It's been way too long since I've updates this. I'm so sorry. I'll try to never let that happen again ok? And for all those who also read my other story, Escaping Expectations, the next chapter is halfway done so it'll be up hopefully pretty soon. Please be patient with me everyone!

Chapter Eight: The Master

It had been a week since Daisuke had been left with the Neshi. (A/N: I will be calling the Neshizumaru "Neshi" as well. Neshizumaru is just too long to write/type. And yes, I am lazy.) They had taken him to what they called a "safe house." It was a lot like Dark and Krad's house, only darker. While Dark's house was white and clean, this place was painted gray, which made it seem even dirtier then it already was.

Dai had pretty much been left alone. He was given a small room with a bed and told to stay out of the way and keep quiet. Daisuke was afraid of the Neshi, so he did what he was told without question. He was allowed out of his room to use the bathroom and eat meals, but otherwise was trapped in there.

It was a good thing then, that there were so many books lying around. It gave him something to do to pass the time. Since he had nothing better to do, he would sit and read. As a result, Daisuke learned a lot about the history of the magical world and more. Even though it was hard reading, the books were all made for adults understanding, Daisuke enjoyed himself.

Since the books were for adults, there were many words Daisuke didn't know. He had worked up the courage to ask for some paper and pencil, which the Neshi had reluctantly given to him. Daisuke had started writing down all the words he didn't know. He was planning on asking Dark what they meant the next time he saw him. After all, Dark had said he would see him again soon.

Daisuke was sure it was only a matter of time before his friends came to see him.

Daisuke was in his room all alone, again. He was starting to really get depressed. He spent everyday alone, he went to sleep by himself, and woke up by himself and even if he did see anyone, it was only the Neshi, who completely ignored him.

The Neshi had just given him his dinner in his room. When Daisuke had asked why, they had merely said to stay in his room and not make any noise. Daisuke sighed as he took the food and sat down on his bed. He liked getting out of his room, even if it was only for a few minutes and a silent meal.

Daisuke sat on his bed and lay back, putting his food on his lap. He picked up the book that he had been reading earlier and started where he left off. Daisuke picked at his food while reading and reached for his drink. He lifted the glass of milk up and sipped, still reading, and then spit it out in a spray of milk. Daisuke re-read the last entry, just to make sure he had gotten it right.

The last great family of the days before the council is that of the Hikari. The Hikari have been one of the most powerful families for over 5000 years and is one of the first families to have shown signs of magical talent. The Hikari founded the Raikou Kingdom, which is still powerful and standing even today. The current ruler is Duke Celest. The youngest child of the Hikari line, Satoshi Hikari, is expected to take over on his 18 birthday. Satoshi is currently leader of the famous Wing Masters.

Daisuke stopped reading and blinked in surprise. He had never known Satoshi was so important. Or that he was royalty; he acted just like everyone else, if not a little cold. He hadn't even thought he was in charge of the Wing Masters. They all seemed to jointly decide what was going to happen.

The Wing Masters are a group of three that serves the council. The other two members are Krad Hikari and Dark Mousey. Krad Hikari is cousin to Prince Satoshi. He is also the wielder of the KajiRetsu and a half-demon. Dark Mousey's origins are unknown as is the full extent of his magical power.

What the book said about Dark and Krad was interesting as well. Daisuke had no idea what a KajiRetsu was, but he figured it must be powerful if it got mentioned. He made a note to see if any of the books in the room had information on it. What the book had said about Dark had made Daisuke sad. He knew Dark didn't know his heritage, but to see it in writing…Daisuke had the feeling that Dark wouldn't like people knowing he didn't have a heritage.

Daisuke sighed; the small passage had given him a lot to think about. The red-head put his empty tray on the floor and closed the book, hiding it under his pillow. He pulled the blankets over his head and was asleep within minutes.

This would be his last decent sleep in many days to come.

Dark was lying with his head in Krad's lap, staring at the TV but not really seeing it. His eyes were glazed over and his mind was wandering. He didn't hear Krad ask him a question or answer him when he called. Krad sighed at the dark haired beauty in his lap. Dark really missed the Host and although Krad would never admit to it, it really hurt him to see Dark so depressed. He missed the energetic pest that would smoother him with kisses and play nasty jokes on Satoshi.

Krad wanted his Dark back.

Satoshi was sitting in the kitchen doing paper work. Krad and Dark were in the other room watching TV. Satoshi usually worked in there but had opted for the kitchen because he couldn't stand Dark's depression. As glad as he was that the kaitou wasn't pestering him, Satoshi was unnerved by the blank look of defeat reflected in Dark's eyes. It was just too strange seeing the happy-go-lucky Dark sad.

Satoshi wanted Daisuke back and, for some ungodly reason, he wanted the annoying Dark back as well.

Dark blinked as he felt warm lips covering his own. He briefly kissed Krad back before lying back down and closing his eyes. Krad frowned at him; Dark must be really upset to not want to make-out.

"Talk to me, koi," Krad spoke. "Tell me what you're thinking."

Dark didn't answer for awhile. "I'm thinking that I miss Dai."

"We all miss him but mopin' around isn't helping anyone," Krad muttered, absently running his hand through Dark's violet hair.

"I know that," Dark sighed. "But there was just something…familiar about him. Like I should remember him from somewhere."

"That's just your imagination," Krad muttered.

"For a while, it felt like he was my little brother," Dark smiled sadly. "And for a while, I believed he was." Krad said nothing, just continued to play with Dark's hair.

It was true though, Dark had acted exactly like an older brother to Daisuke. Teaching him things, explaining things, playing with him, watching out for him, even scolding him when he did something wrong. Somehow, Dark and Daisuke just seemed to fit together, like a glove that was made especially for you hand and your hand only.

Suddenly, Dark sat up and looked over at the blonde. "His parents."

"What?"

"Daisuke's parents," Dark repeated. "They have no idea what's going on. They probably think Daisuke's dead or somethin'." Krad eyes widened slightly; he had completely forgotten about them. The last he'd heard about them was when they had first found Daisuke and the Niwa family appeared on the news, desperately searching for their only child. They had never contacted the parents because the Master might have been monitoring them and somehow managed to get to Daisuke through his family.

Before the blonde could answer though, Satoshi walked into the living room, looking slightly paler then usual.

Krad turned to him, "Satoshi, Dark just remembered that we never told Daisuke's parents what's going on. Do you think it would be safe to inform them now, just so they know that he's ok? Or would the Master still try to go after them?"

Satoshi sighed and took off his glasses. "It doesn't matter anymore if we tell them or not."

"Why?" Dark asked, slightly suspicious at Satoshi's tone of voice.

"Because…" Satoshi took a deep breath. "The Neshizumaru has betrayed the council. They handed Dai over to the Master. The Master now has the Host to the Power completely at his mercy." None of them were surprised.

"Here we go," Krad muttered under his breath.

Daisuke was woken by the leader of the Neshi, Eda, shaking him. For one glorious, sleep induced, moment, Daisuke thought that it was just another day and his mom was coming to wake him for school and none of this had ever happened but been a bad dream.

The he opened his eyes.

Daisuke couldn't help but let a little groan escape his lips as he realized that, indeed, it was not a dream, but reality. The red-head sat up and blearily looked at Eda, confused.

"Get up," the demon leader snapped. "And get changed into something decent." Before Daisuke could say or ask anything, the demon stormed out of the room. The minute the door was shut; he flopped back down on his pillows and was almost asleep again when he heard a loud yell. "NOW!" Daisuke was so startled he fell out of bed, completely awake and scrambled to find some clean clothes.

Daisuke later found himself sitting downstairs on the couch. The Neshi had completely disappeared and the red-head was confused, to say the least. He stood up and walked around, wandering into the kitchen then back upstairs. The house was completely deserted except for him. Suddenly, Daisuke was very scared; he didn't like be all alone. It reminded him of when he was little and had to spend all that time in the hospital. He had been alone then, and he was alone again now.

Daisuke shivered and went back to his room. He grabbed the book he had been reading earlier and went downstairs, hoping in vain that someone would be down there. Daisuke sat on the couch and held the book close to his chest. He was being dumb, Daisuke knew, but somehow, having the book with him made him feel safer. It had mentions of his friends in it, and just remembering that they cared about him made the red-head feel better.

It wasn't long before Daisuke grew tired and lay down on the couch. Why had the Neshizumaru bothered to wake him up if they weren't going anywhere? Now Dai was cranky and scared and lonely; he wished he knew what was going on. Though eventually, the boy's eyes dropped closed and his breathing evened out. Still clutching the book to his chest, Daisuke fell fast asleep.

A loud bang interrupted the red-head's nap. Daisuke sat up and blearily looked around for the source of the commotion. It was coming from the kitchen and Dai, not too smartly, got up to investigate while still half-asleep. He walked in and was amazed at what he saw.

Two of the four Neshizumaru were collapsed on the floor, covered in blood and bruises, the other two stood over them glaring. The two on the floor were Devin and Luke. From what Dai had figured out, they were the weakest of the Neshi but still very powerful all the same. Devin had dark-bluish hair and green eyes while in contrast, Luke had sandy-blonde hair and yellowish eyes. The other two, Eda and Tane, looked like brothers with their matching muscular bodies and ink-black hair. But Eda had black eyes even darker then his hair and Tane purple eyes, like Dark's, only not nearly as beautiful.

As Tane and Eda stood over Devin and Luke, none of them noticed the sleepy red-head watching them. Tane snarled and kicked both of them in the stomach.

"So you would betray us?" Eda hissed dangerously. "All for the life of some human brat?"

"We could care less about that little twerp," Luke snapped. "It is the Power that we fear for." Daisuke cocked his head slightly to the side. What did that mean?

"The Power? Explain," Tane ordered.

"The Master, he will not use it, he will not protect it and cherish it as it is meant to be," Devin muttered.

"He will destroy it then blame it upon the Host. Saying that the child wasn't able to survive and the Power died with him," Luke added. Daisuke's eyes widen. Hang on, he was going to die?

"You lie," Eda growled. "The Master would never destroy something as great as the Power."

"You are just in denial, Eda!" Luke yelled. "Look around you. Look at what the Master has been doing! He will not use the Power; he will destroy it and any who stand in his way." Eda roared and kicked Luke hard; there was a sickening crack as Luke started to cough up blood.

"I refuse to listen to you blasphemy any longer," Eda hissed quietly. "It is time, Luke, that you stopped questioning the Master." He pointed his finger at Luke's throat and Luke's eyes widen.

"You would murder your own brother?" Luke demanded venomously.

"I have no brother," Eda answered. "No brother of mine would betray the one he swore loyalty to." Daisuke, probably for the first time in his life, ignored his curiosity about what was happening and slowly backed away from the kitchen. The second he was out of sight, Daisuke ran out the front the door. He fled away from the house and tore down the street as fast as his little legs could carry him. But he did not get far enough away before he heard a loud scream. Daisuke flinched and kept running, unaware of the tears falling from his cheeks.

Eda stared in anger at the place his brother had been just moments before. Before the final blow could be struck, Devin had grabbed him and teleported them away. It was a stupid move, teleporting yourself was hard enough, teleporting two people was nearly impossible and excruciatingly painful.

Tane sniffed in disgust before turning to Eda. "Let's go, someone will have heard that scream." Eda just glared and followed Tane. They entered the living room, expecting to see the Host sleeping on the couch still; but they were sorely disappointed. The Host was gone, and looking at the wide open front door, the two demons cursed and fled the house in search of the Host.

Daisuke had managed to keep himself going for about three hours before finally collapsing from exhaustion. The Neshi lived in the center of a forest, which Daisuke was starting to believe, had no end. He'd been running in circles for hours and his stomach growled at him, reminding the child he hadn't eaten at all that day. Daisuke curled his knees to his chest and put his head down, trying not cry and not having much luck.

How could someone be so cruel as to kill another person? And their brother, no less! Dark had said that most demons were cruel and unforgiving creatures, but not all. He had said that demons were just like humans, they had many types of people and values, beliefs and morals. Granted, there were more evil demons then evil people, but that was just their nature. Just like humans, demons had the potential to be good or bad; it all just depended on thousands of variables that no one could control.

It was then that Daisuke noticed something hard sticking into his stomach. Leaning back, the red-head chuckled a little as he saw that he was still caring his book. Daisuke was amused, that even after everything that had happened; he still carried the large leather bound book. Getting his second wind, Daisuke stood up and started walking. He had to find a way out of this forest and soon, he felt like he would go crazy if he didn't.

Four hours later, Daisuke was ready to give up. He was tired, hungry, lost, alone and really scared. He wanted nothing more then to sit down and go to sleep. But as much as he wanted it, the red-head pushed forward. He didn't know why, but he had the strange feeling of being followed. This feeling would only intensify when he stopped so Daisuke kept going despite his exhaustion.

He lasted another two hours before collapsing.

When Daisuke's body finally gave out on him, he crumbled to the forest floor. Curling up into a ball, while still holding his book, Daisuke began to drift off to sleep. The feeling of being stalked grew, but Daisuke was too tired to do anything about it. So the red-head just lay still and hoped he was imaging things.

Too bad everyone knows that when you're hoping for something, you tend to get the exact opposite.

A shuffling behind him had Daisuke frozen in fear. A wet nose nuzzled and pushed at his body as Daisuke slowly turned over. He came face to face with what looked like a very large –and hungry- bear. Daisuke squeaked in fear and scrambled away, remembering too late that he wasn't supposed to run from an animal because the animal always chased after you.

The bear stood on its' hind legs and roared. Daisuke tried to get away but ended up backed into a tree. The bear charged at him and Daisuke screamed, closing his eyes and turning his head away.

A tri-colored light suddenly surrounded Daisuke. As the bear tried to attack him, the light flared up and shot towards the crazed animal. The bear howled in pain as the light surrounded it. It turned and ran off, still growling. Daisuke looked at the light, amazed. It was three colors, blue, violet and gold. As Daisuke reached out to touch it, the light glowed and wrapped itself around his hand. It was warm and friendly feeling and made Daisuke giggle.

Before Daisuke could figure out what was going on, his world went black. Strong hands caught him as he slumped forward, unconscious. Tane and Eda glared at nothing in particular. The display of raw power from such a young child, even the Host, was disturbing. The two demons hoped that their Master knew what he was doing.

When Daisuke woke up, his head was throbbing. He groaned and tried to open his eyes, but they refused to listen. Daisuke suddenly became aware of a something gently stroking his cheek. Daisuke leaned into the warm touched and sighed contentedly. He heard a soft chuckle and finally got his eyes to open.

He was sitting in a large room, all most completely white, save for a light blue carpeting that was tinted white. Daisuke was lying in a huge bed that could easily fit at least four more people, and was covered in white silky sheets. Groaning a little as the light stung his eyes, Daisuke looked over to see who was sitting next to him.

It was a man, who looked very handsome. He had flowing brown hair that was tied up in a ponytail and lying loosely on his neck. His face was somehow shiny and perfect, not a blemish of any kind anywhere. His body was well built and you could see his toned abs through his white shirt. His eyes, now there was something special about his eyes. For try as he might, Daisuke could not say what color they were. It was like every color and every shade had been mixed together. There was perfect balance between them all and no one colored over powered another. In short, his eyes were hypnotizing.

Daisuke blinked curiously up at the man, as he continued to stroke his cheek. Cocking his head slightly, Daisuke tried to speak, but couldn't. Frowning, he tried again, then again, and was becoming slightly more panicked each time he failed. The man chuckled softly at the red-head.

"Don't try to talk," he said in a deep, rich voice that was like velvet. "We had to give you a special drink and it's left your throat a little sore."

Daisuke blinked at him, Special drink?

As if reading his thoughts, the man smiled again. "Yes, your power was getting out of control and we had to give you something to suppress it. Don't worry; it will wear off soon enough." Daisuke nodded, still a little scared, but not as much as before. The man smiled at him again and stopped rubbing his cheek. Daisuke blinked, a little surprised that he hadn't noticed that he was still doing that. For some reason, it had just felt so…right. The red-head shook the thought from his head and looked up expectantly at the man.

Again, it seemed the handsome stranger read his thoughts. "You wish to know who I am." He stated as he walked around the huge bed to the other side. Daisuke tried to sit up but once again his body wouldn't move. He felt cold and started shivering. "My name is Damien." Damien crawled into the bed and under the covers, right next to Daisuke. It was then Daisuke realized he had nothing but his pants on, his shirt was no where to be seen. As Damien scooted closer to him, Daisuke started shaking even harder. Damien smiled a little and pulled Daisuke close to him, resting the red-head against his own muscular chest. Daisuke couldn't move his body and could do nothing to push the other away. "But others have called me Master." Daisuke froze and Damien, a.k.a. the Master, chuckled. "But don't worry little one, you are safe here, with me."

The unspoken "for now" hung heavily in the air as Daisuke was lulled into a terror filled sleep.

Eda- bow

Tane- Seed

A/N: Ah and the long awaited arrival of the Master is finally here. I hope I didn't go to over the top with him. I actually think I did a great job with his character, I was very proud. Some background info on his name, Damien. In the Christian religion he is the devil's son. And since I wanted everything about this guy to be evil, or at least semi-evil, I thought the name suited him. Daisuke's power also went a little crazy there too. But was it the power that everyone talks about…or something else? (Insert cheesy suspense music here.)

Ok, no more ramblings, on to…REVIEWS!!!!!!!!

Keeper of Light- Yes, bad cliffy. Did you like this one more? :p Anywho… Glad you like. As for Minomi getting beat up…well you'll just have to wait and see.

DNAngelLover- Glad you like as well. I've been getting a lot of new reviews lately. I'm sooo happy!!! Have a cookie!

Neko-Salosa- Are they really IC? I tried to make them that way, after all, who am I to mess with perfection, ay? Thanks for reviewing.

Lillith- You appreciate all my hard work? (Makes chibi face) No one has ever said that to me before. (Sniff) I absolutely love you!!! Here, have cookie. In fact, have a whole box of cookies!!! And brownies!

Liliath- I'm sorry!!! I didn't think it was that big of a cliffhanger. But really, how could you not see that coming, Dai being taken from Dark and the others. Ten times? You really like it that much? (Chibi face) Thank-you, oh thank-you!! (Hands three boxes of cookies and homemade brownies) For you! As for Dai being older… I've actually been considering it and I'm not sure if I will or not yet. We'll just have to wait and find out.

Seena58- Ah…please forgive me for updating without ya! I sent my chapter to you and everything, but I know you won't get it till Friday because you're on vacation and the whole computer time-limit thing, and I just really wanted to update this because I was so proud of myself (for once). So please forgive me? I introduced the Master that was good, right? I'm sorry.

SpinningAvia- I did my best to make Dai as cute as a button (weird saying) as I could in this story. As for the Master, he's just going to keep getting worse. I changed the summary slightly and I guess it worked because I'm getting more reviews and new reviewers. So, yay me! Thanks for reading E.E too. Have some… (Checks) um, all out of cookies and brownies at the moment so…have some… ah ha! Fish sticks! They yummy.

FallenAngel0104- Thanks for reviewing, here's your update!

Hikari Fubuki- Bad overgrown slug. Yup, yup, he's stupid. How he ever got put in charge… (Shakes head) What will the Wing Masters do now? Why go and rescue Dai of course! Heh (snickers) but not before making a quick stop somewhere first…heh heh…

Zarame- Thanks for R&R, Daisuke's parents didn't get introduced this chapter but they were mentioned. Don't worry, Emiko is going to have a nice…talk…(cough) with Minomi very soon…

Mergic and Tor- I read your review and laughed. You two people? Or one person with slip personality? I'm glad that you liked it, hope you "squeal like a pansy" for this chapter as well. ☺

RoYale- Ya, this one is kinda suspenseful isn't it? I swear, I didn't mean to make it that way, it just kinda…happened. Well, glad you like E.E. as well, and I'm sorry to disappoint you, but the council will not be getting blown up…anytime soon. (Whistles innocently)

Luna- Eek! Poor Dai! What in the world am I thinking? I should put him back with Dark and Sato and Krad before he gets hurt…right? (Whistles innocently)

xXdark-angelXx- Your review is appreciated, however…I can not answer what will happen to Dai. You'll just have to wait and find out.

NaruNaru.O.K. - Little Dai has gotten into trouble, that's what. Thanks for reviewing.

Ivyking- Glad somebody's not giving me heat for Dark and Krad liking each other. They are all cute aren't they? Thanks for reviewing!

Babymar-mar- As revealed in this chapter, the Neshi are a little more…complicated then just plain old bad guys. As for Krad's little shopping spree, I'm afraid I can't tell you. I will sometime though.

Sheridan- Patience has paid off, here's new chapter for ya. Um… I'm all outta cookies and brownies are gone too…I gave the fish sticks away as well…so…AH! Have steak! I made it myself! And unlike vile cookies that I have to buy…grr…I make really good steak! It's my favorite! So here ya go, and enjoy chapter!!! ☺