Pookles: Here's the next chapter! I'm struggling with some writer's block, but I'm powering through it.
Luna: Just keep at it. It'll go away eventually.
Pookles: Sure...whatever you say.
Luna: Pookles doesn't own Yu-Gi-Oh 5D's.
Of Dragons and Men
Chapter 8: The Cabin in the Forest of Fate
Rose had a much smoother landing the second-time around and Akiza supposed that Rose had been training with Stardust in the time between her visits. She smiled to herself as she slid of her dragon's back and landed gracefully on the ground.
Akiza looked around the clearing near the cabin and saw a small shed that could be entered through an archway and was pushed up against the side of the cabin. The cabin itself was made of spruce plants and had a single window on the front of the house, adjacent to the door, which had been painted a darker shade of brown to match the stairs that led up to it.
"Okay Yusei began. "The most we can do right now is get some firewood and cook dinner. We'll start on our supplies tomorrow. If you want, you can move the stuff into the cabin while I take care of the firewood."
Akiza nodded took his backpack from his outstretched arm and walked toward the cabin, "Rose, take a rest. But if you feel any better, go help Yusei and Stardust."
"Thank you Aki-sama, I will," Rose replied and curled up for a nap.
The girl smiled at Yusei before walking into the cabin and was awe-struck by its cuteness. A small kitchen occupied a corner with an island in the center, was opposite a well-cushioned couch and two armchairs and the fireplace. A grand piano was adjacent to the far armchair, and the wall behind it had two doors, mounted apart. Behind one door was a small bathroom with a toilet and sink, and the second led to the bedroom, with an in-floor, stone-lined tub occupying the corner opposite the door; and it was big enough for two people. The bed itself was mounted in the floor, but was still a king-sized bed and was very comfortable when she tested it.
She pulled the clothes they'd brought out of each bag and put them in either side of the wardrobe that was pushed against the wall near the door. Akiza decided to change into her nightclothes, and put on a pink tank-top with a Queen Anne neckline that didn't quite reach her waist and some pink athletic shorts with some pink slippers.
She went to the kitchen to put all the food away, and caught a glimpse of moment through the window outside. Stardust had laid three trees down in the clearing and the girl watched her male counterpart rid himself of his armor, and then his shirt before picking up an axe and beginning to chop the trees into more manageable pieces. Even in the fading light of day, she could still see the muscles in his upper body ripple with each strike. A small motion from Stardust caught her attention and she saw the dragon snickering at her gawking. In response, the girl shook herself and went back to putting food away in the fridge and the cabinets. Akiza looked outside again to see Yusei looking back at her through the window with a grin plastered across his face.
He lifted a part of the trunk of the tree and tossed it into the air before leaping after it, a claymore in each hand. He sliced through the trunk and it fell into six perfectly identical pieces on the ground. The girl knew her boyfriend was showing off for her, but she couldn't help but be awe-struck by his skill. He winked at her and she blushed before turning back to her task. Once everything was put away, Akiza set to work about making dinner. She chopped some potatoes and put them in a hot pan with some olive oil and placed two pieces of salmon on the grill between the four burners of the stove. Once both the fish and potatoes were done cooking, she pulled down two plates and divided up the food evenly between them. She began tossing a salad when she heard the door to the cabin open behind her and a pair of strong arms wrap around her waist, as his chest pressed against her back.
"That smells great Aki," he murmured, obviously exhausted from all his physical labor.
"Aki?" she inquired as she placed some of the salad on each of their plates.
"Well Rose calls you Aki-sama, so I thought Aki would be a cute nickname for you," he replied as they each grabbed a plate and went over to the couch to eat.
"I like it," the girl replied, sitting close to her boyfriend. "Though I guess I have to come up with a pet name for you now."
"Oh god," Yusei commented after they finished eating, "don't ask Crow or Jack...they have some really bad ideas."
Akiza smirked as they brought their plates to the kitchen, "you realize that I'm going straight to them when we get back right?"
Yusei spun Akiza around and pinned her against the counter with his pelvis before bending to whisper in her ear, "is there anything I can do to change your mind?"
The girl blushed, but didn't shy away from him, and even got a little bold, "how about you let me give you a bath?"
"Why would she want to serve me?" he thought. "Wouldn't she want to make me service her?"
The girl walked into the bedroom and drew a bubble bath for him, and called him in.
"Change and get in the tub," she ordered. "Call me when you're in."
"Sure thing," he replied suspiciously as she closed the door behind her.
He quickly disrobed and decided to put on a pair of swim trunks just in case she tried anything, and then climbed into the tub and whistled for Akiza. The girl re-entered and knelt behind him and grabbed the sprayer to spray his hair.
"Pfft! Aki stop!" he spluttered. "You're getting it in my eyes!"
The girl laughed as she put the sprayer down, "it's only water Yusei."
She squirted some soap on her hands and began massaging his now wet and limp crab-shaped hair. "Just relax Yusei."
"Fine," he replied softly as he enjoyed feeling her slender finger knit their way through his hair.
After a few moments of this, Akiza began playing around with his soapy hair and smiled at her masterpiece as Yusei turned his head slightly to see what she was snickering about.
"What are you doing?" he asked suspiciously.
"Just spiking your hair up into a mohawk," she replied casually.
Yusei grabbed the sprayer and sprayed his girlfriend with the water. She yelped in surprise and jumped backward as Yusei turned and sprayed her again.
"S-Stop it!" she spluttered.
"Nope," he began as a devious idea came to him. "You're gonna pay for this."
He turned off the tub and climbed out to throw the girl over his shoulder and walk out of the cabin to the other side of the clearing. There was a pool of water with a waterfall leading into it, and a stream that flowed away from the pool.
When the girl saw the pool she immediately began struggling again, "Yusei! I'm sorry! Please don't do this!"
"Too bad Akiza," he replied with a deviousness that she had never seen from him before. "You can poke fun at me all you want, but nobody, but nobody, fucks with the hair."
And without waiting for a reply, he tossed the poor girl into the pool of freezing-cold water.
"This isn't over," she thought and pushed off the bottom.
Akiza flew out of the water and landed behind Yusei, a concentrated hurricane ready in her right hand. She threw it at Yusei and he flew backwards into the waterfall. When he didn't reappear after a few seconds or make any indication of life, she quickly feared the worst and ran across the water and behind the waterfall. She was pulled out of the water by a pair of strong arms which then turned and pinned her against the wall.
"Caught you," he declared victoriously as the girl laughed.
"Let me go!" she cried.
"Nope. I told you that no one messes with my hair," he replied. "And now you're gonna pay for it."
He pushed her a bit more into the wall and the girl felt it shift behind her before she fell backwards along with Yusei. The pair slid down a chute and were deposited into another pool at the bottom. They resurfaced a moment later and saw a temple before them on an island in the center of the pool.
"What the hell is that?" Akiza asked.
"I have no idea," he replied then began swimming toward it.
"Wait Yusei!" she called then swam after him.
Yusei climbed up into the island and Akiza got up next to him and stood. The island was surrounded by pillars that had markings on them that neither recognized, and a small archway in the foreground of the temple while the walls and ceiling of the large cave was hidden by the night sky...wait. A night sky?
"That's strange," Yusei began, "it's like it's calling to me."
"Yeah," Akiza added, "I feel it too."
The pair fell into a trance and began walking toward the archway, and as soon as they took a step, all the pillars lit up around the island and on the temple. The red marking of a dragon on the archway began glowing as soon as they passed under it. They began climbing the stairs of the temple while a star at the top's glow began pulsing brighter and brighter the closer they got. The pair entered a small room at the top of the temple and a stone slab was mounted to the opposite wall. Still absent, they each put a hand on the slab and it glowed once again with the outline of a dragon. A dragon's head marking engraved itself on Yusei's right arm, while a mark of an elongated claw engraved itself onto Akiza's right arm. It was in this moment that the pair came to and stepped back from the stone tablet.
"What the hell?" Akiza yelped in surprise at the glowing mark on her arm.
"What is this?" Yusei asked.
"Please calm down my children," a powerful voice boomed from behind them.
The pair ran out of the small room, and it descended into the floor of the temple after they exited. They turned and saw a large dragon descending from the night sky. It was a dragon that was red in color and looked to be made of pure energy instead of having a physical body.
"Who are you?" Yusei asked, shifting defensively toward Akiza.
"I am the Crimson Dragon," the beast began. "I am the being that created and rules over all the land you know. And I require your help, along with the help of some others to vanquish a great evil from this world."
"Great evil?" Akiza inquired. "What kind of "Great Evil"?"
"And who are these others that are going to help us?" Yusei asked.
"I understand that you have many questions," the being began again. "and I will answer them all as long as you agree to help me. I have no physical form, and cannot destroy this evil alone. So I've chosen to instill part of my power in five humans I deem worthy."
The pair looked at each other and Akiza spoke, "what do you think?"
"I'll do it if you'll help me," he replied, intertwining his fingers with hers.
Akiza smiled, "I'll follow you anywhere Yusei."
The dragon chuckled, "I see that two of my children have already taken a liking to each other."
The couple blushed and the dragon laughed.
"We'll help you," Yusei replied.
"Thank you Sir Fudo and Princess Izinski," he answered. "You already know your other chosen comrades, and you should inform them of everything I'm about to share with you."
The pair nodded as two thrones appeared behind then and the dragon motioned for them to sit.
"Thousands of years ago, evil beings rose from the land and began terrorizing the early people of the world," he began. "These embodiments of pure darkness are called Earthbound Immortals. I managed to seal them away once before, but only just barely. There are five of them, one for each signer to take on and destroy."
"Signer?" Akiza inquired.
"Signer is the title given to my children," he explained briefly. "And each Earthbound Immortal chooses a person, much like I do, to embody their power. They are known as Dark Signers, and they are strong; possibly stronger than some of you, but I ask that you do not run from them. I ask you to fight; no matter how perilous the task may be."
"Who are these Dark Signers?" Yusei asked. "Have they been chosen already? Is there any way we can prevent it?"
"I'm afraid that the darkness is stronger than each of their hosts will realize," the Crimson Dragon began again. "They will believe that they are strong enough to conquer its influence, but in the end, they will fall. These people will be familiar to you, but will appear differently to you than they did before."
"How are we supposed to fight them if we know them?" Akiza asked.
"I ask you to think of the greater good in this world," it began again. "While you prepare to fight them, I will try to find a way to turn them back."
"Why would you do that for us?" Yusei asked.
"Because these people will be very close to you and your fellow signers. This will hurt you all deeply, and bring out the worst in all of you. But I hope that you all overcome that pain, and will do what is right to save this world."
"When will we meet our other Signers?" Akiza asked. "And when will we fight these Dark Signers?"
"They will appear on Primavera," the Crimson Dragon replied.
"Primavera?" Yusei inquired.
"The first day of Spring," Akiza translated. "I remember reading that Primavera was celebrated in ancient times because it marked the birth of a new world."
"And the Dark Signers wish to destroy that rebirth, and bring it into a new world of suffering," he finished.
The couple looked petrified by this explanation and stood. "We'll do anything we can to help."
"Thank you, and send my regards to the other signers."
Pookles: I FOUND THE PLOT! Everything is better now.
Luna: Geez, for a while there you seemed like those animators of the new Fairy Tail. Non-stop shipping of NaLu and all that.
Pookles: Whatever, there were some really cute moments in here.
Crow: Agreed. Please Favorite, Follow, Review, and join us for the next installment!
