Herro! So sorry again for long update times! Work and life is always so hectic! But thank you all so much for hanging in there! Thank you as always for reading!
Enjoy!
-Shuichi77
The darkened halls of the Seven Moons Academy were still a bustle with activity as the students rushed to find their partners before all the others. Despite the rush of bodies moving skillfully through the darkness with ease, the entire campus remained fairly quiet as the students relied solely on their bond to find their goal. In a dark corner of the academy, however, all was not quite so well and quiet. At the very back of a far building, in a small room off the beaten path, Soubi slowly began to regain his consciousness. It was a few short moments before he finally came too and found himself blindfolded and restrained to a small chair, completely stuck and utterly helpless. As he regained control of his muscles, he did his best to try and struggle free of his restraints but to no avail. He immediately stopped and stiffened every muscle upon hearing the all too familiar sound of a whip crack through the cold, stale air. He let out a low growl deep in his throat before speaking out blindly into the darkness in a gruff and angry tone.
"Ritsu…what have you done with Ritsuka?" Soubi heard a sinister laugh break the silence just as his blindfold was untied and a small light was flicked on, dimly illuminating the face that was already burned into his memory.
"I'll admit…I may have trained you a little too well…but aren't you growing tired yet of serving an Aoyagi?"
"I've only ever truly served one. I'll only ever recognize Ritsuka as my master and partner."
"But we both know just how loyally you served Seimei."
"A situation that you forced me into…" Soubi gritted his teeth before continuing coldly, "I was only a child when you took my ears and then willingly gave me away to that sadistic psychopath." Ritsu's usually calm and somewhat graceful appearance then took on a very smug expression.
"But he was your master none the less." Soubi despised remembering Seimei in such a light and shot Ritsu a fierce glare and an angry scowl.
"I'll never accept Seimei as my true master. He was never even half the man that Ritsuka already is." Ritsu scoffed mockingly at the blonde's retort.
"He is still just a boy; A sniveling brat that will never live up to Seimei's legacy. He is a useless Sacrifice that will never be able to use you to your full potential." Soubi tried once more to break himself free of his restraints as he lunged toward Ritsu and spat his reply.
"Don't you dare speak of Ritsuka that way! You have no idea what he is capable of! Now, where is he?!"
Ritsu smirked as he watched Soubi struggle in vain to free himself. He took a small step forward to be only inches from Soubi and pressed the handle of his whip beneath Soubi's chin, lifting his head to look directly into his eyes with a self-satisfied grin.
"It's time you forget all about the Aoyagi boy and take the place you were always meant for." Soubi simply scowled angrily as he replied,
"And what place is that?"
"By my side, of course. As my Sentouki." Soubi couldn't help but to chuckle slightly at this.
"You can't be serious."
Ritsu gave a sour grimace at Soubi's defiance and took a few small steps backwards before cracking his whip swiftly and harshly across Soubi's chest. Soubi didn't wince or cry out, but instead burned his fierce gaze through Ritsu as he listened.
"What do you think I spent all those years training you for? Do you really think I spent all that time raising you, feeding you, clothing you, teaching you…just to pass you off to serve another?" Soubi's glare began to fade away into a wide eyed gaze. All his life he was led to believe that he had always been meant to serve Seimei and Seimei alone.
"Then what…?"
"I've always intended to be your master, in the end, when you were ready. Ever since the day your parents died. From the very first moment that I gazed down at your red face as you stared at their graves…you looked exactly like your mother…I knew then that I would make you mine one day, as I did with her."
Soubi's heart sank and stomach churned as his worst suspicions were finally confirmed. He gritted his teeth in anger before replying in the most even tone he could muster, not wanting to give Ritsu the satisfaction of his pain.
"It that why you…cause I look like her?" Ritsu smirked again as he replied nonchalantly.
"Yes."
This was much less of a surprise to Soubi, but it hurt none the less to not even be seen, but seen through to be admired as a ghost. His mind was flooded with thoughts and questions that he had never dared to ask, but one stood out above all the others. He gritted his teeth once more, this time in pain, as he swallowed all of his pride to allow himself to let his emotions go and ask the one question that stood out; the one thing he had always wanted to know. He allowed a few rare tears to escape him as he looked up at Ritsu with a pleading expression and spoke in a sullen and angry tone.
"T-then why Sensei?! If you loved me and wanted me to be yours, why did you give me to Seimei?! I had admired you and loved you my entire life until that day! So then why?!" Ritsu gave a satisfied smirk at Soubi's sorry state as he took a few steps forward again to be face to face with Soubi once more. He took his chin gently in his hand and replied smugly,
"To break you in, of course. I wanted to make sure that you had truly honed your skills before becoming your Sacrifice. Seimei Aoyagi was the only other person capable to completely break down every part of you, leaving a perfect canvas for me to craft upon. I simply couldn't be bother with it, I'm a busy man."
Soubi then felt something finally die within him; something that he had held onto for countless years. It was the last shred of admiration and love for the man that had raised him and that he had once called his family. Then and there, in that instant, the last poisoned piece of himself that had always held him back shattered forever, finally freeing him of Ritsu's hold. He was then able to crack an eerie smile as he looked up at Ritsu with a fierce glare.
"I'll never serve you…I'll die first…but not until I kill you."
Meanwhile…
"W-what are you talking about Ritsuka? Y-You're right here!" Riku couldn't help but to give a wicked smirk at the increasingly flustered woman in his grasp, truly enjoying her lack of knowledge on the situation.
"Oh, I'm not Ritsuka…I'm much worse."
Riku then turned around in the opposite direction and began to walk across the room towards the exam table, all the while never releasing his grasp on Nagisa, dragging her along behind him. Nagisa was in a confused panic as she quickly realized that she had lost all control of the situation, and began to claw frantically at the small hands that held her in a surprisingly firm grasp. Riku quickly arrived at the exam table and wasted no time in hoisted the woman's petite frame off the floor before slamming her roughly down onto her back onto the cold metal surface. He happened to notice two pairs of thick leather restraints that were attached and very swiftly secured her legs in them. He moved on next to tie down her arms, but she took the opportunity to claw at Riku as she flailed about the table. Riku was in no mood to deal with the woman any longer, so he let out a low growl before grapping one her flailing arms and using his other hand to slam her back down onto the table by her throat, finally stunning her slightly.
"Just sit still woman!"
"W-what are you going to do?!" Riku gave another evil smirk as he hovered over the defenseless woman, then whipped his head around in search of something, not entirely sure of just what. His eyes landed on the small side table filled with various scalpels and other tools, and he took one of the sharp knives into his hand before turning back to Nagisa with a grin.
"Well Nagisa…let me fill you in a little. I am Ritsuka's alter ego of sorts, which means I know everything that Ritsuka does. All his memories, his thoughts, feelings, we share it all. So I know all about you…" Riku paused for a moment to lightly press the razor edge of the scalpel against the soft flesh of Nagisa's cheek.
"I know about all the times you've sent battle units after Ritsuka, your work with Ritsu running this fresh slice hell, as well as your work with the Septimal Moon Organization." Nagisa began to shake, having no idea how to talk her way out her situation, as she looked up into cold, callous eyes with tears welling up in her own.
"Y-you do?"
"Oh, I do…and I think it's time you started paying for all the things you've done." Riku firmly pressed further into the woman's flesh with the blade, dragging it slowly along her cheek, just beneath her eye.
"A-Ah!" The knife left a long clean incision along Nagisa's cheek that very quickly began to leave trails of blood running down her face, almost mimicking tears, much to Riku's amusement. The sight caused him to let out a very sinister laugh as he moved to repeat the exact same movement on the opposite cheek, this time making Nagisa simply clench her teeth in pain.
"I think these may be the most genuine tears you have ever shed in your life professor! I really believe crimson is a great color for you, you know. Shall dig a little deeper into what hides behind that this pretty exterior of yours?" Nagisa could clearly see the sinister gleam in the boy's eyes and made one last attempt to struggle free of her restraints, but to no avail.
"You've made your point! Please just stop! I'm begging you!" These words seemed to hit some sort of nerve in Riku and he made a very sudden shift from his eerie joyful demeanor into a much darker, serious one. His grin was replaced with an aloof frown, his eyes narrowed, and he abruptly moved the blade to be pressed firmly against her throat as he spoke in a low even tone.
"Please? Begging? How many times have you heard that Nagisa? How many innocent people have begged for their lives at the hands of your creations? How many times have your own creations pleaded to be set free from you?" Riku paused for a short moment as his whole body began to tremble in anger.
"And Soubi…Had you even cared to meet him before you made that little lifelong bet with Ritsu? Did you bat an even bat an eye once you learned of the sadistic training that he was putting Soubi through for the sake of your bet? When he came to class one day…covered in bandages…and his ears gone, only a child…did you even notice?!"
"I…I-"
"Shut up!" There was then another short and eerie pause before a new kind of glint sparked in the boy's eyes, one of pure loathing. His tone also shifted into one of anger and disgust as hands began to shake in fury, only pressing the blade down firmer against her soft flesh.
"And Ritsuka…he has night terrors now you know…about you and Ritsu. I see his nightmares like movies on a screen that I can't turn off; and after he figured out about what happened here to Soubi….you and Ritsu are the stars of the screen every time. So then why Nagisa, why should I have any mercy on you, when even in life, you prefer to climb over the bodies of dead to keep you station at the top?!" Nagisa's eyes quickly welled up with large tears as her panicked state turned frantic, faced with the realization that she may not make it off the table alive.
"B-because! I-I can help you!" Riku let out a hearty chuckle at the woman's desperate bargaining.
"I don't need helping, and even if I did…I wouldn't be taking it from you."
"But I could separate you from Ritsuka! I'm the only one who can!" Riku fell silent for a moment before his expression went blank and he slowly lowered the knife away from her neck as he gazed down at her in surprise, speaking in a quiet, slightly shaky voice.
"Y-you could do that? Is that even possible…?"
"O-of course I can! Let me live and I will give you your own body, free of Ritsuka!"
"I could really be free?"
"Yes!"
"Well…" There was an eerie silence as Riku appeared to be deep in thought. The silence was broken only for Riku, as his other self finally chimed in on the situation.
"Riku…you're not actually…." Nagisa then watched on in horror as the boy's expression was once again replaced with the same sinister grin, accompanied by a devilish laughter, as he replaced the scalpel to her throat, pressing it firmly against her skin.
"You really are an impossibly stupid woman! Did you really think that would work? I am so much more than just a tumor you can biopsy and lop off. I am created from Ritsuka, from his soul that we share. How could I ever want to be separated from this body, my body? My sole purpose for existing is to help Ritsuka; without that, he would be lost and I would be obsolete." Nagisa's expression twisted slightly to show a small level of offense taken by the refusal, mixed with her already panicked state.
"B-But-"
"That's enough insults out of you! Now…maybe I won't kill you after all…but I am going to leave you with a little something, from me to you."
"W-what?!"
"Well you see, I was pondering just now…if you were part of a battle pair, what would you true name be? So I think I'll give you one, right here." He then slowly ran the blade gently across the width of her neck as he continued. "You can wear it like a necklace for the rest of your miserable life, however short it may be."
Riku gave one last wicked grin before finally pressing the sharp of the blade deep enough to cut through the sensitive skin of Nagisa's neck, placing the first incision of the first letter that he had decided upon.
"Ahh!" The pain sent the petite woman thrashing and flailing about on the table. Riku was none too pleased with her struggling, having not been able to make as clean a cut as he wanted, and he let out an aggravated growl as he glared down at her.
"Sit still already! You're only making this harder!"
"Go to hell!" Just before the boy could retort, he glanced down to the side of the table and noticed the same rag and bottle of chloroform that she had used to incapacitate Ritsuka not long before. He then gently set down the scalpel before reaching for the still damp cloth and pressing to Nagisa's face with a grin.
"I'll admit…it won't be nearly as fun without the screams, but it'll do. Goodnight Professor."
The boy's eerie smile was the smile last thing Nagisa saw before she was forced into unconsciousness, not knowing for sure if she would ever wake again. As soon as her eye lids fluttered closed, Riku smiled to himself before going to work uninhibited. He went on for some time in silence, perfectly placing each incision meticulously and methodically in its place. The minutes passed by and with each ones passing, Ritsuka grew more and more anxious to find his Sentouki. He had become so focused on his worries that he had stopped paying attention to the gruesome work that his body was performing. Ritsuka then felt a very sudden sharp pain go shooting through the very pit of his soul and he instantly knew that something was wrong. He quickly snapped his attention back to Riku in a panic.
"Riku! Come on! We have to go! Soubi is in trouble!"
"Hold on, hold on. I'm almost done." Ritsuka then finally focused his gaze slightly just as Riku placed his very last cut, completely the wound that would leave Nagisa's to bear the scar of the name he had given her for the rest of her life. Riku let the knife slip from his hand before standing from his place and wiping his hands on a small towel and taking a moment to admire his work. Ritsuka was stunned for a moment at what he saw, but much to his surprise, he didn't feel a degree of guilt for the woman. All he could think of as he stared on, was all of the awful things that she had done to so many people, most importantly to his Sentouki.
"Seems fitting…" Riku then put on a much more serious expression as he spoke aloud to the otherwise empty room.
"I'll have to agree with you." There was then a short pause as Riku took a deep breath before letting it out slowly, preparing mentally for what they had to accomplish next. "Well, you ready to go get blondie?"
"Yes."
With that, Riku's body swayed slightly in place as his knees buckled and his eyes fluttered. He recovered in a matter of seconds, completing the switch with ease and grace. Ritsuka took a short moment to reorient to being back in control of his body after such a long period away from it. He began to turn and walk out of the cold laboratory, hoping to never see it again, but stopped just before he did to glance down at the woman on the table once more. He was surprised again to realize that this time he was slightly satisfied to see the new blood stained letters carved into the flesh, much akin to Soubi's name. He gave a small smirk of his own as he read the word one last time: SOULLESS.
TBC