A/N: I have too much to write about but the motivation is coming along…Sorry for the lack of updates, the story is all in my head, and suffering from Alias addiction. Another possible fan fiction when I get caught up with that TV show's seasons. And I'm sorry if this chapter seems odd, the seasons changing must be influencing me, and my efforts to relearn the game Chess. (It's great!)
I-I-I Chapter Ten I-I-I
I-I Discovery I-I
"Usopp...Get up! Usopp!" He opened his eyes and flinched as they were pounded by rain. Sitting up in the mud, he felt awful. He held his head, enduring the headache and the cold darkness. Where was Aob?
"Oh shit!" He scurried away as the whip came down.
How can I move now? Gosh I'm hungry, He thought as his stomach growled. He needed energy. He ran but his strength started to wane as his rain-soaked clothes dragged him down.
A whistle in the air warned him and he lunged forward, dodging the whip behind him. He ran some more and felt the tear in his shirt. Looking over his shoulder he shouted to Aob, "Thanks!" That was a close one. He took off the shirt while scampering aimlessly in the muddy ground. The rain streamed down his bare back and shoulders, causing him to shiver slightly. He felt around in his bag for that bullet and his hand brushed against a foreign object.
"Huh?" Still running in circles, he pulled out a warai fruit. The twisty, iridescent object reminded him of Reia and the fruit she wore as a necklace. She even had it hardened with his batch of chemicals so it wouldn't decompose since most of her powers were derived from it. He stopped running and bit into the fruit before remembering the side affects.
"Ha ha ha ha HA ha ha!" Usopp roared with laughter when he swallowed it. He turned around and saw a startled Aob, who recovered and continued to run after him. Usopp popped the rest into his mouth and chewed vigorously. His burst of laughter didn't hinder his senses when he glimpsed the whip again. It flew forward but the energy was absorbed into Usopp's palm. The limp whip started to fall but he caught it and pulled.
"Watch it!" Aob snarled. He pulled, and Usopp tugged wildly. The conch was charged now, and Aob knew it. Usopp relinquished his hold on the whip and used Aob's pulling energy to jump in his opponent's direction.
"KYAAA!" Usopp yelled, jumping above Aob. He braced himself and leapt to meet Usopp head-on. A punch to Usopp's face, a kick to Aob's area. They both landed, splattering mud everywhere. Aob doubled over, groaning, while Usopp grabbed his face and hopped around, yelping.
"Ow-ow-ow-ow-ow!" Usopp smelled something metallic through the wet mud scent. He squinted in the curtain of rain, looking around. As he searched for Aob he rubbed at his eye, then looked at his bloody hands. "Ugh!"
The ripped skin was peeling and bleeding heavily.
It must've been the whip! My wounds won't close either.
Damn it Aob. I'm getting sick this," Usopp burst out. He knew he wasn't going to last any longer before passing out. He flexed his wrist and heard squishing behind him.
Halfway through the turn Aob rammed into his bare back, knocking the wind out of him.
"Aob!" Usopp gasped as he fell to the mud. That happened to prove fatal as he coughed. Blood came out and Usopp coughed. He had bit his tongue and his vision started to dim. Was it sunset?
"No...no, the sun setalready," he said hoarsely. He spun and sprang desperately at Aob, arms outstretched. Usopp shoved Aob away with his palm on his chest and closed his eyes, suspended in the air.
"...impact...conch." Another ripple in the air, and this time even the rain sprayed in all directions away from Aob. Usopp landed on his feet, losing his balance. Aob sank to his knees, breathing heavily. He looked up at Usopp from underneath his eyebrows, eyes glittering in the moonlight. He dropped and started to murmur. Usopp crept closer to hear.
"...I...Rafik failed you...lost forever... now...Tor..." Then he fell silent and didn't rise. The announcer ran from the edge to Usopp's side, wearing a plastic raincoat and a smile on his face, which faltered a little when he noticed how badly Usopp was hurt.
"Mister, are you all right?" the man asked Ussop. He groaned and swayed. He would've fallen if the man didn't catch him. He slung Usopp's arm over his shoulder then brought a mega horn to his mouth.
"We have a winner!" The stands cheered, but the sound semed weak compared to the roaring of the rain. The man lowered his horn and adjusted his hold on Usopp. "Hang in there. We're getting you to the doctor immediately," the man reassured him. He brought him to a tent where there were cots and supplies to care for the wounded. The announcer laid Usopp on one cot, with Aob already on another.
As the man turned to talk to the doctor, he was joined by five more people, friends, he assumed, of the winner. The red head ran up to him with sopping pants and an umbrella in her hand.
"Sir, can I have Usopp's prize money?" the girl asked. He looked at her closely.
"And who might you be?"
"Usopp's crewmates," the girl told him, gesturing to the young men placing Usopp on the stretcher while yelling at a shorter guy in a straw hat. A tall woman holding multiple umbrellas oversaw that they didn't hurt him.
"Where are you taking him?"
"To our ship's doctor, of course." The girl grinned when he handed the bag over. "Thank you!" They hustled out and the umbrellas opened to shield their comrade from the rain. They disappeared into the darkness. The announcer turned back and sat on the vacant cot to look at Aob.
"What's this lad suffering from, Doc?"
"Internal injuries in the chest area. Polite children weren't they, Harvey?"
"And if they're like their friend, strong, too."
"Our island could use strong young 'uns like them."
"Amen to that."
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He succeeded, but they knew now. Alucard suspected, and now they knew. Shaking his head, he kept running to the cemetery.
I did it. Now it's up to fate. I saw them in the crowd. He emerged from the trees. The uphill ascent left him panting in the rain. He stumbled blindly through the tombstones, an act which he repeated countless times before. Kneeling in front of her tombstone, his eyes welled up and stung as salty tears mixed with the rainwater. The spot of grass he kneeled on was flatter then the area around it.
I came here with...with hate. At them. All will be gone now M-
"Mommy?" Torikki stood up and looked in the direction of that voice, wiping his cheek and forgetting it was raining.
"What the hell?" A tall young man with brown hair and a quick face joined him at the tombstone. He was about in his late 20's and sported a white poncho and a hood to boot. The man turned so his solemn sparkling green eyes looked into Torikki's. Torikki stepped back, startled. "I know you!"
"Yes you do," the man confirmed. He spoke as he bent over the grave to tear off a vine, revealing an etched 'My Mommy Forever' in crude writing from Torikki at a young age. "I've been around doing odd jobs."
"But you're not one of them." Torikki choked back the lump in his throat as he saw the memo on the stone. He squinted at the man.
"Yeah, I've seen you around, Raphael. Aren't you a doctor of some sort? And what're you doing here, of all places?" Torikki asked, glaring at Raphael. Raphael gave him a sidelong look, then he turned away, adjusting his poncho.
"I'm a doctor, but I specialize in sensing bad things and when they occur, especially their source." He leaned nearer to Torikki. "I know what will happen tonight. There's something else you should know," Raphael said confidentially. Torikki narrowed his eyes, cocking an eyebrow and peering at Raphael's face. It was suddenly shadowed when the clouds shrouded the moon and the rain.
"What?"
"This cliff's the highest on the island, and one more thing—poison." Torikki bolted but Raphael grabbed and pinned him to the ground, arms behind his back. His strength was a surprise to Torikki. Raphael covered Torikki's face with a cloth. As Torikki writhed and struggled, Raphael bent down and whispered furiously into his ear.
"You're free tonight, but they don't care! They're coming for you, with poison. This is the antidooottee…"
Torikki closed his eyes and let it wash over him. A split-second flashback reminded him of something familiar to this situation. He felt the pain that preluded darkness, and the ground spun until he felt like he would retch. Everything went black.
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Raphael stood and placed the syringe and soaked cloth in a sealed transparent bag. The antidote was in, the others would be coming soon. The edge of the cliff was to his back not twenty feet away. Suddenly he heard voices and branches cracking. He ran deeper into the cemetery to hide behind a large stone, only his eyes peering out of the cover of darkness.
The two vampires swept into the cemetery as particles of dirt. He grinned, thinking how fitting that was. Victoria and Dmitri appeared, eyes sharp as they scanned the cemetery. Raphael grinned again. Gabriel had great timing as usual. Victoria gasped when she saw Torikki lying in the mud.
"Someone's made ourrr job easier, orrr he's killed himself!" she exclaimed, surprised. Dmitri bent down, checking his pulse.
"He's still alive. This must've been recent." He inspected Torikki's arm and the prick in it while Victoria glanced around the cemetery. "Self-injected poison? Where's the syringe…" Dmitri looked around, peering in the grass while Victoria took out a case and pulled out another syringe. She checked the measurements and suddenly stopped and shrugged.
"What's the harm of an overdose? A little more poison wouldn't hurt!" Victoria cackled, baring her pointy teeth. Dmitri stood and sneered at the limp form. Suddenly the scarf from Torikki's head whipped in the gusty wind and disappeared in the rain.
"God it's windy," Victoria yelped as her hair flew into her face.
"Let's get this done," Dmitri snarled, his eyes flashing. He grabbed the syringe and stuck it in Torikki's arm, not caring to be gentle. The vampire flung the empty syringe off the cliff and turned to Victoria. Silently they took Torikki's head and feet. His head lolled and his coat trailed in the mud. Shuffling over to the edge, Victoria looked over and grinned wickedly.
"Those rocks will help destroy the evidence." Indeed the rocks bared their points as the dark waves crashed and roared in the storm. The gusty wind buffeted Victoria almost over the edge. She screeched and regained her balance. With a nod, they began.
Raphael gripped the grave he hid behind and his eyes strained in the darkness….There! The blue glint he saw in the shadows…He drummed his fingers on the stone and hopedthey didn't see the ship. Job fulfilled, he knew it was below and sprinted to the forest. It's blue light shone strangely. For a second he thought it was moving in the air. He shrugged as he ran to meet with the others. It was almost time.
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Chopper was right, there were a HECK lot of those leaves. Reia flipped without end in the air, all the while moving forward. The rain passed through her without any effect. At least the horrendous wind didn't rip her transparent ectoplasmic form. Pausing for a second, she crossed her legs and squinted, the island suddenly lost in the black rain.
"Hmm," she said as she screwed her face up, looking around. Floating aimlessly, she caught sight of the face of a sheer cliff. She turned around to zip back to the Going Merry, remembering this place.
Then a blue glint appeared below her. She looked down, making out a shape. Suddenly she gasped as something fell on top of her, almost knocking the basket out of her hands. Wait, she was already transformed, how could there be sea stone around? She reverted back to solid state as those thoughts went through her head. A weakness swept over her. Plummeting down, the thing on her shifted in the wind and she was free. Fighting back nausea, the transformation back took a split second of their precious time. She grabbed the black object just meters away from the rocks. Then she hurried away, changing the object into ectoplasm.
But it wasn't an object, she realized, as she felt the fur coat. She gasped again and almost dropped the panther. Readjusting her hold on it until half of its body was over her shoulder, she gaped at its size. It must've been about five feet long, if not more. Her face displayed absolute disbeliefatwhatshe had caught from midair.
Scratching her smooth eyebrows, she held onto the warm feline and continued. "Poor cat, let's get you back to the ship," she murmured. The island's forest sped past her in a blur and she didn't look back to the see a ship change course behind.
