Chapter Ten

Author's Ramblings

Oh man! You're really going to hate Neicodemus after this one. No, I take that back—you're going to want to kill him, resurrect him, then kill him again!! And if any of you have figured out who his mother was, you're going to think he's a SICKO!! Oooo…he is my most evil villain yet!!

Disclaimer

Ditto.

~*Chapter Ten: Dignity*~

Sano growled. "So you're saying the guy just…just…TOOK Tori-onna?!"

Van nodded sadly. He held Sachairi tightly to himself, although he felt unworthy to be holding him. He had fallen for Neicodemus's bluff; he had truly believed that his son's life was in danger. And worst of all, he had just stood there in horror as Neicodemus took Hitomi away. He had done nothing to save 1-day-old Sachairi's young mother.

While Sano, Yahiko, and Kaoru grouped together and were shouting out possible demises to befall their friend's kidnapper, Kenshin pulled Van aside. "Don't let the guilt overtake you," he advised, his compassionate purple gaze searching Van's pain-filled reddish brown.

A tear slid down Van's cheek. "I failed her, Kenshin. And I've failed Sachairi too; he'll die without Hitomi's milk. He's too young to take a bottle." He looked down at Sachairi. "It's my curse, I suppose. First, it was my father, then my mother and brother. And now Hitomi and Sachairi. I've lost all whom I've ever loved."

Kenshin's eyes narrowed. "You speak of Hitomi-dono and Sachairi as if they are already dead." His eyes softened slightly. "But they're not. Hitomi-dono has been taken, that she has, but if her captor threatened you with a bluff then he most likely wanted Hitomi-dono alive. There must be a reason he would have use for her."

Van smiled sadly. "You…really remind me of a friend of mine. Always the calm during the storm."

Kenshin smiled with hope. "Where does this friend of yours live? Would he help us find Hitomi-dono?"

Van's eyes widened. " 'Us'? You mean you would help me find Hitomi too?"

"Of course!" Kenshin exclaimed, smiling warmly. "Hitomi-dono was very kind to all of us during her short stay. She is our friend, that she is. All of us will help you find her, that we will." He paused. "Now, tell Sessha, would your friend help us too?"

Van nodded. "Yes, he would, because he…." He grimaced. "He loves her too."

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Hitomi flailed her arms, attempting in vain to free her wrists from the shackles that were clasped tightly around them. Her ankles were shackled as well, though she was still able to stand on the cold cement floor of the dark, dank, and dreary dungeon. She stopped her flailing when she realized that it was futile. I'm going to die in here…she realized sadly. Neicodemus will kill me, and I will never get to hold Van or Sachairi ever again… "NO!!" she yelled out loud, refusing to give up hope. "Let me go, you heartless monster!!"

Neicodemus, veiled in the absence of light, chuckled. "A heartless monster, eh?" He grinned as he lifted his sword from his side, unsheathing it slightly. He approached Hitomi, who pressed herself against the wall in fear. "Shall I show you just how heartless I can be?"

Hitomi said nothing.

Neicodemus chuckled. "I'll take that as a yes." He came closer and closer to Hitomi, and soon his chest was right in front of her face. "I'll show you how heartless I can be." He fully unsheathed his sword, and with strategic cuts here and there he soon rendered Hitomi kimono-less.

Hitomi shivered, now being completely stripped. "W-what are you going to do to me?" she asked nervously.

Neicodemus slowly removed his black gloves from his hands. He ran a finger across Hitomi's trembling lips, and grinned when he realized she was so scared that she didn't even attempt to bite him. "I imagine you are good in bed," he whispered in her ear, licking her lobe. "You conceived the very night you lost your virginity." He growled, feeling her protests. "Ah, yes. You must be very good in bed."

Hitomi was paralyzed in fear. "Please…please stop. I just gave birth last night!" she exclaimed between whimpers and sniffles.

Neicodemus licked and nibbled at her neck. "Just petty medical precautions. I pay no heed to those." He made his way up her neck and over her jaw, and soon he pressed his lips to hers in a violent kiss.

As Neicodemus claimed her mouth, Hitomi began having mental flashes. She saw a beautiful woman with deep mahogany hair, holding a baby girl. Somehow Hitomi knew that this was a past image of Neicodemus's wife and daughter. As soon as he made his way down her neck again, she whispered in his ear, "What about your wife?"

Neicodemus immediately halted. With haste, he separated himself from his nude hostage. With an anguished cry, he slapped Hitomi across the face with all his might. "You have no right to speak of my wife!!"

Hitomi ignored the pain of the slap. She was about to make a remark when she noticed the glint in Neicodemus's eyes. Suddenly she found herself free of the shackles and being lead to a new room, one that was well-lit and ornately decorated. "Where are you taking me?!" she demanded.

Neicodemus grinned. He gave no answer, just simply lead onward. Within seconds, he shoved Hitomi into a somewhat hourglass-shaped 7-foot-tall glass container. Before he shut the glass door, he stated, "You will stand in here until you die. As soon as I close this door, water will immediately begin fill the container. The water will rise a foot for every day that you are in here, meaning that you have seven days before you die of drowning." He shut the door, and soon a light drip-drop of water could be seen. Neicodemus chuckled. "If you don't die of hypothermia first!"

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"Alright. So the plan is to use your pendant to go to this planet called Gaea, land in Fanelia, go to your friend Merle and tell her to watch over Sachairi, then go to Austuria to get your friend who will help us…?" Kaoru summed up somewhat skeptically.

"Need I remind you that the man descended in a beam of light with wings, Hag?" Yahiko reminded.

Kaoru let the hag comment slide. "Oh yeah. Okay then, the plan's fine with me. Anybody else have any objections?"

Both Kenshin and Sano shook their heads. Van voiced his answer, "Of course not."

Kaoru nodded. "Alright then. To Gaea we go!"

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Hitomi sat in her prison with her back against the slick glass. The water was now high enough that if she stood, it would cover her toes completely. She had attempted to cover her nudity, but she soon realized it just wasn't worth it. She was completely on display, but hardly anyone other than an occasional guard came through the room.

She felt so defiled.

She had been touched, tasted, and nibbled on by Neicodemus. She had been nearly raped by him! Never had she ever felt so dirty in her entire life. To make herself feel better, she recalled the night that she and Van had spent together in the throes of passion. She remembered with bliss the way he had kissed every inch, every centimeter of her flesh—marking her as his in his own gentle way. And then his hands were everywhere at once, touching her in places that she thought she'd never let anyone touch. But she let Van, because they loved each other and they both knew that she'd have to go back to Earth, at least for a little while. She remembered how she had told him that she wanted to touch him too, but he had stopped her. He had said, "Someday we will be together again like this, and I will let you touch and taste me the way that I have done to you—and I will enjoy every second of it." And then he had smiled, adding, "But tonight is your night, Hitomi."

Hitomi smiled, already uplifted by her memories. Van made no attempt to claw at her dignity, or to go further than she wanted. He had given her full control; what she wanted, he gave. But Neicodemus wasn't like that, Hitomi thought darkly. Whereas Van's ministrations were gentle, Neicodemus's were rough and harsh. Hitomi thanked any deity willing to listen that Neicodemus didn't go all the way with her.

She groaned as the thought of Neicodemus returned. "It's weird," she commented to the water, in a strange attempt to keep herself from going insane. "When he kissed me, it felt like I was kissing a relative. Albeit a perverted pedophile-relative." She cupped some water in her hands, bringing it up to her face. "You know what I mean?"

The water simply drained through the cracks of her hands.