Dedication: This chapter is for Daydreamer-Of-The-Unknown.

Comments: I am so sorry! I promised everyone that my chapter would be ready on Friday, which it was, but then my fan fiction account rejected every single file I went through. I even tried it on my friend's site, but it wouldn't work. For awhile I thought that it wasn't just my system, but then I saw that everyone else was updating while I still couldn't. Thanks heavens fan fiction support finally fixed my account... That being the case, I have the next chapter pretty close to being done, so expect that today as well.

*Let me know if you want a chapter dedicated to you!

Quote of the chapter: Arguing with a fool proves there are two. Doris M. Smith

Chapter 20: To Meet a Captain

Wolfram's head was lulling on his shoulder blades, his head resting unknowingly on Conrad's neck. His hands had slackened a bit, but he was subconsciously holding on to his older brother, his sleep light enough that snoring was no longer being done. Yuuri was trailing directly behind, looking tired and worried all at the same time.

Though the bishonen acted tough, it was obvious that he was not recovered yet. 'If he pushes himself too hard…' Yuuri thought worriedly, as they walked around the sludge infested corner. Truth be told, all that had happened recently was making him question his true feeling for Wolfram.

He constantly told himself that he loved Wolfram, though not in the same way that the blonde wanted him too. 'It's completely normal to care for someone of your same sex,' he thought to himself. Deep down, however, he was starting to get different vibes about his feelings for Wolfram.

For a moment he was quiet, wishing he was alone so that he had some time to think. Even wondering about Wolfram in that way while in the presence of others made him uncomfortable, as if everybody would judge him for it… Maybe it was because he spent so much time beating the bishonen away.

As they walked around the next corner, Yuuri wearily lifting his feet in the sludge, he felt someone grab his arm. He turned around to see Murata with Shinou posted on his shoulder like the world's most odd parrot. The original king smiled as he acknowledged their presence, seemingly enjoying himself on the ride down the cave.

"How many times have I told you not to ride on my shoulder?" Murata asked, though there was no malice in it. "I dislike it immensely…."

Shinou merely smiled. "You may want to wake Sleeping Beauty up now…Though, with him covered in dirt like that, I'm not so sure that the name still applies."

"Why?" Murata and Yuuri asked together.

"The box is near." replied the original king.

Both of them looked at each other, but Murata seemed to understand what the king meant, because he immediately walked over to Wolfram and poked him to life. The bishonen's eyes opened slowly, green eyes flickering as they went over the rocky, slimy surrounding. For a moment Yuuri's heart sped up in his chest, and he wondered why.

"What is?…" Wolfram asked weakly, blinking. "OH!"

Almost immediately he started grasping his heart, the pain in it almost killing him. For a moment he wondered whether it was because they were in human territory, but then he realized that it was one thousand times worse. Up in the next root of the tunnel he could see a shining, brilliant light, so vibrant that he swore that it had the possibility of blinding him.

With a cry, he covered his face with his hands, fingers shaking. Yuuri looked horrified, as did Conrad, and they promptly sat the bishonen on the floor, even though Wolfram sank waist deep in muck. Murata didn't mind the dirt so much either, checking the direction where Wolfram appeared to be looking even though it was the most dense with sludge.

"Wolfram," Yuuri grabbed Wolfram's shaking hand. "What do you see?"

"How can you not see it!?" His head tilted to one side, too weak to move. "It's so bright that it's blinding….It's hurting my eyes."

Everyone looked at each other. Conrad gave a nod at Yozak, and the two of them unsheathed their swords, ready for combat at any moment. Murata didn't have the heart to tell them that this method wouldn't do them much good, since these beasts were powerful enough that no mortal weapon could touch them.

"Me and the Captain will go." Yozak said cheerfully, as if he was going to a party rather than a full on monster attack. "You take care of the Kiddo here. He's looking a little pale…Well, at least I think he is. It's a bit hard to tell with all that slime all over him."

"No." said Murata so sharply that everyone looked up. "We have Wolfram with us for a reason…"

"You're not telling me that we're going to try to use Wolfram as bait when he's like this!" Yuuri's eyes were so narrow that it seemed impossible that the king could see out of them. "I'd never do that to him…Especially now!"

Shinou was smiling. "Looks like somebody has been telling lies, Sage….Using Lord von Bielefield as bait? I think not."

"You were lying to me!"

Everyone was quiet for a moment. But before Yuuri had time to react further, the earth began to shake for the third time. Everyone ducked and covered as rocks tumbled all around them, the pebbles falling like the world's most painful snowflakes. Yuuri threw himself over Wolfram's heaving body with Conrad only a step behind, the bishonen so sick that he didn't even look vaguely aware of what was going on.

This seemed to be a lot more stressful than the falling rocks in Yuuri's opinion. "We should have brought Giesela in here! What if he has a heart attack!?"

Yozak grimaced at him from the mud now too, shaking his used to be orange hair. It was so coated in green sludge that it no longer remotely resembled his old hair style. "I hate to break it to you, Your Majesty, but a falling rock through his head is a lot more of a possibility right now."

There was the sound of heavy rocks shifting from around the corner as the roaring died down, and Shinou swung his legs happily from the shoulder of the Great Sage. Murata's glasses, along with the rest of his body, was covered in icky brown/green sludge now too, and he was barely recognizable. Then again, so was everyone else.

"I'm going to be lucky if I don't kill myself going down this cave…" said Murata, attempting to wipe his lenses clean on his shirt only to find that they were covered in mud too. "This body's eyesight is something terrible…"

Once again, something made the sound of movement. At this, Wolfram seemed to be coming to his senses again, weakly lifting himself off the ground though his arms were shaking like crazy. Yuuri pushed the blonde back into the mud again, making the bishonen give a mutter of something angry. Both Yozak and Conrad stood to their feet.

Wolfram blinked. "The light…I think…I think I'm s-seeing the b-box."

"That would be my guess too." Murata commented. "This new ability of your's seems to include being able to sense leftover energy…I can feel it, but I can't see it."

"New abilities?" Yuuri asked, eyebrow raised.

That made Wolfram give out a long sigh. "I-It's a long s-story, okay? W-we have to get t-to the b-box as soon a-as p-possible, or else…."

"But you'll tell me later?" Yuuri asked ruefully.

"Y-yes…"

Wolfram shakily tried to crawl to his feet, his arms twitching beneath him as his muscles tensed. His chest was heaving as if he had just ran five miles straight uphill, his green eyes flickering dully in the darkness. With the combined help of both Yozak and Conrad, they managed to get the bishonen repositioned on Conrad's back, his arms looping loosely around the guardian's neck.

That made Yuuri give a look of extreme concern, but there was nothing he could say now in a musty, dark, dangerous cavern filled with other people. He tried to not hear Wolfram's pained, labored breathing, since the sound of it seemed to physically damage the king too. Immediately he started wringing his hand nervously, feeling anxious.

They rounded the next corner, Wolfram bringing up his hand to shield his face. Yuuri's mouth tightened, he obviously fighting the urge of asking the bishonen whether he was okay. Murata gave him a slightly pasty smile, his eyes slightly closed because he had to squint to be able to see what was in front of him without his glasses.

"He'll be alright, Shibuya." Murata said softly.

"He looks like he's in so much pain."

As if reading Yuuri's thoughts, Wolfram let out a small whimper. Yozak and Conrad looked at each other worriedly before speeding up the pace, obviously hoping to get to the box as quickly as possible so they could get out. They all wound around the next corner, but the two tall men both came to a very sudden stop that almost sent Yuuri crashing into them both.

"What's wrong?" Yuuri asked.

"It's the box."

Unlike what Wolfram seemed to believe, there was no bright light beaming out from beneath the cover. Instead it remained there, plain and supposedly inactivated, just like any other crate. It could have been a storage device for anything, from food to slugs.

Yozak approached it hesitantly, his hand reaching for the wooden crate as if approaching a massive monster. Wolfram stirred on Conrad's back, his eyes coming into focus. Immediately he let out a large hiss, his eyes widening with fear, making Yuuri come to a complete halt.

"Don't open it!" Wolfram yelled. "You can't."

Everyone looked at each other worriedly, but no one made a comment. Yozak shrugged, backing away from the cave dead end, unsheathing his sword and sliding it beneath the crack at a distance. He pushed at one side like a wedge, driving the heavy top upward even though the metal of his weapon folded on itself.

From beneath the surface of the box came a foul smelling, bubbling liquid that trailed down the sword as if it had a mind of its own. It came in contact with Yozak's flesh, and, even though the thief had dropped his weapon, continued to eat away up his arms as if the black liquid was hungry.

Everyone's mouths opened wide in terror, Conrad lowering Wolfram to the ground quickly but gently, running over to the thief's side. As it was, Yozak was on the ground now too, screaming and screaming as if he was in the ultimate amount of pain. Conrad was doing his best to get rid of the black sludge, but it had begun to spread like a disease up his arm too. Both of them crumbled to the ground.

"CONRAD!" Yuuri howled in concern. "YOZAK!"

But before he could run over to them, Murata grabbed Yuuri's shoulder and forced him back. Though the king was shaking, he held his hand over his mouth as he watched the terrifying scene before them. There was nothing he could do to help.

Shinou was still perched on Murata's shoulder, watching it all with a grim smile. His eyes found Wolfram's, his hand extending. "Looks like it's your turn again, Lord von Bielefield…If you can manage it…."

Wolfram watched his older brother struggle with the agony, and he remember all the times that Conrad had helped him. When he was small, his older brother had always been there for him no matter what, even when he fell or failed at something. But then, he would always tell him to try it again. Though Wolfram never sad it, Conrad had been very much like a father to him when he was growing up.

With shaking hands, he went over to both Yozak and Conrad, taking their hands firmly in his. This time, he didn't need to be told what to do….He could feel it deep within himself, his instinct, and he was aware that he was not alone. Eternity wanted everyone to be saved too…

The black sludge traveled to Wolfram's hands, excitedly ready for a new victim to feed upon. Instead the moment it touch him the liquid hissed, disappearing in a black, smoggy mist that smelled strangely of sulfur. Both Yozak and Conrad stopped crying out, eyes wide as Wolfram dropped his hand and fell to the ground in dead faint.

A few days later, Wolfram was laying weekly on a grassy hill behind the castle of Caloria. Though he was recovering slowly from their latest adventure, Giesela had given him a scolding that made his ears smoke. Through kindness, Murata had informed everyone about Dagaz…Though the part about Eternity was left out of the tale, because even the Great Sage was in the dark about some of it all.

'When Wolfram woke up, he was gifted with the abilities of a guardian.' Murata had told them. 'That was why the monsters want to get him first…They know that he's the only one that's a threat to getting in Dagaz's way.'

But Wolfram had ignored all enquiries about it, finding comfort in being alone, as he was right now. The soft, green field was gentle and soft, brushing up against his arms as he lay there. It had rained recently, giving the air a soft, fresh scent. He wished that he could have stayed out here forever.

Just when he was about to get up, he heard someone move right behind him, and he sat up slowly, his back stiff and rigid still. It was Yuuri, who happened to be looking very sad and stressed all at the same time. There was nothing the bishonen could say to this, so he looked straight ahead with a determined expression on his face.

"Wolfram…" Yuuri said softly. "Are you okay?"

"I'm a-alright." he responded back dutifully, lying.

For a moment there was silence, and then he felt somebody sit down by his side. Yuuri was closer than he normally would be, his fingers gently fumbling on the ground as if he was nervous. Wolfram stared dutifully ahead, not wanting to say anything to give away what he was feeling.

"Wolfram…" Yuuri said softly. "I want you to know that you're not alone against Dagaz, alright? You don't know how I felt when I saw you on the ground dead….I don't want to ever, ever go through that again…We'll do everything together."

"NO!"

Despite himself, he was shaking like mad. He could picture Yuuri in his head, laying on the ground with blood pooling all around him. Of all the things in the world that Wolfram hated, this image was the absolute worst. He would rather force Yuuri away from him, make the king hate him, then to have him be the victim of that fate. He loved Yuuri too much for him to die like that…

"I will be there." Yuuri said firmly. "Whether you like it or not."

"I don't want…."

But Yuuri was already holding his hand firmly, making Wolfram get so surprised that it put a stop to his sentence. 'This isn't Yuuri…' he thought. 'He never touched me before.' But, when he looked over at the king's face, catching sight of the soft, pink blush that was on his cheeks, he knew that it really was the truth.

Which made it even harder for him. He didn't want Yuuri to die--not now, not ever. He would rather be killed and tortured a thousand times over than to have that fate come true. With a shiver, he held shakily onto the grass as if it might keep him anchored onto the ground.

"Are you cold?" Yuuri asked, reacting to the shiver.

Before Wolfram had time to make a response, he felt Yuuri's jacket slide over his back. He blinked in surprise as it fell off one shoulder, and he knew that he couldn't move to keep it there as long as Yuuri was holding his hand…And, to be truthful, he didn't want the king to ever let go of him.

But Yuuri let go first. For a moment, Wolfram was exceedingly disappointed, wondering whether he had done something to offend the king. Then he felt Yuuri shift his position so that they were sitting so close that their legs were pressed together, an arm wrapped warmly across the back of his neck as the king held the soft piece of fabric against his body. The bishonen felt Yuuri's fingers gently brush the sensitive part underneath his hair, and he shivered again.

"Yuuri, thank you…" Wolfram said softly, feeling sad. He couldn't get the image from his mind of Yuuri dying, and he found that the heated, painful, terrifying pinpricks coming up his throat again, threatening to burst out. "I know that you've never seen me as your real fiance, b-but--"

Yuuri shook his head, staring at the starry sky as Wolfram drew himself into silence. He leaned over against the jacket, inhaling sharply, catching Yuuri's sweet, sweet scent in his nostrils. That smell was something that always comforted him: Whenever he smelled it, the scent drew him closer and closer to home, making him feel safe.

A single tear rolled down his cheeks. He was scared of never being able to smell Yuuri's scent again, and Wolfram wondered how he had ever managed to get himself so vulnerable over someone. 'I'm supposed to be a tough solider,' he thought. 'But there are parts of me that will always stand in the way of that…'

A look of concern crossed Yuuri's face as he caught sight of the glistening tear, and he reached out his free hand to stroke away the dew drop that trickled down the bishonen's face. Wolfram turned bright red, ashamed that Yuuri had managed to be able to see him so weak. 'Just like last time…' he thought wearily. 'Too many tears had been shed lately.'

"We'll be fine." Yuuri said firmly.

Before Wolfram had even time to react, Yuuri had pulled them onto the sweet smelling grass, the jacket curved on top of him like a blanket. The two of them curled up like that together underneath the stars, the bishonen holding the piece of clothing against him, feeling truly safe for the first time in the longer time. All because Yuuri's hand was around him, holding him closer.

"Are you sure this is safe, Your Highness?" Yozak asked Murata carefully. "The last thing I need is to be attacked by another one of those monsters…"

The three of them were riding their horses on the port of Caloria, standing before a cattle shipping boat. It was midnight, and the trio was planning to leave Yuuri and Wolfram behind in search of an apparently 'harmless' box that Murata had pointed out. Yozak and Conrad, however, were having some misgivings about this.

"This is completely safe." said Murata firmly, his eyes glistening. "I have spoken with Shinou about it, and he told me that the way is clear….Dagaz has yet to do anything to it. This will give Lord von Bielefield and Shibuya a chance to rest."

Both of them looked at each other, nodding. They turned slowly towards the old boat that was docked at the harbor of Caloria, looking strangely dangerous though it was just like any other at sea. On board they couldn't make out any passengers or sailors, just an empty hull. Yozak and Conrad looked at each other again, then back at the floating ship.

"Well, Captain…" Yozak said edgily. "I suppose if Your Highness says it's safe, we might as well get a move on, then…."

Conrad nodded.

They both looked at each other wearily, Conrad taking the first step on the boat. Something felt all wrong about it, as if there was something physically menacing on the ship that they couldn't see. Behind them, Murata followed close, his eyes hidden behind his spectacles. Yozak felt his hand twitch for his sword for a moment, but then he shook his head. His instincts were going wild.

Once onboard the vessel, they looked around at their dark surroundings. It seemed strangely empty beneath the vast, starry sky, the world glistening about them. It seemed so hard to believe on days like this that something dangerous and evil was looming closer.

"We already have our rooms assigned." Murata said casually. "The boat ride should take a night or two, but we should remain fairly comfortable."

"Where is everyone?"

For a moment Murata looked over at sea side again, his face glistening and reflecting above the shimmering water. He turned around with a small smile on his face, as if he found something vastly amusing that none of them knew about. Conrad's mouth twitched, and his stomach felt uneasy. Something was wrong--very wrong.

He nodded at Yozak, who put his hand on his sword too. Though the Great Sage still looked serious, he eyed their sudden need to be armed with a look of extreme humor once more. Neither of them could understand why, since it was obvious that they were up in arms against him.

"I know where the captain is…" Murata said, still smiling more crookedly now. His eyes had a crazy edge to them like never before. "Follow me…There is no need to fear."

Despite the Sage's words, both Yozak and Conrad had their swords out completely. Unfortunately, the two of them were so confident in their own abilities that they fought their bodies' impulse to run. Instead they followed Murata down the ship deck, towards a small building that housed a stairwell that led down into the living quarters.

They both stepped into the hallway, accidentally stomping on something squishy and wet. For a moment Yozak assumed that it was rope, but instead it was long, twisted cat entrails, leading directly to the body of the animal a small distance away. And that was not the only dead beast that lay there. Among the floor where the doors remained open, there were dead creatures of all sorts: Rats, dogs, snakes, and even a few small mice.

"What's going on, Your Highness!?" Yozak hissed, sword fully ready for action. He had just stepped on one of the entrails, and it had flipped up, wrapping itself slightly around his leg so that he had to physically remove it. "What do you think you're playing at!?"

"Do not mind the mess…" Murata said, still smiling slightly crookedly. "Unfortunately there was no time to clean, you see. The captain will apologize most reverently for it, I am certain."

Conrad's mouth wrinkled. "The captain did this?"

"Oh, I never said that." Murata chuckled. "I said he didn't have time to clean…."

Yozak stared. "Did someone knock you too many times of the head, Your Highness? You're acting a little bit freaky…."

Even Conrad did not rebuke this comment from Yozak, since his hand was resting firmly on his sword with painfully intensity. Both of them were soldiers, and if something was happening to the Great Sage, Yuuri would be heartbroken. They had to follow, at least to keep Murata's body safe…

The Great Sage laughed. "Well, I do admit that I grow a bit weary…But that is nothing to worry about, Yozak. I will take your words into account when you meet the captain."

"Er…gotcha…"

When Murata turned around, Yozak made a motion to his head that meant clearly that Murata had jumped off the deep end. Conrad gave a slow nod in response, mouth twitching again. Though, perhaps it was from the smell, since the scent of rotting animals was not pleasant in the slightest….At least, to the normal person anyway.

"The captain is this way…" murmured Murata, stepping over another body carelessly, kicking the dismembered head as he walked passed. "Hurry now."

They were lead into the very last room, the door slightly ajar. Both Conrad and Yozak drew to a stop before it, clamping their hands over their mouths in disgust. The night was filled with something more sour than lemon juice shot straight up the nostril: It was death.

Murata pushed opened the door with one hand, acting as though he was letting the pair into a tea party instead of into a world of death. Both of them peered into a room that was dark and poorly lit, with a pile of something undistinguishable in the center. They both had to peer closer to see what it was before it hit them: There, laying in the biggest pile they have ever seen, were bodies that had been so destroyed that it was impossible to tell head from limb.

Both of them went completely rigid, eyes wide and watering from the foul stench. The entire ship crew, which had to have consisted of over thirty men, was lying in a pile of saggy, bloody flesh. Random skin strips decorated the floor like pieces of red confetti.

Yozak couldn't help himself. He whimpered "Captain" out of the corner of his mouth.

"Ah, you've got it right." Murata said, laughing even harder now, clearly enamored at the sights and smells around him. The stench to him was like sugar to a child, filling up his senses and making him joyous at the sight of such wonderful death. "The captain is in there somewhere…Where, I'm not one hundred percent sure."

Conrad whipped around, eyes narrow. "Let go of the Great Sage…He never would do something like this. I don't know what--"

"Ah," Murata grinned, laughing. "So you haven't figured it out yet, have you?"

And then Murata's body began to distort and change, becoming something less than human. It dissolved into a black puddle on the floor, churning like a geyser. The darkened, thick, chalky liquid began to take on an appearance again, this time something far more terrible then the last.

It was Conrad's mother, but she was no longer like herself. Her hair was wet with red ringlets, a crooked smile on her face. Flesh hung from her corpse like ribbons, fluttering around her as crimson lines dribbled down. Her black dress was slashed from the bottom up, revealing parts of her body that shouldn't be seen…But her body was so massacred that it didn't matter.

A wheezy, disgusting voice burst from the body. "Or how about this one!? I know how much your little brother meant to you…This should be fun…"

Once again the darkness dribbled downward, forming again this time into the shape of Wolfram. It was his exact appearance that he had when he was dying in his family's arms: His hair was unrecognizable as blonde from the copper stains that covered it, and his face was enveloped in terrible sores. He had no fingernails, with dull green eyes that no longer seemed to have any fire. Lips that once had been full were cracked and blue, blood gathered at the corners from where the terrible liquid had dribbled down.

Both Conrad and Yozak were shaking, unable to do anything to defend themselves despite their skills. As a trained military man, he should have been able to do something, say something, to get himself out of this, but all he saw was Wolfram's face staring at him, so dark and lonely as if he would never see the light of day again. And what made it worst was the fact that it had once been true.

"Captain…" Yozak whispered, hand shaking. He grabbed at Conrad's arm. "We've got to get out of here…Come on."

The evil 'Wolfram' smiled crookedly at them. "Get out of here? I think not…I have plans for you two. If you lay down and take it like men, I promise that I won't make it too bad for you."

Yozak narrowed his eyes. "With all do respect, Dagaz…You can bite my ass."

"As you wish."

Wolfram waved his hand in midair, and there came the sound of terrible movement from beneath the pile of bodies. Both Conrad and Yozak scooted closer together, unsheathing their swords. They looked at each other with swollen eyes, the orange haired thief smiling despite it all.

"If we don't make it out of this," Conrad said softly. "Meet me on the other side."

Yozak nodded his head. "Can't live without me, huh Commander?"

"Don't ask me to try…"