Chapter Two: Strange People, Strange Places
"Ow! Geez, no more sake and chocolate before bed for me." Chikara moaned as she sat up in bed. "My head can't take this kind of pressure anymore." she continued as she massaged her temples. "That, by far, was the weirdest dream I've had this week. Imagine, a book with a mind of its own that can rewrite itself and control people. Maybe I should cut out reading horror stories too. Although, it wasn't like those other dreams, except that girl was there. She was one of the people Yui brought over. That was still the strangest dream I've had so far thou..."
"It wasn't a dream."
Chikara now sat wide-eyed and alert. Scanning the room, she tried to detect the unknown speaker. Terrified, she also realized she wasn't in her bed or even in her apartment. Her room looked like it was more suited for royalty or someone with a multitude of wealth. The bed she sat in was a canopy, the sheets made of fine silk and the heavy curtains drawn back to reveal the rest of the room. A thick jade carpet covered the floor, ending where the gold painted walls, decorated with lavish paintings, began. An ornately carved dresser sat opposite from the bed, to its side was a window, but no light shone through. Despite her stately surroundings, a sense of dread quickly overcame Chikara.
"Wh-who are you? Where am I?" No response. Slowly, Chikara began to pull herself toward the side of the bed. She was just about to place her foot on the ground when a piercing shriek ruptured the eerie silence, resulting in Chikara's face becoming quickly acquainted with the floor. Panting heavily, she scrambled to her feet and made a dash to the door that had suddenly appeared. Hesitating for a moment, she threw open the door and found herself in long, narrow hallway. The only light came from a few flickering candles, their glow giving way to vast expanses of darkness in either direction.
"Let's see, should I take the creepy, dimly lit passage to my left, the creepy, dimly lit passage to my right, or should I stay right here and wait for something to find me?" Another scream echoed through the corridor. "I think I'd rather find my own way than wait for whatever the hell's making that noise!" she cried as she took off down the eastern passage of the hall.
After running for what seemed like an eternity through the unending passage, Chikara finally paused to catch her breath. Her surroundings looked much the same except for a slender full length mirror that was hanging on the wall. A pale figure with cheeks tinted red from a strenuous run stared back as she gazed into the polished glass. Her hair was in complete disarray, the clip that had been keeping it up discarded where it fell some paces back. Cobalt blue eyes stared sorrowfully at their owners condition only pausing to watch the task of braiding a set of nimble hands had taken up. Upon completion of the work, Chikara gave herself a once over.
"Not much," she thought, "but it's better than nothing I suppose." Casting one last glance at the mirror, Chikara turned to and prepared to continue her trek through the endless corridor, but something caught her attention. Instead of reflecting an image, a gray haze now covered the glass. Leaning closer, she tried to peer deeper into the mirror, believing the haze to be a trick of the light. "But it can't be a trick of the light if there is no light, so what's going on?" As she continued to stare, what appeared to be a faint shadow appeared in the center of the mist. Chikara's eyes widened as the fog began to clear and the shadow became visible. A completely different person replaced the reflection of the frightened girl. A beautiful woman with flowing golden hair returned Chikara's shocked gaze with one of mourning, a sad smile accompanying her look. The new reflection raised one of her dainty hands to the glass; without hesitation, Chikara did the same. Upon their connection, Chikara felt an odd sensation inside her. Hundreds of images flashed though her mind, images that, though she'd never seen them before, seemed strangely familiar.
A sudden, frigid gust broke Chikara's concentration and connection to the mirror. A quick glance down both sides of the hall indicated that no one was around, but the feeling of being watched lingered as she turned to face the mirror again. To her horror, Chikara's new reflection was now doubled over, her violet eyes squeezed shut in obvious pain. A dark stain was appearing near the waist of her robes where her arms had secured themselves in a vain attempt to stop the blood flow. Slowly, the woman's eyes opened again. The same look of mourning remained as crystalline tears began to drip from her eyes. A gentle, almost apologetic smile remained on her face as more gashes appeared on her body. As she watched, Chikara felt a light trickle fall down her face. Wiping it away with her fingers, she realized it was blood. A sharp pain in her stomach confirmed that; all the injuries the woman in the mirror was receiving, Chikara's own body was receiving.
"Memories can be so painful sometimes, can't they?" a new voice asked. Whipping her head around, Chikara nearly missed the figure that stood partially hidden in the nearby shadows. "Scars of the past never fully heal and, as you've obviously learned, they can always be reopened to make new wounds." The mysterious figure stepped forth and, to Chikara's surprise, appeared to be nothing more than an ordinary woman in her mid to late twenties. However, Chikara instinctively knew this wasn't an ordinary person. The stranger's more than slightly revealing, tight clinging robes accented its wearer's curvy figure; the deep purple coloring made her porcelain skin hard to miss. Midnight black hair rested on top of her head in a tight bun with a few strands hanging loose, ending at a set of ruby red lips that were turned up in an amused smile. It was the woman's eyes that were most intreguing though. Never before had Chikara seen a pair of blood red eyes and never before had a pair of eyes bore into her with a look of such curiosity and humor. She couldn't stop the tremble that ran through her body.
"You're a rather interesting specimen you know. All of the others who met me face to face like this lost consciousness after a few moments."
"All of the others?" Chikara thought. 'There have been others? Where are these "others" now?" She had the feeling she didn't really want to know. The woman continued to talk.
"This time I think it's going to be quite interesting. I hadn't counted on the priestesses coming with you. Some sort of fluke I suppose, or perhaps that silly little bird's way of rebelling. You think he would know better by now." The strange woman continued to babble. To Chikara, it seemed like the woman was having more of a conversation with herself than talking to her.
"Great, I'm stuck here with a loony and I can't run away." her mind complained. Working up her courage, Chikara finally uttered a sentence. "Just what in the hell is going on here?" The woman paused to stare at Chikara, her eyes wide with shock. Her face broke out into a delighted grin that caused Chikara to back up a few feet.
"My my! You can actually talk to me? You're not completely frozen in terror?" Steeling herself, Chikara shook her head. "Why that's wonderful!"
"And that's not the reaction I was expecting." Chikara muttered.
"I was rather worried when it came time to find another girl. In all these years, no one has ever been able to put up a descent fight, but you! I can tell you're going to be different! In fact, I think I may just leave you alone for a little while, just to see how you play things out. I haven't felt this excited in centuries!"
"For the last time, what are you talking about, you freaking lunatic!" The woman paused again, but her expression this time quickly made Chikara regret her words. One eyebrow cocked into a perfect arch; her smile turned in to a childish, yet frightening scowl.
"Tsk tsk. Do you really think it wise to talk to me in such a rude manner? Seeing as how your life is in my hands now, it doesn't seem wise for you to be pushing your luck like that, especially since I was considering going easy on you and..."
"My life," gasp, "is in no one's hands," gasp, "but my own." It had really hurt to get that sentence out. The wound near Chikara's stomach had begun to throb with a new, intense pain. It took all her strength to remain standing.
"You honestly believe that?" A short laugh escaped the woman's lips. "Little girl, I could destroy you as easily, why as easily as could destroy this mirror." The figure in the mirror, who had been watching the whole scene, began to sob as the raven-haired woman turned to face her glass haven. Chikara felt herself wince as she saw the glare her reflective companion received. Pure, raw hatred radiated from Chikara's tormenter as she stared at the girl. Feeling more confused by the second, Chikara could only watch as the woman raised her hand and...
"No! Don't!" Slammed it into the mirror with such force that the ground quaked slightly from the blow. Chikara fell to the ground, her body feeling like it had just been ripped apart. A shard of glass slashed her cheek leaving a long, shallow cut. The strange woman stared at the shattered pieces that lay scattered about her feet; the passionate hatred still burned in her eyes as heavy breaths racked her body. In what felt like slow motion she made her way to Chikara and picked her broken body up by her throat.
"Still think I have no control over you life you little brat?" she seethed. Chikara struggled to take in air, as the grip around her neck became tighter. "When I do finally decide to end you're pathetic existence," she lowered Chikara so they were eye to eye, "I will take a great delight in making you beg for mercy!"
"I-I will ne-never beg t-to you!" Another amused, yet twisted smile.
"We shall see about that." And with tremendous strength the woman threw Chikara's body at the wall. The last thing Chikara remembered was the relaxing sensation of letting her mind surrender to the darkness as a wicked laughter rang in her ears.
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"Aw damn! You don't think she died, do you?"
"Calm down Keisuke. No, I don't think she's dead. The book probably would have mentioned that. My guess is she's just unconscious."
"I hope so. Things aren't looking too good though. Any sign of Miaka and the others?"
"Not yet, but...wait a minute! Here we go."
"You find 'em?"
"Yeah."
"Well don't just sit there! Keep reading!"
"Ok, ok. Give me a second here. Let's see...As one young maiden was engulfed in darkness, another awoke to the bright light of the sun. The former priestess of Suzaku rose to find herself on a familiar dirt road."
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"Taka! Yui! Where are you?" Miaka shouted as she scanned her surroundings. With one hand shading her eyes she peered in all directions, but to no avail. She was all alone on a dirt road in the middle of nowhere. She plopped down on the road with a frustrated sigh. "Think Miaka!" she thought aloud. "There has to be something you can do. You've been in worse situations than this and gotten through!" Her stomach let out a loud grumble. "But I've never been this hungry in one of those situations!" she wailed as she tipped over. After a few more complaints, Miaka jumped up, her usual enthusiasm and determination flashing in her eyes.
"No! I will not let myself end this way! I have a husband and a life to get back to and I'm not going to give up now. Now let's see, what happened the last time I was on a road like this?" she paused for a minute, her face occupied by an intense look of concentration. "Oh yeah! Those guys attacked me and Tamahome came and rescued me! Maybe if I just wait here again Taka will show up and take me to safety." Satisfied with her decision, Miaka began to wait. Time passed. She got tired of standing, so she sat down. More time passed. She decided to explore the areas off to the side for any sign of human presence. Still more time passed.
"Oh I can't take it anymore!" she shouted as she returned to the road. Then she noticed a small speck in the distance moving toward her. Unable to contain her excitement, Miaka let out a cry of joy and sped off toward the speck leaving nothing but a cloud of behind. As she neared her destination, it became clear that the little speck was actually a horse drawn cart.
"Hey mister!" she called out, startling both horse and driver. "Could you tell me where we are and possibly give me a ride to the nearest city?" She put on her best helpless girl look as she stated her plea.
"Miaka?"
"Huh? How do you know my name?"
"Miaka!" Realizing that it wasn't the driver who was saying her name, she looked around, mystified.
"Wow! You have a talking horse?" A thud could be heard toward the back of the cart.
"No Miaka. Back here." This time, Miaka recognized the voice.
"Taka!" she squealed. Sitting in the back of the cart was Taka and Yui. Actually, Yui wasn't sitting; she was lying face down with a giant sweat drop over her head.
"Glad you finally noticed us Miaka." she muttered as she sat up to face her friend.
"I'm glad to! I've been waiting for you guys forever!" the happy brunette gushed. "I was starting to think that I was here all alone and didn't know what to do, but now you're both here and things will be better now!" Yui and Taka just smiled. Always the eternal optimist was Miaka. Taka informed the driver that they would be having an extra passenger (and assured him Miaka would refrain from terrifying the horse again) and the trio was off. Silence overtook the journey for some time, but Miaka eventually interrupted it.
"So where exactly are we headed?"
"Eiyou, the capitol of Konan." Yui responded.
"Oh. Do you know if, if we're in the same period? I mean, how many years have passed since the last time we were here?"
"Not that many I think." This time it was Taka who answered. "The driver mentioned something about Prince Boushin, so it probably hasn't been very long."
"Unless it's one of Boushin's descendants who just happened to get named after him." Yui added.
"Well at least we're actually in Konan and not some foreign place we've never heard of before." Two sighs followed Miaka's comment and silence overtook the group again. Some time passed, then Yui lifted up her head, a spark of realization lighting her eyes.
"Chikara!" she gasped. Miaka and Taka both gazed at her. "Miaka, you didn't see Chikara anywhere when you woke up, did you?"
"No, I was alone when I woke up and I didn't see anybody until this cart appeared. Why?"
"I'm pretty sure she got brought into the book with us! That means she's somewhere here by herself! What if something happens to her?"
"Don't worry Yui. She should be all right. I was able to make it to Eiyou by myself, so Chikara-san should be able to as well." Yui bit her lip.
"I suppose you're right, but if something happens to her, then what happens to us? Chikara was the one the book seemed to want. I'm still not entirely sure why we're here. If Chikara were to get die, or even get hurt, what would that mean for us?" The three sat, thinking about what Yui had just said.
"Right now, I think the best thing for us is to just go to Eiyou and go to the palace and hope that Boushin and Houki or someone will be there that can help us." concluded Taka. "We should be able to get the kind of help we need to start a proper search for Chikara-san." No one spoke, their silence the only form of agreement given to Taka's plan. Some small talk was made throughout the rest of the trip, mainly by Miaka, but even she remained lost in thought until the buildings of the Konan capitol could be seen in the distance.
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"So Miaka, Yui, and Taka are ok?"
"Yes."
"What about Chikara? Has she woken up yet?
"I'm getting to that Keisuke. Just be patient for once."
"Man Tetsuya, you read way to slow.
"Fine! You read the book then if you think you can go so much faster." Said book is throw at Keisuke. "I'm gonna get something to drink."
"All right, I will read it." Pause. "Hey should you really be getting drinks from someone else's fridge?" No response. "Whatever. Hey Tetsuya, grab me something too. Now where were we? Ah here we go. For the second time that day the maiden awoke to find herself in an unknown location. This time, however, the bright rays of the sun greeted her as she became aware of the world, but the light was disrupted by a large shadow that covered her body as an image of fire appeared before her.
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Upon her second awakening, Chikara snapped her eyes open, ready to face whatever horror was in front of her. Her sight was met with a blinding white light and her eyes quickly retreated back behind their lids.
"Hey! We're in sunlight!" As she ordered her optimism to shut up, two new sounds caught Chikara's ear. Voices and they were headed toward her. "Crap! What are you supposed to do in this kind of circumstance? Oh yeah! I know; you play dead!
"Isn't that what you do with bears?"
"Shut up brain! We're supposed to be playing dead here." As the two voices came nearer, the conversation the strangers were having suddenly halted. A pair of footsteps came pounding toward Chikara's body.
"Oi! Genrou, c'mere and look at this!"
"What is it Kouji? Somebody drop coin pouch while travelin' or something?"
"Naw, Genrou, it's a body!"
"A body! Holy shit Kouji! Are they dead?"
"I dunno. I haven't checked yet."
The light that Chikara had fought to keep out of her eyes dimmed a little. Slitting one eye open, she saw tall figure leaning over her and they were holding some kind of torch over their head. Slitting her eye open a little more, she realized that it was just the person's hair, which was a bright shock of orange. Pressure was suddenly being applied to Chikara's throat and it took all of her will power not to slap the offending hand away.
"She has a pulse; it's kinda faint though. Looks like she's been roughed up a little too. Doesn't look like she has any valuables either. Oh well."
"You think she was robbed?"
"More than likely."
"So they think I've been mugged and left to die huh? Well maybe I was. That incident with the mirror and that psycho bitch seemed just a little too strange for reality." Something occurred to Chikara. "Wait a minute! What did that guy mean when he said 'Oh well'? Don't tell me these guys are thieves too. That would be my luck." The presence of a body felt much closer than before. Opening both her eyes, Chikara found herself staring back at a pair of golden eyes about a foot away from her face. She felt a slight blush creep onto her cheeks as the guy called out to his friend.
"Hey Kouji! She's awake!" The man reached out his hand toward Chikara, which turned out to be the wrong thing to do. Her train of thought went something like this: hand, coming closer, possible thief, not good, react! And react she did, doing what she'd been taught since she was a little girl. She screamed as loud as she could then punched her supposed attacker as hard as she could. She leapt to her feet as the orange-headed stranger let out a string of cusswords.
"You crazy little bitch! What do you think you're doing!" It was more of a statement than a question. Anger flared in the young man eyes as he stared at this girl who had dared to lay a finger on him. However, Chikara was quite angry too.
"What do I think I'm doing? Defending myself from a would be thief, that's what! You think I'm gonna sit idly by and let you rob me?"
"Stupid little wench! I wasn't going to rob you!"
"Like hell you weren't!"
"Um, excuse me..." a third voice interjected.
"What!" replied the fiery duo.
"Well, you see miss, I think you've mistaken the intentions of my friend and I." Chikara was to scream at this man to, but she hesitated. Instead, she observed him for a moment. He was wearing odd clothes; boots, pants, a loose fitting shirt, and cloth tied around his forehead, which seemed normal enough, but they looked strangely old fashioned. Dark blue bangs hung just above his eyes and his tan face had a scar running along the left cheek. An odd sense of deja vu lingered in Chikara's mind as she stared at the man, but she wasn't sure why. He didn't seem threatening, so she decided to hear him out.
"Hmph. I'm listening. What's your story?"
"Well, my an' my buddy Genrou over there were headin' toward Eiyou,"
"Eiyou? What's Eiyou?" Chikara thought
"...the capitol of Konan,"
"That didn't help much. Where is this Konan place?"
"...when I happened to see your body lying on the side of the road over there. We went over to see if you were still alive and you jumped up and smacked Genrou in the face."
"Because he was gonna rob me!"
"I was not! I was just gonna see how bad that cut on your face was."
"Cut on my face..."Chikara trailed off as she ran her fingers along her right cheek. She winced when her hand came into contact with the open wound that was there. Memories of the shattered mirror came flooding back to her. "So it was real." A sense of panic started to overtake Chikara and a lump began to well up in her throat. She wanted to cry, but no tears came out.
"Um, miss? Are you all right?" the blue haired one asked. "Do you remember what happened to you?" Chikara snapped out of her daze and gazed at her questioner.
"No, I don't remember. I'm not even sure where I am or how I got here." It wasn't a complete lie. She really wasn't sure where she was or how exactly she'd gotten there. She cast her eyes toward the ground.
"Well perhaps you'd like to accompany Genrou and I to the city. Maybe you can find someone you recognize there."
"What? Kouji, there's no way we're taking that feisty little bitch with us!"
"Eh heh, excuse my friend and I while we have a little conference over here miss." Kouji said as he proceeded to drag Genrou off to the side. "Genrou, we have to take her with us!" he whispered harshly.
"Why? She seems like she can take care of herself well enough if ya ask me!" Genrou hissed back. "Don't tell me ya have the hots for her or somethin'." If looks could kill, as the saying goes, Genrou would be ten feet under..
"No you idiot, but look at her! Haven't you noticed something a little odd about her?"
"You mean besides the fact that she's a crazy, violent bitch?"
"Yes you idiot!" Kouji proceeded to grab his friend by the hair and turn him towards Chikara. After staring for a few moments, Genrou finally understood what his friend was saying.
"She's wearin' clothes like Miaka used to!"
"Exactly."
"Damn, I guess we should take her with us then."
"Glad you finally see it my way pal." The two made there way back over to Chikara who had become suddenly interested in the dirt on her shoes.
"Well, it seems like we gotta take yer sorry ass with us, just make sure ya don't cause too much trouble or anything." Kouji sighed.
"Real smooth Genrou. What my companion meant to say was 'We would like you to accompany us on our journey to Eiyou and we are willing to help you in any way we can.' I'm Kouji and the jerk standing next to me is my best friend Genrou. It's a pleasure to meet you my lady."
"I'm Chikara and thank you for your offer, but I don't want your help." This caught Kouji completely off guard, but Genrou happily seized Kouji and began to walk away.
"Well sorry to bother ya, I guess we'll just be on our way then. Hope ya have a nice trip missy!" A few miles down the road Kouji finally came to his senses and smacked Genrou upside the head.
"Why did you lave her there! Didn't you understand what I told you? She might be somehow connected to Miaka-san! We need to go back and get her."
"Don't worry about it Kouji. She's been following us the whole time." Glancing behind, Kouji did indeed see a small figure slowly trotting along after the pair. "If it bothers ya that much though, we'll wait here for her. It's obvious she doesn't know where she's going, so she'll stop if we stop." Genrou's hypothesis proved to be correct. When she caught up to the two bandits, Chikara stopped walking and stared at them.
"Why did you stop?"
"Kouji and I changed our minds and decided we do wanna rob ya." Genrou replied, flashing a fangy grin. Chikara's eyes widened in shock and anger.
"I knew it! You're nothing more than a no good thief! How dare you think you can take advantage of an innocent girl like me and," Genrou put his hand over her mouth.
"I'm just kidding girly! Truth is, Kouji here was worried about ya and wants ya to come along with us so you'll be safe. What do ya say to that?" Fury still burned in Chikara's eyes, but she gave a slight nod to indicate that she would come with the two. Kouji let out a sigh of relief. He was just about to comment when Genrou started to scream again. Chikara had apparently bitten the tessen bearer's hand that covered her mouth.
"You stupid little bitch! That really hurt!"
"Well next time, you'll think twice before interrupting me, won't you?" Kouji let out another sigh. This was going to be a long trip.
SumPunkAkari says: Wow! That was a really long one! I just couldn't decide where I wanted to end it. I wanted to have it up sooner, but I had my midterms and new classes this past week and that threw me off schedule. I might die before I finish this story because of my gym glass. Ugh, I really don't wanna do a mile run, or any of the other passing requirements for that matter. Anyways, back to fic related news, I will definitely have chapter three up by next Sunday, maybe before if I get the time. I'd like to know what you guys (the readers) think too, especially concerning the OCs and the characterization of the originals. Comments and constructive criticism are appreciated, as usual.
New Special!- Preview of the next chapter: Both trios arrive in Konan and have some unique encounters. Miaka and co. pay a visit to the palace in hopes of finding some help and some answers. Chikara and the bandits have some fun in the city, but things get dangerous when Chikara runs into some real thieves who are out for money or whatever else they can get. Will Genrou and Kouji be able to save her or will it be up to a new mysterious figure?