Black Balloon

Prologue.

Nowhere can a secret keep, always secret, dark and deep, half so well as in the past buried deep to last, to last. Keep it in your own dark heart, otherwise the rumors start. After many years have buried, secrets over which you were worried. No confidant can then betray, all the words you didn't say. Only you can then exhume, secrets safe within the tomb, of memory, of memory, within the tomb of memory.

—THE BOOK OF COUNTED SORROWS.

A silence stirred the shadow consuming the great outdoors. Dark. Everything around her was encased in darkness. A calm sibilant breeze rustled her long brunette hair back and forth asunder over her shoulders.

Her footfalls ran silent against the moist sand. The loose grains of disintegrated rock clumped up between her toes, each time she lifted her bare feet away from the rough ground. Her breath had somewhere along the way become ragged and unstable, as she heaved to sustain air in her lungs.

A rivulet of sweat gently ran down the side of her head, down her pale cheek gleaming as the light of the moon touched it, and she wept it away with her hand. The moon was full, stained in gray ash, with a tint of red. Had it been pain, Hiromi wondered? Was it hurting like she? Was it even possible?

Cold water whooshed up against her feet, exiting the ocean's large elegant body. A sharp moonlight shimmered against the smooth body of water, causing the crystal liquids to sparkle in an ethereal feel of nightly shades, and colors. The dark colors flickered against her honey colored orbs. The pained fear was clearly there in her eyes. The pain was heavy in her irises, a bitter longing for something untouchable, barely attainable. Freedom. Freedom, from the burden she had been carrying on her aching back for years, and years to come.

A refreshing smell crawled up her nose; it was the scent of the ocean, the beautiful ocean. Oh its scent was heavenly, she could just get lost in it, but didn't have the time for it at the moment. She had more important matters to attend.

Night creatures quivered restlessly amongst the shore. Whispers. Soft whispers were conceived by these creatures. They were watching her; she could feel their beady eyes burning into her body from all directions. She wished they would look away, and never acknowledge her presence. She didn't want to be seen, neither by the creatures nor the people she was running from.

Granger Hiromi hastened down the beach, known as Kira Hara bay. She couldn't let them catch her. If they caught her, so many lives would be shredded. Too much pain has been induced because of her. Hiromi couldn't allow it to keep going anymore. She needed to get away, leave this place for good. Everything would end with her, Hiromi would make sure of that.

Out of the shadow it came, like a bullet marked for her kill—zzzzing—it's loud agonizing sharp sound left her breathless from fright. Her middle felt as though it was being eaten from the inside, by thousands of tiny insects. Suddenly, her legs buckled beneath her. She collapsed. Everything was terribly dark, and she hadn't a clue of what had just occurred. Repeatedly she tried to catch her breath but it seemed to escape her every time—like a master thief from the scene of a crime.

Quickly, she looked up; she could feel the intensity of the moment tighten around her scalp, pulsing viciously. Her vision was blurring, but she could clearly see an outline of a well-built male, he seemed to be wearing black to camouflage with the darkness the world around her had become enveloped in.

Looking briefly away from the outline, she looked down at herself, seeing dark blood seeping through her white tank top—the fabric of the shirt had been slightly torn apart. The center of her stomach was bleeding, she felt the skin around the wound become taut. A stinging sensation burned through her, as if someone had lit her body on fire. Sweat dripped down her body, as if she was a rain cloud. She felt the open doors suddenly close around her—she was confined.

"W—Who are you, what d—do you want?" Hiromi screeched, crying as the pain had become unbearable.

An obscure hand cut through the sheets of darkness—like a sword through its prey—making its way towards her neck. Its strong masculine feel roughed her skin, leaving it dry. As the palm wrapped around her, and the fingers dipped into her pale skin, she gasped feeling all air escape her. Her eyes, that once lively glitter that gleamed in her eyes, became hidden by the total eclipse of the moon behind the clouds. She could feel herself disintegrating, that last strand she was holding herself up by was slowly breaking at the top, and soon she would fall.

Tanned lips came within inches of her ear. "I want to know where you put it, and I don't want any of that BS that you have no idea where it is?" His voice was dark, cool and collected, it sent shivers gnawing up her spine.

She cringed as the putrid aroma of his breath entered the smelling range of her petite nose. She wanted to glue her nostrils shut it was so disgusting. She longed for the sweet smell of the ocean, which before had once intoxicated her senses.

Hiromi had learned long ago when dealing with these people it was better to remain calm, and unscathed by their cold fleeting demeanor, and deadening threats. He hadn't threatened her yet, but she knew it was coming it was only obvious.

The grand sand flooring beneath Hiromi captivated her, releasing the tight squeeze in her stomach. The—free to be and go where it wanted without fear—sand, was something she longed to be like, since the death of her father. Fear, and danger was always inches from where she stood in life, always seeming to pull her to a dead halt. She could never go any further.

Daring not to look up, Hiromi replied to the callous voice, "I've told you numerous times, I—do—not—know—where it is!" She hissed, and then gaining deep valiancy, she jerk up, throwing the heavy body from her, and began to run, run for dear life.

That internal struggle to break away from the burdens that were placed unfairly and without choice amongst her back, coming to play once more. She hadn't gained great footing; her steps were wobbled as if she were a drunk exiting a bar. She knew she was going to fall but willed herself not to, she had places to be, people to see. But mostly, she had to make sure he was all right. She had to know if they made it out safely.

"Don't think you can escape forever Hiromi! Nothing last forever." She could hear his soothing voice, it's dark maliciously calm tone churned her stomach.

Running probably wasn't the best course of action as it made the wound on her stomach pulse dreadfully in pain, and pulled the injury open a few inches more. Morphine, she wished she had some at this moment. The pain was becoming intolerable, shooting up her in all directions like electricity through wires, surging and pulling on every nerve with excessive force. Wanting the pain to stop, she placed a hand over the laceration, hoping the pressure would stop the bleeding. She winced at the icy touch of her skin encountering the warmth of the open wound—but quickly turned her mind from her pain, sealing up the agony in an uncaring part of her mind. She had no time for pain; it was too trivial of a matter.

Behind her, Hiromi could see nothing. A strange eerie fog took form, making it even harder to spy any movement, or any forms of life for that matter. Aggravation boiled hard in her veins, why did everything have to become so difficult than it already was in the first place? It didn't make any sense, no sense at all in her troubled mind.

Quickly, she turned to resume watching were she was running. She gasped. How could it happen so quickly? How had he been so lightening fast?

Hiromi stopped midstep, the dark muscular man, stood before her, his eyes glowing iridescently in the moonlight, the gray ash of the moon sparked a radiance of red in his eyes. He looked pure evil, purely sickening. She wanted to spit on him, but reframed herself from doing so, it would only add too the problems she was already being faced with.

Within seconds of turning to meet with the pig's eyes, he had thrown his knee up into her stomach—opening the wound from the bullet even more—and then punched her in the face, sending her throttling sideways into the beach sand. She could hear a cracking sound, as his hand made contact with her jaw.

"I told you Hiromi nothing last forever, I will always find you, you can never escape. You might as well as tell me where you put it, because if you do, you know I will be gone from your life forever, we all will." His deep monotone whisper, forced her to tremble, his offer was one she dreamt of, but not one she could easily accept.

Pushing herself from the ground a few inches, Hiromi heaved for the oxygen her lungs had failed to receive. A searing pain—one she hadn't quite experienced yet—strummed up her body. Her face felt as though someone had taken a hammer to her cheek. The right side of the bone—to her—appeared broken, snapped slighltly in two.

She couldn't take her eyes away from the sand, and she couldn't close her mouth either, it just dangled beneath her, broken. Her eyes expanded, as she saw blood drip upon the dirt, coloring the ground a sandy reddish brown. He had hit her harder than Hiromi had thought.

"I—wa—don't—know—wa—wa—where—it—ss—is." Hiromi explained. She was having a hard time speaking with her jaw line fractured.

Her body began to drag, the man was pulling her away, as to where she was unsure, but didn't have the will power to fight it. He obviously didn't agree with her answer. The rough jagged sand bit into her back, it's sharp claws tearing at her delicate skin, leaving scrap mark all over her flesh. She moaned weakly from the mild pain the grains of rock had induced upon her. It felt like a rugburn.

Abruptly all movement stopped. Weakly she bobbed her head to the right, seeking to find where he had taken her. A cool refreshing liquid brushed up against her pale cheek, cleaning away some of the blood from her wound, as it pulled away only to return a few seconds later. Its gossamer touch, sent wild shivers down her agonized spine, but the shivers seemed to sooth the pain, making her smile weakly at the release.

"Wrong answer." A voice came, his voice. "You know where it is he told you, he had to of." His voice consumed by surety, but the man's assumptions that he had told Hiromi where whatever thing he wanted was, he was mistaken. He would never tell her about anything he did, so these organization people who were after her looking for something he had were idiots to think she would know, for he would never get her involved in his affairs—although, she had, anyway, but not by choice.

Hiromi used meager strength to roll herself over, and gawked at the dark eyed man. This was the first time; she had gotten to see him with such clarity. He had long dark hair pulled into a ponytail along his back, and wore a long dark coat; its thin black material was rather extraordinary. Beneath the coat he wore a black tank top, and black tight cotton pants. His eyes were the most startling part about him, before when the gray ash light from the moon beat against his eyes she could've sworn them to be red, a pure sinister red, but now she found them to be of the purest blue. They were beautiful, and it confused her because he was definitely not.

"He would. Never put me. In so much danger. By telling me such things…" Hiromi whispered low-toned with slowness, she was having a hard time speaking with her jaw line broken, and wanted to make sure she got the words out correctly.

By the callousness in his eyes as he closed them, and how he pressed his lips into a thin firm line, Hiromi received the feeling that he wasn't happy with her answer, as all the other times. Nothing she could ever say would convince the man she was just as in the dark as he was on the situation. Her whole life, she was kept in the dark, everyone kept her in the dark, and only now was she beginning to see through the murky layers to the other side. She didn't like what she saw either, not one bit.

He sniffed the air, taking it inwards in vast quantities, and then opened his eyes. His blue eyes had lost that purity that once glowed in them mysteriously before, replaced by thin shadows, which blanketed the blues with a tinge of blackness.

"Why must you make everything so difficult, your brother and friends went down easily enough without a fight you know, and so why can't you." He sighed, shaking his head. "Stubborn I guess." He smirked sinisterly. "Though if you tell me all you know, I won't kill you." He offered.

His words were like a pike in her middle, she felt her stomach clamp shut like a mousetrap. Some of the sand seemed to have found it's way into her bullet wound, as she could feel it irritating. A sharp pulse in Hiromi cheek caused her pain to heighten.

On her stomach—as the man had placed her—Hiromi grasped towards the water clenching a hefty amount of slosh. She could feel the contents; its smooth dense texture was like moist flour in her hands. She was looking for release from the taut strain that had spread through her body, she hoped for it by squeezing the mud like one of those pressure balls you buy at the store. It didn't work very well; she could still feel her heart being sliced from a dagger in two.

Her breathing turned into short heaves. A blade of pain tore through Hiromi's chest, leaving fire in its wake. She wanted to scream, cry, get revenge, but all she could do was look on at the water. Her eyes were dead, they barely sparkled with life. The water, it's crystal heavenly body, all she could do was gape at it, her eyes were captivated by it's beauty, but her heart was bleeding too badly to set free a smile.

They couldn't be dead, he was wrong. They would never give up, never lay down dead, they would always fight. Rei, Mariah, they were her family, her brothers and sisters, not legally, but in her heart, and soul. They couldn't have gotten them, her diversion had made sure of that, they followed her not them. But now that she thought about it, only one followed her, where had the other two gone?

Hiromi shook her head. "No. No. No! You are wrong, there not dead, they are not dea—ugh." The pain from her jaw line was too much for her, she felt like people were taking thousands of electrical needles, and piercing them through her flesh. In the beginning she was too upset to acknowledge the pain, but nearing the end, it had overpowered her.

A solemn tear skimmed down her cheek—it felt like an ant army—its tenuous touch tickled her smooth flesh. She remained still, motionless. The pain had consumed her, cutting away at all her movements, until she found she could barley move any longer.

"Liar…liar…you're lying." She groaned lightly in exhaustion. "They aren't—"

He kneeled down to her level, bent inwards towards her ear, and gently whispered. "Awe but that's where you are wrong my dear…they are dead, I watched them as they squirmed to breath, as my associates ridded them of their oxygen. But that wasn't the sweetest part of the whole scenario, you want to know the best part?" He asked in façade of kindness, no, that wasn't the right word; it was more of sick and twisted humor than kindness. Did she want to know? Not really, but she was sure she was going to find out regardless if she wanted to or not. "The sweetest part was when they got hold of that cute little brother of yours. You should've seen the terror in his eyes, the deep reeling agony that tinted his orbs, and his face as we ended his life, with the snapping of his neck." He informed, and finished his speech with a few creaking and cracking sounds, representing the breaking of her innocent sweet little brothers neck.

Hiromi cried out, cried as loud as she could. She tried not to, she tried biting her tongue, as she didn't want to give the man the satisfaction he gravely sought, but her tooth pierced the tender flesh. Nothing was holding her back anymore, and from there Hiromi screamed, cries of bitter in agony. Agonized by the fact that they had killed her only flesh and blood. Killed the one person who meant the world to her. He was just a little child he didn't deserve to die. It had to be wrong. He had to be wrong, none of them were dead they had to have escaped.

A hard ball formed in the center of her throat pulsing and scraping at the edges—wanting to be free—when she tried to swallow it, the pain seemed to worsen. Snuffing back the tears that had washed away what was left of the blood—the water from the ocean hadn't cleaned—from her cheeks, she shouted with all her might and with what little strength she harbored in her body. "Your Lying! He's not dead, none of them are! You are just trying to trick me!" She screeched, but then stopped falling ill to a coughing fit, and then deep rooted pain of the right side of her jaw, which was seemingly broken, began to attack her once more.

He smirked invidiously. "Am I?" He said in false surprise, gasping as he spoke. "Think again Hiromi, they are dead, everyone you have ever cared about is dead, and so you might as well as give up. You've nothing left to live for, no one to protect, and so why don't you just tell me where it is, and I let you go and morn, without ending your life as well." He offered, but his offer was disgusting, and unwanted by her.

That rancid smell that seemed to be his livelihood aroma, sifted up her nose again, as he bent to the side coming face to face with her. Taking in a hefty whiff of him, an image came suddenly in mind of her severing her nose off with a knife. She couldn't take his scent anymore, and wondered if he had ever once seen a bath? She would've said something about it, but found it hard to form the words with all the pain she was lying in.

Her breath came in small rasping heaves, as if she had just finished running a mile marathon. His body was hovering completely over her now; she could feel his warm breath beat against her face, as he stared her deep in the eyes. His breath smelled of alcohol, mints, and a hint of parsley as strange as that sounded. He must've been chewing on the herb, for what reason, she had no clue?

"This is your last chance Hiromi, tell me what I need to know or forfeit your life to my gun, it is your choice really?" From his holster her sprung out a medium sized stainless steel gun, and held it against her temple. Cocking the weapon, he readied his finger against the trigger. "What do you say?"

His warm breath sent chills masticating down her back, and his profound voice made her want to throw up. He was sickening, utterly disgusting. She had never, met a man more revolting than the one overtop of her. How could one be so cold, completely without remorse, or compassion? His outlook on life was vulgar to say the least, many people—as much as she hated to admit—had the same thoughts. But to know that people—her kin—actually could act this way towards others, churned her stomach, and twitched at the muscles of her heart. He had no regard for human life whatsoever, and that was just sad.

Silently, she sobbed like an innocent child—making made sure he no longer heard her—he had no right to know she was lamenting over the death of her family. It would only give him the sick satisfaction that he so desperately was scouring for. She would never quench his thirst, not in a million years.

Scalding tears stung the tiny cuts on her cheeks, proceeding into the crook of her neck. Warm phlegm cascaded down her lip alight against the ground. She could feel the rough cold metal of the gun barrel against her temple, its brisk touch sent shivers spiraling down her spine, and placed a huge pulsating lump in the ventricles of her heart—she could feel the lump trying to tear free. It was hard to tell if it was fear in her heart or some other unnamed feeling, but whatever it was stung like acid in a deep cut.

He had taken her only family, what else did she have to live for? She had no idea what the man wanted, so it was obvious that the first choice he gave her was out of the question. She didn't know what to do anymore, as all she wanted to do was brood in a corner over her loss, and maybe later sack her revenge.

No. That would've been to easy for him—if she just lie down, and waited for his onslaught. It would be too easy to turn away, she couldn't go down just yet, she had to keep fighting—the way she was sure Mariah and Rei had.

Whirling her head, and body around, beneath him, she spat the phlegm that had built up in her throat at him, landing it in the center of his face. His face tensed, he shut his eyes, as the spit made contact.

"I chose neither." Hiromi shrieked and then proceeded to shove him away, and stand weakly from the ground. Her wounds seemed to grow more painful as she stood, and began to run again. They stung like a bee, and burned like the flames of Hell.

A heavy weight encircled her right ankle, looking down while running, Hiromi could see that he had wrapped his tan plump hands around her ankle, while she was in midstep—just in time, as she fell to the ground. Her chin thumped into the ground, snapping her neck back. A bitter taste—not blood, rather something entirely different—climbed up her throat. Her stomach fell erect over a rock, the sharp end dug into her stomach lightly, though not causing her any injury, only making her feel nauseated.

Body being drugged backwards towards the ocean, Hiromi found herself helpless again. She couldn't escape; no matter how hard she tried he always seemed to catch her. Once again, the rough rigid sand bit into her unclothed skin, clawing away at it. The pain seemed like a pinprick compared to her other wounds.

"How many times do I have to tell you, there—is—no—escape!"

Instead of forcing Hiromi to stay on her stomach as he had—he turned her over, laying her head over the oceans body. It took all her strength to stop her head from being devoured by the water.

By her side, he looked at her, his eyes were red again, and his face yet again was endowed in shadows, she could tell he was smiling though; his teeth seemed to glow with the help of the moonlight. "Tell me Hiromi, why do you not take my conceal? You should've just told me what I needed to know and moved on with your life."

Hiromi rolled her eyes. "Yike you would yet me go—ith what I—sheen!" She hissed, having bit more trouble speaking than before. It must've finally kicked in that the right side of her jaw was broken.

He shrugged, tilting his head to the side—his long black tresses sputtering to the right within the force. "Eh, your right, I guess, but if you'd accept my deal, I'll let you go and say I killed you." He offered.

Hiromi raised her brow. For someone so cold-blooded, he sure was hesitant to kill her—coming up with all these deals, so he wouldn't have to, but making it sound as though he was doing her a favor.

"I—I yon't k—know w—w—hat ya want from me," Hiromi took a deep agitated breath, and then continued, restating the before. "I've no 'dea what you p—people yant f—from me." She cried though, in whispery fashion.

He shook his head in disappointment, clicking his tongue repeatedly against the moist roof of his mouth. "Wrong answer Hiromi," He said, placing his palm over her forehead.

A feeling began to well up in the pit of her stomach. Panic, utter panic, it tore through her like venom. He pushed her head backwards, plunging it deep in the water. Her scalp became as tight as a bowstring. Liquids clanged to her face like algae in a swamp, their cold touch made her brain freeze.

"I suggest you change you mind, before you run out of air." He warned.

Taking in a wide amount of water, her body began to convulse. Her automatic shaking caused the man to immediately yank from the water—as to why he pulled her away, Hiromi was unsure.

"Have you changed your mind?" He questioned.

Sucking in the air around her as if it were and drink, Hiromi shook her head. "No—" Before she could finish, he placed her back under the water for another round.

The water had found it's way through all the holes of her body, including her ears, blocking her hearing, but she could've sworn she heard footfalls coming up behind the man. Someone had found them, if they would turn a blind eye to him drowning her, Hiromi wasn't sure.

Everything was beginning to reform in black haze. Her lungs were filling with a milestone of water. Hiromi could feel herself slowly losing her hold in this world, but strangely enough that panic that had once coursed through her veins no longer existed. It was strange all right; it was as if she didn't care anymore. All she had was gone; all she lived for had been savagely taken away. Why should I care? If I were to drown then they would leave me alone, the thought of being in peace made her smile, I just want to be alone.

His hands pressing her forehead abruptly were drawn away, as if being pulled back. Her consciousness began to drift, Hiromi couldn't stay awake any longer the intake of water into her system had been too great. Though as she passed she could hear a voice. It was soft yet firm, shadowed, but angelic. It confused her but his words were ones she could never forget for they were to unique.

"You will do yourself well by letting the young girl go free, and turn away before my shadow overlays you, you would." The way he spoke was mystifyingly deadly and at the same time, it was so…innocent.

Everything became so cold, as those words hung in the balance between the waking world and the unconscious. The water roughing up against her skin—consuming her body—vanished from touch, Hiromi could no longer feel it. The constant rush of water into her system, the way its smooth yet harsh texture tore at her insides, everything: the pain, enmeshed fret, panic, terror, the force of the man pushing her into the water, it all faded to black.

Lifeless black, a void of emptiness.

To be continued.

Prologue: Completed.

10-15-04

What did you think? Toss it, keep it? Any constructive criticism? Any inconsistencies?

Are you confused? The next chapter should shed some light on what this story is about.

I will start to introduce Kai, and Tyson, and the others through the next chapters, they should appear shortly.

I can't decided who should be with Hiromi/Hilary. Kai or Tyson. So I did a love triangle, and nearing the end, I'll see who made the better couple throughout the story, and put them together.

One more thing. This story won't be updated quickly, so don't expect it. I have a lot of other stories needing to be finished first. I will try to update this one monthly, or every two weeks. I have a life, I have school, just allow me some time, and I'll get to updating this.

Bye.