War of the Worlds- 2

General notes:

Disclaimer: If I owned Yu Yu Hakusho, I wouldn't be writing fan-fiction. I shouldn't have to say this.

+author's note+

Muse's noteYou know what? This thing doesn't like punctuation, and I don't think there are any muse's notes.

(#) duh, foot note

/thoughts/

"/telepathy/ " Makes sense don' it?

+"speech in another language"+ language will be specified, will be in plain quotes if it is written in that language

Rating- See first chapter. Could be considered R by some people.

hybrid: one who is born part human/Reikai/youkai and part... well you get the picture. because it can't get more complicated that just two sides I'll leave it at that.

(i.e. Yusuke (human-youkai), Hiei is a blend of two youkai races and is also considered a hybrid)

splice: one who was born human/Reikai/Youkai (I suppose they could be a hybrid too) and became another (i.e. Kurama, werewolves, vampires (if they were bitten)). They may consider themselves full one side or the other or may just say that they are a splice but the they are not 1/2 or anything like that.

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Less general notes:

All speech in this chapter is in German ('cause they're in Germany) except when specified.

+"reikai speechi"+

"makai speech"

k. I know that sometimes 'reikai,' 'meikai,' makai,' and 'youkai,' etc. are capital ized and sometimes they aren't. There was a reason for this at one point. I can't remember what it was. I'll figure it out but there is a method to the madness.

………….

Alright, this was ummm… flawed before. So I went back and fixed it as you might see in chap 4.

-end of notes, beginning of story

2. Lowell's Bread

"Rome remained free for four hundred years and Sparta eight hundred, although their citizens were armed all that time; but many other states that have been disarmed have lost their liberties in less than forty years."
- Nicolo Machiavelli

300 years later- 2094

"Danke shen." (1) The girl paid for the bread and walked off.

She looked about 18-22 years old. Her eyes were an odd mix of brown and grey and seemed to toss with the energy and turmoil of a storm. This usually unsettled people so, naturally, she loved to look people in the eye as often as she could afford it. Of coarse, being 6' 3", she always had to look down.

She raked nearly clawed fingers through her roughly shorn, dark-brown hair and cleared the too long bangs from those freakish eyes. Looking around, she noted the reikai guards on various corners. /This is worse than Nazi Poland./ she thought. She would know, having been there. /Stupid World War II. If the damn Allied powers hadn't been so paranoid we wouldn't be in this position./ she though harshly but quickly calmed her thoughts as one of the guards flicked his gaze in her direction.

Since WWII (over 150 years ago), Germany hadn't been allowed to raise a standing army (damn allied powers) and wasn't able to build an army in time to resist the Reikai invasion. Not that the Allied powers and a problem with that. In fear of the youkai, they'd actually asked to ally with the reikai. The U.S. and most of Europe were willingly under reikai control. Central America +including Mexico, Northern Africa an the rest of Europe (namely Germany, Scandinavian and Slavic countries) had all been trampled by the Reikai and was now under it's thumb.

In contrast, Japan had gone with one of its own. It was rumored that the current occupant of the Raizen throne was at least half human from the fair island country. Japan, various South American countries and sub-Saharan Africa had essentially allied themselves with the 'young' demon lord.

The rest of South America, Russia, and oriental Asia had joined with Yomi, Raizen's primary Ally on the Makai end. Kurama and his band were his true confidants though, and anyone with an ear less than eight feet from the ground (and some more) knew it.

The countries of the Middle East had finally stopped fighting each other to take up arms against the invading infidels.

There was much word of unrest within the Reikai itself, especially involving a certain prince. The most interesting development though was in Mukuro's kingdom-well, what was Mukuro's kingdom. It seemed that the empress had met with a rather "unfortunate accident." Of course, suspicions flew to her heir, Hiei.

Now this particular girl had had some run-in's with the notorious demon midget. She'd found him not shy to espionage and sabotage. After all, he was an assassin. Murdering his predecessor was not something she would put past the jaganshi. However, the seemingly heartless demon had a fierce loyalty within him, and anyone who managed to earn it could rest assured that it would not be set aside so trivial as power. Aside from that, the demon was well known for hot honor and pride running though him. The heir would have challenged his master to an honorable duel. Everyone would known of it. Mokuro had been dispatched of in the shadiest of manners +so shady that the authoress doesn't know what it was+. She didn't have to one of the shrimp's closest friends to protest it as vehemently as they did.

Either way, Jaganshi Hiei was pushed aside almost as easily his predecessor. Though he avoided betrayal, it followed. The speed demon being an out-and-about kind of guy, it was all too for his 'right hand man' (inherited from Mukuro), Morgon, to slip his scraggily ass into the throne ("I never liked that guy." -Hiei). One day the emperor came home and was simply refused admittance. he could have gotten in, but there was there was no point in ruling subjects that didn't respect you. He was too smart for that. He would need some kind of strategy. In the mean time, he slipped back into his favored illusionary existence.

Ahh, and the beautiful fox. Not a long or complicated story was involved there.

He led a prosperous life in the Ningen-kai. But upon the death of his mother, he passed it all off and discretely slipped out of all human knowledge. He then reappeared in the makai.

At the beginning of The War he helped to organize the outlaws of Makai into a make-shift "nation" (despite the fact that they had no one official territory). They became a prominent force in The War known as the Union of the Underground, or just simply called "Kurama's Band." Befitting of the diplomatic and smooth tongued fox.

He quickly regained his titles of #1 thief, #1reikai most wanted, and with the two,

#1 must have bounty.

This was the next aim of this particular girl. Her name: Darma Lowell, occupation: bounty huntress, age: roughly 1,100 years old, race: human-youkai splice—werewolf to be exact. It was a quite simple affair. When she was about 19 (back when her Germanic kin were raping Rome) She'd gone foraging in the forest too late and was attacked by a werewolf. Being a relatively strong human, she survived and became an even stronger demon.

As werewolves were full human and full youkai, neither side would claim her and she lived as the rest of youkai outcasts did- a criminal; namely: bounty hunter though she had also taken up thievery and being a mercenary from time to time. Through the centuries, she'd been pretty much everywhere and seen most everything.

It had become habit for her to slip in and out of anonymity. She was nomadic in the in the makai but in the Ningen-kai, she tended to bounce between lives in Germany (her home), Japan (popular youkai hangout), Russia (a generally nice place to hang out), and, more recently, America (she could always cause some trouble there).

Needless to say, she was well versed in language. She was the most solid ghost on Earth and the myth with the highest bounty in all of makai. This was her life.

And through it all she'd only gotten stronger. She'd mastered many disciplines, spells, and techniques- including, but not limited to, transforming at will. She was no longer ruled by the moon; a freedom that few were wolves enjoyed.

In this same time she had also manage to raise her status from "muck under the scum's feet" to the respected, gladiatorial "look but don't touch" awe inspiring. Over all, she was pleased with her accomplishments.

The numerous rings, earrings, bracelets, and necklaces she wore were not only because she felt that silver complemented her primarily black wardrobe but were wards that kept her tried and tested power reserves at bay.

As the full moon rose in the east chasing the setting sun, she felt her energy rise with it. Though she wasn't ruled by the moon, she was affected by it. Ina few minutes, she would no longer be able to pass as and unwitting D-class human.

She inconspicuously reached into an inner pocket of her black trench coat and slipped on two more rings. Too late. The guards were already onto her because of her momentary spike to C-class.

She walked a little faster.

-

Once back in her apartment, she grabbed a backpack and sachel; already packed.

She'd known she would have to leave today. How she knew, she had no idea, she just did. She had her apartment sold, train ticket, and bags packed.

The guards burst through her door just as she got the fire fire escape open.

"Kage Wilk! Halt!" (2)

Rumor had it that if you knew a demon's full name you could control them. She snickered at them. They thought she'd actually used her real name. Too bad for them.

She leapt from the window and clung to the inside of the escape ladder a few stories down. There, she waited for it.

+"To the alley. GO!"+

She smirked. /Dumkof./ She pulled herself out to the right side of the ladder and climbed to the top.

She made her way to the train station on building tops and in back streets.

"Hey Christoph."she greeted the ticket agent presenting her ticket.

"Hey Lowell." said taking it from her, "Today the day?"he asked. He was a D-class Youkai and confidante of Lowell's.

"Yeah."

"Back to Russia, then?"he said not looking at the ticket and handing the stub back to her.

"Hm."she nodded taking it.

"Well, good luck."

Lowell turned around and started walking backwards, talking to him. "Luck, fate, destiny; they're one and the same. And she's a bitch. I'd ratter die than have her on my side."

"Um? Bad luck, then?"

"Thanks!"She 'saluted' doing a half-skip-half-jump turn around and jogged off.

Just as Christoph was servicing the next person, a reikai guard came to the booth and shoved the customer out of the way. He held out a small mirror-like device with a face in its surface; Lowell's face.

"Have you seen this person?" he panted out.

Christoph took his sweet time examining the picture. "Hmm," he mused, "Never seen 'im"

"Him?" The guard stared wide eyed at him. The booth agent looked confused for a moment, then his face lit up with recognition.

"Ooooohhh!" he leaned in close and lowered his voice, "It's one of those twisted demons." he raised his eyebrows in that 'get it? GET IT?' manner.

The guard stared blankly at him. "What?" he shook his head, "Never mind, just let me through."

"Oh, no can do." Christoph held up a hand, "not without a ticket or I.D."

The guard growled in agitation as he dug out his badge and shoved it at the ticket agent. Christoph again took his own sweet time examining it and comparing it to the officer. He "hmm"ed and "uhh"ed until the guard began to show impatience. He drew it out just a little longer knowing just how far he could push it.

"Mmmm. Alright, I guess." he said and slowly slid the badge to the gaurd. Then, just as slowly, he moved to open the gate.

"Good luck!" he smirked after the hurrying guard flipping off the man's back. Many future passengers stared at him in confusion and amazement. He looked back at them as if to say 'what?'

"Next!" he called.

-

(1) Danke Shen. - German:dan'-ke shun: Thank you.

(2) Kage Wilk- kage- Japanese- 'shadow' (or that's what I've heard) wilk- polish:veelk: 'wolf' + I use it as a name here though +BTW: Halt is both a German and English word. in both instances it means 'stop'+

-

Yes, I know. I'm a language freak.

Inspieria: you're a dork.

am not. I'm a geek.

Inspieria: Dork.

Form: stop it you two. We have more chapters to type up. STOW, hop to it.

are you kidding? i've got homework. i have to clean. i think i'm going sledding later and at the very least i want some cocoa even if i don't go. not to mention i type about as well as that bobble bird on the simpsons. and to top it all off ,if i stay down here any longer, the pest is going to drive me nuts.

bai all!

-

P.S. Inspieria and Form are my insane muses. I don't think they like me. Their so mean. (cries in corner)

Form: We aren't that mean.

Inspieria: yes we are.

Both of you, AUST! This is the author's note. Go away. I'm leaving now. Bai for real this time.

1-4-05

there, all fixed.

2-14-05