Yeah, such a cool chapter. I really hope you guys enjoy this one. I really like it. A few notes:
Aether can also be spelt Ether, it's what is sometimes known as the fifth element, a source of magical substance rather than a physical substance. Hope that cleared a few things up Lady AA-Chan. Also, I'll explain more about Kai's character later in this, probably in the next chapter. I haven't actually seen Yami no Matsui, B Girl, but I know what you're talking about. A lot of explanations happen in the next chapter, mostly centering around Kai and Tyson, though a few with Rei as well. Until then, enjoy this.
Chapter Four
Kai left the Dragoon blade with its owner and set off east where he could feel the vision tugging urgently at him.
They weren't too far away.
"Just my luck I had to be stuck with a Kinomiya, a magician and a noble brat," Kai muttered, thinking ominously on the omission of one member of the group. He hoped that whoever was attacking them hadn't gotten to Earth yet.
Night fell fairly quickly, but Kai continued on, the feeling getting stronger as he got closer to the two other like him.
Upon the cresting of the sun he came across an abandoned farm holding. He froze as he noticed a few horses tied up at the front. Kai crept up closer and noticed they were still covered in lathered sweat, an indication that they'd been ridden hard and fast very recently.
They may not have had a chance to find them yet. Kai suddenly realised he'd been standing in the open for too long and dashed back to the safety of the trees on the edge of the property.
No cries were raised so Kai continued on towards the barn, keeping low to the ground and as close to as much cover as he could find. He could see signs of movement in the house, but almost none near the barn. It seemed as though they hadn't gotten that far in their search for the boys.
There was one figure making their way to the barn. Kai looked around quickly and saw no one in sight. If that one man spotted them and made a yell to the others, he wasn't sure he'd have enough time to kill them all before they got to the boys. Trusting in the fact that everyone else was occupied by he house, Kai raced to the barn, staying low still.
He entered the barn silently and looked around for any movement when no attack came. He spotted the figure slowly climbing up the ladder to the loft where Kai knew the boys were.
Damn! He raced to the ladder, thanking the previous owners of the farm for not cluttering the floor with useless junk. He quickly got onto the ladder, praying that it wasn't rickety and rusty. It was secured firmly to the floor and the beams of the barn. Kai quickly and quietly climbed up noticing the man had already reached the loft.
A small cry alerted him to the boys' presence. He peered over the loft edge as he heard the noise and leapt up and ran over to the right when he saw the man standing before the two boys, two wicked curved knives in his hands. Kai didn't think as he reached the man. He just grabbed him from behind without warning before he could call out and broke his neck.
The two boys stared at him in shock and fear as the man tumbled from Kai's grasp to lay motionless in the moldy hay lining the loft.
"If you want to live shut up and follow me." Kai looked over the edge as he heard noise and swore. "Damn. Change of plan. How much skill do you have at killing?"
The brunette promptly fainted, falling heavily and loudly, causing attention to be drawn to the loft.
Kai swore again and unsheathed his long sword. "Do you know how to use that kid?" The blond boy nodded, still looking fearful. "How well?"
"Not very," he answered nervously. They could hear the sounds of people approaching the ladder eagerly.
"Enough to keep you and your friend safe for a little while as I kill these guys?"
"I hope so."
"Start praying kid," Kai muttered, moving closer to the ladder so that only one person could approach him at a time. He could see the blond boy standing in a ready stance from his peripheral vision and smiled grimly. At least the boy has some courage. All of Kai's thoughts were cut off then as the first of their attackers came up the ladder.
He saw Kai with his cold expression and the longsword at the ready and narrowed his eyes.
"Who the hell are you?"
"I'm the Phoenix," Kai whispered before charging him, slashing upwards with one hand, catching him off guard with his speed. A spurt of blood burst out from his opened cavity and splashed onto Kai before he quickly reversed his blade and ran the man through his heart, causing the body to crumple when he quickly pulled his sword out.
The next man had seen the last blow and approached him cautiously.
Garnet eyes peered out of the shadows, unnerving his opponent. Kai used the moment of hesitation the man showed to dodge to the side and use a flank attack, slashing the man on the side, staining the beams of the loft even more. The man staggered, holding his side and Kai used the opportunity to strike at his unprotected back, puncturing the man's lungs with his thrust.
Kai turned to see two people on the loft now. They attacked together. Kai bent down slightly, his eyes glistening darkly like the blood he so freely shed as they continued their move.
Stupid fools, Kai thought before he quickly spun to one side, sending his sword through his opponent's stomach, the other man whirling around to see where he'd gone only to have Kai slice him up from his navel to his throat.
No more men came and Kai looked around to see if any had gotten past him. But the two boys were safe, the brunette still dead to the world and the blonde bloodied and shaken but physically fine.
Kai looked over the edge of the loft to hear the sound of a horse galloping away into the distance. "Coward," he muttered disgustedly. The he turned back to the boys. A haggard cough caught his attention and he walked over to the last man he thought he slew.
"I must be a bit rusty," Kai murmured as he looked down upon the mortally wounded man. "You should be dead."
"Why ..." the man coughed and continued speaking, "why the ... double cross?"
Kai frowned and stopped his motions to take care of the man's problem of being alive. "What are you talking about? Who's after the Powers?"
The man laughed haggardly then began couching more, blood dripping from his mouth. "Oh this is ... priceless. You've no idea ... what you're up ... against kid."
"What?"
"Darkness," the man breathed before starting to choke a bit, the rush of blood in his mouth getting to great. His eyes rolled back in his head as he died, choking on his own blood.
Kai looked down at him with a frown and spat. Then he looked up at the boys. "We're leaving now, and you're coming with me."
The boys nodded. The brunette, it seems, had woken while Kai had been conversing with the wounded man. The three of them made their way down the ladder and out of the barn and back onto the road, heading back to Tyson and Rei in Fensville.
*~*~*
Tyson was up and about on the second day after Kai left, so he was able to greet Kai and the others as they trudged in at dusk on that third day they'd been at the inn.
"Well, well, well," Tyson smirked as Max walked in. The blond boy blushed slightly, recognising the swordsman. "If it isn't the laundry lass."
"He he, hello again." Max sheepishly waved at him. "Guess you're here to take me back home huh."
Tyson nodded. "You got that right."
"No." The four people crowded into the room turned to stare at Kai. He was still covered in the blood of the men he'd killed at the barn. "We're going on to Wrighton."
"What?" Tyson glared. "I'm not going to Wrighton until I get my reward money for bringing this kid back home."
"I'm not a kid!" Max protested shrilly, though he was largely ignored by everyone.
"I need him for something," Kai told him firmly, his eyes glazing over with barely suppressed rage.
"Tough, I want my reward.'
"You can get your reward once I'm done."
"How do I know you'll give him back to me?"
"Easy, you're coming too."
"What?" Tyson looked furious. "I am not going anywhere with you Hiwatari!"
Kai slammed him back into a wall, stunning everyone. Tyson gasped in pain and almost blacked out. "You have no idea what you've gotten yourself into Kinomiya, and I would almost feel sorry for you, considering you really had no choice in this. That is if you weren't such a pig-headed moronic imbecile!"
Kenny bravely decided to speak up then, breaking the extremely tense silence. "Um, mister Kai or whoever you are. Don't you think we should have a choice in where we want to go?"
"Not under these circumstances no."
Tyson was gasping for air now and Kai realised that he'd been holding onto him still. He let him go and Tyson would have fallen to the floor if Max and Rei hadn't been there to catch him.
"Kai!" Rei glared darkly at him. "What the hell is going on?"
"You'd better come too Rei, if I leave you behind I may be signing your death warrant." Kai was ignoring them all despite how everyone was glaring and shouting at him.
Kai finally got sick of it all and with a slight flick of his wrist threw a fireball at the floor.
This immediately got everyone's attention.
"Wow, another magician!" Kenny looked ecstatic.
"Hey, if you can do magic, why didn't you use it before?" Max asked tilting his head slightly in confusion.
Tyson glared at him and shut up, muttering darkly under his breath.
Rei just stared at him in shock. His travelling partner was amazing him more every day.
"Argue with me once more and I will be happy to knock each and every one of you out and cart you to Wrighton. Either you all come willingly, or not. Your choice."
This completely silenced everyone.
"Well we were on our way there anyway," Max offered gesturing to himself and Kenny.
"I am in need of a holiday south," Tyson muttered. "Besides, I don't trust you not to kill me if you knock me out."
That left one member unaccounted for. "Rei?" Kai asked curiously.
"I'll go on the condition that you tell me what in the Hells is going on."
Kai thought this over. "Fine. Now get ready, we leave in the morning." He walked out of the room and into the other where his belongings were.
"That guy has some large problems," Max muttered.
"You don't know the half of it," Tyson swore.
"So how many rooms are there?" Kenny asked.
"Two."
"So then, who bunks in with that guy?" Everyone was silent and they looked over at Rei, who sighed and nodded.
"You guys owe me a lot for this."
*~*~*
Wolf stared coldly at the man kneeling before him. "You let them escape?" He saw the shiver run though the man as he nodded. "You let Water and Aether slip through your fingers. How? They were supposed to be helpless boys."
"My l-lord," the man stuttered, "There was another who appeared and slaughtered everyone."
"So not only are you incompetent, you're a coward too." The man looked horrified. "You do know what I do to cowards don't you?" The man nodded fearfully and Wolf smirked. "Then you know you will die a painful death."
"He called himself Phoenix, I think he was the Fire," the man cried out as Wolf slowly approached him.
"And this should interest me why?" Wolf grabbed the man by his neck, holding him up high.
The man started choking, trying to get the words out. "H-he ... was a ... H-Hiwa ... tar ... i."
Wolf dropped the man, his eyes wide. "You're sure?"
The man nodded and coughed. "He had the clan's colours and the double mark, a quester."
"Kai,' Wolf breathed. This drew the attention of Falcon who had stood by the door to the small room while Wolf 'interrogated' his servant. They glanced at each other paling slightly. He gestured to the door and Falcon opened it, letting Wolf go through before exiting himself.
"Make sure he never sees the light of day," Wolf informed a nearby guard, who paled slightly but nodded. The two men walked back through the dungeons of the huge castle and up to the residential part of the building. They did not speak until they reached a room containing two beds and little else.
"Do you think he's lying?" Falcon asked as soon as he'd closed the door.
"I don't know. I don't think so, but he could be mistaken."
"Kai's been missing for a while."
"I know." Wolf paced the room nervously, his eyes like ice.
Falcon studied him worriedly. "You're getting worse," he whispered. "They're getting to you."
Wolf whirled around and glared at him. "You'd best be quiet if you know what's good for you."
Falcon stood tall and looked directly at Wolf, who flinched at the intensity in his partner's eyes and looked away. "You've got to fight it.'
"It's getting too hard, I don't know if I can any more." Wolf sat down on one of the beds, wincing slightly as he did so. Falcon sat down beside him and, ignoring his protests, lifted up the back of his shirt and inspected the wounds there.
"They were worse than usual this time."
"'I know. I screwed up by letting Earth slip through my fingers." He shivered slightly as light touches drifted over his back. When the hand grew more firm and investigative, he reached around and held it. "Don't," he whispered, "it's pointless, there will be more marks tonight, you can try and heal them then."
Falcon nodded and put Wolf's shirt back down. "I could say I did it."
"No, they'd know we lied. We'd both be punished then."
Falcon looked pained. "I hate seeing you like this."
"I know, but we have to endure what we must."
The two of them looked around as there was a hesitant knock on he door. "Enter," Wolf called out coldly.
A shaking servant opened the door and stuttered out his message. "T-the mast-ter wishes-s to see y-you both, my lords-s."
"We'll be there shortly. You may leave." As soon as the door closed the cold mask dropped and once again a scared and weary teen sat on the bed. "What are we to do?"
Falcon shook his head. "I know not. We're in too deep now."
"That we are, my friend."
AN: Hmm, this adds another twist to the story. How does Wolf and Phoenix know Kai? And what's up with them? You'll have to wait and find out.
Laters.