Author Note: Well, though it seems there is a lack of interest in this story, I will continue nonetheless for things do get better, regardless of how slow it may seem at the moment. Please review and let me know if it is worth continuing. Thank you.
Le'letha- Thank you for reviewing, I appreciate it a great deal, and you're right, it should be "scoured", that was a mistake on my behalf and I'm surprised I didn't catch it….oops, oh well, it's nothing more than a small mistake of words. Thanks again for the review!
Dark Chobit- As always, you've been a great supporter of my story lines! I hope to talk to you soon whenever you get back.
Chapter Three: Grave Intentions
The sun shone brightly over the dense jungle. It's bright rays barely penetrating the thick canopy. A peaceful silence bestowed the jungle; the distant call of birds and the occasional squeal of a monkey the only thing breaking the peace.
However, the peace was shattered by angry cries and the breaking of branches as the Reikai Tantei crashed through the trees and land on the hard ground.
Kuwabara cursed loudly as Yusuke landed on him. Kurama landed on his feet and Hiei on a nearby tree limb. The orange-haired teen shoved the detective off his back as he stood.
"You'd think he could make the portal a little closer to the ground!" Yusuke shouted angrily. His clothes were torn from the fall, as were everyone else's.
"Hey, guys, where are we supposed to go…?" Kuwabara asked. It dawned on the small group that the Reikai prince had failed to explain where it was that they were supposed to go.
"Great! So we're stuck halfway around the world and in the middle of the jungle with no idea where to go!" Yusuke yelled again. He was about to continue his rant but the fire demon's cold voice stopped him.
"Shut up, detective. Turn to your right and walk for a quarter of a mile." The fire demon said, his voice even and emotionless.
Everyone stared blankly at him for a moment before shifting their gaze to the right. The area was completely impassable from the looks of it. Vines and dense undergrowth filled their path. But, Kurama stepped forward and placed his hand before him. The Kitsune flicked his wrist and the plants parted willingly.
Hiei jumped from his perch to join the group as they headed down the path Kurama had created.
Nathan had stopped dead in his tracks. The entire dig site was silent and clean, as though they had never touched the land, though everything was in its place. But all forms of human life was gone, all the tents the men had slept in were gone. The only man made objects left were the tarp over the skeleton, and the lookout tower and the shed of tools to the side.
Nathan stumbled around the area, his eyes wide in confusion. He stopped again as his eyes caught sight of ten fresh graves. Fear filled the young boy, what had happened? Where was Roman? Did his body lay in one of those graves? Or were those graves only the resting place of the ten men that worked for them?
The boy stepped back and tan into something. He turned around too quickly and almost last his balance. He had bumped into Roman and perhaps that face alone was enough to throw him off balance. Roman smirked down at the boy.
"What's wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost." He laughed.
Nathan took an uneasy step back as he eyed Roman, something wasn't right…
"What happened? Where is everyone?" He asked, his voice shaking more than he wanted.
"Why, they're all behind you, lad." Roman said as he walked behind Nathan to stand before the graves. Nathan moved a few paces behind the older man, something telling him to keep at a distance.
"Such a tragedy, all were good men, wouldn't you agree?" Roman asked. Nathan could do nothing more than nod as Roman turned his sharp green eyes to his own.
Those green eyes glittered with something unknown to the younger boy.
"It looks like we're just going to have to continue on our own." Roman stated lightly.
"What happened to them?" Nathan al but shouted. Roman turned away from him, heading to the tower.
"More of the jaguars attacked. All of them were killed." Roman said with ease. Nathan followed him to the base of the steps. Roman turned sharply on the boy, glaring down from his height.
"You've never questioned me before, boy. So, why now?" He snapped.
Nathan's face showed a look of surprise at the accusation. He stopped his questions and let the matter drop, though he was still weary.
"That's what I thought. Now, start digging." The British man ordered as he turned his back to the boy and continued to ascend the stairs.
Nathan sighed as he looked behind him to the dig site. It didn't look any different from how he left it. The tarp still covered the revealed skeleton, and the dark earth was undisturbed. Nothing was at all different. However, such a fact did little to ease him.
He went to the shed and grabbed some of the tools he would need and then headed back to the skeleton. He took a corner of the tarp and flipped it off to the side.
His eyes scanned the creature. It seemed that the men had uncovered more of it. The skeleton was almost fully unveiled, only the upper half remained uncovered. It was what he would be working on.
As he worked on chipping away the hardened soil that had long ago become this creature's tomb, his mind wandered again to the warning given by the woman. So far, some strange things had happened, there was the attack, and now all their men were dead.
Nathan sighed as he rocked back on his knees and brushed aside a piece of his chocolate brown hair. He glanced into the sky, noticing the late afternoon position of the sun. The heat was starting to bother him, so he removed his shirt, discarding the item behind him, revealing a well-sculpted chest as he returned to his work.
He had uncovered up to the neck of the creature. The body and bone structure were eerily similar to that of a human, but there were too many differences. The build seemed much stronger and the hands appeared to have claws. They had dated the skeleton using the available technology they had brought with them and the bones pre-dated any other human. None of it made much sense. He decided to solve the mysteries when the entire skeleton had been uncovered.
Nathan bent over to begin his work again when a noise to his right caught his attention. It came from the side where the tents would have been located. He stood and walked a little ways in that direction. Straining to hear what was coming. It sounded like voices, people talking. From the sound he could determine there was probably more than two.
But, who could they be? His first thought was that they could be from one of the tribes, but the closest was two miles away. What would they be doing so far from the tribal grounds? Or did their hunting grounds stretch this far?
His train of thought was broken by a loud string of curses. Shortly after, four boys stepped out of the dense brush which appeared to part for them.
The one boy who let of the curses stumbled forward into the clearing. He had slicked black hair, which currently had leaves stuck in it. He wore jeans and a white t-shirt, now filled with holes. The boy that followed was tall, with orange hair and wearing clothes similar to the black haired boy. Behind these two came a tall red haired boy in a white outfit and a shorter boy dressed in black.
"Argh! Stupid thorns!" The black haired boy shouted. The taller teen laughed and commented.
"That's what you get for being hotheaded, Urameshi."
"Shut up, Kuwabara!" He shouted in return, his voice echoing off the Cliffside.
"Yusuke." The red haired teen warned.
"What? It's not like anyone's going to hear me." He reasoned.
"Ahem." Nathan coughed; the gesture instantly gained him their attention. "Can I help you?" He asked them.
"Yes, I believe you can." The red head replied. "We were sent to investigate an explosion."
Nathan raised an eyebrow at him, "An explosion? Who are you?" He asked.
Nathan nodded as they finished the introductions. He decided to take them to Roman.
"Sine I wasn't here the other day, I'll take you to Roman. He'll be better able to answer your questions." Nathan said. The four boys nodded and followed him to the tower.
Nathan pushed open the door and moved aside so the other four boys could enter. Roman was sitting at the table with a book in front of him. He had heard the commotion outside and knew whoever it was would be brought to him. As they entered the room, he stood from his chair to greet them.
"Hello, my name is Roman Brady." He announced easily. His green eyes glittering as they scanned the boys who took their own turns introducing themselves.
"What brings you four boys out here?" Roman asked once the introductions were through.
"We were told to investigate an explosion that took place the other day." Kurama explained again.
"An explosion, you say?" Roman asked, slight surprise adorned his aged face. "I was here all day yesterday and night, nothing of the sort happened." He explained, his voice indicating nothing but truth.
"Are you sure?" Kuwabara asked, his voice saying he didn't believe the older man.
"Are you presuming that I do not know of what goes on in my own site?" Roman asked. His green eyes narrowed dangerously.
"Yes, that's what he's saying. We know there was an explosion here and we're not leaving until you tell us the truth." Yusuke said to the British man.
Nathan noticed Roman bristle at what Yusuke said. Something told him that Roman was lying and that the old man was different, but he wasn't about to get the man angry. Before it could get any worse, Nathan suggested that he explain to them what it was that they were doing.
"How about I show you four what exactly we're doing all the way out here?" Roman glanced at his apprentice, wondering what was going through his head. But he nodded in approval, hoping to distract their attention.
"Yes, maybe then you can see that there could not have been an 'explosion'" Roman agreed as he moved to the door and down the steps.
"You see, we found this magnificent skeleton a few weeks ago and we stayed to excavate it." Roman explained as he approached the skeleton.
"The only problem is, nothing like it has ever been found. The language and symbols aren't in our archives at all." Nathan explained further.
When the six of them reached the dig, they spread out so they could see the skeleton in the dying rays caste off by the sun.
Six silhouettes were cast upon the crimson Cliffside, in a manner that could only be described as timeless. They stood taking in the sight before them, silence filling the group.
After a moment, Kurama's eyes widened as he began to recognize the language that was eloquently carved into the bones and surrounding rock. Though, the way the message was written was beautiful, the inscription itself was deadly.
He was about to say something regarding the inscriptions when something alerted the end of his senses. Before anyone knew what was happening, Kurama had brought out his rose whip and caught a dagger that otherwise would have hit Roman in his forehead, a fatal blow.
Everyone stared at Kurama as his whip and the dagger fell harmlessly to the ground. The Kitsune glared to his right at the closer edge of the jungle. He sensed someone there, a human. Everyone's attention was now on the jungle, trying to see what threat lingered in the fading light.
"Show yourself now, and we won't hurt you." Kurama called out.
His deep green eyes losing all softness and turning cold, uncaring. Yusuke and Kuwabara got into a fighting stance, and prepared to summon their spirit weapons. Hiei's hand fingered the hilt of his katana.
Suddenly, Hiei unsheathed his katana and threw it into the jungle, the blade spinning parallel to the ground. There was a quick sound as the sharp blade cut through the vegetation before it stopped.
A moment later, a figure appeared out of the darkness. All that could be seen was the outline in the last of the sun's rays. The floodlights flipped on suddenly, startling everyone.
"Timed lights, they come on as the sun sets." Roman explained, still looking at the now revealed figure. Nathan narrowed his eyes in suspicion, those lights had always needed to be turned on by hand, there were never automatic. But his attention was quickly brought back to the matter at hand.
The lights illuminated the area, giving them enough light to clearly make out who stood before them.
It was a young girl, no older than 16. She had long black hair pulled into a high ponytail with straight bangs. Her eyes were a light blue and full of life, though her tanned face showed nothing. She wore what looked like a black bikini top and a short skirt, reaching only a few inches down her thighs. Silver wrist guards adorned her hands. She wore a sort of sandals with strings crossing up to her knees.
In her left hand was Hiei's katana. Blood dripped from the wound the sharp blade created. The six of them formed a semi-circle around her and the dig. The girl raised her left arm, but before she could do anything, Kurama's rose-whip wrapped around her wrist. She also had Yusuke's spirit gun pointed directly at her. The girl only smirked.
"Who are you?" Yusuke asked threateningly. They weren't about to play games with this girl.
"Wouldn't you like to know?" She said with a hatred unlike most. Yusuke growled and shot his spirit gun to the right of her, just barely missing her. She didn't flinch.
"Answer my next question or I don't miss." The detective glared down at her. "Why did you try to kill him?"
"To keep him from doing its bidding." She growled. Her gaze shifted from Roman and Yusuke to Hiei. "Your aim is off and your blade is dull." She only received a glare from the fire demon.
"What do you mean, to keep him from doing 'its' bidding?" Kurama asked.
She tossed a short glance to him before dropping the katana from her hand, the hilt to the ground, and kicked it with her foot. The katana flew the short distance to meet its target head on.
Before the others could react, she twisted her wrist and ripped Kurama's whip from his hand and fled into the jungle.
