Clear As A Bell
Chapter 1: Late Night Realizations
The boy tossed and turned in his bed. He could see nothing in his fevered dreams. He could feel nothing on his skin, nothing in his mind, nothing anywhere. It was a blank fog, a slow delirium brought forth from his feverish imagination.
They...made a fool of me...
Those words were clear in his thoughts. In fact, they encompassed everything. Every bit of knowledge, every piece of information, was given to him as one sentence.
They...made a fool of me...
He wished to awake, to realize that his dreams were just that, dreams. He could feel absolute terror behind those words. A longing as deep as an ocean and as sharp as a sword.
They...made a fool of me...
A vision appeared. A dragon in the sky, bearing down on him, all fangs, teeth, incisors. Ripping, clawing, burning, biting. Lightning froze his soul, lightning boiled his blood. His skin was on fire! His heart raced about in his chest. The fear! The panic!
They...made a fool of me...
The dragon gave a roar, and he could feel his heart stop. His breath faded into the darkness. His mind slipped into oblivion. The dragon crunched down on him from above, shattering his body, forcing him into a hell that he could never escape again.
They...made a fool of me...
Down, down into the blackness he went, until he gave up on finding the bottom. Nowhere could he see light. Did light even exist here? Slowly, he felt time pass, slipping by like dried leaves in the fall. Millenia's...Eons. They were the same here as a minute, or a second.
They...made a fool of you!
His body lurched as he sat up, and a scream issued from his mouth as the realization that he had hit bottom sank in. A light flipped on in the small, dimly-lit room. A face, expressionless in his terror, watched him from the door.
"What is it, White?" the female asked.
This woman wasn't his mother. She wasn't related to him at all. At least, not that he could tell. The boy attempted to calm his nerves, taking each breath as they came. "N-n-nothing. It's...it's alright. It was...just a dream."
An exasperated sigh. "White, that was the fourth time this week you've had that dream. Falling? Blackness? Pain? That was it, right?"
The boy nodded. Another sigh. "Very well. First thing tomorrow, I'm taking you to a psychiatrist. We're going to get to the bottom of this pain, and whatever it is, you'll forget about it, alright? Now, go back to sleep," she said, turning. A green, spiked tail hit the light switch, and as the dragon-tribe woman left, White turned back to his pillow, resting his head.
They...made a fool of you!
"W...what do you want from me?" White asked, a tear slipping down his cheek. He brushed the offending droplet off, letting it hit his pillow.
Revenge! Revenge! Revenge!
White turned, finding a better position on his pillow. "Revenge? W...why revenge? Why do I w...w...want revenge?"
They...made a fool of me!
"Who's they! Who are you?"
You know who I am...Do you know who YOU are?!
"Who...who I am?" The boy asked. This is ridiculous,he thought. I'm talking to myself. I really do need help...
Who you are...it should be easy to find the answer to that, boy...
"I don't know who you are, but I know who I am. I'm White. I like yellowtail, and brownies, and playing with my friends."
You are a fool. You are nothing but a fool. The power, boy! The power!
"I don't know who you are. Stop talking to me. Stop making me crazy!" White yelled, mostly into his pillow to muffle the noise. Tears ran unchecked now. The pillow was becoming saturated.
Who you are. It should be...
"No! Shut up! Let me sleep!"
It should be...
"Shut up! I'm telling you, shut up!"
It should be...
"I'm not listening anymore!"
It should be...Clear!"
His eyes suddenly sprang open, and for a moment, it seemed the world had stopped spinning. Taking a breath, the boy White sat up in bed. His fists clenched, and in a second, he found himself out of bed. His arm reached out, and his hand flipped the switch on the wall. The illumination allowed the boy to see clearly enough. Glancing about, he gazed at the full-length mirror in front of him, blinking softly. A fool's face blinked back.
A second more, and an angry dragon's head poked through the door. "White! I told you, go back to sleep! It was a dream!" What she found was a hand, palm up, facing her, not more than two inches from her face.
"Shut up, demon. You have no position to give me orders."
"What?" the woman exclaimed, opening the door the entire way and stepping into the room, arms folded across her breast. "What did you say to me?"
White's eyes betrayed to her what he was feeling. The light, the light from the darkness that couldn't be quenched. "Hm. You're useless." The same light was beginning to appear in his hand, slowly, being called from an unknown source.
"What do you...what are you doing, White? Stop this! Stop this this instant! Do you know what you're father will say when he..."
She got no further. White merely cut her off. His lips pursed as his head rose, meeting her frozen stare with a calm, cool, and collected gaze. Her breath caught in her chest as she took a step backward. "Raajia Radisu..."
As White strode away from the home he had had for the last three years, he couldn't help but wonder what had happened. In the middle of the night, a beam had come down from the heavens, destroying everything that he had once held dear. His mother...his father...everything. The entirety of the house now lay in a swath of earth that was completely gone from the face of the planet. Nothing but a scorched place.
A tear rolled from his eye as White gazed into the sky. "Why!? W...why did you do this to me!? What kind of god does this to someone?!"
You...are god...now...
With that thought, White felt a little better. He continued to walk down the one-lane road to his next destination. He didn't know where that was, but the dragon tribe held no hope for him. He needed some place...better. S omewhere with stronger people. He didn't know why, but that's what his mind told him.
Yes, White. Somewhere with better people. Somewhere where we can fit in.
White smiled. It was good to fit in.
Gash was having an unusually hard time of sleeping. Something in his brain continued to fire warning signals to him. With a groan, he sat up, rubbing at his face. "Unu...why are you doing this, body? Stop being so troublesome. Just go to sleep! Everything is fine! The world is as it should be!"
"Gash?" a voice answered from the darkness? Gash could recognize the voice in an instant, and smiled to himself.
"Oy, it's alright, Zeon. Go back to sleep. I'm just having trouble with it." Since the boys had made a truce in the human world, Gash had decided to spend his nights in the royal hall, where Zeon and his mother and father lived. His parents had allowed for this, and Zeon had asked if Gash wanted to stay in his room. Finally, the brothers were together.
Zeon smiled from the other side of the room, flopping back down. "Alright. Just shut up a little, huh, you're highness. I'm trying to sleep."
"Unu...sorry. I'll try." With that, Gash flopped back down onto the pillow, shutting his eyes and willing himself to sleep. Sleep...sleep...sleep...sleep...sleep...
"GASH-KUN!" Another voice from the darkness. Another voice he could easily recognize. Startled, Gash sat straight up, flipping on the lights. A pink haired demon-child entered, her face crimson with the effects of a run.
"Unu, what is it Tio?"
The girl caught her breath a moment, and her teary face suddenly met his. "They found a dragon-tribe house an hour ago. It was gone! Vanished! As if...as if...it just suddenly stopped being there!"
Zeon yawned. "So? The dragon-tribe is known for its nomadic ways. The owner of the house probably just moved it somewhere else. They always do that. Now, pipe down and let me sleep."
Gash glared across the room. "Zeon! You should be more respectful to guests!"
All Gash got as an answer was a mere, "pfft."
Sighing and rolling his eyes, Gash turned to Tio, moving over to allow her to climb up on the bed. "It's ok, Tio. It's probably as Zeon says. The dragon-tribe moves all the time. The people who lived there probably didn't tell anyone, and therefore, it's no big deal. They'll find the place eventually."
"But Gash-kun! You don't understand! It's...it's...it's..." Tio could hardly control her shaking. Her voice had become high pitched. Feverish, almost.
Gash blinked at her, the curiosity clearly written on his face. "It's what, Tio-chan?"
"IT'S WHITE'S HOUSE THAT'S GONE MISSING!" She blurted out, far louder than she needed to.
Zeon sat up, growling. "SHUT UP! I'M TRYING TO SLEEP!" However, the look on Gash's face was enough to calm his own anger. "Yo. What is it, Gash?"
Gash couldn't help the small twitch that came to his right eye. Looking at Tio, he gulped. "So...so maybe...maybe White's family just moved. That's all, right? Right?"
Tio gulped as well. "I'm worried, Gash. White's a good guy. Who would want to hurt White? He's pretty simple, and...and..."
And he's the reincarnation of the only demon who wishes to destroy everything... Gash thought to himself. Slowly, his arm wrapped itself about Tio, who cried silently into his shirt. "Who else knows about this, Tio?"
Tio sniffed. "I just found out an hour ago. I couldn't sleep. I felt terrified. I...I needed to get out of the house. I saw Umagon. He couldn't sleep either. We walked about a half-mile from where I live down the road. That's where I saw the house. It was gone..."
Zeon, who had gotten up and walked across the room to listen, stopped her suddenly. "I'm telling you, pinky. The dragon-tribe moves. Nomads. That's their name. Look it up in the Demon Dictionary. It will tell you what nomad means. It means to 'move-around-a-lot'. Now, I'm tired, and I'm sick of listening to you. Let your king get some sleep, and stop bugging him about one demon's life." He held up a hand. "No, I don't want you to say every life is precious. I'm sure everyone is just fine. Seeing as how Gash-kun has given me the position of General Supreme, I'll send search parties out tomorrow to find your missing friend. Now, is that good enough?"
Tio nodded, turning. "Thank you, Zeon-kun. Thank you, Gash-kun. I'm...I'm sorry I burst in here."
Zeon glowered at her. "Say, that's a good point, pinky. How'd you get in here anyways? Especially this late at night?"
Gash smiled down at him. "Oh, that's easy. I gave all the guards implicit instructions to let my friends in at any time. Umagon, Tio, Leila, Kululu, Ted, Cherish..."
"Yeah yeah. Everyone in the demon world is your friend, right Gash? Whatever." Zeon gave a mock sigh and yawn, running a palm through his hair. "You guys talk all you want, but later. Right now is sleepy time, and everyone in this world is doing just that...EXCEPT YOU TWO AND ME! Now, go...to...sleep!" Turning, Zeon flipped the switch, shutting off the light and going to his bed. "I'll be in my bed if you need me...and you better pray you don't need me until morning. You may be my brother, and we may be cool...but I'll still fry your ass if you don't let me sleep!"
Watching the back of his brother retreat into the night, Gash smiled. Turning back to Tio, he nodded. "We better get some sleep, Tio. If you want, you can stay the night here. That way, you don't have to go home in the dark."
Tio blinked, and in the darkness, Gash couldn't have seen the blush that spread across her face. "Hn. Thank you, Gash-kun. I...I am tired." Turning over, she lay her head on the pillow. Wow, the beds in the royal chambers are very comfortable, she thought. Yawning, she allowed her eyes to shut. A hand around her middle suddenly brought her body to attention. Her face turned, and she glared into the darkness at where she knew Gash was laying. "What...are you...doing...Gash...?"
"Unu. Sorry, but when I sleep, I need something to cuddle with. You're taking my cuddle pillow. It's a reaction...please don't hurt me. I won't do it again. I'll...I'll turn over." She felt him shift slightly before she turned back.
"No...i...it's fine. I just...just didn't know what you were doing." She sighed. Idiot! You're one chance to sleep with Gash, have his arm around you, have him comfort you! What the hell were you thinking, you id... It was at that point that she felt his arm around her once more. He sighed, snuggling up to her. She froze slightly at the unfamiliar embrace. Her body relaxed, and she allowed him to pull her closer. "Good night, Gash-kun..." she said, her face a brilliant scarlet. What would Umagon or Kyanchome think if they could see her now?
"Good night...yellowtail..." Gash answered.
"YELLOWTAIL! WHY YOU!!!!!!!"
"I SAID SHUT UP OR I'M KILLING BOTH OF YOU!"
"Sorry, Zeon-sama!"
As the moon rose in the sky above the land of Demons, a young boy watched it with a smirk on his face. His fist clenched, and he drove it into the trunk of a young tree, smashing a hole into the wood and causing a scar to form. "My power is at ten percent as it is. I can't kill all the demons of this world like this. I need allies. I need to form my own alliance. All who wish to live shall join me. I'll take back my pride! I'll take back my glory!"
The smirk never left as the boy threw on his cloak. "I'll have my revenge on you, Gash. You shall pay. You shall pay dearly..."
Next Chapter: When the story of the disappearance of a Dragon-Tribe house unfolds, it is Gash's kingly duty to clean up the mess. Meanwhile, White finds the den of the last demon's in the Demon World that oppose Gash's rule and the happiness of Demonkind. With these unruly allies, can White find himself once more?
A/N: The names are not the same as the anime, so if that is all you are used to, you may be a little confused. The names of the people are from Konjiki no Gash, the Manga. If you wish to know who people are, just ask. I can tell you. Otherwise, just enjoy! The names weren't changed enough to be unrecognizable.