Chapter 4: Seto's Revenge

Miria slept and dreamed of Hilda. It was made worse by the fact that she had come so close to really holding her friend, just one more time, to cross blades with her would have been enough to ease years of heart ache. Miria woke wet and cold. She was shivering and felt a strange feeling. She carefully moved the straw, but she couldn't get comfortable as the straw was also wet. She felt ill, something she never felt before, certainly as a warrior. She didn't know where Audrey was as she couldn't really sense the girl's yoki. Miria sighed and tried to move the straw again, there was something that was going on and Miria was sure that she could sense something that was going on…

Seto followed Clare as they all travelled to Sutafu. The others had been looking at him strangely but Seto said nothing and certainly didn't do anything to draw attention to him, the others knew that something was up and Clare was surprised that Seto followed her without a word of complaint. It was clear to the others that Miria meant a lot to him, even if he denied that there was anything happening between them. Alicia and Beth had both tried to get him to be with them, but Seto avoided them with an air of pure distain much the same air that he used around Helen, who noticed that it had gotten more pronounced as they travelled. It was almost as if Seto could sense something that the others couldn't.

They were about half way to Sutafu when they encountered a group of warriors facing off with awakened beings. Alicia and Beth didn't need any prodding. Alicia sprung in to her awakened form however before she could kill any of the awakened beings, Seto unleased his sword technique killing all of the monsters in one stroke. The warrior who was leading the team looked at Seto with shock. She then saw the rest of the ghosts Dietrich, Alicia and Beth. She returned her gaze to Seto and tilted her head,

"I have many questions, but I guess that I'll just go with one for now, who exactly are all of you?" she looked like she was sincere,

"Feel free to guess," Seto replied, "I have a certain few people that I have to take care of before I answer to anything,"

The others looked at him but he seemed to be distracted. Seto however knew what he wanted. He was going to kill the men that were the cause of Miria's pain and he would do it swiftly.

Miria slowly got up. The wound on her face had healed now, she could feel it. She wondered what she was doing, but sometimes things just couldn't wait. Miria walked towards the door and froze as she heard footsteps. She backed towards the wet pile of straw. It was Audrey that entered. She was carrying some food. Miria had been thinking about food. She watched Audrey cautiously. Audrey placed the food in front of Miria and she sat across from the Phantom warrior. Miria's eyes never left Audrey's face.

"You can eat as much as you want," Audrey said, "it's not like they're going to notice it."

Miria's gaze remained on Audrey and the younger warrior's yoki showed signs that she was concerned about something. Miria sighed and ate. She tried not to eat too much, but her hunger was too great. As she ate Miria noticed that Audrey shifted the wet straw away. Another warrior arrived and she emptied a fresh load of clean straw in to a deep pile. Miria kept her senses as sharp as she could and she swore that she could hear a lot of frantic whispers and someone hissing at the others to be quiet. Miria felt another wave of exhaustion over take her and she lowered herself in to the straw pile. Her eyes closed and she slept.

"Audrey why can't we see her?" some of the girls whined while several other girls whined, "Please can we see her?"

"No, now be quiet, she's resting," Audrey hissed at her lower ranked comrades, her voice softened as she looked to her closest friend, "Rachel, can you go and get a blanket please, she's not controlling her body temperature as well as we'd hoped."

"Fine," Rachel grumbled, walking off in the general direction that was where blankets were kept. So far they had been able to hide the fact that the older warrior had survived, but the men were starting to get a little suspicious about what the warriors were doing in the middle of the night. Audrey had used training as an excuse saying that if they were able to train at night then they might not be so caught by surprise again. Audrey also had the younger warriors on her back desperate to see the one called "Phantom" Miria, although the older warrior was hardly up to seeing them. Audrey had a feeling that something was sapping the warrior of strength and power, although she didn't know what could have the ability to do so. Audrey had spent some time down in the archives trying to find out more about the Phantom without asking her outright. She soon discovered that Miria was one of the few warriors that was focused on speed and that there was only one other warrior like the Phantom. She was amazed that Miria's base speed was so high, and to manage such a feat without so much as any yoki would have required a tight training regimen, Miria's own self-discipline was enough that she wouldn't allow herself to eat more than a few mouthfuls even though Audrey was willing to bet the woman was starving with hunger. As she thought on it she felt someone right behind her. Audrey turned around and saw Rachel lean on a shelf,

"What is it Ray?" Audrey asked,

"What do you think it is, Aud," Rachel sighed, "they'll find out about her sooner or later you know that don't you?"

Rachel held a blanket in her hands; it looked thick enough to give Miria the warmth that her body couldn't seem to keep.

"Who wouldn't find out, what with all the fuss the younger warriors have been making?" Rachel added, "We can't keep taking this risk,"

"And it fails to come to your attention that she spared us." Audrey countered.

Three months had passed and as Dae walked into the grounds of Sutafu, he observed the warriors gathering together and seemingly bored and listless. They looked at him and returned their gaze elsewhere. He looked at a couple of them but they didn't linger. Dae was curious as to what caused them to decide to be like this. He entered the main reporting room and saw that the rest of the men were uptight and he half wondered why, but thought little of it. He wanted to make sure that the young man that they'd kidnaped had arrived. Dae was excited that they would have such a strong male to research on. The man had killed a normal yoma without breaking a sweat; he would make an awesome awakened being, if Dae could get what he wanted. He thought that something passed him, but on closer inspection it was just the wind blowing through the windows. He would have laughed at the paranoia that that had engulfed Sutafu. He walked over to Rimuto's chair and then whispered in to the man's ear so that the others wouldn't hear him. Rimuto looked at him and gave a curt nod. Dae smiled and headed to his chambers. He had the material that he wanted, and he would slowly bring the Number 1s to life, Rimuto had given him clearance and he couldn't wait.

The warriors all stood waiting and ready. They didn't know why Audrey had chosen to do it this way, but they were willing to follow Audrey's lead. The warriors shifted slightly, making sure that they looked like obedient girls. They could sense that there was something that was missing, as if someone was about to tell them what they so desperately wanted to know, to show them what they desperately wanted to see. The men gave them new orders, but no one wanted to carry them out. Then came a sound that the younger warriors wanted to hear; the steady clanking of a warrior's amour. They instinctively turned towards the sound, turning to face the men as a warrior stepped out, her long pale blond spikey hair flowing in the wind, her face bore a X shaped scar and her silver eyes gazed intensely at them. The younger warriors gazed upon the warrior that no one had been able to defeat, that no one could kill, despite the command of the Organization's men. The warrior stepped forward and for the first time they heard her voice without the soft coo that was obviously reserved for that comrade that she called out to.

"Let's go, it's our signal to revolt," The Phantom spoke and the warriors could feel a strange feeling, one that was born of unity, one that they had long since had, but was amplified by her presence. It was almost as if Miria was the one to give them all a cause to unite for. They all were ready and willing and that was the moment that they all decided as one to turn against their masters.

As the warriors walked forward, Miria heard a strange sound, one that made her gut turn. She didn't know what made that sound but she knew that it wouldn't bode well. Something told her that it was something that was really dangerous and bad. She cast a quick around her. The other warriors were all looking to her for guidance since Audrey had sad that she would follow Miria. Rachel had said that she would follow Audrey and the other warriors had all agreed to follow Audrey and Miria. The former Number 6 had felt this pressure before and she didn't enjoy it one bit. She knew that it was her duty to make sure that the girls lived, she would save as many as she could. Miria swore that she would save her comrades as much as she could. She knew that if they lived through this it would be the greatest achievement that she'd ever had a captain in her life. Miria turned forward and held her blade tighter. She would fight to the very death to save these girls, no questions asked.

Clare looked at Seto, his attacks were smooth and powerful, he killed the awakened beings, sparing the men that could control their yoki powers, even pulling them back in some cases. He was truly working as hard as he could to help the guys out, but he would still act like a warrior, as Miria had taught him. He paused as he felt Miria's yoki; she was going to need his help. He looked to his left and saw a young man get up shakily, he had been close to losing it, and Seto had tried the same move Clare'd used on him the young man pulling back thankful, Seto was glad that it had worked. The young man barely got to his feet when Clare crash tackled him and Seto could hear ribs breaking,

"Raki, Raki," Clare sobbed, the young man almost choking and wincing as Clare held him fast. He healed slowly, clearly an offensive type like Clare. Not that it bothered Seto. Raki slowly got up and looked at Seto,

"Thanks," he said slowly, once Clare had let him go. The man had pale blond hair that was in need of a cut. He looked friendly and he had a kind aura about him. Seto could see why Clare liked this guy so much that she was willing to turn the entire island over itself just to find him. It was no different to how Seto felt about Miria, and he had yet to find Miria. He couldn't really hide it that much anyway and he was sure that the others knew about it now. Clare's tears were almost gone, but Seto could sense a deep satisfaction in her yoki, she was glad to have found Raki even if he was a half yoma. She wouldn't be mad at Raki, but he could see that she was mad at someone else, that someone else Seto knew he was going to get himself.

"It was nothing," Seto turned away and looked towards Sutafu; he could sense something that Clare and Raki couldn't. He was more focused on the task that was at hand and he knew that Miria was leading the younger warriors against their former masters. He looked at the rest of the group,

"We should hurry; it seems that our comrades may be in danger," he told them, pausing mentally as he realised that he was talking like Miria, but moving forward all the same, the purpose was the same anyway. The others hastened to follow him as Seto followed his senses. Raki easily kept up with Seto and it was clear to the others that Raki was like Seto, a warrior in a strange way. Seto guessed that Raki had at one point actually been trained as a warrior, which was interesting to note. However Seto knew that he had work to do and his focus kicked in. He wasn't going to let Miria down.

Meanwhile the fight between Miria and the abyssal feeders ran on and on. Miria didn't know why but it felt like she was being slowly drained of power and strength, and she didn't know why. She almost fell over with weariness, but forced herself to stand up and fight. The others were fighting as hard as they could to take out the damned creatures that they were up against. Miria looked to see which groups would need her help and jumped in to Audrey's group to support them. She slammed in to the monster and took off its head before it knew what hit it. Miria felt her body want to keep falling but the younger warriors needed her. She kicked off the ground hard and moved to the next group. The warriors seemed to ride on Miria's movements, fighting like their lives depended on making Miria proud. She didn't know why but she felt an odd feeling, like something was going to happen and she would need Seto more than ever before. They were lucky that the twins were taking care of the rest of the trainees, or else Miria would be having a fit. Her blade slammed through yet another neck and she wanted to sigh. She had counted at least twelve of the creatures and it was hard to tell which ones were dead or alive. She had noticed that they slowly learned how to combat the warriors and Miria drew in a deep breath when suddenly the last of the monsters fell, leaving Miria free to see how the others were fairing, and barely enough time to doge the attack that would have killed her. as it was Miria dodged to the side of the strange warrior, only to have the woman right alongside of her, the warrior's pale blond hair swaying in the wind as Miria jumped and dodged, leaping high flipping and landing on to the ground with a smooth thud. She looked up at the warrior and realised that she knew who the warrior was, a warrior that was very elegant and one that Miria had admired since she first read about her. Miria's eyes widened in surprise and she jumped away as the woman's next attack came. Miria focused on using as little of her yoki as possible, and as much base speed as possible. Miria landed a blow to the warrior's shoulder and the warrior cursed loudly. Miria gazed in to the strange silver eyes, something was clearly wrong with the warrior.

Again and again Hysteria tried to strike down the damned warrior, her annoyance was beyond anything that was to be measured. The warrior seemed to know her in some way, as the expression on her face had been one of pure surprise. Hysteria had felt that it was her chance, but the warrior stepped aside as she struck, cutting in to Hysteria's shoulder deeply.

"FUCK!" Hysteria cursed, no one had cut her even once. She looked at the warrior and felt the strangest of things. She realised that she didn't even know her own name, and that the rest of her head was hazy, she had no idea what was going on and she couldn't recall why she had the feeling that she had to kill the warriors that were here. Yet when she looked at that warrior, she felt something. She didn't know what it was but she actually felt something.

The rest of the warriors paused and stared as the two "phantoms" battled it out, for Audrey it was the most amazing sight, Hysteria pushing her yoki up in a way that Miria's didn't. It was as if Miria was the faster with her base speed than Hysteria. All the younger warriors stared as Miria slashed Hysteria across the chest, only to have Roxanne and Cassandra the Dusteater after her. Miria jumped and cut Roxanne down, dodging Cassandra's sword technique and slashing Cassandra's back. Miria slid and almost fell over, as if she was exhausted. It was then that something happened. Miria turned swiftly and then she grabbed the closest girls and threw them away, barely dodging the awakening Cassandra by a hair's breadth. She managed to get the weaker warriors away before the other two warriors awakened. She forced herself to be at the ready, stopping one of Cassandra's heads as it flung towards the younger warriors. Some of the lower ranked warriors were freezing up with fear. Miria knew what she had to do,

"Don't freeze up, get the trainees and get as far away as you can!" Miria cried, "I'll hold them back!"

The warriors backed away, but they refused to leave Miria to face the three beings on her own as she was proposing to do. A harsh wind blew across Sutafu and Miria felt a deep yoki head towards them. She knew that it was Seto, and he wasn't alone, he had the rest of her comrades from the north with him. Miria managed to dodge by a hair's breadth the attack that came from Cassandra when a powerful being intercepted. Miria knew at once that it was Alicia, and she watched in sickened fascination as Alicia's awakened blades moved to cut Cassandra apart. Miria looked around her and noticed that Seto wasn't far behind; Beth alongside him looking determined to do some damage. Miria had only half a second to realise what was going on before Seto pulled her in to his arms, embracing her. She instinctively leant into it, not knowing why she did in the first place, as impulsive as it was it felt right. She could feel his right arm swing the claymore that he carried, swiftly killing the three awakened beings that had been three former Number 1s that had given Miria hell. She felt weak and knew that she didn't have much left in her. She fell and the world was black once more.

"Miria," he murmured, she rested in his arms, sleeping. He carefully harmonized his yoki with Miria's but she was just too tired and drained to respond to him. He put her blade on the left and sheathed his own sword. He then picked Miria up and carried her. He knew what she had tried to do, and he would make sure that he finished what she'd started. He carried her away as the rest of the warriors all caught up to the carnage that was three creatures of the abyss.

Helen looked around for Seto and Miria, but she couldn't see either. Alicia and Beth went to race away but were stopped by the younger warriors who'd never actually seen them. Deneve would have gotten away, but they were surrounded by the younger warriors. Helen had to endure what felt like hours of questions before they were able to go. By the time they got in to the buildings that made up Sutafu it was an absolute blood bath. Men lay in pieces and as Helen followed the trail of blood she came across Rubel. They were lucky that Raki had Clare's right arm or else she'd've done something to the old man before they found out where Miria and Seto were. He told them what had happened and Clare smashed him with her left hand, smashing his skull and making him bleed all over the floor. Rubel died by Clare's final blow and the rest of the warriors followed the trail of blood. Raki looked at Clare and then Helen shrugged, "We all want to get our handlers back," Helen said, "I guess that Clare has been wanting to do that for years, right Clare?"

Clare just looked stoically at Helen, her face impassive. Raki tilted his head and then he looked elsewhere. He didn't understand and he felt that it was best that he stayed out of it. It wasn't his place to comment on it.

Seto balanced his sword and calmly rested close to Miria, she was resting, her breathing deep and even. A slight smile crossed his face as he thought about the small yoki that they had both felt. Miria hadn't been too surprised; she explained that she thought as much, based on deduction and reading the archives had helped. He smiled to himself for a small while, but the smile disappeared as he sensed Helen and the others heading towards them. All they had really wanted was some peace, but he guessed that whatever the others wanted it was important to say the least. He sighed, thinking about the close call that he'd had. Just thinking about it sent shivers down his spine; Miria had been surprised that he'd pulled back, but she was glad in the same token. He'd laid Miria on the bed and she'd fallen asleep, while he sat alongside her, resting on the uneven ground next to her. In all the time that he'd known her, Miria hadn't really changed. He closed his eyes and decided that he should get some rest too, especially since Miria suggested that it might be a good idea.

The ground shifted and moved, slowly changing and the wind flowed over it, he ran looking for his younger brother like always. As he ran he saw a figure up ahead,

"Mokuba!" he cried, "Mokuba,"

The figure suddenly turned,

"Seto," the boy ran to him, "Seto, where are you, big brother?"

"Mokuba!" Seto called, "I'm here, Mokuba!"

The young boy walked towards the sound of his voice. He froze when he saw Seto then he ran forward crying,

"Seto," he sobbed, "I missed you, why is your hair so different, what happened?"

Seto went to respond to his little brother when the wind blew fiercer, it knocked both of them and Seto fell, Mokuba's grip failed and Seto fell back. He cried out to his younger brother, but the wind took his words away, the gale cutting deeply into sun and the whole world turned away from him, pushing him further away from Mokuba. He was scared for his younger brother, whose voice was fading away. Seto yelled as loud as he could but it wasn't enough. Mokuba would never hear him again, not even in his dreams.

He woke with a start, he had his back against his sword and he realised that he'd had that dream again. The one in which Mokuba featured in since he'd come in to this strange world. He sighed and wondered what he was thinking about Mokuba for when it was clear that there was no way that he'd ever see the boy again. He got up quickly, Miria was on the bed still, her eyes were open, but she looked tired. It was in that moment that Helen chose to storm in, slamming the door almost off the hinges,

"Wake up sleepy heads!" Helen yelled

Miria glared at Helen and she slowly got up. Helen tilted her head and then found herself backing away, though she didn't know why. Once she was out of ear shot Miria took Seto's arm and they both left the room. There was no real need to worry about what was going to happen next…almost. Seto and Miria both headed out to where the rest of the warriors were, Miria sighed and lent on Seto, relaxed and tired at the same time. As they looked around them it was clear that all of the warriors and trainees had been talking and mixing. A longhaired warrior looked like she was trying to heal up wounds in her body. Seto looked to Miria as he didn't know what the next course of action was going to be. Miria looked at him and he felt her shrug,

"Take it as it is," she said softly, "we'll need everyone's help to clear the island,"

He nodded and looked sadly at the young girls. He felt that killing the men hadn't been enough; it would never repay the pain and suffering that the girls went through. He looked away and happened to meet Deneve's eyes. She looked at him with an unreadable expression and he sighed. To him the real troubles had only just begun. He didn't know if it was just him, or what Miria planned to do now. He would move forwards with her as his future now lay here in this would. Who knew what was going to happen next. Seto felt the small yoki stir a little, but it lowered just as quickly. Whatever happened everyone would now face it together.