Chapter Three-
Onyx was the stone that was used to build the dark lord's castle. It was huge; a labyrinth of halls and dungeons and quarters, and what was really gorgeous about it was that it gleamed as beautifully in the moonlight as it sparkled in the sun. It was in the center of a thick patch of forest in Makai. And it suited his needs dutifully. To be hidden from public view, but in a place open enough where he could run in his full demon form and hunt. Close enough to a village that supplies were easy to retrieve, yet far enough so that if the demons in the village came looking for him, they would give up before they got within ten miles.
This was why Sakai had chosen this castle. But it oddly reflected his personality, as well, and the home and master were a perfect blend of dark and cold. Then there were the basement's dungeons, which were possibly the coldest of them all, and a bunch of Sakai's more civil servants were gathered at the top of the staircase that led down to the basement, glancing at each other worriedly as the screams and dull pounds could be heard echoing up from one of the dungeons.
The master had brought back with him a young girl, that he claimed had Youko Kurama's scent on her. He'd assumed she was Youko's mate, and Sakai had sent one of his underlings to go entertain the demon and his little friends while he stole the girl away. They hadn't been able to guess why. Upon his return home he'd taken her down to the basement, and hadn't returned since. It had been several hours, yet still, the servants could hear cries of pain.
They weren't sure whether he was beating the child or raping her. Although rape wasn't really Sakai's style, he was so unpredictable that his resolve wasn't easy to figure out, and he had been petting the girl quite fondly, calling her a 'rare treasure'. They prayed he was only beating her.
Finally, the cries stopped, and the servants looked at each other, scattering quickly to return to their posts as they heard a dungeon door open, then close again. He hadn't raped her, they assumed---he hadn't given himself much time to clean up if he had. And Sakai only cleaned up if he assaulted a girl that way.
Sakai came up the stairs, covered in blood. He was currently inhaling the sweet scent of the blood of Youko's young wildflower. She was truly a treat. With every blow he'd laid on her, more blood had flowed from a wound he'd inflicted before. It just made him keep going. The demon in him would not allow him to simply leave her alone. Now, he feared he may have killed her. She'd been strong; stronger than most human girls. But finally, she'd fallen still. As he thought about it, he called out, "Akira!"
At his request, a short female demon with light bluish-green eyes and light blue hair pulled into two separate buns on each side of her head, and wearing a black cape and kimono with blood red roses decorating the sash and collar, came bounding from her chores to him. "Yes, my Lord?" she asked quietly, a shy young demon with the ability to manipulate the mind.
"There will be people coming for our guest...make sure they do not get to her. And while you're at it, watch over her for me, but do not heal her! Just make sure she lives long enough for Yusuke Urameshi to see her die," Sakai commanded. Akira nodded, bowing low to her master.
"I'll send Kasu and Natsu to meet them, and I'll tend to her straight away, my Lord," she said obediently. He smirked at her, laying a bloody hand on her head for a moment, and she tried to cringe and shrink away, waiting patiently until he drew his hand away and walked past her, to go about his business. She waited until he'd rounded the corner---and flew down the stairs, into the dungeon which she knew Asa was in.
The girl lay on the floor, huddled in the back corner. As Akira drew near, she saw that Asa was unconscious, and lying in a puddle of her own blood. The servants had assumed correctly---although brutally beaten, she had not been molested; her clothes were still in place, though tattered and bloodstained. Akira allowed herself to heave a sigh of pure relief, and went to the child's side. Though she appeared young, the apparition was almost three hundred years old, and had been with Sakai since birth. She knew quite well how cruel he was, but wasn't strong enough to actually put her foot down and do something about it---and he was too stubborn to actually listen to any pleads she made to him to give mercy.
Asa recoiled when Akira laid a hand on her arm, and the blue-haired girl frowned, knowing the reason. Her arm was broken, shattered, it appeared. She assessed the other injuries inflicted upon the young girl with a sweep over of her eyes. Cuts, bruises, enough to bring pain to the dead, maybe a fracture here or there, definitely a couple cracked ribs, her broken arm, of course, and it looked like she'd twisted her ankle, for it hung as if pained over her other. Blood was running in rivulets down a deep gash on her forehead, and although Akira was no doctor, she knew that the gash would require stitches, if Sakai were to allow anyone to do it.
"You poor child..." Akira breathed, taking off her cape to cover the girl with it, offering the only comfort she knew how. Sakai had ordered her to keep the girl alive long enough for his enemies to watch her suffer and die. How could she do that? The girl was barely alive as it was.
Something sparked in Akira's eyes, and she stood slowly, not bothering to remove her cape from covering the poor, quivering child that lay bleeding and knocked out on the floor. She would live, yes. Akira was sure of that. From what she'd seen of Sakai's victims after he'd destroyed them, very few survived long enough to be checked on. This girl had survived, despite being young and looking quite frail, almost like a twig that could be broken with just the right amount of pressure applied. Indeed, she would live.
But what would she do about Kasumi and Natsumi, the twin demons that she was about to send after Yusuke Urameshi, Hiei Jiganshi, Youko Kurama, and Kazuma Kuwabara? She certainly wouldn't want them dead if she wanted them to save this girl. Startled, she realized that it was her intent to do just that; save Asa. Why? Because she was sick of cleaning up after Sakai, finding all the poor, hopeless-looking creatures that he left in his wake of violence. Because she hated him; he'd murdered her human grandmother, and stolen her mother from her home, just as he had many of his other slaves. Because this girl was pure, and innocent---a wildflower blooming within an angel. And Akira would not let her die.
She went to fetch Natsumi and Kasumi quickly.
The twin demons, one a water demon, one an earth demon, were in their usual spot, in the courtyard that rested at the center of Sakai's domain. Natsumi, the water demon, wore a baby blue kimono with a white sash and a white ribbon holding her dark brown hair up in a pony tail. Green and pink flowers decorated the sash, and sleeves of the kimono she wore. One green eye and one blue eye watched her twin sister from where she sat on the edge of the fountain that was in the courtyard.
Her sister, Kasumi, had the same dark brown hair, and one green eye, but her other was brown. She wore a dark green kimono with a jade sash and ribbon that held her longer hair in a braid, which went down her back. There were only a few differences between the otherwise identical twins; Natsumi's hair was shorter, their right eyes were both different colors, Kasumi had a scar on her cheek in the shape of a star, and each had their own weapon---Natsumi carried a katana on her back and two razor-sharp fans tucked into her belt, while Kasumi had a staff strapped to her back, with a dagger tied to her ankle.
The twins both looked at the doorway leading from the courtyard when Akira cleared her throat, acknowledging her presence. "Kasu, Natsu," she spoke clearly, her aquamarine eyes lighting up, "Lord Sakai requests that you provide entertainment for some guests that are to arrive shortly. They are led by the Spirit Detective, and Youko Kurama as well as Hiei Jiganshi are among them."
Natsumi and Kasumi exchanged a glance, and nodded in unison. "We will go," Natsumi said.
"But there is something else you wish for us to do," Kasumi finished. ((You know, I know a couple of twins who actually do that. It's creepy.))
"Hai, you are correct," Akira nodded. She proceeded to tell them her plan, cautiously and in a voice no higher than a whisper, not knowing who could be watching, or listening...
-
Ogres were running around the office so fast that they could have easily been sued for whiplash. Kurama was becoming impatient, while they--- 'they' being himself, Yusuke, Hiei, Kuwabara, Botan, Keiko, Yukina, and Shizuru---waited for Koenma to tell them where Sakai the Shadow Master dwelled.
At first, he'd taken them all for crazy. Said something like the Shadow Master Sakai had disappeared. He had disappeared, yes. History took him with it when he won one of the very first Dark Tournaments. His prize had been the Onyx Castle that he'd cherished so deeply. But he'd disappeared shortly after he'd laid claim to the castle. At least, as records showed. The truth was, Koenma's team of trackers had simply stopped keeping an eye on him, and no one bothered to look for him, for the forest his onyx castle was in was like a huge maze, and they'd either give up or return and get lost in the forest, never to be seen again.
Any good demon knew, as Hiei and Kurama both had, that Sakai was merely hiding. He had very little reason to get involved in human affairs, except to take the occasional innocent and do who-knows-what do them. Kurama almost bit his lip as he envisioned all the things a cold-hearted demon would do to someone as pure as Asa was. He berated himself silently. He couldn't allow himself to summon up a picture of her right now. It would distract him.
Koenma was currently pacing on his desk, scattering papers all over the place, and Yusuke was clearly becoming as impatient as Kurama was. The detective was leaning against the wall, where Hiei was usually seen, with his arms crossed and his foot tapping, eyes darting around at every ogre that came into the room, then scowling at them as they left without a word about Asa. Hiei was leaning against the armchair that Botan sat in. Kurama noticed that he would glance at the deity and offer a somewhat comforting smirk every now and then, as Botan had been crying for quite some time, worried about the fate of their young friend.
Yukina and Keiko were trying to be the optimists. Although worried, they were both assured that the boys would save Asa, hands down. No questions asked. Shizuru was currently occupied with sighing and staring at the ceiling, mumbling every now and then about how stupid her brother had been in merely letting a girl Asa's age to walk home alone. Kuwabara kept glowering at his sister for every comment that echoed from her mouth, then glancing meaningfully at Kurama, as if to apologize for his sister's pessimistic attitude.
Kurama sighed, rather loudly, and turned to Koenma expectantly, quirking an eyebrow and ignoring the attention drawn his way by his action. Koenma merely shrugged his shoulders, "I'm sorry, Kurama, until someone brings me the information, I cannot tell you where in Makai to look for the girl! You all should have known not to let yourselves befriend an innocent, anyway! I was against Keiko and Shizuru knowing!"
"But Asa doesn't know anything," Yusuke growled. "She's just a kid. Why would anyone wanna take her? It's stupid."
"It may be stupid, Yusuke, but there's no need to take it out on me." Koenma turned sharply when a pale, dark-haired woman appeared through the wall. ((A/N: If you know the woman I'm talking about, do you know her name? I was clueless after I saw her right after the Dark Tournament ended. I kept thinking, "WHO THE BLOODY?!"))
"Koenma, sir, we've found the location you requested," she spoke softly. Koenma nodded, and she handed him a sheet of paper, that looked suspiciously like a map.
"Thank you..." he spoke, glancing at her meaningfully. She nodded, and left the way she came. He glanced over the paper, ignoring the intense stares he was getting from the others, and mumbling random things to himself that were unintelligible. Finally, he looked up, eyes landing on Kurama. "She's in Makai. Here," he said, holding out the paper toward the fox demon. He stood swiftly, and took it, looking down at it with narrowed eyes. "I imagine you'll need Botan to go with you, since she can fly over the forest. The girls can stay here until you get back, to keep them safe," he added, looking at Yukina, Keiko, and Shizuru meaningfully before they said anything to disagree, "Yukina, you'd better go to Genkai's and tell her to be expecting a visitor for awhile...I don't doubt that, if Sakai really does have this Asa Ichazuki, she'll be in quite a condition."
"I'll go right away," Yukina said softly, standing and bowing to them. She exited to the door to the right, while Yusuke turned around to the door beside him, opening it for the others to file through.
When they did, Koenma sighed, "Good luck, you all. And God speed."
-
The portal from Koenma's had sent them into a strange green forest, that had paths running through it, obviously a maze. Botan had her oar ready to fly over the forest and tell them which way to go, but Yusuke hesitated to let her go on her own.
"Maybe someone should go with you...from what Koenma, Hiei, and Kurama said, this guy's not really someone to be trifled with."
"Did you just say 'trifled'?" Botan asked, bewildered by the sudden vocabulary.
"Yeah---that's a word, right?" ((A/N: I don't own the Drake and Josh show or whatever it's called. My sister loves it, though, and I was watching it with her (she thinks the one guy's cute) yesterday, and the guy she thinks is cute said that. It was really funny. So, sorry Nickelodeon, may I be forevermore humble!))
"Um..."
"Hiei can go with her," Kurama said, taking full advantage of this opportunity. Hiei and Botan both threw him strange looks, and he explained, "She'll be safest with him, anyway. We could send Kuwabara, but I'm afraid he'd probably try to woo her the whole time."
"I'll go," Hiei said suddenly, eyeing Kuwabara suspiciously. Kurama held back his smile at the action.
"Fine, then, you two get going," Yusuke said in approval. Botan climbed onto her oar, and Hiei begrudgingly sat behind her.
"Hold on!" she warned, taking off at the speed of light. The three left on the ground could have sworn they heard Hiei yelling curses that would have moved the dead as he grabbed onto Botan's waist, but they let it slide.
"Well, this is boring," Yusuke sighed, blinking lazily at the paths ahead of them. They were standing right in front of a three-way fork, and since they didn't know which way to go, they had little choice but to wait until Botan communicated with them through the 'compact-looking thing', as it had been nicknamed by Keiko.
"I fear that this is just the calm before the storm...someone must be awaiting us. It wouldn't make sense for Sakai to simply think that we would leave Asa to die," Kurama commented.
"You worry too much, Kurama!" Kuwabara cried suddenly, "I'm sure your little miss is just waiting for you to come and pick her up---knowing her, she's probably running the entire castle by now!"
Kurama smiled gently in amusement, knowing that Kuwabara was trying to lighten the mood, and he was right about Asa---she wasn't one to be kidnapped and held without much of a fight, but no matter how much she would fight, he doubted she was strong enough to do all Kuwabara claimed. She was as frail as a piece of glass, and she always had been. It was why he worked so hard to protect her, because he knew that if he didn't, not many others would. She didn't have many friends outside the Reikai Tantei, Keiko, Botan, Yukina, Shizuru, a girl in her class by the name of Umi, and her teachers. In fact, she had no other friends at all.
Kurama was shaken from his silent contemplation by Botan's voice cutting through the communicator in Yusuke's hand, "Yusuke, guess what?!"
"You've found a path?"
"Bingo! We've found a path---that doesn't lead to a dead end, surprisingly!"
"Cool, which way?" Yusuke asked, cocking an eyebrow at the three roads ahead of him.
"Take the path directly ahead of you," Botan commanded. Yusuke and Kurama exchanged a look, and nodded, running down the path specified by the blue-haired deity. Kuwabara was left in the rear, yelling after them about going a little slower.
But Yusuke and Kurama both knew that they didn't have time to go any slower. Every second they wasted could be a second closer to Asa's demise. They didn't know why Sakai had taken the girl, but when they found him, they would be sure to find out.
- - - - -
Whoa. I actually got this story to twenty-two pages long! Go me! Yay! ((does a little victory dance))
Hiei- What are you doing, onna?!
...Oh, you're still here, are ya? Too bad.
Kurama- What do you have planned for the next chapter, Meka-chan?
Wouldn't you like to know??
Kurama- ((sad puppy dog face))
Okay, okay! Don't DO that! It's enough to make ME sad! And THAT, my friend, is saying something. Well, let's see...((looks down on her To-Do list)) ...mumble mumble...soul stealing...mumble mumble...Kurama kicking ass...mumble mumble... collaboration...what's THAT doing there...? ...Hm...well, it'll be interesting...heh, the twins...they crack me up...creepy...right...
Kurama- That tells me NOTHING.
...Your point?
