"Demons", Astrid huffed as she stomped her way over to the Kill Ring, "Of all the things to come across."
Quite frankly, Astrid was quite excited about meeting a new type of creature. Granted, even though nobody had ever met a demon in this day and age, they were as high up on the danger list as a deadly Venomous Vorpent. It would be interesting to see what the sucker was made of and Astrid was eager to see where she measured up in comparison. It would be great to see how she would fare against a creature of myth.
She would have to be careful though. Blue fire aside, everyone knew about the trickery of demons. There were plenty of tales where an unwitting human made a deal with one of the creatures and then ended up fiercely regretting it. There were stories where a demon would come, convince you to trust them, and then kill you in the most gruesome way and take off with everything you own.
The thing was, Astrid thought, was that nobody ever really expected the stories to be true. They were supposed to be things that were used to get a point across or as a means of teaching children necessary skills. They were supposed to be things that only lived in their realm through stories. They were supposed to be extinct.
But that did little to reassure the people that the demon they held captive was any less dangerous.
The whole village had been in uproar about the demon's presence and wanted to see it killed immediately. They had spent weeks dealing with random attacks on their person by creatures they didn't understand and this was just the last straw. They wanted it dead and out of their hair for good but Hiccup had argued against them. He had explained that it would be unfair to kill somebody for defending themselves, (and Astrid winced when she remembered her part in it all). He managed to convince the villagers to wait until the creature had awoken and given its party of the story before any further action could be taken.
It was a good point. Hiccup was known as the smartest person in the village and the general consensus was that if he felt that the creature could be reasoned with and damage to the village minimized, possibly negated completely, then they would go along with his idea. It didn't mean they had to like it though.
Preparations were made and the village elder was brought in to bless the metal chains and doors that surrounded the Dragon Rider Academy. The unconscious demon had been placed in the center and it was only until after that Astrid remembered that she had wanted to take its sword from it. It wouldn't be good if the thing suddenly woke up and started slashing its way through the village.
Which lead to the present, where she was presently making her way across the bridge that lead to the Academy. Hiccup was already waiting at the gate for her, she had sent for him ahead of time. It had been decided that since he had defended the creature so valiantly, that he would be the one that had to deal with it in the end. As a result, he was also the only one who held the keys to the ring. They didn't want anyone killing the beast while it slept after all.
"You know, Astrid, I still don't think that this is a good idea." Hiccup whined and Toothless, who was hanging from the beams above, moaned in agreement.
"Oh keep quiet. We have to remove all of the things it can use against us, right? And besides, I want to see what kind of weapon a demon uses. I'm sure it's top quality." Astrid peaked through the metal gate at the ever still figure of the demon lying in the middle. She waved her hand absentmindedly, never taking her eyes off the demon. "Now hurry up and open it before it wakes up."
Hiccup stared at her for a moment longer before groaning and waking over to unlock the gate. He knew she was right but he didn't like it. Allowing a captive their weapons was never a good idea.
Once the gate was opened Astrid quietly walked over to the demon, aware that Hiccup and Toothless had followed her in, and crouched down beside the sleeping figure.
The demon's sword was relatively easy to pull free once the binds that had been holding it had been loosened slightly. There was an odd clip near his shoulder that was neither wood nor metal that the cloth of the strap ran through. A little teasing and the strap elongated enough to allow for the entire thing to be pulled over the demon's head.
Astrid sat back, satisfied with herself, and examined the bag a little more closely. The material was one that she had never seen before. Soft but strong, fibers interwoven tightly. The button holding the top down was new too. It was made of the same material that that the clasp on the strap was. The sword inside the bag shifted and curiosity rose like a wave within Astrid. What type of sword was within? She wondered.
She walked over to where Hiccup was standing before pausing. An idea taking root within her mind. She examined the red bag more closely and turned it over once in her hands. It didn't seem like it had any other protections on it besides the button on the top.
It unclipped with no effort on her part.
"Oh no," Hiccup started and tried to grab the sword. She darted out of reach. "No Astrid. Don't unsheathe the sword here! Who knows what magic that thing has inside of it!"
Astrid used one hand to push the young heir away and let the red bag fall to the floor. The sword inside was not one either teen had ever seen before. It was a thin, long thing that had a slight curve to the blade. The hilt and sheath were blue and wrapped almost artistically. The guard was a diamond shape and the pommel decorated with a bright yellow ribbon with a bead on the end. There was no denying that the sword was beautiful, that much was clear to anyone.
Another thing that was clear to anyone was that this was no ordinary sword. It radiated power and sent shivers down the vikings spine. Something in the back of their head told them that they should not be touching the sword. It was an otherworldly thing and they had no business touching it.
Astrid wondered where the demon had gotten it from.
"Seriously Astrid," Hiccup hissed, "Don't draw the sword! I'm telling you something bad'll happen!"
"Oh, hush now." Astrid snapped and gripped the handle and sheath, "I just want to see the blade."
She drew blade and then gasped when it exploded in a flash of blue.
-o0o-
To say that Rin's head was pounding and his back was aching would be have been a gross understatement.
His temples beat savagely and it felt as if a ball had been bouncing around in his head. It felt as if there was too little space for it all and Rin wouldn't be surprised if he was told that his head was going to explode outward. It certainly felt painful enough. His back hurt too. Like his tail had been pulled much too hard.
Unfortunately, there wasn't much he could do about his abused back. His head could be dealt with using some medication but the only thing that cured a sore back was sleep. Which Rin was intending to do for the next few days going on how shit he felt.
Then somebody drew the Kurikara.
He shot upwards. Eyes snapping open as fire rushed through his veins and along the surface of his skin. The ropes he didn't know had been holding him down burnt into ash and freed him from the uncomfortable position he didn't know he had been in. The power boost that usually came with drawing the koma sword steamrolled most of the pain he felt in his temples and his sight turned crystal clear.
Zeroing in on the person holding his sword, Rin couldn't help his eyes narrowing when he realized that it was the same chick who through those damn bola at him.
"Give me back my sword." he growled, moving to stand up. His flames flickered up and down, an obvious sign of his irritation but Rin was pleased to see that they didn't make any other movements outside of what he wanted. He made sure to control the heat of the flames so that the blond didn't get burned while holding the koma sword, too. It would be plain embarrassing if he lost control of his fire like he did in the past. He wasn't a kid anymore. He had all the control over his powers and no more mistakes were tolerated when using them. Not anymore.
Rin waited for the bimbo to hand over his sword or scream in shock or demand to know what was going on. What he didn't expect was for her to look confused and then turn to her friend.
"What's he saying?" She asked and Rin remembered that these people spoke in a language that was most definitely not Japanese. He wasn't entirely sure how he understood them but he was reasonably sure that it was the fault of the stull that fell on his head in Mephisto's office.
Rin was glad that he was able to understand them but it still frustrated him that he would be unable to communicate back to them. He literally had no way of getting his point across.
"My sword!" Rin shouted and pointed at the Kurikara. "Give it back." He held open his palm in a gesture that he was sure she would understand.
Her eyes lit up in understanding but instead of giving it back, she shook her head, "No."
Fire flared in anger. No? Who the hell did this chick think she was?!
The guy beside her rushed in and grabbed the Kurikara when he saw Rin's flames rise to new heights and dance across his skin with renewed vigor. He sheathed it, cutting the power, and waved his arms in front of him.
"Hiccup!" The blond shouted, "What are you doing?!"
Hiccup ignored her and held the sword out,"Here, here! We'll give it back! Just calm down."
Rin eyed the brunet before sighing and reigning in his temper. There was no need to blow his top, nothing good ever came from it anyway. And besides, the guy looked reasonable, levelheaded. People like him were always great in situations like this.
Rin sighed and stood up straight. He did as he was told and got into less actively aggressive stance, it wasn't exactly relaxed but it didn't scream 'about to attack' either.
"Thank you." Hiccup sighed in relief before setting the sword down and backing up.
Rin walked about two steps towards his sword when a blur of black stepped over it.
"What do you think you are doing, Demon? Stay where you are." The black dragon growled.
Rin raised an eyebrow, "Well what does it look like I'm doing? I'm getting my sword, dumbass. Isn't that what your tamer said I could do?"
The dragon hissed and bared its teeth, "You will stay away from him. We don't want your kind around here. Leave."
Rin snorted. If that was an option, then he wouldn't be in this situation now would he? He looked at Hiccup and pointed at the dragon, "Control your idiot dragon. I need to get my sword." He pointed to the sword at its feet.
The tamer looked confused for a moment before putting a hand on the dragons back, "Calm down, Toothless. Just let him get his sword."
Rin couldn't help but laugh at the dragon. "Your name is Toothless? Wow. No wonder you're such a grump."
The dragon reared back in anger, insulted, but the tamer pulled at the saddle on its back, "I don't know what he said to make you so angry but you need to calm down, Toothless!"
The dragon stopped its advance and stepped back before drawing the two teens between its wings. Rin shrugged and walked forward to get his sword.
Unfortunately, as he leaned forward he remembered the pain in his head and almost stumbled. Using one hand to grip his paining head and the other to grab the Kurikara, Rin picked up the sword and straightened up. The migraine that coursed through him was painful but it should be easy enough to remedy.
Rin opened one eye and looked at the teens, "Can I get some food? And maybe something to drink?"
Both the other teens looked on in confusion before Rin mimed out holding a glass to his lips and drinking from it and eating. The blond scrunched up her nose.
"It wants... something to eat?" She mumbled and jumped back when Rin started to nod vigorously. Maybe too vigorously as his head, one again, started to pound.
Rin dropped to his butt and put the koma sword on his lap, with his free hands he massaged his aching head and hoped they would actually bring him back something edible.
"The water's over there." The blond pointed to a trough on the opposite end of the arena and smirked, "And you'll get food when the dragons are fed at sun down."
Rin struggled to his feet and growled, "I'm not a dragon. Don't treat me like one of those overgrown lizards."
Toothless pulled his lips over his teeth, "I am not an 'overgrown lizard', I am a Night Fury. You better learn your place, Monkey child."
Rin felt his irritation with the dragon rise and allowed himself to show some of his more demonic traits, it always worked well to show demons who was boss after all. "Shut up, you overgrown bat! I don't care what you are, so you can go eat shit. All I want is water and if I have to burn through you to get it then so be it." He hissed.
The brunet rushed between Rin and the Night Fury and put a hand on the dragon's mouth. "Okay that's enough for today. Let's go home now buddy? Yeah, then we can go get some nice cod. How does that sound?
The dragon gave Rin a sly look and laughed, "Hear that, demon? No cod for you."
Rin's eyes narrowed and he reached for the handle of his sword, "Why you little-!"
"Toothless! Stop baiting him!" Hiccup turned to Rin and gave him a half-hearted smile, "I'll bring food for you too... umm."
The young exorcist returned the half smile and pointed at himself, "Rin!" This guy was bringing him food, that immediately made him an amazing guy in Rin's books. If you put aside the fact they he and his people knocked Rin out, tied him up and put him in a cage.
The blond burst out laughing and Rin's smile fell off his face, "What kind of demon name is Reenu?"
"Astrid!" Hiccup scolded and put a hand on her mouth to muffle her laughter.
Rin huffed, "Isn't Astrid a boy's name? Compared to yours, it's like I hit the name lottery. And besides, it's not Reenu. It's Rin. Riiiiin."
Hiccup paused and scrunched his nose, "R- Re...uhh... R-Rinu... no..Rin. Rin! Is that your name?"
Rin beamed at him, this guy was ten times better than his girlfriend. "Yes! That's it!"
Hiccup nodded and started to walk back towards the steel door, "Okay then, Rin, I'll see you at sundown with your food. C'mon Astrid, you too, Toothless."
The blond and dragon followed closely behind Hiccup and watched Rin warily as they made their exit. Rin stuck his tongue out at them and they gave him looks that oozed displeasure. Satisfied with his attempt at irritating them, Rin turned and was about to go and fetch some water when he heard something that made him stop dead in his tracks.
Just as the steel gate slammed shut Rin managed to hear Astrid as she spoke to Hiccup, "What do you think the other vikings will say when we get back to the village without bringing back that sword? We told them that we'd take it off the demon."
Rin gaped at the backs of the two teens but didn't dare call them back. Vikings. They were Vikings. Modern history knew them as people that pillaged villages and wrought havoc all in the name of god. The exorcists knew better. And Rin sincerely hoped it wasn't the same people.
He was somewhat proud of himself for remembering what the vikings actually did but it wasn't hard seeing as it used to be Rin's favorite in class. He was never one to actually actively pay attention during class but even he had to admit that it had been a pretty cool lesson.
The vikings, as they were popularly known as, were probably the most successful group of exorcists during the old days. Under the disguise of sea-faring traders, these amazingly versatile warriors would either decimate or beat any demons they came across into submission. While, in the beginning, they had been called 'savage brutes' by the people who couldn't see demons and thus only saw a bunch of pirates beating people into a bloody pulp, those who knew what they had actually been doing only respected them even more. And thus, they got a new name, 'the honorable savages'. It wasn't the best name out there but it was better than their previous names.
Rin's tail swished at a furious pace behind him. This was so cool! These guys were epic! The stories written about them in the cram Academy textbooks were always entertaining and Rin would always search out stories of their escapades.
Rin's tail stilled behind him, "The best exorcists of their time... Shit!"
It hadn't occurred to him until now but these people had the means to actually kill him. They weren't the Vatican whom he could talk to and potentially bargain with, they were a totally different breed of exorcists! If he had struggled to get food, how in the world was he supposed to ask them to believe that he was only half demon and a good guy?
Rin walked to the trough and looked at his reflection on the stilled water. Blood from when he had been knocked out caked his temple and outlined his left eye. The actual wound was healed up and the only indication that it had actually been there was the blood and the dull throb in Rin's skull. Rin pulled back his lips and mock growled at his reflection before sighing and leaning against the wooden side.
He really did look like a demon when he did that. The blood added to the feral look he seemed to adopt every time he was angry and Rin wondered if this was how he looked when he lost control...
Rin shook his head before standing up and dipping his hands into the water before splashing some water into his face. No, he wouldn't think of that, not right now. Rin scrubbed at the blood and made sure none of the murky water dripped back into his drinking supply before reaching in and gathering some more. Once his face was clean Rin did what he came to the shadowed corner to do and drank his fill of water.
The water helped clear his head and once his headache ceased to exist Rin stood up and walked to the steel door. It wasn't anything special but something about it made the hairs on the back of Rin's neck stand on edge. Something wasn't right. Reaching out, Rin put a tentative hand on one of the bars and immediately withdrew it with a shout.
Rin turned his hand over and cursed, it was red and raw, obvious signs that the metals had been blessed. Rin turned his gaze skywards and, to his greatest dismay, found more chain links that covered the top of the arena like a spider's web. Obviously, there was no getting out of here even if he tried.
"Dammit," Rin swore as he settled into what little sunlight was left in the arena. The sun was already going down and the stone of the shadowed part of the arena was already getting chilled, it was going to be an uncomfortable and cold night. As he settled onto the warm stones Rin heard quiet whisperings from above.
"Look at that FireTongue, that's the demon Mamma was talking about." Rin lifted his head ever so slightly and caught a glimpse of a child peeking through the chain on the opposite side of the arena. Thankfully neither the child nor the dragon that was with him noticed the movement.
"He doesn't look so tough to me. I could probably burn him up in a second. That's just how great I am." Rin snorted. Seriously, the thing could hardly be called a dragon. It was about the size of a cat and sat smugly on the boy he came with's shoulder. It hardly fit the image of the great fire breathing reptilians.
The kid replied almost as if he understood the small dragon, "Oh no, Firetongue, don't you dare. Hiccup said that that guy had fire hot enough to burn Toothless! How hot is that? He'd definitely burn you up. And 'sides, Mamma would shout us if you get him angry."
The tiny dragon huffed and squeezed himself through the chains, "He looks like a weakling, I could defeat him in seconds. I'll show you, Sigrid."
The little boy, now identified as Sigrid, shouted out in alarm and grabbed his dragon's sides. Rin's head shot up and he no longer cared for pretending to sleep, what these kids were doing was dangerous.
The tiny red dragon thrashed when his master grabbed him by his sides, refusing to let go of the steel mesh, and when that didn't work he spat fire. The fire turned the chains into a molten mess and made a small hole in the cage. Rin shouted out when a glob of red hot metal almost fell onto the pair of children. The small dragon immediately stopped moving and jumped onto his owners back, using him like a spring board. Sigrid, who had been holding onto his dragon, suddenly lost his footing and tripped into the arena.
He would have hit the ground head first had Rin not caught him in time. Unfortunately, his head whacked painfully against the Koma sword's hilt and he laid still afterwards.
Rin sat up and cradled the boy's head in his arms while the red dragon moaned above him, "No, Sigrid. Sigrid fell! Sigrid fell into the demon's cage. Have to help. Have to get help!" The small dragon then scrambled up and rushed off, leaving Rin alone with the child.
"Hey kid come on." Rin shook him gently, "Oi. Wake up, kid."
The child still did not stir though. Rin started to panic a little.
"Show me you're okay and open your eyes! Kid! Oi! Hey, wake up!"
Rin was getting desperate now. He could see the boy's face rapidly losing color and becoming pale. "Wake up before your mom gets here! Please! I really don't want to be seen with you while you're unconscious! Kid! Sigrid! S-sigrid!"
The child's eyelids fluttered at the sound of his name. "Mamma?" he asked groggily before opening his eyes slightly. Rin sighed in relief but it seemed that he acted too soon.
As soon as the boy heard the sigh his eyes snapped open and he stared, open mouthed, at Rin. His eyes filled with fear and he slowly started to shake. Realizing this, Rin let go of the child and backed up. He'd hoped the kid wouldn't freak out but it was no use. The child started to hic and tears gathered at the corners of his eyes.
"H-hey! Please don't cry! I won't hurt you I swear!" Rin waved his hands frantically.
Sigrid's response was to start to wail and back up further. When his back hit Rin's water trough, he immediately got behind that in an attempt to use it as a shield. The crying only got worse from there and Rin was suddenly at a loss for what to do. Was he supposed to console him or something?
"Please don't cry kid." Rin called and made a wide circle around the water dish. His heart constricted when the sight of the child curled up into a ball, crying. He really wanted to help but what could he do?
The child lifted his head at the sound of Rin's quiet 'What do I do!'s and swallowed. "D-don't come any closer!" he tried to threaten, "I've got a- a big scary dragon and he'll roast you up!"
Rin snorted and shook his head, "It's that damn lizard's fault that you're in here." Rin took a step forward and the boy's eyes went wide as saucers. Sigrid opened his mouth in preparation for a scream and Rin panicked. He held out his hands and set them alight.
This time the kid really did scream but Rin tried to ignore it and focus on his task. Using a huge amount of concentration, he molded his flames into a life-sized replica of Sigrid's red dragon. The replica then made its way to Sigrid and started to walk around on the ground in front of him. The boy stopped crying and stared at the fire doll in awe.
Unluckily enough though, that was the exact time that half the village came running to the arena.
"The demon is trying to kill my son!" A heavily endowed woman screamed and the fire doll went out in a wisp of steam.
Shouts echoed loudly through the ring and a sense of dread ran down Rin's spine. Things were not going well for him.
-o0o-
EDIT- Okay so the only thing I really changed in this chapter was add to the description and change the little kid's name.
Kate- Oh my word I blushed a little at the praise. Like seriously, you're amazing. As for what I watch and read, there's quite a bit of manga/anime. Titles like One Piece, Naruto, Noragami, Soul Eater, Natsume Yuujinchou, Pokemon (Pm me if you play), Pandora hearts, Beezlebub, Blood lad and uuuuhhh Magi? I think thats all the big titles I'm into? there might be more but I can't think at the moment.
xfireflyskyx- I've been mulling it over with Miqu and we're working on an alternative for Rin. We haven't yet come up with a definite but you'll have to see.
mrg6- why thank you, I'm glad you think so. I honestly didn't think this would've gone so well.
Kazaru13- I hope you liked it! I got excited after reading the reviews and wrote instead of studying. My tests are coming up soon though so updates might not be as swift.
Oh! And thanks a bunch to those who followed and favorited this story. You guys make my day.