Kamiya Dojo Insomniacs

Chapter 11: Concerto of Chaos part 1- Flames of Hatred

Kaoru felt chills down her spine as Suidras lurched towards her; the great demon's features a sadistic grin. With the paralysis spell still in effect, it seemed that now she was the first to suffer in this new reign of darkness…

Kenshin was beginning to feel himself loosen from the spell; he gradually reached for the sakabato hanging on his belt and drew it out from its sheath.

"Now do you fools see the futility of your actions?" Mekros taunted from above. "No one has opposed me and lives: Now you will all pay as sacrifices to the great Nightmare King."

Yahiko and the others felt helpless and frustrated at the worsening situation. They couldn't move, let alone save Kaoru from the demon king.

Just as Suidras began to close her hand around the frightened Kaoru, a force like thunder erupted from out of nowhere at his arm. With a growl of annoyance, Suidras withdrew his appendage. "Who dares to attack me?" the monster snarled. "Tell me now and I shall make your death swift."

"I'm the one, monster." A voice came from the side.

Suidras' eyes followed suit and they soon gazed upon the red-haired samurai. But this wanderer's eyes yellow eyes burned with anger, Kenshin Himura was pushed back into the shadows: It was Battousai the Manslayer that dared to attack the fearsome tyrant.

"You're different than before." Suidras examined the manslayer. "Your soul is now filled with malevolence. No matter though." Suidras then turned towards the warlock in the skies. "Mekros, deal with this upstart."

Mekros floated down a good distance from the Battousai. He could also feel something from this scarlet samurai. "So you can change the color of your eyes? I'm not impressed it that's the best you can do!" Mekros threw open his cape and fired off a sphere of fire towards Battousai. The projectile hissed as it closed in but at point blank range, Battousai swatted the attack aside with his sakabato, sending the blast upwards. Mekros was surprised. "Not bad, samurai, but let's see you chop this!" the dark lord vanished in a cloud of black smoke, in its wake, a large, wolf demon snarled, foam frothing from its gnashing teeth. Mekros reappeared by the manslayer in grim satisfaction. "My wolf is hungry this evening. I trust you'll feed him nicely." Te latter vanished before Battousai could slice in his direction.

The distraction ending at that, the rabid creature raced towards him, there was little time for thought. He turned the blade of his sakabato and raised it into the air. As the wolf neared its target, it bounded into the air for a pounce. Mekros felt a grin of victory plaster on his face, but…

Battousai brought the sakabato down on the ground, the impact sending a shower of rocky spikes towards his attacker.

Mekros was staring in disbelief and disgust as he saw the gruesome scene of his creature getting punctured by many spikes, skidding to the ground a ruined mess of dirty fur and blood.

"That was the Hiten Mitsurugi Style, Do ryu sen." Battousai told Mekros without him asking. If you don't change your ways, you'll end up just like your wolf."

"You dare to make demands of me?" Mekros' scoffed. "You will regret such bravado." He flew towards Battousai with his metal hand crackling with dark mana.

From the sidelines, Yahiko was watching the battle ensue. Mekros began to shoot several blasts of energy at the Battousai, but the hitokiri was dodging the missiles with relative ease. "This is crazy."

"What is?" Misao asked.

"Usually, Kenshin ends the battle quick when he becomes the Battousai. But there's something about this guy that has him fighting differently."

"Will you two shut up for once and move?" Saitou barked at the two. "I suggest you move it before I make you!"

Almost immediately, Misao and Yahiko followed Saitou behind a house just in time for avoid an explosion that left a small crater in the street. Peering from the corner, Kaoru, Sano, Soujiro, and Nick were watching as well.

The warlock's patience began to wear thin as he launched volley after volley that was swatted away by an increasingly annoying reverse-blade sword. "Damn you, why won't you hold still?"

Battousai cast a dismissing glance at his magical opponent. "You're not so tough when you're not gloating, are you?." With that, he charged at Mekros with sakabato flying around like a miniature cyclone.

Now Mekros was on the defensive, narrowly dodging the slices and using quick force fields to block the thrusts. The crimson manslayer was forcing Mekros backwards with little sign of relenting.

Mekros smirked as he took to the skies once again. "I do admit that you caught me off guard, your skills are amazing for a mortal samurai…"

Battousai said nothing, at first glance he thought Mekros was making a bluff, but that conclusion was foregone when the pompous warlock reached towards the sky, focusing the lighting into a single point of energy in his palm.

"But in the end, you are only a mortal." The warlock sneered. "Not even you will be able to withstand this!" The electrical energy in Mekro's hand and formed into a fearsome spear that was soon gripped in his metallic fist. "Farewell, foolish samurai!!!!"

Karou watched with horrified eyes as Mekros hurled his deadly weapon, her eyes began to leak tears anticipating a gruesome death… a blinding light enveloped the area as the spear made contact with an unseen force.

Mekros was about to gloat, but the victorious expression on his face turned into one of surprised confusion. "What???… How????"

Battousai looked around quickly for the answer. He found it in a familiar sight decked out in black, not only that, a protective barrier around him and Kenshin.

"How does it feel to be aggravated, agitated and infuriated, Mekros?"

Mekro's features wrenched in frustration. "Curse you, Blackwyvern!"

Nick smiled at the latter's frustration as he leaned on his scythe. "It's the start of what I'll do to you before this is over."

"What do you think you're doing?" Battousai yelled at the sorcerer. "You haven't fully recovered from his last attack!"

Nick did not like this caning. "I know how good you are, but I want you stay out of this one."

"You must be joking." The ex-hitokiri dismissed.

"You're gonna have to trust me on this one." Nick answered.

The crimson manslayer felt contempt rise in his veins, but that was forgotten as something in his head went off. "What the hell?!?" he thought.

"Calm down. Blind anger's not a good thing." Nick's voice echoed in Battousai's head.

"I know you want to question why I'm speaking to your mind, but we have to act fast. I'll tell Saitou to get your friends to safety, then we can start taking this battle to them."

"You're crazy." Battousai's voice snapped in Nick's head. "Do you really think you can stop them with your arm in bad shape?"

"It's a gamble, but then again, so is a samurai who swears never to kill again-"

Suidras had seen enough. "I know what you two are planning and I shall save you the trouble."

Mekros liked where this was going. "Shall we finish them off, my lord?"

The demon turned his gaze towards the samurai and sorcerer in the streets then back to warlock hovering near him. "No." came a cold answer.

"But… my lord." Mekros spoke "This situation-"

"-Could serve our purpose if played right." Suidras interrupted. The dark king began to walked towards the red-eyed samurai." Nearby, Saitou was quietly leading the group to a safe distance.

"The monster is becoming smaller." Saitou he said aloud. "He must be up to something."

"Less talk, more run!" Misao gritted as she began to coral everyone into a new hiding place.

Suidras growled softly as he observed Himura in the streets. "Samurai, you have unusually superb skills. What do you here in this time where the sword is needless?"

Battousai said nothing.

"The silent type, eh?" the demon blinked his red soulless eyes. "It is as I thought: your ferocity in battle is remarkable. Only one such being exists in this world: the legendary demon in human form: Hitokiri Battousai the Manslayer."

At this statement, the feature on Mekros' face creased with slight astonishment.

"And what it I am?" the swordsman asked.

"Your time has passed long ago." Suidras continued. "The age of the samurai has ended with the fall of the Tokugawa regime, rendering the need for men like yourself pointless. I however, can find good use for someone like yourself."

Not too far away, Kaoru crept away from the house Misao and Saitou dragged the group into. She couldn't stay calm knowing that Kenshin was still out there locked in battle with monsters like Mekros and Suidras.

The manslayer's eyebrow creased in curiosity, the results pleased Suidras as he soon whisked the tiny swords man to the rooftops, but not before returning to a size where he could hold a person in his palm. "Now that we are no longer around prying eyes, I would like you to consider the rest of my proposal."

Battousai sheathed his sakabato as Suidras continued his banter.

"Even though this land is at peace, the ones in power are corrupt and foolish. You know this to be true already since some people seem fit to purge the government through chaos."

Battousai cocked his head slightly as if to say 'your point being?'

"This world needs to make a new start, one where the mistakes of the past will cease to become memory. The old order must be destroyed in order to start anew, Battousai. If you were to join my ranks, the power you will gain will make your mastery of Hiten Mitsurugi as if nothing. You would be emperor of lands stretching as far as the ocean. That's more than any sword can ever give you."

Down in the streets, Kaoru had tracked down her beloved and to her dismay, Mekros and Suidras.

"What say you, Himura the Battousai?" Suidras' eyes flickered in pleasure as he extended an open hand to the tiny samurai on the roof.

Kaoru watched with visible horror as she saw Kenshin step onto the specter's hand. "Kenshin! If you're even thinking about siding with that monster, I swear I'll never forgive you for this!"

All eyes turned to Kaoru, who in turn turned white with fright. Mekros made way to grab her, but a snarl from Suidras denied him the order.

The Battousai cast a quick sideways glance before returning his attention to the demon towering over him.

"A minor nuisance. So Battousai, what is your answer?"

At first, Himura stood still. But in the blink of an eye, the hitokiri drew his sword and thrust it into Suidras' palm. The fiendish monarch roared in excruciating pain, even clutching the ruined appendage was like the scalding of hot oil.

Battousai grinned in satisfaction for a moment, but then his features turned to surprise. The trickle of blood that stained the roof was a dull violet. "What.. is this?." The hitokiri objected.

On the streets below, Kaoru, having witnessed the scene, found herself robbed of speech. She stood there, staring at the manslayer in disbelief and felt great distress well up inside her.

" How is this possible?" Battousai asked as he stared at the bloodstained sakabato in his hand.

"So it is not yet complete, then." A voice came from the sky. Mekros floated down to the roof with realization in his topaz eyes. "The boy has a remarkably strong will."

"What do you mean?" Battousai asked the helmeted warlock.

"Even from the shackles of my curse, Juno is trying to reject the spirit of my master." Mekros elaborated. "Because of that, Suidras is not in complete control of the boy's body for some time. Quite an irony, isn't it?" The warlock's features curled into a delicious sneer. "The only chance you for victory lies in destroying the golem's body while he's still vunerable, but you can't do that, can you?"

Battousai could not believe what he was hearing. "You monster: you mean to say that your desire for revenge is so great you would sacrifice an innocent child to satisfy your desire for it?"

"What's so wrong about that?" Mekros asked coldly. "The 'child' as you put it isn't even alive. What would have you risking your life for such a thing?"

The manslayer was growing even more enraged. He promptly flipped his blade over.

"Kenshin!" Kaoru pleaded. "That's enough! Don't you see this isn't working?."

The sharp-eyed samurai turned towards the street with a scornful look in his eyes. "Stay out of this woman, the boy himself said that he would rather die than be Mekros' puppet"

"But only if an alternative can't be found." Nick hobbled next to Kaoru. "Is shedding the blood of innocents your true nature, Himura? If you continue this, I will have to kill you myself, for you would become a devil far worse than the ones you you seek to destroy."

"You'll have to go through me first." Saitou scowled at the sorcerer. "If anyone is to kill the Battousai, it will be me, sorcerer boy."

Not too far off, Mekros was growing bored of the melodrama unfolding right now. He couldn't understand why his demonic master was so interested in spite of his unwanted acupuncture. The only thing that stopped the warlock from ruining the moment was the fear of what might come of incurring the wrath of a god-like being.

Looking at the blood stained sword in his hand, Himura felt his malice replaced with contemplation, he then turned towards the street towards Kaoru and Nick, and for a brief moment took a sudden interest in the roof shingles. "… A devil far worse…?" he spoke laconically. "No, I cannot allow such a thing to exist…" lowering his sword slowly, the crimson-haired wanderer closed his eyes and with an open faced palm, delivered a blow to his own temple.

"… Am I missing something?" Nick asked Kaoru as the moment had passed. "Kenshin just hit himself in the head."

Kaoru's eyes were focused on the rooftops. What happened from here depended on the lone samurai on the roof. As Kenshin raised his head, his eyes opened, revealing resolute violet where once was flaring gold.

"So, you have reverted back to the wanderer you once were." Suidras concluded.

"Yes." Kenshin answered. "And it will be my vow that I will find a way to banish you to the gloom from whence you came, Suidras… without hurting Juno." Kenshin swung his sakabato, expelling the blood from its steel shaft .

The demon laughed coldly. "Regrettably, wanderer, as you are now, you will never be able to save your fortuneteller friend." The grin of fangs immediately turned to clenched hatred. "For your attempt to kill me… your city will burn!" With a wave of his hand, several rooftops exploded into flame. Kenshin could not believe the sight of the carnage he saw: the citizens began to flood the streets, screaming in panic for their lives. Down below, Saitou and the others hurried to organize the police officers into chains, passing buckets and pails of water to snuff the flames. Suidras towered over the pyres like an epitome of chaos, laughing diabolically.

"Look at your people, running like ants, Battousai." The tyrant taunted. "They are like sheep, blind to their own stupidity without anyone to rule them. They are fools who deserve their fate, and you shall join them soon after."

All eyes turned towards the inevitable carnage. Suidras swiped towards Kenshin, but a blur was the only thing the demon clenched in his hand.

Kenshin's s god-like speed served well since now he was behind Suidras a good distance. "Looking for someone, monster?"

Suidras snarled in frustration at Kenshin's insult. "If you would like a roast, perhaps I shall let the boy's magic speak for me." The creature gazed into his scarred hand and focused on it, almost instantly, a rock of flaming brimstone appeared. Smiling, Suidras hurled the stone at Kenshin, but the wanderer darted out of the line of sight. The situation turned into a dangerou shooting gallery as Kenshin had a new problem, for each time the brimstone hit the ground, flaming debris scattered all around the ground and the nearby houses. Soon after, the sounds of panic and screams filled the air as the populace dashed out of their ruined homes trying to avoid the searing coals that litteret thier path. Saitou found himself scrambling to take the situation under control. "Everyone! Clear the city as fast as you can!" Soujiro and Misao emerged to lead the panicky citizens away but with the fires burning so fiercely, this would be no easy task. Even with the police

"Do you see it now?" Suidras taunted Kenshin. "With just a sample of the child's magic, I've reduced your people to headless chickens. Imagine if I were to bring my own power to bear? "

"You're sick if you think I'll let you get away with it, demon!" came Kenshin's response. Suidras resumed throwing brimstone, but the wily ruroni was too quick for it to matter. Using his speed to advantage, he dashed up Suidras' arm and struck the creature's head. With a furious growl, Suidras slashed his claw-like nails but felt only the sky being cleaved. His eyes flashing in annoyance, the great demon shifted his gaze in all directions, expecting his tiny opponent to attack again. "… I know you're here, Himura. You can't hide from me forever."

Kaoru found it hard to make her way through the multitude of people flooding the street. They scrambled to the Government offices seeking haven from the nightmarish scene. "Excuse, me. Out of my way, please. Sano! Yahiko! Where are you guys?" Kaoru squeezed herself out of the multitude of people with an unceremonious flop. All she could see through the settling dust were the sight of buildings engulfed in the flames. "This is terrible! And that monster did it on a whim?"

A black blur emerged from the flames. A wispy of thing at first, but Kaoru hurried over and her intuition proved correct. It was Nick was running down the road with staff in hand. "That creature can and did, Kaoru." He said. "And I fear that's just the beginni-hey!"

Kaoru grabbed the sorcerer by his shirt and shook him like a ragged doll. "Did you see Kenshin and the others?"

"I think I saw Yahiko and the others come this way, but for Kenshin-"

"He is deadlocked in battle." An unfriendly voice interrupted from above. Much to the displeasure of the two, Mekros floated down from the sky, a victorious smirk on his now-visible face: proud features, distinguished eyebrows, and a short brown beard, with lips curved in a grin. "With Suidras, to be precise."

"And just what do you want now?" Nick frowned

"To finish my business with you, Young Blackwyvern." Mekros reached behind his back and drew out an eerie trident from out nowhere.

Kaoru did not like the way this was going so she took out her bokuto. "What will it take for you to leave us alone? Haven't you done enough damage tonight?"

Mekros chuckled a low laugh. "Hardly. But if you've had enough, I shall indulge the both of you a swift death."

"I don't think so!" Nick objected, he whipped his right arm like a rifle towards Mekros and shot a firebolt out from his palm. Mekros' form became a wisp before the missile could hit anything tangible. The warlock reappeared at the far end of the street.

"You haven't learned much if that's your strategy." Mekros walked towards his target for a bit and then began to charge with the trident poised to attack. "I'll send you to your ancestors in hell!"

With the line of contact growing thin, Nick instinctively shoved Kaoru out of the way and held ready his staff. Jus as the points of Mekros weapon became visible, Nick swung his weapon upwards, diverting the trident upwards. Then he spun on his heel and swung a mighty blow to the warlock's ribs. Mekros snarled as he stabbed his weapon towards his younger adversary, but Nick was ready: his block had caught two prongs of Mekros' trident in his staff, he quickly wrenched the weapon out of the warlock's hands and tossed it to the side..

Kaoru was watching from the sidelines watching the battle for a moment. It seemed that the battle, in spite of one weapon lost, was too unpredictable to call.

"Do I detect sudden motivation within you?" Mekros asked surreptitiously.

"You messed with my family for the last time." Nick growled. "What more reason to be rid of you than that?"

Mekros looked around the streets with a casual glance. "If only it were that simple. But I am not the same fool you bested on that day."

"In what way?" The younger sorcerer asked. "All I know is you've got a bigger mouth."

"You know well the laws behind this ritual?" Mekros asked but received no answer. "No? Allow me to explain : Whenever the ritual, the supernatural being is required to grant a boon to the one who summoned him from the world beyond."

Kaoru was not liking the way this was going at all. Nick took a quick glance at the warlock. "All that trouble to replace that hand of yours? Pretty worthless trade."

Mekros began to laugh at this quip. "Not just that, you fool." He looked at his cold metallic hand as it trembled in recrimination. "This hand is the seal of the bargain I made with Suidras, even before I plotted this grand scheme. "And with its power, I have been given what I did not have on that day…."

Black smoke began to whisp around Mekro's body, until he was completely dark. Topaz eyes glared at the sorcerer and assistant master with a glint of anticipation. A strange tendril reared out of the void, crackling and hardening into a large scorpion's tail. then a pair of wings pertruded from the mist accompanied by the sounds of several creatures growling.

"What is that?" Kaoru asked nervously.

"Whatever that is... it's not good..." Nick answered.

Whew! Another chapter done. This one kinda took me a while. Usually, I'd put down a trailer for what will happen next time, but I don't want to spoil what happens. Another writer's block dilemma. The battle continues on the next chapter of KDI: "Concerto of Chaos part 2- Raindrops of Sorrow".

Right now I'm happy and very annoyed. I just checked my e-mail and the number of useless spam that's going around is really getting on my nerves. If I find out who those guys are, I'll personally rip off thier arms and beat them stupid. Good new though, I'm gradually working of my writer's block... if very slowly.

I don't know what else to say except that I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I've been pretty busy for a while so I'm afraid I have no real excuse for taking so long to update. Gommen nassai, folks. If you feel like leaving a review, I would appreciate some on the way out.

Next up, I'm planning on continuing my comedy fics: Some more RK Whose Line madness, and my Monty Python MMX fic. Don't know when I'll get started, but I promise you more fanfiction havoc in the future. Ja ne!