R_M : Wow ! Another very long chapter ! 5 Pages is whew ! Anyway , let's start .

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Flight to Hades

Cerberus guards the stony cave .

Do not stop , be not afraid .

The Cyclopes pause and stare ,

As specters rise from the grave ;

One-eyed monsters filled with pain .

Do not look back at where you've lain .

The Harpies crossly shriek and scream

As they wield their brass-veiled claws so grim .

Do not stop , be not afraid .

For you are welcomed to the fearsome dream …

Welcomed to the magnificent kingdom interim

Hark  ye ! Do not stop , be not afraid !

For no one shall come to your desp'rate aid

Wild-eyed spirits hiss and glare ,

As blithe Persephone weeps so fair .

Hold your breath ; your memories lost ,

But do not look back at any cost .

Eternal agony for thee awaits -

For soon shall your mortal bliss abate .

Shades fade to mist in the land of death ;

Silence crushed by cries of despair .

No escapes from the venomous breath,

Sparking fires kindled in midnight air .

But do not stop , be not afraid ;

Because this is the time your life is weighed .

Hades : Both the 'heaven and hell' in Greek mythology as well as the god of
death .

Cerberus : The three-headed dog that ordered to guard the gates realm of the dead

Cyclopes      : The one-eyed monsters that helped Zeus overthrow Chronos .

Harpies        : The three savage sisters ( half-woman and half-everything else ) that Hades employs to torture shades .

Persephone : Demeter's daughter whom Hades kidnapped to be his bride .

Shades         : Spirits .

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Crawford thought that they should start on working on the mission now .

It was one of the most important missions they had been given , though he could not exactly discern why .

Their orders were just to find and kill one man . One single man .

And Estet was willing to ship them off to the United States just to do that . Had they just turned into some cheap , common hired guns to jump up like dogs whenever an order was given ?

But no ... not even Estet dared to take advantage of Schwarz like that .

He wondered what the importance of the target is to the organization . He must be singularly vital to them , or they wouldn't waste Schwarz's valuable time hunting for a rogue in a country they don't even know .

He received the order a week before but no particulars were divulged . He was due to receive them today in a drop-off at the park .

He remembered the last drop-off at the park and shook his head at the memory of the child smiling up at him with his front tooth missing and turning out to be the contact .

The world was getting to be more and more twisted with every turn on its skewed axis ...

" Mister !"

He looked down to find a five-year old girl looking up at him with a friendly smile .

" Would you like to play ?"

He gave a wan smile and shook his head . " Perhaps you'd like to read the papers there ?" She pointed at a folder on the bench side before skipping away , giggling happily .

A woman scolded the child . " Mika ! Don't talk to strangers !"

The child's protests barely registered into his mind as Crawford slowly pored over the contents of the folder . " But mama ! He looks like a nice man !" the child said , pouting .

A an enlarged picture greeted him as he flipped open the folder cover ... and a name ... a name he had never expected ...

Kyou Hidaka Project Black Ookami

Somehow ; he had to keep their target's identity from his team ... or there will be HELL to pay .

And he needed Prodigy now .

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Nagi wandered through the streets , cold , lonely and unsure .

What was going to happen now ?

He no longer had a reason to survive and yet , he didn't have enough courage to take his life .

What a divine irony it was .

To want something , and yet to be able to do nothing about it . 

The sky was streaked with gray , as the clouds threatened to spill cold sheets of water onto the streets . Fires were roaring in fireplaces all over the city ; only the unfortunate remained vulnerable to the forces of nature .

Soon , the clip-clopping of raindrops on metal and pavement drowned all other sounds of the city . Not a soul was in sight .

The streetlights feebly struggled to filter through the thick sheets of rain , offering a meager victory by the weak glow that surrounded him , making his bleak world surreal in its stark reality .

Only Nagi .

And his followers - who had donned identical black raincoats with similar umbrellas raised over their heads . A black Estet-owned car crawled along with them .

- At least the pain was there to keep him company , and he was contented to relive all the memories of the past – with Ken .

With Ken ...

He hadn't eaten for days and his body showed it .

Frail and fragile like expensive china , he was near his breaking point .

He had wasted away to almost nothing ; to just a pale spectre gliding aimlessly in the streets .

Even the homeless shied away from him ... because they were afraid of the large  , burly men who were trailing him and whom made no attempt to disguise themselves as commoners .

He finally realized that his mindless wandering had brought him to a large bridge suspended over the stormy lake below it . The overpass connected two separate landmasses and as of the moment , very few cars were passing through due to the torrential rain pouring down in sheets .

The men in fact , realized this as well with an obvious unease . What is he planning to do ? It was the question that lingered quite gloomily in their mind .

Their eyes sought the others constantly , the unformed question so clearly reflected .

His thoughts constantly plagued him .

The guilt of being so selfish .

He knew Ken had loved him . Even as a brother ... Ken had loved him .

But he was selfish . He wanted Ken to love him as he loved Schuldich . As he had loved Abyssinian .

Perhaps it was Nagi's fault that Ken destroyed himself.

He tore Ken in half , knowing that he was too good to allow Nagi to suffer in his jealousy .

Why hadn't he been contented ?

Why ?

But still , even until now ... it tore Nagi apart that Ken had loved others more than he had ever loved him .

Did I ? Did I love them more than I loved you , Nagi ? If you believe that , then I guess you didn't deserve me after all .

Oh why had he been so selfish ??

Bitter tears slid down his pale cheeks , intermingling with the icy raindrops .

But now he needed to stop crying .

Ken wouldn't have wanted him to mourn his life away !

Nagi stared calmly at the raging waters .

He finally knew what to do .

All those nights spent straying alone made him comprehend what he had been avoiding since Ken's death .

And now he was facing his fears . The bitter cold and his reflections had led him to what destiny had lured him to .

He  had at last found the courage in this cold night to face the hooded phantom .

Yes . He finally knew what he should do .

Ken's face stared up at him , smiling ; laughing , calling his name , beckoning him to come closer .

Nagi !

He could never resist those smiling grey eyes , nor could he take his eyes off that charming smile .

How wonderful to see him smiling again !

To see him happy as Nagi imagined they both should be in each other's arms .

Safe ...

Protected ...

Loved ...

He knew what he should do to be able to feel that comfort – that warmth in Ken's strong arms holding him tightly , swathing him in a warm cocoon of affection .

Pale trembling fingers clutched at the cold railing of the maroon-coloured bridge . Nagi was finally ready to face his fears .

One hand clutched at the silver coin pendant engraved with Ken's name . It was supposed to be his gift on his birthday .

Too late .

He hefted himself over the rails and stood at the other side , the wind blasting cruelly against him .

Too late .

He was free .

Much , much too late .

Ken was waiting for him for him on the other side of the river .

The God of Death was waiting for him ; and so was his beloved .

Suddenly , the cold night no longer existed – only a peaceful warmth .

Suddenly , the rain was no longer harsh .

Suddenly , he could Ken's melodious hear laughter in the air .

" Sir ! He's going to jump off the bridge !!!"

The frantic bodyguards had started shouting into their radios and stomping their feet in a mad frenzy .

All wanting to stop Nagi from his madness ... all lacking the courage to do so . They knew they were no match against his powers , even if they tried to keep him from doing what he intended to do .

Perhaps that was his destiny ... and that they were meant to be powerless to hinder him .

Perhaps it was the time the three Fates decided to cut the silken thread of his life ...

Charon was waiting by the river Styx to carry his soul to Hades ; and he had the fare to reach it .

Charon : The mythical ferryman who rows the boat from one side of the river to the other . A fare is needed for him to allow you ; which is why dead were buried with a silver coin in their mouth . If the shade does not have the fair , it is forced to swim across the river .

Styx : The river of the dead which you need to cross in order to reach Hades . It is also the river of memory ; if you swim across it , all your recollections will be lost .

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R_M : SOOOOOOO ... there you go ! *ducks from the path of flying chairs , soaring tables , and the rapid fire of several homemade machine guns* Ok ok . I take it you're not too happy with the cliffhanger I left you with !

O_O;;;;

I thank you all for the reviews of last chapter .

Mariki : Yes , yes . I actually know what you mean ... but I still couldn't accept that Ken is deranged in Gluhen ! I mean sure he's kinda ... uh whacko in the OAV but ... T_T *weeps* and yes , they ARE a cute couple in my humble opinion . ^_~

Suisei_Lady_Dragon : Wow ! And I mean WOW ! You did that ?! To tell you the truth I was awed by the length of your review , and was WAAAAAY flattered that you bothered to do that among other things . ^_^ The fact that you recorded all the important facts was wow-able(?) *lol at the term* enough . And I DO agree with you on both ... rather on all points that we miss a lot of important details on the first read , and that Kyou was just mistreated and that he IS scrumptious in all means – though I will never accept that he is more glompalicious that Ken . Beware of what you wish for though , because asking for a lot of chapters is well ... you'll see . Thanks for the warning , I will be more careful of things from now on . I pretty much should beware coz' you're analyzing my fic . *lol* Go ahead with the long reviews and fire on with the questions . I will answer them if I can but your last question – well , you'll just have to see .

Misura : Yes ! So am I ! And it IS sweet of him to clean Schu's room , although we all know it was from purely selfish reasons ( that he wanted Schuldich for himself and that he didn't want the redhead to remember Ken )

Rene_Hidaka : Welcome to the family ! ^_~ Arigatou ! *bows*

Whisper_Reilman : You cracked me up with that Schu's clues bit ! You really did ! *lol* Thanks for the compliment ^.^ although Kyou's not exactly a baka considering that he's a ...

R_M : (whoops ! I nearly told you the secret) *shuts up now and hides in a corner where she's in no position to tell secrets*

I don't think I need to beg you to review from here on in 'ne ?

But still ...

I've grown used to begging for reviews ...

So ...

Review onegai !

p.s. What do you think of the weird poem ? I just wrote it because I wanted to insinuate the Greek Mythology - because in their world ; Hades is a place of punishment to those who have been evil , as well as a place of reward for those who have been good in their lives . ( I love Greek mythology – in fact , mythology in general )

Just a thought .

Review ! ^_~