"Weak. Weak. Weak" Shadowy figures, blurry, insubstantial, wafted about the periphery of his blurred vision, chanting in unison. He swiped at the phantoms as he stumbled aimlessly forwards. The low chant seemed to fill his entire mind, drowning out all other thought. Uttering an anguished groan he reached about himself desperately, looking for anything. A handhold. Anything. Anything to save him from the demons that plagued him. "Too weak. Too weak." A loud raucous laughter now accompanied the increasingly rapid chant . Overwhelmed, he clenched his eyes as hard as he could and curled up on the ground in a foetal position. Even as he clamped his hands tightly over his ears the volume of the sound increased tenfold. "You are weak! You are weak! You are weak!"
"Shut the fuck up!" Oga sprang up, the blanket flying off his sweat soaked chest. A nightmare? Before he could get his bearings a fist buried itself in his face, knocking him back down into the black leather couch with a sharp crack. Groaning, feeling worse than ever, Oga examined his jawline and mouth. He was relieved that the powerful blow hadn't knocked out any of his teeth. He may have been feeling like shit but he still looked as handsome as ever. He rose again, slowly, cautiously, mindful of the minor concussion he had just sustained, and opened one eye to glare at his assailant.
Misaki stood above her rude idiot brother in her classic pose, hands on hips and glare on face. "Seriously? Come on. I just woke up. What did I do this time?" Oga sighed, he did not have the energy to do this. Maintaining her pose, Misaki spoke, barely resisting the urge to hit her sibling again, "I don't know what you did, but you better apologise now." Oga's confused expression only served to incense her further.
Seizing a handful of brown hair, Misaki dragged her half awake, fully protesting, brother across the floor. The torture only worsened as Oga was pulled roughly up the stairs, every marble step leaving a new bruise upon the delinquent. The two reached Oga's room where Misaki deposited the broken mangled thing in her grip. Pointing to the door she commanded "Now make up."
"Fuck off."
Oga took a moment to recover, having been used, in a very unnecessarily violent way, to ram open his own bedroom door. Massaging his swollen scalp, Oga looked to the bed where Hilda hadn't stirred at all despite his decidedly unstealthy entrance. He rose and stood above the maidservant, trying to come up with something to say.
"Uhh, It's really late yeah? Umm... If you sleep too long we won't have any time to get me stronger." They were the right words apparently, for Hilda exploded, figuratively, out of the bed, scaring the bejesus out of Oga. The blanket had barely hit the floor when Hilda wrapped her arms tightly around him. As he stood in Hilda's warm embrace he wondered what he had gotten himself into this time. " Oi, one condition though. I'm not weak. I'm strong. Super strong. I'm not doing this because I am weak. This is because I want to be stronger. No saying that I am weak. Ever. Never ever ever. "
"No." Oga was adamant.
"Master!" Hilda pleaded.
"No way." Oga stood to leave but found his path blocked by Hilda.
"I cannot allow you to leave until you agree to use this."
Oga tried to step around the demon, feinting left and right, but was unable to get past her. Hilda, determined, crouched low and extended her arms either side of her. In her right hand was held the motivation for the master's attempted escape. A child's milk bottle, made of clear glass with Demon Lord proudly emblazoned in red upon its surface,
Frankly, it was embarrassing. Was he a baby? He did, at times, act childishly but really... A milk bottle! Hilda frantically explained, simultaneously speaking and holding onto Oga. He clung onto the windowsill desperately, pulling with all his might, in a bid to escape. The open window was his way out and he would not be denied easily. "Master please!" The strain could be heard in Hilda's voice as she held into his waist " You.. must drink ... the special demon lord milk ... from the special demon lord bottle! The special demon lord milk is 110% special demon lord protein. You'll be super strong!" She tried desperately to persuade him as she felt her strength ebb, what little had returned from a half decent night's rest, being used up alarmingly quickly.
Oga still putting his full effort into escaping, asked " Why? Why out of a milk bottle? Can't I just drink it out of a cup?" Hilda answered, "No. It is tradition. You must." Oga gave up for it appeared, at least to him, that the maidservant's grip was unrelenting and gave no sign of giving out within the next few centuries. With a sigh, he sat back down opposite to Hilda, who still seemed rather jumpy, alert for any further attempt at escape.
"It has always been so," Hilda explained matter of factly, relieved that the master had finally settled down. She adjusted her clothing as she do continued, "Given that the demon lord is usually an infant when they begin taking demon milk, it only makes sense to use a bottle. From a young age they would be guided by their maidservant in their growth as a demon lord and.."
"Alright, I get it. I know. I'm not going to drink out of that though. The only way you'd get to me drink that is by shoving it down my throat." When Oga saw the manic gleam in Hilda's eyes, he nervously added " I don't mean that literally though, it's a figure of speech thing. You know? It means it would take a lot of effort to get me to use that..." For a very tense moment, Oga waited and watched the maidservant. Then to his relief she nodded, "I understand." Half a second passed, in which Oga thought that he was safe, then Hilda sprang towards him, special demon lord milk bottle in hand. Oga gave a high pitched scream and rolled onto his back. With a swift kick, he gave Hilda a helping hand in her flight as she passed over him. The demon uttered a soft annoyed squeak as she landed with a thud upon the bed behind him. Seizing the opportunity, Oga dashed for the door.
" Yeah" Misaki gestured to herself proudly," That's what I told him. Now they've been in there making up...if you know what I mean, for the last ten minutes." Oga's parents chuckled as well. Young love they thought, a whirlwind hot blooded romance. Before they could make up anything else, a loud bang was heard from upstairs. In the space of about half a second, Oga appeared, sprinted at full speed to the door and exited leaving the front door ajar.
"Tatsumi," His mother called after him as the delinquent exited " Your lunch..." She held a brown paper bag up. Oga unfortunately was long gone and she sighed dejectedly. Just as she was about to lower the bag another hand snatched it from her grip. Hilda called out " Thank you, Mother" as she sped past the woman. Bag in one hand and milk bottle in the other the maidservant followed her master, ignoring the ache in her tired legs.
A glance behind him confirmed that the demon was still hot upon his heels. This was the farthest he had ever run and Oga had long lost feeling in his legs. He was pretty sure that at this point he had either strained or completely torn every muscle in his lower limbs. Desperate times call for desperate measures, the clichéd thought came to mind. He veered right sharply, his rubber soled shoes squeaked loudly, and leapt clear over a two storey house. He soared through the air, rather majestically in his opinion, executing a double backflip in the process. He landed on the other side, in another street, his feet touching down lightly upon the pavement. Yes Oga thought I am awesome. He glanced behind himself and was satisfied to see that Hilda had not been able to follow. His confident grin turned to a grimace as he felt a tremor in the ground. A rumble followed. Then as though a bomb had exploded, the house he had just leapt over blew outwards. Its contents sprayed out into the air.
Hilda, apparently, had no time to be going over stuff. She had gone clean through the house. The maidservant landed in a crouched stance with one leg extended, one hand supported her and the other still held the sparklingly clean milk bottle. In her mouth hung a brown paper bag. Around her debris from the house rained about, including a family dog. She truly was a demon.
Seriously? Do all maidservant's have the endurance of an African ultra long distance runner? Hilda's dogged pursuit was ridiculous. Did he end up with the most determined being in the entire universe? Oga looked behind himself. Hilda waved at him as she closed the distance at full speed. Why me?
"Hide me!" Oga whispered urgently from within the large green locker. Furuichi looked down at the small grate in the locker door. "What's up?" He enquired " You finally tired of this demon lord shit?"
Oga whispered, slowly, as though describing the worse punishment known to man, " She is trying to feed me milk!" Oga waited a moment for his words to sink in. Furuichi managed to suppress a giggle and attempted to take his friend seriously for once. Why would Oga get so spooked by milk? His perverted side kicking in he came to the only possible conclusion. "Breast milk!" He shouted out loud, in realisation. Oga opened the door only long enough to smack the idiot across the back of his head with his palm. "Idiot Furuichi, it's not that ! It's ..."
Oga fell silent as loud squeals of "Master!" Reached his ears. She was close no doubt. He begged whatever gods watched over demon lords to protect him. Apparently there weren't any. Hilda's heels clicked loudly as she approached Furuichi. " Slave," she demanded " Tell me where the master is. He must have his special demon lord milk." Furuichi looked at the bottle in her hand and could now in longer contain his mirth. In his laughter he made the mistake of glancing at the lockers beside himself. Hilda didn't miss a thing, so she promptly reached down and pulled the door from the locker, hinges and all. Empty.
Oga heard a loud crash as the demon pulled the door off the locker beside his. His heart stood still for a moment as he waited for what came next. He heard the fading click of Hilda's heels and sighed. He exited the locker and shook his limbs about. He had better get to class soon or that new teacher would have him translating an entire book.
Not like her to give up. Not like her at all. Maybe she has gone home. Maybe I'm safe. Oga breathed a sigh of relief and allowed his head to drop down onto the desk. Safe at last.
BANG! The classroom door was blasted off its hinges and flew across the room, making a neat exit hole in the opposite wall. The room fell silent and even Saotome stirred from his slumber. And who else would stride through the new made entrance but Hilda. Oga watched as she scanned the room with her eyes. Spotting him, she jumped up and down, waving wildly. Practically skipping over to his desk she squealed " Master!"
In hindsight a blanket search of the entire school wasn't the most efficient usage of energy ever. She had assumed that the master would not do something as obvious as going to scheduled classes. However it had turned out, his cunning never failing to impress her, that was exactly what he had wanted her to think. So she had searched every nook and cranny of the school. After the extended chase, Hilda could feel the burn in her legs. Demons, apparently, built up lactic acid when they chased their stubborn master for long periods of time. "Master," she declared triumphantly, if somewhat wearily " Drink your milk." The entire class focused upon the object in Hilda's hand.
No. Why? Why here? Of all the places where he could be embarrassed, why the school. He could picture his hard earned reputation shattering into a million tiny pieces. There was no way to repair the damage that had been done. He would forever be known as The Baby. He could hear the snickers around him. Never mind being respected, he wasn't going to be able to show his face in Ishiyama again. Bemoaning his bad fortune, Oga rose and headed to the window. Good bye cruel world he thought as he leapt through.
Ouch. Ow. Fuck!
The fall was, unfortunately, not enough to end his suffering. The perks of being a demon lord he thought bitterly as he lay on the ground. There was a soft click as Hilda touched down gracefully beside the broken mangled delinquent. Looking down at him she exclaimed " Excellent choice master!" Hilda reached down and grabbed onto his collar. " The atmosphere is much more pleasant here." She couldn't help smiling fondly as she dragged the master over to a bench. Taking a seat, she propped his head up on her lap. Oga, helpless, groaned as the movement sent fresh waves of pain through his body. He watched the milk bottle descend towards his mouth. Hilda cooed softly as she brought it closer and closer.
Suddenly, a small stone whizzed through the air and struck the bottle. It shattered above Oga's face, raining glass and milk down upon him. A high pitched laugh was heard. Hilda and Oga both turned to face their assailants.
MK5 was finally back from China! It hadn't been easy at all. They had to work to get enough money together for a boat ticket. Regardless they were now back, ready to conquer all of Ishiyama. The short one, the leader stepped forth. For a moment he seemed at a loss for words. " Uh.. Whatever weird thing you were doing... Nevermind, we are here for revenge, if you value your liv...
Hilda disposed of them with extreme prejudice , utilising much more force than last time sending them flying away. Mentally saluting the saints that were MK5, Oga wondered where they would end up this time. The maidservant had definitely launched them much farther this time around.
MK5 picked themselves out of a crater. The red earth shifted as they stood up. Around them eucalypts swayed in the soft breeze. As they looked about for any indication of their location a beaten up, well rusted ute pulled up beside them. Leaning out of the window, a bearded man called out " G'day mate!" His accent was thick " Welcome to Australia!"
"There's plenty more at home isn't there?" Oga attempted to fill the uncomfortable silence as they walked down the street. Beside him Hilda murmured quietly in reply. The maidservant had seemed down ever since the bottle had been shattered. Lethargic and unenthusiastic weren't words usually associated with Hilda. Oga admitted that this was, partly, his fault. If he had to chase himself around for a day, he too would be exhausted. The small, almost imperceptible frown on Hilda's face made him feel dreadful. He would do anything to just to see a smile on the crestfallen maidservant's face, including singing a rendition of " Don't Stop" (Thinking about tomorrow). Maybe on second thought he would scrap that idea. It would probably make the demon feel even worse.
Oga stopped, prompting his companion to halt as well, " Tell you what Hilda," he declared " When we get home, I'll drink that milk and we'll watch your favourite soap opera together." Hilda gave a small whimper in reply, however Oga could see the smile that illuminated her features. Satisfied, he turned to continue walking. Suddenly, in a blur of black and blonde, Oga was tackled to the ground. "Oi!" Oga grunted, wondering how Hilda had suddenly returned to her normal happy self.
Instead of the expected hugging, nuzzling and praise fest, Oga found himself pinned to the floor by the shoulders, a very serious looking Hilda atop him. As he was about to protest this rough treatment a black roiling stream of demonic power passed violently through where Oga had just stood. The displaced air tugged at their clothing and hair. Almost immediately, for the cloud was travelling very quickly, the tail end of the cloud passed over them. It coiled and twisted together with its head, forming an almost solid mass. From within the very depths of the dark maelstrom a humanoid figure could be seen. It approached becoming clearer and more defined. A pale, long black haired man emerged. He was most definitely a demon for in his hands was a wicked pole arm, its edge sharpened to a point and from either side of his head fins sprouted out giving him a rather fishy appearance. The arrogant smile upon his face widened as he surveyed his prey.
"So, the great demon lord hides behind his maidservant," the new arrival's voice was just as slimy as his appearance and so cocky that Oga wanted to punch the smile right off his face. Hilda held him down, grimly, as he attempted to get at the other demon. When he had calmed down, they both rose to confront the new comer.
" I am Hecatos, 8th pillar of Behemoth's 34 Pillar Squad," Hilda visibly paled at his words. This was the worst possible time for this confrontation Hilda thought. The master is unprepared and I am drained both physically and demon energy wise. Oga, being somewhat slower, stared at the stranger until his identity finally dawned upon the delinquent. I gotta punch this guy Oga realised. " Listen here fish," Oga gestured to himself proudly " I am going to punch the shit out of you now."
" Watch your tongue little human lest I grant you a less than painless death." Hecatos seemed somewhat amused by Oga's threat. His chuckles, further enraging the delinquent.
Hilda turned to the Master and whispered urgently " He still underestimates us. This is our only opportunity to attack. You distract him while I strike."
"Nope" Oga stated, " I am going to punch this guy right in the face." Surprisingly Hilda did not protest. She knew that the master would serve as a distraction whatever his intention. As long as he did not die in the process. "Stay out of reach of his weapon " she advised. Oga didn't reply for he had no intention of being anywhere but right up in his opponent's face.
Sensing this Hilda touched his shoulder. "Master? Are you listening? Please, for your own safety you must stay away from him!" The master did not look or acknowledge her whatsoever. He simply kept staring forward at "fish". This was not the time for stubbornness! She tightened her grip and spun him around to face her. Her other hand came up to grip his other shoulder. Shaking him, as gently as she could Hilda said " Listen Fool!" She met his gaze " You are too weak. At your level... If you face him you will be killed. You must follow the plan" Hilda's use of the forbidden w word did not escape her notice, however it was too late. The master, now stubbornly ignoring her, brushed off her hands and strode towards Hecatos. Hilda, hoping with all her might that the master would heed her advice, followed behind him.
I'll stay clear of him Oga eyed the long polearm his opponent bore. That's not going to stop me from blowing that smug look right off his face, though. He flexed his fist, feeling the power build up. There was a crackle as the energy manifested itself as red sparks shooting down his arm, along the tattoo like demon markings upon his forearm. Oga noticed, with a great deal of satisfaction, Hecatos' eyes widen in surprise. "Fry motherfucker," Oga grinned savagely as he let loose the demon power. He punched and from his fist was emitted a blast of crimson destruction. Oga was blinded as the attack struck, sending a powerful howling wind outwards. Leaves and clothes rustled as a large dust cloud was kicked up.
"Impressive," from within the clearing dust cloud, a voice called with a hint of amusement " Your power is significant. Though nowhere near enough if you wish to do more than scratch my palms." The dust cleared to reveal Hecatos, one smoking gloved hand raised. Oga, shocked at how ineffective his attack had been, hadn't noticed that Hilda had disappeared. Hecatos, realising too late, spun around and raised his weapon.
Behind Hecatos, a voice spoke, " No...It was plenty," Hilda brought her blade down hard intending to cleave the other demon in two, regardless of the polearm raised in his defense. That was her intention. However Hilda was surprised to hear a dull thunk and feel a sharp shock run up her slender arms, as her blade buried itself a centimetre into the wood of the halberd. Hilda cursed. If she had been at full strength the blade would've sliced through both weapon and demon.
Hecatos' surprise quickly soured and turned to rage as he regarded the maidservant. This whore, whom he had narrowly avoided getting killed by, had the nerve to come between himself and his prey. Unleashing a roar, he spun his halberd, tearing the buried sword from the maidservant's grip.
Hilda relinquished her parasol sword and ducked beneath the deadly whirlwind of flashing steel. Her opponent was relentless and halted the twirling halberd in an instant, as though inertia didn't even exist. Continuing to press forwards, Hecatos , with a savage roar, flowed into a vertical cleaving strike. Hilda stumbled back and to the right barely avoiding the blow. Not giving her any time to recover he lashed out with his free hand and seized the maidservant roughly by the throat. The iron grip tightened.
Oga, utilising the few seconds Hilda bought him, had charged another attack. He closed in and attempting to draw Hecatos' attention shouted " Let's see how you handle this at point blank range!" As the death grip on her throat lifted and she dropped to the ground, Hilda screamed, " Master, no!"
Hecatos was just able to raise a hand to block Oga's blow. The blast shockwave still buffeted the demon, knocking him back a few metres. Still on his feet the warrior demon prepared to launch a lightning quick counter attack.
Oga's attention was focused on Hilda. He looked down and extended a hand, " You alright" he asked concerned. Hilda didn't reply. She was entirely focused upon Hecatos. With the master now within range he was sure to seize the opportunity to strike. Spotting the blur of motion that was the demon, halberd at the ready, Hilda steeled herself, ignored the pain and weariness that seemed to pervade her entire body.
Oga saw the glint of razor edged steel too late. Fuck he thought. Never thought I'd die this way. He closed his eyes. Instead of the sharp pain of disembowelment, he felt a rough shove which sent him to the ground. Landing painfully on his rump, his eyes flew open. He looked up and met an emerald eye's gaze. Hilda!
It didn't hurt as much as she thought it would. It felt rather peculiar. Cold. Or was it a warm fuzzy feeling. Hilda was feeling somewhat lightheaded. Perhaps it wasn't too bad after all. Her unsteady gaze wandered from the Master, sprawled upon the ground but thankfully safe, to her own abdomen. A foot of sharp cold blood soaked steel protruded from her gut. She felt her heart sink as her fingers reached down. It was pretty bad. Copious amounts of blood, her own, flowed at an alarming rate from the wound, staining her clothing. Without warning there was a sudden burst of pain, like a thousand talons ripping at the flesh of her midsection. She half gasped half shrieked in agony as her every muscle contorted.
It was lodged in there good. Hecatos tried again, shaking his long weapon in an attempt to dislodge the maidservant. Still impaled on the blade Hilda let loose another blood curdling scream. Clingy wench! Tiring of her cries, Hecatos brutally kicked the maidservant at the small of her back. With a sickening squelch, Hilda staggered forward, stumbled, collapsed onto her knees then fell forward onto her stomach. Blood, dark crimson, pooled about her, spreading outwards from her midsection.
Oga watched, stunned. Hilda shakily raised her head, her eye to meeting his. Reaching out with one hand to him, she begged," Master, please...save...yourself... Run!" she gasped, blood running out of the corner of her mouth. Her arm reached out desperately for him as he passed by her. She clawed at his leg in a futile attempt to stop him. Oga strode past the maidservant and stood facing Hecatos.
All rage and fury Oga charged the demon. Ranged combat all but ignored, he attacked with his fists. Pounding away, he roared animal-like. Hecatos, caught off guard by the ferocity of the delinquent's assault, was forced back. Finally Oga landed a hit. A satisfying crunch was heard as his fist embedded itself in the demon's face, a blow that would kill any normal man.
Hecatos was only more enraged by the strike and threw aside his pole arm. He raised arms in a fighting stance. Oga continued to advance, straight into a gut crushing uppercut. The delinquent's assault was halted as the air was knocked from his lungs. Giving his opponent no time to recover, Hecatos followed with a right cross, then a left cross, knocking Oga left then right. The demon joined his hands together and brought them down, with all his strength, on Oga's head.
Oga watched, helpless. It was the heaviest blow that he had ever taken. Brought to his knees the demon lord could only glare up defiantly. Hecatos, panting from the exertion, drew out a hand and a half sword. It looked ancient though nonetheless deadly. As though performing a ritual the demon placed the tip against the soft flesh above the collar bone, drawing a minute amount of blood. He then raised the blade high above his head in preparation for the final blow. Time seemed to slow for Oga. Hilda's anguished cries seemed to fade to silence. There was only the weapon. He could see the blood that permanently stained its blade. It came down...and halted an inch from his chest.
"You piece of crap, bullying my student?" Oga recognised the voice. One large rough hand gripped the ancient blade's hilt and Hecatos' hand. From behind the demon's shoulder, the "teacher" peaked over. " Yo, Oga" Saotome waved with his free hand, " I got this. Check on her." He gestured to Hilda's crumpled form. The delinquent complied immediately, scrambling off the ground.
"Do you know who you are dealing with?" Hecatos struggled furiously out of the stranger's grasp. He whirled about, sheathing his short sword, and picked up his halberd in one smooth motion. This person exuded an air of power. Hecatos sensed that he couldn't hold back against this opponent. He lunged forward, extending his weapon, in an attempt to impale the man just as Hecatos had done the maidservant.
Saotome casual side stepped the attack and, as the demon finished his lunge, stepped in to deliver a powerful blow. His fist struck the demon's face dead centre producing an audible crack. It was clear that the already bruised nose had been shattered. " Do you know who you are dealing with?" Saotome watched the demon stagger backwards as blood began to stream from the broken nose.
" Who are you?" Hecatos shouted. Ignoring the demon's enraged demands, Saotome pulled up his sleeve. Then raising his fist, knuckles outwards pointed to his opponent, he said "I got a message for Behemoth. You tell him to wait a little longer." At this, the glowing red demon symbols suddenly appeared on Saotome's arm. Hecatos' eyes, reflecting its crimson brilliance, widened. "Bye" the demon markings seemed to shine even brighter until all vanished in a brilliant flash of red.
"Hilda?" Oga crouched down beside the maidservant. There was no reply. Only dead silence. Lowering himself into a kneeling position beside her, he gently prodded the maidservant's shoulder. Still nothing. She's alright Oga kept reminding himself. She's the toughest damn demon I know.
Oga reached out and, as gently as he could, simultaneously rolled over and pulled Hilda towards himself. The quiet was broken by a sudden pained shriek. Oga, shocked out of his wits, felt the demon spasm violently in his arms. He looked down just in time to see her reach out wildly and grasp onto his forearms, her long nails sinking deep into his flesh. Grunting in pain, Oga laid her head onto his lap and bent over her.
Hilda's visible eye was wild, unfocused and flicked about rapidly. As Oga leant over and stared into it, the erratic movement suddenly ceased. The green orb, still wide, still panicked, focused on Oga's face. Recognition shone through. "Hey," Oga's attempt at a smile came out more a pained grimace as Hilda removed her nails from his arm. The maidservant attempted to speak but choked, gasping. Fresh blood ran out of the corner of her mouth, almost a black trail against Hilda's pale skin. Oga, panicking somewhat himself, extended a hand and tenderly wiped it away. "Shhhh. I'm here. It's ok. I'm safe." He attempted to soothe the maidservant. Oga was relieved to see her relax. Even as she seemed to have finally calmed down, a fresh wave of agony overcame her. Hilda didn't scream, instead uttering a muffled groan. Laying upon the ground, she panted rapidly as she tried to bear the suffering.
"You'll be alright," Oga looked down at the wound. It was huge. Blood still gushed from it. Ignoring the blood soaking into his clothing, Oga pressed the palms of both of his hands onto the wound in an effort to stem the flow. As hard as he pressed, as much surface as he tried to cover, the blood kept flowing out of the maidservant . From between his fingers and at from the edges of his palms the red liquid seemed to gush forth at an even greater rate than before. Oga tried to hold back to overwhelming despair he felt. How did such a small slender body hold this much blood? It just wouldn't stop! At his touch Hilda could no longer hold in her distress and she let loose a ear rending scream. Desperate, she reached out and grabbed onto the nearest hand hold.
Oga felt his forearm being crushed in a vice like grip. He tore his eyes away from his hands and back to Hilda's deathly pale face. Her features were contorted in agony and her eyes were once again wild. " Look at me Hilda! " Oga raised his voice. He tried to put as much authority into his command as he could muster, " Look at me. Listen, you are going to be alright!" Hilda eye focused on him once again. " You'll be fine," Oga repeated. " Oi! Help me. Please! Help her!" Oga was almost screaming at Saotome, who watched the scene unfold.
Saotome turned away. He cast his eyes to the ground and sighed, a deep regretful sigh. It was too late. He had been too late...
Tears of frustration forming in his eyes, Oga continued his futile efforts to stop the blood loss. Under his breathe he kept repeating his mantra, as much for the maidservant as for himself, "You are going to be fine." He didn't realise that he was crying until a soft slender hand reached up and wiped the tears from his cheek. Blinking to clear his vision Oga traced the hand back to Hilda. She smiled serenely up at him as she stroked his cheek. He returned the gesture, brushing a stray hair off her pallid face and laying a hand upon her cheek. " No..." Oga whispered, " Please..." His hand found its way to Hilda's. Their fingers entwined. Oga gave the small trembling hand a tender squeeze.
"Ma...Mas..." Hilda's voice was the softest thing Oga had ever heard. Her soft lips seemed to move soundlessly, as though fluttering in the wind. " Ma..." She whispered between pants, her voice becoming increasingly softer and weaker," Mast... Tatsumi.." Oga pressed himself down as close as possible to Hilda so as to hear her words. For a moment she struggled to speak. " I...I...I..." Her voice became ever more quieter until it died away. She exhaled softly. Pressed against her cheek he felt the breath leave her. Her hand went limp in his, her other fell gently onto his thigh. Her deep emerald eye gazed deep into his own until the very moment it closed. Oga let out a choked gasp " Hilda?"
Wrapping his arms around her limp form, tears flowing freely down his cheeks, Oga howled " No. Hilda! Please!" Pressing her tightly to his chest, Oga rocked back and forth gently as he cried out in anguish.
" Hilda!"
"Soon" didn't really turn out that way. Sorry. The last bit of this chapter was meant to be emotional or something like that. Blame Titanic. I was watching the movie before, during and after writing this and stirring renditions of "my heart will go on" were floating about in my head. As usual, thanks for reading/staying with me and reviews are greatly appreciated. As for what happens next...You'll just have to wait for the next chapter MWUAHAHAHA! Until then (let's try to be realistic, say 5-6 days) :C
