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Chapter 10

PRESENT DAY

' The fire was too hot. He couldn't see anything. He tried to call out but his throat was badly burnt. Soon, he started coughing a wet, slick cough, which only meant one thing. He was dying. But not so soon. He wanted to warn that man there. It wasn't safe here and that he should turn back. But the words wouldn't form. He saw the man come closer. Horrified at what he saw, he fell down, in pain and in shock. He saw the bloodied, ghost like man crumble away into dust, before the blackness claimed him too.'

"NOOOOOOOOO…"

She came rushing in, as she heard that terrible, soul piercing scream. Bending over the sweaty but now awake form of her husband, Mariah asked him gently, "Baby, are you okay….shhh….it was only a nightmare. Relax now. Calm down. "

Rei sat up shakily. His hands were still trembling. That dream had been so real. He remembered who the strange, bloodied man was.

"Mariah, I saw Kai. He died. He died right before my eyes and I couldn't do anything…..I couldn't …" Rei wept, quite oblivious again to his wife's presence.

She sat down and hugged him close, rubbing slow, soothing circles on his back. She knew the nightmare was just a manifestation of Rei's fears. But she also knew that right now wasn't a good moment to do anything but simply calm him down.

Rei sobbed for a while before he relaxed slightly. A couple of minutes, he heaved himself away from Mariah's bosom.

Wiping his eyes, he said, " Darling, I am so sorry. I know I have never gone to pieces like this. But I hope you understand why this is happening to me. I know this nightmare was largely due to my worry over our worst fears regarding Kai. But more than that, I can't deny that it is eating me up. What if Kai is alive and needs our help. And if he isn't ….well, I cannot bear that thought. I…. "

"Shhhh….It's okay Rei. I understand completely. And your fears are not unfounded. It worries me too. And I know it's no point saying that we needn't worry. But trust me on this baby, that worrying really won't help us. It's okay love. Calm down. Rest some. "

She slipped into the bed beside him and held him. The warmth felt good to them. What they hadn't realized was that they had needed each other to deal with the tumultuous emotions.

Mariah felt better. But she could not fall asleep. Her mind kept drifting to the fears Rei had voiced. She strained hard to think about what she remembered of the cold Blade Breaker.

(Flashback)

The slate haired teen was as usual sitting alone. He did not even join in the celebrations. Maybe, he had known the taste of such victory before. But what stopped him from keeping the moment for the sake of his team, who had for the very first time won the World Championships. And for God's sake, these were the World Championships, akin to the Wimbledon for Tennis or the FIFA World Cup for Soccer. It was certainly something to celebrate. But the quiet teen stayed in the shadows. All the teams that had lost to the Blade Breakers in the various regional tournaments had come to celebrate this victory. Everyone felt more than just a little odd that the so-called Captain of the Champion team had decided to be extra-rude that night.

Gary cruelly remarked, "That git ! Thinks he is so high and mighty"

Miguel, Enrique, Johnny laughed…and Robert sniggered.

Lee kept passing snide comments to Rei, " Has he forgotten to take his medicines or something Rei. You are his roomie. I'm sure you know "

Rei just gave Lee a cold, formal smile at this. And Lee backed off.

(Flashback end)

Mariah had seen Kai at many tournaments. But come to think of it, she had almost never spoken to him. And if she remembered correctly, she had hardly ever heard him say anything other than commands during a match or tips to his team during training or a competition.

However, she knew Kai wasn't emotionless. She also knew that he was incredibly strong. The last time she had seen him, had been after his match with Brooklyn, the one that had nearly killed him.

It was in that match, that she saw his raw pain, his magnificence, his resilience, his strength, his passion, his rage, his humility, his pride and even his humanity.

Up till now, she hadn't ever wondered about 'who' Kai was. And now that she did, her heart broke, not because she had realized who he was, but because she never ever would. In her heart, she knew Kai was gone. She didn't know if he was dead. All she knew was that Rei wouldn't find him. A part of her slyly, silently hoped so. She didn't think she could give her son up now.

Nakagou was HER son….And nobody would take him away.