An Eternity of Lies Ch. 6
Aiy! Thank you so much to lilnightmare17, Sanity'sRival, and Roses-of-Envy for the reviews!You reviewers make me so happy! :3 If I could I'd give you all free hugs haha I guess virtual ones will have to do :D I'm so excited that people enjoy my wonky imagination haha
"Well, as it turns out, he's only partially worthless." - Hiei
Koenma held his breath and peeked around the corner. This was the moment of truth. His father would know of his activities if he didn't dismantle the barrier around the mausoleum that held his mother's body before he retrieved it. The barrier was one of the most complicated and intricate barriers he had every seen, second only to the Kekkai Barrier. While his mother had been disgraced and torn from the royal family line, it didn't mean she would not be given a proper burial. She wasn't placed in the family tombs though. Instead, she was buried alone, in a private mausoleum right in the center of a cemetery in the human world. It was a disgraceful place to be laid to rest, especially for a person of her former status. Koenma could understand the placement though. His father had looked down on Emi from the beginning, and spirit world existed above the human world.
Koenma shook his head. Now wasn't the time to analyze his father's actions. He needed to figure out how to temporarily shut off the barrier. With steady steps he approached the force field and placed his hand against it. The barrier rippled around his hand. He took a deep breath and closed his breath. Using what little knowledge his mother passed down to him, he started breaking down the barrier layer by layer. This was definitely the work of a Takahashi he mused off handedly. His breathing quickened and he broke out into a sweat as more energy escaped him. With an anticlimactic hiss the barrier faded away.
Koenma broke into a sprint. He had to work fast, that had been too easy he thought. He popped into his teenage form mid step. He could cover more ground with his now longer strides. In moments, he was entering the mausoleum and running towards the lone casket in the middle of the tiny room. He inhaled deeply and used his energy to push the casket cover off. His gaze softened when it fell upon his mother's serene face. She looked as if she were sleeping instead of being tormented in a maze full of criminals. He carefully slid his hands under her back and knees. With a quick jerk he lifted her body into his arms and walked towards the door. He rejoiced, he would be with his mother soon.
With one last step, he passed over the doorway once more. There was a moment of complete silence, and then the sirens went off. Koenma cradled his mother's body and broke into a sprint. A dozen streams of light flew over his head and landed in front of him. Koenma stopped in his tracks and glared at the twelve members of the Spirit World Special Defense Force. He grit his teeth and held his mother tighter. His father's best soldiers were here, things were going to get messy.
"Prince Koenma, you are under arrest for trying to resurrect a known criminal and enemy to the King," the captain announced emotionlessly.
"She isn't a criminal," Koenma retorted.
"You are blinded. Even in death she is able to corrupt your mind," the captain murmured solemnly," her poison runs deep in you."
"How dare you even imply that she could have such ill intentions," Koenma hissed.
"It doesn't matter if you agree with us or not. By King Enma's orders, anyone trying to retrieve her body is to be eradicated along with it, so no further attempts can be made," the captain said with an air of importance.
"Even his own son?" Koenma questioned angrily.
"Yes, you have crossed the line many times before, it seems this time you have crossed too far," the captain sneered," I will gladly rid the royal family of a blemish such as yourself."
"I dare you to try," Koenma challenged.
The SDF chose not to answer and instead trained their palms on Koenma. Their gathering energy lit up the sky and their combined energy formed into a large orb the size of a car. Koenma eyed the growing orb with a critical eye. He didn't know if the barriers he could make would stand up to such a blow, but he had to try. Gathering his energy, he formed a tightly packed barrier around himself and his mother. He hugged her to his chest and turned his back to the SDF. If the blast made it through the barrier, he was willing to use his body as a last defense.
"Stop right there," a loud voice proclaimed from the far left," anyone who wishes to hurt Lord Koenma must get through us first."
The SDF faltered and looked around for the owner of the voice, but saw no one. They heard shuffling near Koenma and quickly trained their palms back in his direction. Out of thin air, a large blue ogre in mismatched armor shimmered into existence.
"George!" Koenma exclaimed," What are you doing here? How did you know where I was?"
"Koenma sir, when you didn't come back from your afternoon nap I got worried," George explained," You weren't in your room either, and I thought you were kidnapped."
George fell to his knees and held onto the bottom of Koenma's robes. His eyes were filled with tears as he wrapped his arms around Koenma's legs. Koenma swayed dangerously as his balance was disrupted.
"Don't scare me like that again," George said frantically.
"Okay, okay," Koenma placated," I won't, now get off me."
The SDF stood on the sidelines with varying expressions of disbelief on their faces. In front of them Koenma had fallen to the ground and was using one hand to secure his mother, and the other to push against George's forehead. George was still relentlessly clinging to Koenma's legs as if they were his lifeline. The captain cleared his throat and tried to gain control of the situation.
"Step aside ogre, and we might just spare you," the captain spoke loudly.
Both Koenma and George froze in shock. They had completely forgotten about the SDF. With a quick kick, Koenma had George off him. George scrambled to his feet, and placed himself in front of Koenma.
"So you have made your choice," the captain sneered," Then join the disgraceful prince in death."
"George, you don't have to do this," Koenma murmured," Your life isn't worth throwing away for something you aren't even involved in."
"Lord Koenma, as your right hand man anything that involves you involves me, "George stated with conviction," and when I vowed to be your underling, I vowed to protect you with my life."
Koenma gazed at George's back, and felt a small sense of hope despite the dismal situation. His eyes strayed to the sword George was wielding. It looked familiar and it was giving off an evil aura.
"George…where did you get that sword," Koenma asked gritting his teeth.
"Oh this old thing" George said sheepishly," when I found out you were gone I followed you to the theater. And when I heard your plans I raided the vaults before finding you."
"You what?" Koenma screamed," That's the demon sword you're carrying. Do you know how dangerous that is!"
"I do sir," George stated solemnly," but we both know I'm too weak to take on even one member of the SDF. Maybe with this sword I'll have a chance. Besides, I'm not the only one here."
The SDF startled at these words. Their eyes darting around the area, but they could see no one around them.
"Your bluff will only buy you so much time," the captain said angrily.
"I'm not lying," George screamed," If you support Koenma show yourself now."
Silence met his words, and an ominous wind blew through the cemetery. George clenched his teeth and tightened his grip around the hilt of the sword.
"Wait how does this thing work again?" A voice called from the right.
"You push the button, you idiot," another answered.
"What do you think I've been doing? There's more than one" a third voice snarled.
"Oh! It's the button on the bottom guys," a fourth screamed.
Suddenly the area around Koenma shimmered and warped. Large groups of ogres started appearing out of thin air. They were all fitted in old armor they had picked up from the vaults, and armed with any weapons they could find. Each group of ogre's stood in a circle, their hands touching a clear sphere filled with a silvery liquid that looked like mercury. As one they spread out and lined up in front of Koenma and faced the SDF. When they stopped moving, they numbered at over two hundred.
"We ogre's were always looked down on, but instead of shunning us, you gave us a purpose," George said facing Koenma.
"I'm surprised we weren't fired after all the mess-ups," a red ogre chimed in.
"That was all you," a green ogre retorted.
Koenma let out a disbelieving laugh. His eyes watered and he looked to the ground. A blue hand entered his line of vision, and when he looked up, he saw George smiling at him. Koenma smiled back and took his hand. George pulled him up and placed one of the clear spheres in Koenma's hand.
"We are all here to fight Koenma sir," George said," If we die, at least we die knowing you live to reform spirit world. The sphere will hide your presence so you can escape in the chaos."
"George, thank you." Koenma said quietly.
"Don't thank me, just promise our sacrifice won't be in vain," George grinned.
"I promise," Koenma nodded.
He stood behind the ogres with a new resolve. Emi's small body was once again cradled in his arms, and his finger was placed on top of the button on the sphere he held.
"You know," Koenma said," I never told you this, but I think you're the coolest ogre I know."
George stared at Koenma in disbelief. His eyes watered and he quickly turned away so Koenma wouldn't see him cry. To think, the first and last time his boss would compliment him would be the day he died.
"On three boss," George murmured," It was fun working with you."
"Yeah," Koenma replied just as quietly.
"One," George whispered.
"Two," Koenma said louder.
"Three," George shouted," Charge!"
The mob of ogre's let out their own respective war cries and ran at the SDF. At the same time, Koenma pressed the button and vanished from sight. He took off at a sprint, dodging bodies and zigzagging towards the exit. There were some narrow misses, but after what seemed to be an eternity he reached the very edges of the cemetery. The sound of swords clashing was getting quieter as he ran, but the screams seemed to echo through his brain. He grit his teeth and kept going. This wasn't the time to mourn, he could do that later. Right now he had to take full advantage of the opportunity they had given him.
His lungs burned and with relief he ran through the gates of the cemetery and made a quick left. He tried to keep his breathing and footsteps as quiet as possible, the sphere could hide his energy and image, but sound was a different story. He turned into an alleyway and clicked the button. Botan screamed at Koenma's sudden appearance.
"No time to explain," Koenma exclaimed breathlessly," We need to go, now!"
Botan summoned her oar quickly and jumped on. Koenma slid on after, holding Emi to his chest. They took off into the air at full speed. A blast of white energy flew past them, and Botan swerved harshly to avoid it. Koenma looked down at the ground and grit his teeth at the pursuing defense force. He placed the invisibility sphere against Botan's back and activated it once more. With a shimmer they vanished from sight and the SDF stopped their pursuit. Koenma knew they would be reporting to Enma soon, and he would be labeled an outlaw. At this moment though, he could care less. He rested his forehead against Botan's back and held back his tears. Botan stayed silent and let him use her as support. George wouldn't be coming back Koenma thought. He had to fulfill his promise. He just had to. But first, to find a safe hideout until the boys returned with his mother's soul.
Kuwabara hacked at a large mole demon. He had already cut down three of them, but there were more to take its place. Not to mention, the moles had somehow figured out a way to tunnel underneath their feet. Yusuke was a few feet away battling his own set of moles. They had unluckily stumbled into a large colony of the ground dwellers, and were now partaking in a larger than life version of whack-a-mole.
"We are walking on stone floors!" Kuwabara grumbled," How in the hell are they tunneling through it?"
"Since when did anything make sense when it came to the spirit world?" Yusuke retorted," Just keep killing them."
"What do you think I've been doing?" Kuwabara shouted.
Yusuke grunted as he punched out another mole.
"This is taking too long," Yusuke roared in annoyance," Kuwabara duck."
Yusuke let loose his shotgun, and Kuwabara covered his neck and hit the floor just in time. He could feel the tips of his hair singe from the energy that passed over his head. After the light faded he lifted his head and got up. The moles they had been fighting now lay motionless and burnt. In a moment, shadowy tendrils were leaking from the walls and dragging away the body parts.
"I don't think I'm ever going to get used to that," Kuwabara said offhandedly.
"Yeah," Yusuke agreed.
One of the tendrils came out and grabbed Yusuke's ankle. With a shout he tried to pull his leg back, but the tendril was holding tight.
"Hey! I ain't food," Yusuke shouted before shooting it with his spirit gun.
The tendril remained unaffected and yanked Yusuke off his feet and proceeded to drag him towards the shadows by the wall.
"Urameshi!" Kuwabara screamed.
He ran after Yusuke and desperately brought his sword down onto the tendril. The tendril gave a high pitch scream before shriveling up and dissolving into the air. Both boys stared at where the shadow once was. Yusuke panted deeply and met eyes with Kuwabara.
"What the hell?" Yusuke's voice echoed down the hall.
Kurama and Hiei walked down the hall wearily towards what seemed to be a black cave. They were on high alert, but the only way was forward, and so they continued. They passed through the cave entrance, and what they walked into was a wide field of yellow daisies. A lake could be seen a few feet away, and green hills stretched out in the distance. Kurama looked around warily, he took a few sniffs, something didn't smell right. He turned when he heard a voice call his name. A figure was approaching in the distance, and with a start he realized it was his mother. His mind clicked and he realized what the smell was. It was the sticky sweet smell of a man-eating plant from the demon world. The scent it gave off caused hallucinations and paralysis. While the victim was incapacitated, the plant would swallow its victim, who would then dissolve in its stomach never knowing they had died.
Kurama held his breath and spread his energy around him. He closed his eyes and willed the plant to release its hold on him. When he opened his eyes he was back in the hall in front of the cave that he now knew to be the plant's mouth. He looked closer, and could make out the outlines of the dark purple petals surrounding said mouth. Hiei was farther in front of him, his eyes wide and unblinking. With a start, Kurama realized Hiei was still trapped in a hallucination. The flower was inching closer, and with one movement it fell towards Hiei, ready to swallow him whole. Kurama summoned his whip and dragged Hiei away just in time. The plant came crashing down, and when it hit nothing it returned to its spot. Its petals were now folded overlapping over its mouth and it sat waiting, content to wait for the next unsuspecting passerby. Kurama was glad the plant wasn't of the violent sort, but he had bigger things to worry about. The pain from the thorns of his whip weren't enough to wake Hiei up. He must have been more effected than Kurama had first thought.
Hiei took a deep breath and reveled in the smell of blood and burning flesh. A vast desert stretched before him and each step he took kicked up a bit of sand. The sand, strangely enough, was a reddish brown color. It was said that a great battle took place centuries ago, and the sand was forever dyed from the spilt blood. Hiei could care less about the history though, he was pissed off, and the sand seeping into his clothes did nothing to relieve his anger. A group of bandits had tried to kill him for his mother's tear gem again. This time they had been smarter and had tried to ambush him as a group. Too bad they were so weak. Hiei scoffed and kicked one of the bodies over. That hadn't been much of a workout, and now he was in a bad mood.
Emi stared apprehensively out the carriage window. Her face was set into a deep frown behind the veil she was forced to wear. It had been four days since Enma had sent her to strengthen and revamp the current barrier between the demon and human worlds. While the idea behind the task was good, she knew Enma had an ulterior motive. The night before she had overheard the head guard talking to Enma about an assassination attempt. While she hadn't been able to make out the entire conversation, the snippets were enough for her to piece together her husbands true motives. If she really thought about it, it was a good idea. The people of spirit world hated demons, so they would never suspect the king of associating with them. Let alone, hiring them to kill his wife. The entirety of Spirit World would see it as a crime against the royal family, and their animosity would grow. It truly was a perfect set up.
Emi's eyes shifted to the back of the leading guard's head. She assumed the entire caravan was in on the plan, and wondered if she should make a run for it. Not that she would make it very far. She had been forced to wear a many-layered kimono and a pair of geta. Making a run in her get-up was akin to suicide, and she knew it. But she couldn't just sit in the rickshaw and wait could she? The rickshaw came to a sudden stop, and Emi gripped the sides for balance. Before her was a wide expanse of red sand as far as the eye could see. Her grip tightened. Was this where she would die?
"Why have we stopped?" Emi questioned, hiding the quiver in her voice.
"My apologies my lady, it seems my men are not used to traveling the desert and have tired out themselves," the guard said with a bow," If it isn't too much trouble, we request a moments rest."
"I suppose it will be alright," Emi replied uncertainly.
They were stalling, Emi was sure of it. This must be the meeting place the demons and Enma had decided on she thought. How fitting, that her blood would soak in these sands, to mingle with the blood of the most hated enemies of spirit world. Emi shook her head. Don't think of such morbid thoughts yet, you can still escape she thought. But, how? Her eyes darted around her, from the guard to the open expanse of desert. She could run, and if by some miracle she escaped, would she not be killed by another demon? She clenched her eyes shut. She was Takahashi Emi, she couldn't give up now. With a gasp her eyes flew open. Of course, she was a Takahashi. She could create a barrier around herself, and wait out the attack. It would take enormous amounts of energy, but Emi was determined to live. Let's see who will outlast the other Emi thought as she started to discreetly cocoon herself with thin strings of her energy.
Hiei stared at the caravan in front of him. What were a bunch of spirit world officials doing in demon world? With a shrug he continued forward, he wasn't going to take a detour just because of some pests. He'd kill them if they bothered him anyways. As his steps grew nearer he noticed one of the guards looking at him intently. The guard stood and walked towards him. Hiei's hand found the hilt of his sword. He stopped walking and waited for the guard to approach him.
"Where is the rest of your group?" the guard asked," we were told to expect ten of you."
Hiei remained silent, and merely raised an eyebrow. What a noisy man he thought. The guard stood a bit taller and stared down his nose at Hiei. Was he trying to look intimidating? Hiei thought. If he was, then he was failing miserably.
"Our king refuses to let his guards look weak, if you do not call out your other men we won't pay you," the guard continued," we need the princess' death to look convincing."
"From what I can sense," Hiei drawled," I am more than enough to take on all of you."
"Are you making fun of me?" the guard spat.
"And what if I am?" Hiei looked up amusingly.
The guard unsheathed his sword and pointed it at Hiei. The other guards seeing this, stood to join him. They drew their swords and lined up behind him.
"I give you one last warning," the guard sneered," if you call out your friends and finish the task, I'll give you half the payment."
"I don't want your dirty money," Hiei growled.
The guard's eyes narrowed and he raised his sword in the air. With a yell he ran at Hiei. Hiei stood unmoving and with a triumphant yell the guard brought his sword down to cut Hiei in half. His sword hit the sand, but there was no blood under it. The force of his swing had caused him to lose his balance, and he barely dodged the strike to his heart. The guard was rewarded with a deep slice through his arm instead. His arm hung uselessly at his side. Behind him stood the demon he had just attacked, blood dripping from his sword. The other men stared wearily at Hiei, and shifted until they all surrounded Hiei in a large circle. Hiei's frown melted into a feral grin. Maybe he could let out some steam after all. He tensed his legs and leapt. The guard in front of him fell to the ground without a head. Another bleeding from the two stumps that used to be his legs. The desert would be coated in blood tonight.
Anyone listen to K-pop? Big Bang? I was re-reading this and realized I made Hiei quote G-dragon by saying "I don't want your dirty money." Pffthahahaha Okay….not that funny…well to me it was. Emi and Hiei are going to meet soon~! Wahoo wahoo~! But yeah…review? please? XD
