Hello again. Sorry for the delay. I had a bit of writer's block. Originally, Kitsune no Kami and I had this story and the one after it written down in a notebook that we passed back and forth over the school year, but I've changed a lot of the story line, so I wasn't sure how to continue. But I think I've got it now. I've kept you in suspense enough, so...ON WITH THE FIC!!! (Usually, I put some witty remark about my terminated smiley here, but I'm saving all those for my Prisoners fic, so...yeah.)
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It had taken nearly half an hour to get the information they wanted out of the demon who had fallen victim to his own sleeping gas. Yusuke and Kuwabara had arrived on the scene shortly after the demon came to, and Hiei and Akira began questioning him. The questioning, however, consisted more of punches and threats then actual asking and answering of questions. Eventually, though, they did manage to find out where Nightmare's current base was.
Nightmare, they learned, had set up its base of operations in an old, burnt out building on the edge of town. After relaying the information to Botan via Communication Mirror, they learned that the building was once a hospital that had experienced a bad fire. After the fire, a big business tycoon bought the building from the city and it appeared to have remained abandoned ever since. Appearances, however, can be deceiving.
Now, Yusuke, Kuwabara, Hiei, Akira, and Kurama were running at top speed for the building, praying that the delay they experienced while questioning the demon wouldn't make them too late. Well, to be fair, only Yusuke, Kurama, and Kuwabara were running. Akira and Hiei seemed to be engaged in a race ahead of the others; Akira soaring through the air like a jet and Hiei close behind, if not tied with her, jumping from branches and street lights and anything else around. The others had been impressed by Akira's flying skills. They had all wondered what she could do, but none of them thought it would have anything to do with wind. They hadn't encountered a friendly windmaster since Jin, but then, maybe 'friendly' didn't describe Akira very well after all.
It wasn't long before a building came into view between the trees. Akira landed first, followed a split second later by Hiei, who glared at the girl that had beaten him while she smiled back. Yusuke and the others were soon in the clearing as well.
"Is this it?" Yusuke asked.
"Yes, this is it," Akira confirmed. They all stared up at the building. It was dark and the outside was blackened, obvious signs that a fire had taken place. Despite this, most of the building appeared intact. The large doors were unguarded, a fact that made them all feel wary and cautious. The rain had cleared up, but the sky was still dark and gloomy. Hiei slowly opened one of the doors as lighting cracked overhead. There was a soft glow of light from inside and they all stepped into it, letting the door close behind them.
Kurama tightened his fists as that guilty feeling returned once again. He strained to see into the dimly lit passage they were standing in, all the wile hoping silently that they weren't too late. The hallway was long, so long in fact that they couldn't see the end. They began to walk down the hallway, keeping a sharp eye out for guards. They passed several doors, and they paused to glance in the small window set in each of them, but they found no sign of Kairi or Sazume. Once, a demon in doctor's garb walked out of a door ahead of them, stopping when he spotted them. But Hiei had bolted into action and killed the demon before it could utter a sound, and they continued with their search.
Suddenly, a few doors after the demon Hiei had killed, Kuwabara shivered and gave a small yelp.
"Quiet!" Akira hissed, glancing down the hall to make sure no one had heard.
Kuwabara had put both hands over his mouth once he had realized his mistake in uttering a sound. Now he put them down.
"Sorry," he whispered. "It's just that, well, people died in this fire, you know. I've had the tickle feeling ever since we came in here and just then, I think a ghost must have passed through me or something."
"Fine, but be quiet about it," Akira said quietly, rolling her eyes and turning around. But, as she was about to start walking again, she turned back to Kuwabara with a raised eyebrow.
"The 'tickle feeling?'" she asked, but before he could answer, she shook her head and turned around again, muttering "Never mind. Don't answer that."
They continued down the hall and when they reached what Akira guessed to be the halfway point, they began to hear voices. Following the sound, they came to a door that, for once, did not lead to an empty room. Peering though the window, they could see Sazume strapped to a metal table, unconscious but still moaning now and then. Nearby, two demons in doctor's clothes were arguing with one another. Kuwabara gritted his teeth and growled, reaching for the doorknob. Akira put out a hand, grabbing his wrist to stop him.
"Wait," she whispered, "listen to what they're saying." They all fell silent, concentrating on the conversation the demons were having.
"I'm not sure, it's too early to tell," one of them was saying.
"Well, at least there's no Genetic Fusion involved in this case. If she can just hold on, she'll be fine," the second one replied.
"Yes, but as I just said, I'm not sure if she can. We have no data on this, we don't know what to expect," the first one said.
"Oh, all you every worry about is data this and data that! Live a little!" the second one argued.
"I still think we should have stuck with the usual procedure, changing the variables could only make it harder to understand how this works!" the first one yelled.
"The usual procedures! Open your eyes, will ya?! Your precious usual procedures have killed every test subject since 1919! Face it, it's time for a change!" the second one countered. Akira had apparently heard enough, because she flung open the door and stepped into the room.
"Hello boys. Remember me?" she asked in a menacing voice. As she spoke, the long, black leather glove running along her right arm morphed into a long, black katana. She blurred from view and reappeared behind the two demons who had been arguing a moment before. She gave her newly-formed sword a quick slice and both their heads rolled to the floor, the bodies teetering and then falling to the ground. She smiled slightly and the black katana became a glove once more.
Akira bent and retrieved a ring of keys from the belt of one of the demon's fallen bodies. After a few tries, she found the right key to unlock Sazume's binds and freed the moaning, shivering girl. Kurama and Kuwabara shifted uncomfortably, not liking the sight they now beheld of the girl who had just yesterday been laughing in the park with them. Kurama approached the table and gently placed a hand on her sweating forehead. He almost immediately pulled his hand back.
"Her temperature...it must be 120, at least," he muttered in astonishment, wondering why it hadn't killed her.
"That's relatively normal for this stage in the fusion, even more so for her," Akira said from behind them. They turned to see her staring up at a computer screen that was displaying all of Sazume's data.
"What do you mean?" Kurama asked.
"Well, most fusions are done with animal spirits. For some reason, they're more compatible with humans. Which," she added, side glancing at Kurama, "might explain how you pulled off your little stunt to cheat death."
"What's different about Sazume?" Yusuke asked. Akira sighed and turned back to the monitor.
"It seems," she said, "that Sazume was fused with a fire demon, not an animal spirit. That may explain the temperature and how she can stand it. I'm afraid that there isn't much we can do for her now. Whether she lives or dies in entirely up to her. One of you should take her some place safe."
"I'll take her to Genkai's," Yusuke volunteered, gently picking up Sazume's limp body. She moaned, but did not wake up. They followed Yusuke out into the hall, watching him until he disappeared into the darkness and even continuing to linger in the dark passageway until they saw the faint light that signaled that the door had been opened. Once they had seen the light disappear as the door closed, they continued down the hall in search of Kairi.
They checked every door, as they had done before. Empty. Every room, empty. They could see the end of the hallway now and were beginning to worry. What if Kairi had died and they had destroyed her body? What if she had survived and been taken somewhere else. What ifs ran through everyone's head, especially Kurama's. There weren't many rooms left and he was beginning to get scared. What would he do if something had happened and they didn't find her? He wasn't sure.
Then, when he had about given up all hope, Kurama saw her through the window of a doorway. He threw open the door and called to the others, who followed him inside. Kairi was lying on the table, locked to it in the same way that Sazume had been. Akira had kept the ring of keys, and she soon had the binds unlocked and removed. Kairi did not look like she was in good shape. Her breathing was ragged and shallow, much more labored then Sazume's had been, and she had bandages wrapped around her hands. Two black cat ears were perched on top of her head, blood matting the hair around them down. And she had a back tail as well, hanging limply off the side of the table.
"Kairi..." Kurama whispered, but it was Kuwabara that rushed to her side, calling out his friend's name. Kurama placed his hand on Kairi's forehead as he had done with Sazume, and was relieved to find that she had a fever, but it wasn't anywhere near as life-threatening as Sazume's had been. Kairi moaned slightly at his touch, her limp tail giving a feeble twitch.
"This isn't good..." Akira mumbled from behind them. She was once again viewing the monitor.
"What?" Kurama asked, hard put to mask the fear in his voice.
"Nothing," Akira said, shaking her head and turning the computer off. "It's nothing we can do anything about, in any case. We need to get her out of here, take her to this 'Genkai's' place." Kurama nodded and picked Kairi up, careful to be as gentle as possible. She moaned again, but did nothing else. As they picked their way back through the building and headed for Genkai's, they could do nothing but hope that Kairi would be alright.
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It had taken nearly half an hour to get the information they wanted out of the demon who had fallen victim to his own sleeping gas. Yusuke and Kuwabara had arrived on the scene shortly after the demon came to, and Hiei and Akira began questioning him. The questioning, however, consisted more of punches and threats then actual asking and answering of questions. Eventually, though, they did manage to find out where Nightmare's current base was.
Nightmare, they learned, had set up its base of operations in an old, burnt out building on the edge of town. After relaying the information to Botan via Communication Mirror, they learned that the building was once a hospital that had experienced a bad fire. After the fire, a big business tycoon bought the building from the city and it appeared to have remained abandoned ever since. Appearances, however, can be deceiving.
Now, Yusuke, Kuwabara, Hiei, Akira, and Kurama were running at top speed for the building, praying that the delay they experienced while questioning the demon wouldn't make them too late. Well, to be fair, only Yusuke, Kurama, and Kuwabara were running. Akira and Hiei seemed to be engaged in a race ahead of the others; Akira soaring through the air like a jet and Hiei close behind, if not tied with her, jumping from branches and street lights and anything else around. The others had been impressed by Akira's flying skills. They had all wondered what she could do, but none of them thought it would have anything to do with wind. They hadn't encountered a friendly windmaster since Jin, but then, maybe 'friendly' didn't describe Akira very well after all.
It wasn't long before a building came into view between the trees. Akira landed first, followed a split second later by Hiei, who glared at the girl that had beaten him while she smiled back. Yusuke and the others were soon in the clearing as well.
"Is this it?" Yusuke asked.
"Yes, this is it," Akira confirmed. They all stared up at the building. It was dark and the outside was blackened, obvious signs that a fire had taken place. Despite this, most of the building appeared intact. The large doors were unguarded, a fact that made them all feel wary and cautious. The rain had cleared up, but the sky was still dark and gloomy. Hiei slowly opened one of the doors as lighting cracked overhead. There was a soft glow of light from inside and they all stepped into it, letting the door close behind them.
Kurama tightened his fists as that guilty feeling returned once again. He strained to see into the dimly lit passage they were standing in, all the wile hoping silently that they weren't too late. The hallway was long, so long in fact that they couldn't see the end. They began to walk down the hallway, keeping a sharp eye out for guards. They passed several doors, and they paused to glance in the small window set in each of them, but they found no sign of Kairi or Sazume. Once, a demon in doctor's garb walked out of a door ahead of them, stopping when he spotted them. But Hiei had bolted into action and killed the demon before it could utter a sound, and they continued with their search.
Suddenly, a few doors after the demon Hiei had killed, Kuwabara shivered and gave a small yelp.
"Quiet!" Akira hissed, glancing down the hall to make sure no one had heard.
Kuwabara had put both hands over his mouth once he had realized his mistake in uttering a sound. Now he put them down.
"Sorry," he whispered. "It's just that, well, people died in this fire, you know. I've had the tickle feeling ever since we came in here and just then, I think a ghost must have passed through me or something."
"Fine, but be quiet about it," Akira said quietly, rolling her eyes and turning around. But, as she was about to start walking again, she turned back to Kuwabara with a raised eyebrow.
"The 'tickle feeling?'" she asked, but before he could answer, she shook her head and turned around again, muttering "Never mind. Don't answer that."
They continued down the hall and when they reached what Akira guessed to be the halfway point, they began to hear voices. Following the sound, they came to a door that, for once, did not lead to an empty room. Peering though the window, they could see Sazume strapped to a metal table, unconscious but still moaning now and then. Nearby, two demons in doctor's clothes were arguing with one another. Kuwabara gritted his teeth and growled, reaching for the doorknob. Akira put out a hand, grabbing his wrist to stop him.
"Wait," she whispered, "listen to what they're saying." They all fell silent, concentrating on the conversation the demons were having.
"I'm not sure, it's too early to tell," one of them was saying.
"Well, at least there's no Genetic Fusion involved in this case. If she can just hold on, she'll be fine," the second one replied.
"Yes, but as I just said, I'm not sure if she can. We have no data on this, we don't know what to expect," the first one said.
"Oh, all you every worry about is data this and data that! Live a little!" the second one argued.
"I still think we should have stuck with the usual procedure, changing the variables could only make it harder to understand how this works!" the first one yelled.
"The usual procedures! Open your eyes, will ya?! Your precious usual procedures have killed every test subject since 1919! Face it, it's time for a change!" the second one countered. Akira had apparently heard enough, because she flung open the door and stepped into the room.
"Hello boys. Remember me?" she asked in a menacing voice. As she spoke, the long, black leather glove running along her right arm morphed into a long, black katana. She blurred from view and reappeared behind the two demons who had been arguing a moment before. She gave her newly-formed sword a quick slice and both their heads rolled to the floor, the bodies teetering and then falling to the ground. She smiled slightly and the black katana became a glove once more.
Akira bent and retrieved a ring of keys from the belt of one of the demon's fallen bodies. After a few tries, she found the right key to unlock Sazume's binds and freed the moaning, shivering girl. Kurama and Kuwabara shifted uncomfortably, not liking the sight they now beheld of the girl who had just yesterday been laughing in the park with them. Kurama approached the table and gently placed a hand on her sweating forehead. He almost immediately pulled his hand back.
"Her temperature...it must be 120, at least," he muttered in astonishment, wondering why it hadn't killed her.
"That's relatively normal for this stage in the fusion, even more so for her," Akira said from behind them. They turned to see her staring up at a computer screen that was displaying all of Sazume's data.
"What do you mean?" Kurama asked.
"Well, most fusions are done with animal spirits. For some reason, they're more compatible with humans. Which," she added, side glancing at Kurama, "might explain how you pulled off your little stunt to cheat death."
"What's different about Sazume?" Yusuke asked. Akira sighed and turned back to the monitor.
"It seems," she said, "that Sazume was fused with a fire demon, not an animal spirit. That may explain the temperature and how she can stand it. I'm afraid that there isn't much we can do for her now. Whether she lives or dies in entirely up to her. One of you should take her some place safe."
"I'll take her to Genkai's," Yusuke volunteered, gently picking up Sazume's limp body. She moaned, but did not wake up. They followed Yusuke out into the hall, watching him until he disappeared into the darkness and even continuing to linger in the dark passageway until they saw the faint light that signaled that the door had been opened. Once they had seen the light disappear as the door closed, they continued down the hall in search of Kairi.
They checked every door, as they had done before. Empty. Every room, empty. They could see the end of the hallway now and were beginning to worry. What if Kairi had died and they had destroyed her body? What if she had survived and been taken somewhere else. What ifs ran through everyone's head, especially Kurama's. There weren't many rooms left and he was beginning to get scared. What would he do if something had happened and they didn't find her? He wasn't sure.
Then, when he had about given up all hope, Kurama saw her through the window of a doorway. He threw open the door and called to the others, who followed him inside. Kairi was lying on the table, locked to it in the same way that Sazume had been. Akira had kept the ring of keys, and she soon had the binds unlocked and removed. Kairi did not look like she was in good shape. Her breathing was ragged and shallow, much more labored then Sazume's had been, and she had bandages wrapped around her hands. Two black cat ears were perched on top of her head, blood matting the hair around them down. And she had a back tail as well, hanging limply off the side of the table.
"Kairi..." Kurama whispered, but it was Kuwabara that rushed to her side, calling out his friend's name. Kurama placed his hand on Kairi's forehead as he had done with Sazume, and was relieved to find that she had a fever, but it wasn't anywhere near as life-threatening as Sazume's had been. Kairi moaned slightly at his touch, her limp tail giving a feeble twitch.
"This isn't good..." Akira mumbled from behind them. She was once again viewing the monitor.
"What?" Kurama asked, hard put to mask the fear in his voice.
"Nothing," Akira said, shaking her head and turning the computer off. "It's nothing we can do anything about, in any case. We need to get her out of here, take her to this 'Genkai's' place." Kurama nodded and picked Kairi up, careful to be as gentle as possible. She moaned again, but did nothing else. As they picked their way back through the building and headed for Genkai's, they could do nothing but hope that Kairi would be alright.