Hello! as promised, another chapter, and a good one at that. enjoy!
History behind The History, chapter 12
So.
So.
So.
So.
This Himura guy... what was his deal?H The teenage assassin, champion of a supposedly selfless cause, had someone actually seek him out for a fight and then decided to show mercy? Could have used some of that earlier. Could he just not make up his mind or what? Was he a killer or wasn't he?
That wasn't really fair, though. This event had happened much later, so maybe he'd changed his mind. Maybe he'd decided what he'd been doing was wrong and turned over a new leaf, or maybe just decided that it wasn't necessary after his cause was accomplished. Either way, he'd definitely told himself he wouldn't do it in the future.
He'd never struck Akitaka as the merciful type, but Akitaka supposed it was possible. Maybe he'd never wanted to kill in the first place, but did it only when he felt e needed to do so. How sad. The world had enough people who killed for the heck of it, it didn't need moral people feeling compelled to do it, too.
Had he always been like that, then? Akitaka wondered if Battousai had ever tried to get out of assassinating someone. Had he ever, say, maimed someone he could have killed? That almost seemed cruel in itself, to make the man suffer instead of putting him out of his misery, but it really was better than killing him. He could at least do some things, if not live normally. Maybe he had done it- it would be a good compromise. Himura wouldn't have to kill, and the other guy would be totally useless to his side. That sounded great when Akitaka considered the alternative.
* *
*
There was a knock at the door. The small, half-hidden figure rose and opened it to find the messenger once again. Explanations were not necessary. The envelope was proffered and received, the only sound that of the door sliding closed.
There was no use delaying the inevitable, after all, he had agreed to this for a reason. He might not have liked it, but he still did it, and had learned long ago that that was life. He tore into the paper to reveal the name of the man who would enter the Great Void that night. His fate was sealed.
He read on, glancing over the information on how to find the target, and promptly left. He did have all night, but procrastination never got anybody anywhere. He was a man of action.
It didn't take long to find the location the papers said the man would be most of the night, but he saw no one of the appropriate description, so he waited. This was your standard bar, full of people in various stages of drunkenness, and he could tell after juts a short look around that this was going to take awhile.
Whenever he had to find the target in a crowded place like this, it always took awhile. It would be inexcusable to frighten all these people, and then let them tell every sake-enhanced detail to the public. That would be a very effective way of getting fired. He had to draw the person out to a deserted place before they could fight.
He would have preferred to do this honestly, just to issue the challenge quietly and have the target follow him somewhere appropriate, however this was impractical. If he did that, the target would to one of three things. The first option was the most desirable- the target would accept the challenge and they would leave the bar like civilized people- but could not be guaranteed to happen.
The second option was that the target, upon discovering who was challenging him, would run, and he would look more than a little suspicious if he chased the target out of the bar. The third was that the target would be frightened but keep his wits, deciding to stay right there in the bar and make trouble for the assassin. He would very likely shout, reveal the assassin's identity, refuse to leave the bar, try to involve others and possibly succeed, and a million other tiresome but effective ways to anger a hitokiri and endanger the poor drunk people sitting around the bar.
Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, none of these things had ever happened to Kenshin, so he was always successful. He had been sufficiently warmed of the sorts of things targets sometimes did to get out of being killed, and so always got his quarry.
The target walked into the bar then, and his brain worked to find out how this man could be drawn to a secluded area. He was a large man, but otherwise unremarkable. Simply waiting for the man to leave was not an option-he'd just gotten there and would want to stay longer than the assassin would care to. He was getting impatient, and the direct approach seemed best.
"Sir, I have business to discuss with you. Please follow me somewhere quiet," he requested simply. The man obligingly set down his drink and stood, assuming he would be back momentarily. How sad that that was just not true tonight.
The two men made their way to a fairly well-lit alley where no one was likely to pass. Kenshin stopped walking and turned to face the other man, who was looking down at him expectantly. Accordingly, he announced his name and purpose.
"So, you are the Battousai. It will be my honor either to kill you or to fall to such a worthy opponent," the target answered and came at him without waiting for more words. Never caught off guard, Kenshin successfully blocked the attack and threw the man's bulk away from himself.
The man had barely gotten into battle stance again when an unflustered Battousai was upon him, very nearly impaling him before the target twisted out of the way.
With a grunt of effort, frustration, or both, the target continued to turn and aimed for the assassin's back, only to meet metal, not flesh. The Battousai actually smirked, thinking that the man had not been wrong when he spoke of a worthy opponent. This man fought exceptionally compared to those he usually felled with one blow.
Unlike many others, this was a goal the Battousai might actually have to chip away at, so he aimed at an important but unprotected point. Unexpectedly, the man's arm was not simply disabled for the time being, but came cleanly off. This might be over sooner than he thought. He raised his sword to finish the target, but hesitated. The man just cowered, which was funny when you pictured him cringing and trying to make himself smaller than the slight form of his assailant. This man, armless and swordless, could do nothing to keep himself alive at this point, much less fight. It would be senseless to kill him now- he was already useless, so what was the harm in letting the poor man live? He lowered his weapon, deciding that the large but now one-armed man was no longer a threat to his cause.
"What are you waiting for?" The man asked, suddenly looking at his opponent's face instead of the wall behind him. "Do it already, don't make me suffer!"
"I'm not going to kill you. That was my intent, but in this state you don't threaten my cause, and I won't kill you unnecessarily," Battousai explained.
"I would rather you kill me in this state! Just as you said, I'm completely useless. What would be the point in letting me live? You already stole my chance to serve my superiors, so you might as well take my life," the target continued.
"No. I have never, and will never kill someone unarmed and defenseless, or someone who does not need to die in order for peace to come to this country," Battousai finished and turned, refusing to listen to any more pleas for death. He just walked, deep in thought, back the way he'd come.
*************************************************
well, well, well, a fight scene. who knew? i didn't think there'd be any.
PraiseDivineMercy: actually that's a good idea about the relatives, it hadn't occurred to me. as you can see, i did show more of his surprise about the mercy. he will be surprised often.
Tomoe2Kenshin: i absolutely adore your name. anyhoo, thank you.
Califpinay3001: practical? you mean realistic, or what? i'm confused.
Lucrecia Levrai: muahaha... come to the dark side!
Yuhi-thedoerofevildeeds: you're welcome! sorry, but i should be back on schedule now.
History behind The History, chapter 12
So.
So.
So.
So.
This Himura guy... what was his deal?H The teenage assassin, champion of a supposedly selfless cause, had someone actually seek him out for a fight and then decided to show mercy? Could have used some of that earlier. Could he just not make up his mind or what? Was he a killer or wasn't he?
That wasn't really fair, though. This event had happened much later, so maybe he'd changed his mind. Maybe he'd decided what he'd been doing was wrong and turned over a new leaf, or maybe just decided that it wasn't necessary after his cause was accomplished. Either way, he'd definitely told himself he wouldn't do it in the future.
He'd never struck Akitaka as the merciful type, but Akitaka supposed it was possible. Maybe he'd never wanted to kill in the first place, but did it only when he felt e needed to do so. How sad. The world had enough people who killed for the heck of it, it didn't need moral people feeling compelled to do it, too.
Had he always been like that, then? Akitaka wondered if Battousai had ever tried to get out of assassinating someone. Had he ever, say, maimed someone he could have killed? That almost seemed cruel in itself, to make the man suffer instead of putting him out of his misery, but it really was better than killing him. He could at least do some things, if not live normally. Maybe he had done it- it would be a good compromise. Himura wouldn't have to kill, and the other guy would be totally useless to his side. That sounded great when Akitaka considered the alternative.
* *
*
There was a knock at the door. The small, half-hidden figure rose and opened it to find the messenger once again. Explanations were not necessary. The envelope was proffered and received, the only sound that of the door sliding closed.
There was no use delaying the inevitable, after all, he had agreed to this for a reason. He might not have liked it, but he still did it, and had learned long ago that that was life. He tore into the paper to reveal the name of the man who would enter the Great Void that night. His fate was sealed.
He read on, glancing over the information on how to find the target, and promptly left. He did have all night, but procrastination never got anybody anywhere. He was a man of action.
It didn't take long to find the location the papers said the man would be most of the night, but he saw no one of the appropriate description, so he waited. This was your standard bar, full of people in various stages of drunkenness, and he could tell after juts a short look around that this was going to take awhile.
Whenever he had to find the target in a crowded place like this, it always took awhile. It would be inexcusable to frighten all these people, and then let them tell every sake-enhanced detail to the public. That would be a very effective way of getting fired. He had to draw the person out to a deserted place before they could fight.
He would have preferred to do this honestly, just to issue the challenge quietly and have the target follow him somewhere appropriate, however this was impractical. If he did that, the target would to one of three things. The first option was the most desirable- the target would accept the challenge and they would leave the bar like civilized people- but could not be guaranteed to happen.
The second option was that the target, upon discovering who was challenging him, would run, and he would look more than a little suspicious if he chased the target out of the bar. The third was that the target would be frightened but keep his wits, deciding to stay right there in the bar and make trouble for the assassin. He would very likely shout, reveal the assassin's identity, refuse to leave the bar, try to involve others and possibly succeed, and a million other tiresome but effective ways to anger a hitokiri and endanger the poor drunk people sitting around the bar.
Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, none of these things had ever happened to Kenshin, so he was always successful. He had been sufficiently warmed of the sorts of things targets sometimes did to get out of being killed, and so always got his quarry.
The target walked into the bar then, and his brain worked to find out how this man could be drawn to a secluded area. He was a large man, but otherwise unremarkable. Simply waiting for the man to leave was not an option-he'd just gotten there and would want to stay longer than the assassin would care to. He was getting impatient, and the direct approach seemed best.
"Sir, I have business to discuss with you. Please follow me somewhere quiet," he requested simply. The man obligingly set down his drink and stood, assuming he would be back momentarily. How sad that that was just not true tonight.
The two men made their way to a fairly well-lit alley where no one was likely to pass. Kenshin stopped walking and turned to face the other man, who was looking down at him expectantly. Accordingly, he announced his name and purpose.
"So, you are the Battousai. It will be my honor either to kill you or to fall to such a worthy opponent," the target answered and came at him without waiting for more words. Never caught off guard, Kenshin successfully blocked the attack and threw the man's bulk away from himself.
The man had barely gotten into battle stance again when an unflustered Battousai was upon him, very nearly impaling him before the target twisted out of the way.
With a grunt of effort, frustration, or both, the target continued to turn and aimed for the assassin's back, only to meet metal, not flesh. The Battousai actually smirked, thinking that the man had not been wrong when he spoke of a worthy opponent. This man fought exceptionally compared to those he usually felled with one blow.
Unlike many others, this was a goal the Battousai might actually have to chip away at, so he aimed at an important but unprotected point. Unexpectedly, the man's arm was not simply disabled for the time being, but came cleanly off. This might be over sooner than he thought. He raised his sword to finish the target, but hesitated. The man just cowered, which was funny when you pictured him cringing and trying to make himself smaller than the slight form of his assailant. This man, armless and swordless, could do nothing to keep himself alive at this point, much less fight. It would be senseless to kill him now- he was already useless, so what was the harm in letting the poor man live? He lowered his weapon, deciding that the large but now one-armed man was no longer a threat to his cause.
"What are you waiting for?" The man asked, suddenly looking at his opponent's face instead of the wall behind him. "Do it already, don't make me suffer!"
"I'm not going to kill you. That was my intent, but in this state you don't threaten my cause, and I won't kill you unnecessarily," Battousai explained.
"I would rather you kill me in this state! Just as you said, I'm completely useless. What would be the point in letting me live? You already stole my chance to serve my superiors, so you might as well take my life," the target continued.
"No. I have never, and will never kill someone unarmed and defenseless, or someone who does not need to die in order for peace to come to this country," Battousai finished and turned, refusing to listen to any more pleas for death. He just walked, deep in thought, back the way he'd come.
*************************************************
well, well, well, a fight scene. who knew? i didn't think there'd be any.
PraiseDivineMercy: actually that's a good idea about the relatives, it hadn't occurred to me. as you can see, i did show more of his surprise about the mercy. he will be surprised often.
Tomoe2Kenshin: i absolutely adore your name. anyhoo, thank you.
Califpinay3001: practical? you mean realistic, or what? i'm confused.
Lucrecia Levrai: muahaha... come to the dark side!
Yuhi-thedoerofevildeeds: you're welcome! sorry, but i should be back on schedule now.