This fic is rated R because of language, violence, and sensuality. If any of the aforementioned offends you, please do not read.

Review if you like. No flames, please.

kaerichi
Chapter 3

"It is impossible to guess," the Canadian representative was saying in English, "We do not know why the hunters are suddenly more aware of us than ever before. Without infiltration, we can hardly – if you will excuse the human expression – make stabs in the dark as to their means."

"But something has to be done! We can't just sit around and twiddle our thumbs, waiting for the strike! How are we to know that they don't know everything about our society yet?" the American representative was saying, gesturing with his hands, dressed in robes of deep blue and red.

"We know they do not because if they did, none of us would be present today," the British rep said in a coolly dismissing tone. "You ought to remember that the hunters strike by what limited knowledge they have, and even if the last few attacks were numerous, the lot of those who died could have survived with a proper escape route."

"The burnings in Singapore were nothing new," another said, waving a hand. "The hunters do not know any more about killing us than the fact that we are not resistant to fire. All they know is our locations. Their luck on that part has been suspiciously positive."

Rukia took another sip of her martini as her gaze shifted outside. She had never been to a meeting quite like this one before. There were representatives from all over the world, the most powerful vampires from their country. Most of the other national meetings had been about trivial things in her eyes, but this one, about the hunters and more numerous attacks, had been interesting enough to hold her attention.

It would've held her full attention had she been able to shake a slightly edgy feeling, like how she felt sometimes when the blood she drank was too contaminated. However, she dismissed it on the grounds of all the auras circulating in the room.

Like the rest of the vampires present, the attacks bothered her. It wasn't like vampires to be so careless as to be found by hunters. But the hunters had been on the attack recently, and so many had already died…apparently, it was rising to such a level that collective opinions had to be discussed on this pressing situation.

Hence, the meeting.

Urahara lifted a hand to say something. "But we do not know anything about them yet," he said in English. "They are attacking us, but we know very little about another's situation. I do not know of the hunters in France. The Koreans know nothing of our hunters. And the list is endless. What I mean to say is that this is not so much a matter of national concern, unless the hunters are working together. Since we know that the hunters are still working on just the country level, each nation should focus on trying to stop their own problems, instead of having others come to their aid."

People were nodding; Rukia had the fleeting impression of a sea of faces, bobbing up and down, before she found herself nodding along with his statement. Her English was pretty much perfect, so she did not have to distinctly listen in order to understand the traded dialogue.

The meeting broke up soon after that. Other vampires, having been handed the answer to their troubles – at least on the international level – started to mingle with each other again.

Rukia turned to Urahara. "I didn't realize your English was so good, Urahara," she said. "It's better than what you said seven years ago."

"I practice," he grinned at her. "Anyway, Rukia-san, before anyone sets off, I think it's a good time for you to meet some of the other dignitaries. It's one of the few times you'll ever see all of us in one room together, and who knows? You could be in my position one day, so you'll have to be sure to know these vampires well."

She nodded. She doubted the part about the ascension of his position, though.

So Urahara went around, introducing her to the others, which took a while because of the sheer number of them. As far as first impressions went, Rukia had never felt more out of place in her life. From more thanfour hundred vampires, she was only one out of two women. And also, she was definitely ranked among the youngest turned; only Hitsugaya and another Chinese kid had a more youthful appearance. There were so many that she didn't even have a chance to look for Renji in the crowd.

Rukia pretended not to notice the eyebrows that people raised when her back was to them, they all wondering how she deserved to wear the crescent pin that signified only the highest of vampire elite. And she pretended not to notice the lustful glances, too. Humans made her deal with enough of that shit.

She was just about to meet Soi Fong (the Chinese vampire and only other woman in the room) when she noticed a tall vampire at the window, turning his head back and forth as if scanning the skyline. His robe was a shade of dark blue that was almost black – a lot of vampires wore robes of this color – but she could see enough of his profile to realize that he was probably Hispanic.

The man's head turned and he realized she was watching. His hands were at his side, and, as Rukia watched, his fingers curled slightly in quick succession. It was a second before she realized that he was motioning for her to come over, without actually asking or making a visible gesture. Why?

Rukia turned to excuse herself from Urahara before approaching. Urahara, busy conversing in German, hardly noticed her departure.

Whoever the guy at the window was, he was tall – and Rukia guessed that he was probably Mexico's rep, if not Portugal or Brazil. Definitely 190 cm at least (6' 3").

"Did you want to say something to me?" she asked him, looking out the window curiously, as his form towered over her moderate 167 cm (5' 6").

"No! Don't look out," he said quickly. His face hardly moved. He didn't turn to face her, either. And to top it all off, he surprised her by speaking in perfect Japanese.

"What? Why?"

Finally he turned to her, and under the mop of hair, she could see just one of his large brown eyes. "Don't you get the feeling we're being watched?"

That slightly edgy feeling still persisted…

"…yes."

"I think we probably are. Ever since the start of the meeting I've noticed miniscule red lights that dart around the neighboring building's roofs. They remind me of the communication devices used by the hunters in my country, Mexico."

Just the other night she had seen her orange-haired hunter with a blinking walkie-talkie with all those strange colors…

"You mean the hunters are here?"

"Make your face less serious. As if you're talking to me about…something happy."

"So you mean the hunters are here?" she asked him, plastering a wide smile on her face, though inside her blood had frozen to ice. Rukia understood. If the hunters really were watching, acting as if they knew about their presence was suicide. For now, she had to pretend.

The man smiled back. "Yes, I think so."

This was just so bizarre.

"Have you actually seen one?"

"No, but I can see the moving shadows, like how the hunters train themselves to move in the night. And if they know we have so many high-ranking vampires from around the country, what's to stop them from bombing this whole floor?"

"What should I do?" Rukia asked. She turned her back to the window. The panic was making it impossible for her to put on a happy façade in the midst of the danger she knew they were suddenly in. "We have to let all the dignitaries here all escape…!"

"Not all at once," he was still smiling at her. "If they have traps, they'd just hem and kill them easily. Just be quiet, pretend nothing's wrong, and then maybe everyone can leave inconspicuously by a back door. I'm sure there's an exit for humans."

"Maybe. I…I should tell my leader."

"You do that."

Rukia turned back to him with her smile. "Thank you. I…you…you may have just saved us all."

He nodded. "By the way, I'm Chad Yastora, leader division second-seat representative of Mexico." He extended his hand in a handshake.

Gripping it firmly, some of her strength coming from anxiety, she replied, "Nice to meet you. My name is Kuchiki Rukia, leader division first-seat representative of Japan."

She could see his one visible eye widen. "You're of the leader division?"

"You aren't the first to be surprised." She smiled at him for a while, even after dropping his hand. "Well, it was nice meeting you. I should…be…going."

He nodded. "Be careful."

"You too."

Rukia moved over to Urahara's side, nearly dragging him away from his conversation with the Spanish rep. She explained the situation in low tones. Urahara, though surprised, was quick to point out the human exit, and discreetly began herding vampires into the elevators.

Most figured out what was going on without even being told. Just like that, in what seemed like the passing of a second, the atmosphere in the room suddenly went from relaxed to the extreme opposite. Wine glasses along the bar – and even the bar itself – cracked from the restrained force of vampiric auras, now tingling with slight panic. Rukia and the Mexico rep were doing their best to keep everyone talking, to keep everyone up with the façade. It didn't seem to be working.

What happened in the next few minutes passed like a dream.

One vampire, an Algerian elder, broke away from the crowd and ran to the balcony, wings shooting out from under his black robe. Someone in the crowd screamed "COWARD!" to him in English, but no one was really sure who; and in that next instant, before the elder had even passed the glass windows leading outside, he fell back, a foot-long spear protruding through his heart.

Chaos reigned after that. Most vampires, so unused to using human technology, had not considered the fact that they'd probably have been safer taking the elevator (hunters couldn't shoot in front of humans) and simply thought to fly to escape. There was a crazed dash to the windows, but as they shoved through and managed to fly off in all directions, more and more spears came flying at the first few. The projection was so hard that it speared them through the heart and nailed them onto the glass, like darts on a glass target, while blood oozed down the windows like cherry rain.

Rukia didn't know what to do or where to run. This was the first time in her long, long life that she'd ever been faced with a situation like this. Some vampires had ceased to run through the open door, but now shots pierced through the glass and found their mark anyway. There was confusion, and there was screaming, and there was panic, and there was fear, and there were so many bodies falling and running and dying that she didn't know who to help first…!

Urahara, like a comforting presence, swooped her aside. His massive wings shielded her from the two projectiles that came their way; they pierced through his leathery wing, but Urahara pulled them out and turned to her as they already began healing.

"Rukia."

"What? What do I do?" she asked him breathlessly.

She trusted him. Urahara would know what to do. He always knew what to do.

"Listen to me, Rukia. There is very little time, and unless we do something, we're going to have a massacre on our hands. I need to ask you to do something."

"What is it?" she asked, though she thought she already knew the answer.

"Rukia, your wings. You've always been different, but it's your wings that could save us now. Only you're capable of swift movement. The rest of us would be like dead targets if we tried to take to the air now. Fly. Confuse. Do anything you can to the hunters! I must see these vampires escape!"

Rukia nodded in assent. Her feet had already started moving before she even thought of the suicide mission she was being sent to.

From the very first day of her turning, even as a pathetic, helpless newborn, Rukia had always been different in so many ways. For one, the sheer power of her vampiric aura was incredible, and, unlike many other vampires, she could tap in and control it to her will. Female vampires never had so much power.

And second of all…her wings.

Her wings had always been those of an angel's, as described in those stories that humans told. Perfect black feathers, not a single out of place, so lusciously smooth that they shone with violet-blue fire when the light hit it the right way. That was not normal. All vampires had – as humans would describe – demon's wings: large, leathery, with a spiked claw and several ribs connecting the tissue.

But she was different. She was most definitely a vampire, just…different.

Her wings were much smaller, true, but she could maneuver better than any other vampire alive and her speed was unmatched. All because of her wings.

And Urahara was counting on that right now to save them all.

Stepping around countless bodies nailed to the glass windows, reminiscent of the Christian Jesus and his place on the cross, Rukia dodged three spears and took to the air. More were shot. She dodged. One cut a shallow wound on her thigh, but she couldn't worry about that now.

Diving back and forth, she scattered the ranks of hunters outside as she used a mix of her flight skills and some of her barrier-creating aura to fight for valuable time. She flew between the ballroom complex and the adjacent buildings, grabbing spears out of midair and dodging all the rest. Of course, she was not perfect; the most serious wound came from when a spear lodged itself in her left shoulder, making it difficult for her to fly.

But still she continued on for a good twenty minutes, feeling her movements grow slow from fatigue and noticing the more coordinated attacks of the hunters. Not good.

Not good.

And now, instead of spears, they were shooting small black balls that looked like cannons. She dodged. They could have been simply cannons or they could have been bombs…she wasn't keen on finding out.

She flipped and whirled and twisted and dived for all she was worth, doing her best to distract the hunters, calling upon her years of flight practice to this one night. And it seemed to be working. All the hunters she could see where aiming at her, and her alone.

Gee, she felt almost honored.

"Rukia!" she heard her name. "It's all right! Come!"

She knew it was Urahara, and that must have meant that all the rest of the vampires had managed to leave…she started to fly backwards, her guard still up, though she felt her internal sigh of relief.

Too quick. She felt an aura brush hers as it whipped past. Suspended in the air almost halfway between the buildings, she saw that Mexican rep Chad Yastora cradling Hitsugaya in his arms. Hitsugaya! Hitsugaya had been speared, but it was through the center of his chest, not his heart…and though there was so much blood, if it could be removed…! Hitsugaya…!

And that was when she saw the five or so spears hurtling towards them.

Her wings seemed to beat in slow motion, sound muting itself, as she sped towards them, knocking them off course so that Chad would be spared and could escape with his wounded charge. Rukia barely made it. She was just about to fly back.

Then, something hit her.

Something hit her.

The impact was so jarring it was a while before she realized that something had hit her on the back of the head, so hard that she heard her skull fracture. And again, it was slow motion; she was falling, her vision was going blank, and she couldn't reach her wings…

For a fleeting moment, she had the impression that something cloth-like had been cast over her, in the air, and she was being pulled somewhere…and was that Urahara yelling in the background? Why? She couldn't hear the voice…it was so far away…

Her vision ran together. When it cleared for a second, Rukia was face-to-face with her orange-haired hunter.

"You…" she whispered.

He was smirking. What was going on? Why was this hunter…?

Then her vision meshed, slamming darkness on her conscious, as she gave in to oblivion as black as the surrounding sky.

tsuzuku