Ticking Timebomb

Chapter 55 – Supernova

A/N: This chapter continues in Kas' POV. I know I'm the cliffhanger queen and I'm so sorry XD

. . .

I was sat in some stone basin full of fragrant water, flower petals floating on its surface. I cupped some, letting it spill from my hands back into the pool. The scent made my nose curl.

I had been here for days already. I was stir crazy. I felt trapped. Even though Caius had assured me I wasn't, that he'd just needed me to be near Sayuri for the time being, with the mating mark being so new. Even when he had taken me, I hadn't put up much of a fight.

I didn't know if it was because I had become stupidly trusting...or if it had been the fact Sayuri had also been with him at the time. She'd been bundled up against his side, her body so tiny in comparison to his I hadn't even noticed when he'd first come to kidnap me.

And the island he'd brought me to wasn't so horrible. Not compared to the rest of the Makai anyway.

The air here was fresher, that had been the first thing I'd noticed. It was a nice change compared to the months of breathing the pungent Makai oxygen, if you could even call it that. The little isle had an ecosystem all its own and it was a mirror image to parts of the human world. I had even recognized some of the plant life here.

But that wasn't the odd thing about it. The weirdest part were the little creatures that scuttled about the place. Caius and Sayuri stuck out like sore thumbs, but the island's inhabitants had welcomed them back with open arms.

Caius had explained they were a type of fey. Which had left me choking on nothing but air. What else was fucking real? Unicorns?

"Can I get out yet?" I asked. "I'm turning into a goddamn prune."

Caius stood against the opposite wall of the underground chamber, arms folded over his chest. He wore bright golds and purples, his obsidian hair tied back in a thick plate. He looked roguishly handsome...but I longed for the presence of someone far different. And quite a bit shorter.

"I told you that you must remain in the oils for an hour," he answered.

"How long has it been?"

"Less than half."

I grumbled under my breath, irritated. He wouldn't tell me why this was necessary. And I was on a short rope as it was.

He'd kidnapped me and I hadn't fought back, because for some insane reason I trusted Caius. I didn't like being taken from Hiei and Yusuke, but he'd assured me that I would get to see them in due time. I just had to listen to him.

So here I was, naked, and soaking in oil filled nasty water.

"Could you at least tell me why I'm in here?"

His eyes rolled to the ceiling, his forked tongue flicking out in agitation. "I told you it is to cleanse your body."

"No shit, that's usually what a bath entails," I snapped. "What's with the oils?"

He strode up to the basin, bending at the knee so he could look me in the eye. "I need to rid you of the scent of that fire demon."

"Huh?" I asked, shocked.

He swallowed, eyes darting away from me for a moment. I could see the wheels turning in his head. He was choosing how he should explain himself...what he should and should not tell me.

"Caius!" I snarled. "If you don't want me to seriously hurt you right now, you better tell me what the fuck is going on."

He frowned, eyes turning downcast. He took in a deep breath and when he released it through his nose a stream of smoke followed. "I need you to take responsibility for Sayuri."

"Responsibility? What the hell does that mean?"

The sound of shuffling feet behind me had me whirling around. Caius stood, walking around the basin to greet the creature that had just come through the entrance. In the creature's hands was a folded white square of cloth, several golden trinkets resting on top, and on top of all that was a scabbard sword.

It wasn't mine. But by the care and craftsmanship that was put into the sheathe I knew the weapon inside must be glorious.

Caius took the items from the little goblin, bowing his head in thanks. The thing scuttled back out, a smile plastered on its face, sharp teeth making me wary. I was sure these were not creatures from some fairy tale. They were demons, just like everything in the Makai. And it was within my best interests not to piss them off.

I eyed Caius as he sat on the floor, folding his legs beneath him. He set the items aside but saw me eyeing the sword. A wicked smile curled his lips upwards.

"Would you like to see it?"

I nodded and Caius picked up the blade. What he pulled from the sheathe made me gasp. For it was the same sword I had dreamt of all those months ago. The metal gleamed red, the blade matte in color, and glowing with some kind of hidden energy.

"It's yours...if you do as I ask," said Caius.

My eyes flicked to him and then back to the blade. It was beautiful. It rivaled the one I'd given to Hiei. But did it come with a price I was willing to pay?

"And what is it you want from me?" I asked.

"It is quite simple," he said, placing the blade back into its sheathe. "You are to become Sayuri's betrothed. And you will live out the rest of your human life here...with her...and me."

I laughed, thinking he had to be joking. There wasn't a chance in hell I would marry his sister, no matter what he offered me. "You can keep it," I said.

His molten gold eyes harden, his entire face turning into a cold mask. "You will bind yourself to her and become her mate. There is no discussion. Consider the blade her dowry."

"Are you fucking insane?!" I shouted, shooting up from the water.

"No. But you are if you try to shirk from your responsibility."

"And what are you going to do if I don't marry her?"

That cold face hardened further, something dark lurking behind his eyes. "I will have your lover and friend slaughtered."

I stood a little straighter at those words, my back going rigid. He wouldn't! There was no way Hiei and Yusuke would let that happen.

But the look on his face had me rethinking what I thought I knew.

"You can come out of the water now. Dress. And I will take you to them."

"To who?"

"Those two that you think are so infallible."

They were here? But if that was the case...why hadn't they come to find me? Where the hell was Caius keeping them?

Panic and fear and anger swelled through me. I stepped from the water, my entire body shaking, but not from the cold.

It took every ounce of willpower I had not to tear his head from his shoulders. "I trusted you," I hissed.

He helped me pull on a long white rob, his eyes sad. "I am sorry. But I did it with the best intentions."

"The best intentions?" I snarled. "You are forcing me into this!"

He got a little rough when he pulled the longer pieces of my hair into a braided crown. He placed a circlet of gold above that, a tiny pearl resting at the center of my forehead. He didn't answer me, but I could tell he was reaching the limits of his patience.

The outfit was completed with a thin golden chain around my waist, and a choker that matched the circlet resting on my head. My feet were kept bare, my clothing long gone. I missed my boots and jacket, feeling lost without them.

"Come," said Caius, taking my arm in a large but gentle hand.

I said nothing, my heart racing in my chest, trepidation making my neck slick with sweat. I let him lead me out of the underground chamber and through a series of darkened hallways, lit periodically with candles hung from the walls. The isle was beautiful above...but below...

It left a bad taste in my mouth. The atmosphere here was sinister and it made me worry for my friend's lives. Because I knew what Caius had told me wasn't a threat...it was a promise. And while I did not want to believe that Hiei and Yusuke could be beaten so easily...I did not want to risk that possibility either.

It felt like an eternity before we reached a heavy iron door, emblazoned with the intricate designs of vines and covered in moss. Caius pulled out a large key from a pocket in his deep purple pants. The sound it made when the lock came undone was ominous.

Dust flowed by our feet at the opening of the door, the massive thing groaning on its hinges. The inside of what I could only call a dungeon was lit with tiny phosphorescent plants that filled every available crack and crevice in the stone. I would almost think it was pretty...if the reality of what I was facing didn't make my energy crackle over my skin.

"You've imprisoned them," I hissed.

"For the safety of the beings that live on this island," he said. "It was a necessary evil."

Yeah right, I thought. More like it was to save his own hide. Because I damn well knew that Hiei would have killed him given the chance. And Caius knew it too.

Before he could pull me through the door I dug in my heels, grinding to a halt. "If you free them now, I will make sure we leave without hurting anyone."

Caius shook his head, "I can't do that."

"Then I'll do it myself!" I stepped away from him, intent on keeping my promise.

A hand at my arm, just as hot as an open flame had me gasping. So similar...yet so different. The hand was too large, the palm not quite as calloused. But the burn felt just the same.

"You will do as you're told if you want them to live."

I could hear my skin sizzling, the burn so bad it held the potential to leave a scar. And I hated that thought so much. Because I held Hiei's palm on my opposite arm and like hell would I let Caius mark me like that too.

I belonged to no one, least of all him. "I'm going to kill you," I said, my voice hard as steal.

He frowned, eyes holding pain that I did not wish to understand. "I could have loved you," he said. "I can see why the fire demon covets you so."

The pain he was feeling fled just as fast as it came. "But that matters not. Sayuri is now your destined. You will make a worthy life partner."

"You're crazy," I said.

"Perhaps that is so, but I do it out of love for my sister. She is all I have in this life."

And the sad fact was, I could understand and sympathize with that. It is what had drawn me to Caius in the first place. And it is now what had me bowing my head, conceding to him.

I knew I couldn't win in a fight against him. Here, in this place, he did not hide who or what he was. His wings stayed furled at his back, large and magnificent. His energy roared beneath his breast.

This was an S class demon.

He ranked just as high, if not higher, than Yusuke and Hiei. And that alone was enough to scare the shit out of me.

I wrenched my arm out of his hold. "Take me to them," I said.

He obeyed my command, leading me down a practical labyrinth. I would never be able to find my way alone, not without the ability to sense their energy. The fact I could not feel them at all had worry pooling in my stomach, making me sick.

The dungeon itself was overrun with moss and lichen from ages of disuse, the cobbled stones beneath my feet damp. The bars of the cells were rusted, but still sturdy. The only sound was of dripping water somewhere in the distance and Caius' boots as he maneuvered me through each twist and turn.

At long last Caius took me to a row of cells, the bars made of thick solid iron. They were all warded...not much different from Konstantin's keep. The thought of that place sent shivers down my spine. It made me want to turn and run. But the fact that Hiei and Yusuke were at the end...that they were trapped and probably pissed beyond belief, made me keep walking. I concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other, feeling the cold damp stone against the soles of my feet.

When Caius came to a halt in front of a particular cell I was almost afraid to look up. But the shocked voice of Yusuke, who had hollered out my name, had my eyes snapping up.

Yusuke rushed to the bars, eyes wide and hands reaching for me. "Are you okay?" he asked.

But my reply was choked back, lodged in my throat. My eyes had dodged the other man, glancing over him quickly to see that he wasn't injured, and then casting around wildly for the fire demon.

Hiei was crouched in a corner of the cell, red eyes glowing with righteous anger. His skin was warded but the swirling patterns were glowing a bright orange, like the embers of a fire. His gaze never left me, taking in everything, picking me apart piece by piece.

Caius' eyes zeroed in on Hiei, narrowing. He chose to say nothing, but I could tell by his cunning gaze he knew something that I didn't. "I will leave you to speak in private," he said. "I"ll return in ten minutes time."

Ten minutes?! That's all he was willing to give?!

I watched his retreating back, wishing to argue, but afraid he would take away even that small amount of time.

As soon as he rounded a corner I ran to the bars, my hands reaching in towards Yusuke. I palmed his face, checking him over for injuries, trying to feel that zing of power that always followed him. But there was nothing, not even a blip on the radar.

"I'm alright Kas, what about you?" he asked, batting away my searching hands.

"Fine," I mumbled, temporarily distracted. Hiei still hadn't moved. His heat filled gaze hadn't changed. "He hasn't hurt me," I elaborated.

Yusuke loosed a sigh of relief. "That's great. Now get us out of here. That fucker warded us."

Here I paused, my eyes darting from Hiei back to Yusuke. "Kas...?" he asked, his brows furrowed with confusion.

"I-I...can't..."

"What do you mean you can't?"

I didn't have time to argue with him, so I shoved him aside, so I had a full frontal view of the fire demon. "What am I, chopped liver?" I heard Yusuke mumble, but I ignored him in favor of giving all my attention to Hiei.

"He's marrying me to Sayuri," I said, trying to draw some kind of reaction out of the fire demon. Anything at all, just so long as I knew he was okay.

He rose from his crouch, cracking his neck, his eyes narrowing into a glare. That look wasn't directed at me. I knew it wasn't. And I knew he would be pissed...but the extent of it I had yet to discover.

"You plan to go through with it," he said, voice dark...terrifying. "You have no idea what you're doing."

I could feel the time ticking by, the seconds I was losing. "This is no time to be cryptic. He threatened to kill both of you!"

I reached as far into the cell as I could, fingers stretching towards him, hand grasping at air. "Please, Hiei. Don't be angry with me."

He stepped forward until the tips of my fingers connected with his chest. I wrenched my hand back with a hiss, sucking my fingers into my mouth. His skin had been hot enough to burn. And yet I still didn't feel a stitch of that stunning power he held.

"I am not angry with you, woman," he said, hands clenching into fists. "But I will not be trapped here long. So tell that bastard that he has forfeited his life."

He stepped up to the bars then, leaning into them, fists smacking against the metal. Black flames flickered in his eyes, in the Jagan. "Tell him I will rip his heart from his chest and devour it in front of that whore of his. And then I will take hers too and crush it beneath my boots."

I couldn't remember a time I had seen him so furious. It far outweighed when I'd told him I loved him. It overshadowed every fight I had ever seen him in.

This...this was pure, unadulterated rage. Nothing I said now would change how he felt. If he freed himself from this cell, even without his powers, he would kill everyone on this island with his bare hands.

And I just couldn't let that happen. I could not let him kill so many innocent people, Caius aside.

I backed away from the cell. I could hear Caius returning down the hall, the pounding of his boots a sudden comfort.

"And when all is said and done...I will make it so not another being in all three worlds can take you from me. I am done playing games. I am done fighting for my place in your universe."

I felt my breath hitch at his words. So possessive...it was borderline insane. If it had come from anyone but Hiei I would have run for the hills. But all his words did was flood my body with heat...and a little bit of fear. Because I did not want to be his possession.

I wanted to be his equal.

"You are mine, Kasumi," he growled.

When Caius rounded the corner the fire demon's fury blew outward. He growled low and deep at the other man, eyes wild, a true beast incarnate. His lips curled back on his teeth, revealing fangs sharp enough to tear flesh from bone.

But Caius said nothing. He only wrapped a thick arm around my stomach and picked me up, pinning me against his chest. I screamed, kicking at his legs and digging my nails into the flesh of his arms.

I reached out for Hiei again, missing him by a hairs breadth as Caius ripped me away. My energy screamed from inside me, spilling out in electric sparks that filled the dungeon with light.

But it did little to hurt Caius. He just surrounded himself in a haze of his own power, negating mine as if he were batting away flies.

"Let me go, you bastard!" I screeched.

He did not heed me, dragging me away from their cell. Taking me away from the man I loved once again.

"I will come for you!" Hiei yelled. "I won't let them take you!"

I reached for him again even though it was a futile effort. His own arm stretched through the bars, the tips of his fingers just not close enough. And for a moment that unbridled fury in his eyes abated...and true anguish took it's place.

"I love you!" I yelled. "No matter what happens, I will always love you!"

I heard Caius scoff as he pulled me away, back down the hall even as I kicked and screamed and tried to fry him with everything I had. I could still hear Hiei roaring in the background, the anger having returned tenfold.

"It isn't like you're going to die," he said. "Don't be so foolish."

But Caius didn't understand. He didn't have the slightest clue.

In six months time I would be dead. I would give my life to save my sister, to save all three worlds. I would give up everything to know that they were safe – that Hiei was safe. It was one death in the face of billions, possibly more.

So the fact I needed so badly to be near Hiei, to feel his touch, to tell him I loved him over and over didn't even register to Caius. And that wasn't his fault. I knew that. But I didn't care.

I had six months left to live.

And like a blow to the head that reality hit me harder than it ever had before.

Because Hiei knew that too. He could deny it all he wanted. He could repeat again and again that it wasn't going to happen.

But deep down he knew it was true.

I slumped against Caius, allowing him to carry me like some kind of rag doll. I had lost the will to fight. I couldn't stand the idea...the very thought...of losing Hiei.

But here I was...doing the same goddamned thing to him.

In six months I would walk to my death...and leave Hiei behind. I didn't know if he loved me...if he ever would.

And with every fiber of my being I prayed that he wouldn't. Because I didn't know what I would I do if he ever did...

. . .

"Do you plan to sulk all evening?"

I ignored him. I curled up on the sheets that were too soft and foreign and acted as if he didn't even exist. I buried my face into my knees, arms wrapped around my legs.

A moment later the edge of the bed dipped and a large palm ran down my back, as if to soothe me. "Here, something to calm your nerves."

I inched my head up just enough to see what he was offering me. It was some amber liquid in a clear glass. My eyes narrowed at it, "What is it?" I asked, suspicious.

"A potent whiskey the fey here are partial to."

Alcohol...shit. I hadn't had any in months. But like a man that had gone too long without water, I grabbed the glass and drank gratefully. I emptied it in short order and held it out for him to pour me another.

Caius raised an eyebrow at me but handed me the second drink without a word.

When I had finished the third I was well and truly drunk. That had been potent indeed. And it had been just what I'd needed at this point in time.

I flopped back on the bed, spreadeagled. The ceiling looked weird, covered in viney things and flowers that looked like little stars. Caius remained at my side and even though I was angry with him I was glad for the company.

He'd kept his promise, he hadn't hurt Hiei or Yusuke. And even though they were locked up they were safe for the time being.

But I wasn't ready to forgive the prick, not by any means.

"Do you truly love him?" he asked suddenly.

A warmth was swimming through my belly, Caius making me think of the fire demon and what his hands could do to me and all the asinine reasons I had fallen for the little bastard. I could have given him a million different answers but all I said was, "Yes."

"Why?" he asked.

How do you answer a question like that? Why does anyone fall in love? So my drunken brain gathered what it could, my explanation lacking. "He's strong...and passionate...and he carries himself in such a way that just..." I sighed.

"If you want me to talk about sappy shit I'm going to need another drink," I said.

Caius chuckled but handed me another glass. I sat up and sipped this one, savoring the flavor. I collected my thoughts once more and continued, "There's the obvious reasons – his body, the way he fights, the way he touches me." I took another drink, my eyes dipping closed, imaging he was sitting beside me and not Caius.

"And then there's the less obvious. He hides his emotions but if you look in the right places you can see that he really feels everything. He's protective and loyal and carries himself like a king without a crown."

"Love is rare for a demon, did you know that?"

No, I didn't. I knew they did not conduct relationships the same way as humans. But I had figured that they at least fell in love in the same way. Because how could that be so different?

"A mate is chosen by their power or what they have to offer the other party. It is not often they choose to mate out of love," he continued.

"That seems stupid," I slurred. "That's who you're spending your life with. Shouldn't you love them?"

Caius shook his head, his hair spilling over his shoulders. He'd taken the braid out some time ago. "No, in the Makai the only thing that matters is power. Only lower level demons mate out of love or desire."

"Stupid," I repeated, finishing the rest of my drink in a single gulp.

Caius took the empty glass from me, his fingers sliding along the back of my hand. His skin was just as hot as Hiei's and it made a blush bloom across my cheeks. It didn't help that he had stripped out of his formal clothing into something more comfortable. Caius now wore a light pair of loose grey cotton pants and no shirt to speak of.

"Would you put some clothes on?" I snapped.

He laughed, "Where is the fun in that?"

My reaction to what he did next came too slow, the alcohol dumbing down my brain. Caius had leaned forward and next thing I knew he was kissing me, his lips sliding against mine. I heard the glass fall from his hand and shatter against the stone floor.

He climbed more fully onto the bed, kneeling over me, hands planted on either side of my body. But my brain had finally caught up.

I ripped away from him violently, dragging the back of my hand across my mouth. "What the fuck are you doing?"

He didn't back away from me, his hair slipping across his shoulders, covering us in a curtain of satin black. He reached up to cup my face in one large palm. "You love the jaganshi because a fire burns bright in his soul," he whispered. "I harbor the same. I can be what you want...what you need."

"Caius – "

He shushed me, the hand at my cheek wandering down to pull at the folds of the robe I wore. I had never expected this out of him. But I should have known better. And even as drunk as I was like hell was I about to let it happen.

While he was distracted I gathered as much energy in my clenched fist as I could...and smashed it into the side of his face.

He leapt from the bed, one eye screwed shut in agony, a snarl on his lips. I had destroyed half his face, the once beautiful skin now a burned and ruined mess.

I stepped from the bed, my rage so strong I did not even feel the cold stone at my feet. "Let me get one thing straight," I said, voice as hard as steal. "I love Hiei not because of what he has to offer me. I fell in love with him because of who he is, not what he is."

I reached Caius, who still stood with narrowed eyes, a palm clutching the burnt side of his face. "And you...you don't even fucking compare," I said. I stood with my feet planted, arms crossed over my exposed chest but not out of modesty. I pinned Caius with a glare, daring him to say a single goddamn word. "Because in my universe...Hiei is the sun. So go ahead, marry me to your sister, try and take me away from him..."

"But I will always love him."

Caius straightened, his once furious gaze turning cold. "Your devotion is admirable. But you will learn soon enough why it is a waste of your time."

He spit into his hand, taking the saliva and smearing it across his injured face. The skin sizzled, the wound fading until it was almost nonexistent. "I could have loved you," he said, the same words he'd spoken to me earlier.

I scoffed, turning my head away from him, as if he disgusted me. He sighed, shaking his head, and then walked to the door. He said nothing when he left, slamming the heavy wood behind him hard enough to shake the entire building.

With his departure my reiki popped and crackled and sang across my skin. I destroyed that room and everything in it before the night was through.

And when I was finished, not a single piece of furniture left for me to decimate, I fell into a heap on the floor. The alcohol had long worn off. It left me feeling abandoned, empty. Thoughts flooded in to take its place. Because everything I had told Caius was true.

Every single goddamned thing.

Hiei was my sun. My supernova.

And I was just the moon that had spent a lifetime chasing after him.

. . .

Today was the day my sister had chosen to bring us home. It was also the day I would be married to Sayuri. And for the little girl's credit she was just as confused about the situation as I was.

I had been allowed to speak to her a handful of times in preparation for the ceremony. She was happy I was there, happy to have such a strong woman choose to be her mate. I hadn't had the heart to tell her that wasn't the case. That I didn't want to be.

She was sweet where her brother was bitter. But parts of her were jaded from her time with Konstantin. No matter how hard I tried to explain that this wasn't what was best for her, she would not listen. Becuase Caius had told her it was and he would not lead her astray.

When the day for the ritual came around Sayuri had been whisked off to be cleansed and anointed, much the same as I had been. But I was taking the place as the groom, so I wasn't allowed to see her until the actual ceremony started.

To say I was shitting bricks would be an understatement.

I hadn't seen Hiei or Yusuke in days. Neither of them had escaped as I had hoped. But with their energy sealed the way it was I was afraid they'd end up killed. So I bided my time, praying that Hitomi would call for us sooner rather than later.

And in all this mess there had been one other annoyance. A single irritation that drove me closer and closer to insanity by the second.

"Kill the girl and take her heart."

That was the fifth time I'd heard that in the past hour. And each time I ignored Chronos the louder she got.

"If you go through with this the fire demon will never love you."

Fuck you, I thought. I was doing this to save his goddamned life. It was the grave I had dug and now it was time to lie in it.

"Suit yourself, you pathetic child."

While I sat and argued with Chronos, when I had originally been trying to meditate, I did not realize that a group of creatures had gathered around me. At their head was Caius, dressed in an outfit of purest red, golden jewelry hanging from his ears and neck.

I was kneeling in a tiny field amongst a ring of wildflowers. I was dressed in a white gown with golden accents, white flowers braided through the crown of my hair, the red blade threaded through the band at my waist. I'd hated it the instant it had touched my skin.

This wasn't me. None of it.

The little demons around me began to chant. The sound was whimsical and full of longing but it only made me cringe. I didn't even turn when a procession of fey ushered Sayuri to the field and left her to kneel beside me.

She looked at me in askance, golden eyes glowing with bittersweet happiness, and it killed me. My own eyes slipped closed, my mouth clamping shut on the bile that rose in my throat.

I heard Caius speak in that beautiful language that I associated with his people, signifying the ritual had began. Sayuri took my hand in hers, the palm warm and smooth.

But before he could get much further the ground rumbled. My heart picked up a steady rhythm in my chest. Because I knew what that meant. And I didn't know if I should be thankful for the interruption...or afraid.

Caius' singing ground to a halt, the group of demons going silent one by one. I watched fear bloom across every single one's brow.

"Prepare for battle," said Caius, directing the little demons around him as if they were an army. And for his credit he remained perfectly calm in front of the storm that was about to hit him.

"Sayuri, come to me," he said, holding out his arms.

But she didn't move. She just gripped my hand harder. I felt that connection between us twang like the string of a guitar, fear filtering through my mind. "It's alright," I whispered.

She was just a little girl...and while Caius had made poor choices...I couldn't let her suffer because of it.

So when Hiei and Yusuke emerged from the underground, I grabbed her hand and forced her to hide. I shoved her behind some bushes, hoping she would stay put, and then ran back into the fray.

And in those few short moments I had left I turned around to find devastation. Everything had been lit aflame, the fire unnatural and raging, the flames as black as night.

In the center of that chaos was Hiei, his entire body engulfed. He'd burned the wards straight from his skin. Even after days of expanding his energy to remove his chains it hadn't made a dent in his power. The rage fueled him like gasoline on a bonfire. And all I could do was stand and watch at the pure magnificence of it.

I hardly noticed when Yusuke ran to my side, grabbing me in strong arms, the wards still covering his skin but faded. "Bring up a reiki barrier!" he shouted. "Do it now or we'll be burned alive!"

I did as I was told, still staring at Hiei through the gap beneath Yusuke's arm. I spread my energy outwards, pushing as much reiki into the barrier as I could, surrounding the both of us. Once I was sure Yusuke was inside, I hardened it...and even then I could feel the heat. The air had turned hazy, heatwaves making my vision blur and eyes water.

The fey ran screaming in every direction. And Hiei killed anything that dared cross his path. Most of them were too weak to handle the brunt of his power and just burst into flame. And the ones that didn't were cut down with a swing of my grandfather's blade.

"Kas, I need you to listen to me, okay?"

I nodded, although I was still distracted. Yusuke's arms tightened around me until it was painful. "I'm serious, pay attention!" he snapped. And that tone alone had me staring up at him with wide eyes.

"He's about to use his finisher. And if either of us get in the way it isn't going to be pretty. So be ready to run."

"His finisher?" I asked. What the hell was Yusuke talking about?

"Watch," he said.

And so I did.

Caius had begun to transform during my moment of inattention, his body spreading and morphing into something that looked far from human. Back at Konstantin's keep I had seen only a taste of this. But now he was exactly as I had imagined a dragon would look – massive, with wings big enough to pick up that body full of glinting black scales and sharp, sharp teeth inside a mouth so large it could swallow a building whole.

I wondered how I had not heard it, how I couldn't hear him roaring at Hiei. And then realized that Hiei's crackling flames had grown so large that the sound filled my ears until that was all I could hear.

I watched a smirk twist Hiei's lips before he launched himself at the other man, attacking with fervor, his movements so fast I couldn't even see. Caius defended with his tail, snapping at Hiei with his powerful jaws when given the opportunity.

Like a true dragon of myth, after he had successfully thrown Hiei back with a great sweep of his tail, his mouth opened wide. Inside looked like a bed of burning embers. He breathed deep, filling his lungs to capacity...and then spewed a mighty column of flames from his maw.

Hiei dodged each blast like it was child's play.

And I came to realize that while Caius was certainly an S class demon...he paled in comparison to Hiei himself.

After evading each of Caius' attacks, Hiei was no longer in the mood for games. When he skidded backwards, putting plenty of distance between himself and Caius...

I felt my heart stop in my chest and then start up again, the beats slow and steady and yet I still felt like the organ was lodged in my throat.

I placed a hand over my mouth, wide eyes unable to look away from the complete massacre the fire demon had just inflicted on this village like it was a stroll in the park. And when he held out the arm with the twining black dragon tattoo painted on his skin, black flames filled his open palm, twisting and turning down the expanse of his arm.

Hiei's jagan opened wide with a bright flash of purple and then with a great yell of, "Jaō Ensatsu Kokuryūha!" A tremendous dragon made of black flames came barreling out of his outstretched palms. It was so huge that it engulfed the entire sky, shrouding everything in its darkness.

"We need to run. Now!" All I could think at Yusuke's words was where. Because that thing was so gargantuan I didn't know how we could possibly escape it.

But as Yusuke tried to drag me away I dug in my feet. I knew what Hiei had just used couldn't be stopped from killing me, from killing Yusuke in his current condition. But I couldn't look away now even if I tried.

The beast came barreling towards the transformed body of Caius. I watched as it pushed him back and back, Caius' claws digging deep into the earth, creating great gouges the size of trenches. He opened his mouth wide, as if trying to swallow it. He managed to stop it at the very edge of the island...and with a great roar it came barreling back towards Hiei.

I screamed, leaping forward as if I could do anything to save him from being devoured by his own technique. But Yusuke wrapped his arms around me, hauling me further back. "He's fine! Just wait!" he yelled over the din of the dragon.

But all I could see was Hiei being surrounded by the dragon's flames, his body disappearing, being eaten alive. "Hiei!" I screamed, throwing an elbow back into Yusuke's solar plexus.

It hit him hard, knocking the wind out of him. I wasn't within my right mind when I ran from him, trying to reach Hiei before those flames burned him to cinders.

But I never had a reason to panic. Because the fire demon rose from them like a phoenix that had just been reborn...and the power flowing off of him had me freezing to the spot. I felt real fear spike through me, running down my spine in spasming tingles. It left me breathless. I had never imagined he held such strength in the palm of his hands.

Caius, no longer in his dragon from since throwing Hiei's finisher back at him, rose from the ground to meet the fire demon. He looked shriveled, like his power had been taken from him. He stood, defensive, at the ready. But it was a futile effort...

I watched on in horror as Hiei slaughtered Caius. He flickered to the other demon, sword back in hand, and drove the blade straight through his chest. Caius hadn't even had a chance to block or parry the blow. Hiei leaned forward to say something that I couldn't hear, before wrenching the blade back out, blood flying through the air in a stunning arc of red.

In a flash too fast for the naked eye to see, Hiei's free hand shot forward and into Caius' chest. With a sharp jerk he ripped it back out, the blood soaked heart of the dragon clutched in his palm. It still beat softly, in time with the gurgling breaths Caius released...before he slumped forward and fell face first to the ground.

There was a breath of silence...and then a scream erupted from behind me.

Sayuri came dashing from her hiding place, screeching for her brother, running straight for Hiei. The fire demon turned crazed eyes towards her and I reacted without even thinking.

I disappeared in a shower of golden light...and when I reappeared it was to be hit with a searing, mind bending agony.

I had protected Sayuri. I had teleported just in time to save her from the wild swing of Hiei's blade...

But I had not been quick enough to dodge the blow myself.

I fell to my knees, blood gurgling up my throat to dribble down my chin. I couldn't talk. Couldn't think. Couldn't hear.

He'd cut me diagonally down my back, from shoulder to sternum. And it was then that my sister's power surrounded us, a portal opening in the sky, our bodies being lifted in the air as if by a gentle breeze.

I don't know if I made it.

Because all I saw after that was black.

. . .

A/N: FUCK. Go ahead and kill me, you know you want to! Another shitty cliffhanger. I'm so sorry (not really, but really, but not really). I was really trying to find a way around Caius having to die, because I honestly liked him myself, but he also wouldn't play a part in the rest of the story, so it didn't make sense to keep him around. So I worked it out to make him be kind of an asshole in the end. He did it all for Sayuri (and a crush that he'd been harboring on Kas that turned a little bit too dark). But I just couldn't see a way around it, Hiei had to kill him. So I'm really sorry for everyone that liked Caius!

Next chapter will be in Hiei's POV.

Leave some love (hate) and let me know what you thought of this. Was Hiei out of character? Was this too far fetched or crazy? Is the romance aspect being rushed? Tell me!

BTW, I used the Japanese name for Hiei's dragon of the darkness flame...because I just find the translation kind of ridiculous to use lol.

Till next time, thanks for reading!