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Last time a demon rat attacked the village and a strange hunter followed the demon and fought with it.
Where did the demon rat come from? Why had it come to them? Who is the mysterious hunter?
Find out all this and more in chapter 2 of Between Two Realms.
Beyblade (c) Takao Aoki
Between Two Realms
Chapter Two
Retrieving his bow, the hunter approached the villagers and silently held out his hand. One of the men understood what he was after and handed over his hand torch. The hunter accepted it with a small nod of thanks then returned to the rat and dropped the torch. The demon's body quickly caught fire and started to burn, which was the best thing to do with it.
Ray subconsciously brought up a hand, the back of it covering his nose as he watched the demon burn. Where had it come from? Why had it come here? What had been done to it and why?
The villagers continued to stare at the hunter. "Hold on a minute," one man spoke suddenly as the hunter turned away. "We can't just let him leave like this. He brought that thing here! We deserve an explanation."
"Yeah!" a second man agreed. "He put the whole village in danger. Just who does he think he is?"
The hunter stopped walking, causing the men to flinch back slightly. But when he didn't make any further movements, they found their courage again. "He's brought bad luck to our village. The rat demon could have cursed us! He should pay for what he's done."
"Let's get him!" Several men broke away from the others and approached the hunter.
"Stop it," Ray called out, though rather ineffectively as he choked over the remaining stench. Times like this when heightened senses, particularly smell, were not a good thing. He cringed slightly when he realised the nausea played a major part in it but he refused to back off from the scene like a weak coward. "He didn't lead it... followed."
"Well how do we know he didn't force it to come here?" a villager demanded angrily, while the others moved towards the hunter.
"Careful, he's got a knife, remember?"
"And a bow and arrow," another man added.
Sighing, the hunter dropped his bow with a clatter then removed his knife from his hip. Looking at it for a few seconds, he threw it suddenly and it stabbed into the ground at the men's feet. Several of them let out startled noises, before moving in to grab him.
That's when it happened. A wave of energy burst out, accompanied by a green flash. As the light faded, Driger appeared between the men and the hunter. He snarled quietly in warning.
"Get Tao," Ray called to the girl from before. The men weren't listening to him, but they would listen to Tao. Ray was grateful that Driger had restored order where he could not, but he didn't move closer because he was retching badly. Somebody needed to reason with the men. The hunter hadn't actually attacked any of them, in fact, from what Ray had seen, he'd protected them. He was offering no resistance now, the men needed to calm down. It was wrong to be so hostile towards outsiders. Why couldn't they see that?
The men began to back away as Driger swished his tail in agitation. The flames meanwhile burned even brighter, quickly consuming the corpse and finally destroying the stench. "Enough of this!" Tao said loudly as he arrived, gathering everyone's attention. "You must not act this way towards a friend returning home. This bee has finally come back to the hive and it is only because of him that we still have any honey."
There were several muttered comments of confusion at Tao's words. Ray rubbed his eyes which had watered when he was retching. Someone arrived behind him, putting a hand on his shoulder right away, checking he was alright and Ray nodded, realising it was Lee. It occurred to him that the corpse had burned rather quickly and Ray wasn't sure if that was normal. "Wha?" he asked as Tao's words suddenly processed.
Tao smiled knowingly. "Have you not noticed yet?" he asked. "A leopard cannot change its spots, even if it does paint itself black to hide."
"Just once, could you give a straight-forward answer?" Lee asked as Ray just blinked in bewilderment. He couldn't really tell what Tao was saying. Possibilities crossed his mind but were pushed aside as being completely unlikely as well as wishful thinking and he was left with nothing but confusion.
Behind Tao, Driger disappeared and the figure sighed. "I should have known I couldn't fool you, Sensei." Lifting a hand to his eyes, he removed what appeared to be contact lenses. Then the heavy hood slid back off his head and he pulled off the mask. There was a collective gasp from the villagers. The two toned hair was unusual, but had been seen before. What was unmistakable were the markings on the figure's face. Four blue triangles. It was Kai, alive and in the flesh. Ray just stared at Kai in utter disbelief as Tao welcomed the Russian back. Kai was quiet, but exchanged a few brief words with Tao before looking back at Ray. He gave him a quick glance up and down and frowned. "You've not been eating right," he commented. "You've lost weight."
Ray snapped out of his daze and moved to punch Kai in the face in one swift, seamless, movement. He wasn't at full strength but there was still plenty of force behind his swing. "You... bastard!"
Kai stumbled back slightly from the blow, dropping to one knee as his hand rushed to his cheek. "Nice to see you too," he muttered, rubbing his aching jaw.
Ray grabbed Kai's lapels, pulling him up to his feet again. "I thought you were dead!" he shouted at Kai, shaking the Russian as he ranted. "Everyone thought you were dead! You let me believe that! You let us believe that! I bet most of them still do! Is this your idea of a joke, Kai?"
A hand landed gently on Ray's shoulder. It was Lee. "Stop, Ray, before his head falls off." Kai was currently being shaken like a rag-doll, leaving him too dazed to respond. Ray looked at Lee, then let go of Kai quickly with a sheepish expression, as if he'd only just realised what he was doing. Kai instantly went down on his knees, head spinning a little from being shaken so roughly. Lee stepped forward and held out his hand for Kai to take. The Russian looked at him for a moment, before hesitantly accepting the offer. But no sooner had he got back on his feet that he found himself once again on the floor, this time courtesy of Lee's fist.
Wiping at his bleeding lip, Kai stood up again, this time by himself. "Nothing quite like making someone feel welcome!" he spat.
"What did you expect?" Lee snarled. "Do you have any idea how hard it's been trying to convince Ray to look after himself after he found out about your so-called death?"
A blue-eyed girl slipped past the audience to join them, moving closer to Ray first and tilting her head at the change in him. She then looked at the person everyone else was watching. "Who's that?" she asked.
"He's the one who hurt gege," Lee told her bluntly.
Kai scowled at Lee before turning his attention to the small girl at Ray's side. He frowned slightly. There was something different about her. Compared to the rest of the villagers, her features were far more like an ordinary human's. She had rounded ears, whereas Ray's ears were pointed. A glance at her mouth when she had spoken revealed no fangs. And her pupils were round, not slits like Ray's. A little surprised, Kai concluded that she very much had a human appearance, though there was definitely demon blood in her. Kai decided to store this information away and ask about it later, assuming anyone would talk to him. With the news from Lee, the girl's eyes narrowed and she marched forward to boot Kai in the shin before rushing back to Ray and hugging him around the legs which was where she could actually reach.
Kai couldn't help but let out a curse and a quiet growl in the child's direction. But before he could say anything, he gave a start as a shadow fell over him. Looking up, he recognised the tall figure of Gary, looming over him with barely controlled anger in his expression. The large teen clenched a fist and Kai felt all the fight drain from him. You've gotta be kidding me... was Kai's last conscious thought before the world disappeared abruptly into darkness, accompanied by a resounding thud that echoed around the area they were in.
Ray lifted up Yin and she took her cat form to sit on his shoulders as he moved closer to inspect Kai. "I think you hit him too hard, Gary..."
Gary shrugged. "Gary mad," he announced, looking down at the now knocked out Russian lying on the ground.
"So were Lee, Yin and I, but we didn't give him a concussion," Ray responded, looking up at the larger teen.
Gary scratched at his chin thoughtfully. "Oops."
"You scare me sometimes, Gary," Ray commented quietly before putting his hands on hips and looking down at Kai's unconscious form. "We should get him back to base and patch him up," Ray decided. He looked up at the larger teen once more. "Gary, would you be so kind?" Ray gestured to Kai.
The larger teen nodded without hesitation and scooped Kai up into his arms effortlessly. Droplets of blood landed on the ground at Gary's feet, coming from the open wound on Kai's left shoulder. "He's still bleeding," Gary commented. "And light too."
"The sooner we get him seen to, the better," Ray responded. "I'll go get some more medical supplies just in case and meet you at the base. Go on ahead and make sure he's comfortable." Gary nodded and headed back with the others while Tao ushered the villagers away and inspected what little remains were left of the rat demon.
Along the way, Ray began to suspect that Kai had purposefully caused the fire to burn stronger to dispose of the carcass more quickly because of the affect it had on him. He felt guilty for punching and shaking Kai, especially when the other was wounded. He'd just been so mad at Kai for how he'd been hurt that he simply lost it. When he returned back to his place he made sure he'd found and treated as many of Kai's injuries as possible. With the work done, he dropped to his knees, not noticing when Yin dug in her claws indignantly, and lay down to sleep immediately. The day, or night rather, had been so surreal. Yin curled up on Ray's back to go to sleep, purring contently.
000
Kai awoke the next morning feeling pretty miserable. He knew straight away that he was dehydrated judging from the combination of a headache, dizziness and tiredness. His mouth was as dry as a desert too, to the point where his throat was stinging.
With that figured out, he decided to move on to something else. From what he could tell, this looked like Ray's place. It really hadn't changed since the last time he'd been there. It still felt as peaceful as ever.
Hn... Peaceful... Kai had almost forgotten what that word meant. The last couple of months had been nothing short of a complete nightmare for him. Moving from place to place, keeping a low profile, hiding his identity and the fact that he was alive. He'd been on the run for so long now that lying there like he was felt unnatural.
He certainly didn't feel very well rested and figured it was because he'd been unconscious and not asleep. Sleep was a luxury he couldn't really afford much of these days.
His stomach growled suddenly and Kai grit his teeth. He was hungry too. I'd better go and check some of the traps. Oh wait, they're far away now. Once he'd found that rat demon again, that had been all he'd focussed on. It was only because he'd stopped moving that his body was choosing to remind him it needed food.
Slowly, he managed to coax himself into a sitting position; wincing a little as his shoulder wound was stretched slightly. He finally noticed the bandages, wrapped around his shoulder and various other areas where he'd sustained an injury. Kai frowned. He was getting sloppy. How could he keep going if he was constantly going to end up injured?
Slipping out the bed he was in without paying much attention to anything else, he quietly left the house and stepped into the warm morning sunlight. A moment passed as he allowed himself to relax, before he wandered over to a nearby freshwater well. Hoisting up the bucket, Kai cupped the cold water in his hands and splashed his face, wincing as he felt what must be bruises on his cheeks and down his jaw.
"Maybe I should have stayed dead..." he muttered quietly and dunked his head into the bucket. The water was freezing and extremely refreshing. He surfaced a few seconds later and shook as much of it from his hair as he could, then took a drink. It honestly seemed like the best water he'd ever tasted.
Feeling a little better, he wandered back towards the house and sat down on a log pile nearby. Having found his knife outside the door with his cloak, Kai selected a small log and started whittling away at it. He was exhausted, but his body was still convinced that he had to stay awake if he wanted to stay alive. He didn't feel all that comfortable at Ray's house anyway. He felt unwelcome. And if Kai was completely honest with himself then he knew he didn't deserve to be welcomed. I shouldn't have come back at all... I should have disappeared when I had the chance...
"So you're awake," Mariah's voice observed as she arrived with her arms full of groceries. There was an odd edge to her voice, like she was both angry and relieved at the same time. Bao followed by her side obediently and paid little mind when a blue Somali cat left Ray's house to watch them all with blue eyes.
Kai hesitated before answering, "Mm."
Mariah set the groceries to one side and faced Kai with her hands on her hips. "I wanna know why you did it, Kai. Why did you just disappear like that and let everyone think you were dead? Do you know how much it hurt him? It hurt us all, but it hit Ray harder. He practically views you as a brother. He was so depressed when he got that letter from Kenny. He went to the nearest town with phones and called to be sure. He called Tala too. Is it everyone, Kai? Did you trick everyone? Why?" She had been tempted to smack him one too, but the bruises he was already sporting persuaded her not to.
Kai stood up quickly, maybe a little too quickly for his head, and glared at the girl in front of him. "Don't you think it's been hard on me too?" he demanded, throwing his knife down into one of the logs. "I've been through hell over the last six months, doing everything in my power to keep all of you safe. I can't remember the last time I had a decent meal and I've been lucky to ever get more than an hour of sleep each day! Constantly moving with nobody to turn to for help. No safe place to go and no signs of things getter better. So forgive me for not considering all your feelings about how horrible it's been for you, but I've been kinda busy trying not to get killed for real!" He was panting by the time he finished, not realising that his rant had ended at near screaming pitch. His body was buzzing with adrenalin, which lately had been his one and only friend.
Mariah's pupils turned to slits in her anger. Kai was missing the point that he was the one who'd been in control. He chose to disappear. Not them. It was his decision. The consequences were brought about from his actions. "You could have ASKED for help!" she snapped at him. "You've always been told that! They'd be there if you needed help! We'd be there if you needed help! You only had to ask! You knew that!" Mariah continued, starting to cry in frustration. "You'd been told enough times! He was hardly eating. He wouldn't listen when I begged him to take something. He just said he wasn't hungry. It was only Tao and Lee who could get him to eat and even then it wasn't as often as it should be. He got worse every day and I-" Mariah broke off with a gasp, looking at the doorway.
"I had to disappear to keep you all safe!" Kai bellowed before he could stop himself.
"Safe from what?" Ray asked quietly in the doorway.
Kai looked sharply at the door, then bit back a curse and looked away. "You don't need to know," he said firmly.
Ray looked down. "I'm sorry, Kai."
Letting out a sound of frustration, Kai ran a hand through his hair. "What are you sorry for? You're not the one who's had to betray everyone they've ever cared about!" Grabbing his knife again, Kai climbed over onto the other side of the log pile and sat down.
"For hitting you, shaking you and annoying you by not minding my own business," Ray answered. Guilt kept him from mentioning that he'd thought they told each other things. "I'm very disappointed in myself for that lapse of self-control. What I said too. I know I didn't show it, but I am glad you're alive. So I'm sorry."
Kai didn't give a reply, focussing instead on repeatedly stabbing the log between his feet. This certainly wasn't how he'd pictured his reunion with some of his friends. He was tired and he'd given everything he had to give. His mind drew a blank when he tried to think of a way to sort this whole disaster out. Mariah watched them briefly then picked up the groceries and headed inside. Bao padded over towards Kai and watched him for several moments. She barked once before following Mariah with her tail wagging. Clearly she remembered the Russian.
Ray watched them both then turned his attention to the Somali. He walked over to her and picked her up. "You guys haven't been properly introduced," he commented and moved in front of Kai. "Kai, this is Yin, Yin, Kai. Yin, aren't you going to say hello?" The cat looked at Ray, then at Kai. She was undecided. Ray decided to give her space, knowing how shy she was and turned his attention back to Kai. Kai's gaze fell away from the two of them almost instantly and his flicking motion of stabbing his knife into the log continued, "Kai?" Ray asked tentatively.
The knife suddenly stopped. "Yeah...?" Kai's voice was quiet and slightly hoarse. He hadn't done much speaking in the last few months and his vocal chords were somewhat out of practice.
"I really am sorry."
Sighing, Kai lifted his head and stared off down the path towards the forest. The birds were singing again today and he could sense the presence of the familiar tree spirits. Everything was slowly returning to normal, to how it should be. Kai took small comfort in that. "I forgive you," he said quietly, though Ray didn't need to ask for forgiveness. Kai was the one who had hurt him. He idly traced his hand down his bandaged shoulder and arm, feeling the wound throb. It would take a while to heal but Kai knew he was lucky it hadn't been more serious. That rat demon had been so filthy and full of disease that earlier wounds he'd sustained from it had become infected within hours. He'd done his best to keep them clean and treat them with whatever herbs and other natural remedies he could find, but his body was still heavy from the strain.
Yin jumped down to the ground and Ray let her. She took on a human form and clambered up the logs. "You tricked gege's baba?" she asked Kai.
Kai turned and looked at her for a moment, then swallowed and nodded. "Yes," he answered quietly.
The child grinned. "Say hn."
Kai raised an eyebrow a little and then a hesitant smile appeared on his lips, "Hn."
"You're honoured, Kai. She's normally very shy," Ray commented as the little girl cheered and hopped down from the logs giggling. Yin then appeared to remember that she hadn't greeted Kai yet and dashed back to do so.
"Nothing wrong with being shy," Kai commented quietly, looking at the little girl in front of him.
"I'm just saying she's spoken to you much quicker than she does most people," Ray replied.
"Hi," Yin said to Kai, "Nice to meet you."
Kai smiled, "Nice to meet you too. Sorry I upset gege."
Yin nodded, satisfied. "Good. I forgive you. Sorry I kicked you."
"I think I'll survive."
"What are those?" Yin asked pointing at the blue markings.
"A rebellious act that became a part of me," Kai told her, "Part of a mask."
"You look like you're going to war," Yin commented.
Kai let out a quiet, exhausted sigh. "I might as well be in one," he told Yin.
"Why?" Yin asked as Ray sat down beside Kai.
"It's just my life," Kai explained. "Like a war." He glanced at Ray when the other sat down.
Yin continued to ask questions for a few minutes then scampered off somewhere to play. Ray looked at Kai. "She lost her parents and had no one else to turn to so Fabian brought her here," he explained. "Her father was a bakeneko. As you saw, she inherited his shape-changing ability."
"Poor kid," Kai murmured. "She's so young."
Ray nodded. "At first she wouldn't speak to anyone. But she followed me around. She then started using smaller sentences. The longer ones only started last week."
"Probably because you've given her the confidence she needed to unlock her words," Kai mused, leaning forward to rest his chin in one hand. I wish I'd had someone help me like that when I was her age.
"She's really bright too," Ray told Kai. "She picks up on things and really understands them." Kai nodded with a quiet hum of acknowledgement. "Thanks for taking care of that demon," Ray commented.
Kai's eyes drifted shut as he enjoyed the heat of the sun on his skin. "Don't mention it. I'm just sorry I let it come here. I've been chasing it for months."
"If that demon hadn't come here... would you have?"
Kai cracked his eyes open. "Not straight away," he admitted. "Before it crossed the border I never intended to leave Russia."
"I see," Ray said softly, looking at the ground in front of them, "So what now? You didn't intend to come here so what are your plans?"
The Russian shrugged. "I knew I needed to come here. I just didn't expect it to be this soon... I wanted to tell you all the truth for ages, but it was too risky. You were safer thinking I was dead." He sighed heavily. "But now, I don't know. If I'm permitted to stay, then I will. My body needs time to recover."
"The Elders told you last time you were here that you'd always be welcome and I really don't want you to leave," Ray replied looking at Kai.
Kai met his gaze and smiled. "Thanks... I've missed you guys..."
"We've missed you too," Ray replied. "I've missed the others too and it's kinda bad that I only went to make a call to them a fortnight ago when I got that letter. I just figured they were all really busy since I hadn't heard from them in six months. Kenny said that Tyson and Hilary took it hard though."
Kai's shoulders sank. Hilary... He suddenly felt ill at the thought of how much he must have hurt her and held his head in his hands. He couldn't take much more and his shoulders started to tremble.
"Kai?" Ray asked quietly in concern as he placed a hand on Kai's shoulder.
The contact made Kai jump at first, but after a moment he slowly started to relax. "I'm okay..." he mumbled. "Just a bit stressed out..."
"Just take it easy," Ray told him.
"Here," Mariah said as she left the house with two bowls of salad, one for each of them. "And I wanna see clean plates. You both need to put some weight on."
Kai lifted his head long enough to mumble a quiet thank you then dropped it again. He was still shaking and goose-bumps were now rushing up his arms. He knew he needed to eat but he just didn't feel like it right now. Having gone so long with hardly eating, his body had grown accustomed to not getting much and right now the idea of forcing himself to eat didn't appeal either. Ray thanked Mariah too and began to eat as she headed back inside.
After a few minutes, Kai managed to stop his shaking long enough to sit up straight. He then lifted his bowl and slowly started to pick at it. Salad was a welcome change to small animal meat which had been roasted over camp fires. Kai let his mind wander back to how he'd managed to survive for the last six months and his bowl was soon empty. A few times, Ray considered asking Kai what exactly he'd been doing since his disappearance, but he knew Kai didn't like to be pestered, so he held his tongue. Placing his bowl down next to him, Kai sighed. "You've got questions..."
Ray looked at him. "You can tell, huh?" he asked then faced forward. "I guess I wanna know where you've been, what you've been doing, why you pretended to be dead, that sorta thing. But if you don't wanna talk about it, that's fine. I'm just glad you're back."
"I will tell you everything," Kai began, "Just not right now. I need to speak with the elders, so you'll find out more then. What I will say now is that I followed that rat demon all the way from Russia and it's taken me two months to finally bring it down. I haven't been using my full power, since I've been keeping a low profile. And I've been suffering because of that." He rested his chin in one hand again. "I ache everywhere..."
"All those punches and that couldn't have done you any favours," Ray commented sheepishly. "Sorry. Is there anything I can do to help?"
"Keep my secret?" Kai glanced sideways at him. "Please don't tell the others about me being alive. For the moment at least, it's best that they don't know."
Ray nodded in agreement. "I won't tell. Just... don't make them wait too long. They've known about your much disappearance longer than I have."
"Mm. I won't," Kai agreed and went back to staring down the path. A few minutes later the sun disappeared behind the clouds causing him to shiver.
"Do you want to go inside?" Ray asked.
"Might be an idea," Kai mused. "Would you mind if I lay down for a while? I'm tired and I don't think being unconscious counts as being asleep."
"I don't mind at all," Ray answered. Kai thanked him and stood up to head back inside, retrieving his knife and placing it back where it belonged at his hip. Ray took the bowls to be cleaned and then joined Mariah for a quiet conversation, during which he learned that Lee, Gary and Kevin were helping to repair the damage done by the demon. Ray asked why no one had woken him and Mariah told him that because he hadn't been at full strength for a while they'd agreed it was best to let him sleep. He hadn't taken very good care of himself after all and it had caused a great deal of concern amongst them.
000
After a couple of days to recover and build up strength again Kai requested a meeting with the village elders. He wanted to explain his circumstances in confidence with those who would listen, so the meeting was arranged to be held in the main hall of the village. Once everyone who was supposed to be there had arrived; the doors and window shutters were locked from the inside, to ensure maximum security and privacy. This had been done on request from Kai himself as some of what he had to say was alarming and he didn't want the whole village to find out and panic. With everything organised, Kai sat down on a cushion before the elders, including Tao, accompanied by Ray and Lee and began to tell his story. He started with the demon.
"That rat demon wasn't normal as you will have noticed. It didn't come to be the way you or I have. It was a genetic experiment, grown in a test tube at one of Biovolt's old labs. Voltaire has found a way to create lethal bit beasts at a cheaper cost. Instead of syphoning the spirits from live animals; they've started capturing weaker demons and tampering with their DNA, often mixing several together and inducing unnatural transformations. As a result these creations are very powerful, dangerous and very unstable. That rat escaped from one of their research facilities over two months ago and has been terrorising small towns and settlements ever since. It preyed on young children and unfortunately I wasn't able to stop it in time before it made several kills. I drove it out into the tundra and it tried to escape me. Eventually, we both crossed the border and finally arrived here in White Tiger Hills. You know what happened after that."
"Then there really is no hope left of secrecy between the two realms," Tyoro commented softly. "It's only a matter of time before the humans are fully aware of the demons living alongside them."
Kai nodded. "That's what Voltaire is counting on. He wants the human world to find out about demons and he plans to be the one to break the news himself. World domination is still his ultimate goal and now he's closer to having the means to do it. I don't know exactly how many labs and research facilities he has spread out across Russia and various other countries, but there's no doubt in my mind that he's raising an army. An army of demon and bit beast hybrids," Kai paused and sighed quietly. "He's planning on starting a war between the two sides, with the intention of being the one man who can stop it. If he succeeds, then he'll have the whole world right in the palm of his hand."
"That's insane," Lee commented. "The demons won't take kindly to manipulation."
Kai nodded. "Some of them have already tried to rebel. But they've all been killed. Voltaire doesn't care. They're all just pieces on the chess board."
"What about those devices?" Ray asked. "Has that plan been scrapped?"
"They've taken aspects of the program and placed it in a new piece," Kai answered. "But it's nowhere close to completion because the test subjects keep dying, or manage to break it before it takes effect."
"So you've been fighting him again?" Ray asked Kai, "On your own?"
"Only once," Kai replied. One of his hands lifted slowly to the back of his neck, as he recalled what had happened. "The new device attaches to the back of the neck at the base of the skull and connects itself to the central nervous system of its host. The pain is indescribable and the subject ends up becoming nothing more than a puppet on a string, controlled entirely by the device and the person with the remote." Hand falling away from his neck again, Kai swallowed. "Voltaire managed to plant one on me when I was incapacitated and tried to control me. Luckily, I was able to resist and destroy it before it took hold of me completely. I brought down the lab after that, but I was in a bad way. So I decided to let him believe I was dead and took off."
"And to make sure he believed you were dead, you let everyone else think the same?" Ray asked.
"To keep you all safe," Kai confirmed. "The device really screwed me up. I was out of commission for almost three weeks. If he'd known I was alive, but too weak to stop him, he would have come after all of you as a way of getting to me. But with me dead, he lost interest in the rest of you."
"So what are your plans now?" Lee asked.
Kai sighed wearily. "I can't keep up what I've been doing alone. There are just too many demons to deal with. I'm not the only one to escape and others have spread the word of what Voltaire is planning. A resistance is building and if it isn't stopped, then things will never be the same again." He hung his head forward. "As powerful as I am, it's still not going to be enough... I need help."
"Fabian is due to visit within the next week or so. When he does, we will pass on what you have told us to him," Tyoro responded. "This is an issue that concerns more than just you or us. It threatens everything the demon council have worked to achieve and as such, they should be informed. For now, this is all we can do."
"I know it's bigger than just me," Kai commented quietly. "That's why I told you."
"You've made the right choice in doing so. The demon council will be aware of many of the consequences, as they'll be working to clean up the mess, but any and all additional information will prove most helpful," Tyoro informed him.
Kai nodded. "The sooner they're told, the better. But I do have one condition."
"Go on," Tyoro prompted.
"Until things are further forward, I don't want anyone outside of the village knowing that I am alive. Some demons have actually sided with Voltaire in the hopes of world domination. If they find out the truth, all of the people I care about will be at risk." Kai glanced briefly at Ray. "For their sake, the fact that I'm alive must be kept secret."
"Very well," Tyoro agreed. "As soon as Fabian arrives we will notify him of all this. As frustrating as it may be, we have no choice but to wait for them to come to us. Even we do not know of their location."
Kai nodded in acceptance of this. "Is it still alright for me to remain here for the time being? I noticed some of the villagers aren't exactly happy to see me, after what happened with the rat."
"They'll get over that quickly enough if they're not already," Lee commented.
"As I recall, most of that displeasure was while you were still disguised," Ray agreed.
"Unless you count the beatings from us, but that was for a different reason," Lee added.
"Yeah," Kai grumbled, rubbing at his jaw and cheek which were both still bruised.
"Don't tell me you didn't expect that sort of reaction?" Lee asked him.
Kai gave him a look. "Not from three of you, one after the other."
"It would have been more if Mariah and Kevin had been there at the time," Lee pointed out. "You'll probably get a lot more than that when you make it public if I know Tyson like I think I do."
Kai tried hard to suppress a groan. "Maybe I should have stayed dead."
"Don't be stupid," Lee chastised him.
"Hn. Maybe I'm not being stupid, but honest."
"Look, you got hit because you upset a lot of people. Probably a lot more than you realise," Lee shrugged.
Kai looked away as a certain brown eyed girl's face flashed through his mind. Hilary... he thought sadly, before standing up. He headed for the door since the meeting was pretty much over anyway. "I do realise," he said quietly then unlocked the main door and slipped out.
000
A few days had passed and the village were still waiting for Fabian's arrival. Ray was speaking with Kai while his team were out training. Yin came by to show Ray a butterfly she had caught before dashing off to release it and continue to play. "She actually lives with Huizhong, an old lady who lives near the centre of the village, not that you would think it with how much time she spends coming here," Ray commented to Kai once the child had dashed off. "I don't think I ever introduced you to Huizhong, huh? She never had any children of her own, but she helps with raising all the children in the village, even me. She always wanted children, so she was delighted to take in Yin, but she doesn't mind Yin coming up here, even when she decides to spend the night, just as long as she doesn't stray from the village."
Kai nodded to show he was listening. The feeling of family in the village was something he had never experienced before and as a result was both comforting and a little upsetting. Kai would have given just about anything to grow up in a community like this, surrounded by people who cared about each other. He smiled as he watched Yin play. "She's a sweet little thing," he murmured, "So innocent."
"I knew you'd like her," Ray commented, "Except when she decided to kick you. I thought that might make a difference. Hey, Kai, um..." Ray frowned. He didn't want to bring up the monastery, but there was something he was curious about. Did Kai know that he was the reason Ray's senses had improved? Did he know he'd woken the dormant demon side to Ray? But the whole thing had come about in a bad place. Maybe it wasn't a good idea. Ray smiled, "Never mind."
"Just tell me," Kai said, pulling out his knife and a piece of wood he'd been working on for the last few days. It had slowly started to form the shape of a cat and Kai intended to give it to Yin once it was finished.
Ray looked at him for a moment then turned his attention back to watching Yin, thinking how to word it so he could avoid causing discomfort as much as possible. "You know, the people of this village have demon blood, but they're not half demon... They haven't been half demon for a long time. Over the generations the blood's become diluted, as it were. I'm not like that anymore. Did you know?"
Kai's knife paused for a second as he considered Ray's words. "I do now."
"It's why my senses suddenly improved," Ray told him, "When I said something had changed. It was me. I had changed. I didn't work it out. Fabian was able to tell that the demon blood had awakened and Tao worked out the cause." Ray turned his head to look at the Russian. "It was you. Your energy did it."
"Well, I guess that saves me having to explain it to you," Kai commented, "Since you've already worked it out." He returned to his carving. "It was the only thing I could think of to bring you back to yourself. At the time, I wasn't aware my energy could do that to you, but I soon figured it out."
"I only worked it out with Tao's help," Ray commented facing forward again. "It was while we thought you were dead. He told me, but you know there's some working out to be done with anything Tao says."
Kai chuckled. "Oh, I know," he agreed. "I never did like riddles, but I got used to them after spending time training with him."
"I like riddles. It's just that most of Tao's ones make my head spin."
"I wonder what he was like when he was our age," Kai thought out loud, "If he was always like that."
Ray laughed. "Who knows? I can't actually imagine him being any different though."
Kai paused again, this time to smirk and shake his head. "The idea of Tao being anything but...well, Tao, is actually more disturbing I think," he commented, causing his friend to laugh. Ray stood up suddenly before jumping up to the roof, looking around, jumping down again and looking around the corners then folding his arms thoughtfully. "What is it?" Kai asked him.
"Isn't this normally the part when the person you're talking about shows up and scares the crap out've ya?" Ray asked in return.
Kai smirked, "Usually. Then again, Tao probably wouldn't follow that pattern, just to be different."
"Someone is actually coming though, even if it's not Tao. Huan's heading this way with a letter," Ray told Kai after grinning at his comment. The man came into view just after Ray finished speaking. There was no doubt about Huan's destination. "You know, it's probably from Kenny," Ray commented to Kai quietly.
Kai snorted quietly. "I'm surprised the Chief even knows how to write a letter, since he's always on his laptop typing."
"Then it may be a shock that he's the one I hear from the most. Mr Dickenson sometimes writes, but he's really busy so it's not often. But I only know about how Tyson and Max are doing because Kenny tells me," Ray informed Kai before thanking Huan as he handed Ray an envelope. Huan didn't hang about long as he had other errands to run, but wished the three of them a good day as he left. Yin didn't speak but she did wave to the man. Ray opened the envelope and scanned the letter's contents before holding it out to Kai. "I think you'd better see this."
Kai frowned slightly and took the letter, wondering what could be of any particular interest to him in it. His grandfather's name leapt up off the page at him in an instant and Kai found himself tensing up automatically.
He read slowly, letting every word sink into his brain and process. At the end, his hand fell slowly to his side, the paper slipping from his grasp and floating to the floor. Kai's eyes were fixed on the ground in a hard stare and his jaw muscles tightened as he clenched his teeth. His blood was boiling, heartbeat suddenly thumping in his ears and hands tingling. Kai couldn't believe it.
Voltaire was dead...
Ray picked up the letter again. "Kenny says it's all over the news, but this freak accident thing? That doesn't seem right for some reason. What do you think happened?"
"He went too far and his plans backfired," Kai muttered, before walking away stiffly. He needed to let off some steam, away from the village where he didn't need to worry about anyone getting too close.
"Kai?" Ray asked worriedly.
Kai didn't stop. "I'll be above the falls," he said over one shoulder.
Ray wondered if maybe he should let Kai have his own space for the moment. Kai had said where he was going after all. Ray tried to imagine how it must have been for Kai. If it had been Ray losing a relative who he disliked, he'd probably be upset. But this wasn't just a relative who Kai disliked. This was the man who had made Kai's life a living hell, the man who ordered his mother's execution. It should be a good thing for Kai that Voltaire was dead. But then... on the other hand... Kai had had no part in it. And now any chance for revenge was lost. Ray sighed and sat down again, watching Yin play. He read the letter once more before lying back to stare at the sky. "But what about Boris?" he wondered aloud.
Mariah's face suddenly appeared above Ray, her ponytail hanging down from the top of her head. "What about Boris, Ray?" she asked, looking down at him.
"I'm just thinking out loud," Ray told her. "I got another letter from the Chief. He mentioned Voltaire in it, but not Boris."
"More trouble?" Mariah asked. "I noticed Kai walking off. Is he mad?"
"Voltaire's dead," Ray replied. "And it wasn't by Kai's hand."
Mariah let out a sharp gasp and covered her mouth with both hands. Standing up straight, she stared off in the direction Kai had disappeared in. "I can't believe it," she breathed, eyes wide. Her hands lowered from her mouth and she looked back down at Ray. "What now?"
"I dunno. I'm gonna give Kai some time and space just now and then ask him that myself," Ray answered.
Mariah hummed quietly in agreement and sat down next to Ray. "Wait a minute. If Voltaire's gone, who's been left to run that huge company he owns? Hiwatari Enterprise, wasn't it?"
"Um, probably Kai's father... Ooh," Ray winced at the thought of it. He might have been ill at the time, but he remembered how well Kai got on with his father. He also remembered what Kai had told him. "Kai won't like that... He doesn't like the man..."
"Hilary told me a little bit about that once," Mariah mused, thinking back. "I was under the impression that Kai was made heir to the company. That's what Hilary seemed to think."
"Well everyone outside this village still think Kai's dead. So what else can they do?"
"They might sell the company," Mariah replied. "Someone else could buy it when it's rightfully Kai's, even if he doesn't want it." Mariah worried her lip. "I think he should go back, Ray."
"I think so too, but it's Kai's call to make," Ray commented quietly. A few minutes passed before Ray sat up with another sigh. "Could you take Yin back to Huizhong's place for me, please Mariah? I'm gonna go try speak with Kai. Normally I'd give him longer... Look, I don't expect to be back for a good few hours, so don't wait for me, okay?"
The girl nodded. "Just be careful, yeah?"
Ray smiled and nodded. "Yeah," he agreed before leaving for the waterfall, calling to Yin to behave for Mariah as he left.
000
The lower falls where Ray and the others normally did their training was deserted, as Kai had gone further up like he'd said he would. Sitting by one of the deep pools a safe distance from the falls he stared at his reflection in the water. For someone who was suffering the amount of inner turmoil that he was, Kai was doing very well to hide it. So far the only victim of his frustration had been a piece of driftwood, bobbing around in the middle of the pool. Kai had been the one to chuck it in there, but had tired of throwing stones at it after only a few minutes.
Sighing heavily, he forced himself to his feet and kicked off his shoes. His shirt followed a few seconds later, leaving him in just the black combats he was wearing. Taking a breath, he let himself fall forward into a lazy dive, deciding that a cool swim might help calm down his white hot temper. Ray approached the water quietly but left a distance when he settled down again. He knew Kai would realise he wanted something, but by sitting down he was giving Kai the space to decide when to deal with Ray's unspoken request. Kai surfaced on the other side of the pool, already knowing that Ray had arrived and turned to look back at him. Ducking back under the water, he swam back across to see what was up.
"There are a few things I'm wondering about," Ray told Kai when the other arrived. "The first being what your plans are. Obviously I know you haven't had much time to make any plans. But you have to know you should return or you could lose everything that's rightfully yours. The second being if there's any way I can help you, even if you want someone to spar with or rant at. I don't mind. I'd be happy to help."
Folding his arms on the rocks, Kai rested his chin in them. The cold water had helped to clear his head a bit and look at the situation from a different angle. "I need to go back to Japan," he decided. "I've led everyone on long enough." A small smirk appeared on his lips. "Besides, there's only so much you can do when you're dead."
"They'd worried about you longer than I had. Well, actually they didn't even give me the opportunity to worry at all. I can only imagine what they're all feeling. You better apologise to them for that."
The smirk vanished. "Yes, I know. But they can shout at me and hate me all they want. At the end of the day, I still did that to protect all of you."
"Do you ever stop to think that maybe we want to do the same for you?" Ray asked bluntly. "Protect you, I mean."
Kai frowned. "It's not a competition. You guys could have had trained killers after you. The only way to stop them was for me to convince everyone that I was dead."
"I didn't mean it as a competitive type of thing. Kai, you matter to us, so much. We want you safe, just as you want us safe. You know, a lot of us really look up to you too. Friendship isn't a one way street. It works both ways. It's fine to give help, but you should also accept..." Ray sighed in defeat. "You know what, just forget it. Forget I mentioned it."
"Hn," Kai got out of the water abruptly and grabbed his stuff. "I came back, didn't I," he said pointedly, before walking away across the rocks.
Several things crossed Ray's mind. Such as Kai admitting that he wouldn't have come back as soon as he had if it hadn't been for the demon. That it was mostly the Demon Council's help he was, had been, after. That he was only coming out of hiding because Voltaire was gone. If it hadn't been for the rat demon, Ray would have probably been the last to know about Kai actually being alive too. Last to know again. But arguing with Kai was just exhausting. "Yeah, you did," Ray responded to further prove the point that he'd given up arguing his point. It may not have been a full blown argument, but it was still a difference of opinion and Kai had won. Simple as that.
Kai turned back on his heels. "Well then cut me some slack, will you. I'm trying. I'm sorry that it hasn't been ideal, but I didn't exactly have much fun over the last six months either!"
"I'm sorry."
Kai grumbled and turned away again. "Go back to the village. I'm not going to be doing much talking for the next while. Need to think."
Ray stood up. "You don't need to be talking for me to enjoy your company by the way. And I meant it when I said I'd be happy to help in any way I could," he commented before starting to head back for the village, smarting a little from the dismissal, but deciding he had brought it on himself.
000
It was well into the evening by the time Kai returned to the village. While away, he'd managed to not only think everything through, but also get some training in and even finish the carving of the cat he'd started. Through courtesy, he decided to knock on the doorway to Ray's place rather than just walk in. Their earlier squabble was still on his mind and Kai wasn't sure if he'd overstepped any boundaries.
There was the sound of excited barking from the other side of the door and Mariah's voice telling Bao to be quiet before Lee opened the door. He raised an eyebrow at Kai before frowning and stepping back, pulling the door open to let Kai in. "Ray's brooding and you're knocking on the door. Now I know something's happened," he commented to the Russian.
"I told you, Lee," Mariah spoke up, "He's got a lot on his mind. He'll tell us when he's ready. It's probably got a lot to do with Boris anyway and the fact that Kenny's only been writing with big news lately."
Kai stepped inside and moved without hesitation to the bed where Ray was sitting. Kai stood silently in front of the other teen, waiting for him to look at him. Sensing the other's presence, Ray pulled himself from his thoughts and looked up. He may have looked like he was meditating but, just as his team had suspected, he'd actually been thinking about something. Kai took a breath and let it out slowly. "I need your help," he spoke quietly.
Ray blinked, surprised at the request, before nodding his agreement to help. "What do you need me to do?" he asked seriously.
"... I'm going to need to go and look at the body," Kai told him. "And... I'd like someone there, who can help me get through it. You don't have to go in and see it yourself, but I need closure." At his sides, Kai's hands clenched weakly into fists. "I need someone who I can trust, to keep me grounded. Keep me sane."
"Sure," Ray agreed. Knowing that Kai still trusted him especially to such an extent meant a lot to Ray. Kai could have easily turned to any of the others once he'd revealed himself to still be alive. Like one of the Blitzkrieg Boys who'd experienced a hellish upbringing like Kai had and could relate to what he'd been through. The fact that Kai had come to Ray instead and asked for his help told Ray that Kai had actually listened to what he'd said earlier and not dismissed it in anger or frustration. "I can do that."
A half smirk appeared on Kai's face. "Thank you." It was more than just a way of showing his gratitude. It was also an apology.
"So when do you plan to leave?" Ray asked. The Elders would still need to speak with Fabian, Ray had already reported to them about the letter, but they could handle that alone.
"As soon as possible," Kai answered. "I'll need to set things straight with the company before I do anything else." He frowned slightly in thought. "My company..." It sounded weird and Kai wasn't sure if he liked the sound of it. But it was an opportunity for him and his responsibility.
"We can leave tomorrow if you want," Ray suggested. "We just need to inform the Elders, so that when Fabian shows up they'll know you're not here."
Kai nodded. "That's probably the best option, if you're okay with going at such short notice."
Ray nodded. "I'm fine with leaving at short notice, trust me," he told Kai and looked over to his team, "Sorry, guys."
"It's okay," Lee assured him, "We understand."
"Yeah, we're used to it by now," Kevin commented, before being thumped on the head by Mariah. "Hey, I'm just stating a fact," Kevin complained.
"You could have worded it better," Mariah responded.
"I wouldn't ask if the situation wasn't so urgent," Kai spoke, looking at the others. "Sorry I'm taking him away."
"Like I said, we understand," Lee repeated. "To be honest, I was sorta expecting this when Ray started brooding earlier."
"Sometimes he just needs to get out of this place and we accept that," Kevin agreed.
"And we trust you, Kai," Mariah put in.
A brief lopsided smirk appeared on Kai's face. "At least somebody does."
"Just both of you watch yourselves out there," Lee commented seriously. He looked at Kai, "Even the Panthers heard of your "death" and they were quick to bring it up with us when we found out about it. They're still harbouring a bit of a grudge against you, Kai, Omar in particular. And we know they're after Driger."
Kai snorted. "That the little punk whose face I rearranged, using the floor?" He couldn't help but feel a slight bit of cruel amusement. "Don't worry about them. I'll take care of it if necessary."
"Yeah, well, you might find this hard to believe, but Ray almost ended up in a fight with them," Lee commented to Kai. Kai looked round at Ray and raised an eyebrow.
"Omar said something that got me angry," Ray offered as an explanation.
Kai regarded him silently for a moment. "There's more to it than that, isn't there?" he asked. "I know you, Ray. You meditate when things are bothering you and generally keep a pretty good level of control on your emotions." He took a step towards Ray. "So, whatever Omar said must've hit a raw nerve."
Ray sighed. "When we thought you were dead he called you an asshole and said you'd gotten what was coming to you," he muttered.
"Hn," Kai nodded slightly. "I probably would have said the same thing if I was him."
Ray tensed slightly, still annoyed at Omar despite the time that had passed and the fact that Kai wasn't dead like they had believed at the time. "It was completely inappropriate," he commented.
"Yes. But getting into a fight wouldn't have made any difference," Kai pointed out. "Still, I appreciate you wanting to defend my honour, for all of it that I actually have."
"You're my friend and I respect you, even if you don't think much of yourself. I don't like the fact he said that full stop, never mind it being while we thought you were dead."
Kai smirked. "Well then, the joke's on them the next time they appear. I'll be the last person they'll be expecting to see," he commented and Ray smiled a little at that.
