Chapter 21

The nightmares about her had ended, but the new dreams of her had bombarded him in his sleep. She'd changed. Dear lord, she had changed dramatically. No longer was she the innocent looking angel that he had met at his godfather's home or the winged avenger that he'd witnessed on the day she'd been taken away to the labs to be studied. Truthfully, that last part had really shocked him and made him feel a significant amount of guilt. Had he not knocked her out and reported her, as was his duty at the time, none of this would have ever happened. He wouldn't be turning into whatever he was, she would still be alive with Lory, and he wouldn't be taking personal responsibility for the actions of others, once again. Rick had been an accident, but Kyoko was entirely something else when it came to him blaming himself for the crimes of others in the name of science.

"Eat…" Kotetsu sat the bento in front of him and commanded in a grandfatherly tone. "You're body is changing too quickly for you not to." He scolded.

Kuon nodded silently, opening the box as the older gentleman sat across from him and started in on his own meal.

"Notice anything different with your training?" The elder asked casually. Of course he noticed the little creatures that kept him company now. He was wondering if Kuon had noticed them.

Kuon glanced up at him nervously. "You're going to think I'm crazy." He groused, but the man did tell him to let him or Hiroaki know if there was anything new and this was definitely something new.

"Well?" He sat his chopsticks aside and leaned back into his seat.

Kuon did the same, and sighed as he raked his fingers through his hair in frustration. Here goes nothing. He thought. "I have these little ghosts, spirits, or creatures following me around calling me master now. I don't know if they're real, a hallucination caused by the changes, or if they're a figment of my imagination due to the fact that I'm exhausted all of the time now." He finished, allowing the worry seep into his voice.

"Hmm…" Kotetsu sat and pondered for a few moments. He'd been keeping in touch with the other safe-houses, and the one in New York had a similar being that they were training. He wondered if they were similar or if it was indeed the Celestial's blood that had been mixed with his. Perhaps if he told him about her, Kuon wouldn't feel so alone and out of place. He decided to keep it a little vague at the moment. With what had happened, they wanted to keep her a secret for a bit longer. He sighed out. "When the world was new and our kind were on good terms with humans, it is said that there were beings called Celestials. Every species of human can trace their lineage back to them. They were genetically compatible with us all, including normal humans. When their blood is introduced into a host, the host is transformed into one of them in order to extend and carry on to the next generation. It's believed that the early Pharaohs and Kings were these beings. They would have only one female heir and she would be the one to pass on the gift on her wedding night." He finished.

Kuon stared at him for a few moments in silence. "What if there was no female or if she died before they could have children?"

Kotetsu picked up his chopsticks once again. "Well…from what the old texts say, that is why they died out. It was a very rare occurrence for a male to be born at the time. I'm sure it is possible, but it was never recorded. Their blood went dormant or stopped working on the last king of that era… He was human. He had killed her on her wedding night, after she gave him her blood. He stayed human and ended up taking a human queen. That was when all of the races separated and left humans to their own devices." He told him in thought. "I can direct you to the texts, but I doubt you'd be able to translate them. They're written in Sumerian. I don't think you'll be able to find them in any modern human language either."

Kuon's eyes were wide and he could barely breathe. Would that mean that Kyoko-chan is alive?! "S-So… The one whose blood that changed me must be alive… Right?"

Kotetsu nodded as he took another bite of his meal, in silence. "I suppose it's possible." Oh well, he'll find out sooner or later, anyway.

Kuon felt like the weight of the world had been lifted from his shoulders; however, that still didn't alleviate the remaining guilt. Thinking of her, she must really despise him for giving her to those scientists. What if those nightmares hadn't been nightmares at all? What if he was actually seeing what she was going through at the time? The nagging need to find her and make sure that she was safe and sound, was overwhelming now.

"I need to find her." He announced in desperation.

Kotetsu shook his head. "Not as you are right now. You may know how to hold your own in a simple fight, but you lack the basic skills to survive with humans. You still need to learn how to hide your new true form, you can't control your servants, and you still need to learn several ways of magic." He scolded as he ticked off all of the many things that Kuon still didn't know, making him feel like a child just starting school.

"When will I be ready?" He groused, thinking that it would take forever before he was able to do anything useful.

Kotetsu chuckled. "When you stop holding yourself back, accept the changes as fact, and make up your mind on what you truly want." He paused. "Oh, and when Dr. Ogata confirms that you've finished with your transformation. Only then will you be allowed out of this compound to meet with her and the others."

"You've been really strange these past few months." His companion commented, as they observed the progress their charge had been making.

Reino glanced at the floor in thought. He'd had many years to contemplate his punishment and redemption. The birth of the little female had been his saving grace in more ways than one. No, he did not want to take her as his mate. He firmly believed that he lost that privilege many years ago. She was their savior, all of them. All of those that had been trapped in that ageless limbo referred to as immortality, had started to age once again at various rates. He could feel it. His clock had finally started ticking forward once again as his blood awakened in his veins. He knew what it was, for a fact. It had happened on Christmas Day. His entire body felt like it had been set on fire, and he could see her face clearly. It was the very day that he contacted his Elvin friend and they set out to find her.

"Is it because you feel guilty?" Miroku asked as he passed his friend a cup of herbal tea, and sipped on his.

Reino sighed. "I suppose it could be."

"You aren't going to try and make her yours, are you?" He asked with worry. Nothing good would come of it if that was Reino's decision. Miroku knew this solely on instinct. Relationships always failed when it came to immortals, especially Reino. He'd not had a successful relationship with a female since he'd known him.

Reino chuckled wryly. "Gods no! I have never in my long life been worthy of such an exquisite creature. I vowed some time ago that if ever given the opportunity to make amends, that I would lay down my life if necessary. I never dreamed that it would happen, ever. I thought that I would walk the Earth for eternity, watching everyone pass around me as everything turned to dust. I can die now. I can be killed. The thought of that is intriguing and terrifying at the same time. I haven't felt this way in almost 7,000 years! It's somewhat exhilarating, yet I still feel I don't deserve this gift that I was given." He explained.

Miroku had always known that Reino was older than he, by how long he wasn't certain, but this was baffling. Compared to his 200 years, Miroku was merely an infant in Reino's eyes and there was a lot he didn't know about him. Things that Reino refused to talk about or was too ashamed to admit. All Miroku really knew at the moment was the facts that Reino had been a human, cursed with immortality and now he was something entirely different, and it had all happened on Christmas Day. He didn't know why he was cursed or how it had happened, but to be punished with something like that… he had to have done something very serious that needed a significant amount of time to reflect upon. Miroku was not about to ask what it was. Most likely it had been something very personal and very bad.

"I don't know what happened to you or why you're this way, but I won't ask. When you feel like telling me, you have my ears, old friend." Miroku told him and they both fell into silence, both in shock. One at the admittance of such a thing that hadn't been spoken of from himself, and the other from the true age of his friend and the realization that the curse had been broken finally. Miroku was happy, yet sad. Happy that Reino would no longer have to endure the torment of being one of the few ageless beings, and sad that now he would have to watch him grow old and eventually die.