Chapter 27: The Messenger
Though as it seems the heavens and hell reside closely around the Earth; their realms stretch far beyond this world's galaxy. Reaching out to other planets in need and punishing those that are wicked. However, there is one planet in this far and vast universe that both the gods and demons have turned a cold shoulder… the warring planet, it's name scratched out of heaven and hell's records, in hope's that it would be long forgotten… until the day comes… when she would arrive.
A battle worn soldier slowly marched through the dilapidated streets of his once beautiful city. The only building that seemed unaffected by years of war and bloodshed was the temple to the goddess. Tall and heavy ornate doors lined in silver and gold were forced open with his strong hands, and his tattered ears were met with the melancholy prayers of his people. Some with their hands outstretched to the massive statue that stood before them. Her gaze went beyond them, as if she could not even hear a single word they cried out, this angered the soldier to the very core of his heart. His icy blue eyes turned away from her and met silver eyes, gleaming out from the shadows of the world outside this holy place.
"You know, they can pray and cry all they want." The eyes belonged to a form that slowly stepped towards him. "But she's never going to come, she probably doesn't even exist."
The soldier's teeth grit and he met his glare with the figure. It was a man, with long black hair, his bangs drifting on the red markings of a demon that he wore on his face. He gave a toothy grin at the soldier's eyes as his menacing black coat swayed in the musky wind.
"SHE WILL COME!" The soldier barked. "A thousand years have passed since Kami-sama foresaw her arrival, and the time has come!" He pointed at the demon angrily. "And YOU! You are the messenger that will bring her! That is why you are he-" He was cut silent by those silver eyes as they narrowed angrily on him.
"You will call me Kira, and if you show anymore disrespect towards me by pointing and yelling commands at me like some mutt again…" a handle rose up from the shadows, he clasped onto it with a claw-armored hand and drew out a massive blade which he resided by the flat side on his shoulder. "…You'll find yourself missing an arm."
Satisfied with making a point, Kira turned his back to the soldier. "Besides, I don't work for free…"
The soldier was alarmed, he looked from side to side hastily as the shadows began to wrap around Kira's ankles, he was going to disappear just as he had appeared earlier that day. "WAIT!"
Kira glanced back at him impatiently.
"Bring the goddess… and I'll… I'll give you…" His palms were sweating as he tried to force himself into his sacrifice.
"Your soul?" The half demon grinned toothily.
The soldier looked down with a single nod.
"Well then, we have a deal!" Kira walked back over to the soldier and held out his menacingly armored right hand. "Sowilo."
He hated hearing the demon possessively utter his name. Slowly he held out his left hand, and was stunned when Kira ceased it within his, sending a cold chill through his body when he felt as though his life was torn from him.
"It is done." Kira let his hand go. "Now don't go too far, I'll be back with your goddess…." He cackled and vanished into the statue's shadow.
Sowilo stood there with his left hand still out, and a blank expression on his face. "Finally…"
Meanwhile at Nekomi High…
"Okay class; open to page three ninety-two and work exercises A through D." Mrs. Tetsuya announced, and was swiftly met with the collective groan of her class. "Hey now, the school board requires me to make you work every once in a while, so bare with me okay?" She laughed.
"Haii…" The class agreed, reluctantly.
Hope and Nauthiz wrote sentences and answers like greased lightning then slammed their books shut, shooting each other rivaling glares as Akina quickly hit a button on her stop watch.
"And Nauthiz finishes one milli-second before Hope! Keeping his title as English Champion!" Akina announced, followed by the applause of all the Nauthiz fan girls.
"Of course." Hope accepted her defeat peacefully and shook Nauthiz's hand. Usually she was more of a challenge to him, but she fell in competition when her competitor had read over the English textbook thirty eight times compared to her mere twenty five times. "Okay now, let's help Akina with her work."
"Hey now! Don't worry about me! I can-" she pointed to a word. "What's this mean?"
Nauthiz and Hope sweat dropped and went to her aid.
Mrs. Tetsuya smiled at the trio as she tapped her grading pen on her desk, but suddenly. "Hmm?" She looked up, past her class.
Hope and Nauthiz looked up a little after she had. They could feel someone's presence, two!
"Excuse me class!" Mrs. Tetsuya leapt out of her chair and dashed out the door. The class murmured in confusion. "What was that all about?" Akina asked only to receive no answer.
In the boys' restroom from the shadow of a stall door, Kira's armored hand appeared followed by the rest of his body. "What the!?" He looked around in disgust then reached his hand back into the shadows. "Okay, now this could be just me thinking, but isn't a BOYS restroom the last place you'd look for a goddess!?" He withdrew his hand from the shadows, escorting out a woman made clearly for seducing. Her hair was black but seemed highlighted in red and her eyes were elegantly yellow. Of course, these qualities were placed aside when her demon wings and tail appeared. "She's probably somewhere in this building…" She sighed and looked at him disappointingly. "Kira, I don't know what compelled you to go to that planet, but I'd like you to know it put an end to our five year honeymoon."
Kira only sighed and grinned. "I don't know why either, something about that planet just made the demon in me take complete control, I was able to be… extremely evil!" He lavished on the memory then looked back to his upset wife. "Um…sorry Aura."
She smiled then looked over at the stall door. Her eyes squinted then she pointed to one of the various scratched insults that were on it. "Did you write that baby?"
Kira grimaced. "Anything but baby…"
"Honey? Sugar? Dear? Tiger?" She grinned teasingly.
"I'm not Peter Parker… now what are you pointing at?" He narrowed his glare on the door too.
"There." She pointed again.
"There?"
"No, there."
"There?"
"No! There!"
"There!?"
"NO! THERE!"
"THERE!?"
"YES! YES! THERE! RIGHT THERE!!"
Suddenly the boys' room door slammed open, four wide eyed boys with water falling nosebleeds ran in and were completely disappointed.
Kira grimaced at them. "Preps burn in hell, yes, I did write that Aura, because this was one of my old High schools…"
"Oh…" Aura had made her tail and wings vanish before the boys could see them, but even still she was slightly uncomfortable with how they were staring at her, especially because it triggered their nosebleeds to start all over again.
Kira was irritated until he glared down at their feet, a firey glare.
"Hey man! Whose da… YEEOOW!!" All four started to dance around wildly and ran out the door way.
"What did you do to them?" Aura asked.
"The most severe case of athlete's foot in the universe." He grinned as Aura hugged onto his arm gratefully. "And fire ants in their pants. This proves my theory, most of the guys at Nekomi High were not only extremely perverted but they were also idiots beyond compare. You'd think they'd stay in the bathroom to check why the hell their legs and feet were on fire?" he laughed at the simplicity of it all.
Aura grinned in a pleased way. "Aah, I love this side of you sometimes!"
"Let's keep focused." Kira interrupted. "We have to find that goddess and get out of here soon, bad memories here."
"Oka~ay, where is she though?" Aura looked around, until she heard the screech of high heels on tile. "What was that?" She was answered by the appearance of a navy haired woman when she jumped down the staircase and landed on the floor. Her eyeglasses flickered when she looked up at them, enhancing the teary build up around her eyes.
"Huh…" Kira stared blankly as she flung her arms out and with speed that shocked the two demons she dashed down the hall and glomped onto him. "GAAGGGH!!"
"KIRA!! AURA!! It's been so long! How've you been?" Mrs. Tetsuya exclaimed happily.
Aura was completely baffled, whereas Kira was trying to keep his eyes from bulging out of his face from the massive pressure around him. "Um…" Aura glanced between Mrs. Tetsuya and Kira nervously. "Do we… know you?"
"What? Aura what are you… ah." Her eyes widened in a way that looked like she had realized she'd done something wrong. Quickly she released Kira's airless form and let it drop to the floor like a piece of paper. "I'm So sorry, I mistook you two for some other people I know, ehe… bye!" she waved and slid away from them, laughing nervously and waving her hand until she vanished.
Aura raised her brow then knelt down next to Kira as he began to inflate like a balloon. "She mistook us for two who not only look like us but have the same name as well?" Aura asked then grinned down at him devilishly. "Need some help?"
"HUAAAAAH!!" Kira's form took back its normal shape. "Wish you'd offered sooner." He grinned as he got to his feet. "Anyway, let's follow her. She may know who we're looking for."
"Right… ERK!!" Aura's eyes nearly bulged out of her head just as Kira's had when Mrs. Tetsuya glomped him.
"What now?" He groaned.
Aura slowly pointed behind them with an extremely shaky finger.
"Okay, let me see your hall slips." A VERY familiar voice asked.
They both looked back and saw Dr. Bryn with her arms folded across her chest. The demon in disguise grinned at them curiously.
"Hi… HI… Hild-sama!?" Aura yelped.
"Ah-ah!" She shook her index finger at her. "That's Dr. Bryn on school campus, my little succubus."
"Medicine woman." Kira snorted, making Aura laugh though she stomped on her foot in vain to stop.
"Ahem…" She dismissed the insult, for now, something that shocked Kira a little. "So, you're the one?" She asked, looking at him directly.
"The one what?" He asked.
She rolled her eyes. "Regarding that planet, you made a pact with one of the leaders… Sowilo? If I'm correct?"
Kira sighed and held out his right hand, from it emerged a glowing white light.
"Ah, a soul?" Dr.Bryn applauded. "Well then, you have to go through this no matter what don't you?"
"That depends."
With a final deafening clap, she grinned. "Well then, let's not keep your customer waiting. You need to get that goddess so the pact will go through the system." She smiled happily. "OH! How I enjoy it when my demons make fresh new pacts!" She giggled and trotted towards the stairs where the navy haired woman had gone. "This way."
Aura and Kira stared at her with wide eyes. "How much do you want to bet she has a piano up there to roll me over when I go to the staircase?" Kira asked.
"You know better than to pull jokes over on Hild-sama, that's a major reason we took our five year honeymoon." Aura whispered. "Our SECOND honeymoon!"
"Oh…" He nodded. "Well… let's go."
Back in the classroom Mrs. Tetsuya took her seat and sighed. "I can't believe I forgot…" She thought to herself and looked up curiously. "But I wonder what they were doing here in the first place. I mean, Kira hated school…" She then looked over at Hope. "I wonder what she'll think when she hears they showed up?"
"Done!" Akina announced, making the entire class groan in envy. "Ah, I'm the luckiest girl in the world, my best friend, and my boyfriend, both my tutors!" She sobbed happily as she hugged them both.
"Well, you'd be doing okay if you'd just study…" Hope leered at her.
"Study? What is that?" Akina asked then laughed. "Come on Hope, I made it to Senior year by my pure luck, somehow I always manage to pull off four A's and three B's by the end of the semester!"
"That's because I've helped you all these years…" Hope sweat dropped.
"So why study?" Akina asked then rested her chin on her head. "Oh Hope, I've been taking advantage of you haven't I?"
"This must be how Poppa feels…" Hope thought. "He has his Chihiro and I have my Akina…"
"We are very fortunate to be in her presence Akina, remember she is…" Nauthiz whispered.
"Nauthiz, I'm just me." Hope looked down embarrassingly. "Akina, would you let go of my head?"
"Oops! Sorry!"
There was a sudden tap at the door. Mrs. Tetsuya waved to her students to sit down and went to open the door herself. "Yes… AH!?" She jumped back when Dr. Bryn's breasts were protruded out in front of her face.
"Oh dear!" Dr. Bryn exclaimed in embarrasement, though she enjoyed watching all the boys have a sudden nosebleed. "I'm terribly sorry about that."
Mrs. Tetsuya stared at her for a moment and laughed daintily. "Oh, don't worry about it!" She stuck her chest out, she was a little more gifted than the counselor was, making the nosebleeds rain down even harder, and a vein pulse on Dr. Bryn's head. "Now, what brings you Dr. Bryn?"
"Oh, ho ho ho!" She laughed then pointed over at Hope. "Would you join me out in the hall for a moment?"
Hope looked to Mrs. Tetsuya for help, though there was not much she could do. "Hope, you may go." She nodded, with a slightly worried look in her eyes.
Hope got up from her desk. "Coming!"
Kira folded his arms across his chest. What the hell was Hild doing at Nekomi High posing as a staff member? It was almost like a living version of 'The Faculty', especially when he saw Mara down the hall, mopping the floor. "Well I've missed out on a lot…" He thought to himself and looked out the hall window.
Aura looked up at him worriedly then at the classroom door, just as a young shimmering burnette haired girl with sapphire like eyes walked out. "Ah…" Aura's mouth dropped.
Dr. Bryn shut the door behind her and looked over at the two demons.
"Okay Hild, what do you…" Hope noticed the two, when she looked at them, an overjoyed smile spread across her face. "Aunt Aura! Uncle Kira!"
Kira snapped to attention and stared at her in shock.
"Hope!" Aura held her arms out as the excited goddess gave her a hug. "Look at you!! You're all grown up!!" she held her back a moment to take another look at her. "Oh but that uniform won't do! I hope you show off that goddess of a figure you've got now and then!"
Hope nodded embarrassingly. "Aunt Urd makes sure of that…" She looked over at Kira.
"Oh! Sorry for hogging the hugs." Aura let her go.
Instantly, Hope gave him a hug and smiled. "Where have you two been all this time? I missed you so much!"
Her words were impenetrable to Kira's shock, but as Dr. Bryn walked by him, he heard it. "I'll let that little joke you made earlier fly… however…" She glared up at him coldly. "If what Kami said comes to be… then Hope's the only one you'll have to worry about."
"Tch!" Kira flinched. "Why you…"
"Uncle Kira?" Hope stared up at him.
"…." He smiled down at her slightly and patted her on the head like she was a child. "Hey Hope."
She smiled back then asked again about their whereabouts, when they explained, she was in awe and curious as to what sorts of dark magic they had learned while they were gone, but a more important question came to mind. "What brings you to Nekomi?"
"You…" Kira looked to the side.
Aura looked at him in surprise. "Hope!? You mean she's the goddess?" She whispered, they couldn't afford anyone hearing their conversation..
Kira nodded, and looked at Hope. "That is of course… unless there is some other goddess here with extreme power such as yours?"
"Well…" Hope looked down as if in thought, but quickly shook her head. "No, but why do you need me?"
Kira sighed. "Well." He pulled his jacket back slightly so he could put his hands in his pockets. "It's sort of a long story… one I don't care to tell here." He looked her in the eyes. "But…there's this planet… it's been at war since Kami was still crawling around in diapers you could say…" He laughed slightly then explained the rest.
"Well you have to take me with you!" Hope said urgently.
He rubbed the back of his head and groaned. "Well…"
"You took that man's soul, and I can't just stand here knowing that many people are suffering." Hope said and grabbed his hand. "Uncle Kira, please."
He took his hand from her. "You shouldn't have to see a place as evil as that one."
Hope folded her arms and smiled. "I call evil my Uncle."
Kira was a little flattered, but still he refused. "If I'd known it was you I wouldn't have come in the first place, I'm going to give Sowilo a… 'refund'." He turned his back to Hope and began to vanish into his own shadow.
Aura looked at Kira then over at Hope. "Hope, look sweetie, I'm siding with Kira on this… You shouldn't go to that place."
Hope looked down as if in agreement. "…Okay."
Aura sighed in relief, only to be startled when Hope dove into Kira's shadow.
"HOPE!" Aura stared in shock.
Nauthiz jumped out of his desk. "Mrs. Tetsuya, I must leave now!" He stated and ran to the door.
"NAUTHIZ!" Mrs. Tetsuya shouted, in a tone that shocked the class and froze the god completely in his footsteps.
He looked back at her with determination and worry. "I… I beg your pardon."
She smiled slightly. "So today is the day that program is taking place for you and Hope?" She asked. "Okay then, please keep an eye on her for me would you?"
Nauthiz stared at her in a confused manner and nodded. "Excuse me." He bowed to the class shamefully and quickly left the room, but not before giving Akina an apologetic look.
Akina stared on with the rest of the class, but in her heart she felt something was wrong. "What's happening?"
The young god was right on time, he saw Aura's demon tail vanish into the fading shadow of the demi-god that once stood there. "I feel the remnants of Miss Hope's energy!" He thought then quickly threw one of his ear ring charms into the shadow, making it widen enough for him to jump in. "Miss Hope! I am coming!" He called out as he jumped into the shadow, just as it sealed shut.
"KYAAAAAAHH!!" Hope felt like she was falling, until suddenly Kira grabbed her right arm and heaved her up out of the shadows, with a rather irritable look on his face. "Um… ehe…"
Aura looked at them both then back at the shadows. "I think there was someone following us."
"Oh, I feel sorry for the poor soul that stole a free ride from me." Kira threw his arm back into the shadows and dug around until he pulled a startled white haired god out by the front of his uniform.
"NAUTHIZ!" Hope stared in surprise.
"Ki… Kira! The half god, half demon of shadows!?" Nauthiz stared at Kira in what looked like a form of fear.
"No, I'm the boogy man…" Kira said with one hundred percent sarcasm.
"Uncle Kira, please drop him!" Hope asked urgently.
Kira grinned slightly.
"You know what she meant." Aura warned.
"Ooh…" Kira pouted and roughly set the god on his feet.
"Well." Nauthiz straightened out his top then looked at Aura, and at Hope. "Miss Hope, I thought you were being kidnapped."
"No, no." Hope shook her head. "You see…" Suddenly she felt it, a thick wave of hatred, anguish, every word describing such wicked and agonizing emotions. "Ah…NN!" Hope grabbed at the middle of her chest and stumbled forward into Nauthiz's arms.
"What's wrong!?" Aura asked in shock.
Nauthiz looked up at them. "Miss Hope, she's the goddess of revolution as you may already know."
"Yeah, what about it?" Kira asked.
"Well, since the… day her powers were tapped into as goddess of revolution, Miss Hope has developed the abilities of an empath, giving her complete understanding of those around her. She feels their happiness, love, anger, fear… and those emotions become her power…" Nauthiz looked around. "This place is so thick with evil… I will take Miss Hope back to Earth at once."
"No!" Hope grabbed Nauthiz's right arm. "Not yet… I have… I have to help these people, they've suffered for so long. They deserve a peaceful revolution…"
Kira shook his head. "Aura, let's find Sowilo."
"Why?"
He turned around and began to stomp off towards the temple of the goddess. "I'd like nothing more than to cram his damned soul down his throat!" His eyes flashed their silvery color. "I'm not going to let my niece suffer like this!"
Aura smiled, even though Kira wished so much to be evil, he was still a god inside.
"Can you walk Miss Hope?" Nauthiz asked.
She nodded and forced her strength into her legs. "I-I'm sorry Nauthiz." Hope rubbed her forehead and smiled. "I just needed a moment to adjust…"
Nauthiz was a little unsure, after all Hope was almost a rocket scientist at hiding her troubles. "Are you sure that was all? Is there anything I can do to be of help to you?" He asked.
She looked around and began to float up into the sky.
"Miss Hope? You shouldn't…" Nauthiz tried to stop her.
"Its okay for the people of this planet to see me fly." She said then found what she was looking for. "There."
Nauthiz floated up next to her and saw a building, put together with all sorts of supports and types of plaster to hold it together. "What is it?"
"I feel distress and pain coming from there, but also efforts of healing… it must be a hospital. Let's go see if there's anything we can do." She said as she began to fly towards the building.
"Miss Hope, right." Nauthiz nodded in agreement and flew after her.
Meanwhile at the temple of the goddess.
"Soon, years upon years of suffering and hardships will come to an end!" Sowilo declared to the priests, maidens, and all his warrior citizens who were strong enough to battle. "I paid a heavy price, but it was well worth it, for I shall soon see our dream come to be. A place where all the people of our planet, even our enemies, can put aside their pains and sorrows, and join us all in the paradise we have long since been denied!"
"You want a paradise…" A heavy voice growled.
Sowilo looked up just as the temple doors burst open, falling to the ground in bits of timber. Kira stepped on a piece and crushed it into dust beneath his heavy steel toed boots. "Too bad, because I'm ready to serve you another thousand years of hell!"
"Where is the goddess?" Sowilo demanded.
"She's here, but you're in for a big upset if you think she's going to save a bunch of ill hearted people like you." Kira glared at the soldiers coldly.
Aura came to his side and held Sowilo's soul in her hands. "Take it back, your contract with Kira has been nullified."
"What?" Sowilo's eyes widened as his soldiers began to murmur in disapproval. "That can't be so, what difference does it make to you whether the goddess fulfills her duty to my planet or not?"
Kira clenched his fists. "Because, she doesn't deserve to suffer in your place." He looked over at Aura and nodded. She set the soul free and let it fly back into Sowilo's body.
"No!" Sowilo ran from the alter and to the two demons. "You cannot do this! At least permit me to speak with her!"
"I have no further business with you." Kira warned.
"Kira, if Sowilo sees Hope he might understand." Aura asked.
He stopped and was silent for a brief moment. Searching out Hope's waves, he found her among the suffering… however, they swiftly became at ease. "Hmm." He shook his head then looked back at Sowilo. "You want to speak with her? Fine, but get ready to be extremely disappointed."
At the hospital, several nurses, some in bandages themselves, watched in amazement as Hope and Nauthiz went from patient to patient, and healed their wounds and cured their sicknesses. "Try moving your fingers." Nauthiz asked as he finished healing a boy's broken arm.
He looked up at him with tear filled eyes before he scrunched his face up, anticipating the pain as he moved his thumb. "Ah? AH! I can feel my fingers again! My arm doesn't hurt!" he cheered.
Nauthiz nodded with a smile then glanced over at Hope as she finished curing a little girl of her sicknesses.
"Does that feel any better?" Hope asked gently.
The little girl smiled with a nod. "Mm hmm!"
She started to get up but the little girl held her hand. "Are you an angel?"
"Something like that." Hope smiled, this little girl reminded her of Kioshi.
"When I grow up, can I be an angel too?" she asked, and was delighted when Hope gave her a nod.
"Of course, you may not be able to cure and heal as I can with magic, though there are other ways to heal those that are in need." Hope said as she gently held her hand between hers. "I think you'll make a wonderful angel."
The little girl smiled, as Hope gently placed her hands down then left to heal the others.
Nauthiz caught up with Hope and smiled at her. "Miss Hope, do you think we'll have enough strength to heal all of these people?"
"Yes, but I still feel…" She put a hand over her heart. "After we finish, we need to search for another hospital, I still feel suffering and… hate."
Nauthiz nodded. "If I had known we'd be staying here for a period of time… Oh Akina…" He looked to the side.
Hope tried to comfort him, but her attempt was cut silent by the moans of more brought in injured and ill. She looked around and sighed warily, before lifting a song with her gentle voice, achieving a perfect silence within the building.
Suddenly Sowilo eagerly charged into the hospital, and was awed by the beautiful song. "What… what is this?" He asked, but what struck him most, was that his people were no longer moaning in pain. "What!?"
"There's your goddess." Aura pointed at Hope as she sang with all of her heart, filling the room with a gentle pink aura.
"What…? It… It can't be…" Sowilo shook his head, and it was then he noticed that his wounds were healing.
Kira glared down at him. "Are you satisfied now?" He growled. "As soon as she's done, I'm taking her home."
The soldier stared at her with continued disbelief, but that look hardened into hate. "She can't be our goddess… our goddess would not have wasted her power like this!!" He growled to himself… as Hope continued to sing, naïve of what events awaited her.
To be continued….
~* A Fan Author's Worthless Rant! *~
It's a short chapter that it is, but hey, to make a three part story you gotta have a small one, well at least I felt this is how much I could give and leave you wanting more, which I'm going to dish out lovingly in chapter 28. I finally brought Kira and Aura into the story, and some of your other questions will be answered :3 I'll try and be more recent with DG now that summer is on the way :3 and because we're getting close to Hope's Graduation, her Ceremony into becoming a goddess first class, and her eighteenth birthday *wink!*
See ya next time!
Though as it seems the heavens and hell reside closely around the Earth; their realms stretch far beyond this world's galaxy. Reaching out to other planets in need and punishing those that are wicked. However, there is one planet in this far and vast universe that both the gods and demons have turned a cold shoulder… the warring planet, it's name scratched out of heaven and hell's records, in hope's that it would be long forgotten… until the day comes… when she would arrive.
A battle worn soldier slowly marched through the dilapidated streets of his once beautiful city. The only building that seemed unaffected by years of war and bloodshed was the temple to the goddess. Tall and heavy ornate doors lined in silver and gold were forced open with his strong hands, and his tattered ears were met with the melancholy prayers of his people. Some with their hands outstretched to the massive statue that stood before them. Her gaze went beyond them, as if she could not even hear a single word they cried out, this angered the soldier to the very core of his heart. His icy blue eyes turned away from her and met silver eyes, gleaming out from the shadows of the world outside this holy place.
"You know, they can pray and cry all they want." The eyes belonged to a form that slowly stepped towards him. "But she's never going to come, she probably doesn't even exist."
The soldier's teeth grit and he met his glare with the figure. It was a man, with long black hair, his bangs drifting on the red markings of a demon that he wore on his face. He gave a toothy grin at the soldier's eyes as his menacing black coat swayed in the musky wind.
"SHE WILL COME!" The soldier barked. "A thousand years have passed since Kami-sama foresaw her arrival, and the time has come!" He pointed at the demon angrily. "And YOU! You are the messenger that will bring her! That is why you are he-" He was cut silent by those silver eyes as they narrowed angrily on him.
"You will call me Kira, and if you show anymore disrespect towards me by pointing and yelling commands at me like some mutt again…" a handle rose up from the shadows, he clasped onto it with a claw-armored hand and drew out a massive blade which he resided by the flat side on his shoulder. "…You'll find yourself missing an arm."
Satisfied with making a point, Kira turned his back to the soldier. "Besides, I don't work for free…"
The soldier was alarmed, he looked from side to side hastily as the shadows began to wrap around Kira's ankles, he was going to disappear just as he had appeared earlier that day. "WAIT!"
Kira glanced back at him impatiently.
"Bring the goddess… and I'll… I'll give you…" His palms were sweating as he tried to force himself into his sacrifice.
"Your soul?" The half demon grinned toothily.
The soldier looked down with a single nod.
"Well then, we have a deal!" Kira walked back over to the soldier and held out his menacingly armored right hand. "Sowilo."
He hated hearing the demon possessively utter his name. Slowly he held out his left hand, and was stunned when Kira ceased it within his, sending a cold chill through his body when he felt as though his life was torn from him.
"It is done." Kira let his hand go. "Now don't go too far, I'll be back with your goddess…." He cackled and vanished into the statue's shadow.
Sowilo stood there with his left hand still out, and a blank expression on his face. "Finally…"
Meanwhile at Nekomi High…
"Okay class; open to page three ninety-two and work exercises A through D." Mrs. Tetsuya announced, and was swiftly met with the collective groan of her class. "Hey now, the school board requires me to make you work every once in a while, so bare with me okay?" She laughed.
"Haii…" The class agreed, reluctantly.
Hope and Nauthiz wrote sentences and answers like greased lightning then slammed their books shut, shooting each other rivaling glares as Akina quickly hit a button on her stop watch.
"And Nauthiz finishes one milli-second before Hope! Keeping his title as English Champion!" Akina announced, followed by the applause of all the Nauthiz fan girls.
"Of course." Hope accepted her defeat peacefully and shook Nauthiz's hand. Usually she was more of a challenge to him, but she fell in competition when her competitor had read over the English textbook thirty eight times compared to her mere twenty five times. "Okay now, let's help Akina with her work."
"Hey now! Don't worry about me! I can-" she pointed to a word. "What's this mean?"
Nauthiz and Hope sweat dropped and went to her aid.
Mrs. Tetsuya smiled at the trio as she tapped her grading pen on her desk, but suddenly. "Hmm?" She looked up, past her class.
Hope and Nauthiz looked up a little after she had. They could feel someone's presence, two!
"Excuse me class!" Mrs. Tetsuya leapt out of her chair and dashed out the door. The class murmured in confusion. "What was that all about?" Akina asked only to receive no answer.
In the boys' restroom from the shadow of a stall door, Kira's armored hand appeared followed by the rest of his body. "What the!?" He looked around in disgust then reached his hand back into the shadows. "Okay, now this could be just me thinking, but isn't a BOYS restroom the last place you'd look for a goddess!?" He withdrew his hand from the shadows, escorting out a woman made clearly for seducing. Her hair was black but seemed highlighted in red and her eyes were elegantly yellow. Of course, these qualities were placed aside when her demon wings and tail appeared. "She's probably somewhere in this building…" She sighed and looked at him disappointingly. "Kira, I don't know what compelled you to go to that planet, but I'd like you to know it put an end to our five year honeymoon."
Kira only sighed and grinned. "I don't know why either, something about that planet just made the demon in me take complete control, I was able to be… extremely evil!" He lavished on the memory then looked back to his upset wife. "Um…sorry Aura."
She smiled then looked over at the stall door. Her eyes squinted then she pointed to one of the various scratched insults that were on it. "Did you write that baby?"
Kira grimaced. "Anything but baby…"
"Honey? Sugar? Dear? Tiger?" She grinned teasingly.
"I'm not Peter Parker… now what are you pointing at?" He narrowed his glare on the door too.
"There." She pointed again.
"There?"
"No, there."
"There?"
"No! There!"
"There!?"
"NO! THERE!"
"THERE!?"
"YES! YES! THERE! RIGHT THERE!!"
Suddenly the boys' room door slammed open, four wide eyed boys with water falling nosebleeds ran in and were completely disappointed.
Kira grimaced at them. "Preps burn in hell, yes, I did write that Aura, because this was one of my old High schools…"
"Oh…" Aura had made her tail and wings vanish before the boys could see them, but even still she was slightly uncomfortable with how they were staring at her, especially because it triggered their nosebleeds to start all over again.
Kira was irritated until he glared down at their feet, a firey glare.
"Hey man! Whose da… YEEOOW!!" All four started to dance around wildly and ran out the door way.
"What did you do to them?" Aura asked.
"The most severe case of athlete's foot in the universe." He grinned as Aura hugged onto his arm gratefully. "And fire ants in their pants. This proves my theory, most of the guys at Nekomi High were not only extremely perverted but they were also idiots beyond compare. You'd think they'd stay in the bathroom to check why the hell their legs and feet were on fire?" he laughed at the simplicity of it all.
Aura grinned in a pleased way. "Aah, I love this side of you sometimes!"
"Let's keep focused." Kira interrupted. "We have to find that goddess and get out of here soon, bad memories here."
"Oka~ay, where is she though?" Aura looked around, until she heard the screech of high heels on tile. "What was that?" She was answered by the appearance of a navy haired woman when she jumped down the staircase and landed on the floor. Her eyeglasses flickered when she looked up at them, enhancing the teary build up around her eyes.
"Huh…" Kira stared blankly as she flung her arms out and with speed that shocked the two demons she dashed down the hall and glomped onto him. "GAAGGGH!!"
"KIRA!! AURA!! It's been so long! How've you been?" Mrs. Tetsuya exclaimed happily.
Aura was completely baffled, whereas Kira was trying to keep his eyes from bulging out of his face from the massive pressure around him. "Um…" Aura glanced between Mrs. Tetsuya and Kira nervously. "Do we… know you?"
"What? Aura what are you… ah." Her eyes widened in a way that looked like she had realized she'd done something wrong. Quickly she released Kira's airless form and let it drop to the floor like a piece of paper. "I'm So sorry, I mistook you two for some other people I know, ehe… bye!" she waved and slid away from them, laughing nervously and waving her hand until she vanished.
Aura raised her brow then knelt down next to Kira as he began to inflate like a balloon. "She mistook us for two who not only look like us but have the same name as well?" Aura asked then grinned down at him devilishly. "Need some help?"
"HUAAAAAH!!" Kira's form took back its normal shape. "Wish you'd offered sooner." He grinned as he got to his feet. "Anyway, let's follow her. She may know who we're looking for."
"Right… ERK!!" Aura's eyes nearly bulged out of her head just as Kira's had when Mrs. Tetsuya glomped him.
"What now?" He groaned.
Aura slowly pointed behind them with an extremely shaky finger.
"Okay, let me see your hall slips." A VERY familiar voice asked.
They both looked back and saw Dr. Bryn with her arms folded across her chest. The demon in disguise grinned at them curiously.
"Hi… HI… Hild-sama!?" Aura yelped.
"Ah-ah!" She shook her index finger at her. "That's Dr. Bryn on school campus, my little succubus."
"Medicine woman." Kira snorted, making Aura laugh though she stomped on her foot in vain to stop.
"Ahem…" She dismissed the insult, for now, something that shocked Kira a little. "So, you're the one?" She asked, looking at him directly.
"The one what?" He asked.
She rolled her eyes. "Regarding that planet, you made a pact with one of the leaders… Sowilo? If I'm correct?"
Kira sighed and held out his right hand, from it emerged a glowing white light.
"Ah, a soul?" Dr.Bryn applauded. "Well then, you have to go through this no matter what don't you?"
"That depends."
With a final deafening clap, she grinned. "Well then, let's not keep your customer waiting. You need to get that goddess so the pact will go through the system." She smiled happily. "OH! How I enjoy it when my demons make fresh new pacts!" She giggled and trotted towards the stairs where the navy haired woman had gone. "This way."
Aura and Kira stared at her with wide eyes. "How much do you want to bet she has a piano up there to roll me over when I go to the staircase?" Kira asked.
"You know better than to pull jokes over on Hild-sama, that's a major reason we took our five year honeymoon." Aura whispered. "Our SECOND honeymoon!"
"Oh…" He nodded. "Well… let's go."
Back in the classroom Mrs. Tetsuya took her seat and sighed. "I can't believe I forgot…" She thought to herself and looked up curiously. "But I wonder what they were doing here in the first place. I mean, Kira hated school…" She then looked over at Hope. "I wonder what she'll think when she hears they showed up?"
"Done!" Akina announced, making the entire class groan in envy. "Ah, I'm the luckiest girl in the world, my best friend, and my boyfriend, both my tutors!" She sobbed happily as she hugged them both.
"Well, you'd be doing okay if you'd just study…" Hope leered at her.
"Study? What is that?" Akina asked then laughed. "Come on Hope, I made it to Senior year by my pure luck, somehow I always manage to pull off four A's and three B's by the end of the semester!"
"That's because I've helped you all these years…" Hope sweat dropped.
"So why study?" Akina asked then rested her chin on her head. "Oh Hope, I've been taking advantage of you haven't I?"
"This must be how Poppa feels…" Hope thought. "He has his Chihiro and I have my Akina…"
"We are very fortunate to be in her presence Akina, remember she is…" Nauthiz whispered.
"Nauthiz, I'm just me." Hope looked down embarrassingly. "Akina, would you let go of my head?"
"Oops! Sorry!"
There was a sudden tap at the door. Mrs. Tetsuya waved to her students to sit down and went to open the door herself. "Yes… AH!?" She jumped back when Dr. Bryn's breasts were protruded out in front of her face.
"Oh dear!" Dr. Bryn exclaimed in embarrasement, though she enjoyed watching all the boys have a sudden nosebleed. "I'm terribly sorry about that."
Mrs. Tetsuya stared at her for a moment and laughed daintily. "Oh, don't worry about it!" She stuck her chest out, she was a little more gifted than the counselor was, making the nosebleeds rain down even harder, and a vein pulse on Dr. Bryn's head. "Now, what brings you Dr. Bryn?"
"Oh, ho ho ho!" She laughed then pointed over at Hope. "Would you join me out in the hall for a moment?"
Hope looked to Mrs. Tetsuya for help, though there was not much she could do. "Hope, you may go." She nodded, with a slightly worried look in her eyes.
Hope got up from her desk. "Coming!"
Kira folded his arms across his chest. What the hell was Hild doing at Nekomi High posing as a staff member? It was almost like a living version of 'The Faculty', especially when he saw Mara down the hall, mopping the floor. "Well I've missed out on a lot…" He thought to himself and looked out the hall window.
Aura looked up at him worriedly then at the classroom door, just as a young shimmering burnette haired girl with sapphire like eyes walked out. "Ah…" Aura's mouth dropped.
Dr. Bryn shut the door behind her and looked over at the two demons.
"Okay Hild, what do you…" Hope noticed the two, when she looked at them, an overjoyed smile spread across her face. "Aunt Aura! Uncle Kira!"
Kira snapped to attention and stared at her in shock.
"Hope!" Aura held her arms out as the excited goddess gave her a hug. "Look at you!! You're all grown up!!" she held her back a moment to take another look at her. "Oh but that uniform won't do! I hope you show off that goddess of a figure you've got now and then!"
Hope nodded embarrassingly. "Aunt Urd makes sure of that…" She looked over at Kira.
"Oh! Sorry for hogging the hugs." Aura let her go.
Instantly, Hope gave him a hug and smiled. "Where have you two been all this time? I missed you so much!"
Her words were impenetrable to Kira's shock, but as Dr. Bryn walked by him, he heard it. "I'll let that little joke you made earlier fly… however…" She glared up at him coldly. "If what Kami said comes to be… then Hope's the only one you'll have to worry about."
"Tch!" Kira flinched. "Why you…"
"Uncle Kira?" Hope stared up at him.
"…." He smiled down at her slightly and patted her on the head like she was a child. "Hey Hope."
She smiled back then asked again about their whereabouts, when they explained, she was in awe and curious as to what sorts of dark magic they had learned while they were gone, but a more important question came to mind. "What brings you to Nekomi?"
"You…" Kira looked to the side.
Aura looked at him in surprise. "Hope!? You mean she's the goddess?" She whispered, they couldn't afford anyone hearing their conversation..
Kira nodded, and looked at Hope. "That is of course… unless there is some other goddess here with extreme power such as yours?"
"Well…" Hope looked down as if in thought, but quickly shook her head. "No, but why do you need me?"
Kira sighed. "Well." He pulled his jacket back slightly so he could put his hands in his pockets. "It's sort of a long story… one I don't care to tell here." He looked her in the eyes. "But…there's this planet… it's been at war since Kami was still crawling around in diapers you could say…" He laughed slightly then explained the rest.
"Well you have to take me with you!" Hope said urgently.
He rubbed the back of his head and groaned. "Well…"
"You took that man's soul, and I can't just stand here knowing that many people are suffering." Hope said and grabbed his hand. "Uncle Kira, please."
He took his hand from her. "You shouldn't have to see a place as evil as that one."
Hope folded her arms and smiled. "I call evil my Uncle."
Kira was a little flattered, but still he refused. "If I'd known it was you I wouldn't have come in the first place, I'm going to give Sowilo a… 'refund'." He turned his back to Hope and began to vanish into his own shadow.
Aura looked at Kira then over at Hope. "Hope, look sweetie, I'm siding with Kira on this… You shouldn't go to that place."
Hope looked down as if in agreement. "…Okay."
Aura sighed in relief, only to be startled when Hope dove into Kira's shadow.
"HOPE!" Aura stared in shock.
Nauthiz jumped out of his desk. "Mrs. Tetsuya, I must leave now!" He stated and ran to the door.
"NAUTHIZ!" Mrs. Tetsuya shouted, in a tone that shocked the class and froze the god completely in his footsteps.
He looked back at her with determination and worry. "I… I beg your pardon."
She smiled slightly. "So today is the day that program is taking place for you and Hope?" She asked. "Okay then, please keep an eye on her for me would you?"
Nauthiz stared at her in a confused manner and nodded. "Excuse me." He bowed to the class shamefully and quickly left the room, but not before giving Akina an apologetic look.
Akina stared on with the rest of the class, but in her heart she felt something was wrong. "What's happening?"
The young god was right on time, he saw Aura's demon tail vanish into the fading shadow of the demi-god that once stood there. "I feel the remnants of Miss Hope's energy!" He thought then quickly threw one of his ear ring charms into the shadow, making it widen enough for him to jump in. "Miss Hope! I am coming!" He called out as he jumped into the shadow, just as it sealed shut.
"KYAAAAAAHH!!" Hope felt like she was falling, until suddenly Kira grabbed her right arm and heaved her up out of the shadows, with a rather irritable look on his face. "Um… ehe…"
Aura looked at them both then back at the shadows. "I think there was someone following us."
"Oh, I feel sorry for the poor soul that stole a free ride from me." Kira threw his arm back into the shadows and dug around until he pulled a startled white haired god out by the front of his uniform.
"NAUTHIZ!" Hope stared in surprise.
"Ki… Kira! The half god, half demon of shadows!?" Nauthiz stared at Kira in what looked like a form of fear.
"No, I'm the boogy man…" Kira said with one hundred percent sarcasm.
"Uncle Kira, please drop him!" Hope asked urgently.
Kira grinned slightly.
"You know what she meant." Aura warned.
"Ooh…" Kira pouted and roughly set the god on his feet.
"Well." Nauthiz straightened out his top then looked at Aura, and at Hope. "Miss Hope, I thought you were being kidnapped."
"No, no." Hope shook her head. "You see…" Suddenly she felt it, a thick wave of hatred, anguish, every word describing such wicked and agonizing emotions. "Ah…NN!" Hope grabbed at the middle of her chest and stumbled forward into Nauthiz's arms.
"What's wrong!?" Aura asked in shock.
Nauthiz looked up at them. "Miss Hope, she's the goddess of revolution as you may already know."
"Yeah, what about it?" Kira asked.
"Well, since the… day her powers were tapped into as goddess of revolution, Miss Hope has developed the abilities of an empath, giving her complete understanding of those around her. She feels their happiness, love, anger, fear… and those emotions become her power…" Nauthiz looked around. "This place is so thick with evil… I will take Miss Hope back to Earth at once."
"No!" Hope grabbed Nauthiz's right arm. "Not yet… I have… I have to help these people, they've suffered for so long. They deserve a peaceful revolution…"
Kira shook his head. "Aura, let's find Sowilo."
"Why?"
He turned around and began to stomp off towards the temple of the goddess. "I'd like nothing more than to cram his damned soul down his throat!" His eyes flashed their silvery color. "I'm not going to let my niece suffer like this!"
Aura smiled, even though Kira wished so much to be evil, he was still a god inside.
"Can you walk Miss Hope?" Nauthiz asked.
She nodded and forced her strength into her legs. "I-I'm sorry Nauthiz." Hope rubbed her forehead and smiled. "I just needed a moment to adjust…"
Nauthiz was a little unsure, after all Hope was almost a rocket scientist at hiding her troubles. "Are you sure that was all? Is there anything I can do to be of help to you?" He asked.
She looked around and began to float up into the sky.
"Miss Hope? You shouldn't…" Nauthiz tried to stop her.
"Its okay for the people of this planet to see me fly." She said then found what she was looking for. "There."
Nauthiz floated up next to her and saw a building, put together with all sorts of supports and types of plaster to hold it together. "What is it?"
"I feel distress and pain coming from there, but also efforts of healing… it must be a hospital. Let's go see if there's anything we can do." She said as she began to fly towards the building.
"Miss Hope, right." Nauthiz nodded in agreement and flew after her.
Meanwhile at the temple of the goddess.
"Soon, years upon years of suffering and hardships will come to an end!" Sowilo declared to the priests, maidens, and all his warrior citizens who were strong enough to battle. "I paid a heavy price, but it was well worth it, for I shall soon see our dream come to be. A place where all the people of our planet, even our enemies, can put aside their pains and sorrows, and join us all in the paradise we have long since been denied!"
"You want a paradise…" A heavy voice growled.
Sowilo looked up just as the temple doors burst open, falling to the ground in bits of timber. Kira stepped on a piece and crushed it into dust beneath his heavy steel toed boots. "Too bad, because I'm ready to serve you another thousand years of hell!"
"Where is the goddess?" Sowilo demanded.
"She's here, but you're in for a big upset if you think she's going to save a bunch of ill hearted people like you." Kira glared at the soldiers coldly.
Aura came to his side and held Sowilo's soul in her hands. "Take it back, your contract with Kira has been nullified."
"What?" Sowilo's eyes widened as his soldiers began to murmur in disapproval. "That can't be so, what difference does it make to you whether the goddess fulfills her duty to my planet or not?"
Kira clenched his fists. "Because, she doesn't deserve to suffer in your place." He looked over at Aura and nodded. She set the soul free and let it fly back into Sowilo's body.
"No!" Sowilo ran from the alter and to the two demons. "You cannot do this! At least permit me to speak with her!"
"I have no further business with you." Kira warned.
"Kira, if Sowilo sees Hope he might understand." Aura asked.
He stopped and was silent for a brief moment. Searching out Hope's waves, he found her among the suffering… however, they swiftly became at ease. "Hmm." He shook his head then looked back at Sowilo. "You want to speak with her? Fine, but get ready to be extremely disappointed."
At the hospital, several nurses, some in bandages themselves, watched in amazement as Hope and Nauthiz went from patient to patient, and healed their wounds and cured their sicknesses. "Try moving your fingers." Nauthiz asked as he finished healing a boy's broken arm.
He looked up at him with tear filled eyes before he scrunched his face up, anticipating the pain as he moved his thumb. "Ah? AH! I can feel my fingers again! My arm doesn't hurt!" he cheered.
Nauthiz nodded with a smile then glanced over at Hope as she finished curing a little girl of her sicknesses.
"Does that feel any better?" Hope asked gently.
The little girl smiled with a nod. "Mm hmm!"
She started to get up but the little girl held her hand. "Are you an angel?"
"Something like that." Hope smiled, this little girl reminded her of Kioshi.
"When I grow up, can I be an angel too?" she asked, and was delighted when Hope gave her a nod.
"Of course, you may not be able to cure and heal as I can with magic, though there are other ways to heal those that are in need." Hope said as she gently held her hand between hers. "I think you'll make a wonderful angel."
The little girl smiled, as Hope gently placed her hands down then left to heal the others.
Nauthiz caught up with Hope and smiled at her. "Miss Hope, do you think we'll have enough strength to heal all of these people?"
"Yes, but I still feel…" She put a hand over her heart. "After we finish, we need to search for another hospital, I still feel suffering and… hate."
Nauthiz nodded. "If I had known we'd be staying here for a period of time… Oh Akina…" He looked to the side.
Hope tried to comfort him, but her attempt was cut silent by the moans of more brought in injured and ill. She looked around and sighed warily, before lifting a song with her gentle voice, achieving a perfect silence within the building.
Suddenly Sowilo eagerly charged into the hospital, and was awed by the beautiful song. "What… what is this?" He asked, but what struck him most, was that his people were no longer moaning in pain. "What!?"
"There's your goddess." Aura pointed at Hope as she sang with all of her heart, filling the room with a gentle pink aura.
"What…? It… It can't be…" Sowilo shook his head, and it was then he noticed that his wounds were healing.
Kira glared down at him. "Are you satisfied now?" He growled. "As soon as she's done, I'm taking her home."
The soldier stared at her with continued disbelief, but that look hardened into hate. "She can't be our goddess… our goddess would not have wasted her power like this!!" He growled to himself… as Hope continued to sing, naïve of what events awaited her.
To be continued….
~* A Fan Author's Worthless Rant! *~
It's a short chapter that it is, but hey, to make a three part story you gotta have a small one, well at least I felt this is how much I could give and leave you wanting more, which I'm going to dish out lovingly in chapter 28. I finally brought Kira and Aura into the story, and some of your other questions will be answered :3 I'll try and be more recent with DG now that summer is on the way :3 and because we're getting close to Hope's Graduation, her Ceremony into becoming a goddess first class, and her eighteenth birthday *wink!*
See ya next time!