Author's Notes: Yes, this story is almost over, just one more chapter after
this one! So enjoy and review!!
Faithless Actions
___________________________________________________________________
"How cruel and wondrous fate can be." Shishio said in the midst of his laughter. "That it hands Battousai and the supposed last weapon right into my hands, to do as I please." The laughter that had been dying down crescendoed into crazy bursts of sound. Kaoru winced just the tiniest bit and Kenshin immediately moved in front of her, putting himself between Shishio and him. Shishio stopped his laughing and looked down at the two with disgust.
"Why do you protect her, Battousai, when she can kill faster than you?" He snapped his fingers and two burly guards appeared with sharp blades in their hands. They surrounded Kenshin with the blades pointed at his throat, motioning him to stand up. He tensed his right arm's muscles just a tiny bit, getting ready to use Kaoru's blade but Shishio felt the movement of his muscles.
"Oh no, Battousai, you don't want to attack my men, not when I have another with a blade at her back." A shadow melted from the corner with a dark stained dagger pointed at Kaoru. "You can leave alive or dead, it really doesn't matter to me. But you don't want to fail at your job, do you? Not when so much is at stake."
Kenshin gave a feral growl as he was pushed outside, turning his head to catch a last glimpse of Kaoru. She flashed her cheerful smile and the dungeon's door slammed shut. He was knocked on the head again and when he awoke a few minutes later he found himself in another cell with several other figures.
"Kenshin?! Where's Kaoru?" Sano shook Kenshin shoulders only to be knocked against the wall by furious hands.
"Shishio has her." He said angrily and pushed Sano away. "But he won't kill her."
"And how the hell do you know?!" Sano yelled while he kicked at iron bars of their cell.
"Sano, calm down, he's right." Aoshi said from the corner he was leaning against. "Shishio isn't stupid, which makes him all the more dangerous. He'll use Kaoru at just the right moment, there is no doubt of that."
"You think so too?" Soujirou called out quietly. "Time is pressing too close for us, we should get out of here now and report to the boss."
"Are you abandoning your duty?" Kenshin asked dangerously. Soujirou's heavy stare weighed down the air of the cell.
"Our duty was to protect her till she reaches Shishio, there is nothing else we can do now except to rejoin the rest of the soldiers for the coming battle." Soujirou's words were clear. Kenshin neatly threw Kaoru's blade at Soujirou who caught it with deft fingers. He swiftly slashed at the iron bars and Sano caught the falling pieces of metal before it could clatter to the ground. A guard was knocked unconscious and the bodyguards all narrowed their eyes, one guard for four of the most powerful warriors of the war? Sano gave a chuckle, tucked his hands behind his head, and began to saunter to the entrance.
"Well, at least we know we are expected to escape, Shishio hasn't completely underestimated us so far." Sano stated as the four stealthily moved out of the fortress. But not a single mind strayed from their prime focus, Kaoru.
~*~*~*~*~*
"I'm not afraid of you." She said bravely, and she meant every word as she looked into Shishio's face. He gave a malicious grin and moved close to her so that she could feel the heat from his bandaged body. She was tempted to take a step back but she couldn't falter now. She moved her hands up for the kill but what he said next stopped her.
"Really? And you know what? I believe you. But you will be very afraid later on, for yourself and another." He scrutinized her very closely than whirled around and stepped out of the dungeon. "Take the young girl to one of our lovely suites and watch her like a hawk."
The man holding the knife at her back pressed dangerously close and Kaoru began following one of the men out of the cell.
"What do you intend to do with me?" She called out to Shishio.
"You will win the war for me." He cackled before he disappeared around a corner.
"I would never work for you!" She shouted before the man pressed the tip of the knife into her back. They led her down a series of stone hallways until they finally came upon an aged shoji door. Expecting another filthy dungeon Kaoru braved herself for Shishio's lovely suite. To her surprise, she was surrounded by floral scented fabrics decorating a richly furnished set of rooms. The shoji was slammed behind her and Kaoru could hear the sound of her guards taking their place right by the door. Taking a quick glance around, she could see there were no windows to escape from. With a glum face, she sat down on a Turkish couch and awaited what could be her destined fate.
But what Shishio said disturbed her, why did he say she would win the war for him? And why did she stop to touch him? She roughly shook her head, she was such an idiot. Her chance at ending the war and it slipped through her fingers.
She could feel it, more intense than before. Her death. It wouldn't be too long now and unpleasant aspects of her life flashed before her eyes in dull color. Memories of being shunned, faces filled with barely contained disgust... a world surrounded in an impenetrable barrier of death and life.
For just a minute, even a few seconds, she wished she could embrace someone and feel that beautiful warmth of a pair of arms tightly holding her body, keeping it from falling to the ground in heavy sorrow. Ordinary people didn't realize the treasure they had, being able to touch and feel with fearing the taking of a life. Something so simple, and they couldn't see.
She wasn't scared before, but now she felt that buoyant hope from before fading away. Her loneliness was unbearably sharp and painful and she buried her face in her hands. She was losing faith.
"Save me Kenshin." She sobbed into her hands.
~*~
The sounds of crashing metal and agony filled screams struck the air like a resolute bell, ringing the time of death and pain. Soldier after soldier fell with streaks of blood staining their bodies but none had the time to mourn as those who survived threw themselves even fiercer into the fight. But there looked to be no end. Both armies were evenly matched and the generals standing in the background could see it. However, this was not a test of size but a test of will. Which army would be the most desperate and triumph over the other?
Meanwhile, Kenshin had lost himself in the dance of war. Gracefully slicing at soldiers in perfect arcs, he moved in a gliding pattern that could have been called beautiful if it weren't for the frighteningly cold amber eyes that stared past every face that was cut down. He couldn't see anything before him and it was only his body that was awake, stabbing and cutting at encompassing beings that had the unfortunate luck of being too close. Specks of blood mixed with sweat stained his tense face as he grew closer and closer to the heart of the battle. He could feel his four comrades loosing themselves as well in the beauty of war but they were irrelevant to his mind as it searched desperately for the soothing energy he craved.
There. He had found it. Standing far off behind the enemy army, he had found his energy. Her blue hair glimmered in the oppressive darkness and it called out like a beacon to him. Now he was moving as a warrior with purpose. His slashes were quicker and lighter, slaughtering handfuls by just one swing. His arm was growing tired but still he pursued the blue hair that threatened to blind him altogether. He had to protect his responsibility. He had given his word, and by kami, he would keep it even if it meant death.
But wait...death...he hadn't fully thought of that up till now. Death meant an ending to everything. He wouldn't have to feel disgust or hate or even sorrow. He would disappear into the darkness that consumed everything. But was his death the answer to everything? Maybe...did he want to live? But live for what?
All questions faded away when he finally appeared before a sloped hill with Shishio and Kaoru standing at the top, looking down at him. He could feel himself silently seething at how close Kaoru was to the bandaged man. Hand on his trusted sword, he walked up the mild slope till he was face to face with the man that had started it all. But this time, Shishio gave no mocking laugh. Instead, a cruel look of knowing tainted his partly covered face. With apprehension tensing every muscle in his body Kenshin only stood, waiting for the right moment and he knew that Shishio was doing the same as well.
"So, Battousai, how many of my worthless men have you killed today?" Shishio drawled while drawing an arm around Kaoru's frail shoulders. He didn't flinch at the touch and only drew her closer to his side. "You may be their weapon, but I'd like you to meet mine. This thing here will change the tide of this war to my favor."
Kaoru gave a barely noticeable wince and only tipped her head high. "I'm not doing anything for you. And I'm not a thing."
"Enough, you'll see when this war is won." Shishio hissed and pushed Kaoru aside while whipping out his own sword. In a blurred movement, he attacked Kenshin who blocked just in time before returning the attack himself. But within the first few seconds, he knew that his chances of winning were slim. His arms were already tired from the previous battle while Shishio had stayed in the back and merely observed.
"A little slow today, Battousai? Maybe it's because you know deep down that you will not live to see the dawn." Shishio gave a quick thrust that Kenshin couldn't escape in time and a deep gash appeared on his right arm. Quickly switching the sword to his left hand, Kenshin didn't answer but only calculated his enemy's moves. He was a millisecond slower with his left arm, but a millisecond would be all the time Shishio needed to cut him down. And he felt himself getting more tired, as if the adrenaline high he had lived off of earlier was seeped away. Being the stupid fool that he was, he shot a glance at Kaoru who was worriedly looking at him. He barely contained a pained cry as Shishio's blade slid neatly into his left shoulder. With a swift blow, Shishio kicked Kenshin in the face and made him fall back.
"Kenshin!" Kaoru cried out and stumbled down the slope to run to him. Shishio stopped her with a blade at her throat. He roughly grabbed her and pulled her intimately close to his body.
"Let me go!" Kaoru fought his grasp but he pressed the blade deep enough so that a small trickle of blood slid down her throat.
Kenshin glared angrily at Shishio as he struggled to stand.
"Oh no, Battousai. Don't try to get up, both your arms face heavy wounds and I know you are already tired from battling soldiers just to get to her. But then again, you know that, don't you?"
Kenshin spat out the blood in his mouth and stood anyway, switching his sword back to his right arm. The pain was going to make it difficult for him to move fast enough, but he had to try. He never went back on his responsibilities. Shishio gave an exasperated sigh as he lovingly pressed the blade close to Kaoru's throat.
"And so begins the real battle of the war, but it won't be between you and I. I suggest you put the blade down, Battousai, before you make me do something I'm rather adverse to do."
Kenshin threw himself at Shishio, who sleekly blocked his attacks while still holding on to Kaoru. In an easy manner, Shishio sliced Kenshin at the chest, a splatter of blood spurting up in a crimson fountain. Kenshin fell in a heap on the ground, his sword laying not too far away. This couldn't be the end for him, he had to save her. She was his responsibility and he had to protect her with his life. His mind was screaming at him to stand up and fight, but his body wasn't moving. There was a steady drip near his ears as blood fell from his chest in quiet patters. Throwing his own blade away, Shishio turned Kaoru around to face him.
"Now it's your turn." He slipped the bandages off his face, revealing a face covered in masses of burn scars. His cold eyes were the only things left unscathed in that mess of old wounds. Kaoru tried not to flinch at the sight of them. "Have you ever wondered why those generals over there decided to burn me instead of properly engaging me in a duel? Those filthy cowards who decided to let their underlings do the work instead of facing ME, man to man?"
"N-no." Kaoru whispered in fear as a crazed hate began to fill Shishio's eyes.
"You were lied to when they said that you were the last soulsucker on earth. There are two, not one." He began to smile, his lips stretching in a grotesque grin.
"You?" She asked in disbelief. "But they told me-"
"Lies, my dear Kaoru! All lies! You're nothing but a second rate soulsucker compared to me. I'm the original, the last of my clan. The government sent second rates like you to kill off my men and families, but I was the only one that prevailed. Nothing on this earth can kill me, not even touching another person will result in my death, well, except you perhaps." He laughed. "But you won't be able to kill me."
"Wait, if there is no way to kill you and the government knew, why did they send me?" Kaoru asked.
"My life lies in your hands, and here's your chance. Go on, touch me, like the government ordered you to. Sacrifice nobly for saving Japan, that's what you were told, weren't you?"
"Why are you so eager to die?" She asked.
"Die? Who said anything about dying?" Shishio joked and gave another laugh. "I'll share a secret with you, since you'll be taking it to the grave. A true soulsucker is able to take in the souls of not only mortals but other soulsuckers and be given power for each soul taken in." He reached his own hand out to touch her cheek. "You're mine." He whispered into her ear.
"No!" Kenshin shouted. Shishio turned his head toward him, his hand frozen in the air.
"Don't you ever just fall and die?" He asked, annoyance in his voice. "Too late now Battousai."
Three things took place simultaneously. Shishio touched Kaoru's cheek, Kaoru touched his, and Kenshin raced towards the two. A terrifying wind swept across the battlefield and every soldier stopped in their tracks, feeling a horrible sensation of something pulling at their souls. Every head turned towards the source of the wind that tried to drag everything into a strange vortex. A shriek tore at the silence and the wind disappeared as quickly as it had come.
________________________________________________________________________
CookyButtButt: thanks! I wish I could have stretched this story out longer, it doesn't have the amount of romance that I wanted it to have. But oh well, only one chapter left now...
Aharah Musici: wow, really? I thought I was rushing it a little in the end. But I'm glad you think its going at a good pace
Falcon's Riddle: well, only one more chapter left and then this story will be complete! And then I can spend more time concentrating on all my other stories
CurlsofSerenity: I thought of that too, but I introduced different levels of soulsuckers in this chappie. Shishio is the pure soulsucker, while Kaoru is on a lower level than him, meaning Shishio has different powers than Kaoru. Like being able to survive the touch of other humans.
Faithless Actions
___________________________________________________________________
"How cruel and wondrous fate can be." Shishio said in the midst of his laughter. "That it hands Battousai and the supposed last weapon right into my hands, to do as I please." The laughter that had been dying down crescendoed into crazy bursts of sound. Kaoru winced just the tiniest bit and Kenshin immediately moved in front of her, putting himself between Shishio and him. Shishio stopped his laughing and looked down at the two with disgust.
"Why do you protect her, Battousai, when she can kill faster than you?" He snapped his fingers and two burly guards appeared with sharp blades in their hands. They surrounded Kenshin with the blades pointed at his throat, motioning him to stand up. He tensed his right arm's muscles just a tiny bit, getting ready to use Kaoru's blade but Shishio felt the movement of his muscles.
"Oh no, Battousai, you don't want to attack my men, not when I have another with a blade at her back." A shadow melted from the corner with a dark stained dagger pointed at Kaoru. "You can leave alive or dead, it really doesn't matter to me. But you don't want to fail at your job, do you? Not when so much is at stake."
Kenshin gave a feral growl as he was pushed outside, turning his head to catch a last glimpse of Kaoru. She flashed her cheerful smile and the dungeon's door slammed shut. He was knocked on the head again and when he awoke a few minutes later he found himself in another cell with several other figures.
"Kenshin?! Where's Kaoru?" Sano shook Kenshin shoulders only to be knocked against the wall by furious hands.
"Shishio has her." He said angrily and pushed Sano away. "But he won't kill her."
"And how the hell do you know?!" Sano yelled while he kicked at iron bars of their cell.
"Sano, calm down, he's right." Aoshi said from the corner he was leaning against. "Shishio isn't stupid, which makes him all the more dangerous. He'll use Kaoru at just the right moment, there is no doubt of that."
"You think so too?" Soujirou called out quietly. "Time is pressing too close for us, we should get out of here now and report to the boss."
"Are you abandoning your duty?" Kenshin asked dangerously. Soujirou's heavy stare weighed down the air of the cell.
"Our duty was to protect her till she reaches Shishio, there is nothing else we can do now except to rejoin the rest of the soldiers for the coming battle." Soujirou's words were clear. Kenshin neatly threw Kaoru's blade at Soujirou who caught it with deft fingers. He swiftly slashed at the iron bars and Sano caught the falling pieces of metal before it could clatter to the ground. A guard was knocked unconscious and the bodyguards all narrowed their eyes, one guard for four of the most powerful warriors of the war? Sano gave a chuckle, tucked his hands behind his head, and began to saunter to the entrance.
"Well, at least we know we are expected to escape, Shishio hasn't completely underestimated us so far." Sano stated as the four stealthily moved out of the fortress. But not a single mind strayed from their prime focus, Kaoru.
~*~*~*~*~*
"I'm not afraid of you." She said bravely, and she meant every word as she looked into Shishio's face. He gave a malicious grin and moved close to her so that she could feel the heat from his bandaged body. She was tempted to take a step back but she couldn't falter now. She moved her hands up for the kill but what he said next stopped her.
"Really? And you know what? I believe you. But you will be very afraid later on, for yourself and another." He scrutinized her very closely than whirled around and stepped out of the dungeon. "Take the young girl to one of our lovely suites and watch her like a hawk."
The man holding the knife at her back pressed dangerously close and Kaoru began following one of the men out of the cell.
"What do you intend to do with me?" She called out to Shishio.
"You will win the war for me." He cackled before he disappeared around a corner.
"I would never work for you!" She shouted before the man pressed the tip of the knife into her back. They led her down a series of stone hallways until they finally came upon an aged shoji door. Expecting another filthy dungeon Kaoru braved herself for Shishio's lovely suite. To her surprise, she was surrounded by floral scented fabrics decorating a richly furnished set of rooms. The shoji was slammed behind her and Kaoru could hear the sound of her guards taking their place right by the door. Taking a quick glance around, she could see there were no windows to escape from. With a glum face, she sat down on a Turkish couch and awaited what could be her destined fate.
But what Shishio said disturbed her, why did he say she would win the war for him? And why did she stop to touch him? She roughly shook her head, she was such an idiot. Her chance at ending the war and it slipped through her fingers.
She could feel it, more intense than before. Her death. It wouldn't be too long now and unpleasant aspects of her life flashed before her eyes in dull color. Memories of being shunned, faces filled with barely contained disgust... a world surrounded in an impenetrable barrier of death and life.
For just a minute, even a few seconds, she wished she could embrace someone and feel that beautiful warmth of a pair of arms tightly holding her body, keeping it from falling to the ground in heavy sorrow. Ordinary people didn't realize the treasure they had, being able to touch and feel with fearing the taking of a life. Something so simple, and they couldn't see.
She wasn't scared before, but now she felt that buoyant hope from before fading away. Her loneliness was unbearably sharp and painful and she buried her face in her hands. She was losing faith.
"Save me Kenshin." She sobbed into her hands.
~*~
The sounds of crashing metal and agony filled screams struck the air like a resolute bell, ringing the time of death and pain. Soldier after soldier fell with streaks of blood staining their bodies but none had the time to mourn as those who survived threw themselves even fiercer into the fight. But there looked to be no end. Both armies were evenly matched and the generals standing in the background could see it. However, this was not a test of size but a test of will. Which army would be the most desperate and triumph over the other?
Meanwhile, Kenshin had lost himself in the dance of war. Gracefully slicing at soldiers in perfect arcs, he moved in a gliding pattern that could have been called beautiful if it weren't for the frighteningly cold amber eyes that stared past every face that was cut down. He couldn't see anything before him and it was only his body that was awake, stabbing and cutting at encompassing beings that had the unfortunate luck of being too close. Specks of blood mixed with sweat stained his tense face as he grew closer and closer to the heart of the battle. He could feel his four comrades loosing themselves as well in the beauty of war but they were irrelevant to his mind as it searched desperately for the soothing energy he craved.
There. He had found it. Standing far off behind the enemy army, he had found his energy. Her blue hair glimmered in the oppressive darkness and it called out like a beacon to him. Now he was moving as a warrior with purpose. His slashes were quicker and lighter, slaughtering handfuls by just one swing. His arm was growing tired but still he pursued the blue hair that threatened to blind him altogether. He had to protect his responsibility. He had given his word, and by kami, he would keep it even if it meant death.
But wait...death...he hadn't fully thought of that up till now. Death meant an ending to everything. He wouldn't have to feel disgust or hate or even sorrow. He would disappear into the darkness that consumed everything. But was his death the answer to everything? Maybe...did he want to live? But live for what?
All questions faded away when he finally appeared before a sloped hill with Shishio and Kaoru standing at the top, looking down at him. He could feel himself silently seething at how close Kaoru was to the bandaged man. Hand on his trusted sword, he walked up the mild slope till he was face to face with the man that had started it all. But this time, Shishio gave no mocking laugh. Instead, a cruel look of knowing tainted his partly covered face. With apprehension tensing every muscle in his body Kenshin only stood, waiting for the right moment and he knew that Shishio was doing the same as well.
"So, Battousai, how many of my worthless men have you killed today?" Shishio drawled while drawing an arm around Kaoru's frail shoulders. He didn't flinch at the touch and only drew her closer to his side. "You may be their weapon, but I'd like you to meet mine. This thing here will change the tide of this war to my favor."
Kaoru gave a barely noticeable wince and only tipped her head high. "I'm not doing anything for you. And I'm not a thing."
"Enough, you'll see when this war is won." Shishio hissed and pushed Kaoru aside while whipping out his own sword. In a blurred movement, he attacked Kenshin who blocked just in time before returning the attack himself. But within the first few seconds, he knew that his chances of winning were slim. His arms were already tired from the previous battle while Shishio had stayed in the back and merely observed.
"A little slow today, Battousai? Maybe it's because you know deep down that you will not live to see the dawn." Shishio gave a quick thrust that Kenshin couldn't escape in time and a deep gash appeared on his right arm. Quickly switching the sword to his left hand, Kenshin didn't answer but only calculated his enemy's moves. He was a millisecond slower with his left arm, but a millisecond would be all the time Shishio needed to cut him down. And he felt himself getting more tired, as if the adrenaline high he had lived off of earlier was seeped away. Being the stupid fool that he was, he shot a glance at Kaoru who was worriedly looking at him. He barely contained a pained cry as Shishio's blade slid neatly into his left shoulder. With a swift blow, Shishio kicked Kenshin in the face and made him fall back.
"Kenshin!" Kaoru cried out and stumbled down the slope to run to him. Shishio stopped her with a blade at her throat. He roughly grabbed her and pulled her intimately close to his body.
"Let me go!" Kaoru fought his grasp but he pressed the blade deep enough so that a small trickle of blood slid down her throat.
Kenshin glared angrily at Shishio as he struggled to stand.
"Oh no, Battousai. Don't try to get up, both your arms face heavy wounds and I know you are already tired from battling soldiers just to get to her. But then again, you know that, don't you?"
Kenshin spat out the blood in his mouth and stood anyway, switching his sword back to his right arm. The pain was going to make it difficult for him to move fast enough, but he had to try. He never went back on his responsibilities. Shishio gave an exasperated sigh as he lovingly pressed the blade close to Kaoru's throat.
"And so begins the real battle of the war, but it won't be between you and I. I suggest you put the blade down, Battousai, before you make me do something I'm rather adverse to do."
Kenshin threw himself at Shishio, who sleekly blocked his attacks while still holding on to Kaoru. In an easy manner, Shishio sliced Kenshin at the chest, a splatter of blood spurting up in a crimson fountain. Kenshin fell in a heap on the ground, his sword laying not too far away. This couldn't be the end for him, he had to save her. She was his responsibility and he had to protect her with his life. His mind was screaming at him to stand up and fight, but his body wasn't moving. There was a steady drip near his ears as blood fell from his chest in quiet patters. Throwing his own blade away, Shishio turned Kaoru around to face him.
"Now it's your turn." He slipped the bandages off his face, revealing a face covered in masses of burn scars. His cold eyes were the only things left unscathed in that mess of old wounds. Kaoru tried not to flinch at the sight of them. "Have you ever wondered why those generals over there decided to burn me instead of properly engaging me in a duel? Those filthy cowards who decided to let their underlings do the work instead of facing ME, man to man?"
"N-no." Kaoru whispered in fear as a crazed hate began to fill Shishio's eyes.
"You were lied to when they said that you were the last soulsucker on earth. There are two, not one." He began to smile, his lips stretching in a grotesque grin.
"You?" She asked in disbelief. "But they told me-"
"Lies, my dear Kaoru! All lies! You're nothing but a second rate soulsucker compared to me. I'm the original, the last of my clan. The government sent second rates like you to kill off my men and families, but I was the only one that prevailed. Nothing on this earth can kill me, not even touching another person will result in my death, well, except you perhaps." He laughed. "But you won't be able to kill me."
"Wait, if there is no way to kill you and the government knew, why did they send me?" Kaoru asked.
"My life lies in your hands, and here's your chance. Go on, touch me, like the government ordered you to. Sacrifice nobly for saving Japan, that's what you were told, weren't you?"
"Why are you so eager to die?" She asked.
"Die? Who said anything about dying?" Shishio joked and gave another laugh. "I'll share a secret with you, since you'll be taking it to the grave. A true soulsucker is able to take in the souls of not only mortals but other soulsuckers and be given power for each soul taken in." He reached his own hand out to touch her cheek. "You're mine." He whispered into her ear.
"No!" Kenshin shouted. Shishio turned his head toward him, his hand frozen in the air.
"Don't you ever just fall and die?" He asked, annoyance in his voice. "Too late now Battousai."
Three things took place simultaneously. Shishio touched Kaoru's cheek, Kaoru touched his, and Kenshin raced towards the two. A terrifying wind swept across the battlefield and every soldier stopped in their tracks, feeling a horrible sensation of something pulling at their souls. Every head turned towards the source of the wind that tried to drag everything into a strange vortex. A shriek tore at the silence and the wind disappeared as quickly as it had come.
________________________________________________________________________
CookyButtButt: thanks! I wish I could have stretched this story out longer, it doesn't have the amount of romance that I wanted it to have. But oh well, only one chapter left now...
Aharah Musici: wow, really? I thought I was rushing it a little in the end. But I'm glad you think its going at a good pace
Falcon's Riddle: well, only one more chapter left and then this story will be complete! And then I can spend more time concentrating on all my other stories
CurlsofSerenity: I thought of that too, but I introduced different levels of soulsuckers in this chappie. Shishio is the pure soulsucker, while Kaoru is on a lower level than him, meaning Shishio has different powers than Kaoru. Like being able to survive the touch of other humans.