Revenge of the Crow
Night 4 – Yamanouchi Naotoki
By: Yin-Yang
Amalie watched the city lights play about like a distorted picture of a Christmas tree. She frowned and turned her head away from here it rested on her folded arms on her knees. She didn't know why she was picturing this as a Christmas tree when the only colors she saw were white, bit of yellow and ugly reds on building but sighed and decided to remember a better memory. She smiled in thought as the last Christmas party her family threw.
~Flashback~
The mansion was decorated beautifully with bright blinking lights and a welcoming wreath hung on the front door just above the brass knocker. Inside it was slightly loud but also warm from the blazing fire to the large amount of people in the room as well. Women dressed in lovely gowns and dresses of soft seasonal colors and men dressed in nice suits as they talked, laughed, even danced a bit. Nestled in the corner was a large pine tree decorated with lights, little stars and silver tinsel tossed here and there. Underneath was a mountain of present all brightly wrapped and tied up with bows and such. A little girl with bouncing red-gold curls made her way to tear them apart when a strong pair of arms picks her up.
"Hey no fair!" she pouts and crossed her arms over her chest.
"Sorry kiddo but you know the rules," Gary smiled and tickles her, liking the way she laughs and kisses her cheek. Setting her on her feet he watches as she runs over to her friends. She looked so happy and carefree he looked up and bowed tot eh young lady before him. "You look stunning."
Amalie smiled and curtsied to him, blushing a bit and kissed his cheek. "You and your compliments ni-chan," she said softly.
"Well I say what I see to be true. Now let me look at my little sister." Taking her hand he twirled her before him and nodded. Her gown was simple with billowing sleeves and straight lines that fell to her ankles, giving her freedom of movement and lightly touched the dangling snowflake earrings of real diamonds. The gown itself blended in beautifully with her pale skin color and dark hair, making her look like a Spirit of Winter and smiled as he hugged her close. "You're just as beautiful as mom."
"Mom will always be prettier than me. And so will Nina," she sighed deeply.
Gary carefully tipped her chin up and nodded to her. "You are lovely as an angel Amalie, an Angel of Darkness while mom and Nina are like Angels of light. Just never forget you are beautiful," he smiled warmly and kissed her brow in a big brother fashion. Offering his arm to her he patted her hand as she took it and led her to the dance floor.
Watching the children with loving gazes was a man and woman, the host and hostess of the party and both looking very handsome. The gentleman wore a white dress shirt, a deep sapphire blue jacket and slacks with his stunning blonde hair brushed back to reveal kind and humorous blue eyes. He smiled at his wife and gave her hand a gentle squeeze. The lady in question smiled prettily, most of her red-gold curls done up into a bun to be held by satin ribbons of soft green with just a hint of red. Her gown was of velvet and fitted her like a glove in a gown style so she could easily dance. Around her slender throat was a simple gold chain with a cross of Christ. Her dark eyes were merry and her laughter was of silver bells as of one the wives of her husband's co-workers told her a funny story. Everything was paradise and nothing could ever bring down this joyous mood…
~End of Flashback~
The sound of wings flapping and a soft caw broke her free of the memory trance and watched as the crow came gliding into view and rested on her outstretched hand. The bird ruffled her feathers, preening a bit before looking up at her and their eyes locked.
In her mind an image appeared from the aerial view. It took a while for her own sight to settle in and the image waver to the sides some but it slowed and came to a stop. Looking down the eyes focused and came to view a tall man with unusual pale skin that looked like an extremely pale yellow tone, striking green hair about the same style as Sasaki. He wore a long trench coat with a pair of katana blades strapped to his back. On the sheaths there were faint images of golden snakes curled around them and of a large tattoo of a cobra on his arm she could barely make out through the darkness. What made her frown was the fact that he was practically dragging a young girl with him. She looked to be around twelve or thirteen with long hair of a deep midnight blue tied into a high ponytail. Her skin was pale as the moon and eyes were a stunning lotus blue but seem to hold fear/sorrow/hungry in them. She kept tripping over her own feet as she tried to keep up with the man who didn't seem to care about her welfare for some reason. Slowly the image faded to black and Amalie looked away from the crow.
"They're close." The bird cawed softly as it hopped up her arm onto her shoulder, lightly nibbling on the damp strands of hair. "I know Dark Bird, but that girl… let's go. I just hope we aren't too late." She made it up to her feet, reaching up to pet the black feathers and stood on the edge of the building. With the same hand, and not bothering to watch, the crow stepped onto her fingers and was launched into the air. Once free the girl spread her arms wide and merely fell forward, keeping her eyes open as he plummeted towards the ground at an amazing speed…
Yamanouchi Naotoki was a grade A drug addict. Especially to the stuff you had to use needles he regularly injected himself to get a high rush. He had also gone to the point of creating his own set of drugs that he would sell for a very high price but they were three times as more addicting then the other crap others sold on the streets so he became known as Naaza to the street dealers and Doku Masho within Arago's ranks; but he didn't like to do it alone so he had since decided to share his stock with his 'friends'.
"Pick up your feet girl," he hissed angrily, pulling harder on the frail wrist in his grasp as she tripped over something. She said nothing but tried to keep up with his longer strides, knowing it was better just to stay quiet and obey him. Naotoki smirked and entered a large and dark bar/club with florescent lights. He lived in the room above and as his payment he supplied a batch of his own drugs. Just a teabag amount but taken correctly it could last a month and give you a powerful high. Only a complete and utter fool would take much in a single week than the required time.
The bartender/landlord nodded to him and handed him some slips of paper. Phone messages and orders were all he ever got but one stood out from the rest. It bore the small emblem of a dark shadow with several swords in silver in the background. It was Arago's signature.
"Kayura. Go to my room and get ready," he snapped at her, watching as she wordlessly moved up the stairs behind the bar and disappeared behind the door with the emblem of a coiled cobra ready to strike. "So Oni and Yami are dead."
"Just got word from police. Reports aren't done yet but Oni was butchered and hacked to pieces; Yami was nearly skinned alive before he was allowed to die himself. All that's known is some girl did it." The bartender looked around before leaning closer and said in a low voice, "Rumor has it she's the dead brought to life and a black bird appears first, as if leading the girl to the next one to die."
"Lady Death then. Ha! If she is some girl brought from the dead then I'll just deal with her like the dead should be dealt with." He nodded his thanks, pocketing the messages and tossed a small pouch of white power with a very pale hint of green in them. Getting up he headed to his room, smirking at the fun he was gonna have tonight.
In the room Kayura sat on the bed in just her over sized shirt and waited. She hated this and could feel her heart begin to beat rapidly in her chest yet didn't move. She knew she shouldn't be here but what could she do? Everyday the hunger for the venom was growing more and more, she knew it would kill her and prayed that it would end her life but it never did. She wanted to escape this hellhole already but she wasn't brave enough to end her life so she continued to pray that the venom would do it for her. She looked up as the door opened and swallowed the lump of fear in her throat as the one responsible for this entered, locking the door behind him yet never turned on the lights.
"Well girl, seems someone has been going around and killing my comrades," Naaza said as he tossed his jacket on the chair, stretching his back as he continued to talk. "So far it's just me and that con-artist but I'd like to see that little bitch just try it." Looking at the girl he smiled and walked over, reaching out to lightly trail the back of his fingers down the smooth skin of her face. It had taken a while to teach her not to flinch from his touch and some other tricks as well but it was worth it in the end. "But enough talk of this Lady Death, it's time for a our own little party. Would you like that?"
"Hai," she answer softly but deep down she wanted to scream no and escape. She continued to remain still as he moved onto the bed and leaned down to softly brush his lips against hers, letting lotus blue eyes slipped almost close and shivered from the cold as nimble fingers unbuttoned her shirt only halfway before tugging it off an pale shoulder. This was all a routine for her: letting her head down back as his mouth moved down the side of her throat to her bare shoulder, hands caressing her body as her own hands went against her will to touch him everywhere she was allowed.
Naaza smirked as he slowly moved behind her, nipping at the junction between her neck and shoulder as he rolled the sleeve of her shirt up and kissed her temple when she held her arm out straight.
"You want this." It was more of a statement than a question but she still answered the way he taught her. Grasping her arm as the elbow he tied a piece of leather string around her arm tightly, waiting a moment as he lifted a silver needle holding a pale green liquid within the glass container. "remember, there will be some slight discomfort."
"Not as much discomfort if you dare do what I know you're gong do," a female voice snapped from the darkness of the room. Naaza froze, holding the needle just a tiny fraction of an inch away from piercing the tender skin that was already marred with tiny scars from the similar object in hand. Kayura whimpered softly but Naaza hissed for her to be silent.
"I don't know who you are but you had better leave before I show you my wrath," he said in a threatening tone. Feminine laughter met his ears, as it seemed to surround him. "What is so damn funny?"
"You of course!" A loud caw was heard as a crow seemed to just appear out of thin air as well as a young woman with ice white skin and black clothing. Her hair hand to her shoulders loosely as amethyst colored eyes smirked at him. "You are such a fool, Yamanouchi Naotoki."
Beady eyes narrowed as he released Kayura and threw her off the bed, ignoring her cry of pain as she hit the floor and tried to hide in the corner in a huddle ball. Standing up he continued to hold the needle in one hand and the other grabbed a katana blade from a matching set of six on the wall, all engraved with designs of snakes along the blades and hilts. "How do you know me?"
"Just by looking at you I can see your entire life. Your mother died when you were young and your father let you so you were placed in a foster home. But you never seed to last, the people couldn't stand your appearance for very long. Soon you had a home with a chemist. You learned all you could from him before you were introduced into the world of narcotics. You ran away from your home after 'accidentally' poisoning him and that's when you realized what a thrill it was to watch your victims die from poison."
"shut up."
"Years on the street you made quite a name fro yourself as Naaza Doku, a man who sold the best drugs around for quite a bit of cash. Once, you sold only our teabags worth of your latest 'venom' for nearly 3 grand each. That's when Arago came to you and asked you to join. You accepted and now here you are."
"I said shut up."
"Seeing how everyone fears you not only of your reputation but of your appearance you slink around the city at night, like a snake that slithers on its belly to get around you take advantage of you woman such as her and poison them so they have no choice but to return to you until you grow tired of them or their bodies finally give out."
"I said to shut up!!" he roared and lunged at her with the speed of a striking cobra but he meet only air as she dodged to the side. "You think you know me so well and you might, but if so then you know what my poison can to do a body if given the full dosage."
"N-No don't…" the young girl said from the corner, eyes opening wide in fear.
"Silence!! I'll deal with you later," he hissed and moved quickly once more to jab the needle in the pale flesh of her slender neck but he never had the chance as a slender hand grabbed his wrist, pulling his arm forward. Two wet snaps were soon followed by a pain scream of pain as the needle dropped to the floor but Naaza didn't care as he held his now broken forearm to his chest. Before he had time to retaliate the girl did a spinning hook kick that sent him crashing into the wall only to pierce himself with his own sword in the chest cavity.
Amalie quickly made her way to the scared girl, slowly kneeling before her and reached out to hold her young face in both her hands. "You are so young to be with the likes of him… you don't deserve to be out in the streets but… you have no one to look out for you…" she said softly as their eyes locked, "Your parents died years ago and so you lived on the streets until he found you… little one do you want to escape this life? To be given another chance to live with a free mind, a free body, a free spirit once again?"
"Hai! I have always prayed for such a thing to happen, to have a life that I once had before my parents died… I want release…" she cried softly, leaning against the other girl as she was pulled into a rather cold yet comforting embrace.
The dark girl gently shushed her, rocking her back and forth as she stroked her long hair with a gloved hand. "I Promise to grant you another chance at life little one. With people who will love you for you and help you. All that I ask that you never return to this kind of life."
"Anything," she sobbed into her chest, dampening the midriff with her tears as she looked up at her savior with teary eyes, feeling oddly clear minded and free. "I-I'll even help other not to take the same path I did."
"Hai. You can tell them that a life of drugs and money is not all glamour." She slowly loosened her tight grip she had on the girl's arm and held it out straight so she could see. The leather cord had been removed but from the old puncture wounds oozed out a slimily green liquid tinted with just a hint of red. "Easy little one, this is all the venom that your body had yet to absorb. Sooner or later this will have left you into a comatose state of mind."
"B-B-But w-why are y-you helping m-m-me?" she stuttered fearfully, doing her best not to move as the venom felt to eh floor with a soft hiss and the wounds closed to leave tiny scars.
"To begin a new life, you must leave past mistakes behind but not forgotten. Now do me a favor little one and sleep." Slowly waving her hand over the girl's eyes she watched as she drifted into sleep and laid her on the floor, out of harm's way only to turn to see that Naaza was still alive and ready to kill her.
His arm was useless so it hung freely at his side, his other hand holding the sword in a white knuckled grip with a matching sword securely at his left hip and two of the same set on his other side. Strapped to his back were two more swords that she just now realized used to be hanging from the wall.
"So… the snake has fangs," she said rather boredly but continued to remain perfectly still, her full intent on protecting the girl from harm's way.
"More than that… You said it yourself, I'm the snake that slithers through this chaotic city on his belly in search of prey," he hissed behind clenched teeth. "And the cobra has found his prey."
"Don't you mean the cobras have found their prey?" she asked with a quirk of her brow. What the Doku Masho didn't realize was that the swords were slowly changing, morphing into some thing living, something deadly, and something that had indeed found their prey.
Six long, hooded cobras with red, green, and gold scales wrapped themselves around the startled man tightly, immobilizing his good arm and legs so that he fell to the floor. Hoods flared open fully as they opened gaping jaws to reveal needle long fangs dripped with venom. Repeatedly they bit the man all over, piercing flesh so that the blood ran freely. When he began to scream one of the snakes attacked his neck, filling his throat with the burning hot poison and held onto tightly as he struggled against them violently.
Amalie watched for only a moment before wrapping her slightly torn leather jacket around the young girl's shoulders and lifted her in her arms. Walking to the window she looked out the darken city and sighed deeply, still listening as the snakes continued to attack the barely alive man. Heavy footsteps stormed up the stairs and burst into the room only to catch a glimpse of her before she stepped out the window and disappeared into the night.
The bartender swallowed the sudden bile that filled his throat as he looked down at the man with six exotic cobras were perched, hissing at him deeply as their red gaze held him in place. The large man couldn't move no matter how hard he tried but his heart raced as three cobras slid over to him and up his body, two of them wrapping around his arms tightly as the third went high until it was wrapped around his neck rather tightly. He swallowed the lump of fear in his throat as a forked tongue flickered his ear and before he felt the needle sharp fangs pierce the tender flesh of the insides of both wrists, he hear the snake whispered something into his ear.
"Three down, one to go." Twin fangs pierced the thin skin covering the main artery and let loose all the venom it had into the blood stream, slowly squeezing the throat with it's body so the heart could pump faster.
At the nearly run down shelter a timid young lady wearing nothing more but an oversized shirt and a large leather jacket stood at before the door. She shook as she raised a shaking hand and knocked softly. After a moment a young man a few years her senior with soft brown hair and the most beautiful sea green eyes she had ever seen opened the door. His eyes spoke such volumes and she could tell right away that this man would never betray her in anyway.
"Oh come in! How can I help you?" he asked as he led her shaking form inside and lead her to where Nasuti was. The poor thing looked no older than twelve years old but her eyes looked but older and fearful, like a deer caught in the headlights.
"A-a girl said I could find sanctuary here," she said softly, huddling even more in the jacket, as she was lead further inside, almost expecting the worse.
"What did this girl look like?" Shin asked softly, taking his time and trying to help her relax some as he soothing rubbed her shoulder through the jacket.
"White skin, dark hair and eyes, and she had a crow."
He only smiled and turned her to face him before bowing some. "Hai, you'll find sanctuary here for as long as you need it. My name is Mouri Shin."
For the first time since before her parents died, the young girl smiled ever so softly but this wasn't a forced kind that she had been made to endure over the years. No this one was one that would soon lead her on a road to recovery.
"My name is Kaos Kayura."