A Yu Yu Hakusho Adventure:

Kurama & Hiei

The Pit Of Despair

Chapter One: The Prison

Kurama and Hiei couldn't believe this. They had both been captured by rogue demon police patrols on the border of Demon World. The police had recognized them immediately. "HALT!" they called. "Jaganshi Hiei and Yoko Kurama…you're under arrest for socializing with and assisting the Humans!" Hiei and Kurama started to run, but were soon surrounded. Hiei drew his sword and ran through them, cutting off multiple parts of different demons. The wounded ones hollered in pain and anger. Some of the non-wounded ones chased after him. Kurama continued to fight them off with his Rose Whip, but realized there were too many of them. Defeat and surrender were inevitable and the only options left. They had definitely planned affectively. They would have to escape later. As soon as Kurama could find out where they were taking them and how they work…This was embarrassing…although Hiei had tried to escape capture, he failed, and Kurama had surrendered. The police had taken their weapons, so if they wanted to escape, they would have to do it without violence…Hiei had a big black cloud over his head, he was frustrated and hot-blooded (and I'm not referring to his origin). The police hand-cuffed them behind their backs and lead them away, most likely to an easy jail to break out of….or so they thought…

They had a surprise waiting for them, although they didn't realize it. After what seemed like hours of walking, they finally stopped. Kurama and Hiei looked from behind the police and over into the valley of a rocky plain. The police started to chuckle and grin. The Spirit Detectives' eyes grew wide…

"Oh, no…" Kurama whispered.

"…" Hiei tried to show no fear.

In front of them and their destination…was the legendary Pit of Despair! Kurama and Hiei were frozen in their tracks. They were exhausted from walking so far, and yet, they still had a long way to go to their doom…

The police shoved them to continue down into the Valley of Darkness. The Pit of Despair was an evil, vile, demon-horde of Darkness, said to be inescapable. Only the worst of the worst were punished for eternity there. Never will you find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy seemed to describe it perfectly. There was also another prison there, but it was Heaven compared to the Pit. At least they got 2 meals a day…The workers (what the inmates in the mines in the Valley were called) at least saw the light of day, even though Demon World was usually dark. They were forced to mine and break up the rocks in the Valley. The inmates were usually on a chain gang, or their legs were cuffed and chained apart so they could walk. The guards looked mean, strict, and no nonsense. Nothing would be or get passed them. Their eyes were enough to pierce your soul. The inmates were wearing thin, tan hides, and it barely covered them. They were dirty and it was obvious they hadn't taken a bath in a while. There were skinny and big inmates, men and women. It seemed the police/guards weren't picky when it came to a criminal. Some inmates were also wearing wristbands made of the same material or they wore hand-cuffs chained apart so they could still work. Some of them stopped briefly to look at the new inmates but quickly went back to work.

Kurama stopped briefly to meet the eyes of an inmate there. She looked sad, scared, and alone. She was young, perhaps a child. Her tears told Kurama she was innocent. She looked away and picked up a boulder to move, but accidently dropped it. One of the guards immediately noticed and came over and proceeded to beat the girl. But, why? Isn't that what they wanted? To break the rocks?

Kurama shouted, "leave her alone!" and tried to stop him, but the police pulled his shoulder and Kurama fell backwards. He was pulled on his feet and shoved to continue. He looked back at the girl, for the last time. She smiled at him, as if to say, thank you. He smiled back, and she continued to work.

"Kurama," Hiei said, without looking back at him. "It's a kill-or-be-killed world. You watch your own back here, and mind your own business…"

"But he was going to kill her!" Kurama insisted.

"…I'm sure it's not the first time this happened. But probably the first time someone tried to help her. You might have been killed instead…"

"…It would be better for her…"

"What? To live another day in Hell?" Hiei asked him. "It wouldn't have changed anything. That would just delay her death…"

"…" Kurama didn't have an answer. He looked down at the rocky, dusty path. They walked in silence and without another interruption.

They arrived at the Pit. The guards proceeded to lecture them about how they wouldn't escape and how the Pit was for the worst demons Demon World had to offer. S-Class and A-Class demons were down there (S and A-Class refers to Demon levels of energy, however, not many people knew that S-Class existed or denied it. S-Class refers to Special Class Demons). The police told them to watch their backs and step as they were pushed into the Pit!

Kurama and Hiei were now free-falling as they heard the demon patrol laughing! They fell about 5 stories until Hiei found a perch to stop his fall, but Kurama continued to fall!

Hiei thought, typical human…

Kurama tried to stop his fall, but his perch had collapsed and he fell again! But suddenly, Kurama was caught before he hit the cold, hard prison floor by a larger demon. Hiei breathed a sigh of relief. Kurama had almost lost his life his first day in the Pit…that would've been pathetic…The larger demon carried Kurama away under his arm!

"HEY!" Hiei jumped from his perch to the ground and ran after the demon. The other inmates watched like a child watching his parents argue. After all, this was their entertainment/excitement for the day, other than watching/participating in fights. As they descended the many stairs, they disappeared from sight, so the inmates continued on their business, which was nothing, really.

"Excuse me, sir," Kurama asked the rather ugly and big demon. He was trying to be polite, in spite of the situation. "But where are you taking me? I would very much like to be released now, thank you." The big demon said nothing and continued to walk down the stairs. He didn't even look at Kurama. His grip was tight and he held Kurama by his waist. Kurama was just about helpless under the arm of the demon considering his hands were still cuffed behind his back. Kurama started to think that this demon somehow thought that perhaps he was a new toy or an angel sent from Heaven. After all, he did fall from the sky. And he was a human in a demon prison. He wasn't very safe right now. The demon might have even thought he was food! Kurama felt a single sweat drop form on his forehead and run down his cheek and land on the floor…Meanwhile, Hiei was bouncing off the walls…literally! He jumped to keep up with Kurama's kidnapper. Despite his size, the demon was faster than Hiei. Hiei jumped off the wall and landed on the stair. He was already tired and exhausted but he couldn't let the big, ugly, stupid demon run off with Kurama! Hiei continued to pursue.

The larger demon finally reached the bottom and put Kurama down. Hiei was stopped suddenly and ran into the demon's back and fell flat on his butt. Why did he suddenly stop?

"HEY!" Hiei called from the floor. "What did you hope to accomplish bringing us down here?!" Hiei then proceeded to cuss and hiss.

Kurama smiled. Just like Hiei to think he stopped someone when really, they did just stop.

"…and vile creature!" Hiei finished and waited for the demon's response.

The larger demon suddenly turned Kurama around and put a key into his hand-cuffs and they fell to the floor and the sound echoed throughout the prison. Kurama tried to relieve his sore wrists by rubbing it with his other hand. The police patrol hadn't been very nice and merciful by putting them so tight.

"!...?" Hiei was speechless. That demon had the key all this time?!

Then he picked up Hiei and turned him around. What was this? Were they so dumbfounded that they couldn't move themselves?

"Thanks," Hiei was relieved to get those off.

Then the demon pushed Kurama backwards and threw Hiei into the cell after him! Hiei fell on all fours and Kurama fell on his butt next to him. Dust and dirt flew into the air.

"I thought you were helping us?!" Hiei screamed at the demon as he turned around and stood up.

"I am…"

Kurama and Hiei were shocked to hear that the big, stupid-looking demon could actually talk!

"I took off your hand-cuffs. They were draining your energy."

"Thank you, sir," Kurama said. He got up and dusted off himself. He walked to the cell bars, putting his hands around them. "But if you don't mind me asking…how is locking us up helping us?"

"The door isn't locked," the demon remarked. "I'd just thought I'd be a friend and show you to your cell. You can roam about here as you wish. However, escape is impossible. And I'd watch my back in here. You can never be too careful…and don't pick fights you can't win.." The demon mumbled something else and walked away back up the stairs.

"…" Hiei's mouth was open. Kurama walked over to him and closed his mouth for him. "How is putting us in a cell, friendly?"

"I wonder if he is a guard? He did have the key to the hand-cuffs," Kurama guessed.

"I have no idea," Hiei then proceeded to dust off the dirt on himself. It would be a long night. "I call the top bunk…" he said, as if the little brother having to share a room.

Kurama smiled. Hiei wasn't all that bad. He was humorous at times. There wasn't even a top bunk, but separate beds across the cell from each other that folded down. All the cells faced the opening of the huge, circular Pit. Most likely, the miners and workers from the surface were still working on the Pit. It had probably been generations past. It would be terrible to be born in such a horrible place…

It was later that night. Kurama and Hiei had not attempted to leave their cell, yet. In fact, they were afraid of leaving their "safe" cell. S-Class Demons were not a good fight to pick, and this place was crawling with them. Hiei was lying in the prison bed, one arm under his head. It was hot and dirty, and not much could be done about it. In fact, if it rained, with an open 'sun-roof', everything would be soaked. Hiei had taken off his cloak and sleeveless shirt. He was dirty and hot, anyway.

"I find it strange..." Kurama remarks, leaning against the cell wall, arms crossed. "Why are there no guards? Either they're quite idiotic or quite confident that we will not escape..." he held an arm out, palm up, and shook his head, slightly, sort of like asking himself the following, "never before have I gone up against this situation in prison...much less, a Demon World prison..."

The man in the cell next to theirs', obviously overhearing, replied, "because there is no hope..." Kurama and Hiei both turned their heads; quite surprised that someone else was listening and that they had a neighbor who hadn't said a single word till now. The man was an older human-like demon with grey hair and bushy eyebrows, mustache and beard. "Escaping is impossible...why risk your life for something that is impossible to achieve?"

Hiei sat up and shot back with, "there cannot be gain without risk! Risk vs. Freedom? Feh, child's play..."

The man continues, ignoring Hiei's loud outburst, "...except one man actually did it..."

He now had Kurama and Hiei's full attention. Kurama stood up straight, away from the wall and Hiei almost fell out of his prison bed.

"His name was...Toguro...or that's what he called himself...people are known to have gone quite insane here..."

"TOGURO!" Kurama and Hiei cried. The prison echoed eerily with the name that had just been mentioned. They had fought Toguro in the Dark Tournament, a rigged and cruel fighting arena of demons, for demons, and finished off his elder brother in the Cave of Lovers, a cursed place where lovers would go to die together. He had been a human winner in the Dark Tournament, and therefore his wish was to be a demon. He proved to be a worthy opponent, and he had caused them to suffer many pains, including killing one of their teammates.

"Please, tell us more about this...Toguro," Kurama asked politely, pretending to be innocent and perhaps keep himself out of trouble and hopefully redeem himself from blowing his cover...

But Hiei shouted, "Toguro! How did HE escape? It's impossible...it has to be at least 20 feet to jump to the nearest ledge!"

Kurama thought to himself, as a single drop of sweat rolled down his cheek, that's nothing for a man like Toguro...

The old man shrugged and answered, "no one really knows how he did it...no one witnessed it...we found out the next day. When we found he had set up the ropes...it's like he wanted us to escape as well...?"

Hiei was skeptical, "'no one witnessed it'? How do you know if he escaped? You just assume. What if they decided to execute him, instead?!" He thought, and even if he somehow did...why would he waste time setting up the ropes?

The man turned his head to look at them, and Kurama realized the old man was blind! Probably from being in this hell Pit for too long... "For a man like Toguro...I think it's safer to assume he DID escape...somewhere like this wouldn't contain that man..."

This time, Hiei started to sweat...Toguro was a man to fear, indeed...

Hiei had decided to attempt the climb tonight! "I'm not staying in here any longer!"

Kurama tried to calm his friend, "Hiei, they said it's impossible. Besides, it's late. And we're both tired. Perhaps if you insist, you can try in the morning…"

"NO!" Hiei shouted and realized the demons that they didn't want to face might be sleeping. Then whispered, "no, Kurama. It has to be tonight! I'll make sure to drop a rope for you."

"…If you succeed," Kurama doubted and had a blank expression on his face, then frowned.

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