Now, on to chapter three:
Cruising down the winding road at an already breakneck speed, Ginji's breath hitched momentarily, and suddenly their velocity rose another 20 or so kilometers per hour. Fighting the urge to cling to anything that might offer purchase, Shido glanced over. "Ginji--"
"Ban-chan...Ban-chan needs me." Brown eyes narrowing further, he hunched forward over the steering wheel as if with will alone he could propel them even faster. "Right now!"
Shido, eyes wandering momentarily, found himself quickly looking away, realizing he had no desire whatsoever to know what the speedometer currently read. Gaze falling instead on the scenery as it sped past, he noted the decrease of houses on either side, replaced by dense woods. After a few minutes, a fence came into view, changing shortly into a tall wall, barbs running along its top, just as the birds had reported.
"I think that's the place."
With a wordless nod, Ginji gave the steering wheel a sharp wrench, whipping the car around fast enough that Shido was positive only two tires remained in contact with the road, sending them careening down a narrow drive Shido hadn't noticed. The brakes were applied with sudden intensity, jerking the car to a halt and giving the beast master much cause to be thankful for the invention of seatbelts.
Before them stood a large gate, barred. One look from Ginji as he scrambled from the car, slamming the door behind him, told Shido that either the owners would open it or they would shortly find themselves one gate short. And possibly a good chunk of the wall would be gone as well.
Walking directly up to the small camera placed to survey visitors, Ginji spoke, voice low. "You will give me Ban-chan."
It took a moment before the intercom crackled to life. "I'm afraid you'll have to leave."
To anyone watching, the sudden illumination emanating from Ginji's skin, along with the random crackles of electricity zapping the air, should have been a good indication that that was the wrong answer.
"I want Ban-chan. Now!"
Shido was having a hard time fighting every natural instinct screaming at him to flee. From what he could tell, every other animal within a mile radius had already had the good sense to do so….except for the idiots behind the gate.
The speaker gave a burst of static and then, "This is private property. If you will not leave then you will be forcibly—"
The obvious conclusion to the warning was cut off as the intercom blew apart, sparks flying everywhere. A moment later, the gate followed. Beyond the gaping hole, guards could be seen rushing forwards, weapons hastily being readied.
Shido took a deep breath, glanced once at Ginji, who had already begun to stroll forward, expression mostly obscured by the electricity emanating from him, then dove through the opening after his former leader.
****
Ban came awake with a gasp. "Ginji!" The single word echoed in the empty room. Ginji...trouble, needed him. Raitei... His thoughts all jumbled, Ban struggled to rise. Achieving a sitting position, he swung his legs over the side of the bed. Forced to pause a moment to catch his breath, disregarding how his vision swam, he took stock of his current situation.
He was in a small room, empty except for the bed and night stand, a glass of water left on top of the latter. Leaning over, Ban reached for it, trying to ignore his inability to keep his hands from shaking. Managing to spill only a few drops, he finished it in one gulp.
It occurred to Ban to wonder how long he had been out. His shirt had been removed, and someone had bandaged him up, the binding pulling painfully against the wound as he drew another deep breath. Well, at least he wouldn't be bleeding all over the place.
Glancing around, he spotted his shirt tossed over the foot of the bed. Still wet; couldn't have been too long then. Struggling into it, he frowned at the large red-brown stain. That would be a bitch to get out, but it wasn't like he could afford another shirt any time soon. Especially not with the hospital bill they might be looking at once he made it out of this mess. Speaking of...
With a curse, Ban hoisted himself up and managed the few shaky steps to the door. Trying the handle, he found it locked. Big surprise. Using the wall as a brace, he steeled himself. With all the force he could muster applied to it, the lock strained for a second, then gave all at once, metal screws breaking with an audible snap at his pressure
On silent hinges, the door swung open. Taking a final moment to gather what remaining strength he could, Ban pushed himself off the wall. Peering cautiously into the hall, he took note of the overturned chair. Whoever had been left to guard him had obviously vacated his post in a hurry.
Cocking his head, Ban heard the sound ofgunfire, punctuated by faint shouts coming from down the corridor off to his right. Not surprising, considering that was the same direction he felt Ginji's presence. Or rather Raitei's… not fully one or the other yet; there was still time. But he could feel his friend slipping fast.
"Baka," he muttered under his breath. The damn idiot really needed some anger management skills. Losing oneself to Raitei every time the situation got a little out of hand was simply not a solution.
Anger and worry fueled him on. Using the wall as a crutch, Ban hurried in the direction of his friend as fast as possible, trying to ignore how his vision blurred, how much his side hurt, how with every passing second Ginji's essence seemed to be growing more and more dim.
As he rounded a bend, the sounds of combat increased dramatically in level. Down the short passage, the far doors were open. From the sudden bursts of bluish light casting strange patterns on the walls, it was no mystery who fought within.
Staggering the last few feet, wishing his lungs would cooperate better, Ban passed through the doorway. He found himself on a balcony overlooking the foyer, eyes widening slightly at the tableau laid out below him.
Over two stories tall, the entrance hall's tasteful decor, done in the western style, with matching statuary and adornments, spoke of decadence and wealth. Or at least it had until roughly ten minutes ago.
The glass ceiling was shattered, shards strewn everywhere, opening the room to the elements. The rain, which apparently had not let up, was now soaking everything in sight, large puddles gathering everywhere. The matching statues along either wall were mostly smashed. Even as Ban watched, a random lightning bolt struck another, exploding the elegantly carved head, sending chunks of marble everywhere. The man using said statue for cover cried out, thrown back by the blast.
Ginji—no, Raitei—stood in the middle of the ruin, lit up like the world's brightest Christmas tree. Surrounding him, though all were maintaining their distance, were Nannamae's men, crouched and squeezed behind whatever cover they could find. The gunfire was continuous, every suited figure taking shots whenever possible. None of them seemed daunted by the obvious fact that not a single bullet was even coming close to its target.
Another scream echoed about the room as Raitei blasted a pillar concealing two more men. Both dove for new shelter. Only one made it, a stray bullet striking the other, sending him crashing to the ground. He lay where he fell, unmoving. He was not the first.
Ban felt the hairs on his arms and neck rise as the ambient power in the room abruptly spiked. With a sizzle, the electricity around Ginji swirled, wrenching every gun from its owner's hand, spiraling them together into a steel tornado. The weapons themselves were suddenly deadly projectiles, bouncing off statues, walls, stairs, people, borne by the power of Raitei's wrath.
As quickly as it began, the metal storm died down, crashes and clangs resounding as guns fell to the floor, the stairs...embedded themselves into walls. Glancing up, Ban's eyes fell on a pistol, muzzle buried four inches into the wood above his head.
"Kuso," he swore, realizing the situation was getting too far out of hand. As many men as had been felled by the onslaught of their own guns, there were still a handful left standing, all quickly grabbing up their fallen firearms. And more were filing through the doors, diving for cover even as they entered.
How many henchmen did this bastard have that he could afford to throw away this many? Not that Ban particularly cared. Stopping Raitei was what mattered. The problem was, factoring in his current state, Ban was at a loss as to how to reach Ginji over all the racket. Calming Raitei was hard enough, and Ban wasn't really up to getting stabbed through again. And that was relying on the notion that he could even manage the approach to his partner… which he highly doubted, seeing that the room kept spinning and his knees were threatening to give out on him.
Damn blood loss. He needed to be lightheaded like he needed a hole in the head—or in the side, which is what he had. Didn't need that much either, and…whoa. The room did a nice toopsy turvy, and he found himself clutching the doorway, knuckles white with the strain of holding himself upright.
Ginji, he told himself. Ginji was top priority; he couldn't pass out. His body seemed inclined to argue that. Momentarily distracted by the internal debate, it took Ban a second to realize he was no longer alone.
Three more of Nannamae's men burst in from the balcony's far door, guns ready in hand, with the obvious intention of using the balcony's vantage to acquire a better shot. Thankfully they were no more expecting to see him than he them, so his temporary lapse in awareness did not cost him too much.
Taking a deep breath, he prepared the Jagan. He was fairly sure none of them had been in the room when he used it earlier. At least he hoped not… just as he was hoping he had enough energy left to actually pull this off. One of them met his eyes, now the other, and…
A dark shape pounced them from behind, two falling before they even had a chance to move. In a blur, their attacker spun, felling the third man even as he turned from firing at Raitei. Too slow, he too went down. Ban could not help feeling a small wave of relief as he recognized who had come to his aide. Not that he would ever admit it.
"Hey, Monkey Trainer, whatcha doing letting him get like that," Ban called out, one arm waving vaguely towards the continuing spectacle below. Whipping around, Shido's eyes met his, narrowed.
"Well, snake-bastard, as his partner and the cause of all this, why aren't you doing something to stop him?"
The glaring match went on for a few seconds, until Ban got the annoying feeling he was losing. It wasn't easy to win such a contest against three...no, they were starting to blur into four people. Giving it up as a lost cause, Ban closed his eyes, focusing for a moment on the simple act of breathing. He refused to pass out in front of Shido...again. It just was not going to happen.
"Midou...?" Ban's eyes snapped open. The beast master's gaze no longer rested on his face, aimed instead at Ban's side. More specifically, on the dried, rust-colored stain...and the fresher, growing, crimson one. Damn, blood was seeping even through the recently done dressings. They must not have done a very good job. He would have to file a complaint with Nannamae's medical staff later.
Shido opened his mouth to say something more, but Ban cut him off. "We need to stop Raitei. Now."
"Suggestions?"
"If I could just get his attention..." Squeezing his eyes shut once again, Ban tilted his head back with the sinking feeling that the wall was the only thing keeping him vaguely upright. It was becoming decidedly difficult to concentrate. Someone was talking. Shido. Have to listen, have to focus. Just a little longer.
"…could possibly distract them. For a few seconds at least. Would that be enough?… Midou?"
"Yeah. Sure, whatever," he ground out. Eyes peeling open, Ban levered himself off the wall, swaying as he did so. But he jerked away from the offered hand, glaring. "If you're gonna do something, monkey trainer, hurry up about it."
Grimacing, Shido brought two fingers to his mouth, letting out a loud, piercing whistle. Only a few seconds later, Ban could hear it, even over the gun fire—the sound of thousands of wings flapping, the echo of birds' caws.
They descended through the ceiling, a black cloud of dark, fluttering shapes. Soaring over everyone's heads, they circled once, twice. The gun fire ceased as men ducked the onslaught of birds. With one more pass, they landed, covering every surface that would offer purchase.
In the sudden, momentary quiet, Ban took a few steps forward, far enough to be clearly visible from the ground level. "Oi, Ginji, what the hell do you think you're doing?!"
Very slowly, Raitei turned, the air crackling with the motion. Ban was seriously starting to regret leaving the support of the wall as his knees began to buckle. His vision swam, and his side burned, but it didn't matter. All that mattered was holding that gaze, stilling Raitei long enough that Ginji could once more surface.
He could hear some of the men shifting. It was too much to ask for them not to do anything stupid. But if they could just prolong their stupidity, remain idle for a few seconds longer. A hint of warm familiar brown was starting to show in the too-bright eyes, and the ambient energy of the room was decreasing. If the men would hold on a moment longer, if Ban could just hold on a moment longer…
"Ban...chan?"
Ban released a breath he had not realized he had been holding. And then he was falling, vision going dim. Strong, gentle hands caught him, lowering him to the ground. Gloved hands.
"Ban-chan!"
To be continued
Oh, and much thanks to stitcher2ficcer for doing beta for me on this part...my normal beta (ie Xparrot, aka my neechan) happens to be preoccupied writing One Piece fic...at my daily insistent bugging and begging err... so really I can't complain. Anyway, much thanks sticher2ficcer and much thanks to anyone still sticking around to read this thing...