"Kurogane."
He was dreaming. He knew because he didn't often dream and when he did it was either of his childhood, or if Tomoyo was contacting him.
"I hope you will forgive me for this terrible mess. I hadn't predicted it would be this complicated."
If he were awake he would have rolled his eyes. Tomoyo must have predicted this; she never made mistakes when it came to her dreams. Kurogane's dream slowly melted into physical form. He found himself in Tomoyo's bedroom, hung with various silks and velvets. The princess sat before him in a comfortable armchair, and he kneeled.
"Kurogane. I see you have already devised an escape plan."
"Yes." He replied, head bowed.
"The boy, Syaoran." Kurogane realised Tomoyo's hands were resting on an intricate empty cage that sat in her lap. It was small, barely half the size of her, and decorated with diamonds and sapphires.
"I wish for you to help him, also."
"Help him escape?" Kurogane questioned. Well, that was a given, the boy had already indulged him in what he knew of the castle; it was only fair he repaid the favour by helping him escape.
"Yes," there was a coy smile on her face that Kurogane didn't trust. "But also to find contact with his brother."
"His brother?" the warrior replied suspiciously. One of Tomoyo's hands gently stroked a large Sapphire encrusted in the cage's frame.
"Yes, I believe both of them will be helpful to your cause."
Your cause, you mean. Those were the words Kurogane wanted to say to her, but he couldn't. He was extremely loyal to the Princess, but he didn't like it when she shifted it to make a bad idea look like his own.
"Nasty
thoughts won't help, Kurogane." She
smiled as though amused. "Now wake up.
Syaoran is trying to get your attention."
--
Kurogane awoke when a small lump of bread was rudely pegged at his forehead.
"Little shit!" Getting to his knees he glared at Syaoran through the crack, but fell silent when the boy raised a finger to his lips, mouthing 'listen' and nodding towards the cell door. Shuffling closer to the door Kurogane placed his head against the thin crack.
"Miro wants t' see the General."
The sound of keys jingling together and a high screeching sound, followed by an unkind chuckle.
"Already? It was weeks before Miro asked to see the boy."
"It's the King's orders."
Kurogane grunted and pulled back as his cell door was ripped open, quickly hiding his bound hands beneath the back of his shirt. He was tugged upwards and forced out the cell door, glancing quickly as he passed Syaoran's cell to see the boy stuffing bread into his mouth, face laced with nervousness.
--
Kurogane didn't give the guards the satisfaction of crying out when he was returned to his cell, dropped roughly onto the cold ground. 'Miro' ended up being a seven-foot heavily muscled man who spent half an hour scrutinizing Kurogane carefully and eventually branded him in the abdomen with an overly-large hot poker. It burned deep, and as Kurogane's cell door was locked behind him he desperately tried to shift his loose shirt higher to place the stinging scar against the cool ground. Breathing harshly, he twisted his body around and spotted Syaoran already against the crack in the wall, the purple bruise beneath his eye illuminated by the moonlight coming through the bars of his window.
Kurogane stared at him for a moment, too determined on cooling the scar than to speak. Syaoran watched him quietly for a while as if in recognition of what Kurogane was doing. When the pain finally faded into a dull throb, the boy took some spare bread and pushed it through the crack for Kurogane to eat when the warrior awoke again.
--
"You don't see Miro that often." Syaoran mumbled, sipping his milk and gently massaging the bruise. "Maybe once every couple of weeks."
"How long have you been here?" Kurogane asked, resuming his task of cutting through the ropes. Syaoran shrugged.
"A while. I don't get bothered as much anymore, did you notice Miro was missing a finger?" he grinned victoriously and Kurogane snorted.
"Why were you after the Phoenix?"
The question caught Kurogane off guard and he paused thoughtfully.
"Duty. The Princess of my land sent me to find it and bring it back with me so the lands could become prosperous." Now that he thought about it, it seemed sort of ludicrous. Not like something Tomoyo would usually send him to do. He had been serving her for at least seven years now, and he still didn't understand her motives for things.
"And you?"
Syaoran blushed slightly. "For a Princess, too, I guess." He mumbled. Kurogane left it at that. He may have a fondness for his 'cellmate' but he wasn't about to have a deep and meaningful conversation with him about his love life.
The scar had settled on his abdomen, and he inspected it carefully. The poker end had been carved with strange symbols, all fit into a circle in some sort of detailed print against his skin. Syaoran noticed the burn and winced.
"So they branded you too. It's only going to get worse you know." Syaoran sighed.
"Thanks for the heads up." Kurogane growled, rolling his eyes. They stilled when they heard footsteps echoing down the cellblock, and Kurogane stopped rubbing against the clasp, shutting his eyes and willing himself to sleep. He needed to contact Tomoyo. He needed help.
--
He was in a bedroom.
"Tomoyo! I need to speak to y-"
This wasn't right. Kurogane immediately reached for his waist but growled when he realised his scabbard was missing. The room around him was unfamiliar. It was a bedroom, but it wasn't Tomoyo's. Instead of decorated with warm sunrise colours, it was cold and decked in silver and blue. The bed before him was massive compared to Tomoyo's smaller bed which was usually stacked with pillows. This one was covered with a thick furry blanket and silver silk drapes.
"Alright," Kurogane muttered quietly. "Where the hell am I? Where's Tomoyo!?"
He saw a shadow to his left but when he looked there was no one there.
"You're interesting, you know."
The voice came from all around him, but Kurogane didn't panic. This was a dream; he couldn't be hurt in a dream.
"So stubborn! So strong!"
Damn if the voice didn't sound like it was giggling.
"You have
to be using magic." Kurogane thought out loud. "Are you
the Mage?"
A sigh, and Kurogane felt a pressure against his shoulders, as if the speaker was leaning against his back. Kurogane knew if he turned he would see empty air, so he stayed perfectly still.
"Always so serious." The voice pouted. "Everyone is always so serious. My King wants me to hurt all the serious people, the ones who try and claim his beloved Phoenix."
Kurogane tensed, a whisper of a sigh passed over the shell of his ear and he shuddered. It was freezing.
"So…" the voice sounded harder, suddenly more serious. "What are you going to do, Kurogane? You understand now my orders, and I cannot allow more interferences from your Princess."
"Don't touch her!" Kurogane lost his control and snapped around.As expected the other part of the room was just as bare.
"Be calm, they are not my orders." The voice came from behind him again, and he heard the squeak of a mattress. The mage was sitting down. "But she cannot contact you any longer, I have made sure of that. That brand wasn't just for show, you know."
He felt his stomach suddenly burn and hissed, holding a hand to the scar.
"Of course." Kurogane grunted. "I'm such an idiot."
"Oh contraire!" the giggles were back, and they were like nails against a chalkboard to Kurogane. "You have proved yourself to be extremely intelligent. One example…"
The mattress squeaked again, and Kurogane flinched when he felt cool nimble fingers trace the contours of his wrist, dancing along the palm and following the vein up his forearm.
"Your escape plan is valiant. Especially since you intend to free Syaoran as well."
Kurogane had to force himself to keep his head facing straight, much to his distaste. He hated not being able to see his enemy's eyes.
"So, what," he muttered. "Have you already informed your King? Are you meant to be distracting me while I'm transferred to a different cell or something?"
The fingers disappeared, the mattress squeaked protestingly as the mage sat once more. Silence.
"Hey!" Kurogane snapped. "I asked you a damn question!"
"Hm…" the mage sighed heavily. "I haven't told my King."
"What?" Kurogane turned quickly, instantly regretting it when the bed was bare except for a small dent in the blanket where the mage had been sitting.
"Tut tut Kuro! I thought you were meant to be smart!" the voice chided.
"What did you call me!?" Kurogane snarled, but he was only replied with a light chuckle.
"Ah Kuro, you're certainly interesting, and I won't tell the King of your escape plans. Alas… I have my orders." At his words Kurogane let out a short cry and his knees hit the carpeted ground as pain hit his mind like a wave. When it stopped, he spent a few moments on the ground, panting heavily, vision blurred.
"What the hell!" he gasped out finally.
"Your welcome." Came the quiet reply. "Oops, Time for you to go!"
--
"I said wake up! Bastard!"
Milk hit his face and Kurogane spluttered, the seedy guard coming into vision. The man sneered, showing stained teeth and his face lighting up with scars. He dropped a plate next to his head and kicked Kurogane's shoulder, sending him sprawling on his back.
"Some General. King Ashura doesn't want you dead just yet."
He laughed and left the cell, locking the door behind him.
"Kurogane!"
He coughed and rolled back over looking up to see Syaoran looking worriedly through the crack.
"You've been asleep for almost a day! What happened to you?"
Kurogane didn't answer. He tested the ropes that bound his wrists, and found them still loose.
"Unbelievable." He sighed, resting his head back against the concrete.
"What is? Hey!" Syaoran threw a piece of bread indignantly at Kurogane's head, and the warrior snarled at him. Realising he wasn't exactly in the talkative mood, Syaoran muttered something and disappeared from the crack.
Kurogane had met a number of mages and warriors in his lifetime that hid their true personalities. He could tell when someone was hiding something from him, or when their actions are simply controlled by their orders. But this mage…he was strange. He followed his King's orders, but kept secrets from him? And such a secret as Kurogane's progressing escape, hiding that from his King could prove fatal to the mage.
And all because he thought Kurogane was interesting? That was plain insane! Kurogane wouldn't hide a prisoner's escape from Tomoyo, even if he thought the prisoner was 'interesting.'
He winced as pain flashed through his mind once more, but slightly muted than last time as if in a silent apology. Gritting his teeth and squeezing his eyes shut he waited silently and tried to ride out the pain.