Disclaimer: I do not own anything of importance in this story.

Chapter 6

Hiei awoke, sensing something was different. He opened his eyes, looking around. The nue's corpse was where he had left it and he didn't see any other animals about to attack him. It was a few minutes before he realized it had stopped raining. In its place, there was a thick fog, drastically reducing visibility and giving the landscape a surreal appearance.

The fire koorime stretched, wincing as his arm and leg informed him this was not a good idea. He rubbed the tender areas, trying to work out some of the stiffness. After a few minutes, he stood, exiting the cave. Although the fog made it impossible to see the sun, Hiei was able to find where he had fallen the night before and figure out the direction he had been heading in. He took off running, limping slightly. His leg forced him to travel slower, but he guessed he would reach the mountain range within the hour.

The forest was eerily silent around him. He ignored it, attributing the stillness to the early hour. The only thing that could be heard was the faint rustle of the wind as it glided through the leaves, creating a haunting, almost musical sound. The song was soothing, causing the fire demon to slow his pace slightly so he could hear it more clearly. The forest seemed to be whispering to him. Hiei shook his head. Great, now I'm listening to the plants. I've been spending too much time around Kurama, he thought, although he strained to hear the sounds.

The music seemed to become louder as he slowed down, finally coming to a stop. What was the hurry? He closed his eyes, smiling as the song played all around him, inviting him to join in. There was something familiar about this haunting noise, but the music clouded his mind, making it impossible to focus. Warning bells were going off in his head, but Hiei couldn't figure out why he should be worried, so he ignored them. After all, he was rather stressed due to the events of the past few days and the song was calming. What could possibly be wrong?

. . .

Kuwabara walked down the hall, entering Kurama's room. Yukina looked up at his approach. "Good morning, Kazuma-san," she greeted him.

"Hey, baby!" he replied, enthusiastically. He knelt opposite her on the other side of Kurama's futon, he face becoming serious as his eyes landed on his friend. Noticing Kurama's eyes were open, he addressed him. "How you feeling, dude?"

The redhead didn't reply, or give any indication that he had heard Kuwabara. Kurama's half-lidded eyes were gazing unseeingly at the ceiling. One might mistake him for dead, if it wasn't for the slight rise and fall of his chest with each breath he took. Kuwabara brought his hand up, waving it in front of Kurama's face. There was no response. The tall teen looked at Yukina questioningly.

The ice maiden shrugged her shoulders, helplessly. "He's been like that since this morning. Kazuma-san, I'm worried," she admitted, looking down at her hands.

"Don't worry, baby! He's probably just running a little low on energy. I, Kuwabara Kazuma, will give him some of my own energy, making him as good as new! Well, at least, as good as he was yesterday. I can't do anything about the poison-- that's the shrimp's job," he said, rubbing the back of his head.

Yukina looked at him, hopefully. Smiling confidently, Kuwabara placed his hands on Kurama's bare chest and closed his eyes, concentrating. There was pause before he frowned, scrunching his face up as he focused harder. After a few seconds he sat back, looking surprised and a little shocked.

"What? What is it?" Yukina asked, leaning forward. Although her voice was calm, her wide eyes betrayed the fear she felt.

"I can't give him any energy. He's-- he's rejecting it," Kuwabara said, confused.

Yukina glanced from Kuwabara to Kurama and back again. "This isn't good. I'll go fetch master Genkai!" she said, hurrying out of the room.

Kuwabara scrambled after her. "Hey, wait for me, baby!"

Left alone in the room, Kurama sighed, softly. No more... I cannot take any more of this. I cannot do anything about them healing my body... but I will not allow them to give me any more energy. If they were truly my friends... they would not prolong my suffering like this. I wish to die... Just let me die... he pleaded mentally. His world consisted only of pain; there was nothing beyond that. The slightest movement shot fire along all his nerves, so he relaxed his entire body, refusing to move. Breathing was constant agony, but holding his breath caused his muscles to twitch, causing pain, and the gasping breaths and blinding agony that followed just weren't worth the short break. Yukina's touch, though gentle, was excruciatingly painful, so much so that he wished he would pass out, gaining a brief reprieve. Kuwabara wasn't as careful and it took all of Kurama's willpower to lay still and not make a sound, for that would only increase the pain exponentially. It had been a bit of a gamble, but he had been able to refuse the energy transfer and he knew it wouldn't be long before his body couldn't bear the strain anymore. Soon, he would be free of the pain. I am sorry, Hiei... It would seem that I am unable to repay the debt I owe you... Please forgive me for breaking my promise... he thought, a single tear staining his cheek as his eyes closed, his consciousness slipping away into the darkness.

. . .

Hiei sat down, a broad grin covering his face. How could anyone not be happy in such a beautiful place as this? He felt something rub against his back, gently squeezing his shoulders. The koorime relaxed into the embrace, his mind at peace as the music lulled him.

A beeping disrupted the song, shattering the fog clouding his mind. Once again able to focus, it took Hiei's mind a few seconds to figure out what was going on. That beeping...the communication mirror. But, why...? Kurama! I'm supposed to be getting the antidote! What am I doing here?! he thought, startled, looking around. The music, so calming before, now seemed loud and piercing. Hiei's mind, able to concentrate with the beeping continually interrupting the disabling song, informed him of why he should be worried. Where there was music such as this, there were one or more creatures to take advantage of the prey it rendered helpless.

Hiei gasped at an unexpected pain as something bit into his right shoulder. Some ludicrous part of his mind assured him that it was all right and this was supposed to happen, but Hiei ignored it, knowing this response was triggered by the music. He moved to grab his sword but found he was bound by vines. Knowing he didn't have much time before Botan decided to give up and call him later, he focused on the vines, trying to burn them. It was a little difficult with his attention divided as it was by the haunting music and the beeping, but he managed to free his left arm. Not wasting any time, Hiei grabbed his sword, plunging it through the head sitting on his shoulder blade. The remaining vines relaxed their hold as the head fell to the ground. The music began to fade as Hiei struggled out of the vines, looking on the ground behind him.

The creature appeared to be a science experiment gone wrong. The head and neck was that of a beautiful woman, Hiei's blood dribbling from the corner of her mouth. Below that, several vine-looking tentacles hung down, a few of them burned off, courtesy of Hiei. What appeared to be brown hair actually stretched out to form bat-like wings, allowing the creature to float at eye level to further entice some of its more difficult prey. "A shellbelle," he muttered.

Hiei turned away, the sight of his katana impaled in the creature causing emotions akin to that of killing a loved one. He knew it was just the remnants of the song, but he figured it wouldn't hurt to wait until he was completely free of the seducing music before retrieving his sword.

Noticing the beeping had stopped, he pulled out the communication mirror, flipping the lid open. Botan had given up trying to reach him, apparently, so he called her back.

It didn't take very long before a picture of Botan appeared on the screen. She looked a little relieved. "Hiei! When you didn't answer, I assumed the worst had happened to you! I was just about to call Koenma and see if anyone had brought you in!"

"Hn. I am in the Makai. You happened to call in the middle of a battle, so I was unable to answer," he replied, bending the truth a little bit. He would die before admitting to the ferry girl that she had saved his life.

"Oh, right! Sorry, I didn't mean to distract you," she apologized, hastily.

"It was a welcome distraction," Hiei muttered to himself.

"Pardon?"

"Never mind. I assume you had a reason for contacting me?" he asked, changing the subject.

Botan's face fell. "It's Kurama. He's not dead," she said hastily, seeing Hiei's expression. "But, I don't know how much longer he'll last. Kuwabara and Yuusuke have been taking turns giving him energy every day. But, today Kurama rejected it. They are going to keep trying, but..." she trailed off, bowing her head. "Please, Hiei, you've got to hurry!" she pleaded, her voice breaking.

"Hn." Hiei snapped the mirror shut with a loud click. He glared at the pink device. Blast it, Kurama! I only have one thing left to get, and you decide to give up on me?! Angrily, Hiei wrenched his sword free of the shellbelle, cursing himself for getting distracted. Kurama had just moved up the timetable and every second counted.

. . .

By mid-morning, the fog had cleared, allowing the sun to shine down through the trees. Hiei paid special attention to the clearings he came to, knowing the hiryuu would most likely be basking in the sun. However, he still could not find the animal after which he sought.

Hiei was carefully making his way through the underbrush on an ill-used game trail, when he stopped, feeling uneasy. It felt as though he were being watched. He looked around, searching for anything that might be watching him. Casting his gaze up, he saw it; a large cat, about the size of a tiger, was crouching on a branch he was about to walk under. It was completely black, seemingly made up of shadows, with yellow eyes that stared hungrily at the fire demon. Flames danced along the tips of its ear and tail. Its eyes met Hiei's and it jumped, claws outstretched, towards the fire demon.

Hiei lunged to the side, trying to get out of the way, but he wasn't fast enough. The cat's paw caught his shoulder, knocking the koorime to the ground. Not having time to draw his sword, Hiei jerked up on the hilt, bashing the feline's nose. While the pain momentarily distracted it, the fire demon was able to get his good leg underneath it, kicking the creature off him. It twisted in mid-air, landing behind Hiei. He stood as quickly as his injuries would allow, looking for the cat. It seemed to have disappeared.

Hiei stood, sword in hand, as he scanned the area around him, warily. His shoulder throbbed and his leg was shaking, but he ignored these, focusing all his senses on finding the feline. He held perfectly still, waiting for the cat to strike.

Hiei heard a faint whisper of breath behind him, the only warning before the creature pounced on him again. Hiei was ready for it this time, thrusting his sword out behind him, wincing as the cat shrieked in his ear as it impaled itself on the sharp blade. He pushed the creature back, feeling its body slide off his katana before he turned to survey the carcass.

The cat twitched a few times, blood pouring out of the wound in its chest before it lay still, the body fading into smoke and drifting away. "A shadow cat. Where is your master, I wonder?" Hiei asked, softly, scanning the area around him for the panther demon that was sure to be nearby.

He waited for a few moments, tense. Shadow cats aren't the most reliable of familiars. Let's hope that this one was working on its own. I don't have time to fight its master, he thought, continuing on his way.

The going was slow, yesterday's rain making the terrain very slippery. Loose rocks and mud worked against Hiei, causing him to lose his footing three times in the last hour, almost twisting his ankle once. His injured leg wasn't helping matters any, but the fire demon pushed on, not daring to sacrifice any more of his speed for caution. While he would be no good if he couldn't walk, he also didn't know how much longer Kurama could last without the antidote.

. . .

Yuusuke sank down against the wall, panting as he wiped sweat from his forehead. "Man! No matter how many times I obliterate them, they keep coming back! Usually it's not a problem, but I need time to rest in between attacks! I mean, two hours just doesn't cut it for the amount of energy I'm using out there!" he complained, pointing his thumb in the direction of the window.

"I know, Yuusuke," Genkai said, her voice unusually soft. She was kneeling next to Kurama's futon and she looked just as tired as her student. "And, I'm afraid it's going to be like this until either Hiei returns or Kurama's body can't sustain itself anymore and he dies."

"I can't just sit around doing nothing while Kurama is dying!" he yelled, slamming his fist down on the floor, angrily. The wood gave out beneath his hand, creating a small hole in the floorboards.

"Hiei is out there doing everything he can to find the antidote. You wouldn't have the first clue where to look and even if you had the list of ingredients, you still wouldn't know what you're looking for," Genkai replied, severely.

Yuusuke slumped back against the wall, fuming. He might not be able to argue with her logic, but he didn't have to like it.

Genkai's gaze softened. "You can help Kurama the best by either getting him to accept your energy or keeping the plants out of the temple. Preferably both, but if he's given up, I doubt you'll have any better luck giving him energy than you did earlier. If he didn't accept it then, it isn't likely that he'll accept it now," she said, wearily.

Neither one said a word for a few moments, the sound of Kurama's breath rattling in his throat the only noise breaking the silence. Finally, Yuusuke spoke, his voice soft. "I just-- I can't sit back and watch him die. I feel so helpless."

Genkai closed her eyes, sighing. "I know, Yuusuke. I know."

. . .

Around noon, Hiei stopped by a small stream. He took the makeshift bandages off his arm and leg, inspecting the wounds. Both were red and inflamed, as well as sore to the touch. It was also becoming increasingly difficult to move the fingers on his right hand. He rinsed out both the injuries and bandages as best as he could in the cool water, re-wrapping the wounds.

"Hn." While annoying, it is not surprising that they are becoming infected. I don't even want to guess what type of bacteria my cloak picked up in the swamp. However, I don't have anything else to wrap them with and I don't have time to find a town and get supplies. They'll just have to wait, he thought, tying off the cloth around his leg. Kneeling on the ground, he cupped his left hand and drank from the stream, ignoring the hunger pangs in his stomach. With Kurama's life on the line, he didn't have time for luxuries such as food.

Having had a short break, Hiei stood and, limping slightly, continued the search. Not having so much as a game trail to follow, the fire demon used his sword to cut his way through the shrubbery. He cringed at how much the repeated use was probably dulling his sword, not mention how long it would take to clean all the plants' sap from the blade. Thrusting such trivial worries to the back of his mind, he continued hacking through the brush.

Coming to an unusually thick vine, Hiei cut it-- and jumped at the shriek of pain that followed. He watched as the vine withdrew, glancing over to see a large flower raise itself up from among the other plants. It was supported on three vine-legs, the fourth one that Hiei had cut was curled up, being held close to the bud. When it was high enough, the vines re-positioned themselves, allowing the flower to fall and hang upside down, revealing a set of eyes and a gaping, toothless mouth underneath the bud.

A quaffid. Just what I needed, he thought, sarcastically. He jumped back as a vine swiped for him, barely missing him. He danced to the side as another vine came, trying to put some distance between himself and his opponent while not getting tangled in the plants that weren't attacking him. This proved impossible, the weeds twisting around his feet as he pivoted and tried to dodge another leg-like vine. The plants slowed his escape and the quaffid caught his right arm, eliciting a cry of pain from the fire demon as he was jerked through the air by the injured limb. Another vine came up and wrenched the katana from his grasp, dropping it on the ground. Hiei struggled as he was held in the air, dangling above the quaffid's head. The vine holding his arm released it, dropping him into the open mouth below. Pulling his sheath from his belt, the koorime rammed the dull point through the quaffid's eye as he fell. His boot touched briefly the acid-like saliva covered tongue before the plant reared back in pain. Although not a fatal wound, it did serve as an adequate distraction.

The fire demon fell out of the mouth, landing badly on his injured leg. It gave out and Hiei collapsed on the ground, narrowly missing one of the quaffid's flailing vines. The koorime rose to his feet, supporting himself against a tree as he looked around. He spotted his katana on the ground underneath the creature, just a few feet away. He dove for the weapon, fingers closing around the hilt as he rolled out of the way of the quaffid's leg. He rose to a kneeling position behind the creature, katana held out in front of him. The quaffid ignored him, roaring in pain and anger as it tried to remove the sheath from its eye.

Saliva was flying everywhere as the creature thrashed about, causing many plants to smoke as the acid burned through them. Standing somewhat shakily, Hiei limped away from the injured beast, trying to save himself from receiving more burns. Add one sheath to the list of things Kurama is going to replace after this fiasco is over. Actually, that should please him. After all, he tried to replace that sheath before-- Hiei jumped as the object of his thoughts was unexpectedly embedded in the tree to his left. He turned around, facing his opponent.

The quaffid had managed to pull the sheath out of its eye, but it seemed to be a fluke that it had almost brained Hiei when it tossed the scabbard away. The creature was currently turning its head from side to side, searching for Hiei. The plant's good eye landed on the fire demon and it roared again, quickly closing the gap between them.

Cursing softly, Hiei knelt on the ground, his back up against a tree. It wasn't the best defense, but he didn't have many other options. He raised his katana, warily watching the upside-down flower as it approached.

As soon as he was within range, the quaffid shot its vine-legs forward, intent on making a meal of the demon that had caused it so much pain. Light flashed off Hiei's katana as it moved, cutting off or at least injuring every part of the vines that came too close. He didn't move from his position, eliminating the problem of his feet getting tangled in the shrubbery and the tree at his back assured that the quaffid couldn't get him with a vine from behind.

It wasn't long before the quaffid gave up, limping away on shortened and oozing vines. Hiei waited until it was out of sight before standing, leaning against the tree behind him. He grabbed his sheath, yanking downward. It wasn't hard to pull out, but it was covered in a sticky yellowish-green colored slime. That's just disgusting, he thought, holding the scabbard gingerly between two fingers. A bit of the goo dropped off of the sheath, landing on Hiei's boot. I hate plants. Leaning down, Hiei wiped as much of the gunk off on the weeds as he could, before inspecting it for any damage. Around the mouth of the sheath there was a small crack, spanning two inches along the length of the scabbard. Hiei swore, reluctantly replacing the defiled saya in his belt. Definitely adding one sheath to the list, he thought, hacking through the underbrush as he continued on his way. He kept an eye out for larger-than-normal vines, not wanting to have another run-in with a second quaffid.

. . .

The day wore on, evening finding Hiei trudging over a rocky area. There weren't as many trees here, making it easier to see the surrounding area, although the abundance of boulders provided ideal hiding places, making a thorough search very difficult indeed. The terrain wasn't helping his injured leg in the slightest and Hiei half thought it would be faster for him to hop around on one leg.

He was walking along a long, almost log-shaped boulder when he heard a scraping noise, like scales moving over rocks. He froze, looking for the source of the noise. A large head seemed to spring at him from nowhere, fangs snapping down where Hiei had been standing seconds before. The fire demon had jumped back, crouching on the ground as he studied his opponent, ignoring the protests from his leg.

It was a large snake. The triangular head was easily as wide as Hiei's torso, uneven ridges making it look like a rock with eyes. It opened its mouth, green venom dripping from its fangs as it hissed at him. Its thick neck curved to the side, connecting to what Hiei had assumed to be a log-shaped boulder. Hearing another scrapping noise behind him, Hiei chanced a glance over his shoulder.

Before he could turn his head far enough, the snake in front of him attacked, forcing Hiei to fling himself out of the way. As the snake lunged for him again, Hiei stepped to the side, bringing his sword down hard on the snake's neck. The head separated from the body and the dead creature fell limply to the ground. Hearing the scraping again, this time almost directly behind him, Hiei tried to twist out of the way of a second snake. However, he wasn't fast enough and one of the fangs sunk deep into his left shoulder before breaking off. Almost immediately, the pain caused by the wound faded as his shoulder start to go numb.

The second snake looked almost exactly like the first. It reared back, hissing in pain as it drew itself up to its full height. Hiei was surprised to see the snake he had just killed hanging limply from where the two necks merged into one. Looking closely, Hiei saw wings folded along its back. He had found a hiryuu. Small? Small?! What was Fujio comparing it to, a mountain?! Although, I suppose I shouldn't be surprised with a name like 'flying dragon,' but... Skinning him alive is too quick-- the next time I see Fujio, I'm going to gut him and string him up by his innards! Hiei thought viciously, as he readied himself for the attack.

With growing alarm, Hiei realized he was losing feeling in his left arm. Already the grip on his sword was weak, at best. He clutched the weapon in both hands, his right grip not much better than his left. Grimly, he waited for the hiryuu to strike, knowing he would only get one chance at this.

The snake obliged him, diving for the fire demon with its mouth open, apparently meaning to swallow him whole. Hiei waited until the hiryuu was practically on top of him before thrusting the sword up. He clung to the hilt desperately as the snake's forward momentum drove the weapon into its brain, killing it. The hiryuu fell, its forward momentum ripping the sword out of Hiei's weakened grasp as it hit the ground, skidding across the rocks. An audible snap was heard as it caught on various rocks before finally coming to a stop about fifteen feet away. Having been caught underneath it, Hiei groaned as he tried to push it off him, feeling warm blood drip from several places where the rocks had gouged him. Once he was free of the body, he reached into his pocket, feeling for the vials. One had shattered but the other two were, amazingly, still intact. Somewhat jerkily, Hiei uncorked one of the bottles, filling it with the milky venom dipping out of the fang. He replaced the stopper, studying the white liquid inside the bottle. With a jolt, he realized the venom he'd seen dripping out of the other head's fangs was green.

Quickly making his way back to the severed head, Hiei broke off one of the fangs. Green liquid oozed out of the hollow tooth. Two heads, two different poisons. Sure, why not? he thought, sarcastically. Quickly, Hiei pulled out the second vial, almost dropping it as the numbing poison continued to spread along his arm. Well, the instructions I received from Shimogoe make a lot more sense now, he thought, shaking as much broken glass from his pocket as he could before replacing the two vials inside it. I finally have all the ingredients. But, am I in time to save Kurama?

. . .

To Be Continued