Left in the Shadows
Chapter 17: Search and Rescue
Yusuke: Okay, since Kit is sleepy because of all the allergy medicine she's taking, I'm gonna do the disclaimer.
Kuwabara: We keep forgetting to do it every chapter, Urameshi.
Yusuke: Yeah, I know. Anyway, Kit does not own Yu Yu Hakusho, just a lot of their merchandise.
Me: (mumble) I don't have the money to own YYH…(snore…)
Yusuke: (nod) very true.
Kurama: Let's answer the reviewers.
Me: I'll do it! (snatches keyboard)
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Icedragongurl16: Mwaha i updated in less than two weeks! (confetti) it's a new record:) Where's my cookie?
4-is-lovely: I know, CN is evil they take off YYH, then show us the CUT EPISODES! BLEAH! Hopefully they'll show it on Adult Swim as the uncut. Hooray for VCR recording! And BTW, i don't know what you did to Hiei in two weeks, but he's been being all nice to me. i wonder why...?
Hiei: ...Hn.
ArtysThunder: Here's the update you wanted and in record time! ;)
daisyashley: Like for Arty, here's the update! I made it longer, hope you like!
Reiana: Mwaha, i made more of it. You'll kill me at the end of the chapter. ;P
in luv with cold hearted guys: It wouldn't happen to be Hiei would it...? (hiiiiiss!) Anyway,glad you like! Here's the next chappie!
Wings of Heart: YAY! I'm still working on your's and gonna watch Napolean Dynamite and my new Ranma DVDs that i got for $10 haha :)
Neko no koi: We've been talking on myspace, neko-chan. And Yusuke came to me the other day and said he was sad that you ditched him for Ichigo. ;P
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Me: Please…?
Hiei: Hn. Continue reading the onna's fic, "Left in the Shadows."
Me: Oh yeah, I took an idea (the forest to be exact) in this fic from a more obscure anime (which I do not own lol). If anyone can guess it (the anime) they'll get a…virtual cookie? If anyone wants, I can draw a pic of Hiei and Amanda, scan it, and email it… Next time I have a contest I'll try to have chapters stored ahead of time and you'll be the first to have a new chapter.
Chapter 17: Search and Rescue
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"Damn…DAMN!" Yusuke clenched his fist. "That bastard told us three months!"
"That lying creep…where could he have taken her?" Kuwabara asked. The three boys were sitting on the floor in the main room, just having told Genkai the news. At first Hiei was nowhere to be seen, but with a closer look he could be seen in a corner, hidden with the twilight shadows. If the others could see his expression, it would be called nothing less than murderous. His arms were firmly crossed and his fists were clenched so tight that that his knuckles were white.
"We mustn't waste any time." Kurama frowned. "We don't know where they've taken her or what they might do in the meantime."
The sliding door to the room opened, causing the candles near the Buddha statue to flicker and they all stiffened, Hiei's hand clenching the hilt of his katana in record time. The figure who stepped forward was only recognized by two people.
"Rinae…" Kurama breathed, surprised.
"I know where he's hiding." She told them.
"…How do we know that we can trust you? We don't even know who you are." Yusuke replied suspiciously.
"It's okay, Yusuke. We can trust her." Kurama told the detective.
"You know her, Kurama?"
He nodded. "Back when I was still Youko. Believe me, if she says she knows where something is, she knows." He and Rinae shared a look of understanding stating that no explanation was necessary. Yusuke's look of suspicion turned into a warm smile.
"Okay then, welcome to the team."
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The figure with those familiar crimson eyes emerged into the light, revealing the person Amanda loved most. But she knew it wasn't him. The little gestures, the way he carried himself—the things she had been beginning to recognize—weren't there. This person may had taken Hiei's form, but there was no way he could fool her. She thought something was off before, but she had brushed it off as fatigue from his extensive training.
"Who are you?" she growled. She was in no mood for games.
"Don't act the fool." He was using Hiei's voice and had even picked up a little on his attitude. "You know very well who I am."
"I know who you aren't." she snapped. "Hiei" frowned.
"I suppose there's no use pretending." He sighed. His image blurred momentarily as he shifted into—presumably—his original form. Crimson eyes turned icy blue, the spiked up ebony hair lightened slightly to dark purple and fell messily to his shoulders, and the crème colored skin darkened. His clothing also changed to consist of a dark blue gi with a forest green sash. Amanda's eyes narrowed.
"As I've asked before, who are you?" she asked impatiently, rising to her feet and supporting herself heavily against the stone wall behind her. The odd band around her arm was sapping all her energy.
"You can call me Maboroshi, little mutt." He told her, referring to her mixed heritage. "I can't believe the Jaganshi took an interest in you. A romantic interest!" he laughed. A low growl leaked past Amanda's lips and she glared at him, only adding to his amusement. "Oh did I make you angry? Good. I'm here to keep you and myself entertained while the Tantei come." His lips curved into a malicious smirk. "And let the fun begin."
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"The Forest of Lost Souls?"
"Yes." Rinae nodded in response to Yusuke's inquiry. "It's just under the surface of the third level of Makai."
"It's a dangerous place for any living creature." Genkai told them. "I'm surprised they managed to successfully hide there."
"But we need to get past the Kekkai barrier." Kurama pointed out.
"Well then, let's ask Koenma if he'll make a portal." Yusuke suggested.
"Well then let's go!" Kuwabara urged. "Who knows what those creeps might be doing to-" Yusuke elbowed him hard in the ribs and nodded towards Hiei before he could protest. Taking a look at the fire apparition sent a shiver down their spines. He looked about ready to kill the next person who mentioned anything about Amanda.
"Okay, let's go then! Genkai, take care of Yukina!" Kuwabara called over his shoulder.
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"Forest of Lost Souls you say?" Koenma looked thoughtful. Yes, I could take you there, but be careful. Spirit World doesn't have any control over that level. As I've said before, we only have power over half of the first level." He suddenly noticed Rinae who was lingering in the back of the group. "Ah, Rinae, nice to see that you're back. You'll be joining the team I presume?" She gave a nod. "Well, at least I don't have to worry about where you are or what you're doing." He sighed.
Yusuke looked at her. "I take it you used to be one of Pacifier Boy's bigger headaches?" Rinae merely smirked in reply.
"Okay, the portal is ready." Koenma gestured to a portal behind them. "It will take you to the edge of the forest. That's as far as I can get you, I'm afraid. But-"
"Okay, thanks Koenma!" Yusuke gave the toddler lord a thumbs-up and the group disappeared into the portal.
Once they were gone Jorge, the blue ogre assistant who had been silent through the whole discussion, turned to Koenma. "Do you think they'll be alright, Koenma sir?"
He gave a sigh. "I do hope so. Akuma may be strong, but there's no telling what will happen if their true leader emerges in this fight." Jorge's eyes grew wide.
"You mean there's someone else behind all this?"
"Not exactly. Akuma is all behind this, but someone else gave him his power. I didn't tell Yusuke this before because this was only recently found out by looking deep into records. Our only hope is that the leader doesn't interfere."
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(Day 1)
"Ick, what are these things!" Kuwabara yelled. "They look like zombies!" He was referring to the figures resembling the undead. They looked intact, not the cliché zombies you see in the movie theatres, and they were rather swift. Hence the reason they were trying to avoid them. By avoid, I mean destroying them and finding a place to catch a breath.
"In a way, that's what they are. Lost souls who died and couldn't find peace. Normally they would go to Reikai, but the aura of the forest grounds their souls here to forever live a half-life." Kurama explained as his rosewhip cut through several corpses.
"Okay, that doesn't explain why they're attacking us, fox-boy!" Yusuke called as he punched a zombie to the ground.
"The only way for them to escape their half-life is to trade places with someone who enters the forest. They want us to become the damned." Rinae was the one to explain this time.
"We need to find where they're hiding." Yusuke gritted his teeth.
"We have to make our way to the heart of the forest." Kurama told the others. "But once we're there, we must tread carefully. The spirits there are much more ruthless and will strive harder to claim out bodies."
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"Urk…" Amanda gritted her teeth against the pain. The band was absorbing all of her energy and making her unable to fight back.
"Still haven't had enough, have you, mutt? Well, how about THIS!" Maboroshi landed an open palm strike to her abdomen, knocking the wind out of her. Taking that opportunity, he grabbed her neck and pinned her against the wall, her feet barely scraping the ground. She opened her mouth, but no sound came out as she felt the pressure increase.
"Maboroshi, enough!" a feminine voice called from the doorway. His eyes, which had been a darker shade of blue, flashed back to their normal icy color and he looked back. "Lord Akuma doesn't want her dead. Just…beaten a little." She smirked.
"Well, a little can mean different things to different people, Relee." He replied softly, his eyes glowing. A twinge of fear began burrowing itself into Amanda's heart. This man was a sadist and he craved blood. He wanted to draw this out as long as he could. He frightened her.
Relee gave a sigh of indifference. "As I said, just don't kill her."
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(Day 2)
Hiei flinched. He knew something was wrong with Amanda. He could sense her pain. He gritted his teeth and sped up, following what he felt was the right way.
"Wait Hiei! Some of us aren't as fast you know!" Kuwabara yelled in protest as he cut another corpse from his path. Hiei didn't answer. He was following something he had never really followed before. His heart.
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(Ha, lucky for you, I'm not gonna end it here. And make sure you read the footnote at the end of the chapter!)
"My my, the Tantei is taking so long to get here." Maboroshi spoke in a mock-concern voice.
"Nice…try." Amanda mumbled. She was slumped against the far wall from his blows. She opened her mouth to say something more, but winced as a trickle of blood slid out of her mouth. Maboroshi walked over and picked her up by the front of her shirt.
"Huh. You have more life in you than I thought." He looked impressed. Amanda was silent. She was annoyed that she couldn't fight back and that she seemed so weak. She had tried contacting Hiei with what little telepathy she knew, but to no avail. She could only hope that he and the others would find this place soon.
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(Day 3)
"Damn, first the zombies, now a maze? This really sucks." Yusuke complained. They had finally reached the heart of the forest and found a tiny cave leading under the ground. Within it, they discovered a massive maze.
"Shut up you fool and keep walking." Hiei snapped. Yusuke looked a bit taken aback, but only because it was the only thing he had said since they had arrived in Makai. "We can't afford to waste any more time." But in his haste, he failed to notice that as he and the others passed another dead end, the statue positioned there (and at all the ends) shifted and its eyes glowed a faint yellow.
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"Lord Akuma, it seems as if the Tantei has made it almost through the maze." Relee informed him at the main chamber. He looked unperturbed.
"Well, I suppose they found the subtle hints I left for them to navigate through." He gave a faint smile.
"But my Lord, I thought you didn't want them to come quickly so you could kill the girl yourself." Akuma's smile grew.
"Yes, but wouldn't it be sweeter to kill the girl in front of her teammates and paramour?"
"Oh, the Jaganshi." Relee looked delighted. "And he's koorime too…"
"Then the only one left will be his sister, an easy kill." He paused and looked at one of the many doors lining the room. "Where is Maboroshi?"
"He's with the girl, "entertaining" himself, no doubt." Relee looked disgusted. "He lives only for blood and how much is spilt. We should hope they make it here soon, my lord, or else there won't be anything left of her. You know that sadist only listens to Kodama."
BAM!
"Ah here they come." Akuma turned to the group standing at the entrance. "I'm surprised you made it this far in three days, Reikai Tantei. Actually I'm surprised you made it here at all."
"Don't pretend. You set it up so we would get here quickly." Kurama said, his eyes flecked with the slightest bit of gold.
"I expect nothing less from the spirit fox, Youko Kurama." Akuma smirked.
"Where's Amanda?" Hiei snarled. Akuma looked innocent.
"What do you mean, Jaganshi?" If looks could kill, he would be dead a thousand times over.
"Don't play the fool."
"Don't get so worked up." Relee sighed. "I suppose Maboroshi's had his fun." She disappeared into one of the hallways. Hiei made an immediate move to follow, but a dark aura shield blocked their path.
"Ah ah, don't be in such a hurry. Relee will come back soon enough. If you don't want to wait patiently, we can have some fun in the meantime."
"Well there's five of us and one of you, so we have the upper hand!" Kuwabara said triumphantly.
"Oh, but it will take all five of you to give me a challenge, with the energy I sense from you. …The Jaganshi might be an exception since he's the one most flooded with anger." He smirked.
Hiei let out a low, enraged growl and before anyone could convince him otherwise, sped off towards Akuma, sword drawn and ready. He was angry because Akuma was acting superior, he was angry because he wasn't able to strike any successful blows against him, and he was angry because this was the third time he wasn't able to protect Amanda.
All of his blows were easily being parried and thrown back and Akuma looked bored. "But when you are full of rage, it makes you predictable. Now all of you come at me. It will make it at least a little bit more fun." He aimed a punch at Hiei's abdomen, but stopped halfway through. Hiei was only slightly thrown off for a minute, but to his surprise, he was thrown back across the floor. He looked back at Akuma and saw a dark aura swirling around his fist. "As I said, you are no match. Maybe when you see her it will motivate you to fight harder." He looked at the door that Relee had disappeared through and everyone heard several pairs of footsteps and the sound of something being dragged across the stone floor. They all watched as the aura shield faded and the heavy wood door slowly creaked open.
(End chapter 17)
Me: (awake now) Okay, how'd ya like that? I made the chapter a lot longer than it was meant to be, but I figured you guys deserved it. Now to get on with the next chapter…ugh, I can't think of anything for Akuma's past and why he hates the all the koorime. I originally had it written down, but I wrote that almost two years ago and looking back, it sucks.:( Okay, I still want it based on that and please guys help me.:) Don't you like this story? Lots of reader interaction.
Yusuke: or maybe you just can't think of anything on your own.
Me: Shut up. Anyway, I can't really finish the next chapter until you guys (or me) think of something that's plausible. Originally it was because he fell in love and stuff happened because the girl he loved was koorime, but if you can think of something else or embellish it, I'll be eternally grateful! I just really need some ideas! T.T Just write it in a review. Now Hiei?
Hiei: …Hn. Review and read the next chapter of the onna's story.