At the start of their journey, she had taken them to a smaller town, buying a small pack, food and a couple blankets. The girl was pinching the money, going for food that wouldn't spoil and was also cheapest. Whenever he attempted to help, she would smack his hands away and continue working herself. And now...
"Sumire! Sumire! Where are you?" Ikuro spun on his heel, looking for the small girl. She had disappeared on him, yet again. The two of them had been walking for hours. While Sumire had often popped in and out of his sight, it was never for this long. And he was starting to get worried. This terrain only made him more cautious. The hills limited his sight range and the thick forest allowed any enemies easy cover. While the setting itself, with the gentle breeze and filtered light, was relaxing, Ikuro was only getting more and more anxious.
"Sumire!" he roared.
"What?" her voice snapped back. He turned to his right, and there she was, standing just below the crest of the hill. Her tone conveyed annoyance, but she bounced giddily. "Come on. You need to see this," she topped the hill and kept going, quickly vanishing.
"Sumire!" Ikuro cried, once again left behind. He hurried catch up with her. She moves so fast! Why can't she wait for me? At the top of the hill, the trees abruptly stop. A few meters down the incline, Sumire crouched next to a worn dirt path. Running the middle was a strip of patchy grass while the furrows were rock and dirt. Like she had a habit of doing, Sumire spoke without looking at him.
"This is pretty good. There is still traffic around this area, but not enough to cause alarm. Let's walk along here for a bit. I want to see how active this is, and to see if there are any towns and such around the area. And it'll be easier to move. We'll go farther walking along this than is we will on the hills. Is that alright with you?" she finally looked at him when she asked the question. Although Ikuro got the feeling she was doing all of this for his benefit, not for the reasons she listed, he nodded. Even if it was embarrassing that she thought she had to take it easy on him, he wasn't going to complain. Perhaps she would stop disappearing on him if they walked along here. He hoped so. And he may be able to get more answers from her.
The girl had already set off, walking in one of the furrows. Trotting to her side, Ikuro kept pace in the other rut. It was silent, other than the scuffing of their feet, the wind in the trees and birds in the air. All was at peace. Beautiful place. I'm sure there will be some people living or working here. Even if it is only one. He kicked at a large pebble, watching it skip away, and then kicking again. It rolled over the grassy divide into Sumire's path. Not breaking stride, she kicked the rock back. This game continued as the minutes continued to pass by.
"Hey, Sumire?" Ikuro asked, breaking the quiet.
"Um hm," she kicked the rock back to him.
"What happened at Judas?"
"You don't remember?" she looked quizzically at him. Shaking his head no, Ikuro nudged the rock to her rut. She sighed. "Well, not much can be said. I got myself kidnapped, you came and got me. You fought the bosses. You let me escape and then blow the place to kingdom come. I don't know specific details myself, I wasn't there for the last bit. But the blowing the base up was what kil-" she stumbled over the word. Taking a deep breath she continued. "That's how you ended up in the water."
"I see. And how did you find granny and grandpa again?"
Sumire was quiet, focusing on her feet. Kicking the pebble with too much force, it skittered off of their path. She didn't seem to mind the loss of the rock and their game. Ikuro waited patiently for her to say something, but the silence continued to stretch. Once he realized she wasn't going to answer, Ikuro decided to change the subject.
"Never mind that. Do you think Judas is going to catch up to us?"
Sumire shrugged. "I don't know. Judas has changed. They've got more than just skilled assassins on their side now. I'm not the only person with naturally occurring psychic abilities. They have others. Not to mention, funding, personnel and plenty of satellites and access to track us almost everywhere. All I've learned in the past eight, well, seven, years is that I always have to stay on my toes. Otherwise, Judas will catch me again. Of course, with you back, their interest in me will die down. But then again, with you traveling with me, they still will chase me."
"I'm sorry about that Sumire," Ikuro muttered, feeling a bit guilty. She shook her head.
"No. Don't be. Once they get you, they'd return for me. No matter what, I will always be on Judas' radar. And although having you around might make it a little more dangerous, you make up for it with Baoh. Simple equations. Working as a team will be beneficial to us both. Does that make sense?"
"I suppose," his answer came slowly, still not quite buying her logic. She shrugged indifferently.
"Is there anything else I can fill in for you?"
He thought for a moment before sighing. "No. The rest of the gaps in my memory are from before I meet you. But they are slowly coming to surface, so it doesn't matter."
"I see," as she walked, her feet lightly scuffed at the dirt underneath them. Several times, it appeared that she wanted to speak up, but opted for silence. Ikuro didn't help any. He kept his eyes pointed at his shoes, slowly getting dirty from the road.
Hours passed, the sun fell in the sky, coming to a halt just above the horizon. Other than the short burst of discussion at the beginning of their road walk, barely three words passed between them. They had managed to resume their game with the rock when Sumire came across another pebble. This had entertained them for another hour before Sumire missed the mass on one kick. Neither cared enough to pause to retrieve the rock and their game ended. All other time was spent observing the scenery and looking forward on the road. No one passed them in that entire time. Something that Ikuro judged was good as Sumire's shoulder's slowly relaxed each hour.
They happened on a relatively flat area. The plant life ran rampant, slowly consuming the road. Sumire kept leading, even without the road, and so Ikuro followed. All was well until Sumire pitched forward and disappeared in the grass.
"Sumire?" Ikuro rushed forward. Her annoyed groan greeted him.
"I'm fine, just tripped on a rock," she kicked the offending mass and it let out a metallic ring.
"That's not a rock," Ikuro frowned. Sumire twisted to look around. Obviously spotting something in the distance, she sprang to her feet.
"Come on, Ikuro," she grabbed his wrist and tugged him after herself. It was only a few steps before he realized what she was heading to. A junk yard? All the way out here? Indeed, as the pair got closer mounds of rusted metal and other thrown out items rose from the grass. All strewn out across the small area, just on the edge of a new hill and forest, the trash rose out of the plant life. As they walked through the miniature junk yard, Ikuro noticed that the farther in they walked the less vegetation they had to wade through. By the time they reached the center, the ground was barren, save for a few stubborn weeds.
"I think that we can stay here for the night. It's secluded, but still open. It'll work fine," she dropped her burden, digging through it. In a moment, a yellow green orb flew towards his head. Snatching it out of the air, he paused to see what she had given him. An apple. Delicious, he thought, biting into it. Sumire had her own apple stuck in her mouth as she continued to dig in the bag. She first withdrew their bag of clothes, and then she slowly pulled out two blankets.
After laying out the blankets a few feet from each other, she wandered around the dump site, picking up stones. She returned and arranged them in a decent sized circle. Completing that task she stood and left for the forest. Ikuro sat on his blanket, slowly eating his apple. It was a few minutes before Sumire returned with an armload of wood. Dropping it, she ran back the way she came with another armload. Ikuro stood to help her, but she pushed him back down.
"Stay here. If you aren't here than I know to worry, however, if I were to allow you to wander around, I might lose you without knowing it. I'd rather that not happen."
And so Ikuro sat guiltily on his blanket as Sumire ran between the forest and campsite. Each of her trips grew steadily longer. Finally she returned with a load half the size of her previous trips she seemed content with her mound of wood. Skillfully she formed a teepee of wood and kindling before striking a match and resting it in the center. For a moment Ikuro didn't think that it would work. But Sumire kept the match in the center and eventually it caught on fire. A little coaxing and soon a fire let out waves of heat.
The two sat in silence. It seemed that nothing else could be said between the two. For a while they merely ate their apples and few other snacks that Sumire had bought. The fire spat up orange sparks as she added a few more logs. The silence was awkward, but comfortable at the same time. Ikuro had no more questions to ask, though he was sure that Sumire would easily answer whatever he asked. I guess she has been preparing for this for the past seven or so years.
Their shadows flickered and jumped as the fire rose and fell. The moon crawled its way through the sky nearly full. It cast another, steadier light source on the two. Their meals had been polished off long ago, but neither seemed willing to be the first to bed. However, with the moon almost directly above their heads, Sumire finally stood. She stretched her back cracking as she moved. Sighing contentedly she relaxed her shoulders, allowing herself to stoop a little. A few more pieces were tossed onto the fire before she dropped onto her blanket.
"I think that we both should be getting some sleep. We'll keep moving tomorrow. If you are going to wait to go to bed, toss a few more sticks on before you do," she covered a yawn and turned her back to him, curling up under the blanket. Ikuro stayed where he was for a few more minutes, staring into the fire. The pulsating heat expelled the bugs, so he didn't need to worry about that. He looked up, partially blinded by the firelight, at Sumire's back. Her side rose slightly as she breathed. How can she be so comfortable, so fast? He wondered. Then again, he realized, she's been doing this for so long already. It's not really all that surprising.
The moon had hardly moved when Ikuro tossed a few more logs on the fire. Spitting back sparks, it flared for a moment before receding. Ikuro stretched out on his blanket. It provided a bit of padding against the hard ground, but he still needed to be careful or else he'd be jabbed in the back by rocks. At least I hope it's just rocks. He stared at the stars, basking in the overbearing warmth of the fire, before slipping into blackness.
A sharp pain in Ikuro's side jolted him awake. He startled up with a muffled cry of pain. It took a moment for him to properly wake up and focus on the body in front of him. Sumire had a hand clasped over his mouth.
"Sorry," her whisper was barely audible. She didn't say anything else, but help a finger over her lips and removed her hand from his. Pointing over his chest, past where she had slept, she stood. A dark glint drew Ikuro's eyes to Sumire's hand. Casually held, was the gun he had seen her use on the train. I thought she had gotten rid of that! He cast a glance at Sumire's face, one that morphed into shock as he saw it. Her mouth was turned into a deep scowl, her eyes snapped with fury and hatred. The girl's body almost trembled with anticipation. The only sound that could be made out was the cracking of wood as it burned. Sumire's voice finally rang out.
"I know you are there. Show yourself! Who are you?" Nothing moved. Nothing was heard. For a moment Ikuro believed that Sumire was just imagining things. Suddenly, she brought her gun up and fired a shot into the dark. A surprised shout rose outside the ring of light from the dying fire.
"Sumire!" Ikuro leapt to his feet, pushing at her gun arm, forcing her to lower it. "That's way too extreme! Take it easy!"
The girl's eyes slid to meet his, pinning him with a fierce glare. Releasing her arm, he watched as she raised the weapon again.
"I missed on purpose. Now show yourself!"
"Alright!" a frightened voice peeped up. "Just don't shoot!" A shadow began to form, melting away to reveal a male seeming to be in his mid twenties. Sumire stepped around the fire, keeping the gun trained on the man's head at all times.
"Who are you? Why are you here?" she demanded. The man was visibly shaking as he stared at the dark eyes of the girl.
"I only know that my name is Kyo. That's all I know" the man was on the verge of falling to his knees, begging forgiveness for doing nothing. After a moment, Sumire reluctantly let her gun rest, falling to her side. The man, Kyo relaxed. Ikuro himself let out a breath of relief.
"You're sloppy," Sumire's voice snapped, a loud crack followed, echoing in the silence. Kyo's body fell to the ground, his shirt darkening with blood. Ikuro stared horrified at Sumire. He seized her shoulder, spinning her around to face him.
"What the hell did you do that for?!" he roared. She seemed slight taken aback by his outburst. For a moment she was silent, her eyes flicking across his face, as if looking for something. Before he started yelling again, she spoke.
"It was clear in his mind. He was from Judas. An agent sent here to finish you off. As well as kill whoever was with you. He was a threat to us both. And now I know how close they are. We need to go. Now," her tone cut through his vehemence and she shoved him away.
"You know," another voice joined them, cool and measured. "When you shoot someone, make sure it is fatal."
The two whipped around as the body of Kyo lurched to his feet.
"That's-That's not possible! That shot was to your heart!" Sumire said, thunderstruck.
"Next time," he raised a hand to point to Ikuro, "Kill me like you would kill him.
"You're a Boah?" Ikuro asked. Those madmen made more?
"Hm… Think Baoh two point oh. Meet the new and improved Baoh. What do you think about that?" He stretched out his arms.
"I think that I can kill you."
Surprised, Ikuro turned to Sumire. She had her gun up again. The Baoh inside Ikuro surged. Her murderous intent was rising. He cast a panicked look at her.
"Ikuro, you think you can control the Baoh. Then do it!" she let off a shot. Kyo seemed to teleport as he moved. He dodged her bullet and was on her in a second. She sucked in a shocked breath, propelling herself away from him. He trailed after her with disturbing ease. Continuing to back up she brought her gun up again.
"You should know that won't work," he smiled darkly. With a casual backhand, he directed her gun upwards. His other hand shot out, a palm strike, knocking her away by a good ten feet. She sprawled on the ground, coughing into the dust.
"Ikuro!" she demanded, strong for someone who flew ten feet before rolling to a stop.
"Ah, yes," the second Baoh seemed to remember him; "I suppose you should be my first priority."
Ikuro took a step back under that look. Even if Baoh was released, he wasn't sure if it would listen to him.
"Ikuro!" Sumire's voice cut in, "Change! Now!"
Suddenly a torrent of murderous intent roiled off of Sumire. She lunged forward, connecting solidly with Kyo's waist. The two tumbled forward, trading blows. Even if he didn't want the Baoh to be released, it was. Suddenly, his own consciousness was shuttled back. He could still see what was happening, but he was detached completely.
The Baoh reached for the writhing mass. Pulling the two apart, Baoh held them by their necks. Sumire strained, pulling at the ever tightening hold on her throat, kicking out, but still missing. Kyo however seemed to just hang there.
It's not Sumire! Leave Sumire alone! She won't hurt us! Ikuro's own mind fought against the Baoh. He knew he was winning as the death grip on Sumire loosened slightly. Then more. Finally she slip out of his hand and folded on herself, raking in ragged breath after ragged breath. The hand that had held her trembled. She still had so much murder about her. The Baoh still wanted to kill her.
"I must say," Kyo wheezed, his own windpipe still restricted, "Your intent is quite delicious, Sumire. And Ikuro. Your Baoh is impressive. For a prototype." Kyo's body convulsed. His skin turned to armor, his eyes glossed over. You mean he wasn't transformed? Ikuro wondered, mentally gaping at this new occurrence. The second Baoh seized Ikuro Baoh's arm in both hands. A sharp move and the arm broke in two places. Forced to release his prey, Ikuro Baoh stepped back, taking a moment to rearrange his arm back into place.
"What do you think?" Kyo Baoh spoke up again. "Judas improved the Baoh. I am in control. I don't need any intent to change. And I have more of the abilities while still in my human form. Oh, and one more thing," in one smooth move he closed the distance and connected a fist with Ikuro Baoh's cheek. "I'm more powerful."
Ikuro Baoh stumbled away, turning to face Kyo only to be kicked in the back. He's fast! Ikuro Baoh spun around to face Kyo only to see nothing. Faster than I am! The other Baoh was again behind him, wrapping his arm around Ikuro Baoh's neck. Something sharp pressed into Ikuro Baoh's neck. Blades! He can do that too? Ikuro's Baoh responded. His own arm blades sprouted and he stabbed backwards. There was more resistance than there normally was. But he was going against another Baoh.
Kyo Baoh released him, stepping away. More blood soaked his shirt from his new wound. However, it was already closing. Ikuro wanted to examine his own neck to see what damage had occurred there. But his Baoh had other plans. With blinding speed he attacked Kyo. The other Baoh easily evaded him though. Each attack Ikuro Baoh made Kyo Baoh merely swayed out of the way, unperturbed by the aggression. I can't hit him! Ikuro thought as his Baoh directed a blow to Kyo's head. His calm exterior never faded. Ikuro Baoh never even saw the attack that Kyo made. His knee came up, cracking a few ribs when it made contact. Ikuro Baoh skidded away. Something warm tickled his skin. Blood on a spine growing out of Kyo's knee confirmed it. The Baoh made short work of the hole in his side and soon the wound was patched up.
A lull fell between the two. It was obvious that Ikuro's Baoh was out matched. The maniacs at Judas had truly improved the Baoh parasite. Ikuro wasn't even sure if his Baoh could measure up, let alone defeat the second Baoh. Then something changed in the air. Ikuro Baoh's eyes focused on the still crumpled form of Sumire. The murderous intent was disappearing. Kyo seemed to sense it as well.
"Uh oh," Kyo tsked, "Looks like your source is running low. Ah, well. What to do, what to do?" Ikuro couldn't even track his movements. Suddenly Kyo was directly in Ikuro's face. "I suppose I should finish you off. That is why I'm here." Kyo struck Ikuro Baoh's chest, sending him careening into the nearest junk pile. If he had control, Ikuro would have roared in pain. Through his abdomen a metal shard sprouted. However, his body was merely a puppet of an unfeeling parasite. The Baoh agonizingly extracted itself from the enormous piece. His blood flowed freely from the wound, his innards were torn up plenty. Kyo didn't wait for him to heal. A blur and suddenly Kyo was in the air, bringing down a kick that struck Ikuro Baoh in the neck, flinging him away. A trail of blood tracked his progress. Kyo met him near the end of his flight. A double fisted blow to his side broke several ribs. Before he could hit the ground though, Kyo fisted his shirt and threw Ikuro Baoh into the air. As he fell to the earth, Kyo once again kicked out. A new spurt of blood shot out from his still unclosed wound as he hurtled through the air into the forest. The splintering of wood echoed after him. Kyo stood there, allowing the Baoh transformation to fade away.
"That's not going to kill him."
Kyo turned to Sumire. She had a hand around her neck, as if making sure she was alright. He gave a menacing smile.
"I know. But without murderous intent, the Baoh will fade after it heals his wounds. It will take time before he makes his way back here. It gives me plenty of time."
"To talk?" her tone made it clear that she already knew the answer. But Kyo replied anyway.
"Of course," his smile softened. With a wary look, Sumire stood. Her gun was discarded still from Ikuro's Baoh trying to kill her. She made no attempt to collect it. Instead, she kept her eyes on Kyo, hoping to track his movement. Though, he moves so fast….
As she thought that, Kyo materialized in front of her. Sumire would have fallen back if not for the grip on her throat. He dragged her closer to his face. Thankfully her feet still touched the ground. But she was still on her tip toes.
"I would like to kill you. Judas said nothing about whether they want you alive or dead. Just a slight squeeze and you'll die. Funny how humans are so small," the malicious smile crept back onto his face. She let out a little squeak as he squeezed her neck.
"I'd look down before you do anything else," she finally managed. His brow furrowed and he looked down.
"Impressive," he admitted. Her knife was poised for his heart. "I didn't even see you draw it. But that won't kill me."
"I know that," she snapped, or at least tried. She still couldn't quite breathe right. "You forget that I was the one who first met Baoh and travelled with it. I know that this won't kill you, but it will stall you. And that's all the time I ne-," the last bit was cut off as Kyo lifted her higher and she could no longer touch the ground.
"Unless I kill you first," he threatened. Gritting her teeth she moved her blade and shoved it into his chest. He gasped in pain, staring shocked at her attack. Her other hand gripped Kyo's wrist, attempting to hold herself up to continue talking.
"If I twist and tilt the knife up, I can easily shred your heart," she wheezed, starting to turn blue. Kyo didn't move. Why should he? She thought, I'm dying, he'll survive this. And he knew it too. Through her tunnel vision, she could see his dead eyes. Her eyes squeezed shut. Running out of air, she played her final card.
"Judas lied to you," her vision was blacking out when she felt ground beneath her feet again. She fell to her knees, bent into a ball her forehead resting on her forearms. Sensing Kyo dropping to a crouch in front of her, there was a sickening squelching as he withdrew the knife from his chest. He stabbed it into the barren earth.
"Nice bluff, and good try. But your logic was painfully flawed. But I'm not really going to kill you," Kyo sounded awfully relaxed. Sumire raised her head at the second Baoh vessel. He was stretched out, leaning back on his hands, staring at the sky. "It's not a fair fight. It would be no fun," he cast an almost friendly smile to her. She glared back.
"And I suppose fighting the first Baoh, obviously an outdated version, is fair? You weren't even giving it your all in that fight. You and Baoh are on completely different levels," she argued back.
"Yes. It is fair with him because he can heal himself. You, however, when you die, that's it. Game over. So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen and good night."
Sumire didn't dare move from her folded position, for fear of passing out. She was still rather light headed. "If you aren't going to kill me, then why aren't you going after Baoh? He's your target, right?" Kyo shrugged indifferently at this.
"I'll kill him," he nodded, "But you two will serve my purpose, quite nicely. At least for now."
That got Sumire's interest. Despite her better judgment, she sat up looking him in the eye.
"What do you mean by that?" she demanded, swaying a little from the sudden movement. He ignored her question, turning and continuing on a different track.
"I have a little information for you, that you may not know," that malicious smile was back. "But your friend there has an expiration date. A Baoh is not immortal. Not at all. We are much more mortal than any human."
"What?" Sumire asked, but he disappeared, leaving a few puffs of dust from where he had sat. Sumire blinked confusedly. What did he mean by the Baoh's aren't immortal? What expiration date?
*I am so sorry.
~You should be ashamed of yourself.
*It's just I have school, work, volunteer, homework, sleep, two other stories for two different friends... correction, three, and other life things that keep taking the spot of more important.
~Shame her well.
*Shut up. I feel terrible for taking so long on this. And it's rather short, I'm afraid.
~Maybe you shouldn't bite off more than you can chew.
*Just life has gotten in the way, so obviously it is going to take longer than I expected. I promise not to take so long for future chapters. In fact, I'll start writing the next chapter now. But it won't be complete in a month. It may not even be done in two months. I am truly sorry about that. So to whomever reads this, please acknowledge my apologies.
~Idiot.
*Pain. Anyway, thank you for reading! Please Read and Review! I own nothing. Original story, writing and illustration by Hirohiko Araki
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