AN:
So please forgive me, this chapter is really short... But I felt like I had to end it here because it was a good place to end it and the contents of the next chapter really do not fit into this one... And I wanted to give you guys something just to keep you on the hook. Just to assure you that I'm not going away for another year or so... I'm here to stay this time XD
The next chapter... I will introduce you to the cosmic horrors. The sci-fii adventure that awaits us, the star trek timeline. The laws of space. Honestly, the devil himself may show up (and no he's not just one person, if you can even call him a person). I look forward to this. Very much so. I have some things I need to sort of though, I feel like I say this all the time... But if updates are slow, it's probably because I'm working on other projects.
Please be gentle to yourself in these times, Gaia is cheering you on, as she does with all her children. Now, May the positively polarized space lizard bless you! I know they blessed me XD
Want a song that will set the vibe? Ask no more! HEHEHE Ahem, True Romance by She Wants Revenge.
Happy Reading! (Or unhappy considering the contents of this chapter...)
Xoxo
Chapter 26
Berserk-Mode
The sounds around him died away and everything started to move in slow-motion. Achingly slowly, all in high definition. He caught her in his arms, his sore throat, screaming itself even sorer.
Not that he could hear that. For he could not hear anything anymore. Without a thought, he flew over the cracked, Altana-steaming earth. Away, away from everything and everyone.
They were yelling and screaming, Utsuro was mobbed on all sides and the air became heavy with blood.
It all went over his head, for all he could perceive was her. His feet landed far away, destroying the grounds, creating a crater which hid them from sight.
Smoke rose around him, sticking his eyes and nose, smelling strongly of gasoline. Altana. It was heavier here, stronger. The crater was completely contaminated with the green veins, spilling out power.
Yet all of these details were nonexistent. His hands clutched his sister, unable to let go or loosen up. Tense and shaking, her whole body seemed to shake with each breath he took. She did not move on her own.
She could not.
There was a gaping wound in her stomach, her organs and intestines were split open, torn apart. Detonated, beyond repair. Blood was still leaking from her and her cold, pale form was rigid. Motionless. Lifeless.
Nausea gripped him and he had to look away.
But his eyes just ended up on her face.
"Kagura," he slowly rasped out, weakly, empty, hollow.
No response.
Her mouth was open in a silent scream, blood smearing her entire chin and dripping down her neck. Her eyes were closed, her dirty cheeks streaked with tears.
But her eyes were closed.
"Couldn't you just be sleeping?" he quavered in a low whisper, feeling something like a heavy stone, forcing its way up his chest.
Rising up, grinding against his ribcage, pressing up against his heart. And devouring it.
It felt as if something was squeezing his lungs, trampling all over his insides.
He took a hold of her head and shook it.
The action made her eyes fall open and his heart jumped up to his throat. But it was all in vain. Her beautiful blue spheres stared at nothing. They were dull and lifeless. Completely empty. Vacant of her attitude, her mood swings, her mirth and her rage.
There was just nothing. An unfeeling, cold void. A void which took a hold of him and started eating away at his sanity. Bit by bit.
The stone in his chest surged up his throat and fell out of his mouth.
It was a scream.
…
Abuto stopped dead in his tracks. He could not find his umbrella and he wished that was his biggest problem. Alas it was not. He had seen Kamui, rushing off with Kagura. Kagura, whose stomach had just been impaled by, from the looks of it, Utsuro's entire arm.
She would not survive something like that, not in a million years.
A sharp, guttural roar ripped through the air, straining his eardrums. It was a scream and something close to dread kicked in. It sounded like an animal but he knew it was not.
With wide eyes he watched as Kamui shot up from the earth and when he landed he did so with a deafening boom. Rocks flew everywhere as he charged towards them.
Abuto could not make out any facial features but his hair was loose, his hands bloody to the point where it looked like he was wearing long red gloves.
But he did not need to see his face to know what had happened.
"Get out of the way-!" he screamed, watching uselessly as one of their crewmembers was literally plowed down by the redhead.
He was trampled all over, his head smashed to pieces and staining their captain all the more red.
The Yatos withdrew with immediate effect, making way for the crazed brute, all of them had horror written all over their faces.
"A-Akio…" Abuto heard Junpei stammer out behind him.
He glanced over at him to see him staring at their deceased comrade. Then it dawned on him… wasn't Akio a cousin of his? They had always been friends but it sometimes went over his head that they were related as well.
He wanted to comfort him, but there was no time.
He snapped out of his thoughts, alarmed as he took in Kamui's descent on Utsuro. He shook his head and ran towards the scene.
"GUYS!" he yelled out, catching their attention.
Everyone had moved away from the immortal as soon as they caught sight of Kamui. However, the one called Gintoki was still fighting him.
"He's not sane! He will kill anyone in his way!" Abuto continued, waving his arms frantically, "Samurai, get away!"
Kamui plummeted down as if someone had dropped a bomb. The roar of another crater dug itself into being and a white flash flew off to the side. Gintoki. The samurai rolled over on his stomach and coughed up blood.
When the smoke cleared, all could see that Kamui was long gone.
…
Animal.
That was the only thing Gin could think of as he took in the Yato. His face was twisted in an all too big snarl, his teeth bared like fangs. His eyes were as black as night, wide open and glazed over in some sort of animalistic bloodthirst.
Had his pupils dilated that far…? Was that even possible, for there to be no blue left whatsoever?
Was his eyes playing tricks on him or did Kamui seem… stronger than before? Or at least deadlier. More lethal. More ruthless, like he didn't care, as if he was a wild beast.
Suddenly, a flash of a struggling, writhing redhead, held up and impaled by Utsuro, broke into his mind. Breaking it in half.
In an instant, his heart dropped to his stomach.
Kagura...
Kagura!
Gin rushed to his feet, though his feet were unstable and his knees weak, he still forced his body to move.
He staggred over to Shinpachi and Sougo, who were both staring at Kamui, mouths hanging open.
"Kagura," he blurted out, coughing, "We need to find her, We- we need to get her-" he went on, nearly stumbling into Shinpachi who caught him by his shoulders.
"W-where did Kamui come from?" Shinpachi heaved out, dragging Gin with him.
"Over there!" Sougo quickly said, pointing his sword towards the band of Yatos rushing their way.
The three men hurried up and ran off to meet a vexxed Abuto.
"Where are ya going!?" he snapped at them.
"To get Kagura!" snapped Sougo back, nearly spitting in his face.
A dismayed look passed over the Yato, one that did not go unnoticed.
"Abuto…" Gin got out, catching his eyes, "Where is she?"
Abuto's whole face wrinkled up like paper, he bit his lip and grimaced.
"Over there in that big crater…" he motioned with his head, watching the three men go with a sinking feeling in his stomach.
The Yato cursed under his breath, turning back to witness his captain letting loose completely. For every time he was thrown away by Utsuro, he came back like a boomerang, destroying everything in his path along the way.
The immortal swung his sword down at the redhead and he actually he seemed surprised when Kamui caught it with both hands and ripped it in half, breaking it in two. Shattered pieces of steel flew around them and Kamui, using the stump of the sword, crouched down and buried it in Utsuro's side.
With a strong kick and defiant scream, the immortal threw him away, blood leaking out of his mouth. He held his side and stared at his broken blade with an unbridled fury. He moved his murderous eyes to Kamui, who had flown off and ended up on a rooftop.
The Yato got up to his knees and wiped the blood from his mouth, his eyes hidden by his hair. Then, his muscles tensed up and turned taut like a bowstring. The moment his feet left the ground and he shot up into the air, the whole damn building collapsed beneath him.
As if it had exploded from just the force of his jump.
Abuto's hands ended up in his hair, he felt like he couldn't do anything else but to stare.
Kamui catapulted himself towards the immortal, screaming like a lunatic. Utsuro threw his blade to the side and braced himself.
He was on him in an instant, their fists colliding together, the earth splitting beanther their feet. A frenzied energy surged around them as they exchanged blow after blow. Their movements were too fast for him to catch onto.
For anyone to catch onto…
Kamui kicked Utsuro's side, striking the wound he'd made with the blade, his fingers clawed and dug into the bloody stumps of his ears. Utsuro growled and grunted, catching him by the arms and slamming his head into his.
They were both thrown away by that, Kamui rolled away into a crouched position and Utsuro teleported some steps to the side, holding his bleeding head.
He snapped into action immediately. The immortal picked up his broken blade and threw it at Kamui. It pierced his shoulder and the redhead ripped it out of him the moment it did. At the same moment, Utsuro shimmered away to appear right in front of him, slamming his fist in his face.
Kamui, instinctively drove the blade into his wounded side again before flying away into a boulder and shattering it with his weight.
Utsuro caved in on himself, spitting blood everywhere. He was getting weaker, Abuto realised. He looked over at Kamui and watched as he staggered up, his face completely drenched in blood.
He coughed up a mouthful of the red liquid before wiping a hand over his mouth. Kamui was getting weaker as well, his body was already breaking down.
"We must do something!" a voice rang out from his side.
He turned to see the black haired man whose name he did not have, standing just a meter away. But he was a policeman, as was obvious from his attire.
"He can't separate friend from foe in this state, I would not recommend an active engagement," Abuto explained.
"How about we shoot Utsuro and help out that way…?" the dark haired man suggested, gesturing to the immortal.
Abuto considered it, watching Kamui acrobatically flip through the air, kicking the Utsuro in the chin.
"Aye, that might work."
The two men scurried off to find firearms. Abuto grabbed an umbrella from one of his men and Toushirou Hijikata picked up a shotgun from the ground.
They both aimed but no shots were fired.
"It's impossible not to hit the psycho, they both keep moving too damn much!" the dark haired man angrily shouted.
"I know!" was all Abuto replied with trying to keep his cool and somehow, keep his focus.
Hijikata put his gun down with huff, shaking his head at the scene.
"I don't give a rat's ass about your captain but what he's doing seems to be have an effect. But still, the dude's out of his mind!" he shouted at Abuto, briefly meeting Yato's eyes.
Abuto did not answer, he was at a loss. But only for a brief few seconds.
"I need to check on Umibouzu but I can't leave this unsupervised," he told the policeman.
Hijikata's eyes widened a bit as he looked around.
"Where's he at?" he hurridély asked and Abuto sighed, relieved that he was willing to cooperate.
"Over there behind that big ass boulder, sort of sticking out from the ground, he's in a crater," he explained and pointed in the direction, "You need to see if you're able to wake him up, we need him. Especially now."
The dark haired man nodded at that and slung his weapon over his shoulder. In the next second he was gone, running towards the boulder.
Abuto turned his attention back to Utsuro and Kamui. Dread swirled around in his stomach, he was not looking forward to Umibouzu's reaction when he finds out what has become of his children...
He hated being the bearer of bad news.
On the flipside, the almighty Utsuro was becoming slower and slower, he was losing more and more blood.
Kamui was gaining ground on him. The redhead's body was breaking down as well but the blood kept him going. Going and gaining in ferocity.
But in the blink of an eye, the immortal teleported behind him and locked him in a chokehold. He looked ready to snap his neck when Kamui ripped off three of his fingers and bit down deep into his arm.
A murderous scream exploded out of the immortal and Kamui proceeded to knock his head into his jaw. Almost in horrific slow motion, he witnessed blood smattering over Kamui's already stained face, as bits and pieces of the immortal's flesh hung out from his mouth.
Like a bloodhound. Or a cannibal.
Utsuro teleported away, holding his arm. It was a deep gash, showing off bone and bleeding like a punctured lung.
Kamui snarled and spit out the flesh, turning around to stare at his enemy. He had wild, animalistic look on his face. His mouth was absolutely stained with the blood of Utsuro.
His snarling teeth dripped off it.
"D-Did you just consume my blood?!" Abuto heard Utsuro roar, as mad as mad can be.
He looked to be in some unhinged, strange disbelief at what had happened.
Abuto was only confused, for he did not know the importance of this. Certainly not.
Not until he witnessed his captain suddenly… Wait, was that steam rising from his body?
"What the fuck," he whispered out as he took in Kamui, swaying back and forth, coughing out mouthfuls of vapor.
His whole body was caked in a sheen of sweat, or water, or whatever it was. It was melting and rinsing the blood off of him. It was closing his wounds, making the wounds disintegrate into steam, and then into nothing.
A sharp, deranged cackle was emitted from the immortal.
"I can't believe it, you drank my blood and now you're restoring yourself," he wheezed out, like he couldn't quite fathom the irony.
"Interesting," he went on to say, observing the redheaded Yato, "You're too much of a mindless beast to notice this yourself."
All of a sudden multiple, howling, screeching screams could be heard across the battlefield.
Abuto turned to see the three men from earlier. Gintoki, Sougo, Shinpachi. They ran at Utsuro, screaming their hearts out and the commotion seemed to set his captain off as well, who immediately shot forwards and engaged the immortal.
Abuto could not stop them, he knew that. He just stared, motionless, speechless, soundless, as Utsuro was fighting four people at once.
And each time, he was forced to retreat further, edging closer to the giant Altana-leaking crater.
"Abuto-san,"
The older Yato turned around, wide eyed as he took in Junpei's pallid face. His bloodshot eyes seemed to be completely stuck on something above him. Something in the sky.
Abuto followed his gaze and felt himself grow cold. He faltered for a split second, the lump in his throat falling down to his stomach.
"W-W-We need to get off this planet, we need-" he heard Junpei stammer behind him but he paid it no mind.
Sounds and horrid screams rose around them, all coming from different people, far and wide.
Because there was a burning, giant spaceship descending towards them.
"Everyone! Look out, Look up!" he started to scream, running at full speed towards the battle.
They paid no heed to him and just as he was about to reach his unhinged captain, a shockwave pulsed through him.
Everything happened at once. The blue pentagram went out like a light. A white, furry ball fell down like a rock, falling into the green, giant crater. It was the dog...
Anything else, he could not see. Because a sudden tsunami of thick smoke, debris and gravel washed over them. The ground was shaking, as if it was being split apart, the sound of it felt like knives in his ears.
Then, a sudden, blinding white light engulfed them, piercing his eyes.
He could hear something ringing, like a loud telephone. Tinnitus.
And then, nothing.