady? Kurogane whirled around and spotted her sitting by the foot of a small hill, cradling something to her chest. The girl! She was still alive.
Despite his obvious mistrust for the stranger who claimed to be a friend, Kurogane found himself acting on his suggestion. It would be best to get dressed before making sure that he would be able to protect Sakura from the blond. Hurriedly throwing water on his body get rid of the soot and blood, he dunked the bloody clothes in trough a couple of times before throwing them on and approaching the pair at the base of the hill as fast as he could.
"She's in shock it seems." He told the warrior as the latter approached. "Poor Sakura-chan…" Kurogane clenched his fists at the sight of the boy that was cradled in her arms, blue lips parted slightly in his death, blood matted hair clinging to his face, flaps of flesh now stuck in place due to the clotted blood. Even the sickening holes in his wrists and ankles –the parts that had been used to crucify the boy- were no longer bleeding.
The blond had left the pair to go his own way after he had helped Kurogane give a proper burial to Syaoran and Tomoyo. Sakura had died within the next couple of weeks, heartbreak taking its toll on the girl as just like her first life, she lost the will to live. This time however, there was no Tomoyo to coax her into eating something. The red-eyed warrior buried her right next to the boy before going on his own way, the parting words of the blond ringing in his ears as clear as day.
"We'll meet again someday then, Kurogane," the blond had said as he had left, "After all… You're not the only one damned to an eternal life."
Tied to the trunk of a Sakura tree was an auburn haired girl. She was currently unconscious, her head lolling against her chest that to his relief still rose and fell as she breathed.
The year blurred together as Kurogane travelled around the world, meeting his loved ones in their different lives, only to watch them die at the hands of that accursed demon, failing to slay him every single time. True whenever he managed to land a blow on the creature, he felt a significant increase in his power but it was never enough to kill the damn thing. His paths crossed the blonde's several times over the centuries, sometimes with the blue-eyed man even lending a hand to help him find the stolen reincarnations quicker whenever Malcifer decided to end their lives himself. But the blond never stayed around to help out with the fight or the rescue. His excuse had been a simple one.
"This is your fight Kuro-tan. I can lend a hand and help you defeat the demon but that won't break your curse. The only way for you to free yourself and enter the cycle again is if you defeat Malcifer with your own strength."
No matter how hard he tried though, his own strength always fell short in the end.
This was the girl his apprentice always fell in love with, no matter how many times he was reborn. The cheesy phrase 'meant for each other' came to mind whenever he thought about them.
He arrived in a city, dressed in a long trench coat, the black material fluttering about him in the wind as he silently moved through the dark streets. Sounds of struggling reached his ears as he turned around a corner and passed a pitch black alleyway.
"S-stop! No!" the voice that cried out was female and awfully familiar. Closing his crimson eyes, the warrior took a deep breath to steel his resolve. He knew he would never be able to just stand by and let the bastards do whatever they wished with her but… he knew he could not get close to them. That would be the worst thing imaginable. Getting attached to them only to have them ripped from him and slaughtered before his eyes. He wasn't sure how much more of that he could take.
"Well? Aren't you going to help her?" the blue-eyed blond appeared at his side, looking up at him expectantly. Kurogane could tell he was, despite having his eyes closed because the blond was just annoying like that.
"Shut up. Why the heck are you here?"
"Travelling." The man grinned back, "I was in the neighborhood so I figured I should come over say hi to my best friend."
"Help!" the girl's cry interrupted his retort. Knowing that he was insulting the memory of his long deceased apprentice by just standing by while the girl he loved was being taken advantage of, Kurogane whirled around and raced into the alley. By the time he brought the shivering girl out, with his coat draped across her shoulders, the blond was long gone.
"Tch… Bastard." He scoffed as he spotted his head vanishing around a corner on the other side of the street. Turning his attention to the brunette at his side, he observed her face in the dull light of the streetlamp. The girl looked up at him with a tear stained face, wide, bloodshot, jade orbs staring up at him gratefully as she clutched the coat closer to her body. "You okay?"
"Y-yes… Thank you." She nodded, lowering her head to avoid his gaze. She must have been unnerved by his eyes. After all, red-eyed people were not exactly common in this world anymore. In the past five hundred years, he had only come across one other with eyes like his, and that old witch had been on her deathbed, leaving the world with no children at all, excessive alcohol consumption having destroyed her body from the inside.
Sighing and knowing he would regret his decision later on when he came across the other two somewhere around here, he said, "Come on, I'll take you home. Where do you live?" Wordlessly, the girl began walking and equally silent, he followed. It turned out that the girl shared an apartment with her older brother who was instantaneously at Kurogane's throat the minute he saw his sister's state.
"Touya, please, let go of him." The girl cried as she tried to pry her brother off of the warrior, "he saved my life."
The man deflated on hearing his sister's words, letting go of Kurogane as he pulled his sister into a crushing hug. As the warrior had turned to leave, he found himself being stopped by the grateful reincarnation of his best-friend, telling him to stay the night at their place when he discovered he had no other place to go to. It was only the sight of a healthy right arm attached to the reincarnation's body that Kurogane realized that this man was not the same as his friend back in Suwa. Staying with them brought back painful memories especially since Kurogane realized that the valley this city was located in was actually part of the Demon Plateau. He was probably somewhere close to the ruins of Suwa, if they had not been devoured by the surroundings ages before.
A pained intake of breath made him look to his right and his own nearly caught in his throat at the sight of the bloodied form of his apprentice, or well the reincarnation of his former apprentice.
His encounter with the kid was a bit of a surprise but then again, seeing as he had been staying with the Kinomotos, it shouldn't have been so. The brunette had burst through the front door pulling the girl from the dining table and crushing her to him in a fierce embrace. He later discovered that the boy had been out of the city on some sort of school project and that was the reason why she had had to come home alone from work the previous night. He had apologized and kissed her repeatedly, ignoring the growling brother sitting next to Kurogane as he promised never to leave her alone again. He had then turned his attention to his girlfriend's savior and invited him for a free dinner at his workplace. He worked at a diner in the evenings apparently. Despite his reluctance to let them all worm their way into his heart, he had ended up agreeing to accompany the kid and his girl to the diner that evening before he left. The urge to runaway and never come back grew stronger when he heard the girl mention Tomoyo's name repeatedly throughout their conversation.
Chocolate colored haired matted in the bright red liquid, the nineteen year old's pale blue t-shirt stained crimson with his own lifesource. His eyes flashed back to the day he had seen him die for the first time.
He encountered the lavender-eyed beauty at the diner and for some reason, despite his struggles to avoid talking to her again, he ended up agreeing to go out for a stroll with her after dinner. The weight of the distorted gold necklace that he had bought for Tomoyo's sixth life, pressed uncomfortably against his chest as the woman chattered away .
"And so it begins, once again." Malcifer laughed softly at the sight making Kurogane's head snap back in his direction.
Kurogane had no idea how but somehow, he ended up staying with the Kinomotos, meeting up with the kid and Tomoyo every few days. Touya considered him a very close friend while the kid started looking up at him like a mentor. The girl… even though he had never been really close to any of her incarnations, Kurogane couldn't help but remember all the times he had failed her and the others whenever she flashed her smile in his direction. Kurogane knew he didn't deserve it. knew he would regret it later on. Knew that things would only take a turn for the worse once the demon showed up… he knew all this and still, he allowed them all to worm their way into his heart. He was tired of trying to distance himself from them. He had tried leaving them on their own many times in the past after their paths had crossed but even then… even then Malcifer had not spared their lives, gloating about how he had killed them as they had waited for their savior to come and rescue them. The demon would taunt him and make sure he never forgot. Which was why, the warrior knew it was futile to leave them on their own. Malcifer would seek them out and kill them again whether he was there or not. He knew the only way they stood even a fraction of a chance against the creature was if he found the demon first and killed it before it managed to inflict any lasting damage on any of them.
"Bastard…" Kurogane's clenched fist shook with suppressed rage as grit his teeth, "This ends tonight."
Only two month later, after Tomoyo had declared her liking for Kurogane over dinner day, the dreaded demon made an appearance. The thing stole them all, right from under his nose in a manner of speaking and Kurogane had been helpless to do anything at all to stop them from being taken away. The blue-eyed blond had shown up soon after, once again staying true to his word of being his old friend as he helped him locate the place where the demon had taken his loved ones, before taking his leave and wishing him good luck.
"Don't forget Kurogane, you have a chance against the thing this time. This is your home and those three are the ones."
What followed an epic battle, the blur of steel and dark magic transforming their surroundings once more, though this time it was a result of dodged and deflected attacks…
"Kurogane…" Tears streamed down her pale face as her cold fingers caressed his cheek. Their surrounding had morphed back to the original posh neighborhood, the rain once again pouring down from the open sky washing away the blood and grime, leaving him feeling more refreshed than he had ever felt in the thousand years or so of his Damned Existence.
Reaching out with a weak, failing limb, he tried to wipe away her tears, "Don't cry for me, Tomoyo."
"I-I… I can remember what happened." She told him softly, her soft hands combing through his wet hair. "Everything. All our past lives. All the way to when it first began."
"Can you recall how we first met?" he smiled at her, though it turned into a pained grimace as his heart skipped several beats. Though his injuries were not too great, he knew that with the curse lifting, he did not have long left in this world. The moment of his death, something that was two thousand years overdue, was fast approaching.
"I can," she nodded, "You chased a miscreant to the shrine grounds." Her eyes flickered in the chocolate haired boy's direction for a fraction of a second before moving back towards Kurogane.
"And you…" he chuckled weakly, "you stepped in front of him to protect the kid."
"I couldn't stand the sight of you in the beginning." She admitted softly.
"But you fell for me…" a painful cough interrupted his words, "after I took the kid under my wing."
"And finally after waiting for so long…" she smiled reminiscently.
"I worked up the courage to ask you to marry me."
"That was the happiest day of my life."
"Kid," his hazy eyes turned in the direction of the teen whose injuries had miraculously healed, "I'm sorry."
"Kurogane-san," as soon as the brown-haired youth addressed him with the honorific he knew that his apprentice had regained his memories as well. "It wasn't your fault."
"I let that bitch kill you." He growled, though there was no strength behind it. "And I failed to protect your wife... Those bastards killed everyone."
"No one blames you, Kurogane-san," this time it was the emerald-eyed girl that spoke, her voice kind and soothing, "you did all you could to protect us all."
"Suffering for so long on our behalf," Syaoran picked up where his girlfriend had left off. "If anything, we should be apologizing to you."
"If I had enough strength," Kurogane chuckled bitterly, "I would have punched you in the head for that… damn kid… you always were too kind-hearted for your own good. No matter what you say… I failed to protect you all time and again."
"But you didn't fail Kurogane." Tomoyo whispered, her soft fingers caressing his hand. "You saved us. None of us could blame you for things that were beyond your control."
"Kid, when I'm gone… I want you to take my sword… And Tomoyo… the necklace… the curse has lifted," he whispered softly, feeling the life drain from his body as he began to lose his senses, "I can finally be at peace." He breathed his last just as the sun peaked out from behind the clouds. A cold wind began to blow and the warrior's body crumbled to dust right before their eyes, blown away with the light breeze. In the distance, a lone figure stood on the rooftop of a skyscraper, observing the small group with a small smile.
"So you finally broke your curse, Kurogane." The dark cloak whipped around his form as he turned his back to them and began walking away. "Maybe in another lifetime then, my friend."
A/N: The ending seems a bit rushed, I know. That's because I wanted to put this up today. But I might come back and redo it someday. If there was anything that confused you, feel free to ask.