Author's Note: This is primarily an information chapter about the secret organization Duo is involved in and the terrible events that brought him there. No Heero yet, but all good things in time... Visit www (dot) geocities (dot) com (backslash) shinigamiange1 for my fanart.
"Fractured Souls"(¯·.¸.•´¯•.¸ The Order of Phytoran¸.•´¯•. ,.:¯)
Duo stuffed his hands in his pockets and made his way home. The horizon was turning lavender above the approaching dawn. Duo replayed the events from the club over in his mind. Nothing like that had ever happened to him before and he felt a little unnerved by the little "vision trip" he experienced. Duo frozen in his spot; he felt he was being followed. He quickly turned around only to see a couple of newspaper pages being blown down the street by the wind.
'I''m just being paranoid.' He told himself hastily. 'I'm tired. I just need some sleep, that's all.'
By now all the vampires were heading to underground safe houses, away from the sunlight. All hunters knew sunlight was the most effective way to kill most vampires. However, silver through the heart, fire and decapitation all did the job just nicely. Thousands of years ago, the hunters would operate during the day, finding nests and exterminating them one by one. The problem with the method was evident after the start of its use. Regrettably, vampires do not keep large numbers during the day. Before long it became apparent that hunting would have to be done solely at night, where they instinctively gathered in large group just like any other pests.
Duo dragged his feet lethargicaly, staring blankly at the ground. He did not want to go back today. He seriously contemplated blowing off going back and simply getting some random motel room instead. He glanced down at his sordid clothing and remembered just how dirty he was.
'No, I gotta go back.'
More likely than not, he would have to face the consequences of his actions last night. He knowingly broke a lot of the code. The Hunters Code: don't be seen, blah, blah, blah - don't become emotionally involved with a vampire, yada yada - sever all ties to the rest of humanity, etc, etc. Duo thought most of it was just plain stupid. but knew the Order did not like hunters with that sort of attitude. Then again, Duo Maxwell never cared much about what they thought anyway.
Hunters always worked in secrecy. The pureblooded vampires, of course, knew all about the hunters. And how could they not? A bunch of people, dressed exactly the same way, killing them; it did not take a genius to figure it out. Neither hunters nor vampires tried to call attention to themselves. Nevertheless, Duo knew there was a strong possibility his exploits would make the morning news. He turned the corner onto Great Russell Street towards the London headquarters of the Order of Phytoran, the British Museum.
The Order of Phytoran has existed for over four thousand years. The first hunter, Veti Phytoran, had his entire family slaughtered by vampires. On a personal vendetta, he created the Order to kill the vampires and protect humanity from suffering the same fate as his family. Using a mixture of ancient and modern technology, the Order has tens of thousands of mages and hunters working all over the world in different clans. Duo had been sent here from the clan in New York City. The Order's oracles (the sanction of the order that Duo hated in every way) had foreseen great evil rising in the area. The Council, which governed over all aspects of the Order of Phytoran, transferred several of its strongest hunters and mages from each of its clans to London, six months ago.
With an uncharted flourish of vampire activity for months, the inevitable great war between humans and vampires seemed to be upon them. Currently, the population of the vampire nation was at an all time high. Throughout history, the vampire nation was relatively small - compared to the humans - that is, until the twentieth century. Upon the turn of the twentieth century, they could now travel great distances in short amounts of time as a result of the significant advances in transportation. Now, they inhabited nearly every part of the world.
Movies, comic books, and novels detailing vampire folklore resulted in a decrease their activity in the early to mid 1900s. It was only around the 1970s when everything really started happening for the them. More people gathered at night, participating in clubs and other darker pleasures of the night. In the 1990s gothic styles became more mainstream resulting in a record recrudescence of vampires because of their increased ability to blend in with the extreme style. There was a small dip again in the later 1990s when New Line Home Entertainment studios released the movie "Blade". The movie contained a closely accurate portrayal of the twelve tribes in the Houses of Erebus. The movie caused a huge uprising in the upper ranks of vampires who ran the very much real House of Erebus. The writer of the movie had gotten House of Erebus concept from a friend of a friend of his (that's always how the story goes). The writer had no idea his friend's friend let out actual sacred information about the vampire nation. The vampire who gave out the information, Aru Zarme, was tracked down and killed by Trieze himself. Trieze leads the Pallintine tribe, the wealthiest in the House of Erebus.
Although, many problems would be solved by focusing on an attack on their tribe, the Order always focused on the ones that caused the most deaths. So right now, everyone in London was more occupied with the Upier tribe. They were particularly dangerous because they could hone their lethal skills at an early age. Over the past year, they had become a major problem in the downtown area.
Duo walked to the east side of the building just as the sun rose, casting his silhouette in dark shadow against the bright orange glow. He put his thumb on a small panel on the wall. The message, "Access Granted: Hunter Duo Maxwell - New York Clan" appeared. The wall slide to the side, revealing a dimly lit vestibule. As soon as he entered, the wall quickly slide behind him. A security camera followed him as he walked to the silver plated door across the small passage. On the wall above the door was the inscription:
"The Order of Phytoran"
"Praeses Aetas"
He again pressed his thumb onto a small plate on the wall. The door whoosed open; the sudden change in pressure caused Duo's ears to pop. Duo stuck his fingers in his ears to try and reestablish the equilibrium.
'I hate that damn door.'
Duo preceded down the tight stone stairway to the hall below, stumbling on the occasional stair. He reached the end, passed through a couple of corridors, and headed straight for the dining hall. It was full of hunters, recounting their best performances of the night. As tired as he was, he had to have something to eat. He was practically starving. The delicious smell of food reached his nostrils, causing his mouth to water in anticipation. There was nothing like a good hot breakfast after a long night's work. He decided he'd eat quick so he could hurry up and take a nice hot shower to get the awful stinch of the club off him.
Duo grabbed the biggest plate available and loaded up on pancakes, muffins and sausage. With a muffin in his mouth, he walked across the hall and spotted a table with Trowa Barton, one of his fellow transfers from America. Trowa came from the Los Angeles Clan, where Duo was originally from.
Duo tossed his tray on the table in a loud clatter, spit out the muffin, pushed his fatigue aside and smiled brightly, "Good morning Trowa!"
Trowa slowly looked up skeptically, "What are you so happy about?" he asked.
"Are you kiddin' me!" Duo boasted loudly, "Time to eat and go to sleep! I don't know about you but that's the best part of my day."
"Well enjoy yourself, because you won't be so happy when I tell you this." Trowa replied.
"And whafs dat?" Duo asked through a mouthful of syrup and pancakes.
"There was a report on the news this morning that said an vigilante arsonist set fire to a club on Old Compton Street. Interviewed witnesses said they saw a girl wearing a some sort of cape, with extremely long hair, lock the door, trapping screaming people inside," Trowa paused briefly to enjoy the sight of Duo, fuming at being called a girl (yet again). "Right now, they are just calling it an arson. They said there will be an ongoing investigation, because the police did not find any victims." Trowa added amusingly, taking a sip of his tea.
Duo pounded his fist loudly on the table, causing several hunters to turn their heads. "Why the hell does everybody say I look like a girl! If they would look at my face and not my hair it's quite obvious!" he protested as he shoved a whole sausage patty in his mouth.
"I guess it's better than being called a boy when you are really a girl," Trowa replied offhandedly. "That's not what I'd be worried about if I were you. None of the other hunters have hair as long as yours. Quatre knew it was you."
"Like I give a damn what 'golden boy' Winner knows," Duo snapped, picking up his glass of orange juice.
"Duo Maxwell." called a voice from behind Duo, pausing crossly between the two names. He did not have to look up. He recognized it immediately.
Duo took his last swallow of orange juice and slammed the glass down on the table. "Yeah, that's me," he replied irritably as he turned around to face a young man, elegantly dressed in a long white robe detailed with silver and gold thread along the sleeves and collar. His white blonde hair and bright aqua eyes gave his youthful face a dignified appearance. Although he was only twenty one, Quatre Rebarba Winner was the London Clan's Clan Leader. The Winner family was highly regarded with the Council, hunting vampires for almost as long as the Order has existed. Being born into the name Winner was to be born into a life of servitude and death within the Order of Phytoran.
"Come with me," he commanded tersely. Quatre glanced over at Trowa. "Excuse us Trowa," he added politely and began walking towards the exit.
"Here we go," Duo mumbled, rolling his eyes and standing up. Leaving his unfinished breakfast on the table and swaying with fatigue, Duo reluctantly followed Quatre out of the mess hall. The pair (with a great deal of space between them) exited the cafeteria and proceeded down several hallways. They rounded after corner. Ahead, Duo could see the large silver doors that lead to Quatre's office. Quatre opened the door and Duo followed him into the room. Duo almost jumped as the heavy doors automatically shut loudly behind him.
Amazingly enough, this was the first time Quatre had decided to take him to his office to reprimand at him, most of the time he just yelled at him right then and there as soon as he could find him. Curious, he looked around. On the walls were large red tapestries of hieroglyphics that depicted the vampire's and Order of Phytoran's entire history together. There was an additional tapestry cast in hunter green behind Quatre's desk. On it in gold thread was a large tree with little names on it; the Winner family tree.
Lining the right wall of the room were large wooden bookshelves that held massive quantities of tattered, old books. Duo spotted a small series of red leather books titled with Quatre's name, followed by a different year on each one. The hunter recognized them as the required journals each of the clan leaders kept. Above Quatre's books were Serena Winner's, his oldest sister out of twenty nine. Serena was over London's clan until she died four years ago when the responsibility passed to Quatre. To the right of Serena's books were Catherine Winner's, their mother. She died twenty one years ago, giving birth to Quatre. Duo looked further up the bookshelf. His eyes scanned over several other Winner names he was not quite familiar with, until one name caught his eye; "Celes Winner." He look disdainfully at it. It was a name Duo knew all too well.
Quatre walked behind his desk and turned around. He placed his fingertips on top of the desk and let out a soft sigh.
"You are becoming more trouble that you are worth, Maxwell," Quatre said stiffly.
"Is that so?" Duo sneered, "As I recall, you summoned me here remember? Not the other way around." He crossed his arms and stared at Quatre indignantly.
"I don't know how they run things in New York, but here we operate with drawing as little attention to ourselves as possible," Quatre replied firmly, placing his palms flat on his desk and leaning forward. "We don't make things harder on ourselves than it has to be. We can't go out and mass slaying vampires with witnesses everywhere. Or maybe, you want some kind of public hysteria!"
"Funny, the Order's never asked me what I wanted before," Duo commented sarcastically. He put his right hand out, keeping his other one crossed in front of his chest, "The way I see it is the less vampires, the better. This is how I do things and if you don't like it, then too fucking bad! Send me home for all I care! I didn't ask to be brought here!"
"Duo...you must exercise caution in your endeavors," Quatre pleaded, "if Trieze finds out you are alive he will stop at nothing until he finds you and kills you." He paused hesitantly, eyeing Duo carefully. Duo knew what was coming next. Quatre straightened up, and spoke as cautiously as possible, "You are the one who can finally kill all the vampires."
"Look!" Duo blurted, "Let's get one thing straight. You can save your pathetic dogma. I don't believe in Celes's prophecy now, nor have I ever, so you can do yourself a favor and shut the fuck up." Duo yelled furiously, jerking his head to the side and looking away. He was so pissed off. Everything in his life always came to this.
There has never been a more renounced oracle than the great Celes Winner. She was Quatre's grandmother. She led the Order of Phytoran in London until her early death over seventy years ago. She had just turned twenty five. She made a final prophecy right before her death. The record of the prophecy, unfortunately, was only partially recovered. That piece alone, however, was enough to ruin Duo's life. She foretold a child with the power to control and defeat the vampire nation would be born before the turn of the century. The rest was lost, save for the part that the child would have violet eyes. The Order of Phytoran has been searching for the rest of the prophecy for well over a decade, ever since Maxwell Church took in Duo. As luck would have it, the hunter who recorded it was captured and killed shortly there after by the Von Esper tribe. Whether the vampires knew the true nature of the prophecy or not, was still unknown. But one thing was for sure. They definitely had wanted him dead.
"Whether you believe the prophecy or not, there are plenty of people who do. If the vampires find out you're alive they'll try to kill you again." Quatre stated grimly as he stepped closer to Duo.
Duo snapped his head around and shot Quatre a deadly glare. "You know what," he said briskly, "I think I've heard enough."
Duo turned around, threw both doors open and stormed out. Quatre took a deep breathe. He turned around and faced the tapestry. He walked over and reached out with pale elegant fingers to touch Celes's name.
'Duo is very arrogant. He is both foolish and dangerous. He risks everything we have fought so hard for. Guide me Celes, for I could use your help.'
Duo entered his room and slammed the door. He felt defeated; nothing was ever going to change in his life. He walked over to the nearest wall and punched it, slightly cracking the sheet rock. He refused to believe in fate. He felt trapped within a world he despised, but could never leave. If he did, it would surely cost him his life. He was furious at the fact that he would never be in control of his life. The only thing that made him briefly feel in control of some aspect of his life, was killing vampires. Ironicly, the action that made him feel somewhat in control was in fact commanded by the same organization that made him feel he was not in control of his life in the first place. Just thinking about it made his head hurt.
"Bullshit," he quietly cursed beneath his breath.
He stormed over to his dresser and chunked his weapons on top of it. Shaking his head in disgust, he grabbed the end of his braid with one hand and jerked the band binding it out with one swift stroke. He walked into the bathroom and threw it in the sink. He quickly undressed, hatefully throwing his clothes on the floor. He gripped the sides of the white porcelain sink tightly, his knuckles turning white. He stared down at the band tangled with a few of his broken hairs beside the drain. He took his right hand and gripped the dangling silver cross around his neck and looked up at himself in the mirror. He stared sadly at his reflection for a few seconds before going over to the shower and turning on the tap. He put a hand under the hard spray of water to test the temperature. He adjusted the knobs a bit and when he was satisfied, stepped into the shower.
He placed his hands on the wall in front of him and bowed his head letting the water warm his tired body. He allowed the steam to fill his lungs and soothe his breathing, calming him down. He reached over and grabbed the bottle of shampoo. Squeezing a generous amount in his palm, he rubbed his hands together and began working it through his long locks. He rinsed the shampoo out and repeated the process with conditioner. After he carefully washed the conditioner out, he remained under the water, allowing it to massage his aching body. After several minutes, he turned the water off and grabbed the nearest towel. Feeling slightly better, he quickly dried himself off and put the towel around his waist. He carefully stepped out of the shower, his feet cold on the slippery smooth tiles.
'I gotta remember to get a rug.'
He grabbed his brush, threw his long hair forward over his shoulder and began smoothing out the tangles. He walked out of the bathroom, throwing the towel on top of the pile of dirty clothes in the corner. Naked, he walked over to his dresser, opened a drawer, rummaged through for a soft pair of boxers and slipped them on.
Normally, Duo braided his hair before he went to bed, but the process took several minutes. And today, he was exhausted. All he felt like doing this morning was going to sleep. He threw his arms out and collapsed onto the bed. He grabbed and hugged his pillow, closing his eyes. He cleared his thoughts and allowed his mind to focus only on the cold softness of the bedsheets. He let his body sink into the mattress and quickly fell into a deep sleep.
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Duo looked around. He was standing in Maxwell Church in Los Angeles, California. The clergy was in some sort of meeting and the door to Father Maxwell's office was closed. Duo put his hands on the door and pressed his ear against it, listening hard. He could hear the priest shouting at someone. Duo's heart began beating fast. Father Maxwell sounded very angry. Duo had never heard the man yell at anybody before. The normal lenity in his voice was completely gone.
"You mean to tell me the boy is to be trained at once?" Father Maxwell barked across the room.
"Yes, it will be done as soon as possible," came another voice, "We believe he is the child from Celes Winner's last prophecy."
Father Maxwell let out a short laugh that did not suit him at all. "Last prophecy! Don't you mean lost prophecy?" he remarked in an overly sweet tone, "because that's exactly what it is gentlemen; lost."
"That doesn't matter. Lost or not, Councilmen, we have age requirements on hunter apprentices for a reason," a soft voice reminded them. It was Sister Helen's voice. "Duo will not understand all of this. He's only five. He's much too young."
Duo's face contorted in confusion. Why were they talking about him? Was Father Maxwell mad at him?
"He will simply 'ave to learn," came a voice in a thick British accent. "The boy is the chosen one."
"You don't know that, Christopherson!" Father Maxwell interjected hastily, "You have one piece! ONE PIECE of this so called prophecy. You have no idea what you could be dealing with. You don't even know what the whole thing says!"
"We know enough!" Christopherson hissed. "This is humanity's survival we are talking about! We are at war. Or, perhaps you 'ave forgotten that, Father!" he bellowed from across the room.
"Fine," Father Maxwell growled through clenched teeth. "If the Council," he paused to lay a heavy stress on the word, "insists he be trained, I demand it be done here."
"The Council doesn't respond well to demands, Father," Christopherson spat. "If it were up to me, I'd see to it that you were sacked."
"Then I am glad," Father Maxwell replied bluntly, "that it is not up to you."
"The Council has already decided on the matter," came a smooth female voice, "The child may stay here under your guardianship. As we are immensely concerned about the boy's future, a member of this Council, as well as a Master Hunter, will join your clan permanently to oversee the boy's training."
"The Council will send word soon of when your new clan members shall arrive." Christopherson stated reproachfully before standing up to leave.
Duo quickly pushed his body away from the door and ran quietly down when he heard chairs scraping the floor. Quietly, he ran silently down the hall into an empty storage closet. He cracked the door slightly and watched nervously as the strange men and women wearing dark red cloaks filed out of Father Maxwell's office. Father Maxwell and Sister Helen were last to leave. Reaching in his pocket, Father Maxwell pulled out his key and locked his office behind them.
The tired priest sighed. "Helen," he said heavily.
"Yes Father?" she asked politely.
"Please find Duo. There is much we need to explain to him."
"Of course Father," Helen said softly and turned down the hallway that lead to the boy's side of the orphanage.
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Duo turned in his sleep but the dream kept coming.
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The scenery had shifted. Duo was standing in a dojo. He held his stick up, then rushed his opponent. The pair exchanged several stick strikes, until finally, the girl he was fighting knocked his stick out of his hands and pinned him to the ground by his neck using hers.
"Nice try Maxwell, but you're dead," she said with a satisfying chuckle.
Duo raised his legs and flipped the two of them over, pinning her down in the very much the same way.
"Never underestimate your opponent, Hilde," Duo replied in a cocky tone.
She struggled to move but could not get up under Duo's strength. Duo laughed and stood up.
Smiling, he offered her his hand. She accepted it and the two started practicing again. At that moment, a tall man entered the room, dressed in dark red robes.
The flicker of color caught Duo's eye. The hunter paused for a moment. He recognized the clothes immediately. The man was part of the Council. Suddenly, and without warning, a struck him straight across his cheek and he hit the ground hard. Hilde rushed over with her hand over her mouth. "Duo! Oh my god! I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to hit you so hard! You didn't even try to block me. Is something wrong?" she asked, helping Duo up.
Duo staggered to his feet, rubbing his stinging cheek. "Look," he whispered quickly.
Hilde and Duo watched the man look through the crowd of hunter apprentices. "What's a member of the Council doing here?" she asked.
"Don't know," Duo replied, watching nervously as the man moved closer to their direction.
Duo hated it when members of the Council visited. It made him unbelievably nervous. It was already weird that their clan had a member of the Council in it. No other clan was like that. Over the years, the Councilmen visits began to make Duo feel on edge. They would always ask him weird questions that they did not ask any of the other apprentices. As time passed, he had never seen anyone else train at the age he was trained at. It was forbidden in fact. Members of the Council would come and go, whispering his name behind closed doors. By the time he was eleven, Duo knew, without a doubt, something was different about him.
Duo woke up with a really bad feeling about today, like he knew something like this was going to happen. Quickly, he turned around so the man could not see his face. The action, however, did not do much to hide his identity, his long hair made he readily identifiable from the back. Duo could feel the man coming closer and closer. He did not have to turn around to know he was right behind him.
"Duo Maxwell?" the Councilman asked.
"Yeah?" Duo replied without turning around.
"Come with me," The man turned around and made for the door.
"I wonder what this is about," Duo mumbled, "See you later."
"Later," she slowly replied, as Duo quietly followed the man out the door. They headed down the hall and turned to the right. Several minutes and several turns later, they arrived at Father Maxwell's office. The Councilman opened the door and they walked in.
Father Maxwell looked up sadly. "Duo," he said heavily and gestured towards the chair in front of his desk, "Please have a seat."
Duo looked from Father Maxwell to the old brown leather chair in front of his desk. The young hunter remained quiet as he nervously took a seat in the overstuffed chair.
The Councilman spoke, "The Council requests you be transferred to the New York Clan, Duo."
Duo turned around to look at the Councilman. "What! Why?" he protested.
Father Maxwell shot a look of warning at the Councilman, shaking his head subtly from side to side. Duo caught the gesture out of the corner of his eye and turned around to face him. He looked at the Councilman quickly and then back to Father Maxwell. "What's going on, Father?" Duo demanded.
"It is best," he replied softly, "you do not ask questions at the moment, Duo. Just do as you are told."
Duo stood up and shook his head quickly side to side. "No!" he yelled impatiently, "I am tired of being interrogated and alienated. For years you guys have been asking me things and demanded I do them without so much as an explanation. Now I've had enough. Someone will tell me what is going on and someone will tell me now!"
"Duo, we are only doing what we believe is best for you right now," Father Maxwell said firmly, desperate for Duo to understand.
Duo hated hearing those words. He suddenly hated looking at Father Maxwell. He felt frustrated and betrayed somehow. He had always been able to ask Father Maxwell anything. He was like a father to him. After he was orphaned as a child, Duo had his name be changed to Maxwell out of respect for the man. Now, all he wanted to do was jump over the desk and punch him.
"I think I can decide what's best for me," Duo told him hatefully.
Father Maxwell bowed his head in defeat. He intertwined his fingers and rested his chin upon them looking down. He looked up at Duo, over to the Councilman, then back to Duo. He paused for a second, briefly, contemplating his next words carefully. "You're right Duo. It's time you heard the truth. I've dreaded this moment for the past ten years. But, I see it can not be avoided any longer."
Duo sat down slowly. Father Maxwell sounded more serious than he had ever heard him sound before. Duo looked down and realized his fingertips were like ice, as goosebumps slowly began covering his arms. Finally, he was going to hear the truth after all these years, and suddenly, that thought scared him to death. And for Duo, there was no going back now. He swallowed the lump in his throat and found it hard to speak. "Please..." he said gruffly, "I have to know."
"Yes," replied Father Maxwell slowly, "Yes, you do."
Duo looked into Father Maxwell's crystal blue eyes. Father Maxwell looked away. He looked sadly over to his bookshelf at the section of little red books labeled with the name "Father David Maxwell" down the spine in gold letters. He got up and removed the book labeled "1988". He opened it and began flipping through the pages. "Duo," he asked without looking up, "What do you know about the sanction of oracles that work for the Order of Phytoran?"
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Duo rolled over on his side, clenching his pillowcase close to his body.
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"You're wrong!" Duo shouted.
The Councilman shook his head. "We do not believe we are mistaken here. There are certain.."
Duo interrupted him hysterically. "I don't give a fuck what you believe! You heard Father Maxwell! The person in this thing is suppose to have control over the vampires. I don't have any more control over them than you do. This is ridiculous!"
The Councilman stood up and towered over Duo. Duo looked up at him and did not back down. "Regardless of how you feel you are still going to New York," the Councilman told him firmly.
"No," Duo said menacingly, "I'm not."
The Councilman gave a smirk, "You may have hunted a couple of turned vampires here and there but you've never encountered pureblooded vampires before, much less assassins. The Order has a significant amount of interest in your well being, therefore, certain measures will be used to ensure your protection. They are coming and they intend to kill you."
"And what happens when they don't find me? Huh! Tell me something, did you tell everyone here they were expendable! That - that their lives weren't as important as mine! I'm not going to leave my friends here to die!"
"The Master Hunters here are more than capable of slaying a couple of Kobejitsu assassins," the Councilman replied smoothly.
"Then why can't I stay here? If they can protect the clan, then they can protect me!" Duo shouted desperately.
"The matter is not up for discussion, boy. You are leaving, and you are leaving now. I suggest you pack quickly!" The man walked across the room, opened the door, stepped aside and turned back to look at Duo.
Duo crossed the room towards the door, stopped just short of it and turned to face the Councilman. "Your prophecy is wrong." Duo said calmly, "I'm not leaving Los Angeles, and you and your stupid Council can't make me. So why don't you just go to hell." With that, Duo swept past him and headed down the hall to his room.
He walked swiftly as his mind was racing to formulate a plan. He could not run away, that would not save anyone. Duo found himself at his door. He opened it and slammed it shut behind him. He put his back against the door and slid down to the floor. He pulled his legs in close to his body and put his head in his hands. He had to think of something quick or all his friends: Trowa, Hilde, Solo, would die. And Duo would be faced with the terrible truth that it would be all because of him. He was no one, nothing special. Why the hell did his eyes have to be violet? That was not all that unusual was it? Why couldn't they just find someone else to fit their stupid prophecy?
Duo got up and started pacing. He couldn't think about that now. No. He had to think about what he could do to save his friends. He had to focus. He had to think. Suddenly, there was a loud knock at the door.
"I'm not coming," Duo spat.
Just as the words came out of his mouth, the door flew open and the wind knocked Duo to the wall, holding him off the floor. He turned his head to the side to catch his breath. Painfully, he turned back around. In the doorway stood a woman dressed in the clothing of a member of the Council. Her long pure white hair was flying around her wildly and her eyes were glowing bright white. She was a witch.
"Oh, I think you will," she replied in an overly sweet tone. Duo found he could not move his body. With a slight wave of her hand, his feet hit the ground.
"This way please," she replied. Duo followed her out of the room, powerless to move on his own.
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Duo was sweating profusly. Although he was trying, he couldn't force himself awake. His eyes twitched as he turned over on his back.
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He was almost there. Exhausted, he stopped to lean against the brick wall to catch his breath. He flinched as he applied pressure to his left arm to help stop the bleeding. He had to kill the witch to get away from her. It was no simple task breaking through high level mind control spells, mind you. With the Council after him and no place to go, he had to make it back to Maxwell Church in time. He only had five more blocks to go.
You don't have time for this Duo, you gotta keep moving. He told himself.
He took off running as fast as his body would let him. The strong smell of smoke filled the crisp night air. Something was definitely on fire. Duo's worst fears were confirmed as he rounded the corner to witness - for the second time in his life - his home burning to the ground. Duo's eyes welded up with tears. "NO!" he screamed. Adrenaline pumping hotly through his veins, he ran to the side door and kicked it down. Desperately, he went from room to room, looking for anybody trapped. Every room he went through was littered with the bodies of hunters and hunter apprentices. It was hopeless; through every door Duo was greeted with the sight of more and more mangled bodies.
Oh my god, this isn't happening, this isn't happening! He told himself firmly.
He ran wildly into the only room left - the training room. He reached the opened doorway and stared blankly at the horrific scene playing out before his eyes. About a dozen vampires were standing over the bodies of Father Maxwell and Sister Helen in a sickening pool of bright red blood. Throughout the room, dozens of hunters lay ungracefully on the floor, their limbs twisted and bent improperly at their joints. He drew a shaky breath, fell to his knees and screamed.
At once, all the vampires looked over to Duo's direction. "That's him!" one of the vampires hissed out in a cold voice. It was like everything was happening to him at once without him being aware of it. Dozens of pureblooded vampires were closing in around him. Despite the obvious hopelessness of his situation, Duo began laughing. It was a mad sort of laugh that reverberated hauntingly off the walls. He found himself standing, although he did not remember moving. His mind went blank. It was like his body was on fire. Rage had consumed him. He closed his eyes. He could feel something stirring within him; something almost primal. Duo rose off the ground and arched backwards as black wings ripped from his back. He screamed in pain, blood trickling down his back. His eyes flew open, glowing violet. The hungry grins vanished from the vampire's faces. They were froze in their spots, staring in frightened amazement.
"What magic is this?" one of the vampire demanded, fear lacing his voice.
Duo feet hit the ground. His chest rose and fell in a raggid manner. He leaned over and pried a silver edge sword out of a hunter's hand on the floor. He looked up and smiled wickedly.
"You should have never come here," he told them. His voice sounded different, almost like something had possessed him. A couple of vampires started to move forward. "Don't move!" Duo added darkly. The vampires froze in their place. Duo walked forward slowly. "You," he shouted and pointed at the vampire closest to him. "Take this." He threw the vampire the sword.
"Kill them all," he told the vampire bitterly. Duo watched from the side as the vampire stabbed each of the other vampires through the heart and took off their heads - one by one. After the last head rolled to the ground and exploded into ashe, the vampire walked over to Duo and extended his hand with the sword. Without a word, Duo reached out and took the sword and stabbed him though the heart. Covered in ashe and completely exhausted, Duo fell face first into the floor. Instantly, the wings flew inward into his back, leaving two gaping slashes in his flesh. Black feathers fell to the floor all around Duo's bruised and broken body. Duo heard a low moan and looked up. He could see Sister Helen's arm moving. With no strength left to walk, he used his arms and dragged his body over to her side.
"Sister Helen! Are you alright? Please, please say you're alright!" he pleaded in a hoarse and exhausted voice. Helen's eyes fluttered open and she smiled faintly. She raised her hand, gently touched his cheek, and whispered, "Duo...you're...you're alive." It was all he could do to understand her though her terrible fits of coughing. Her voice was raspy and cracked here and there. "You must...you must go to New York. Finish your training...Duo you're...you're...the one..." She went silent and her blood blotched hand fell to the ground with a sickening thud.
"Helen!" he screamed, desperately shaking her shoulders, "Helen! You'll be fine. Just hold on." He gripped her robes in his hands and buried his face in them, sobbing uncontrollably. "Don't worry. It's going to be okay. I'm going to save you. Just please hold on," he mumbled into her blood stained clothing. This was all his fault.
No, it's not he quickly told himself. It's not your fault; it's Celes Winners.
No form of revenge could help him now. Because of Celes, Helen was dead and nothing he could do would change that. Exhausted, Duo collapsed on top of her, still clinging desperately to her clothes. He could hear the fire blazing and walls crumbling around him.
Barely conscious, in a place short of Heaven and Hell, Duo felt himself go cold, and for a moment, thought he was dead. It took a moment before he realized it was just something blocking the heat of the fire. With no strength left to move, he opened his eyes and saw a shadowy figure standing over him. He tried to focus his eyes but couldn't. Everything was hazy through a thick cloud of dark smoke. The figure picked him up and carried him out of the room. With his body next to the person, Duo could tell it was a guy. The guy had his hood up so Duo could not see his hair but from the orange glow of the flames, he could tell he had blue eyes. Duo opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out. He could hold on no longer. When they reached the street, Duo passed out.
"Duo! Duo!" came a familiar voice. It was Trowa. "Duo wake up!"
Duo flinched. His head was throbbing. His body ached all over. He could hear a loud clanking noise and was being swayed back and forth. The sensation made him feel like he was going to puke. He gathered all his strength and opened his eyes. Everything seemed brighter than it ought to be. Squinting, he looked up and saw Trowa. He had never been so glad to see him before in his life. Looking around, he realized he did not know where he was.
"Where am I?" Duo coughed groggily, the metallic taste of blood still in his mouth.
"On a train. We are headed to the Houston Clan for medical attention. Don't worry, you'll be alright. You've been out for a while. We are almost there." Trowa said.
Sitting up slowly, Duo ran a hand through his dirty, blood crusted bangs. "Hilde and Solo didn't make it, did they?" he asked grimly.
Trowa looked away. "No, they didn't." Duo could barely hear Trowa talking. The words, "No, they didn't" were still echoing in his mind. "Only a few of us made it out alive. In all honesty, I shouldn't be alive. I just got lucky, that's all. I was craving chocolate, so I left to get some at the convenience store down the block just five minutes before they attacked. I was on my way back when I heard screaming. When I saw the church on fire, I called our main office for backup, but the vampires had already taken it out. No survivors. However, I managed to warn our downtown office in time. They were able to evacuate; They're on the train with us now. I've never seen so many vampires before. Assassins, I heard someone say, from the Kobejitsu Tribe. It's strange, they've never been in this region before. I wonder who they were looking for."
Duo looked down at his blood stained hands; the proof that he couldn't deny.. He spoke quietly, "They were after me." He covered his face with his hands to hold back the tears. In a matter of hours, he had lost almost everything that was important to him.
"What? Are you sure?" Trowa whispered, careful not to be overheard in the crowded car, "I don't understand. Why would they be after you?"
Duo did not answer. "Father Maxwell and Sister Helen are dead." he said colorlessly. Trowa put his hand on Duo's shoulder. Duo looked straight forward. His expression was unreadable. "I watched Sister Helen die."
"Duo, I'm so sorry."
"Trowa, I won't let this pass. I'm not going to stop until they're all dust at my feet," he said quietly before shouting, "I'LL KILL THEM ALL!"
(¯·.¸.•´¯•.¸¸.•´¯•. ,.:¯)
Duo shot straight up in the bed. He was covered in sweat. Breathing heavily, he ran a hand through his damp bangs. He slowly took his hand and raised it over his head and felt along his back. His fingers traced along the twin scar slashes on his back.
'What was that?'
Duo had many nightmares about the destruction of Maxwell Church before, but never any so vivid. And never ones where he sprouted any kind of wings. All he could ever remember was entering the church and walking in the training room to find Father Maxwell dead and Sister Helen dying. The last thing he remembered was holding Sister Helen as she died. Getting out of the church was a total blackout.
'Could that be what really happened? Why can't I remember? Oh! This is crazy! Just a dream Duo. It was just a dream. What time is it?'
Duo glanced over at the clock on the wall; it read 3:08 pm. Duo sat up, crossed his legs, and stared at his covers. He looked over to the other side of the room. Instead of seeing Trowa, he instead found a perfectly made bed.
'Guess Trowa wasn't sleepy.'
Duo didn't feel like moving. He just sat there, staring at his covers until the sound of his stomach growling knocked him out of his silent reverie.
'I'm starving.'
He looked down at his sweat glistened body.
'Jeez, I smell like crap. I better take another shower first.'
After a quick five minute shower, he got out feeling much better. He ran a brush quickly through his hair and grabbed a twistie. Right now, he was too hungry to braid his hair, so he pulled it into a ponytail instead. Practically running to his dresser, he threw various articles of clothing in the floor, looking for a pair of black sleeping pants and a white tank top to wear.
After he slipped on the garments, Duo brushed his teeth and headed down to the cafeteria. He loaded his plate full of junk food. He did not see Trowa, so he had a seat at an empty table. He finished eating quickly, then stared blankly around the dining hall for a few minutes. Every once and a while he heard the name "Maxwell" being whispered. No doubt, having him there was some sort of "bad luck" for them. After all, his first clan was basically wiped out because of him and who's to say they wouldn't be next. He couldn't blame them, he'd want him gone too if he were them. Duo glanced over at the hunters laughing at the table across from him.
"Hey, Maxwell!" one of the hunters shouted over the other's laughter. "We were thinking about burning down the entire city tonight. You know, do London a favor and get rid of all the vampires at once. Care to join us?" He barely managed to get the last part out through a fit of sputtering laughter. At first, Duo laughed with them, but then stopped abruptly. "The only place I'll be joining you," he spat as he got up with his tray, "is in Hell."
"Okay, but if you change your mind you know where to find us!" he shouted behind Duo as he walked off. Deciding to get some training in, he dropped off his tray and went down the hall with several other hunters.
The training room was packed this evening. Hunters were in pairs of two all over the room, sparring with each other. He walked close to the wall, careful not to get in anyone's way as he made his way to the arsenal.
He opened the door, walked into the giant room and grabbed a wooden bow. Although he preferred his scythes, Duo knew it was a good idea to be familiar with as many weapons as possible. At any time, one might have to grab something quick to defend one's life. Duo leaned against the back wall of the training room. He hadn't really though about fighting at all. It was fun to just watch the other Hunters fight each other. All the different clans of hunters had different styles that were specialized to the vampires in their region. It was good practice for everybody to fight each other and learn from one another.
"I was wondering when I'd see you." Duo looked over to the direction of the voice. He must be losing it, because he had not even noticed Trowa walk up beside him.
"How did it go with Quatre?" Trowa asked lightly.
"Oh you know...same ol' same ol'" Duo sung, his mind obviously somewhere else. Suddenly, he turned to look at Trowa. "Hey can I ask you something?" Duo said quickly.
Trowa eyed Duo suspiciously. He could sense uncertainty in his friend's voice. "Sure, what is it?"
A second later, Duo thought better of it and wished he had not said anything at all. He took a deep breathe. No, he needed an answer. If there was anyone who could tell him anything else about the night Maxwell Church burned to the ground, it was Trowa. "I had a nightmare about Maxwell Church. Well, I've had plenty of nightmares about it before, but this one was different somehow," he paused, deciding he would ask a saner question instead of "Have you ever seen me with wings?". "There was a man who saved me. Do you remember seeing someone carry me out of the church that day?" he asked firmly.
Trowa took a second to register what he had said. Duo never talked about the "Maxwell Church Massacre". Right after the incident, Duo transferred to the New York Clan, while Trowa returned to Los Angeles. The two still kept it contact, but after that day, Duo changed. Not just because his vampire controlling abilities manifested, but more than that, he was a much more darker person than before. He was forced to grow up too quickly and no one deserved that.
"Why do you ask?" Trowa replied.
"There are things I don't remember happening that I saw in my dream," Duo said with a touch of anguish in his tone.
"It was just a dream, Duo," he replied comfortingly. Duo looked down at the floor. Maybe Trowa was right.
Trowa leaned the back of his head against the wall. He closed his eyes, to better access the memories. "I remember finding you on the sidewalk. We dragged you away from the church while you were still unconscious. I don't remember seeing anyone bring you out, but then again I don't remember much about that night myself. We were only kids you know."
"Yeah, I know," he told himself bleakly. "I saw someone though. I just don't..." Duo was cut off before he could finish, by one of the hunter apprentices. A small, raven haired girl, that looked like she was about ten, busted through the training room doors next to them, panting because she was out of breath. "Attention everyone! Attention!" she started shouting at the top of her lungs. All of the hunters stopped what they were doing and turned in her direction. "This way everybody!" she spoke in a high pitched, exhausted voice, "Emergency meeting in Room 4!"
Duo and Trowa exchanged glances and headed out the training room with the rest of the hunters.
(¯·.¸ .•´¯•.¸.•´¯•.¸.•´¯•.¸.•´¯•.¸.•´¯•.¸,.:¯)
(Praeses Aetas means the protection of life)
Wow! That was a lot to stomach! On a personal note, I would like to thank my brother for so graciously agreeing to be my beta reader. Thank you.
Thanks for reading and remember to review! (Points to review button Thank ye!