Reaching Your Limits: A YYH alternate universe
Episode 48: The Hunter. Fighting For Your Life
With no other options remaining, Kurama made his way down the darkened stairway. He moved very slowly, as silently as possible, all of his senses opened to any dangers which could be ahead of him. Around every turn, he expected some especially powerful demon to be waiting for him. However, he made it to the bottom of the stairwell with no resistance.
Glancing around, for the torches were lit here, Kurama found himself in a room the size of an average house. The room was bare but for a few pillars, with another hallway coming off of it on the right wall.
With one final look around him, Kurama made his way toward the only exit in the room. Suddenly, a chill when down his spine and his instincts screamed at him. He threw himself to the side, hitting the ground and rolling before pushing himself back onto his feet again. A slight 'clink' noise drew his attention to where he'd been standing only a few moments before, where two arrows had imbedded themselves into the stone floor.
"Well, we meet again. To think that, after sixteen years, I will be the one to kill you yet again," a voice said, echoing through the room. Even after so many years, the familiarity of the voice sent a shiver down Kurama's spine.
All at once, he was a scared youko once again. Although he was considerably more powerful than the hunter could of been, it was an instinct of all animals to be afraid of those who hunted them. The hair on the back of his neck standing on end, Kurama let his emerald eyes search over every corner of the room, trying to find the hunter that he knew was hiding.
"Things won't play out the same way they did before," he stated, glad when his voice came out sturdy. He held his Rose Whip in place, trying to force his fear away.
"No, perhaps not. After all, you won't be able to reincarnate yourself once again. And, this time, your little fire baby lover is going to go with you," the hunter taunted.
Kurama growled before he'd realized that he'd done so. Anger surfaced, suffocating his fear, churning through his system. This was the being who had forced him to leave Hiei. This was the being that had forced him to forget about his own self. He had lost so much, had lost the most important thing to him that he'd ever come to possess. Kurama was not going to cower in fear, he was going to teach this son of a bitch that no one messes with Youko Kurama and gets away with it.
Even as those thoughts passed through him, Kurama felt the dam within his mind burst. Memories of his past flooded into their rightful place, just as his youki exploded from his form, filling the room as it powered him. All at once, he could sense the other's presence, and he sent the Rose Whip out with an expert flick of his wrist, a wicked smile coming to his lips when he heard his opponent yelp in pain.
"You will pay for what you've done," Kurama stated, his tone cold with five hundred years of demonic uncaring behind it.
"This fight has just begun," the hunter said, his masking spell gone from the distraction which Kurama's hit had given him. He brought his arm back, and threw two more of the hand-held arrows at the youth's form.
Kurama skitted to the side, easily avoiding the weapons. He whipped his arm out in front of him, sending the stem of his Rose Whip at the enemy. The hunter jumped before it could hit him, high into the air so that he actually jumped over Kurama and landed behind him.
Both of them shot into action at once, the hunter throwing arrows while Kurama used his Rose Whip. Although he was able to dodge every one of the small weapons thrown at him, the hunter was agile and could move easily out of the way of his own attempts. Although they managed to score a few shots on each other, they were shallow wounds and were hardly noticed by the one they were inflicted upon.
As they fought, Kurama felt the thrill of battle that he'd not experienced for a very long time. His fear was gone, driven away by his determination to defeat his enemy. In its place was almost a respect for this man, human in shape, but demon in power. They were well-balanced, both intent to kill. It was a deadly game that Kurama had not played for a very long time.
It was sudden when a window of opportunity presented itself. He had no idea how long they'd been battling back and forth, but both Kurama and the hunter were becoming tired. The hunter had jumped away to avoid his Rose Whip, but had landed at the wrong angle. Moving quickly, Kurama sent his weapon toward the other, smiling triumphantly when the whip wrapped around the hunter's form, the thorns digging into his body.
"Tell me your name, before I kill you," Kurama demanded.
The hunter looked up at him with eyes that shone of resistance. He kept his mouth shut, and Kurama jerked the whip once, forcing him to cry out as the thorns dug deeper into his flesh.
"Tell me your name, before I kill you," Kurama demanded again.
"Mitsu," the hunter stated.
Kurama was quiet for a moment, then nodded. "Mitsu, from now until forever, I will remember you as the demon I kill who killed me," he stated, then jerked his Rose Whip for a final time, the green stem slipping around Mitsu's neck and snapping it.
Gasping for air, Kurama let his whip revert back into a rose as he fell to his hands and knees. Now that Mitsu was dead and the battle was over, he was forced to admit how tired he was. He still did not have perfect control over his youki, and had probably wasted more than he'd needed to. Now, he felt almost completely drained.
A sudden wave of dizziness came over him and Kurama's vision faultered. He gave a small groan, raising a hand to his forehead. The room seemed to be spinning, and his stomach began to churn. His eyes rolling back in his head, the youth was unconcious before he hit the ground.
***
Ikare smiled as she picked the youth up from the floor, throwing him over her shoulder. Mitsu was dead, but it was no matter. He'd done what they had needed him to do. Kurama had wasted much of his youki, and would be powerless to fight against them when it came time to put the last of their plan into action.
Or, rather, the last of her plan. Ikare let herself smile even wider, a small laugh escaping her lips. With a wave of her hand, she brought herself and the youth to the main room, dumping him onto the floor beside Yuusuke. It had been almost pitifully easy to knock these children out, their bodies easily manipulated by even the smallest of spells. They truely had no idea what they were up against.
"Now then, Haru, I believe that takes care of everyone," she said, her eyes lighting over the beings before them.
Haru nodded and turned to face their enemies. "I have all of you exactly where I want you," he said.
End Episode 48
Episode 48: The Hunter. Fighting For Your Life
With no other options remaining, Kurama made his way down the darkened stairway. He moved very slowly, as silently as possible, all of his senses opened to any dangers which could be ahead of him. Around every turn, he expected some especially powerful demon to be waiting for him. However, he made it to the bottom of the stairwell with no resistance.
Glancing around, for the torches were lit here, Kurama found himself in a room the size of an average house. The room was bare but for a few pillars, with another hallway coming off of it on the right wall.
With one final look around him, Kurama made his way toward the only exit in the room. Suddenly, a chill when down his spine and his instincts screamed at him. He threw himself to the side, hitting the ground and rolling before pushing himself back onto his feet again. A slight 'clink' noise drew his attention to where he'd been standing only a few moments before, where two arrows had imbedded themselves into the stone floor.
"Well, we meet again. To think that, after sixteen years, I will be the one to kill you yet again," a voice said, echoing through the room. Even after so many years, the familiarity of the voice sent a shiver down Kurama's spine.
All at once, he was a scared youko once again. Although he was considerably more powerful than the hunter could of been, it was an instinct of all animals to be afraid of those who hunted them. The hair on the back of his neck standing on end, Kurama let his emerald eyes search over every corner of the room, trying to find the hunter that he knew was hiding.
"Things won't play out the same way they did before," he stated, glad when his voice came out sturdy. He held his Rose Whip in place, trying to force his fear away.
"No, perhaps not. After all, you won't be able to reincarnate yourself once again. And, this time, your little fire baby lover is going to go with you," the hunter taunted.
Kurama growled before he'd realized that he'd done so. Anger surfaced, suffocating his fear, churning through his system. This was the being who had forced him to leave Hiei. This was the being that had forced him to forget about his own self. He had lost so much, had lost the most important thing to him that he'd ever come to possess. Kurama was not going to cower in fear, he was going to teach this son of a bitch that no one messes with Youko Kurama and gets away with it.
Even as those thoughts passed through him, Kurama felt the dam within his mind burst. Memories of his past flooded into their rightful place, just as his youki exploded from his form, filling the room as it powered him. All at once, he could sense the other's presence, and he sent the Rose Whip out with an expert flick of his wrist, a wicked smile coming to his lips when he heard his opponent yelp in pain.
"You will pay for what you've done," Kurama stated, his tone cold with five hundred years of demonic uncaring behind it.
"This fight has just begun," the hunter said, his masking spell gone from the distraction which Kurama's hit had given him. He brought his arm back, and threw two more of the hand-held arrows at the youth's form.
Kurama skitted to the side, easily avoiding the weapons. He whipped his arm out in front of him, sending the stem of his Rose Whip at the enemy. The hunter jumped before it could hit him, high into the air so that he actually jumped over Kurama and landed behind him.
Both of them shot into action at once, the hunter throwing arrows while Kurama used his Rose Whip. Although he was able to dodge every one of the small weapons thrown at him, the hunter was agile and could move easily out of the way of his own attempts. Although they managed to score a few shots on each other, they were shallow wounds and were hardly noticed by the one they were inflicted upon.
As they fought, Kurama felt the thrill of battle that he'd not experienced for a very long time. His fear was gone, driven away by his determination to defeat his enemy. In its place was almost a respect for this man, human in shape, but demon in power. They were well-balanced, both intent to kill. It was a deadly game that Kurama had not played for a very long time.
It was sudden when a window of opportunity presented itself. He had no idea how long they'd been battling back and forth, but both Kurama and the hunter were becoming tired. The hunter had jumped away to avoid his Rose Whip, but had landed at the wrong angle. Moving quickly, Kurama sent his weapon toward the other, smiling triumphantly when the whip wrapped around the hunter's form, the thorns digging into his body.
"Tell me your name, before I kill you," Kurama demanded.
The hunter looked up at him with eyes that shone of resistance. He kept his mouth shut, and Kurama jerked the whip once, forcing him to cry out as the thorns dug deeper into his flesh.
"Tell me your name, before I kill you," Kurama demanded again.
"Mitsu," the hunter stated.
Kurama was quiet for a moment, then nodded. "Mitsu, from now until forever, I will remember you as the demon I kill who killed me," he stated, then jerked his Rose Whip for a final time, the green stem slipping around Mitsu's neck and snapping it.
Gasping for air, Kurama let his whip revert back into a rose as he fell to his hands and knees. Now that Mitsu was dead and the battle was over, he was forced to admit how tired he was. He still did not have perfect control over his youki, and had probably wasted more than he'd needed to. Now, he felt almost completely drained.
A sudden wave of dizziness came over him and Kurama's vision faultered. He gave a small groan, raising a hand to his forehead. The room seemed to be spinning, and his stomach began to churn. His eyes rolling back in his head, the youth was unconcious before he hit the ground.
***
Ikare smiled as she picked the youth up from the floor, throwing him over her shoulder. Mitsu was dead, but it was no matter. He'd done what they had needed him to do. Kurama had wasted much of his youki, and would be powerless to fight against them when it came time to put the last of their plan into action.
Or, rather, the last of her plan. Ikare let herself smile even wider, a small laugh escaping her lips. With a wave of her hand, she brought herself and the youth to the main room, dumping him onto the floor beside Yuusuke. It had been almost pitifully easy to knock these children out, their bodies easily manipulated by even the smallest of spells. They truely had no idea what they were up against.
"Now then, Haru, I believe that takes care of everyone," she said, her eyes lighting over the beings before them.
Haru nodded and turned to face their enemies. "I have all of you exactly where I want you," he said.
End Episode 48