Chika tried to push himself up from the floor on violently shaking arms. He cried out as he fell again, one arm having buckled underneath him. His strength was nearly gone, his body couldn't support him. Warm, crimson blood dripped from his face, chest and back. Each of the wounds, old and new, burned like fire at every movement. He could hear the movements, the angry, taunting words. All he had to do was get to one of them. One of the three who had come for him. But Shiba's dark, menacing voice filled his ears, sending chills up his spine. It all seemed hopeless. Nothing any of them did made any difference.

Chika managed to lay on his side, his bound hands close to his face. Weakly he tugged at the knots with his teeth. Maybe if he could release his bonds there might be something, anything he can do. He knew Shito couldn't fight without the left hand in his possession. He had to try and get it to him somehow. In some way. But what if that didn't matter? What if the Shinigami form Shiba had taken wouldn't be wounded by such a weapon? Chika stopped a moment, eyes wide at the realization. He heard a table break under Sotetsu's weight followed by an angry growl and Shiba's laughter. Then a clash of steel on steel as Sotetsu attacked again. Chika closed his eyes a moment to hush the doubts in his mind before he tore at the knots again. Finally, after what seemed forever, he felt the ropes loosen. His heart leapt at the feeling and he desperately pulled at his hands. The ropes burned him again as he tugged not yet free but he didn't care.

"Agh!" A voice rose up from across the room and Chika froze, the rope slipping from his wrists. He knew that voice and he knew that sound of pain. His heart clenched a little at the sound.

"Shi-to…" Chika breathed. He swallowed hard and reached up at the bed, gripping the edge with all of his strength and managed to get his legs underneath him. With a loud cry he pulled himself up fell nearly instantly against the bedpost. Two thin, pale hands gripped onto the solid wood as tightly as they could to keep Chika from falling again. His eyes moved somewhat sluggishly around the room looking for that raven hair. "Shito." He breathed again once he'd spotted him. The front of his shirt was now stained in red, torn in two places. "Chk." Chika closed his eyes as he almost fell again but managed to stay standing. The small noise seemed enough to draw the other's attention.

Crimson, pain filled eyes met with gold and they cleared. Shito lost his sense of pain at the sight of Chika's face. He grunted as he pushed himself up onto his feet again, Bekko standing a little bit from him. He took a step towards Chika but was blocked by Sotetsu's body as he flew into the wall. Shiba laughed again, his scythe swinging in a wide arc. Bekko moved in front of him, his oar up in defense. But Shiba knew the origin of the oar and pulled his scythe back at the last moment.

"Too slow old man!" Shiba laughed again setting his scythe on its handle next to him. The height of the weapon reached even above his head, the arcing blade swept over him like an arch. "You won't catch me off guard with that pitiful weapon of yours."

Bekko glared at him in return staying where he was. He had to be careful, anything he touched would be erased. Never to exist. That was the purpose of his oar. If he touched Shiba even once, he would disappear. Never to return. But the same would happen to those boys. It was too dangerous to remain in this fight much longer. "Shiba Reichirou, that is enough of this chaos. Let the poor boy go." He circled closer to the Shinigami as he spoke, distracting him.

"I really don't want to. I've been enjoying myself far too much for that." Shiba responded, circling with him. Both were dangerous, both were ready to strike.

Shito noticed Bekko's tactic and slowly started towards Chika again. Sotetsu joined the standoff blocking Shito's back from Shiba's scythe. Chika could see Shito coming and he jerked his attention to Shiba worried that he would attack him again. But it didn't matter, Shito was coming anyway. He was coming towards him, to save him. Chika could feel the emotions rising in his chest as he fell forward onto the bed, desperate to crawl over it, to get to Shito faster. He didn't care about the blood or the state his body was in. He didn't care how much it hurt. All he could think about was Shito's form moving towards him. His hand reaching towards him, taking a hold of his arm. The shocking warmth sent a rush of emotion through Chika's body as he felt himself pulled from the bed and wrapped in a strong embrace. Though Shito's body shook as he held him, Chika had never felt more relieved.

"Akatsuki…Chika…I am so…so sorry." Shito breathed as he tightened his grip around the other, face buried in his dirty and matted white hair. Chika could feel a wetness touch his skin but didn't care. His own shaking arms wrapped around Shito's waist and gripped at Shito's shirt. His own face buried in the crook of Shito's neck and he held on for dear life. He didn't say anything. Couldn't say anything. He had no words to express what he felt.

"S-Shito…" Chika managed but only barely before the tears fell down his face again. He was overwhelmed with so many emotions he didn't even know what he felt. Relief, terror, happiness, despair, anger, fear. All of them mixed together into something he couldn't name.

"Hush, Chika." Shito whispered, his arms tightening around him, supporting him. "It's going to be alright." His voice broke as he had a difficult time composing himself. What he'd seen, what he could feel as he held Chika in his arms drove him to the brink of despair and madness. Almost like when his mother had been torn from him forever. "Chika…switch hands with me." Shito moved one arm reluctantly to pull his left hand from his wrist and held it so that Chika could take it. The white-haired zombie did as he was asked and traded with Shito. He wrapped his arms around him again however, terrified to let him let go.

"Don't leave me." Chika cried. The child within him screaming for help.

"I won't."

Sotetsu laughed as he managed to swipe a clean hit on Shiba at the same moment Bekko swung at him. The two had figured out how to turn Shiba's defenses against him. Moving him towards a corner. "Aha! Gotcha you damned bastard!"

Shiba smirked and stood upright, one hand on his wound and pulled back to see blood. "Well, would you look at that? A lucky shot." His amber eyes immediately focused on the two across the room. His expression changed and darkened. "I see what you've been doing but it won't be enough." Shiba glared with hatred. His control was lost, gone to insanity. He swiped at both Bekko and Sotetsu before he disappeared altogether.

"I'm going to get rid of him." Shito said quietly in Chika's ear. He squeezed his arms tighter around him then released, pulling Chika's arms from his body and turned.

"Hello there." Shiba grinned inches from Shito's face.

"Shito!" Chika screamed as a black, gnarled scythe sliced into the raven's stomach. Shito's eyes widened, having had no time to react or even summon his gun. He felt the solid mass pierce through his body, exiting out his back. Chika's scream swirled in the nausea the pain caused.

"Think you can take what is mine, do you?" Shiba snarled and pushed the blade in farther, leaning so close to Shito's face that their noses touched. The scythe forced Shito to remain on his feet even though his body wanted to fall.

Shito's breath shook as he struggled for air. "He's…not yours…to claim." He spat blood as he spoke. His eyes turned dark, nearly black as he raised his hand, the gun materializing. "He's mine." He fired his gun at Shiba, only managing to graze his cheek. His aim was off despite the close proximity. The scythe that skewered his body certainly didn't help.

Shiba only laughed at the boy's attempt and pushed the scythe further still, causing him as much pain as he could. Shito cried out this time, unable to stop himself and pulled up his gun again. "You can't have Chika." He managed again. "H-he's-" He swallowed and looked over his shoulder at Chika who had fallen back to the floor. The tip of the scythe had hit him as well, causing a long gash to bleed along his side. Shito swallowed once more to gain his resolve and looked back at Shiba. He gripped the handle of the scythe with his free hand. "I love Akatsuki Chika." He said as he pulled his gun up to Shiba's head and fired.

Shiba's response was delayed by the hold on his scythe. The words and the sudden movement confused his crazed mind. He staggered back, ripping the scythe from Shito's body as he fell back. Blood poured down his face from the wound in the middle of his forehead but it hadn't killed him. He wasn't just a zombie anymore. Shito fell as well and managed to pull himself towards Chika, keeping him at his back, protecting him. He watched as Shiba slowly gained balance, his head tilted to the side, eyes wide with malicious insanity. It was terrifying to see and Shito felt his heart still for a moment. He reached his hand back, finding Chika's and squeezed it as they saw the man looming over them.

"You love Chika? YOU LOVE CHIKA?!" Shiba's voice bellowed and cracked in demonic, high-pitched laughter. "Then you'll die for Chika!" He screamed hauling up his scythe.

"No!" Sotetsu yelled as he tried to get to them through the turned and broken furniture.

Chika tried to summon his sword but failed, his heart racing. "No, Shiba please!" He screamed as the man stalked towards them. He flashed once and was right in front of them, scythe raised high.

"Time to say goodbye!" Shiba laughed again as he swung down hard. Shito put up his arm in defense of both himself and Chika but the strike never came. All he felt was Chika's shaking body behind him and rush of air. Slowly, Shito opened his eyes and saw nothing but air. He looked around, afraid it was just a trick.

"Well now. Finally." Sotetsu said swinging his axe up and laid it across the back of his shoulders. He grinned down at Shito a moment then let his axe disappear as he knelt down next to them. One hand tore the blanket from the bed and tossed it over Chika. "He's gone."

Chika flinched at the blanket then clung tightly to it. He pulled it around his body an over his head so that only his face was visible. Shito looked at him and offered a small, tired smile then looked back at Sotetsu. "I don't see Bekko-"

"He's gone, too." Sotetsu responded quickly. "I don't know where, but we can't waste any time. Shito, can you walk?" He asked as he offered his hand. He pulled the other up who groaned loudly and nearly fell again.

"I'll be fine." Shito grunted in response. His vision swam but he'd have to do the best he could.

Sotetsu then bent down again and helped pull the blanket tightly around Chika. "Let's get you out of here." He said softly as he lifted him up. Chika let out a small cry of pain as he was lifted all too easily into Sotetsu's arms. His voice sounded wrong. He wasn't himself anymore. No yelling, no protests, just a simple pained cry. Sotetsu had to bite his tongue against many long cursing phrases as he turned and nodded towards the door. "Quickly now before the Touhou comes."

Shito struggled to follow after Sotetsu but he managed using the walls and broken furniture for support. He let his gun disappear so that he could conserve his energy in case of another fight. He noticed how Chika's body seemed limp, lifeless and his heart skipped a beat. "Wait, Sotetsu is he?"

"He's sleeping. I think he finally couldn't hold out anymore. Who knows how long he's gone without rest." Sotetsu said with a strong tenseness to his voice. He felt his stomach roll at the thought of Chika's body covered in cuts and bruises. He never thought he'd ever feel such a thing. It was cruel torture that Chika had been put through and none of them had realized just how bad it was. He pushed the image to the back of his mind and carefully lifted him a little higher to hold him better. "Try to hurry Shito. Without Bekko I don't know how long we can last."

"I'm coming." Shito said from behind him as he moved along the wall. A long smear of blood left a trail of where he'd been. He pulled the card key from his pocket and tried twice to get it into its slot before the light turned green and the elevator chimed. Shito moved inside and collapsed in the corner. Sotetsu hurried inside as well and pushed the button for the third floor. He didn't want to be caught in the lobby with guards swarming the elevator. He then pushed the 'L' button so that those below wouldn't get too suspicious. He carefully put Chika down and knelt in front of Shito. "Hang in there, we just have to get out of this compound. Shito, can you do that?" He looked at him with a serious, worried expression.

Shito swallowed and nodded. "Yes…I just…need rest." He let his eyes close and leaned against the wall a moment. His breath hitched every now and then as his zombie flesh tried to heal itself. However without Yuuta to help it wouldn't heal much at all.

Sotetsu sighed and put a hand on his shoulder. "I can't carry the both of you and I can't leave either of you behind. You have to find the strength. For just a few minutes." He looked up at the indicator as the floors dropped. "We're nearly there." He hauled Shito to his feet and made sure he was steady before he picked up Chika again. The elevator chimed and the doors opened. He held Chika in one arm and took Shito's arm with the other. "Time to go." He burst from the opening and down the hallway. One guard had been caught unaware and was quickly given a kick to his stomach as Sotetsu passed.

Shito struggled to keep up, the tugging on his arm was the only thing that kept him moving. He had a hard time focusing his vision but Sotetsu seemed to know where he was going. Moments later they were hauling down cement stairs and out the door into bright sunlight. Shouts rang out around them as guards caught on and followed after.

"Shit!" Sotetsu growled as he pulled Shito towards one of the gates. The men were closing in and he didn't think they'd be able to make it but he ran anyway. "Almost there, keep going." He yelled. Two guards got into his path and he stopped, Shito behind him. He kicked at one and the man went down. But before he even managed to kick at the other he was down, too.

"I thought you'd be faster." Bekko said as he stood there, a regular bat in his hands. "Let's go." He jerked his head towards the gate and smiled at Sotetsu and Shito's shocked expressions. "I'll explain later."

Sotetsu smirked. "Alright!" He laughed as he followed the man out the gate and saw several guards laying around the ground. "You've been busy, Bekko-san." He grinned.

"You've no idea." Bekko hurried them down an alleyway where they were met with Otsu and the Undertaker whom also worked for Bekko.

"Well I'll be." Sotetsu grinned again. He was relieved to see familiar faces.

Otsu nodded his head and slid open the door to a small gray van. "Get inside quickly before you are seen." He said gruffly.

Sotetsu released Shito's arm and moved towards the door. He climbed inside with Chika nestled on his lap. The Undertaker bent over to help lift Shito into the van as well before all were inside. Shito was confused and even lashed out a little.

"Shito-kun, it's alright, you're safe." Undertaker replied.

"You…" Shito breathed. His vision cleared enough to see who was talking to him and he nodded. He reached one hand across the bench and found the fabric of the blanket. He gripped onto it hard, refusing to let go as the van lurched forward. "Chika…." He said over and over again wanting to see the other. Make sure he was alright for himself. Soon his vision darkened as did all other senses and Shito found himself deeply asleep.