~Hey Minna-san. Hope everyone's well, and that you liked the last chapter.
Umm. . . I don't mind if anyone want's to use my stuff, as long as you
tell me first, mention that you got it from me, and let me know the name of
the story so that I can read it. Kagoha want's me to ask you to read her
Harry Potter story, "The Unknown Truth." It does have mistakes in it, and
it does start out kind of slow, but it will get better, especially towards
the end. And read my new story, "One All Hallows Eve." It's YYH as well,
and it kinda has Mira and Tisa in it.
Chapter 10: Changes, Revelations, and a slave hunter.
~*~*~*~At Koenma's Palace~*~*~*~
". . .it was scary. One minute, she's unconscious, the next, she's...changed. She was. . . like another person, and it was like she didn't care. She was cold, hateful, and cruel. She seemed like one of the Black Hearts she hates so much." Kurama said. He, along with Yusuke, Hiei, Kuwabara, Kito, Angel, and Nesarko, were telling Koenma what had happened. Kurama had told the story of the fight and Mira's change to A'Drea, and was finishing with his opinion on her change. Koenma was in his teenage form, and was leaning against his chair, thinking.
"Kito, you know her best. Has anything like this ever happened before?" Koenma finally asked.
"No. Well, she does in a fight, kinda. In the pits, she changed, but. . . she always seemed. . . to have control, I guess, and she never changed that much or was that cold." Kito told him. 'She wasn't only cold, but dark as well. I felt a darkness in her, and I couldn't even read her mind. I've never known anything like this. It was darker even than the darkness of my Jagan eye.' Hiei thought.
"Hmmm. . . unfortunately, I don't know much about this, and this mission is very important. You'll just have to be careful, on your guard." Koenma warned them.
"This mission doesn't seem very important. Not much to do but follow Mira's instructions and fight whatever monsters show up. She could probably do it on her own. I don't see why she needs us to help her." Yusuke said. Koenma shook his head.
"It is very important. Without her, you would probably never find the Amulets. If the Black Lords are awakened, they will take over, and destroy the world as we know it. Mira is unable to do this on her own because the dreams give her a weakness. I think the Black Lords are communicating with her, trying to persuade her to help them. She would, if it weren't for you. If I understand her right, she feels loyalty to you for rescuing her, and she owes it to you to help you. That's why you must help her, and finish the mission. I have a feeling that things are going to get harder and more challenging soon; remember, we still have the Fire Black Lord, Sheiran, to deal with and since he escaped, he hasn't showed up yet." Koenma told them. He let the meaning of his words sink in; they were the only ones keeping Mira from completely changing and they were the only ones she cared about. "Speaking of Mira, where is she?" He asked.
"She ran off after we left the Jade Forest. She gave me the Earth Amulet first, though. Here." Yusuke said as he handed the emerald Amulet to Koenma. "If what you said is true, we should find Mira."
~*~*~*~Somewhere near the edge of a forest~*~*~*~
'What happened? I felt like I was a prisoner in my own mind or like I was bound. I was watching it, but like it was far away. I couldn't move or talk or anything. Was it because of A'Drea Jaye? She's never taken over so-so completely before. It was so dark, so cold. The darkness. . .' Mira shuddered as she sat thinking in a tree. Below, she saw a ningen walk by. "If what A'Tash and Sheiran said is true, then that means that Tisa is alive and in another world. Did they mean ningenkai? Is she a ningen now like Kurama? How will I find her? Koenma could probably help, if I asked. He probably has a file on her somewhere. Should I ask? No. I've never asked for help before, and I don't plan on starting now.' She looked up as her hypersensitive fox-wolf ears heard the sound of footsteps coming closer. She narrowed her eyes and saw a familiar pink kimono. 'Botan? What does she want? Not like I care.' Mira thought. She stayed in the tree, hidden in the shadows.
"Mira?" Botan called, looking around. "Mira? Are you there? Koenma sent me to find you. Hello? Shizuru, can you sense her?" Botan asked. 'Koenma? What does that pacifier sucking baby want?' Mira thought. Shizuru, Keiko, and Yukina ((Kuwabara: Yukina? Where? Where's my precious Yukina? B: Calm down, baka. It's just in the story. K:*Hits Kuwabara on head* Baka. Kuwabara: *holds head* oww!! Yukina! I need you to heal me! *runs off in search of Yukina*)) appeared.
"Nope. Nothing like when I first met her. Her energy is weird. Unless she's hiding it, she's not here." Shizuru said as she smoked a cigarette ((*Surgeon General pops in* Smoking causes cancer. DO NOT SMOKE! How can you have someone smoking in a story? B:*eyes intruder warily* Hey, it's just a story. That's what Shizuru does. Therefore, I have to have it in the story. K:*Pushes Surgeon General out of story room* Bye! Ok, so that he doesn't have an excuse to come in, don't smoke people. It's bad. B: Thank you. Now, if that's it with the intrusions, back to the story.)), looking bored.
"I feel something warm. . .like fire." Yukina said. 'Shit, I forgot about her ice. She feels the heat from my fire. . . uh-oh' Mira thought. "Let me try to isolate it." Yukina said as an icy-coldness seeped around the area and up into Mira's tree. Mira jumped out, finding the tree too cold, and ran off at lightning speed.
"Well, we found her. Too bad she ran off." Botan said. "Why did she run away, though? She knows us."
"I don't know, but there's no way we'll catch her. We'll need the guys." Keiko said.
~*~*~A Little Later, deeper in the forest~*~*~
"This is stupid. We'll never find her." Yusuke said as he and the others searched in the forest for Mira. Botan, Angel, and Nesarko were searching through the air to see if she had decided to fly away.
"I don't see why we have to find her. Can't she come back on her own? I mean, yeah there's the whole Black Heart problem, but she can take care of herself. She probably just wants to be alone." Kuwabara said, just before a tree branch hit his face. "Oww!! You fucking little brat!!" He yelled at Kito as Kito began laughing and ran up ahead of him. Kuwabara glared and grumbled at him
"We have to find her because it's dangerous for her to be out on her own with the dreams she's been having. Also, she may have had another dream, and is not wanting to tell us. She's also in danger of her other self, and the Follower's are after her." Kurama said as walked on.
"Hiei-sama! Yusuke-sama! Kurama!((K:Notice how he didn't mention Kuwabaka? Good little minion, Kito. ATTACK KUWABAKA!!! Kito:Ok!*is stopped by B'.* B:No, no attacking the characters. Kagoha, do I need to say a certain word? K:Noo...bye *disappears*)) I found her, hurry!" Kito yelled. The group ran up to the edge of the clearing he was at, and there they saw Mira flying in the air, avoiding a large scimitar that a large demon was swinging at her. She landed on the ground and glared hatefully at him. Her eyes showed signs of fear, worry, and anger.
"You fucking bastard! Leave me alone! GO AWAY!!" She screamed at him as a drop of blood fell down from a cut on her cheek. She had drawn the Dark Blade, and was crouched in a defensive position. He laughed.
"Ah, A'Drea, you know that I can not do that. I see you've gotten stronger. That's good, you'll put on a better show for the crowds. Lord Ritanni will be pleased to get you back, and he's paying me and my men a great deal of money for your capture and return." He laughed again as a dozen demons came into the clearing. Mira's face paled at the mention of her former lord and master.
"I won't go back! And I'm not A'Drea Jaye! I never was. I'm Mira. MIRA!!" She said defiantly.
"Yeah, I'm Ryshad. It doesn't matter what name you go by, you're still A'Drea. You look and act like her, and you still have that dark sword. The dark glint is in your eyes, just beneath the surface, smoldering, making them look like a'drea, the moonshadow." He said, laughing softly. He looked back and saw Yusuke. "Ah, I see your new friends are here. Too bad."
Mira looked at them. "Hiei, Kurama, stay back. This is my fight, not yours. I can handle this. There's no reason for you to get involved." Mira yelled at them. Kurama hesitated, then nodded. Hiei looked a bit angry at not being able to battle, but he, like Kurama, understood Mira's pride and wish to keep them from the danger and to fight her own battles. Hiei also looked a bit worried as did Kurama. Just then, Ryshad ran at Mira while she was distracted. She barely managed to flip over him and avoid his scimitar, and then the other demons attacked. She began dodging, slicing, slashing, kicking, punching, and flipping to fight her attackers. She found herself facing a large mace, and she backed up into a demon that grabbed her arms. She let herself fall to the ground and as she fell out of his arms she swung around and cut his legs. The mace demon swung at her and she jumped up over it and landed on his head. She flipped off him and swung her sword down onto another, cleaving his skull in two. She turned and ran back to the mace demon and as he swung again, she slid under his legs to the back of him, got up, and stabbed the Dark Blade into his back, and then she swung it out of him and swung around to slice off the head of another demon. Kurama, Yusuke, Kito, Kuwabara, and Hiei were in awe over how fast she moved and attacked, and of her power and speed. Mira suddenly found her wrists caught by a whip that bound them. The whip pulled her hands tight and she dropped her sword. It fell and became an ordinary, black katana. ((In case you're wondering, the shape and style of her sword is like Inuyasha's; when not in use it looks like an ordinary katana, but in battle or use, it has a large blade.)) "Bastard! Damn you! Let go of me!" She said at the holder of the whip, Ryshad. She dug her heels into the ground and pulled at the whip, trying to free her wrists. The demons laughed as she struggled to free herself. One of the demons, the one with the cut legs, punched her in the stomach, making her drop to the ground. Ryshad came closer and pulled the whip high enough to lift her off the ground. She began kicking. Hiei started forward, but was stopped by an invisible barrier. He touched the barrier and saw color ripple away from where he had touched it.
"We can't get in to help her." He said as Mira struggled more under the taunts of the demons. "He knew that her friends, us, would come, so he erected this barrier, and it probably goes around the entire clearing."
"Hey! You guys get out of here! You don't want them to take you too. Go you baka's!" Mira shouted to them as she kicked one of the demons. None of them moved; they had no intention of abandoning her even though they could do nothing to help. Kurama felt the barrier, trying to find a weakness, and Kuwabara and Yusuke attacked it. Kito whispered something to Hiei, and he nodded. Kito knelt by the barrier and held his hands against the barrier and closed his eyes in concentration. Mira began yelling. "Put that down, you kisama!" She yelled at a demon who had picked up her sword. When she had dropped it, it had become a black katana. Now that a demon was holding it though, the blade changed to a dull stone, completely useless. "HA! It only works for me, and only I can hold it." She added as the handle burned the demons hands off. Ryshad reached up and held Mira's face in his hands.
"You know, if you weren't so good at fighting, Lord Ritanni would have made you one of his personal, pleasure slaves by now; you're so beautiful, just like your mother was." He said as he caressed her face. She paled and looked terrified, and she began to struggle even more to free herself so that she could severely hurt him. He laughed. "Look at me, zæna." He said, pulling her face to look into his eyes. Mira tried to look away, but she was unable to. She found herself looking into his dark, violently purple eyes, and her body relaxed. She looked at the rest of him. Tall, well muscled, with dark blue, slightly long hair. A handsome aldebreshin. 'I know him. . . the captain!' She thought, and fought against the spell his eyes had cast on her.
"YOU BASTARD!!! IT WAS YOU!! YOU KILLED HER!! YOU KILLED MY PARENTS AND MADE ME A SLAVE!!! You-you. . ." She screamed at him as a few silver colored tears fell down her cheeks and mixed with the ruby red blood on her cheek. The silver-red liquid fell to the ground, hitting it as a tear shaped, silver jewel streaked with red.
"Ah, you remember me. Yes, I remember that raid. One of the best I've ever done because of the money I got afterward. Your parents were weak, and your twin. . . well, she was strong, but she got in my way. You were the real prize. Oh, stop crying. Those tears of yours are mixing with your blood. Jamina stones. Not as valuable as a Koorime's teardrop ((sorry, I can't remember the name of those.)), but still extremely valuable." He said as he wiped the tears from her face. She tried to pull her face away from him, but he wouldn't let her. He pulled her face towards him again, and stopped as he saw the dark, angry light shining in her eyes. " What the. . .?" He said as the wind began to blow, swirling around her and shifting her hair, making it float as her face became angry.
"I will kill you, you bastard. You dare to touch me? To come near me? I warn you, should I get free, I will hunt you down like the worthless dog you are." Mira said softly, queitly, her voice hard, cold, and made the threat she said very real.
" I think I almost got it. . ." Kito whispered to himself. The group looked at him, and saw that his hands were burning a small hole into the barrier. Hiei stepped over to it and held the edges of it and used his own fire to make it stretch as he pulled it open. Yusuke went over, and held his hand in the hole.
"SPIRIT GUN!!!!" He yelled as the blast left his finger and went straight into Ryshad's back. Kuwabara and Kurama went in through the hole, followed by Yusuke and Kito. Hiei carefully stepped through and let go of the hole, which closed itself completely. They began to fight the demons. Ryshad had been hit by the blast and had fallen forward, letting go of the whip. He looked to see Yusuke attacking a blue-skinned, four eyed demon. Ryshad looked at Mira, saw that she was unconscious from the fall and that the wind had died down, and he made a whip with his energy. Yusuke turned as he felt the stinging lash of the whip burn his back. The others, slave hunting demons and Mira's friends, stopped to watch the fight, though Hiei did kill his opponent first. Ryshad raised his whip again and brought it down at Yusuke. Yusuke dodged it and ran at Ryshad. Ryshad lashed the whip, making Yusuke jump back and charge again. It went on like this until a shout was heard. "FIRE GUN!!!!" Kito shouted as he sent a blast of fire at Ryshad. It hit him, and with a surprised look, he fell unconscious to the ground. The other demons looked around and picked him up and fled. With a ripple of light the barrier went down. Yusuke and the others went over to Mira. "Mira?" Kito asked as he and the others knelt down next to her. Hiei went to untie her hands, and she opened her eyes for a split second and looked at him before she slipped back into unconsciousness.
"I think she's having another dream." Yusuke said.
~*~*~*~*~*~
'Am I floating?' Mira thought as felt her body touching nothing. She looked around her and saw an empty sky. 'No, flying.' She began flying towards a cloud that seemed to call to her. She saw a man with silver gray hair and robe. He had a diamond amulet around his neck. "Air." She whispered, reaching for it. He awakened, his gray eyes looking into her eyes. He smiled.
"Yes, air. One of your elements, I believe. I am Naertas." He said as he sat up on the cloud and looked at her. 'He seems. . . nicer than the others.' Mira thought.
"You want me to help like the others did!" Mira said to him.
"You were attacked by your past, I see. You're friends didn't help much. I could keep the slave hunters away, if you would let me. You changed earlier, didn't you? You were under her control. You became stronger." He said calmly, pleasantly.
"They did help! I-I didn't want them to, but. . . they-they did. They did help me when I needed them. They let me fight when I wanted to, then they helped." Mira said, partly to herself as the realization sunk in and she remembered seeing Hiei untie her hands before she had slipped into the dream. "And so what if I became stronger? It wasn't ME, it was A'DREA. She TRAPPED me in my mind. She CONTROLLED me. I don't call that being stronger." She said.
"We can help you. We know a way of fusing your mind and spirit with her's completely, and you would have the strength and you wouldn't ever be under her control again." He said, still smiling.
" I don't' want her fucking mind or spirit!! And I don't want you!!! I don't care about you or the other Black Lords!! All I want is for you to leave me alone! You can go fuck a tree for all I care!!!" She yelled at him as she turned and flew away, wanting to end the dream.
"You don't mean any of that. You do care because A'Drea cares. You care because deep in your heart, you want to join us. Even if you take away my Amulet, I can still be revived later and you will join us." He whispered after her. The dream flickered and turned black. The blackness lifted, and Mira found herself on the ground, near a cave mouth in a forest. The place was familiar, and then it all came back in a rush; this was where she had lost everything fifteen years ago. This was a dream from her memories, one that she hadn't had since she was a child. The vision was over, but she was trapped in this memory. 'No! I can't. . . I don't. . . not again.' She thought as she saw the twin girls. They were almost identical. Both had silver hair and fox-wolf attributes, but one was more wolf than fox and she had two black streaks and emerald green eyes. The other was a perfect mix of fox and wolf, and she had silver-blue eyes. 'Tisa and me, when we were five' Mira thought. They were playing some game together when a group of aldebreshin demons came out of the forest. One of the girls called to someone in the cave, and a tall wolf demon came out. He had blue eyes and black hair. He looked at the newcomers and beckoned to his daughters. They came over and stood behind him. A beautiful vixen demon came out and stood behind the wolf demon. She looked almost like Mira did now, except that her eyes were emerald green, and her face was usually happy and carefree. "Father. . . mother. . .oh, mother. My beautiful, agile mother that taught me many things, things that I haven't forgotten, but haven't followed. My strong, wise father that helped create my blade, my blade that is covered in the blood of others. What would you think to see me now?' Mira thought sadly.
"What do you aldebreshin want? We have done nothing to your Lords, nor are we hiding any of your slaves that have run away. I have done my duty to the Lords and made them the swords they requested. There is no reason for you to be here, frightening my children and mate." Mira's father told them.
"Oh, we scare your children? Do I scare you little ones?" The Captain of the group, who Mira recognized as Ryshad, asked Mira's younger self and her sister. Both girls defiantly shook their heads. He laughed at them, then focused back on their father. "Yes, you did your duty. You made the swords, we left you in peace. Until now. You have outlived your usefulness, and I have been ordered by Lord Ritanni to either enslave you. . . or to destroy you. It's entirely up to you."
"Not much of an option. Mira, Tisa, go inside with your mother. We will never be enslaved to your filthy Lords with their horrible ways. I will fight you, for I will never be a slave, and if need be, I will die to defend my family." Mira's father said as he pulled out a sword. The sword was like a scimitar, with a lightning shaped blade, which was silver blue and had spirit energy swirling around. The blade was so large that the tip of it was on the ground and had made a small crater when he had let it hit the ground.
"HA! You can't even lift that foolishly made sword, how do you expect to fight us with it?" One of the aldebreshin demons laughed. Mira's father only smiled and motioned for the girls and his mate to go into the cave, which they did except for part of Mira's face peeking out to watch. The wolf demon began running at the aldebreshins and swung it up into one's face, slicing it off. The blade kept going and sliced through four more. They attacked, and were cut down immediately. Ryshad brought his whip and lashed it at the blade, which Mira recognized as the Wolf Tempest Blade, a sword her father had made for himself that was so heavy, that only he could hold it because he created it. The whip wrapped itself around the blade and pulled it out of the demon's hand. The other aldebreshins closed in on him and managed to get him down. They bound his hands. Mira's younger self and and Tisa ran out yelling at the aldebreshins, who started laughing at them. Ryshad picked the young Mira up as she beat her fists against him. Tisa tried to get to her father and was picked up by another aldebreshin.
"We got some strong one's here. They would make such lovely slaves, wouldn't they? Good jewel miners I would think." Ryshad said as he and the others began to walk into the cave, dragging Mira's father and carrying the girls. "We just have one more to defeat, and we'll be done." He said as he entered, only to be hit by a ball of stone. He saw Mira's mother holding a staff that had an orb on the top that was currently glowing green. She looked angry, and was muttering some chant, and the orb changed to red. She pointed it at them and a fireball shot out of it at them, hitting one. "A mage. Hmmm, Interesting." Ryshad said as his group attacked her. She sent many elemental orbs at them, killing or maiming them, but they still managed to get close. She dug it into the ground and swung around it, kicking them as she went in a circle. One of the ones still standing grabbed her from behind when she landed, and held her tightly. Another grabbed her staff and smashed the orb, making it an ordinary staff. Ryshad handed Mira's young self to one of the aldebreshin and walked to the mother and bound her hands. She tried to reach for her children, but was unable to. Ryshad walked back to the girls. "Ah, Jamina's. From your mother, perhaps?" He looked at Mira. "Ah, a real prize. You came straight to the leader to attack. Such strength in a young one. Determination as well. You will make a good slave. Your sister is strong as well, but she doesn't struggle as much. Is it because she's wiser? or not as strong? We'll see. It depends on your behavior." He said, then moved to the mother. "Ah, how beautiful! She will be wonderful, but not as a slave. You killed too many of my soldiers, like your mate, to be allowed to live much longer. Take the girls outside." He ordered as he laid his hand on her breast. The father struggled against his bonds, yelling through the gag. As the two holding the girls left the cave, Mira's self struggled harder to get free. Screaming, crying, pleading, laughter, and finally dead silence came from the cave. Tisa and Mira began crying, and Tisa bolted and ran to the cave just as Ryshad came out. She threw a small ball of ice at him before he picked her up and scowled at her. "You are going to fight me as well? Did you not see the fate of your parents? They are dead, tortured." He told her. She stuck her tongue out at him and threw another ice ball at him. He threw her down to the feet of one of his group. "Kill her." He said as he walked away. The aldebreshin stabbed her heart with a steel dagger and left it there as he walked away. "Burn the cave. Burn everything in it. We have one slave at least." Ryshad said as he and the remainder of his group left. Ryshad himself carried the sobbing, screaming young Mira. 'I remember that. All of it. He told me he raped my mother and forced my father to watch. I was sick for days after Tisa was killed. The bastard! I'll kill him!! I hate him, everything about him!!!' Mira thought as the memory faded and she woke up shivering, shuddering, with tears streaming down her face.
"Mira? Are you ok?" Kurama asked. She looked up at the group, and gave them a small smile and nodded. Then she saw that Kurama was rubbing something that stung into the cuts left in her wrists by the whip.
"What the hell are you doing to my wrists?" She asked him curiously, not really caring about the answer. He smiled.
"Helping your wrists heal all the way. This will help the cuts heal, unlike the others on your body." He said, pointing to a scar left by a whip on her neck from her previous days as a slave. "I see that you have many, and that they didn't heal all the way."
"Thanks, but it's nothing. Leave it alone." She said as she pulled her hands away. "Thanks to all of you for helping, even though I do remember telling you not to. . . And the next Amulet is in the air. We'll need to find Nesarko, Angel, and Botan so that you guys can come along because you can't fly." She added.
~
Well? Did it suck or was it good? I'm proud of this chapter because of everything that happens in it, wouldn't you be? I've written lot's for it. There's going to be a part later that has Mira falling from the sky, unconscious, and I'm trying to figure out who should save her. She falls from way up in the clouds, so should she hit the ground, she would die, but I don't know who should save her. Any suggestions? Also, do you still think that Kurama is good for her, or should it be Hiei.((K: *growls* Kurama is mine!! B' can not have him!!! B:Ok, ok chill. See why I can't be with Kurama? K' would go all crazy and rabid on me.)) I need your reviews, so please review! Bye. ((K:*snoring, wakes up* oh, it's done? You took forever. *Looks at clock* six hours non stop!!! Oh my god!!! *falls back to sleep*. B:*stares at her, then puts a blanket over her* night K'. *crawls into bed* g'night everyone!!!*falls asleep*))
Chapter 10: Changes, Revelations, and a slave hunter.
~*~*~*~At Koenma's Palace~*~*~*~
". . .it was scary. One minute, she's unconscious, the next, she's...changed. She was. . . like another person, and it was like she didn't care. She was cold, hateful, and cruel. She seemed like one of the Black Hearts she hates so much." Kurama said. He, along with Yusuke, Hiei, Kuwabara, Kito, Angel, and Nesarko, were telling Koenma what had happened. Kurama had told the story of the fight and Mira's change to A'Drea, and was finishing with his opinion on her change. Koenma was in his teenage form, and was leaning against his chair, thinking.
"Kito, you know her best. Has anything like this ever happened before?" Koenma finally asked.
"No. Well, she does in a fight, kinda. In the pits, she changed, but. . . she always seemed. . . to have control, I guess, and she never changed that much or was that cold." Kito told him. 'She wasn't only cold, but dark as well. I felt a darkness in her, and I couldn't even read her mind. I've never known anything like this. It was darker even than the darkness of my Jagan eye.' Hiei thought.
"Hmmm. . . unfortunately, I don't know much about this, and this mission is very important. You'll just have to be careful, on your guard." Koenma warned them.
"This mission doesn't seem very important. Not much to do but follow Mira's instructions and fight whatever monsters show up. She could probably do it on her own. I don't see why she needs us to help her." Yusuke said. Koenma shook his head.
"It is very important. Without her, you would probably never find the Amulets. If the Black Lords are awakened, they will take over, and destroy the world as we know it. Mira is unable to do this on her own because the dreams give her a weakness. I think the Black Lords are communicating with her, trying to persuade her to help them. She would, if it weren't for you. If I understand her right, she feels loyalty to you for rescuing her, and she owes it to you to help you. That's why you must help her, and finish the mission. I have a feeling that things are going to get harder and more challenging soon; remember, we still have the Fire Black Lord, Sheiran, to deal with and since he escaped, he hasn't showed up yet." Koenma told them. He let the meaning of his words sink in; they were the only ones keeping Mira from completely changing and they were the only ones she cared about. "Speaking of Mira, where is she?" He asked.
"She ran off after we left the Jade Forest. She gave me the Earth Amulet first, though. Here." Yusuke said as he handed the emerald Amulet to Koenma. "If what you said is true, we should find Mira."
~*~*~*~Somewhere near the edge of a forest~*~*~*~
'What happened? I felt like I was a prisoner in my own mind or like I was bound. I was watching it, but like it was far away. I couldn't move or talk or anything. Was it because of A'Drea Jaye? She's never taken over so-so completely before. It was so dark, so cold. The darkness. . .' Mira shuddered as she sat thinking in a tree. Below, she saw a ningen walk by. "If what A'Tash and Sheiran said is true, then that means that Tisa is alive and in another world. Did they mean ningenkai? Is she a ningen now like Kurama? How will I find her? Koenma could probably help, if I asked. He probably has a file on her somewhere. Should I ask? No. I've never asked for help before, and I don't plan on starting now.' She looked up as her hypersensitive fox-wolf ears heard the sound of footsteps coming closer. She narrowed her eyes and saw a familiar pink kimono. 'Botan? What does she want? Not like I care.' Mira thought. She stayed in the tree, hidden in the shadows.
"Mira?" Botan called, looking around. "Mira? Are you there? Koenma sent me to find you. Hello? Shizuru, can you sense her?" Botan asked. 'Koenma? What does that pacifier sucking baby want?' Mira thought. Shizuru, Keiko, and Yukina ((Kuwabara: Yukina? Where? Where's my precious Yukina? B: Calm down, baka. It's just in the story. K:*Hits Kuwabara on head* Baka. Kuwabara: *holds head* oww!! Yukina! I need you to heal me! *runs off in search of Yukina*)) appeared.
"Nope. Nothing like when I first met her. Her energy is weird. Unless she's hiding it, she's not here." Shizuru said as she smoked a cigarette ((*Surgeon General pops in* Smoking causes cancer. DO NOT SMOKE! How can you have someone smoking in a story? B:*eyes intruder warily* Hey, it's just a story. That's what Shizuru does. Therefore, I have to have it in the story. K:*Pushes Surgeon General out of story room* Bye! Ok, so that he doesn't have an excuse to come in, don't smoke people. It's bad. B: Thank you. Now, if that's it with the intrusions, back to the story.)), looking bored.
"I feel something warm. . .like fire." Yukina said. 'Shit, I forgot about her ice. She feels the heat from my fire. . . uh-oh' Mira thought. "Let me try to isolate it." Yukina said as an icy-coldness seeped around the area and up into Mira's tree. Mira jumped out, finding the tree too cold, and ran off at lightning speed.
"Well, we found her. Too bad she ran off." Botan said. "Why did she run away, though? She knows us."
"I don't know, but there's no way we'll catch her. We'll need the guys." Keiko said.
~*~*~A Little Later, deeper in the forest~*~*~
"This is stupid. We'll never find her." Yusuke said as he and the others searched in the forest for Mira. Botan, Angel, and Nesarko were searching through the air to see if she had decided to fly away.
"I don't see why we have to find her. Can't she come back on her own? I mean, yeah there's the whole Black Heart problem, but she can take care of herself. She probably just wants to be alone." Kuwabara said, just before a tree branch hit his face. "Oww!! You fucking little brat!!" He yelled at Kito as Kito began laughing and ran up ahead of him. Kuwabara glared and grumbled at him
"We have to find her because it's dangerous for her to be out on her own with the dreams she's been having. Also, she may have had another dream, and is not wanting to tell us. She's also in danger of her other self, and the Follower's are after her." Kurama said as walked on.
"Hiei-sama! Yusuke-sama! Kurama!((K:Notice how he didn't mention Kuwabaka? Good little minion, Kito. ATTACK KUWABAKA!!! Kito:Ok!*is stopped by B'.* B:No, no attacking the characters. Kagoha, do I need to say a certain word? K:Noo...bye *disappears*)) I found her, hurry!" Kito yelled. The group ran up to the edge of the clearing he was at, and there they saw Mira flying in the air, avoiding a large scimitar that a large demon was swinging at her. She landed on the ground and glared hatefully at him. Her eyes showed signs of fear, worry, and anger.
"You fucking bastard! Leave me alone! GO AWAY!!" She screamed at him as a drop of blood fell down from a cut on her cheek. She had drawn the Dark Blade, and was crouched in a defensive position. He laughed.
"Ah, A'Drea, you know that I can not do that. I see you've gotten stronger. That's good, you'll put on a better show for the crowds. Lord Ritanni will be pleased to get you back, and he's paying me and my men a great deal of money for your capture and return." He laughed again as a dozen demons came into the clearing. Mira's face paled at the mention of her former lord and master.
"I won't go back! And I'm not A'Drea Jaye! I never was. I'm Mira. MIRA!!" She said defiantly.
"Yeah, I'm Ryshad. It doesn't matter what name you go by, you're still A'Drea. You look and act like her, and you still have that dark sword. The dark glint is in your eyes, just beneath the surface, smoldering, making them look like a'drea, the moonshadow." He said, laughing softly. He looked back and saw Yusuke. "Ah, I see your new friends are here. Too bad."
Mira looked at them. "Hiei, Kurama, stay back. This is my fight, not yours. I can handle this. There's no reason for you to get involved." Mira yelled at them. Kurama hesitated, then nodded. Hiei looked a bit angry at not being able to battle, but he, like Kurama, understood Mira's pride and wish to keep them from the danger and to fight her own battles. Hiei also looked a bit worried as did Kurama. Just then, Ryshad ran at Mira while she was distracted. She barely managed to flip over him and avoid his scimitar, and then the other demons attacked. She began dodging, slicing, slashing, kicking, punching, and flipping to fight her attackers. She found herself facing a large mace, and she backed up into a demon that grabbed her arms. She let herself fall to the ground and as she fell out of his arms she swung around and cut his legs. The mace demon swung at her and she jumped up over it and landed on his head. She flipped off him and swung her sword down onto another, cleaving his skull in two. She turned and ran back to the mace demon and as he swung again, she slid under his legs to the back of him, got up, and stabbed the Dark Blade into his back, and then she swung it out of him and swung around to slice off the head of another demon. Kurama, Yusuke, Kito, Kuwabara, and Hiei were in awe over how fast she moved and attacked, and of her power and speed. Mira suddenly found her wrists caught by a whip that bound them. The whip pulled her hands tight and she dropped her sword. It fell and became an ordinary, black katana. ((In case you're wondering, the shape and style of her sword is like Inuyasha's; when not in use it looks like an ordinary katana, but in battle or use, it has a large blade.)) "Bastard! Damn you! Let go of me!" She said at the holder of the whip, Ryshad. She dug her heels into the ground and pulled at the whip, trying to free her wrists. The demons laughed as she struggled to free herself. One of the demons, the one with the cut legs, punched her in the stomach, making her drop to the ground. Ryshad came closer and pulled the whip high enough to lift her off the ground. She began kicking. Hiei started forward, but was stopped by an invisible barrier. He touched the barrier and saw color ripple away from where he had touched it.
"We can't get in to help her." He said as Mira struggled more under the taunts of the demons. "He knew that her friends, us, would come, so he erected this barrier, and it probably goes around the entire clearing."
"Hey! You guys get out of here! You don't want them to take you too. Go you baka's!" Mira shouted to them as she kicked one of the demons. None of them moved; they had no intention of abandoning her even though they could do nothing to help. Kurama felt the barrier, trying to find a weakness, and Kuwabara and Yusuke attacked it. Kito whispered something to Hiei, and he nodded. Kito knelt by the barrier and held his hands against the barrier and closed his eyes in concentration. Mira began yelling. "Put that down, you kisama!" She yelled at a demon who had picked up her sword. When she had dropped it, it had become a black katana. Now that a demon was holding it though, the blade changed to a dull stone, completely useless. "HA! It only works for me, and only I can hold it." She added as the handle burned the demons hands off. Ryshad reached up and held Mira's face in his hands.
"You know, if you weren't so good at fighting, Lord Ritanni would have made you one of his personal, pleasure slaves by now; you're so beautiful, just like your mother was." He said as he caressed her face. She paled and looked terrified, and she began to struggle even more to free herself so that she could severely hurt him. He laughed. "Look at me, zæna." He said, pulling her face to look into his eyes. Mira tried to look away, but she was unable to. She found herself looking into his dark, violently purple eyes, and her body relaxed. She looked at the rest of him. Tall, well muscled, with dark blue, slightly long hair. A handsome aldebreshin. 'I know him. . . the captain!' She thought, and fought against the spell his eyes had cast on her.
"YOU BASTARD!!! IT WAS YOU!! YOU KILLED HER!! YOU KILLED MY PARENTS AND MADE ME A SLAVE!!! You-you. . ." She screamed at him as a few silver colored tears fell down her cheeks and mixed with the ruby red blood on her cheek. The silver-red liquid fell to the ground, hitting it as a tear shaped, silver jewel streaked with red.
"Ah, you remember me. Yes, I remember that raid. One of the best I've ever done because of the money I got afterward. Your parents were weak, and your twin. . . well, she was strong, but she got in my way. You were the real prize. Oh, stop crying. Those tears of yours are mixing with your blood. Jamina stones. Not as valuable as a Koorime's teardrop ((sorry, I can't remember the name of those.)), but still extremely valuable." He said as he wiped the tears from her face. She tried to pull her face away from him, but he wouldn't let her. He pulled her face towards him again, and stopped as he saw the dark, angry light shining in her eyes. " What the. . .?" He said as the wind began to blow, swirling around her and shifting her hair, making it float as her face became angry.
"I will kill you, you bastard. You dare to touch me? To come near me? I warn you, should I get free, I will hunt you down like the worthless dog you are." Mira said softly, queitly, her voice hard, cold, and made the threat she said very real.
" I think I almost got it. . ." Kito whispered to himself. The group looked at him, and saw that his hands were burning a small hole into the barrier. Hiei stepped over to it and held the edges of it and used his own fire to make it stretch as he pulled it open. Yusuke went over, and held his hand in the hole.
"SPIRIT GUN!!!!" He yelled as the blast left his finger and went straight into Ryshad's back. Kuwabara and Kurama went in through the hole, followed by Yusuke and Kito. Hiei carefully stepped through and let go of the hole, which closed itself completely. They began to fight the demons. Ryshad had been hit by the blast and had fallen forward, letting go of the whip. He looked to see Yusuke attacking a blue-skinned, four eyed demon. Ryshad looked at Mira, saw that she was unconscious from the fall and that the wind had died down, and he made a whip with his energy. Yusuke turned as he felt the stinging lash of the whip burn his back. The others, slave hunting demons and Mira's friends, stopped to watch the fight, though Hiei did kill his opponent first. Ryshad raised his whip again and brought it down at Yusuke. Yusuke dodged it and ran at Ryshad. Ryshad lashed the whip, making Yusuke jump back and charge again. It went on like this until a shout was heard. "FIRE GUN!!!!" Kito shouted as he sent a blast of fire at Ryshad. It hit him, and with a surprised look, he fell unconscious to the ground. The other demons looked around and picked him up and fled. With a ripple of light the barrier went down. Yusuke and the others went over to Mira. "Mira?" Kito asked as he and the others knelt down next to her. Hiei went to untie her hands, and she opened her eyes for a split second and looked at him before she slipped back into unconsciousness.
"I think she's having another dream." Yusuke said.
~*~*~*~*~*~
'Am I floating?' Mira thought as felt her body touching nothing. She looked around her and saw an empty sky. 'No, flying.' She began flying towards a cloud that seemed to call to her. She saw a man with silver gray hair and robe. He had a diamond amulet around his neck. "Air." She whispered, reaching for it. He awakened, his gray eyes looking into her eyes. He smiled.
"Yes, air. One of your elements, I believe. I am Naertas." He said as he sat up on the cloud and looked at her. 'He seems. . . nicer than the others.' Mira thought.
"You want me to help like the others did!" Mira said to him.
"You were attacked by your past, I see. You're friends didn't help much. I could keep the slave hunters away, if you would let me. You changed earlier, didn't you? You were under her control. You became stronger." He said calmly, pleasantly.
"They did help! I-I didn't want them to, but. . . they-they did. They did help me when I needed them. They let me fight when I wanted to, then they helped." Mira said, partly to herself as the realization sunk in and she remembered seeing Hiei untie her hands before she had slipped into the dream. "And so what if I became stronger? It wasn't ME, it was A'DREA. She TRAPPED me in my mind. She CONTROLLED me. I don't call that being stronger." She said.
"We can help you. We know a way of fusing your mind and spirit with her's completely, and you would have the strength and you wouldn't ever be under her control again." He said, still smiling.
" I don't' want her fucking mind or spirit!! And I don't want you!!! I don't care about you or the other Black Lords!! All I want is for you to leave me alone! You can go fuck a tree for all I care!!!" She yelled at him as she turned and flew away, wanting to end the dream.
"You don't mean any of that. You do care because A'Drea cares. You care because deep in your heart, you want to join us. Even if you take away my Amulet, I can still be revived later and you will join us." He whispered after her. The dream flickered and turned black. The blackness lifted, and Mira found herself on the ground, near a cave mouth in a forest. The place was familiar, and then it all came back in a rush; this was where she had lost everything fifteen years ago. This was a dream from her memories, one that she hadn't had since she was a child. The vision was over, but she was trapped in this memory. 'No! I can't. . . I don't. . . not again.' She thought as she saw the twin girls. They were almost identical. Both had silver hair and fox-wolf attributes, but one was more wolf than fox and she had two black streaks and emerald green eyes. The other was a perfect mix of fox and wolf, and she had silver-blue eyes. 'Tisa and me, when we were five' Mira thought. They were playing some game together when a group of aldebreshin demons came out of the forest. One of the girls called to someone in the cave, and a tall wolf demon came out. He had blue eyes and black hair. He looked at the newcomers and beckoned to his daughters. They came over and stood behind him. A beautiful vixen demon came out and stood behind the wolf demon. She looked almost like Mira did now, except that her eyes were emerald green, and her face was usually happy and carefree. "Father. . . mother. . .oh, mother. My beautiful, agile mother that taught me many things, things that I haven't forgotten, but haven't followed. My strong, wise father that helped create my blade, my blade that is covered in the blood of others. What would you think to see me now?' Mira thought sadly.
"What do you aldebreshin want? We have done nothing to your Lords, nor are we hiding any of your slaves that have run away. I have done my duty to the Lords and made them the swords they requested. There is no reason for you to be here, frightening my children and mate." Mira's father told them.
"Oh, we scare your children? Do I scare you little ones?" The Captain of the group, who Mira recognized as Ryshad, asked Mira's younger self and her sister. Both girls defiantly shook their heads. He laughed at them, then focused back on their father. "Yes, you did your duty. You made the swords, we left you in peace. Until now. You have outlived your usefulness, and I have been ordered by Lord Ritanni to either enslave you. . . or to destroy you. It's entirely up to you."
"Not much of an option. Mira, Tisa, go inside with your mother. We will never be enslaved to your filthy Lords with their horrible ways. I will fight you, for I will never be a slave, and if need be, I will die to defend my family." Mira's father said as he pulled out a sword. The sword was like a scimitar, with a lightning shaped blade, which was silver blue and had spirit energy swirling around. The blade was so large that the tip of it was on the ground and had made a small crater when he had let it hit the ground.
"HA! You can't even lift that foolishly made sword, how do you expect to fight us with it?" One of the aldebreshin demons laughed. Mira's father only smiled and motioned for the girls and his mate to go into the cave, which they did except for part of Mira's face peeking out to watch. The wolf demon began running at the aldebreshins and swung it up into one's face, slicing it off. The blade kept going and sliced through four more. They attacked, and were cut down immediately. Ryshad brought his whip and lashed it at the blade, which Mira recognized as the Wolf Tempest Blade, a sword her father had made for himself that was so heavy, that only he could hold it because he created it. The whip wrapped itself around the blade and pulled it out of the demon's hand. The other aldebreshins closed in on him and managed to get him down. They bound his hands. Mira's younger self and and Tisa ran out yelling at the aldebreshins, who started laughing at them. Ryshad picked the young Mira up as she beat her fists against him. Tisa tried to get to her father and was picked up by another aldebreshin.
"We got some strong one's here. They would make such lovely slaves, wouldn't they? Good jewel miners I would think." Ryshad said as he and the others began to walk into the cave, dragging Mira's father and carrying the girls. "We just have one more to defeat, and we'll be done." He said as he entered, only to be hit by a ball of stone. He saw Mira's mother holding a staff that had an orb on the top that was currently glowing green. She looked angry, and was muttering some chant, and the orb changed to red. She pointed it at them and a fireball shot out of it at them, hitting one. "A mage. Hmmm, Interesting." Ryshad said as his group attacked her. She sent many elemental orbs at them, killing or maiming them, but they still managed to get close. She dug it into the ground and swung around it, kicking them as she went in a circle. One of the ones still standing grabbed her from behind when she landed, and held her tightly. Another grabbed her staff and smashed the orb, making it an ordinary staff. Ryshad handed Mira's young self to one of the aldebreshin and walked to the mother and bound her hands. She tried to reach for her children, but was unable to. Ryshad walked back to the girls. "Ah, Jamina's. From your mother, perhaps?" He looked at Mira. "Ah, a real prize. You came straight to the leader to attack. Such strength in a young one. Determination as well. You will make a good slave. Your sister is strong as well, but she doesn't struggle as much. Is it because she's wiser? or not as strong? We'll see. It depends on your behavior." He said, then moved to the mother. "Ah, how beautiful! She will be wonderful, but not as a slave. You killed too many of my soldiers, like your mate, to be allowed to live much longer. Take the girls outside." He ordered as he laid his hand on her breast. The father struggled against his bonds, yelling through the gag. As the two holding the girls left the cave, Mira's self struggled harder to get free. Screaming, crying, pleading, laughter, and finally dead silence came from the cave. Tisa and Mira began crying, and Tisa bolted and ran to the cave just as Ryshad came out. She threw a small ball of ice at him before he picked her up and scowled at her. "You are going to fight me as well? Did you not see the fate of your parents? They are dead, tortured." He told her. She stuck her tongue out at him and threw another ice ball at him. He threw her down to the feet of one of his group. "Kill her." He said as he walked away. The aldebreshin stabbed her heart with a steel dagger and left it there as he walked away. "Burn the cave. Burn everything in it. We have one slave at least." Ryshad said as he and the remainder of his group left. Ryshad himself carried the sobbing, screaming young Mira. 'I remember that. All of it. He told me he raped my mother and forced my father to watch. I was sick for days after Tisa was killed. The bastard! I'll kill him!! I hate him, everything about him!!!' Mira thought as the memory faded and she woke up shivering, shuddering, with tears streaming down her face.
"Mira? Are you ok?" Kurama asked. She looked up at the group, and gave them a small smile and nodded. Then she saw that Kurama was rubbing something that stung into the cuts left in her wrists by the whip.
"What the hell are you doing to my wrists?" She asked him curiously, not really caring about the answer. He smiled.
"Helping your wrists heal all the way. This will help the cuts heal, unlike the others on your body." He said, pointing to a scar left by a whip on her neck from her previous days as a slave. "I see that you have many, and that they didn't heal all the way."
"Thanks, but it's nothing. Leave it alone." She said as she pulled her hands away. "Thanks to all of you for helping, even though I do remember telling you not to. . . And the next Amulet is in the air. We'll need to find Nesarko, Angel, and Botan so that you guys can come along because you can't fly." She added.
~
Well? Did it suck or was it good? I'm proud of this chapter because of everything that happens in it, wouldn't you be? I've written lot's for it. There's going to be a part later that has Mira falling from the sky, unconscious, and I'm trying to figure out who should save her. She falls from way up in the clouds, so should she hit the ground, she would die, but I don't know who should save her. Any suggestions? Also, do you still think that Kurama is good for her, or should it be Hiei.((K: *growls* Kurama is mine!! B' can not have him!!! B:Ok, ok chill. See why I can't be with Kurama? K' would go all crazy and rabid on me.)) I need your reviews, so please review! Bye. ((K:*snoring, wakes up* oh, it's done? You took forever. *Looks at clock* six hours non stop!!! Oh my god!!! *falls back to sleep*. B:*stares at her, then puts a blanket over her* night K'. *crawls into bed* g'night everyone!!!*falls asleep*))