A/N: Hi there! Thank you so much for the reviews! Glad I was able to stir the curiosity of a few people. Here's another chappie for you. I hope you continue reading the story. And oh, I don't own Hakuouki. If I do, I'll be the happiest girl in the world with all that hotness around me! Cookies for those who review!
Light. Darkness tried to swallow it but it was too strong. It became brighter and brighter until it seemed to conquer everything. The sky, the sea, the earth. There was no time, no past, no present, no future. The universe simply became a solid white ball of light.
Is this death? Is this finally it?
Akane felt herself floating in abyss. Her body felt light and her head was at peace. If this is how it feels to be dead, then it's not that bad, she thought. She might be alone but at least she is not cold or hurting. Somewhere faraway, she can hear screams. The small part of her mind that was active thought it may be the souls of those damned in hell. Then the sounds got louder and louder. Until finally, it felt like the tortured souls were just a few feet away from her. Is she going to burn with them? Will she suffer like those damned?
'Finish everyone who fights back!'
'You don't need to tell me twice!'
Akane stirred at the orange light behind her lids. Every fiber in her body screamed pain. The peace she relished just a while ago was gone in an instant, replaced by screams and a nagging pain on her head. She tried moving her hands to see if she was still floating. Her body still felt light except that now she felt an undeniable cold seeping through her body.
What is going on?
She opened her eyes and blinked. Sunlight and trees? Confused at what is happening she turned her head to the side only to have her sight blurred with water. She flailed and tried to push her body up, sputtering as she finally managed to get her head into the surface. Looking around, she found herself sitting waist deep on a river. A large boulder of rock was just behind her, stopping her body from being drifted downstream. She was shivering with cold.
And very alive.
Before she can gather her thoughts, she heard footsteps from the forest on her left. The screams she heard were also coming from that side though now they are fewer and the voices were weaker. The undeniable sounds of fighting brought back some sense into her and she flailed to get off the water as she heard the footsteps going towards her direction.
'Some of them escaped here!'
'After you, shorty!'
She barely managed to hide behind a large bark of tree on the other side of the river when two men barged into the clearing. One had short brown hair with startling blue eyes while the other one looked younger and had lighter, long brown hair held by a high ponytail. Both were wearing sky blue robes with white patterns on the sleeves. They were also holding swords dripping with blood. Akane gasped at the sight. What on earth is going on? Where am I? Who are these people?
'What? No more enemies?!' the shorter one who looked barely 16 yelled agitatedly. His companion looked around with his sharp eyes, making her shrink back to the shadows of the tree she was hiding on.
'Just when I was getting warmed up,' he gruffly said, swinging his sword to swipe some of the blood away.
Akane grasped at her chest, trying to still her beating heart. Her mind was a muddled mess. The last thing she remembers was being in her private jet with Rika and Suzume. They were just about to crash. Her eyes widened at that last thought.
Rika and Suzume! If I am here, that means they are also somewhere in this place!
She peeked a little from her hiding place and saw the two men now washing their hands on the river.
'I guess we should get going, huh? We don't want the vice commander catching us frolicking in the water for too long,' the one with the short hair said as he wriggled his hands to shake off the water. Then he turned around and started walking to the direction where they came from. His companion followed him.
She breathed a sigh of relief.
Now, I have to find my friends. If I'm alive, there's a big chance they survived the crash too. Please, let them be safe, she thought as she turned around, trying her best to be silent with her movements.
'Hey, looks like there's still one left.'
Akane barely had time to scream when she felt a hand pull her roughly using the back of her collar. Her defense mechanism made her flail and kick but her captor was too strong and held her easily down. She continued struggling even as she felt him turning her around to face him. She was just about to tell him to go to hell when she found herself looking at the most beautiful green eyes she had ever seen.
'Hmm? A girl? Now I wasn't expecting that,' the man smirked as he studied her with predatory eyes. His hair was a rich brown color that nearly reached his shoulders and he is wearing the same blue robes she spied on the two men across the riverbank earlier. He was also holding a sword that is presently just a few centimeters away from her neck.
'Souji, you found another one?' her eyes glanced briefly behind him to see a man with red hair running towards them. Behind him were four more who were also holding blood coated swords.
'Whoah, whoah. Who is that?' the red haired guy stopped on his tracks as he caught sight of her. His four companions slowed their pace to a cautious walk when her captor turned her around so that she was facing her companions, her right arm securely locked on her back.
'I was also thinking the same thing when I found her slinking in the shadows,' he said in a playful yet mocking voice.
'Heh, there's still more! The faster one gets to kill him, Shinpachi!' the voice of the boy she saw earlier sounded off behind her. They must have heard the noise and rushed over to their side.
'Hey brat! Stop right there!'
Akane felt herself being stirred again to face the newly arrived duo. The two stopped mid-run, however, when they saw her.
'Huh? Who—what?' the younger one sputtered as he stared at her, his sword already out of its sheath.
A man with long black hair cautiously approached her, a suspicious look on his face. Their garb and weapons obviously showed they are warriors but their expressions clearly expressed that the last thing they were expecting was a girl in the middle of the woods.
'Who are you? Speak,' the black-haired man asked her with a commanding voice.
She couldn't find the voice to answer him. She found herself staring at his sky blue robe, the wheels of her mind finally catching up to what was happening. Sky blue robes with white mountain patterns…katanas…samurais…could it be…no. It was not possible. It cannot be possible.
'The vice-captain asked you a question, girl,' her captor whispered in her ear and she felt his grasp on her right hand tighten, causing her to whimper a little.
'Souji, you're hurting her,' a middle-aged man with short, almost cropped black hair and a kind face worriedly said from behind the person they called vice-captain. She felt the hold on her arm loosen a little as the man holding her chuckled.
'If you want to extend your life even for just a couple of minutes, I suggest you answer the question,' he said, causing a chill to run down her spine.
'I—I'm Akane. Akane Taka-shii, s-sir.'
'What are you doing here? Don't you know this part of the woods is dangerous?' the long-haired man asked.
'I…I…'
'Are you a spy?'
'N-no!'
'Your clothes are not from here. Where are you from?'
She unconsciously looked down on her clothes which were soaking wet. She was wearing a white button down, skinny jeans, and sneakers. She must have looked strange for them.
'I'm from…from Edo.'
'People from Edo don't dress like that…' a man wearing round spectacles observed from behind the vice-captain. He had shoulder-length hair and a calm look on his face that seemed deeply out of place in the current situation.
'I am…I am…'
'If there is something you want to say to save your life I suggest you say it now. Otherwise we'll have no choice but to finish you,' the vice-captain said despite the protest of the middle-aged man behind him. Akane's eyes widened in fear as a man with tied, long dark hair trailing over his shoulder stepped up, unsheathing his sword. He walked towards her in deathly calm, his face expressionless.
'Wait, wait! I-!'
Her predator still continued to advance. She tried to struggle but the grip on her arm only tightened.
What should I say?! They will never believe me no matter what I say!
Her mind working on overdrive, she blurted the first thing that came to mind just as the man raised his sword to slash her.
'I want to join the Shinsengumi!'
