: : Caged Fate : :
: By : Akikazu :
: : Chapter Six : : Caged By Tales : :
Mahiru felt distinctly disoriented and groggy when she awoke. Light beamed through the curtainless window shining down onto the soft, but lumpy bed.
Wait, bed?
Her eyes sprang open and Mahiru tried to figure out where she was. The last thing she remembered was talking to Mitsuru, Sano, and Seno. Then he disappeared and he took her! She made as if to get out of bed only to be stopped when a wave of dizziness hit her. Lying back onto the bed she had to wonder how she got herself into this mess.
"Are you awake Princess?" A silky voice asked.
Mahiru turned her head to see a man close a door. He turned and sat down on the edge of her bed, unperturbed that she hadn't answered.
"I bet you are wondering where you are," he continued.
He paused to push long black hair out of his smiling green eyes.
"This is a room in the Moon's Final Dawn headquarters. I'm Yuichi the master of the Moon's Final Dawn, you can just call me Yuhi."
Mahiru made no comment, and just continued to watch the intruder from her laid back position. Not once did Yuhi's pleasant expression falter.
"My dear Mahiru do you wish to know what the function of the Moon's Final Dawn is? What is said, hold your enemies close."
Yuhi's eyes turned laconic as he regarded her shadowed expression. Mahiru keep silent but she was truly interested in what Yuhi would say.
"Now that I have your attention Mahiru, let me tell you a story."
Yuhi stood and walked from her. His back to her, he stared out the window.
"Once upon a time in a land not so far away, a young demon boy hid in the house of the Minister of Left. He was discovered and befriended by the minister's daughter. Before the demon boy left he and the daughter promised to marry each other."
Yuhi continued to stare out the window, but his cool demeanor was belied by the way he gripped the windowsill until his knuckles went white.
"What the daughter didn't know was that she had been betrothed to a youth that was the son of the Emperor's most trusted general. What's more the demon boy she had promised herself to was the Prince of the Lunar Race. The minister's daughter had become a Princess.
"Ten years passed and the Princess became a woman of unmatched beauty but she refused to marry the general's son, saving herself for her demon lover. And one night, he returned with the rise of the full moon. He took his bride to the mountains and there they wed, but with morning came armies lead by the enraged general's son, but he was no longer a boy. Rather the son had become the general in his old father's stead."
Mahiru was entranced by the story unfolding about her as she sat up on the bed. She could practically see the Princess denying marriage to the General. She could hear the enraged shouts as the Demon Prince carried his willing bride way. The story was so different from the song about the Princess, but which one held the most truth?
"The General stormed up to cave and killed both the Princess and her Prince, but as he sat wounded with his dieing love cradled to him, he cursed the General. It was afterwards that the General slew them both. You are the descendent of the Princess by her younger sister, and the Demon Prince had a bastard son who disappeared shortly after his father died. I have no knowledge of the continuation of that line. The General though, he married and had one son, his line carried on but barley there was only one of his descendents left alive at a time and it was never a female."
For the first time since she had awakened Mahiru spoke, "are you the General's descendent?"
Yuhi spun to face her face set in hard unyielding lines. His once pleasant green eyes were sharp as emerald, sparkling with murderous anger.
"I am not the descendent, I am he! That scarce continuation of my line was not the demon's curse, it was eternal life!"
Mahiru's eye's widened and she cringed away from Yuhi. He made his way to her and pinned her to the headboard.
"I have been denied my right to death! I will not rest until I have killed every single being of the Lunar Race," he hissed.
"If you want revenge then why am I here?" Mahiru asked.
"You are part of it, it was your ancestor that started this all, you will take her place or be killed before the spawn of her lover. They want you Mahiru, they want you to empower them on moonless nights, but I will not let them have you!"
"Stay away from me."
"No my dear, you are a pawn in this scheme and I will be by your side as the Lunar Race becomes extinct."
"No."
"You have no choice," Yuhi straightened and left her walking out of the door with one last glance at her. "Get some rest dear, don't think of the future or a way to rid the world of your presence."
The sound of the door being shut and locked was louder than slamming it would be. Mahiru collapsed onto the bed and shed silent tears for the tragic Princess and Demon Prince. More tears fell for the immortal General Yuichi. But most of all she cried for her friends in the Lunar Race and herself.
: : Moonshine : :
Akira sighed in relief as the MFD agents left the bar. Speaking on sudden Akira had to wonder about his new nephew. That boy Sano was a fierce although cute thing.
"Their retreat was rather sudden," Nozomu commented.
"Yes it was, one must wonder about that," Misoka acknowledged.
"Aw who cares, their gone, and good riddens. Now I can go get Mahiru," Akira interrupted.
A powerful wind nearly blew them over, but almost being used to such things, they were able to hold their ground. As the wind died abruptly Mitsuru and Sano could be seen. Mitsuru released the small child and Sano jumped away and ran to Akira.
"My Mommy was kidnapped by a shiny man to the evil castle of experiments and mutilation!" He shouted.
Akira blinked in blank confusion. Mitsuru rolled his eyes and stepped up to remove the child as he tugged on Akira trying to get a reaction of some sort.
"I man appeared at the shrine and took Mahiru to the MFD headquarters, if he is to be believed," Mitsuru translated.
"What? You were supposed to protect Mahiru, Mitsuru!" Nozomu shouted.
"It's not his fault! Seno was in the shadows, then he was behind Mommy, and then they were on the roof. Then they were gone!" Sano defended.
Nozomu stared incredulously at Sano as he shouted at him form Mitsuru's arms.
"What are we waiting for, let's make a plan to get the Princess back," Misoka stated calmly.
Mitsuru smiled grimly, if there was one thing that he liked about Misoka it was his calculating ways. Akira snapped out of his daze and started hopping up and down.
"I want my sister back! I'm going to rip their heads off! I want my sister back!" Akira continued to repeat his mantra of vengeance.
: : Mahiru : :
She dried her eyes, crying would get her nowhere. What she needed was an escape plan, or at least a way to stall until she was rescued. Looking around she couldn't think of anything.
"Why am I always so helpless?" She asked herself.
"We are always helpless," a familiar voice replied.
Mahiru looked around and was surprised to see Seno sitting on her bed.
"What are you doing here?" She demanded.
"I told you, I'm looking for something. I need to wait for Mitsuru to dash in and rescue you, to collect though."
"Is this just a game to you?"
"No I have been searching for what seems to be an eternity, but to travel forward I must first find an ingredient. And when I arrived with all of the requirements met, my companion will be revived from a death like trance," Seno replied cryptically.
"Did you love her?"
"Who?"
"Whoever you are trying to revive, Seno. You seem so wistful."
"Yes I did love her, but not in the way you're thinking, she's my sister, or she was. She's dead, but I am attempting to free her soul."
"I'm sorry."
"It's nothing, the wounds have long since faded. I must depart now."
Seno smiled at her briefly and disappeared as suddenly as he had come. Mahiru sighed, she wasn't the only one fate was against.
MitsuruMahiru stared out the window. They were connected, but how?
'Mitsuru come get me soon.'
: : Mitsuru : :
Why did he feel so horrible about failing to protect her? Knowing that it was perhaps unwise Mitsuru gently probed his feelings for the girl that had so abruptly re-entered his life.
He felt protective of her, nah duh. He also enjoyed her company, in his own way. Probing deeper Mitsuru came headlong into the fact that he liked Mahiru. He really LIKED her, and not in a friendly, can I copy your homework old buddy old pal, kind of way. This could be a problem.
"I've changed my mind, Mommy is not my mommy any more. She's my sister so I can have Akira as my brother!" Sano announced.
"Can he do that?" Nozomu asked.
Akira shrugged and continued to watch Mitsuru brood. Sano on the other hand took exception to Nozomu's words and glared at him. Misoka muttered to himself and stood up quickly.
"I have the plan ready, let's go," he announced.
Everyone stood, but as they all walk out the door Katsura grabbed Sano and shut the door, it seemed like the little boy wouldn't be coming. Misoka, Nozomu, Akira, and Mitsuru transformed quickly and took off without another word. Mitsuru headed off into the sunset, determined to save Mahiru.
'Mahiru, we're coming.'
: : End Chapter : :
: : Author's Note : :
I so lucky to have such nice people reviewing my story! I got an email from a reader just to chat, and encouraging word from everyone. Plus I have a four day weekend!
My happiness know no bounds!
: : A Note From Kejie : :
Akikazu drank a LOT of soda last night.
She's not suppose to...
She allergic.
: : Next Time : :
Let rescue Mahiru
Mahiru plays hide and seek with Yuhi