Endymion

By dee1600

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin or any of its characters. This story was inspired by Hyde's song Shallow Sleep from his Roentgen album.

Chapter 2: Amnesia

The cold sound of rain roused me from my sleep. I opened my eyes to gaze at the ceiling. The room was covered in darkness. I tried to get up, only to fall back down clumsily. My legs have been unused for so long that walking has become a trying experience for me. My eyes then drifted towards my only salvation --- a wheel chair at the far end of the room, close to firelight. I limped my way and pulled myself onto it. By then, my eyes had adjusted to the darkness and I saw that the room was covered with pretty things. Gracing the tabletops were porcelain dolls and Chinese carvings. Several ballerina paintings adorned the walls of the room. They looked so life-like that they were meant to perform a scene just for me. I was so awestruck by these magnificent artworks that I did not pay attention to the light footfalls that headed my way. By the time I had turned my head, I was already face-to-face with a man, whose dark face I could not recall. It looked like his whole figure was swathed in cloth. He spoke in a tone that was quite impersonal as he regarded me with his black eyes.

"You don't remember me, do you?"

The tone was mocking and he smiled sardonically at me as I tried to suppress the tremors that shook my body.

"Afraid of me, aren't you? But then you have always been afraid of me, darling."

He then came forward and grabbed my left hand before turning it over to put an oppressive kiss on my palm. Despising his touch, I flinched. This angered him so much that he struck me hard across my face, causing the wheelchair to topple sideways. He then came on top of me and placed searing kisses on my face and neck. "You are mine! Mine for all eternity!" as he ravished my flesh and pinned my arms to the floor. I kicked him and fought him as hard as I could. I even tried to scream but no sound came out.

Then suddenly the sound of shattering glass filled the silence. Something had snapped onto my assailant and he strangled to swipe it away. When my eyes came to focus on what it was, I gasped. It was a large black dog-like creature, its eyes as luminous as green emeralds. The beast then jumped away and continued to gnash its teeth at my attacker.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't the prince himself?"

The dog growled in answer. I stayed on the floor, transfixed as the beast pounced and tried to tear the figure limb from limb. All that the mongrel caught in its teeth however were strips of cloth. Somehow, the body had disappeared!

I looked at the beast as it regarded me with its feral eyes. Then a deep, masculine voice came out of its mouth:

"Get up, child! Remove yourself from this place! "

Following the creature's command, I scrambled to the wheelchair and plunged into pouring rain.