Hello! Over 850! Seriously! I'm so close to 1000! This is so great, really, really great! Thank you so much!
I know Voltaire is evil! I know his innocent act is pretty lame, but it's his last chance to get some relief from being found guilty for everything else, if he is found innocent then some of his punishment will be less severe and he may still get Kai in his clutches, so he might as well try!
And yes, I do read Harry Potter, but I haven't for a while! The thought never occurred to me they were similar in that bit! Kai may yet turn into his beast self, you must wait and find out...........
And another huge chapter! (Two big ones for this chapter, yay!) I'm pretty sure many other reviews aren't as big! I would give you a plaque but you're so far away! I'm gonna be a character, I'm gonna be a character! And thank you for thinking of me as a best friend! Brought a lump to my throat! I feel the same way, and would definatly like to meet you too! And it's good you like the name ; )
Id love to have a book with my poems in, but I need a few more yet! Do they seem all very similar to you guys? They do me and I don't think that's a good thing, do you think I need more variation in them? No mushy stuff though, in case it wasn't obvious, I'm an angst girl through and through!
Linkin Park rule! Rock on! And stop trying to guess! Please!
Another long chappie! Wahoo! I love the short ones too, but a big ones a nice surprise and a good read! Thank you for replying about Kai/Tad romance, its definatly something to think about! None of you should be worried about it being all mushy and romantic, I'm an angst writer! It'll be more confusion and all the other wonderful things I love! And as the God of Death I can persuade the God of the Dead to let you review in hell, but it isn't your time yet! Tadashi's in the courtroom, but she's in the public section, so she can't get involved in the actual trial. I'm sure you'll find somewhere for your poems, there's plenty of websites you can try! Try , or , I've got poems on both.
Good luck at uni too!
And thank you for the compliments! It's so good to know I'm good at my passion!
The chapter wasn't any shorter then the others, I don't think so anyway! You will have to wait to see what the secret is and the sequel! Hehe, I'm so nasty keeping it from you.
I'll try and update more then twice a month for everyone!
Who was recommending me? Wow!
I put so much into developing Kai that he really is real in my head! Onwards, to the story!
Kai was battling with emotions he shouldn't have been feeling when he was in this frame of mind, but they were there anyway, pulsing in his head as his heart beat blood into the grey matter. They opened his senses, pouring into him in a rushing torrent. He had a sneaking suspicion the phoenixes had something to do with it, yet they remained almost meekly at the back of his mind. They were never meek. Kai mentally glared at them before turning his attention back to the trial, his battle.
Voltaire had finished being questioned, his own lawyer saying the proof was all they needed. The proof meant for Voltaire's downfall could be used for his innocence! What if they believed the scars were from Kai's own hand? If the stories were made up? Kai felt light headed at that prospect, it couldn't happen! He shook his head to listen to what the brash lawyer continued to say.
"As you can see, the boy was obviously traumatised, and through no fault of his own developed some very typical behavioural faults. My client is only guilty of not noticing the problems sooner. With gentle guidance I'm sure the child will soon be on the right track. My client has all the necessary requirements to make sure his grandson gets the help he needs. Just as he loved his late son, he loves his grandson, and deeply regrets it letting the problems get this far."
With the boldness to even smile icily at Kai at the end of that speech, he sat down at the table with Voltaire. Both had played their parts well, and both had reason to be smug. Kai could hear the jury muttering to each other. He had to stop them from believing the reptile he had for family.
The judge broke his 'bring Voltaire down rage'.
"since witnesses will play no part in this trial, "Kai saw the frown on his lawyers faces, "as none came forward or could be found, we will now have a half hour break before proceeding. You may go." With one final bang of her hammer, she gave a strange look in Kai's direction and walked out in a flurry of night black robes. People began standing and leaving.
"Kai?" the blue haired teen looked up to see a hand reached down at him from a smiling Rowan. He stood up and let her guide him out of the court room by hands on his shoulders. Though the contact sickened him, he was too dazed at the trial so far to bother even acknowledge the feeling in the pit of his stomach. Battle plans spread before his mind, one had to work!
He was sat down and familiar faces moved into his vision.
"Kai! That was brutal in there!" said Max, who had been surprisingly quiet for the past couple of days. Kai nodded vaguely to show he had been listening.
Seko pulled Kai's shoulders to face him in a swift movement. "Kai, with no witnesses your up next, are you ok? We can ask the trial postponed if you want."
Kai suddenly focused, postponed? Delay all this? This is what he had been preparing for! He shrugged the mans hands off.
"I won't back down now" he growled, "I can beat him!"
He saw but ignored the worried looks everyone passed between each other. He had to concentrate to find something they could see was Voltaire's doing! Then it hit him, maybe the bitbeasts could be of use here.
The break passed slowly, and Kai was eager to finish this, to feel relief and freedom from Voltaire. He wished he could feel as confident as the mask he had on showed, but he wasn't sure this would work. They entered the room again at a policeman's request and separated into the groups as before. Now it was Kai's turn, and he was ready to play the game.
The did the formalities again, and Kai was called up by Voltaire's lawyer to take the stand. He stared down at the bible as he was asked to tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
"I'm not a Christian" he announced. The courtroom buzzed before being told to be silent by the judge. She leaned down to him.
"Just swear on the bible, it's how it goes" she whispered to him.
"I know how things go, and I still refuse to swear on the book of a religion I'm not part of, that's an oath with no meaning." He knew he was making it harder on himself but he wasn't going to start losing himself to suit them. He strongly felt this and wasn't about to cave in now.
The judge rolled her hand, "fine, lets do this your way, proceed."
Voltaire's representative sauntered up to the dock and looked Kai up and down. He sneered and then smiled to the rest of the room.
"So then young man, you're here today to try and get your grandfather into trouble. Why would you go and do that?"
Kai remained calm in the face of the monster. "Don't patronize me, I'm more intelligent then you think. And it seems my grandfather has gotten 'into trouble' without me so I hear from the other trials." He didn't know how he was staying so outwardly calm, he was a storm inside.
The man looked Kai up and down again, a different look in his eyes. 'Good' thought Kai, now he sees me more of an opponent then originally thought'.
"Why don't you tell the courtroom the truth about your wounds? We both know your grandfather wasn't involved."
"Oh he was. He didn't make them; he ordered them, from the lashes on my back, to the stab wounds on my torso. The same with the tattoos on my face. He was there for most of it. He ordered the rape too, though he didn't stay for that." There, he had said rape. Now it really began.
"Ah yes, the rape. Was it really rape? As I hear it you were close to your teacher. Maybe you invited him more then you knew?"
Kai glared at the man, hatred seeping into his deep mahogany eyes. "My rape had nothing to do with normal relationships and misunderstandings. Boris Balkov was sick, my rapes, yes, more then one. My rapes were punishments for when I did something wrong." He turned towards the jury. "You've read what I wrote, how things were at that abbey for me and others there. I wasn't the only one raped, I was just the favourite."
The man smiled at him, and it dripped in honeyed sarcasm. "And why were you the 'favourite'? Because of your grandfather being the 'boss'?"
"You talk of things you don't understand, so stop talking like I'm the child. I was the 'favourite' because he liked the way I looked, liked bringing me down. He wanted to hurt me because he got off on it! The guy was sick, like you, like him!" Kai stated as he pointed at his grandfather at the end of the speech. He knew he was losing his temper, and maybe that would help.
"Ok, ok" the lawyer said, raising his hands in submission, "now let's talk about these experiments you were allegedly put through. Surely you don't expect anyone to believe the rather fanciful story of you being taken so you could be fused with imaginary monsters?"
Now Kai was angry. How dare this man presume he knew things he didn't! He spoke through gritted teeth. "You know nothing! My parents died at his hands, and I can't prove it! They died so he could have me, coz he needed me! Those imaginary monsters are real; they are not a child's fantasy put in a toy! There are things you cannot begin to understand! Those 'monsters' are spirits and I have been fused with two, why? Because I was an able body to fuse them with! I'm made as a walking weapon, only one problem, I wasn't brainwashed!" oh he was furious, his back ached for release.
"And how can you prove these spirits exist, hmm? By showing the jury doctored photos?" so he still wanted it cool did he?
Kai gripped the bar that lined the front of the dock at waist height. "you want proof?" at least Voltaire had the intelligence to know what was happening, he leaped up from his seat, reached over the table, a cry of no passed his throat loudly. Kai could feel the skin on his back explode in pain, sweat beaded his face. "I'll give you more proof then you need!" he said hoarsely before throwing his head back and calling on the bitbeasts. And they came.
People in the room cried out, moved backwards away from the teen on trial. No one expected wings to grow from the boys back, seemingly through the black shirt he was wearing. When the boy leaned forward, breathing hard, there seemed to be no danger, he just stood there.
Kai revelled in the feelings the phoenixes gave him. They comforted him now they were part of him. It was like a fire returned when you had been frozen. His wings pulsed with his own heartbeat, read with black tips this time; he obviously needed passion more then power right now. That's what they stood for, light and dark, dawn and dusk, passion and power. Dranzer was his passion, for everything, especially blading, and Black Dranzer was his power. He looked at the man gaping open mouthed in front of him.
"Is this enough proof for you?" he looked around, "for all of you?" he could the white hair that both phoenixes sported sprouting down his back, between his wings. "This is what was done to me; I was fused against my will to destroy so he could rule. Fused with the best friend I have ever had, and with something I finally understood." He noticed his hands on the bar were wet; he hadn't become aware of the tears running down his face till now. Looking up with dark fire in his eyes, he glared at Voltaire. "Admit it old man, there's no way you can win!"
And Voltaire knew that as the truth. He stared at what he had made one last time before begging to thin air that he had lied, it wasn't supposed to have been like this! He had been so close! The judge recovered enough to order Voltaire removed from the room. He was dragged, limp in the hands as he babbled on. She faced the jury, ignoring Kai, and told them in a shaky voice that they could make their decision. Then she hurriedly left the room, not even bothering with the formalities she was so keen to enforce before.
Kai watched it all with a tear stained face. He wiped the moisture away with the sleeve of his shirt, and walked towards is friends. They weren't scared by his wings, and they gave the things he sought, understanding and warmth. All that was left was the result, had it been enough?
The phoenix
A sharp wind cuts through me
So numb I don't feel the pain
Frozen hands cannot stop the bleeding
Walls of a glacier reflect my shame
Molten ice and frozen flame
Combine to create my soul
Such a mix should not exist
I am shunted back into the cold
There is no acceptance
Only hate, fear, sympathy
As they chose to not understand
As they ignore what they see
I do not deserve your contempt
No threats have I made to you
Your pity I refuse to embrace
I seek only words meant and true
You see me as a chimera
An illusion, a phantom, not real
If only you could reach out
Even hands of stone would help to heal
I am no offspring of Echinda
Cerberus is not brethren to me
I have not come from the shadows
The flames of the sun is where I should be
I am the cause of day and night
An old myth no longer held
Yet I am as real as a flame
Fervour created as I weld
There are two sides to everything
Yet nothing is black and white
My wings folded on my back
Show my darkness and my light
Red and black are the contrast
I am the phoenix, now reborn
I am the passion and power
Driving your spirit as I had sworn
You do not have to believe me
I know what I have to achieve
And though I was made from the fire
From the shadows I will weave