YAMI NO MATSUEI - DESCENDANTS OF DARKNESS

APOCALYPSE RISING

Chapter Eleven - The Great Wait

To the Readers

Although I took some liberalities in interpreting the many "holes" that the manga-ka had left us fans guessing and exploring via fan fiction, I did my best not to stray too far from the series' intent. Let me know what you think, and I hope that you would enjoy this chapter as much as I have been enjoying writing this story.

For those who are not too familiar with Yami no Matsuei - Descendants of Darkness, this series is shounen-ai (boy/boy relationship or insinuations of boy/boy relationship). I refer you to Dame Theria's Yami no Matsuei website as well as Sakura Crisis' translations. Both of these sites are great resources for Yami no Matsuei.

This chapter has strong hints of shounen-ai, as well as violent and mature topics and scenes. I hope that you would like this chapter, and the ongoing story as a whole, just as much as I love writing it.

Warmest Regards, PJ Zatken

Terminology

Trading Places - Trading places is one of the popular movements done in waltz and other ballroom dancing styles. The female has her arms extended sideways, while the male stands behind the female guiding her movements on the dance floor while holding her hands. As the female steps to the right, the male steps to the left. Once they get enough distance, the two glance at each other and establish eye contact. I know, I know...it sounds choppy here. Once a couple gets the basics down, this move is one of the most romantic steps done in a waltz especially when it is done correctly and gracefully. Ruka was the one who taught Tsuzuki how to dance, and that's why Tsuzuki was such an awesome dancer in The Last Waltz story in the manga. Existing for close to a century will give you enough practice ;-D

Promenade - Another popular waltz movement wherein the female has her arm draped on the male's shoulders while the male has his arm draped around the female's back as they walk waltz-style. The movement imitates a couple having a romantic walk at a park or promenade, ergo the name of the movement.

Finally, the calm murderer was so close to Hisoka that the latter could feel the warmth of the murderer's breath. Hisoka saw the cool but evil glint in the murderer's spectacled blue eyes.

The bone-chilling experience for Hisoka was replaced with shock as the murderer passed through him.

Hisoka felt as if his heart would have stopped. As the murderer left the scene, all that Hisoka could manage to mutter as he fell on his knees was, "I - it can't be... How?"

After recovering from the initial shock, the young shinigami patted his body and felt that everything was intact. He closed his eyes to think, as well as to calm down the racing of his heart.

The crimson-veiled moon, the blood, and the scene that surrounded Hisoka brought back many memories that he wished not to remember. He took as much time as he needed to regain his composure and thoughts. Once that happened, he approached the victim and inspected as much as he could. The spiritual trace residues from the victim and the murderer were fresh, and he did the best that he could to maintain control of his sensitive empathic powers.

Aside from the multiple stab wounds, the victim had something carved in her flesh.

A symbol...

Hisoka's heart became heavy, but nonetheless its incessant pounding continued as he recognized the symbol. "The Seal of Abigor... Troy's seal... But how... Why?"

The pool of blood began to travel, touching Hisoka's feet...

Hisoka stood up, staggered away from the bloody scene, and ran once his legs regained enough strength. Even though he had no clue as to where he was, he only had one thing in mind. He must find Tsuzuki before it was too late.

The night seemed to have passed so quickly for Hisoka, who staggered from house to house hoping to find his elder partner. As he crossed grassy fields to go to the other side of town, the young shinigami heard a familiar voice ask another, "Why do you shine so brightly, only to die the following day? Are all creatures meant to be like you?"

"T - Tsuzuki?" mused Hisoka as a slight frown crept over him. He followed the source of the voice, and his heart leapt for joy...

An eighteen-year-old Tsuzuki sat on a huge stone nearby a calm pond. There were fireflies fluttering about him...some of them even landing on his shoulder and open palm.

Although Tsuzuki's back was turned away from Hisoka, the latter knew that the figure before him was his partner. When he took cautious steps to see that his mind was not deceiving him, he confirmed that the owner of the voice was indeed his partner...although the figure was a younger version of the Tsuzuki that he knew well.

The young shinigami's eyes went wide as he saw a shadow that did not belong to him or Tsuzuki Aside from Tsuzuki's emotions which normally came loud and strong, Hisoka picked up another set of mental and emotional imprints.

Sorrow, pity, and pain wrapped up in slivers of hope...

As Hisoka's eyes followed the shadow to find its source, he froze as he said in absentminded shock, "Kacho?"

Chief Konoe chose to spend his late lunch hour at the infirmary, sitting quietly as he watched three of his men - Tsuzuki, Hisoka, and Troy - respectively fight for their lives. From time to time, he saw an exhausted Watari check his patients' vitals and ensure that everything was all right.

Tatsumi, along with the Gushoshin Twins, were checking EnmaCho's archives hoping that the murders in Holy Innocents' Academy was not a re-occurrence of a past unsolved case.

The elderly chief had been a father figure for most of his staff. However, he and Tsuzuki's fates had been intertwined long ago - seventy-four years ago and counting, to be exact. After all, he was not only the shinigami assigned to retrieve Tsuzuki but he had been delegated to watch over Tsuzuki nine years prior to Tsuzuki's suicidal death in Muraki Yukitaka's hospital. He served as a silent witness to all the events that drove Tsuzuki to insanity, and he also saw the raw power Tsuzuki possessed - a time wherein Tsuzuki did not even have a single shikigami servant to do his bidding or to lend him power.

"You have every right to fear yourself," Konoe mused as he gazed at an unconscious Tsuzuki. "The peace of mind you seek will be yours if you just accept who you are. Those powers that you unleashed that evening could only belong to the demons of old. But..."

Konoe's glance then moved to Troy, the latter lying stomach-down on the bed since Watari had been closely monitoring the gaping wound in the young man's back. He recalled the time that he first met Troy and compared that image with the being before him - the one who now lay in bed with a prominent black X appearing on his left upper back. "The notorious Great Duke Abigor saving me-a shinigami-from a primordial demon's minion. For millennia, his name had dropped off from circulation although his reign remained undisputed to this very day. Why is he here now? Why does he seem to know more about what's going on?"

Watari came in with a small metal basin and a plastic-handled container filled with supplies to disinfect and dress wounds. As he removed the old dressing for Troy's gaping wound, Watari's eyes lit up in a small glimmer of hope.

The gaping wound showed slow but sure signs that the poison in Troy's' body had been mostly leached out by transfusing Tsuzuki's blood in the young man. The bleeding had stopped for the first time, and the wound showed the beginning stages of the healing process.

While Watari was redressing Troy's wound, the latter stirred a little but then stopped as pain shot through his weakened body.

"You're in EnmaCho's infirmary, Troy," said Watari in a soothing voice. "Just relax and don't move. We don't want the bleeding to start all over again."

Troy relented. His hair had been wet from the sweat and fever coursing through his body. In a hoarse voice, he asked, "W-Where's everyone, Watari-san?"

The blonde scientist let out a sigh. "Tatsumi will be back soon. Tsuzuki and Bon are here."

"And I'm here," replied Konoe as he rose from his chair and sat on the chair closest to Troy.

Not liking the ring of the word "here" coming from Watari's lips, Troy asked with a tone laced with suspicion and worry, "What does 'here' mean? What happened to them?"

"Tsuzuki fell unconscious. Bon dove inside Tsuzuki's mind to save him."

Troy closed his eyes as wracked his brain. "How long have I been unconscious, Watari-san?"

Looking at the wall clock and seeing 12pm, Watari said, "You've been in the infirmary for almost ten hours now."

Konoe leaned forward and stared into Troy's eyes. "Lord Ashtarote told us that you could help them. I saw how you could help them when we worked together in saving Kurosaki and Tatsumi"

The dark-haired young man kept his silence.

"Lord Ashtarote told us about who you really are, Lord Abigor," said Konoe as he waited for Troy to react. "I may not know the Great Duke Abigor, but I do know Tsuuri Troy very well. You know who's responsible for these illusions. No matter what your agenda might be for saving us last night, please help us save Tsuzuki and Kurosaki. They need our help."

"Tsuzuki-san has been trapped inside the illusion for so long. It'll be harder to save him, but we will do our best." Troy's eyes then stared back into Konoe. Although his tone was matter-of-factly, his eyes reflected deep-rooted concern for the elderly chief. "You barely withstood the strain last night, Kacho. Aside from that, you have close ties to Tsuzuki's past. If you thought that the events of the past were already extreme, the illusions have a way of magnifying the gravity of those events. In the process of saving Tsuzuki-san and Hisoka, you might end up being trapped inside that illusion, too."

A tight-lipped Konoe responded, "It's the risk I'm willing to take. I'm not going to abandon my men."

Without leaving his sight on the elderly man, Troy inquired, "You also feel responsible for Tsuzuki-san, don't you Kacho?"

Watari raised an eyebrow and eventually frowned when Konoe gave Troy a nod.

"Very well, but I'm going alone, Kacho. Someone needs to be here to bail us out, just in case..." Shortly thereafter, the young man closed his eyes from the pain as Watari and Konoe watched over him. In his mind's eye, the young man's translucent figure walked over and stood by Tsuzuki's bedside. As his eyes rested on Meifu's most powerful shinigami and his partner as the two lay unconscious, Troy chanted an incantation.

A hexagram bearing Abigor's seal appeared underneath Tsuzuki and Troy's bed, the light coming from the mystical symbol becoming brighter until it blinded Konoe and Watari.

Eventually, the light died down.

As Konoe and Watari ran by Troy's bedside, Watari confirmed that Troy was once again unconscious.

After letting out a sigh, Konoe said, "I hope that they'll return safely."

Gushoshin Elder flew inside the infirmary, his frantic wings flapping about as he told Konoe and Watari, "Tatsumi-san has collected all the data that you've requested, Chief. He's waiting in the conference room."

A frown crinkled Konoe's forehead. Having known Gushoshin for more than a century, the elderly chief knew that the news was far from good. "You've done the research with Tatsumi, Gushoshin. What's your joint assessment?"

"You have to see it for yourselves," replied Gushoshin Elder before he continued, "My brother's joining me shortly. He and I will watch over Tsuzuki-san, Kurosaki-kun, and Tsuuri-kun. Tatsumi-san wanted to brainstorm about the data we've uncovered."

The two shinigami stared at each other before giving Gushoshin Elder a nod. They then marched as quickly as they could towards the conference area, with Watari oblivious but nerve-wracked as to what was going on and with Konoe bracing himself for the worst possible news.

"I grow impatient, Muraki!"

Muraki Kazutaka smirked, undaunted with the fact that he now faced one of the primordial demons as he answered, "You should recall, dark one, that patience is a valuable virtue. The rewards will be great, especially when you and I achieve what we both wanted - the fall of Tsuzuki Asato and the full awakening of your brethren."

The primordial's icy-blue eyes narrowed as he roared, the booming voice reverberating throughout the icy caverns of the Pits of Hell. "What do you accomplish in making Tsuzuki Asato relive his past? Remember that Abigor had already awakened, and every day that passes means that his powers are closer in being fully restored."

"Lord Abigor's powers will be nothing once everything falls into place," said Muraki as he crossed his arms over his chest. "All of the pieces of the puzzle are falling into place, each one preying on every player's weakness. Eventually, there'll be nothing left for them to hope for."

"And once that happens, the world will fall into our hands?" interjected the primordial with such sarcasm. "I heard those idle promises before, Muraki. You are just like your predecessors. You all are full of empty promises, starting from earlier generations of your bloodline."

The platinum-haired doctor shook his head, his silver-and-blue eyes glinting in the dim torch lights surrounding the vast icy throne room. "Chijou is only a small prize compared to what will fall once everything takes place. Imagine all of the realms collapsing into one huge world wherein only you, your brethren, and your loyal allies will rule..."

"Do you know what you are proposing, Muraki?" hinted the primordial, his eyes narrowing. "An all-out war between the realms…. You plan to bring about the destruction of all the realms save for lower Makai, should you succeed..."

"Yes, I know..."

For the first time since the conversation between them had started, the primordial malevolently grinned from ear to ear. The chuckle that he let out eventually became maniacal laughter that echoed throughout the chambers of ice.

Muraki's eyes lit up as he murmured, "We now see eye to eye, don't we?"

Once the primordial had been satiated from laughing, he said, "Yes, we do. I am glad to hear it. You are the first one who sees things our way. So this trip that Tsuzuki Asato has taken is integral in making everything fall into place?"

"Yes, it is. One way or another, Tsuzuki-san will have no choice but to choose one path. Once that happens, the balance of power between good and evil will equal. Only fools will go against you and your brethren."

"All these so-called players of yours will not be swayed so easily," deadpanned the primordial as he opened up his palm and played around with surges of mystical power coming from his hands. "Tsuzuki Asato, the men from the Shokan Division, Abigor, and most especially Enma are steadfast in their respective rights. Enma will pay for who he had taken away from me."

"Every being has his or her price. It's just a matter of finding out what it is. Between now and then, the stage is being set to prepare for the fateful day."

"How about Kinu and Gyokuto?"

"All plans have been set for the two entities. They, along with your brethren, will be awakened..."

"The Apocalypse... This realm has waited so long for that time," said the primordial with a devious smirk escaping from his lips. "Very well, Muraki. I will wait, but do not dare fail me."

Muraki then placed his palm on his chest and gave the primordial a slight but reverent bow before turning around. Once a portal leading him back to Chijou opened up for his return, he mused with satisfaction surging within his being, "The wait isn't long, Tsuzuki-san. You, my love, will soon be mine. All imperfection will be cleansed."

Tsuzuki was gardening at the backyard until mid-afternoon, whistling and humming a happy tune. A small basket filled with newly-harvested vegetables sat on the ground behind him, and he was now pruning his roses.

Hisoka continued to watch over his partner, noticing subtle differences between this Tsuzuki and the one that he knew well in Meifu. First, the Tsuzuki he now observed acted and looked much younger and more carefree. This was the first time that he had seen Tsuzuki genuinely at peace, and the innocence in his elder partner's eyes was still unmarred.

"Asato, did you manage to harvest some vegetables from your garden for supper?"

Responding to the owner of the voice coming from inside the small house, Tsuzuki said aloud as he continued his work, "Yes! I'm coming in a minute, Nee-san!"

Hisoka was shocked for a second, as he repeated to himself, "Nee-san?"

Once Tsuzuki was done with his task, he put away his pruning shears inside the basket, carried the basket of vegetables in one hand, held a bunch of roses with the other hand, and entered the house. After he laid out the roses on the traditional dining table, he went straight to the cooking area and placed the basket on the floor a few feet behind his sister. He watched his sister a few feet from behind, grinning as he could feel Ruka's customary lighthearted happiness.

"I hope she'll like the roses I've picked for her," Tsuzuki pondered as he leaned by the doorway, listening to her sister hum a tune. Once he recognized the melody as a waltz, he shook his head as he smiled in amusement.

Ruka continued her chores, not noticing that her brother was watching her. She was startled once she felt a couple of gentle taps on her shoulder.

Tsuzuki did a half-bow and a hand sweep before Ruka in a courteous fashion. He then offered his right hand to the young woman, looking up to her while he said, "May I have this dance, my dear lady?"

"You most certainly may, kind Sir," Ruka responded with a generous smile as she curtsied before Tsuzuki. As her brown eyes met amethyst ones, she took her younger brother's hand, walked with the latter towards the middle of the room, and then allowed him to lead her into the first of many graceful steps and twirls.

The invisible Hisoka had his eyes focused in the middle of the room, his eyes following the dancers' every move. Slight pangs of envy rested in his heart for a couple of minutes as his empathy also picked up the siblings' emotions.

"Was that the right way to do trading places and the promenade, Nee-san?" asked Tsuzuki as he twirled Ruka so that he now stood behind her.

As Ruka moved along with Tsuzuki's prompts, she nodded her head with a smile as she looked at him.

Every step, sway, dip, and twirl that the couple did had amazed Hisoka. At times, he caught a glimpse of his elder partner's amethyst eyes. He saw how those eyes gleamed as their owner seized such a moment of grace and joy.

The trick to dancing the waltz well is that you must be able to fall in love with your partner. So fall in love with me...

As Tsuzuki's words from the past echoed in Hisoka's head, Tsuzuki and Ruka continued their elegant movement as one body. The couple ended their waltz in a grandiose finale. A speechless Hisoka's eyes went wide as he saw the truth in Tsuzuki's eyes. His empathy picked it up loud and clear.

Tsuzuki's words reverberated in Hisoka's head once more, as a realization dawned upon the blonde shinigami...

...You must be able to fall in love with your partner. So fall in love with me...

End of Chapter Eleven

Normal Disclaimer

Yami no Matsuei - Descendants of Darkness and the series' characters belong to Matsushita Yoko.

This fanfic, KFR, and their original characters (Tsuuri Troy, Chief Satori, Doctor Kawasawa) belong to PJ Zatken. The depiction of Ashtarote in the series belongs to Matsushita Yoko. The depiction of Abigor in KFR and this fan fiction belong to PJ Zatken.