For some strange reason, I've been into G-Gundam and Dragon Ball Z fics lately. Odd... Anyway, if you're a G-Gundam fan, I'd recommend 'Ace of Spades' by... someone. Sorry, I can't remember the name right now. And if you're into DBZ, read ANYTHING by Ash the Wanderer. He's got comedy, he's got drama... it's excelent.
Well, enough shameless plugs! Onward ho!
* * * * *
Cold as Fire
by Grace Musica
Chapter Ten
The Capture
* * * * *
Deep in the heart of the fortress, in the middle room, one the huge stone doors was slowly pushed open. Yosei, beaten in body and spirit, drug her battered, bloody body across the flagstone, her shattered wings beating painfully and pitifully in an attempt to grasp some normalcy.
"Yosei, you have failed me."
The tiny fairy demon cringed at the cold voice. "Milady, it was a small mistake! Please, only heal me, and I shall correct my errors! This I promise you," she pleaded on her knees, holding her bloodstained hands out imploringly.
Silence only came in reply from the throne. Yosei thought that maybe she had talked her way out of trouble.
Then: "Failure shall not be tolerated."
"Milady, no! Please! You can't!" Yosei pleaded, paniking.
Wrong thing to say.
"Don't you tell me what I can and cannot do!" Kurai Maho stood, pushed her scrying stone to the side, and slowly made her way towards the broken demon. Yosei tried to move away, but blood loss and broken bones finally caught up with her, and she collapsed into a heap. The human bent down and picked up the tiny demon, holding her firmly in her fist.
"Milady, please! I beg you, stop!" Yosei, now truly in a life-or-death struggle, began thrashing wildly. Kurai simply tightened his grip, making her subordinate scream in pain.
The louder Yosei screamed, the harder Kurai squeezed.
The harder Kurai sqeezed, the louder Yosei screamed.
The four demons half-hidden in the shadows didn't even flinch as Kurai Maho's laughs mingled with Yosei's cries of agony.
Quite suddenly, Yosei's cries were cut short, followed by a sickening crunch of bones, and the splatter of blood hitting stone floor.
Kurai Maho threw the tangled, still-warm corpse in her hand off to the side. It bounced sickeningly until rolling to a halt in front of the fireplace, where Yosei's bloody, agony-stricken death expression was seen by all for a split second before she evaporated.
"I'll repeat myself only once: Failure WILL NOT be tolerated," Kurai Maho insisted, moving back up to her throne with an attitude that she had just entered the room. Her eyes swept over her four remaining croonies, eyes critical. She stopped at the one furthest to her right. "You. Do not fail me like Yosei did, or you shall find yourself meeting her fate. Capture the one we need."
The demon bowed. "Yes, Milady. It shall be done."
* * * * *
Although the Fire Crystal threw enough light to please Tensi, she was shuttering inside. She looked back over her shoulder. There it is again... Someone's watching us... Her hybrid ears strained to listen behind her, a task made harder due to the fact that the sound of their footsteps was bouncing off the stone walls. What the--
She turned on her heel, drawing her sword quickly. The hiss of steel on steel made the other four stop and look back.
"What is it, Ten?" Hiei asked, appearing right behind her.
"I thought I heard something..." The girl trailed off, squinting into the darkness. She shrugged and turned around. "Must be all the echos, playing games on my mind."
"I don't know," Kurama declaired, cocking his head. "You've never misheard before."
"There's a first time for everything," Tensi replied, gesturing forward with her sword hand. "Let's go, let's go."
The five of them continued making their way up the stairs they were climbing, the close quarters making them run single file. Tensi looked back over her shoulder--and caught a silver throwing dagger.
With a 'watch out!' to her comrades, she blocked two more daggers with her sword and threw the first dagger to the side. She leveled her sword, eyes scanning for the attacker. "Only a coward attacks from behind!"
"Then come and get me," came a hard male voice.
Tensi gave a feral grin in reply. "Kuwabara, I know you called the next one, but due to circumstances, I'll take this one." Not waiting for his reply, she rushed forward into the darkness.
Staring into blackness that was interrupted a few times by the sparks of steel on steel, Yusuke was reminded of the tournament Genkai had four years ago to determine who would be her student. Remembering that Kuwabara had been able to see in the darkness, he leaned forward and asked who had the upper hand.
"It's hard to say," was his reply. "Both of them have their Spirit Energy level pushed way down, so I can't see them clearly."
"Neither will they be able to sense one another," Yusuke muttered to himself. "Impressive..."
Suddently, Tensi's voice cut through the darkness. "Ow! Hey! You cut me! Damnit, that hurt."
"What, did you expect it to feel good?" the demon taunted her back.
"It will when I cut your ass in two," came the smart reply.
"Big talk for a dirtblood."
Tensi growled deep in her throat and doubled her efforts, sparks flying more often.
A clatter close by made the four boys jump, startled. Yusuke, in the front, held the crystal high above their heads so as to see. They could barely make out the object.
Tensi's sword lay three stairs below Hiei's feet, blood staining both the tip and the hilt.
"Ten!"
"I'm a little busy!" she called back. This was proceeded by the sound of someone falling down the stairs.
"Tensi!"
As if on command, the girl came barreling up the stairs, stooping to pick up her sword. In the faint light, Yusuke noticed that blood was leaking from a shallow gash in her shoulder, trickling down her arm and onto the hilt. She looked at each one of the boys in turn as she spoke. "I only stalled him for a minute or two. You guys go on ahead. I'll catch up with you when I can."
"Ten..." Hiei said warily, taking her free hand.
Yusuke and Kuwabara exchanged raised eyebrows. It was the first time Hiei had actually shown some emotion towards Tensi in front of them, aside from the kiss they had interrupted. They are the most unconventional couple.
"Hiei, go on. I'll be fine." She kissed him gently, then pushed him away. "Go!"
"All right," Yusuke agreed, starting up the stairs, Kuwabara and then Kurama close behind. Hiei followed a bit slower, not realasing her hand until neither of them could reach the other's hand. Then, he tore up the stairs after the others.
Tensi watched as the light faded into a pinprick, then dissappeared from sight. "Ai shiteru," she wispered into the dark.
An arm curled around her neck from behind. Tensi swung the sword up around the back of her head, the flat of the blade connecting with the side of the demon's head. With a snarl, he released her.
The fight had just begun.
* * * * *
Stairs. Stairs, stairs, stairs, stairs, stairs! Kuwabara was sick and tired of running damn stairs. Up stairs, down stairs. Up some more stairs, then down again. They'd been at them for hours, he was certain. And the stairway had gotten narrower and narrower and shorter and shorter the more they ran. Now, only Hiei could move without difficulty.
Kuwabara sighed at the thought of the demon. He kept looking over his shoulder for Tensi, who had yet to show up. Even Kuwabara, who barely knew the girl and had found her annoying, pushy, and too chatty before, was beginning to worry over her.
Then it hit him: A pain in his shoulder so intense he almost passed out. Thankfully, it passed a second afterwards. He stopped dead in his tracks, causing Kurama and then Hiei to run into him, the three falling flat on their faces.
"Damn human!" Hiei snarled uncharacteristically, already on edge and taking some of his stress out on Kuwabara. "What's your problem?"
Kurama tried the peacemaker line. "Hiei, calm down. I'm sure he has a good reason."
"He'd better," Yusuke replied. "We're wasting time. What is it?"
"It-it-it--" Finally, Kuwabara had to look away, to avoid Hiei's eyes. "It's Tensi. Something's wrong."
Hiei went rigid. Not again, please, not again. He fair ripped the strip of cloth off his forehead, opening his evil eye as he did so. The other three were totally silent for a good five minutes, until he closed his third eye and retied the cloth.
"...Is she dead?" Kuwabara asked in a wisper as he massaged his shoulder, which was beginning to throb.
"No." The three stared at him, shocked at the venom in his voice. "She's hurt, but alive. And I get the bastard that caught her."
* * * * *
Well, enough shameless plugs! Onward ho!
* * * * *
Cold as Fire
by Grace Musica
Chapter Ten
The Capture
* * * * *
Deep in the heart of the fortress, in the middle room, one the huge stone doors was slowly pushed open. Yosei, beaten in body and spirit, drug her battered, bloody body across the flagstone, her shattered wings beating painfully and pitifully in an attempt to grasp some normalcy.
"Yosei, you have failed me."
The tiny fairy demon cringed at the cold voice. "Milady, it was a small mistake! Please, only heal me, and I shall correct my errors! This I promise you," she pleaded on her knees, holding her bloodstained hands out imploringly.
Silence only came in reply from the throne. Yosei thought that maybe she had talked her way out of trouble.
Then: "Failure shall not be tolerated."
"Milady, no! Please! You can't!" Yosei pleaded, paniking.
Wrong thing to say.
"Don't you tell me what I can and cannot do!" Kurai Maho stood, pushed her scrying stone to the side, and slowly made her way towards the broken demon. Yosei tried to move away, but blood loss and broken bones finally caught up with her, and she collapsed into a heap. The human bent down and picked up the tiny demon, holding her firmly in her fist.
"Milady, please! I beg you, stop!" Yosei, now truly in a life-or-death struggle, began thrashing wildly. Kurai simply tightened his grip, making her subordinate scream in pain.
The louder Yosei screamed, the harder Kurai squeezed.
The harder Kurai sqeezed, the louder Yosei screamed.
The four demons half-hidden in the shadows didn't even flinch as Kurai Maho's laughs mingled with Yosei's cries of agony.
Quite suddenly, Yosei's cries were cut short, followed by a sickening crunch of bones, and the splatter of blood hitting stone floor.
Kurai Maho threw the tangled, still-warm corpse in her hand off to the side. It bounced sickeningly until rolling to a halt in front of the fireplace, where Yosei's bloody, agony-stricken death expression was seen by all for a split second before she evaporated.
"I'll repeat myself only once: Failure WILL NOT be tolerated," Kurai Maho insisted, moving back up to her throne with an attitude that she had just entered the room. Her eyes swept over her four remaining croonies, eyes critical. She stopped at the one furthest to her right. "You. Do not fail me like Yosei did, or you shall find yourself meeting her fate. Capture the one we need."
The demon bowed. "Yes, Milady. It shall be done."
* * * * *
Although the Fire Crystal threw enough light to please Tensi, she was shuttering inside. She looked back over her shoulder. There it is again... Someone's watching us... Her hybrid ears strained to listen behind her, a task made harder due to the fact that the sound of their footsteps was bouncing off the stone walls. What the--
She turned on her heel, drawing her sword quickly. The hiss of steel on steel made the other four stop and look back.
"What is it, Ten?" Hiei asked, appearing right behind her.
"I thought I heard something..." The girl trailed off, squinting into the darkness. She shrugged and turned around. "Must be all the echos, playing games on my mind."
"I don't know," Kurama declaired, cocking his head. "You've never misheard before."
"There's a first time for everything," Tensi replied, gesturing forward with her sword hand. "Let's go, let's go."
The five of them continued making their way up the stairs they were climbing, the close quarters making them run single file. Tensi looked back over her shoulder--and caught a silver throwing dagger.
With a 'watch out!' to her comrades, she blocked two more daggers with her sword and threw the first dagger to the side. She leveled her sword, eyes scanning for the attacker. "Only a coward attacks from behind!"
"Then come and get me," came a hard male voice.
Tensi gave a feral grin in reply. "Kuwabara, I know you called the next one, but due to circumstances, I'll take this one." Not waiting for his reply, she rushed forward into the darkness.
Staring into blackness that was interrupted a few times by the sparks of steel on steel, Yusuke was reminded of the tournament Genkai had four years ago to determine who would be her student. Remembering that Kuwabara had been able to see in the darkness, he leaned forward and asked who had the upper hand.
"It's hard to say," was his reply. "Both of them have their Spirit Energy level pushed way down, so I can't see them clearly."
"Neither will they be able to sense one another," Yusuke muttered to himself. "Impressive..."
Suddently, Tensi's voice cut through the darkness. "Ow! Hey! You cut me! Damnit, that hurt."
"What, did you expect it to feel good?" the demon taunted her back.
"It will when I cut your ass in two," came the smart reply.
"Big talk for a dirtblood."
Tensi growled deep in her throat and doubled her efforts, sparks flying more often.
A clatter close by made the four boys jump, startled. Yusuke, in the front, held the crystal high above their heads so as to see. They could barely make out the object.
Tensi's sword lay three stairs below Hiei's feet, blood staining both the tip and the hilt.
"Ten!"
"I'm a little busy!" she called back. This was proceeded by the sound of someone falling down the stairs.
"Tensi!"
As if on command, the girl came barreling up the stairs, stooping to pick up her sword. In the faint light, Yusuke noticed that blood was leaking from a shallow gash in her shoulder, trickling down her arm and onto the hilt. She looked at each one of the boys in turn as she spoke. "I only stalled him for a minute or two. You guys go on ahead. I'll catch up with you when I can."
"Ten..." Hiei said warily, taking her free hand.
Yusuke and Kuwabara exchanged raised eyebrows. It was the first time Hiei had actually shown some emotion towards Tensi in front of them, aside from the kiss they had interrupted. They are the most unconventional couple.
"Hiei, go on. I'll be fine." She kissed him gently, then pushed him away. "Go!"
"All right," Yusuke agreed, starting up the stairs, Kuwabara and then Kurama close behind. Hiei followed a bit slower, not realasing her hand until neither of them could reach the other's hand. Then, he tore up the stairs after the others.
Tensi watched as the light faded into a pinprick, then dissappeared from sight. "Ai shiteru," she wispered into the dark.
An arm curled around her neck from behind. Tensi swung the sword up around the back of her head, the flat of the blade connecting with the side of the demon's head. With a snarl, he released her.
The fight had just begun.
* * * * *
Stairs. Stairs, stairs, stairs, stairs, stairs! Kuwabara was sick and tired of running damn stairs. Up stairs, down stairs. Up some more stairs, then down again. They'd been at them for hours, he was certain. And the stairway had gotten narrower and narrower and shorter and shorter the more they ran. Now, only Hiei could move without difficulty.
Kuwabara sighed at the thought of the demon. He kept looking over his shoulder for Tensi, who had yet to show up. Even Kuwabara, who barely knew the girl and had found her annoying, pushy, and too chatty before, was beginning to worry over her.
Then it hit him: A pain in his shoulder so intense he almost passed out. Thankfully, it passed a second afterwards. He stopped dead in his tracks, causing Kurama and then Hiei to run into him, the three falling flat on their faces.
"Damn human!" Hiei snarled uncharacteristically, already on edge and taking some of his stress out on Kuwabara. "What's your problem?"
Kurama tried the peacemaker line. "Hiei, calm down. I'm sure he has a good reason."
"He'd better," Yusuke replied. "We're wasting time. What is it?"
"It-it-it--" Finally, Kuwabara had to look away, to avoid Hiei's eyes. "It's Tensi. Something's wrong."
Hiei went rigid. Not again, please, not again. He fair ripped the strip of cloth off his forehead, opening his evil eye as he did so. The other three were totally silent for a good five minutes, until he closed his third eye and retied the cloth.
"...Is she dead?" Kuwabara asked in a wisper as he massaged his shoulder, which was beginning to throb.
"No." The three stared at him, shocked at the venom in his voice. "She's hurt, but alive. And I get the bastard that caught her."
* * * * *