Chapter 10: Disappointment

He stared into the crater in the central square of the city. Rapid fire thoughts ran through his head. Was he really completely human again? Then how did he survive the fall? But what really bothered him was the pure hatred on the hags face. Was she disgusted because he was free of her curse? But if she was disgusted with it why would she lift it from him.

Myra and Kristyn were still sitting in the broken down jeep. Several people watched from shops' upstairs windows or just far enough down the street to see the giant hole in the ground while staying as far from possible from the man sitting at the side of it.

He looked around him, causing people to disappear into alleys and window shutters to slam shut. He chuckled softly. They were scared of Hiryuu.

But Hiryuu was gone. He was once again Toyuki Katoma

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The bounty hunter took aim at the man sitting at the side of the hole in the center square. He had seen him before in April. He had followed Hiryuu's tracks and had finally caught up to him. He was still shocked that the kid from the attack at the gun shop in April was Hiryuu. You're a coward aren't you? You were cornered in the shop so you hid yourself in plain sight. Too bad you're out in the open, now. Then again you were then, I shoved right passed you in search of… well, you. You sly bitch. You're dead, now.

The man's finger sat gingerly on the trigger. He took care to aim very carefully at Hiryuu's heart. There was no escaping. Adrenaline rushed through him and his index finger tightened. The rifle pressed back into his shoulder. He smiled very slightly. He looked at his target. It was as though it was in slow motion. He watched the force of impact jerk the target's left shoulder back slightly.

He stood up revealing his position directly in front of the boy in a shop directly across the square from where he sat at the edge of the hole. He watched the kid fall slowly. Then the kid landed on his side. The sound seemed more thunderous to the bounty hunter than even his own rifle. The smile on his face widened. He saw the two girls running towards the dead kid. But they stopped. The bounty hunter was about to walk out of the shop he stared at his dead prey.

Then his blood froze.

The kid sat up as slowly as he had fallen. He had taken a direct hit to the heart! How could he be alive, let alone conscious? He hadn't missed. The blood filtering through the boys clothes told him that much. So how was he still alive?

The bounty hunter raised his rifle again. His finger met the trigger without haste. He put the crosshairs on the kid's heart again. The shot seemed to lack sound. The boy was hit again. This time the hunter could see the dark spray ejected backwards from his target. He could see a pinhole of light through the boy's chest. The boy did not fall again. He stared at his attacker. Piercingly cold eyes returned the hunter's puzzled and fearful stare. But then they lost their edge and seemed to lose focus on him. But they were not unseeing. Not yet…

He raised the gun one last time and aimed for the middle of the boy's forehead. The crosshairs sat neatly below the part in the boy's long black hair. He felt his finger inching its way backwards. The cold steel of the small trigger met with his finger giving him a chill through his spine.

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A third shot rang out through the silence of the streets. Myra and Kristyn had ducked quickly as the sound met their ears. Toyuki stood up. Blood ran across his eyes and he wiped it away. The black liquid shined menacingly on his hand. He had not fully returned to normal. He started to walk around the side of the crater in the ground. The man with the rifle aimed again. Toyuki continued to walk around the hole, staring at the ground in deep thought as he did. He felt the intense pressure and heat rip through his stomach. Myra screamed. Toyuki continued to follow the edge of the crater in the ground until he was directly in front of the man again. He slowly turned towards the man. His right arm was grazed by the intense heat of another shot. The man was losing his control to his fear.

Toyuki started walking towards the shop and the man backed further into it. Several shots now missed him completely.

"Why…?"

The man was very much startled by the sound of the boy's voice, calm as it was.

"Why can't I…"

Toyuki looked at the ground again in intense thought.

"What the hell are you?" the man said softly to himself.

"I wish I knew."

Toyuki looked up. The bounty hunter saw deep into his bright eyes. They reflected silent rage that clashed with the sorrow on his face. As Toyuki turned away he felt as though he was still half the demon he had been. He was not human again. He was still at least partially the monster Hiryuu.

Myra looked up and saw Toyuki walking toward the north. He followed the street toward the edge of town.

The two girls followed him slowly and far behind. People began looking out of windows and some even went outside to see the giant hole in the center of the main square where there had been a monumental fountain.

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After three days, Kristyn and Myra had to stop in the city of Inepril they were nearly starving after following Hiryuu and they had lost him on the way. He was just too fast for them to follow. They immediately headed for the nearest saloon and had a great meal. They found a Bernardelli outpost and headed in.

"May I help you?" the woman at the counter said.

"Yes, I'm Kristyn Paine and this Myra Thompson. We were sent out on to investigate and contain Hiryuu."

"Myra and Kristyn?"

"Yes."

"Paine and Thompson?"

"Yes!"

"Who went after Hiryuu?"

"YES!" Kristyn yelled.

"I heard you two had sided with Hiryuu, you were fired a few days ago."

"Fired!" Kristyn said. "We were fired?"

"Why were we fired?" Myra said.

"Did I not just say you two were supposed to have joined Hiryuu? You've both earned yourself bounties."

"WHAA!" Kristyn said her jaw hitting the ground.

"I'm going to have to arrest you both."

"Myra."

"Kristyn."

"RUUNN!"

The two of them bolted out of the outpost and headed for the nearest vehicle. Krystin started it up and drove off in a hurry.

"That's my car!" a man bellowed behind them.

"Kristyn, I think this was that sheriff's car. He stole another one and he's following us."

"Well then we'll have to lose him cause apparently we're wanted."

The two girls drove around the city for nearly half an hour before they lost the sheriff and ditched the stolen car a block away from where they stole it. They headed for a nearby glumly inn and spent the night in it. Kristyn wondered what had been happened to them over the past two weeks. They were chasing an outlaw, found him and the next thing you knew they were considered to be outlaws themselves.

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Toyuki walked toward the ruins of a city under a cliff. A sign lying on the ground said "Welcome to Felnar".

He knew that there was something different. After this much time he should have been either killing or dead, yet he had no hunger and he had lost everyone following him. It had been already eight days. He sat in a saloon on the edge of the deserted and destroyed town and grabbed a bottle of old whiskey that was left on the shelf. He looked around the bar wondering how long he could stay there before someone tracked him down.

He looked at the bottle of whiskey again and set it down unopened. What was the hag doing, and why was she suddenly so angry. What went wrong? He realized he hadn't actually attempted to change since the fall. He wondered if she had actually made him incapable of changing back.

"Please don't let it work," he said to himself. He closed his eyes and tried to change. He looked in the foggy mirror. "GODDAMMIT, HAG!"

The red dragon staring back at him through the foggy mirror was still more happy than disappointed. Toyuki was still a monster, but as far as he could tell, he no longer needed to kill. He looked in the mirror again at the boy he once was.

He thought back to nearly one thousand years ago. He thought about the sister he had loved so much. His father and mother who had loved him so much. He remembered what he saw when he came out of hiding. What they had done to his family.

He realized how much like them he had been.

"Never again."

He took his claw knife out of his pocket and cut off a good length of hair.

"I'll never kill again."

Long black hair fell to the dusty floor.

Next, Chapter 11: In Plain View