Standard disclaimer see my profile Warning - this chapter is everything but fluff. (That will come later)^^ It follows where the previous chapter stopped, so you can`t really expect an exotic lovey dovey cruise-trip. At least not yet. AN: ANYBODY OUT THERE?!! Guess not...Never mind, I`ll keep going till the romantic end, just for myself...^^ But you two-three remaining readers; what about a review?^^
9 Illusions
"Carry him inside!" Mukuro shouted at two attendants standing closest.
'Is there a reason to hire an S-class empath when he`s nowhere to be found when I need him?!' she sent out a biting remark, meaning it as a command.
It was understood. The moment as Hiei`s back touched the bed in the nearest chamber, Nika appeared in the door. "My heir`s being attacked; just to let you know."
"I apologize Mukuro; I`ve been helping Gern to locate the source of the assault in order to take them captive. I cannot be at four places at once. Three alright; but four are with my poor skills unreachable."
His gaze fell behind Mukuro - on Hiei. The healers were still frantically trying to stop the blood oozing from his wrists and arms.
"Inari…"
"If it`s going to help then pray; otherwise I strongly recommend to do what you agreed to do after Tebiko sweet-talked me to keep you here."
She didn't have to say anything anymore; Nika was already standing over the unconscious swordsman, attempting to connect.
"It`s the Maru. The…" the red youko gulped, "…the pure."
"…pure?" Mukuro`s palm covered her lips in a gesture of assessment.
The term 'the pure' was firstly used by Tebiko; she, under Nika`s guidance, defined and classified all the types of Maru attacks they`d been able to dig up. But the most helpful thing was that along with that, they`d prepared a list of all thinkable strategies to render all of the attacks useless.
In theory.
"You know what to do."
The youko somewhat uneasily nodded.
He focused on the flow of Hiei`s energy; and slowly injected a small amount of his own youki into him, creating a filament that bound them together. All known attacks of the Maru clan had something to do with emotional manipulation and deluding senses; and Nika, as a master of healing and empathy, could manipulate them as well. He was a vital part of Mukuro`s plan of fighting the Maru; that was why he operated undercover. Though the ruler of Alaric came up with the most plaguy idea - using the popular trend of Inari`s cult as a cover-up so as to make the ginger fox the 'official priest' of Alaric, it seemed to work quite well.
…Why wouldn`t, when the most of the soldiers became infatuated with him at first sight; since he was another of Inari`s creations.
But the task at hand didn`t seem to be working well.
The red youko felt the droplets of cold sweat forming on his forehead. He had finally reached Hiei Jaganshi`s emotional layer; all he had to do was luring the energy the other way than Maru did.
With an anguished cry, he disconnected.
"What are you doing? Get back or I`ll drag you there!" Mukuro shouted.
"It`s too late."
"What do you mean 'too late'?!"
Nika shook his head. "What your heir in this moment feels are not feelings anymore. I can`t do anything."
"But you will. Get back there."
"Mukuro, emotions are fed by the energies of those who create them. If certain emotions are fed too much they tend to gain autonomy. 'The pure' attack forces one`s emotions to start to act on their own; they attack their creator, take his energy and what they can`t take they shred. 'The pure' is total destruction of personality. And your heir is already being lacerated. There are just few fragments of him left."
"GET BACK THERE."
"I won`t. Not without support. I can handle emotions, but the things in him are not emotions; they`re beasts. I can`t control them. I end up sucked inside; and they`d get another source of energy to feed upon. But I`m willing to give it a try …with you as my anchor."
Instead of an answer, Mukuro instantly linked with him, lending him her own youki.
With a deep breath, he dived into Hiei again.
"What th…" Nika heard Mukuro say with a hoarse voice.
She lingered just on the surface, but the waves of what Hiei felt blocked her throat, forcing her body to seek for a way to shake off the tension and hopelessness.
…Or maybe it was in result of realization how inevitable was what Nika had tried to explain before.
That tortured by the bestiality of his own world, her heir was dying.
-----------------------------
"…So? How do you like the show?" The question was asked casually, as if concerning another of Mukuro`s feasts.
The body Hiei was attached to had been entertained of standing aside and watching the gang thrash Kurama without mercy.
Completely ignoring that it was happening just in his mind, he had tried myriad ways to move it into stopping the scene, into helping the fox, or as the last eventuality to closing his eyes so he wouldn't have to see it.
None of them worked.
"You don`t appear to enjoy it as much as I thought. And I`ve put so much effort into creating it," the attacker`s voice sighed. "All right; if you don't like it I`ll try harder. What about this one?"
Hiei sensed his body move; finally, he got involved in the events.
Yet was it a good or a bad turn...
"Hiei…p.." Kurama, beaten, bruised and battered on the ground before him, lifted his head with what seemed the last of his will power. "R…r..n. Please. Run away."
"Oh how sweet…"one of the thugs started to laugh. "Had I known this sooner…never mind. I can still have my way with you." He grabbed the tatters of youko`s tunic and ripped it, baring the upper part of the thief`s body completely.
"What…you want to do this carcass?" another of the gang asked in a disgusted voice.
"Even as a carcass; it`s still Youko Kurama."
"DON`T TOUCH HIM!" Hiei`s form, coming to action, swatted the hand grazing Youko`s skin away.
"Hiei…" Kurama sent him a pleading look urging him to leave: to leave him, to leave that place, to leave everything behind; and live.
"Don`t…don`t touch him." the fire demon repeated. He lifted Kurama from the ground to carry him inside of their den. "Get lost." He turned to his gang once again; this time grinning. "…Now it`s MY turn to have some fun."
"…Hiei…?" the kitsune, not comprehending what was happening, forced his eyes to open.
"It`s not fair boss!!! You were having fun all along…" they grumbled; but obeyed.
"…Hiei…?" With the demons which attacked him - and won - calling Hiei Jaganshi their boss, Kurama got all the pieces of the puzzle together. But he was not capable of believing it.
"So my love;" the dark demon tossed the youko roughly on the ground inside. "I thought I could make the last moments of your life more bearable; so you would carry the loving memory of me with you even after you die." He leaned over Kurama, taking hold of his thighs. "Tell me love; why it always had to be me who played the bottom?"
"No." Hiei - the real Hiei inside of the puppet – went numb. He DID see, and hear and sensed and smelled everything. The serious condition of Kurama`s body. The erratic flares of the rests of his youki. Kurama`s smell, now mixed with sweat and blood. Death creeping inside his flesh. Sadness. Infinite sadness, streaming out of the eyes that slowly turned from gold to grim. He perceived his own disrespect shown toward his former companion as so disgusting that it pained him beyond belief. Yet it was still his body and him in that body what forced Youko Kurama go through this.
"Don`t flatter yourself. I wouldn't want you in this state even if you paid for it;" the fire demon heard his voice say. "…I`ve got something better here." He took out a knife that Kurama gave him as a gift few days ago.
"Why…?" the thief`s voice was barely a whisper.
"You need to ask?" Hiei grinned, incising spider web-like lines all over Kurama`s face; anywhere where the blade of the knife touched. It entertained him for a good while; a while that the youko used for escaping into the merciful faintness.
"Nobody will ever recognize you like this, my love." Hiei put the knife aside and pecked his lover`s lips.
"Oh, you are already losing consciousness. But to die unconscious is no fun," the fire demon stroked Kurama`s hair.
"…Allow me to pull you out of your misery while you are still at your senses. Accept it as a token of my deep affection for you."
The fire demon kissed Kurama again. This time it was not a peck; it felt almost like kisses they shared when they made love. "Sleep well, my beautiful."
Piercing Youko Kurama took only an instant.
In the same instant Hiei Jaganshi – the one trapped in the illusionary marionette that took over his role – fell apart.
"You enjoy the show after all, general. But I still see there so much room for improvement…I think I`ve made you a little too theatrical," the voice of the puppet master came back. "If I could beg a little of your patience…I think I can make it better. In the end; the original always comes out as best."
As the words were spoken, Hiei`s shadow form disappeared. He could step into contact with the outside of his dream-world again; his body, mind and his feelings became once again his own tools to use.
Only…
The physical reaction matching his state came immediately. He, still lingering over Kurama`s cooling body with the sword in his hand, barely managed to turn away on impulse – had his stomach contained some food, everything would have been forced out; but it could offer nothing more than bile.
His feet were next in row to lose their strength; as a result, he lost his balance. He was panting, but his lungs signalized that he was suffocating. His whole body burnt. And his mind…
He wiped his face and slowly turned back to Kurama. The youko was still lying there; bruised and beaten. Defeated. Killed.
"No." Hiei said, but no sound managed to make its way out of him.
"No," he repeated.
"No." 'Everything is lost,' a little thought floated into his awareness.
"No." I`m lost.
"No" He`s dead. Kura is…
"No." I killed him.
"No." I killed him.
"No." I betrayed him.
"HELL NO!!!"
I betrayed him.
I betrayed him.
I betrayed him.
Like I betrayed Mukuro.
"Very well, general. You got the point now. This is just a simple illusion; but the seed of betrayal in you is real. It is a part of you like your limbs; it belongs to you to the bone. It`s only a question of time when it sprouts. Just between us demons: It`s not him who manipulated you. It has always been you who took what was needed and left. Just you. But I guess you can`t hear me clearly anymore," the demon leading the assault smiled. "…I hope you aren`t too tired. There are many more things I want to do to you. Oh…and if you decide to free yourself from the body which enjoyed killing your revered friend, do not hesitate to leave it to me. I`ll definitely find a way for you to avoid staying where you do not want to. I`m, after all, your savior!"
Hiei felt he couldn't go on like this. He didn't give a damn about who betrayed who and how; or cared what was an illusion and what was for real. He desperately craved for one and only thing: to erase the picture of dead Kurama from his mind. To erase the sound his body made, when his katana ran through it.
It didn't matter whether it was just in a nightmare of an enemy attack. All he needed was to get rid of that image. To stop his mind from producing it, even if he had his eyes closed. To stop it. Stop it. At any cost.
He grabbed his sword; but not by its hilt.
Death was only fair.
He deserved it.
Besides; it felt peaceful. Oblivion smelled of void. Nothing could exist beside void. There would be no beautiful but to death tortured youkos. There would not be him to torture them.
He turned the katana; pressed its tip firmly against his throat, his hand ready to cut.
And it did.
The hand did the cut.
The image of the `savior` within Hiei`s mind smiled.
-----------------------------
"Mukuro!" Short of his breath, Nika somehow managed to shout. "Something`s wrong. I mean, the Maru are attacking with everything they have but something..."
Mukuro curtly nodded. "Some part of Hiei is still putting up a fight!"
"Unexpected… but that`s not what I`ve meant. It`s…I cannot reach him. Something is blocking me from getting deeper. The intensity of assault is decreasing as well, so that`s not it…And the general is already too weak for a shield of this power. But it is a shield."
"Try to get inside again."
Nika looked at Hiei and softly touched his chest. Jaganshi`s body lost a lot of its temperature; he was too pale, even for the blood loss. He was still breathing; even if a non-healer could have easily mistaken it for not-breathing.
But somehow, he was still alive. Hardly, but surprisingly, he still lived.
Nika stepped inside again. Locked onto Mukuro as his safety rope, he passed the upper layers of fluctuating energy and sent out another thread of his youki to lock upon Hiei. It was rejected; faster than before.
When nothing else, he could at least read some more information. There was still war raging all around him. The bolts of energy were trying to get inside to the pulsating core of Hiei`s demonic energy; the core was still encircled by the clouds of dark and thick energy sucking it dry - what meant that the attacker was successful.
Suddenly; something stirred and powerfully bumped into him.
He was thrown out again.
"…Mukuro…This energy…it is not your heir."
"And it`s not the enemy. It…the leading beam`s been broken!"
Leading beam was another term invented by Tebiko. It was a signal carrying all the necessary emotional forms and instructions, sent out of the puppet master`s mind into his future puppet. For the successful completion of this type of attack, it was necessary to maintain the leading beam at the same intensity; so as to form the victim's emotions according to puppet master`s wishes. These new emotional forms were used specifically for breaking the will of the attacked demon. Mukuro often inquired information how the Maru did that; whether they really had power over demons possessing such amounts of mental energy.
But Nika had never given a proper answer.
-----------------------------
Every living creature has a certain level of strain endurance. Crossing it causes physical and emotional stress. If the strain increases, the system goes into the state of shock. And when the strain crosses the point of maximal tolerance, the shock develops into a trauma. Every creature instinctively tries to avoid situations which can bring about trauma, because trauma causes too much damage. And the system stricken by damage is always put into disadvantage when it comes down to the question of survival.
The emotional strain that Hiei had been forced to endure was already far beyond the point of his maximal tolerance. The most of his body`s functions – of his real physical body, as well as those of his illusionary physical body - had been shut off to prevent even the greater damage.
So when a slender but strong hand suddenly grabbed his wrist and forced the katana to cut the air instead of his throat, all that Hiei did was to blankly stare. The blankness of his eyes didn't disappear; neither when he saw how Youko Kurama – the same one whose face he cut and whom he killed moments before – stood up and grabbed his hands, hindering all of his movement.
"…Striving for an easy escape?" the voice that spoke was thick with hatred; just hearing it made Hiei`s ears hurt. "Don`t ever think I let you escape after what you had done."
Roughly, Kurama pushed him against the den-wall.
"…You will NEVER escape," he said, slowly and clearly, stressing each single word of the sentence. "You are not allowed to."
Hiei just stared.
"There is nothing in this world I hate more than you. But I know what you want, what you consider salvation." The marred face of Hiei`s nightmare put on an enraged look. "Are you seeking to efface me from your memory?!"
Instead of chains, Kurama grew vines; but to Hiei, it made no difference - they shackled him the same.
"You`ll stay bound to this place…to this moment…forever. For all the eternity that is to come you`ll have your sin before your eyes. There will be no escape. No effacement. No release."
"…No release..." Hiei repeated.
In some perverted way, it made him feel better. He couldn't continue living as if nothing happened; yet death was too good for him to deserve.
But hell…hell seemed fair. This way, at least Kura would get his revenge. And he would suffer as he made Kura suffer.
It sounded very fair.
"…No release." Hiei repeated.
END of CHAPTER 9
AN: To my dearest readers: guys, would you review if I said that I`m writing a family/friendship/humour/most likely later shounen ai/ KuramaxHiei multi-chap fic? Though I lack time even to sleep lately...