Disclaimers: Really, its really obvious that we don't own Fushigi Yuugi and its wonderful characters, our school tuitions are enough to prevent us from buying it. Anyway at least we own Kayla.
Now onto part 2 of "Rescue Mission" for all you excited readers.
Chapter 19: Rescue Mission: The Skills of Deception and Fury
Tasuki stalked out into the cold streets barely registering the fact that night had fallen. The busy streets of Tohran city was deserted for the day with the exception of only a few stragglers hurrying home whom he paid no attention to. He walked quickly, determined to get as far away as he could before he could stop himself and follow his initial urge to turn back instead.
Damnit! I almost blew it he thought angrily. He couldn't believe what had happened. Just what the hell was he thinking? Why hadn't he just accepted the first offer like he was supposed to in the first place? If he had done that then he wouldn't have to resort to… that.
He stopped dead on his tracks and stood there staring up into the darken skies not really seeing nor caring. His fist clenched and unclenched. "Kuso," he muttered as he closed his eyes, instantly regretting doing so as the look of Kayla's face sprang to his mind again. The boy's expression filled with confusion, shock and even a bit of fear clearly indicated without a doubt that what he had done to Kayla had startled the boy out of his wits to say the least. Why couldn't he have done something else instead? Why the hell did he have to pull a stunt like that?
All that he knew was when the moment had arrived for him to 'accept' the leader's initial offer; his mouth ran off and flat-out refused! He hadn't even realized what he had said until it was too late and had quickly made remedy with an excuse that he demanded more payment instead. It was a good rebound, but why the fuck did he have to DOUBLE the amount? The only explanation for why he only resorted to manipulating Kayla was just so that he could convince the stupid leader to agree to his price before he started having second thoughts and ruining the whole entire plan.
Congratulations Tasuki, you have just succeeded once again in making an ass out of yourself a voice whispered maliciously in his mind. Just fucking great.
"Tasuki, where are you going?"
Startled, Tasuki opened his eyes again to see a familiar figure coming his way. As the figure came closer, he could easily tell that it was no other than just Tamahome and by the looks of it; a very annoyed Tamahome. Tasuki tensed. Did he know? Was that why he looked annoyed? But there was no damn way he could have known unless the man had been hiding some hidden power from everyone all this time. He shifted uncomfortably feeling ridiculously paranoid and uneasy. "What do you mean?" Tasuki answered, trying to keep his voice as neutral as possible.
Tamahome finally stopped before him and gave him an irritated look. "Don't you remember? You were supposed to meet up with the rest us near that abandoned house just a few distance away from the stronghold the moment you walked out of there. What are you doing coming out here to the center of the city?"
"I…. I was just making sure I wasn't being followed before I came to meet you guys," Tasuki responded, flat-out lying. Even though now he did recalled that there had been such a plan to meet up, all that he had cared about that time was the fact that he wanted to distance himself away from the stronghold before he let his temper get the better of him and ended up turning back to save his friends and to tear that place apart.
Tamahome studied Tasuki uncertainly. Although his words had justified his behaviour, he couldn't fight the feeling that there was something off about the fiery Seishi's mood. "Hey, are you alright? Did something happened?" he asked worriedly, catching the disturbed expression on Tasuki's face.
Tasuki mentally shook himself. I really have to stop making all these stupid mistakes he thought, feeling annoyed with himself. There isn't a damn thing I can do to change things now…but damnit! This was supposed to be the EASY part! "Fine, everything is just fine," he answered quietly and turned away, heading in the direction of their pre-arranged destination. He stopped fleetingly when a thought occurred to him. Reaching to his side, he pulled out a drawstring pouch that was attached to his coat. Weighing the pouch briefly in his hand, he tossed the pouch to Tamahome, who caught it with ease.
Tamahome stared at the pouch in confusion before he looked at Tasuki questioningly. He knew immediately from familiar jingling and weight of the pouch that it was filled with coins. Lots of it, judging from its weight. But why was Tasuki giving him money? Not that he was complaining, but it was not like Tasuki owed him money, he would have remembered that for sure. "What's all this for?"
Tasuki gave him a look that was unreadable before replying with a gruff voice. "You hold onto it. I don't want to carry it."
"But where did all this money come from?" Tamahome pressed on Judging from his friend's mood and behaviour, something was definitely bothering him.
"Who cares? It's money all the same! Just fucking carry it!" Tasuki shouted heatedly, feeling the thin line between his temper and sanity wavering all too quickly.
Instead of getting angry back, understanding dawned upon Tamahome and the blue-haired Seishi berated himself for not realizing it sooner. He looked at the pouch in his hand before looking back at Tasuki again. "This is money you got from the… ummm… trade, didn't you?" he asked quietly, keeping his face as neutral as possible.
The silent response coming from the fiery Seishi was enough of an answer.
Tamahome had to suppressed the initial instinct to drool. After all, he doubt his foul-mooded friend would be very happy if he were to go into a money raving frenzy at a desperate time like this. Nevertheless… can anyone blame him for being a little excited in the face of so much money? "Ummm… how did you get them to pay you so much?" Tamahome asked finally. The poor blue-haired Seishi not knowing that this seemingly simple question was enough to set the ill-tempered Seishi off.
Tasuki's golden eyes darken to a dangerous gleam. Tamahome gulped as he literally felt the angry heat radiating off of his friend. Although Tamahome had distinctly remembered that the fiery Seishi was no longer carrying his Tessan, it didn't prevent him from stepping back nervously from the fiery man with something inclined to fear. What? Was it something I said?
Nuriko turned to his friend sitting beside him and once again sighed for what seem to be the hundredth time. For the last half hour or so he had been trying to get Kayla to talk to him. Unfortunately, she never responded or if she did, it was never verbally, but only with the occasional absent nod or a shake in the head… not really considered a response in the truest sense.
After Tasuki left, the Kaiori bandits had taken both him and Kayla up into an empty room and locked them inside without any explanation in what they were going to do with them. Kayla had never once resisted nor even seemed to acknowledge the things that were going on around her. True, they were supposed to act as obedient prisoners, but the problem was that Kayla didn't seem to be acting. She was just truly NOT reacting. The only time that he remembered Kayla acting similarly like this was the time when Amiboshi died. This fact only served to make Nuriko worried even more about his friend for he remembered that it had taken Kayla about two days to recover from that 'withdrawal'.
Judging from their current situation now, he wasn't sure they have two hours to spare, much less two days for her to recover.
It was not that he blamed his friend though. Her total state of shock (or whatever she was going through) was the fault made by that baka man also known to be one of his fellow Seishi-- although the term 'fellow' was really stretching the limits right about now.
That stupid, loud-mouthed, brainless, pyromaniac-excuse of a baka! he thought annoyingly, his protective instincts kicking in full range. Just what the hell did he think he was doing? Even if it was just part of the plan, why did he have to pick her? He should have just pickedme instead. At least if that happened, then later on I could always punch the flamed-hair baka through a wall to get even. But then again, if he was totally honest with himself, it wouldn't have really mattered whom Tasuki had chosen because in the end, Nuriko would STILL be tempted to punch the man through the wall either way.
"I knew that it was all an act."
The words were spoken so softly that Nuriko wasn't even sure that he had heard it at first. He turned and bit back a gasp in surprise when he saw Kayla looking at him for the first time since the incident. What was more she was even smiling a little! Nuriko swallowed nervously. Something didn't seem right. Despite her almost soft, easy smile, a smile that did not reached her eyes. "But you're…" he started, unable to put his feelings of doubt into words.
"There are more important things to settle right now and we can't just sit here forever can we?" Kayla reasoned, lowering her head to stare at her hands.
"But you're not… mad?"
Kayla looked up and blinked as if surprised to hear his question. "Oh I AM mad of course even though I know perfectly what his reasons were…" she gave a hesitant pause before continuing. "But I rather not sit here and just mope about it. Let's just focus on the matter at hand."
Nuriko gave her a worried look, but decided not to push her anymore for the time being. Like she said, there were more important matters to deal with right now. At least she seems to be coping with it well enough… at least I hope she is he reasoned. "Alright, but if you ever feel like talking, you know you can always count on me," he said with a supportive grin.
Kayla smiled again and this time, the smile did reached her eyes, showing her gratitude. "I know Nuriko and I really appreciate that."
With that said, they were finally able to move on to focus once again on their mission at hand.
"So what do we do now? I hope you have an idea Nuriko because I'm just clueless right now," Kayla started, as she examined the room they were locked in.
"Oh I have an idea, but you'll find out what it is later," Nuriko replied with a mysterious smile.
One of Kayla's eyebrows rose in question. "Why couldn't you just tell me now?"
"It will take too long and I don't think we have much time. Besides I need you to do something."
"What?"
"I need you to distract them, only for a short period of time."
"And how the hell am I supposed to do that? Stand on top the table and start dancing?" Kayla stated sarcastically.
"Hmmm…"
"That was NOT a suggestion!"
Nuriko chuckled at the red-faced girl. "Why not? I'm sure if you add a bit of stripping along with that dance, you would surely have all their undivided attention."
"NURIKO!"
"Alright, alright. I was just kidding. I wouldn't let you do that even if you wanted to." Nuriko teased before he grew solemn again. "But seriously, don't worry Kayla, I'm sure you will come up with something to distract them when the time comes."
Kayla sighed. "I hope you're right."
"What are you talking about? I'm always right you silly girl." Nuriko teased, giving Kayla an affectionate tap on the head.
The sound of porcelain breaking echoed within the room.
"You stupid girl!" the man yelled furiously as he hit the girl across the face. The force of the slap sent the girl down on the floor as one of the ties on her reddish-brown hair locks came loose. The girl bit back a scream of pain but couldn't hold the drop of tears that fell unwillingly down her face. With her hands tied, she had no way of softening her fall, therefore hitting the floor painfully on her side.
The man grumbled as he rubbed his sore hand where the girl had bitten him. All that he had wanted was to get a kiss from the girl in exchange for the food that he had brought for her. However, that stupid girl had to be so ungrateful and even had the nerve to bite him. Well, she can forget her meal then! "You're just lucky the boss didn't want anything else to bruise that little pretty face of yours," he sneered. He angrily stalked out of the room and locked the girl in with her own miseries.
Miaka blinked back some of her tears. This whole mess was all her fault. Why couldn't she have controlled her hunger? Now because of her carelessness, she was separated from her friends and from what she had picked up; about to be sold off to somewhere unknown. Her friends were probably sick with worry and she had no way of contacting them. The so-called legendary Suzaku no Miko had fallen due to the fact that she didn't have enough wits to control herself she thought bitterly.
Despite the fact the Miko would have liked nothing more but to wallow in self-pity, the fact that her friends and many other people were counting on her was the only thread that keeps her from falling into a sea of endless tears. So the girl was determined to put her frustrations aside and think of a way to get out, even if she had to claw her way out of this mess she had landed herself in.
I can't break down right now. I have too many promises to keep before I let something like this stop me. I have to find a way out and hopefully find my friends and apologize to them she thought. The resolution shone in the Miko's hazel eyes giving off the fiery determination that had earned her the title of Suzaku no Miko (even if the girl may not have realized it herself).
Her eyes scanned the room quickly for any aid and landed quickly on the broken pieces of porcelain and food left carelessly behind by the bandit who had tried to harass her earlier. Mentally thanking Suzaku for small favors, she quickly shuffled her way towards the broken pieces. Picking a small, sharp piece of porcelain in her hand, she began the awkward and slow procedure of working on the ropes on her hands behind her back.
While she worked on the tedious action, her mind ran through different ideas in which she could escape. Despite being locked alone inside a room, she was quite certain that there was a guard or two outside her door. Therefore she would have to think of some other way to get out. Perhaps out the window? Whatever way it would be, she was determined to escape, and hell hath no fury than an unwavering Miko with a mission.
Kayla suppressed the urge to curse out loud. Her hands clutching the porcelain pitcher with such a force that it threaten to crumble beneath her fingertips. 'Distract them' he says, 'you will come up with something' he says. Well I hope he is happy because I am sure as hell am NOT! she thought bitterly. She took another breath to calm herself before she continued walking among the crowd of rowdy, drunken Kaiori bandits while trying to avoid their clutches at the same time.
It had turned out that Kayla's chance to 'distract' the bandits had came easier than expected. Not too long after had Nuriko and she finished discussing their plans, the bandits had barged in and took them away. The Kaiori bandits were apparently in the midst of celebrating for some occasion and ordered Kayla to serve the wine and food. It had been about an hour ago since the feast had started and now Kayla did not only worry about Miaka, but also for her violet-haired friend as well. Nuriko had been separated from her from the beginning and she has no idea where the Seishi had been taken to. I hope he's alright she thought worriedly, despite the annoyance she felt for her friend.
Then something caused her to pause momentarily by surprise. In spite of all the noisy chaos of laughing, cheering, fighting from the boisterous group of men and despite the fact that she was putting most of her concentration in avoiding their clumsy grasps; a spoken word rang clear throughout all the commotion, just enough to grasp her attention. "Girl"
Somehow knowing instinctively that the title had not been a directed on her personally, she turned discreetly towards the general direction from where that one word had originated from (not easy with all the other distractions around to deter her). Maybe the Gods had been merciful for once, because it wasn't long before she noticed two men conversing from a nearby table. The scene had looked normal at first glance, but upon closer inspection, she noticed that one of the men looked displeased and had a cloth pressed hard against the palm of one hand.
Suspicious, she discreetly made her way towards the two men while serving drinks and acting like the obedient servant that was expected of her. She stood at a close distance from the two bandits just enough to hear what they were saying, but not enough to draw attention to herself. At the same time, she prayed that the other bandits would be too drunk to notice that she was eavesdropping.
"Ya know the rules, no messing with the goods. Ya deserved whatcha got," the man with rare curly brown hair spoke, a smirk on his face as he teased his companion with the injured hand.
The other man glared at him, not appreciating his companion's humor at his expense. "Well, she got a good slapping for that little stunt she pulled. Now shut up and pass me that drink!" he ordered grumpily.
"What, no please?" the curly-haired man mocked, but passed the wounded man his drink, laughing again at his friend. His comrade threw his cloth on the table and accepted the cup with a scowl. He downed his drink in two gulps with some spilling messily from the side and smacked his lips in satisfaction. He then turned his small brown eyes to survey the room and Kayla nearly froze when she literally felt those shifty eyes landing on her. "You, wench! Get over here and pour me more wine!" the bandit barked roughly.
Kayla's grip tighten on the pitcher within her grasp from the man's offending words and she was quite sure that she could hear the telltale crack starting from the poor, porcelain wine carrier's rim. Nevertheless forced in following the man's orders, Kayla walked stiffly towards the two bandits to pour them their drinks. She kept her head down to maintain the image of inferiority, but also to hide the scorching heat of anger showing in her eyes. There was really a limit to how much a girl can take and this man (someone who possibly knew the whereabouts of Miaka and very probable of having attempted something uncalled for to the girl) was sorely pushing on her limits.
When she was done in pouring their drinks, she began to walk away again discreetly hoping to continue listening in on them from a distance. Unfortunately, the man with the injured hand, had other ideas as his shifty eyes grazed appreciatively on her small figure, long dark hair and deceivingly timid form.
Kayla gasped in surprise when the shifty-eye bandit grabbed her arm suddenly in a rough, but strong grip. Mistaking the look in her eyes as fear more than surprise, the man gave her a lecherous grin. "Well aren't' you a pretty little thing," he crooned, making Kayla's skin crawl as warning bells rang loudly in her head. "Why don't you take a break from all this hard work and I'll show you to a place… shall we say, more comfortable?"
His suggestion along with that lecherous look from the man was all the signals needed for Kayla to know what the man's intentions were. She was shocked from this man's boldness to say the least and neither was his friend's expression far off from her own.
"Now Kronin," the other bandit started out nervously, his earlier amusement gone seeing that his friend was serious this time. "Remember when we said the boss mentioned no messin' with the goods?"
"Stop spoiling all my fun, Taiken, Boss don't need to know nothing if we're quiet about it." Kronin said, his tone giving off a weird ring of excitement and insanity.
"But…" Taiken trailed off, as he glanced uncertainly from the bandit to Kayla and back. "What if she tells?" he finished indicating to Kayla, who was still too stung to form any words of resistance.
Kronin smile turned malicious, sending a chill through Taiken's back. "Then I'll make sure she won't." Kronin finished off, leaving his comment vague, but also too clear at the same time. Then he dragged Kayla away through the rowdy crowd and into the dark halls unnoticed by all but Taiken, whom did not approve of Kronin's act, but had no intention of stopping him.
Kayla could not believe a person could be so unlucky. Her situation had just landed from bad, to worst, to downright ridiculous! How was it possible for her to find herself in these kind of situations when she had no intention of finding them in the first place? Now she was being dragged unwillingly into this dark hallway in this God-forbidden place by a lecherous bandit, who planned to do unspeakable things to her.
Just the thought of it was enough to make her sick in the stomach. Or make her scream in rage and frustration. Maybe both.
Finally coming back to her wits and senses, Kayla wretched her arm forcibly away from the man's firm grip, surprised she was able to do so on the first try.
His captor, Kronin had been shocked by her strength as well, but was more irritated from her sudden act of rebellion. He always preferred his victims to be submissive rather than troublesome. This girl had certainly gave the impression of inferiority and he was determined to crush this girl back into her place. "What do you think you are doing, you little wench?" he hissed, his eyes glaring in irradiation yet morbid amusement. He would love to break whatever spirit that was left in this girl.
Kayla glared back at the man, feeling her rage rise to an unbearable level at his cruelty seen so plainly in his eyes. "You will not touch me again if you know what is good for you," she said warningly, feeling surprise in the stable tone of her voice despite her anger. Surprisingly, during other times like these when she would feel bits of nervousness, doubts, and even fear, this time all she could feel was anger for this man before her. All she knew was this man knew where Miaka was and that she was severely limited in time in finding her and perhaps Nuriko later on as well.
The man laughed at her threat, seeming to take her words as no more than just whimsical act of rebellion. "And what are you going to do to stop me if I do? Try and scratch me?" he sneered.
Just then Kayla noticed something interesting about her current situation. She was in a dark hallway, a good distance away from most of the population of other Kaiori bandits and she was alone with just the one man who can give her all the information that she needs. Perhaps she was not so unlucky after all if she could turn things in her favour. A smirk - that would have rivalled Tasuki's - fell upon her lips as she shied off the remaining acts of a timid girl, standing straight with more confidence but at the same time, guarding in case the man did not heed her warning. "I am not a cat so I don't scratch, but I can hurt you plenty with my fists," she answered, knowing full well the man will probably not take her seriously.
Sure enough the man did not heed to her warning, but only grew more irritated and amused at the same time. "I don't have time for this, listen to me and maybe I won't damage that pretty little face of yours," he threatened and he made to grab her arm again. However, Kayla was ready and she easily dodged his attempts. The man growled and tried again and was once again thwarted by Kayla's dodging.
"Stay still you little wench!" the man hissed. Tired of trying to grab her, and deciding in trying to knock her out instead, he made a lunge towards the girl's head. Kayla quickly blocked one of his punches towards her face, smirking at the man's surprised expression. Immediately, she returned the punch to the man's face, connecting successfully with a telltale crack on the man's nose, no doubt breaking it. The man howled in pain and stepped back away from her giving her personal space temporarily once more. She shook her punching hand a bit, feeling it go a bit numb. For a man with a small mind, the guy does have a hard head. "I told you I could punch. Now stop wasting my time," she said, giving the man another warning.
"Bitch! You will pay for that with your life!" Kronin roared in full range hatred.
Kayla gasped involuntarily at those eerily familiar words from the past, the man's voice replaced by the terrible taunting of her aunt's voice awaken from the recesses of her unconscious mind. Those few precious seconds of distraction was enough to make her lose focus as the bandit landed a swift punch to her cheek. It was not enough to break a jaw, but enough to bruise and give her a pounding headache. Realizing her dire mistake, Kayla forcibly drove her aunt's voice back into the forbidden recesses of her mind and instantly send a knee up hard into the man's abdomen.
The man fell to his knees clutching his abdomen in pain and coughed violently. Angered that she had allowed herself to be distracted and irritated at the man for starting it, she grabbed the man by the back of his collar and forcibly held him upright so she can glared at the man face-to-face.
"Are you still going to harass me or do I have to break your jaw," she threatened. Kronin shook his head with fear as he saw the fire radiating from the girl's amber eyes, knowing full well now that the girl was very capable of her threat.
"Good, now tell me where are my friends?" Kayla demanded.
"F… Friends? Y… You mean the girl who was with you?" Kronin stuttered.
"Her and the other girl that you harassed before me. And don't you deny that you have touched her, I heard your stupid complaining from before!" She warned.
Kronin gulped, knowing full well that he was in trouble. "I d… didn't realize that she was your f… friend, or else I wouldn't have touched her...OWWWW!" he howled in pain again when Kayla pulled him rather painfully in the ear.
"Yes you would. Now where are they?" Kayla said and letting go of his ear once she knew he got the message.
"The girl is locked in one of the rooms in the North Wing on the second floor and I haven't touched anywhere of her than just her face, I swear!" Kronin answered, feeling weak from fear.
"And the other one? The one who was with me?"
"T…the other one is… is…" Then to Kayla's surprise, the man suddenly went limp and his eyes roll to the back of his head. Unable to hold him up with his dead weight in her hands, she simply let the man fell over flat on his face before he could even finish his sentence.
"What the…" Nervously, Kayla flipped the man over on his back and checked his pulse. She drew a brief sign of relief when she felt a faint pulse, but quickly grew irritated again. The man just…. just FAINTED! "Wake up you jerk! I'm not done yet! You still haven't told me where my other friend is! Wake up!" she yelled, shaking the man fiercely, trying to wake him up. Unfortunately, the man was out cold.
Finally letting go of the man, Kayla huffed in frustration and stood up with her hands on her hips and glared at the unconscious man on the floor as if all her suffering was resulted from him (at least some of them were). How lucky can a girl get? Of all the men to interrogate for information, she had to pick one who faints in the sight of fear. "Great, now what am I going to do?" she muttered.
"You can go look for Miaka first."
Kayla nearly jumped two feet into the air at the voice who had answered and quickly turned around in a defensive stance, ready to take down her next opponent. Only surprised to see her friend standing there looking unruffled and unharmed.
Nuriko held his hands up in surrender with an amused glint lit his eyes. "It's ok Kayla, it's just me."
Kayla was shocked to say the least, but overcame it quickly as she gave the Seishi a hug in relief. "Thank the Gods, you're alright! I was so worried!" Then she jumped back quickly just as Nuriko was about to hug her back and gave the surprised Seishi a punch in the arm. "You idiot! You're alright and I was worried for nothing! Just where were you?" she demanded feeling irritated yet relieved at the same time.
Nuriko chuckled at the sudden mood change of his friend while rubbing his arm. "I was proceeding with the plan, and I was just enjoying the show between you and this guy. You put up quite a fight."
"You were watching? And you didn't HELP?" Kayla said disbelievingly, suddenly feeling like hurting the violet-haired Seishi more severely. Friendships be damned!
To her credit, Nuriko had the sense to look a bit sheepish. "Well, you look like you were handling yourself well, so I didn't want to interrupt your fun." He examined her face with a critical eye. "Although that is going to bruise for quite a bit, we should get Mitsukake to take a look at that when we have a chance," he said, looking more serious at once.
Unable to keep up with her friend's sense of logic and wanting to draw attention away from her bruising left cheek, she turned away shaking her head. "You're impossible," she muttered good-naturedly. "So what was this grand plan of yours that you couldn't have told me about before."
Nuriko looked at her in surprise. "You mean, you haven't figured it out?"
Kayla gave him a pointed look.
"Sorry, just thought that you would have noticed it from the way this guy had passed out." At the confused look he received from Kayla, he decided to elaborate. "Well after I disposed of my captors with my all wonderful charms…" (ignoring Kayla's eye roll, as he continued) "I had secretly added some heavy sedative into all of the stronghold's serving drinks. If my calculations were right, the sleeping powder should have all taken effect and everyone will be out for a couple of hours. Except for a few who haven't drank anything, but those we can take care of if we ran into them."
"Where did you get all that sedative?"
"Mitsukake" Nuriko answered, pointing out the obvious.
"Oh…" was all Kayla uttered as understanding dawned upon her. Then a funny thought came to her and she couldn't hide the smile on her face.
"What's so funny?" Nuriko asked, catching the smile.
"Oh nothing, and here I thought the man fainted because I scared him and not under the influences of some drug," she replied with smirk.
Nuriko laughed. "Well I won't be surprised. Who knows? Maybe you did scared him into fainting before the drug went into effect."
Kayla stuck her tongue out on him. "I doubt it."
"Oh admit it! It felt good beating that jerk into a bloody pulp!" Nuriko teased, nudging her on the side.
"He's not in a bloody pulp! I didn't use that much violence," Kayla protested indignantly, before a smile crept back on her face. "But you're right, it did felt good beating the jerk up."
They both laughed at the bit of humour of the situation.
"We have to go get Miaka now, this guy told me she's locked in a room on the second floor in the North Wing." Kayla said, once again going back at the matter at hand.
However, Nuriko shook his head. "You go first and find her, I'll check around for any stragglers who haven't fell asleep yet. Can't have them bothering us when we all make our exit from this place."
"Are you sure you'll be alright?" Kayla asked uncertainly, not liking the fact that they'll be separated again in enemy territory, despite the fact that most of the enemy are unconscious at the moment.
Nuriko smiled reassuringly. "Sure, we'll both be alright, just be alert. I'll join up with you two later."
Kayla nodded, feeling more better at the Seishi's words of encouragement. "Alright, good luck and be careful," and she headed towards the nearest staircase that she could see located further down the hall.
"And same to you too. And Kayla?"
"Yes?" Kayla answered, turning back to face him.
Nuriko gave a mischievous grin, "I knew you would be a great distraction, that whole timid, servant girl act was just great!" and he walked off in the opposite direction.
It took short moment for Kayla to register the meaning behind Seishi's words before irritation build up within her again. "YOU WERE WATCHING THAT TOO AND STILL YOU DIDN'T' HELP ME?"
Miaka gave a great sigh of relief when her bonds her finally broken, allowing her free movements of her limbs once more. Being as quiet as she could without alerting to anyone outside her room, she made her way towards the window deciding that would be the most sensible, possible route of escape.
Boy was she wrong.
To her dismay, her window was barred just like any prison cell. Momentarily discouraged by this setback, she sighed and leaned her forehead against one of the metal bars vaguely noticing that it was now night in the world outside, so near yet so far from her grasp. She bit her lip while trying to come up with another route of escape. Sure she was free from her rope bonds now, but if she did not get out of this room soon, then it will not make much of a difference in whether she can move freely or not. Which meant that her only other possible means of exiting this room would be out the door. And facing whoever would meet her on the other side.
Not much of a choice she thought miserably. The only possible advantage that she may possess was the element of surprise. Not much, but an advantage nevertheless. Maybe an ambush! She decided with resolve. With her mind set, she moved away from the barred window and treaded quietly around the room to prepare. Maybe she could find a weapon of some sort of weapon to defend herself.
Kayla crept quietly down the dimly lit hallway, watchful for any bandits that had been spared from Nuriko's trickery. A chill ran through her, a quick reminder of how much she disliked the cold atmosphere in the whole place. It's so different from the Leikaku stronghold she thought absently. While she knew that the Leikaku stronghold wasn't the warmest place in the world (it was a resident for thieves after all), there was a certain… something about that place that invokes within her a certain nostalgia at the thought of it. The feeling felt very foreign and yet she welcomed the feeling like a lost friend. It was almost like a feeling like she had a home to get back to despite the fact that it was not be true. She had only been a temporary 'guest' during her time at Tasuki's home, it wasn't permanent and she wasn't going to give herself the false illusions that she could be. No matter how much you may wish for it to be true that wicked voice whispered within her mind, a voice she remained adamant to ignore. It was ironic that being at enemy territory could invoke such undue feelings or thoughts.
Kayla quickly snapped out of thoughts when she made a sharp turn in a corner but instantly stepped back and hid with her back against the wall. Her breathing stopped momentarily out of reflex as she stilled, trying to make as little noise as possible. Carefully when she was sure that she wasn't seen, she peeked out of the corner to determined if what she saw was real. Sure enough, about 10 feet down the hall stood a man guarding the front door of a room that no doubt must be holding Miaka. The bandit seemed to be unaware of the fact that his stronghold was slowly being overturned. He carried a rather bored expression on his face, seemingly put off that he was missing the celebration that was supposedly taking place at the lower levels.
Satisfied that the bandit did not have any other companions with him, she stepped out confidently in plain view out her hiding place from the corner to let the man see her. She even gave a tiny wave like she was saying hello to make sure the man see her in the dim lighting. Sure enough the man instantly saw her, surprise was clearly seen through on the man's face before it was overcame by irritation. "Hey! How the hell did you get out here?" exclaimed the man angrily before he came towards her just as she had planned.
She instantly ducked behind the corner again, using her prime advantage of surprise in her favour once more. And when the man came around the corner right into her trap, all it took was a swift kick in the stomach and head before he too went down cold. She had no intention of stalling and was determined to make good use of her limited time.
Quickly searching the man, she found the keys to the lock of Miaka's room and left the unconscious man, making her way towards the now unguarded room. She felt the adrenaline pumping in her blood at the anticipation that now that her mission was going to be over soon. She was going to save Miaka, then meet up Nuriko and they will leave this place and all without any more risk of her identity revealing and they can continue with their quest.
She easily dislodge the lock and pushed open the doors looking in. To her surprise, she found the room empty. The bed was bare and all she could see were some pathetic excuse of some furniture that seemed like they had been rejected for ages as she can clearly see the layers of dust on it. A barred window was located opposite of her giving her the view of the night sky beyond. Carefully she walked into the room not sure what to expect. If the room is really empty, then why was it locked? she wondered.
"Hiiiiyaaaa!" a war cry came from behind her, startling her as she instinctively turned around. It was by pure reflex that her hands shot up and caught the vase coming down upon her head. For a moment, Kayla just stood there with her hands holding the offensive vase bare inches from her head and her eyes travelled down to her attacker. Her amber eyes smouldered with irritation when she realized who her attacker was. "What are you doing? Are you trying to kill me!"
Miaka blinked in fear but then surprise when she realized that it was not a bandit that had entered her room. Dear Suzaku it's a girl! And I almost killed her! Miaka thought with panic guilt and instantly took the vase from the girl's hands and placed it on the floor. "I'm so sorry, I thought you were one of them. Did you became a prisoner too? I can't believe it, it's bad enough that they're holding me but now they're taking in more innocent girls! When I get out of here I'm going to kick their butts! I'm going…"
Kayla smirked as the Miko continued to rant about the injustice of her captors. Although she was still a bit irritated at almost being rendered unconscious by the girl's assault, she was more amused of the fact that Miaka had failed to recognize her as a girl.
Miaka paused when she realized that she was ranting again and give the girl a sheepish look. The girl was pretty with her long dark hair with violet highlights. Her amber eyes shone with amusement although she, herself failed to see the humour of their situation. She was small in appearance but judging from the quick reflex she had displayed in deflecting her ambush, Miaka was sure the girl was more than she appeared to be. Plus she couldn't shake off the feeling the girl was very familiar to her. It was not just by the girl's looks but the aura or vibe she was getting from the girl was very familiar as well. Familiar and friendly despite the girl's initial irritation with her. "Ummm… I'm sorry if this seems a bit off topic but… have we met?"
Kayla's smirk broke into a smile. "Miaka don't you recognize me? I know I look a bit different but it shouldn't be that big of a difference." Or maybe I do look that different she thought to herself, I mean I almost didn't recognize myself when I looked in the mirror for the first time.
Miaka's eyes displayed some confusion before widening twice as large as recognition finally settled in. "KAYLA! Dear Suzaku why are you dressed like a girl! Did the other guys forced you? I can't believe it! I almost didn't recognized you! Wait… ARE you a girl?"
Kayla flinched when she heard the last question and instantly felt that familiar guilt when she knew she will have to lie to her friend again. "Ummm… n..no, I'm not a girl… and yes, the other guys kinda forced me into dressing like this. Both Nuriko and I had to dress as girls so that we could sneak in here to rescue you."
"Nuriko is here too?"
"Yeah, he'll be joining us soon and then we'll get out of here." Kayla answered, smiling at the girl's expression of shock, but frowned again when she finally noticed the bruising on the Miko's cheek and rumbled appearance of her hair loosen from one of her signature buns.
Then to her shock, Miaka instantly launched herself upon the other girl with a tight hug and began to sob. What had happened? Kayla thought anxiously as she stood there rigidly with the girl sobbing onto her shoulders. Then a thought struck her that caused her blood to run cold as all the clues came together. That pathetic Kaiori bandit that had tried to touch Miaka before in addition the to the rumpled appearance of the Miko's form all seemed to lead to one conclusion. Dear God! Don't tell me that bastard...
"I'm so sorry about all this, I didn't mean to wander off, I was just hungry and there was all this food and then I wasn't paying attention. I'm such a baka and I'm just causing you guys all this grief," Miaka cried into her shoulder, effectively interrupting Kayla out of her dark fears and turned her away from giving into the wrong assumption. The older girl signed a breath of relief, knowing the creep had not done anything else to hurt her friend. Nevertheless, Kayla had already begun to regret she hadn't threw in a few more punches and kicks upon the man that had abused her friend when she had the chance earlier.
Remembering that her friend was still upset, Kayla looked down sympathetically at the girl who was still crying into her shoulder, her grip almost smouldering her. However, her affection for the miko overcame her initial awkwardness and she gave her comforting hug back offering the comfort she needed as a friend.
"Shhh…. It's ok Miaka, it's really ok, it really is. But maybe next time it will teach you not to wander off without one of us with you." Kayla teased gently trying to lighten the mood as she patted the girl lightly on the back. "But we're still here for you no matter what."
Miaka nodded, too overcome with emotions at the moment to utter the words of thanks for her friend for being so understanding and forgiving. She knew with all her heart what a clumsy baka she could be and at the most inopportune times. She had been trying her best to improve, to be more mature than she was when she was back in her own world especially with what happened with the fake Chiriko incident and what happened to Tamahome's family. But sometimes now and again, the traits of clumsiness would rear its ugly head reminding her harshly just how inexperience and vulnerable she could be in this world full of danger. It was like times like these that she was glad to have friends like Kayla and the her Seishi to be there and support her. She didn't think she could have made this far otherwise.
Nuriko clapped his hands in satisfaction when he finished securing the final knots around another group of bandits. After he had made a quick round through the hallways, he had headed back to the main room where most of the men were located and proceeded to the task of tying them up. There was no point in taking chances, plus it can buy them some more time afterwards when they escape.
Now to find those two Nuriko thought as he made way up the to higher levels I think it's the second floor. Despite the plan had been flawless so far in his own opinion, Nuriko couldn't ignore the nagging feeling in the back of his mind. A realization that built on the constant feeling of unease on his normally confident persona. During all those time of checking and searching through the main room and the halls, he had failed to find the leader of the Kaiori bandits. Whether the leader had escaped during the whole incident, fell unconscious in his own private quarters or even sneaking around, he was unsure. The uncertainty of the whereabouts of the leader brings high risk on himself and the two girls to whom he swore to protect.
Even though Nuriko was a Suzaku Seishi, there was something about the leader that put him into unease. And it was with this reason that Nuriko broke into a faster pace to find the his two friends.
Kayla allowed Miaka to continue to cry on her shoulder until she felt the girl's sobbing started to lessen and finally faded to residual bits of uneven breathing accompanied with the occasional hiccups. "Hey, are you ok now?" she asked the Miko gently when she finally lifted her head from her shoulder.
Miaka nodded sheepishly as she glanced back at Kayla. "Sorry about soaking your clothes," she replied with a slight blush almost indistinguishable with the bruise on one of her cheeks. Kayla glanced down at her shoulder soaked from the girl's tears and shrugged nonchalantly. "It's not like I'm planning to keep this dress afterwards anyway."
"Why not? It looks good on you." Miaka said sadly as if mourning for the pretty blue silk going to waste.
Kayla gave her a funny look before the girl realized the implications of her well-meaning words. "I… I mean… it's a good disguise." Again with the funny look.
"No! What I m… meant that as a good thing! Not that you are… I mean…" the poor miko sputtered as the blush grew deeper before letting out a huff of frustration looking down at the floor as if wishing suddenly the floor would just swallow her whole. "I'm not making any sense am I? I'm just going to shut up now."
To Miaka's surprise, Kayla began to chuckle good-naturedly. "Yeah, everyone just loved my new look," she said wryly earning another smile from the girl. "Come on let's go find Nuriko and get out of here."
Miaka nodded and followed Kayla, who was already heading out the door. She gave another small frown, "Wasn't there a guard outside before?" she asked, noticing for the first time that her guard was no longer standing outside the doors.
Kayla turned her head back to Miaka with a mischievous smirk, halfway out the doorway. "Don't worry, I took care of him already and if Nuriko is right, then everyone else is already sl" With her head turned and distracted, she never saw the sword coming down upon her until it was too late.
Miaka cried out in horror as a sword came down upon her friend in a swift arch, a movement that sliced cleanly down Kayla's front, throwing the boy back and down on the ground. Her friend landed on a side and didn't moved from the spot. No scream or even a cry of pain came from Kayla's lips, whether this was because she had drowned out his cry with one of her own or if he had been too shock from the attack to cry out or even because her friend was struck dead, Miaka couldn't be sure. She prayed to Suzaku that it wasn't the last reason. Her panic eyes rose to meet with the attacker's and instantly her heart froze with shock. There standing over her fallen friend with a long malicious curved sword in hand, was a man whom Miaka recognized was the leader of the bandits.
"I dunno what you two did to my men down there, but there are no way I'm gonna to let you two bitches walk out of here alive." The leader growled angrily and he stalked menacingly towards the miko. Despite the lazy, fat appearance portrayed by the leader, the evil glint shining through the man's grey eyes reflected off equally evil light reflected off the wicked curve of his sword was enough to make Miaka step back with caution. She may be clueless at times, but there was definitely something about the man not to be taken lightly with. After all, there have been a reason that he was the leader of this hell hole in the first place.
Miaka cast another worry glance at her friend laying on the ground unmoving. She prayed with all her heart that he was all right. But there was no way she could be certain of this when this man was standing between them preventing her from running immediately to check on her friend's condition. Secretly, she was afraid in what she would find out. Judging in how the leader have surprised Kayla and practically sliced straight down the boy's chest in sickening accuracy with his blade, Miaka was afraid her friend would not be so lucky this time as he had in the past in avoiding fatal injuries. It's my fault, it's all my fault… she thought as her fears brought along the grief that threatened to overthrow her once again.
"Don't worry, you'll be joining her soon enough… that is… after I have a little fun with you first." His voice brought her out of her self-blaming and Miaka felt utter rage beginning to spread over her like liquid fire, effectively numbing her grief if only momentarily. "You…" she hissed, her voice so laced with contempt and venom that even she had barely recognized as her own. "How dare you hurt him, I won't forgive you for this!"
The man just laughed at the girl's threat. "And you're going to stop me? Don't make me laugh," he sneered and immediately made the first move and lunged towards the girl.
Miaka, whom had spent countless of times dodging her enemies ever since she had travelled to this world, was able to dodge almost effortlessly from the sword from slicing her arm off. Her duck became an instant roll, a move taught to her by Tamahome himself in means of escaping her enemies effectively if there was ever need for it. It was by luck that her roll had landed her beside the vase that she had initially used to attack Kayla with and she instantly took the pottery and flung it at her attacker. Her aim had been made towards his head, but the duck and roll had left her a bit disoriented and her initial aim was off. However, Suzaku had been on her side and the vase had hit the man's sword hand.
The leader cried out in surprise and pain as the vase shattered on his wrist and the sword knocked from his hand some distance away. He glared at his injury, some of the pieces from the fragile vase was embedded in his flesh and judging from how much it hurt to move his wrist, he knew it was either sprained or broken. "Bitch…" he growled angrily as he turned his glare towards the perpetrator, finding the girl was already making her way towards his fallen sword. Using anger as his means of analgesic to the pain on his wrist, he ran surprisingly swift for a man of his built and kicked the sword from the girl's hand and knocked her to the floor. His uninjured hand came around the girl's neck and slowly began squeezing the pathetic life out of her. Forget his initial plans of having his way with her before he killed her, no one makes a mockery out of him without paying for the consequences. Oh this girl will pay!
Miaka clawed at the man's hand and he continued to choke the life out of her. She instinctively tried to draw air into her screaming lungs, but it was like trying to breath underwater. Despite the use of only one hand, the man was strong compared to her weaken attempts to fight. She thrashed with her feet but the man straggled her chest pinning her effectively to the ground and further crushing her lungs from taking in any more air. Tears sprang to her eyes, whether it was due to the lack of oxygen or from the fear slowly returning to her she didn't know. All that she knew that she was dying and the evidence was becoming clear as the edge of her vision started to blacken. I can't die like this! she thought desperately, I still have too much to do! My friends… Tamahome… Yui… Suzkau please…
"Get your filthy hand off her now!" a threatening voice came from above and Miaka thought through her disorientation that for a moment, the voice had belonged to the source of her half-finished prayer. The hand around her neck instantly loosen even though the weight remain on her chest . Nevertheless, without the crushing pressure, she was able to take in the much needed air for her deprived lungs enough that she was able to orientate herself once more. Once her vision was cleared from it's dark vision, she looked up to her saviour and her heart cried for joy at the sight.
Kayla stood there with the leader's sword in his hand held threatening around it's owner's neck. Although there was a bit of blood trickling down the boy's temple, his golden eyes shone with clarity and fury, a fury that was startlingly similar to a certain fiery Seishi she knew. Although the resemblance was there, the differences were also just as clear. Where Tasuki's golden gaze often shone layers of great passion and pride in the mist of protective fury and easily intimidating any poor soul on the receiving end, Kayla's fury was different. Although no less intimidating, the protective fury from the boy's eyes seemed more controlled and almost haunting. It was like staring into the eyes of a wounded angry cat, stubborn enough to not back away from the fight yet cautious enough to be ever watchful of its opponent for any unexpected attack. Miaka was once again grateful to have someone like Kayla to be fighting by her side.
Kayla fought off the last of her blurred vision as she held the tip of the sword on the man's neck as steadily as she could, knowing that any clumsiness displayed by her part would be enough for the man to determine that she was actually unskilled in the arts of wielding any sword. Kouji had never had the chance to train her in perfecting the skill back when she was staying at the Leikaku stronghold. She had been taken by surprise by the man's attack and was sure that his strike would have killed her, only it didn't. All that she knew was that she had been knocked to the floor and her head hitting the edge of some furniture during the process and effectively knocking her out temporarily for a few seconds. Although when she had came back to reality, those precious few seconds had been enough to send her friend into a edge between life and the hands of death from the bastard who had attacked her.
Cursing her own carelessly from being caught off guard in the first place, she had fought to get rid of her disorientation from her injury before leaping to her feet and grabbed the first thing that had caught her eyes as means of a weapon. She was glad that she wasn't too late to save her friend as the man instantly complied to her commands and finally released Miaka allowing her to breathe. "Are you ok Miaka?" Kayla asked while keeping her eyes on the man, not trusting him to be obedient enough to not try anything suspicious. She had been surprised enough the first time around, a mistake she was not willing to repeat.
"Y… yeah," gasped Miaka mentally wincing at the hoarseness of her voice but unable to manage anything else otherwise as the leader's weight still laid upon her.
Kayla nodded, before holding the sword even closer against the man's neck without cutting his jugular vein. "Get your ass off her now and don't try anything funny unless you want to see yourself bleeding to death anytime soon," she warned him.
Although she stood behind the leader and therefore unable to see the man's expression, she could feel the man sneered. "You wouldn't dare. Do you have any idea who you are messing with little girl?" he mocked, obviously doubting her ability even though he was currently at her mercy.
Kayla's eyes narrowed and purposely shifted the sword slightly. The sword cut into the man's neck just grazing the surface, but away from the vein. However the cut itself was enough to sting like hell causing the man to hiss in shock and pain. "Care to test that theory? I may know who you are and I don't give a rat's ass. However, I will ask you nicely one more time, Get… Off… Her… NOW!" the steady coldness in her voice was enough to convince the man that she was deadly serious and slowly rose himself from Miaka's form. Once he was off her, Miaka scrambled to her feet, taking in a few more deep breaths before making her way to stand beside Kayla.
Then to both Miaka and the leader's surprise, Kayla kicked the back of the man's knees causing him to fall back down on his knees. "Bitch…" the man growled, but otherwise didn't try to get up again. Miaka looked back and forth from her friend and the back of the leader's head wondering what they were going to do with him now. It was obvious they can't just leave him kneeling like that, they had to get out of here and they are running out of time.
Miaka was brought out of her thoughts when the leader suddenly laughed. "So what are you two girls going to do? Kill me now?" he asked mockingly, once more decided to challenge their abilities. Although Kayla was putting up a good front of indifference, the Miko could see the boy flinched slightly at the man's words.
"You know you don't have much of a choice, you either kill me now or you can knock me out and tie me up. But remember this, when I wake up, I will find you two. Oh I can guarantee you I'll find you both no matter how long it will take, and when I do… " he left the sentence hanging, the silence was enough to send shivers down their back. Whether this man was crazy or just trying to bait her, Kayla wasn't sure but she knew one thing: she was stuck.
This man was right. Could she just leave this bastard alive and risk him trying to hunt them down later on. She didn't doubt her friend's abilities, but it would be no doubt going to be a hassle with both the Seiyruu Seishi and the Kaiori bandits on their tail on their journey.
"What makes you think I can't kill you right here right now?" Kayla said coldly, even though she felt the uncertainty in her words.
The leader only laughed at her words. "Are you foolish enough that once you kill me, then all this will stop. After me, there will be another leader, and another after one after him. Nothing will stop the Kaiori bandits."
Kayla's grip on the sword tighten at the man's words, but otherwise remained silent trying to control her fury and uncertainty.
Unfortunately her silence was enough of an encouragement for the leader to continue with his merciless tirade, "No one ever escapes from me without paying me with their lives, you two won't escape me and neither will the other girls after you!"
Kayla's eyes widen slightly with fear and her grip on the sword tighten so much that her knuckles turned white. She was no longer seeing the leader of the Kaiori bandits kneeling in front of her but her uncle there instead. He was mocking her, threatening her, telling her she will never escape him no matter where she goes no matter how hard she tries. He was tempting her to kill him. Only if she killed him would she finally be free.
Kayla felt herself became physically sick with the deceivingly simple solution. Kill the man? Even someone like her uncle? She had never killed anyone before, always tried to avoid it if possible. Yes, she had hurt other people before. Yes, she had even beaten some of them unconscious before. Of course, she was not perfect and knew there was always the possibility in the future that she could kill someone in self-defence. But to kill someone in cold blood even if it were for the sake of her friends, for future victim's sake. Could she live with herself after that.
Miaka looked at her friend worriedly, she saw the confusion and fear in Kayla's eyes. She saw how his complexion grew pale and almost sickly-like. She could almost understand the uncertainty he was feeling. Can they kill this terrible man or not despite the fact of how much he deserved it? Miaka wasn't sure if she could make the decision, if the decision had been rested solely on hers to make. Not knowing what else to do, she placed a hand supportively on Kayla's shoulder much similar to before when he had did the same thing for her. Her touch seemed to have brought her friend back from his haunting thoughts and Kayla glanced briefly at her before the confusion was replaced with resolve in his amber eyes.
Kayla's grip on the sword loosen once more as she came to a decision. She may regret it later because of her own selfishness but at least for now, she would be able to live with herself. "It's not that I can't kill you," she finally spoke, surprised at how steady her voice was even though she was still shaking inside. "It's just that I won't." With that said, she swiftly took the blade away from the man's throat and hit him on the head with the hilt of the sword hard.
The leader of the Kaiori bandits groaned before falling to his side unconscious. Kayla stared at the man briefly before closing her eyes to try to control the raging turmoil of emotions within her. When she opened her eyes, she found Miaka looking at her worriedly, "Kayla…" she started uncertainly, but Kayla was not ready to talk yet. "We better get going before he wakes up, it may be for awhile since I did hit him pretty hard, but we can never be sure, come on." she said interrupting her before making her way once more towards the doorway. This time, checking before she stepped out into the empty hallway.
Miaka frown deepen as she watch the back of Kayla before following the boy out the room as well. Kayla walked swiftly occasionally checking behind him to check if she was still behind him but nevertheless remained adamant on his swift retreat. Though it seemed to Miaka that Kayla was not only in a hurry in order to get out of this place, but more to the fact he was trying to separate himself from the room they had came out from as much as possible. How she knew this she was not sure, but it could have been because she had seen that haunted look in Kayla's eyes when that terrible man had been mocking them mercilessly. There was something so infinitely sad about those eyes, something she had never noticed before in her friend's eyes making her wonder if there were things about the boy that she didn't knew about.
I have to get out of here… I… I don't think I can stand it. He's going to come after me! He's going to come after me just like how my uncle is after me… I could have prevented that b… but I can't do it… not if it comes to that… Kayla thought despairingly. She didn't want to kill anyone in cold blood but knew that when that man wakes he would only continue on with his evil deeds and kidnap more innocent people. She would be the indirect murderer of all those innocent lives just because she didn't have enough courage to stop that man when she had the chance to. Is the cost of innocent lives ruined the price of her cowardice? Oh gods, is this what it has come to?…
She stopped walking, her initial vigour disappeared and her uncertainty and confusion finally catching up to her. Not trusting herself to stand, she slumped towards a wall of some hallway she didn't care to recognize, for support. It was at that moment, she realized that she was still holding the sword, her almost-made-to-be murder weapon. She dropped the weapon like she was burned, feeling her hands shaking slightly.
"Kayla, are you alright?"
Kayla raised her head from hands to once again finding her friend looking at her worriedly. She slowly shook her head finally admitting that she was not alright. Given her state of appearance Miaka would not believe her anyway if she were to lie. There was no point in lying, when the obvious was stating otherwise.
"I'm not ok Miaka, for a moment there I wanted to kill that man," Kayla said quietly, her head hung low in shame. "But now that I didn't, that bastard is going to be on our tail until he has found us and not only that, more innocent people are going to be tortured by this man and his followers just because I didn't have the guts to kill him. He's going to take in more slaves to sell just like he was going to do to you and me. I didn't… couldn't stopped him because I was a coward. I c… couldn't kill him just like that."
Miaka looked sadly at Kayla, her heart crying for her friend as confusion and self-blame began to consume him. "Kayla, please look at me," she said softly effectively bringing the boy's eyes towards her. She smiled, a smile that made Kayla forgot for a moment that she was looking at a girl who was a year younger than her, but instead a miko that was beyond her years in wisdom.
"Kayla, what you did back there took courage. You stepped away instead of killing someone in cold blood. If you had killed him then you would have been no better than that man. Yes, he may come after us later on but I have confidence in myself and my friends that we would be able to handle him then," Miaka stopped, checking to see if Kayla was understanding what she was trying to tell him, when she knew that he was still listening she continued. "I would have done the same thing you had in the end even though at first I was so angry with that terrible man. I was so sure that he had killed you back there," when she had said that, Kayla's eyes had widen in surprise. "When he had struck you with that sword, you fell and you didn't moved at all. I had been so sure that you were dead or at least fatally injured. I was so angry and scared, but angry more because he had killed my friend. I believed at that moment that I was ready to kill him myself if I had the chance." She stopped again, trying to rid herself of the terrible image conjured from her own mind of Kayla's form lying still, looking like he had stopped breathing and his injured heart had stopped beating.
For a moment, no one spoke.
Kayla was quietly amazed at the seriousness of her friend's words, never noticing before just how mature her friend had became when most of the time, the miko was always full of smiles and clumsy moments. Although she could still feel the consequences of her actions weighing down on her, the girl's words had lifted them considerably and she found herself smiling back slightly back at the younger girl. "Thank you Miaka," Kayla said sincerely, "I think… that whatever may happen after all this, I will be able to deal with it." She knew that she will not be able to change the decision she had made (not that she would change it probably) but she will deal with whatever it was to come her way. The burden was still there, but she will be able to carry it just a little bit longer. To her surprise, Miaka shook her head.
"Whatever may happen," she said adamantly, "We will deal with it together."
Kayla's smile widen before laughing softly and nodded.
"One thing still bothers me though," Miaka said suddenly, her frown returning as a thought came to her.
Kayla stopped laughing and looked at the her curiously. "What's that?"
"I could have sworn that the sword had hit you, I saw it sliced through you," Miaka said with distress, ignoring the flinch from Kayla at her crass description. "I mean, how was it possible that…" her sentence trailed off as her eyes landed on her friend, noticing something for the first time about the boy's appearance. Miaka's eyes never left his form, growing larger with each passing moment and her jaw slowly lowering at the same time in some form of shock.
Kayla would have found the whole scene funny had it not been for the fact that the miko's look was making her extremely nervous. "Miaka, what are you looking…" she said looking down at what her friend had been staring at before her voice, too trailed off in shock. "Oh… damn…" she muttered quietly as a sense of panic slowly overcame her as she finally understood the reason in why she had came out of that attack unharmed.
That sword's aim had been true with frightening accuracy, an aim that by all right should have killed her if not injured her fatally. However, unknowingly she had a 'shield' made of cloth, or specifically the thick layer of cloth that she had used to bind her chest and had unknowingly saved her life from the strike leaving her with only a slight cut that already began to scab over on her chest underneath the now severed bindings. Unfortunately, now that all the excitement has passed and everyone was finally paying attention to their appearances, Kayla can now see that although the strike had been kind to her person, it had not been kind to her clothes. The strike from the sword had sliced to top half of her shirt open and straight through her bindings like it was nothing and her earlier running had done nothing if not made the condition of her top only worse. Bits of her binding was still intact, thankfully keeping her modesty intact with it. However, it was still not enough the hide the obvious cleavage of her breast from showing for everyone to see, or specifically, for a certain miko to see.
Oh crap…
Chiriko frowned in confusion (an expression that was uncommon on his usually intuitive features), as he looked at the scene standing before him trying to solve the puzzle. "So let me see if I have this right, there hadn't been an ambush correct?"
A confirmed yes was his answer.
"Nor were there been any other civilians whom may have caused this incident correct?"
Another yes.
"Nor were there any road blockage that could have caused any accidents correct?"
A hesitant yes.
"Then how in Suzaku, did you two get injured like that?" Chiriko asked his two fellow Seishi worriedly. Tamahome and Tasuki looked at each other before turning away stubbornly, both refusing to answer. The blue-haired seishi was sporting a rather sore black-eye while fiery-haired one was not fairing any better, sporting a split lip and a slightly swollen left cheek. Both of the men's clothes were a bit rumpled in appearances and covered with snow that were beginning to melt into a puddle at their feet.
Chiriko sighed before looking up at Mitsukake for help. The eldest seishi gave them a stern glance (a foreign look on the normally calm man), his observant gaze already giving him all the answers he needed judging from the shared glares and unspoken words between the two men standing before him. "I don't know the reason behind this fight between the two of you and it is not our business to pry." Mitsukake said calmly, though his tone was firm and reprimanding. "However, this is neither the place or time for disagreement and we need to work as team especially when three of our friends are counting on us to provide aide if needed. I suggest that whatever differences you two may have to just put it aside for the time being."
Chiriko looked slightly wide-eyed at Mitsukake, mostly in awe because he had so rarely hear the eldest Seishi spoke so many words at once. Indeed there are many great mysteries in life to solve and the man's decision of when to give long speeches was definitely one of them.
Tamahome and Tasuki shared Chirko's look of awe before turning towards each other, mirroring the other's expression of shame. Nevertheless, both continued to say nothing but a silent agreement was exchanged. An agreement to never mention the situation again. Then both turned to walk to opposite sides of the room left to their own task although there was not much anyone can do in the abandon structure the Suzaku Seishi had chosen as their temporary stronghold.
Nevertheless, Tasuki had found some means of activity to keep him occupied which included walking back and forth in a corner in a restless and agitated fashion. His restless pacing reminded everyone of a trapped wolf pacingin a cage, any wrong move and he will snap at you, friend or foe. After he had given the others in brief (and revised) descriptions of what had happened in the 'exchange' and assured everyone that the plan was going accordingly without suspicion, there was not much else to do except to wait. He mentally cursed. He really hated waiting.
Tamahome, on the other hand, had found an old chair sturdy enough for him to sit on as he waited anxiously by the window constantly on the lookout for any signs of Miaka or his friends. Anyone observing the man could tell how tense he was, with his back stiff as a board and his fingers drumming on the windowsill according to a beat that only he could hear.
Two very different men, in opposite sides of a room trying to cope with their restlessness in two very different fashion. The scene would have been very amusing for the two other occupants in the room to watch had they too not been experiencing the same sort of anxiety the two men were suffering from.
Chiriko turned away from watching Tasuki, (the pacing of the man was causing him to be slightly dizzy) and towards the older man standing beside him. "Mitsukake, where is Chichiri? He's been gone for awhile now?"
The eldest Suzaku Seishi shook his head. "I'm not sure Chiriko, he only mentioned that there was something that he had to do immediately before he meet up with us here," Mitsukake answered.
Chiriko eyes widen in surprise. "He didn't mentioned what or where he was going?" It wasn't like Chichiri to go off into a mission or task without informing others what he was going to do. How strange.
Mitsukake shook his head, his thoughts reflecting the youngest Seishi's surprise. He wished he had a better answer for his friend, but the mysterious monk had only disappeared out into the snow with a vague explanation and a promise to be back shortly. It wasn't that he didn't trust Chichiri, but he only wished that the man didn't just leave him hanging like this with only a vague explanation to answer to the rest of the Suzaku Seishi. Their situation was already uncertain as it was with their Miko in danger, their two friends in enemy territory, another friend doing Suzaku knows what and two more (hot-headed and restless) individuals in opposite sides of the room with tension so thick and tangible between them that it could have been sliced through with Hotohori's sword.
To be fair, Mitsukake could understand the frustration of the two hot-headed men. It was easy to see the reason behind Tamahome's agitation. To be unable to do much else other than to wait from the sidelines while the girl he loves was in danger could drive any man insane and Mitsukake understood the pain of feeling so helpless when one had failed to protect the one he loved all too well.
Tasuki, on the other hand, was not so easy to figure out despite the man's tendency of being upfront most of the time. Mitsukake knew that there was more to the man other than his short temper and brazen attitude. The fiery Seishi's sense of honour and loyalty were strong and his protective nature didn't come up any shorter than any one of them if not more especially concerning his friends. However, this tension radiating off now from Tasuki was different. There was something bothering the man that he was not sharing with the rest of them and Mitsukake suspected that it had been the source of the fight that had occurred between him and Tamahome.
Surprisingly, this tension and frustration didn't seem that much different from the feelings that were radiating off of Tamahome. However, while Tamahome was driving himself up the wall because of his feelings for Miaka, what or specifically who can Tasuki be so concerned for? Or is his sense of friendship that much stronger and potent? If Mitsukake wasn't mistaken, he would say that Tasuki was acting like he was worrying over someone he cares deeply for. But who? Miaka seemed like a sensible choice though Mitsukake could tell through observation in the past that the two of them acted more like fighting siblings most of the time. Very much like how an older brother would tease his sister mercilessly but affectionately most of the time. This left with only two other choices: Nuriko and Kayla.
The relationship between Tasuki and Nuriko could be described the same way as his relationship with Miaka bounded from the friendship between two Seishi. Though it was easy to say that the violet-haired Seishi could drive the other man crazy like no other without breaking much of a sweat.
Then there was Tasuki and Kayla. Not only had Tasuki known Kayla the longest out of all of them but their relationship could be describe in so many different levels. They could fight each other like no two people, driving each other crazy. They act like best friends, always watching out for each other and laughing together like no tomorrow. They could act like siblings, tolerating yet with great affection for each other. There would be times when they acted like they have just met each other, awkward and uncertain (though those moments were getting more rare as time passed on). And even like as Tamahome had once pointed out; like a married couple.' In conclusion, there was just something different (for a lack of a better word) in the way Tasuki treated Kayla from the rest of their tight group. It was different on so many levels and plain to anyone who could see, but to just pinpoint what it was exactly that makes it different was difficult. Could the main reason for Tasuki's agitation be Kayla? Even Mitsukake, despite his nature, was a bit curious himself.
A loud bang and a long string of curses interrupted Mitsukake's musing. Automatically the man turned towards Tasuki, while at the same time covering Chiriko's ears to protect it from the storm of swearing coming from the angry man's mouth. Apparently, amidst all his pacing, the fiery Seishi had punched the wall in frustration and predictably came out of it with a bruised hand and a dent in the wall.
Yes... Mitsukake was curious, irritated but curious all the same.
Author's Notes:
It was a year since our last update and we apologize profusely all you wonderful readers out there who had been waiting for it. So many things had happened since in this passing year and we know that you guys were wondering if we had given up on this story or not or if we had dropped dead or even disappeared from the face of this Earth! We promise to try not to update so late from now on, and hopefully we'll get chapter 20 up soon.
This chapter had taken on a longer plot than we initially planned, but found that it was necessary especially when it came to character development. We hoped that a bit of Mitsukake's perspective was portrayed accurately enough. He is a wonderful character, but unfortunately didn't get enough of the attention he deserved in many stories that we found. So we hope that all you readers would enjoy it. Were some of you guys surprised in what has happened? Or was it predictable? Tell us what you think?
P.S.
We had gotten a few reviews that had expressed some questions concerning the origin of Kayla's name. Yes, its true that Kayla is an European name even though her character originated in ancient China. We believe there should be some explanation for all you readers who felt bother by this fact (and rightly so). At first when we were thinking of a name for our OC, we were trying to choose between names like Kay-Li, Kye-Li or something like that and in the end, chose 'Kayla' because it just sounded RIGHT for some reason not realizing initially that it was actually it was of European descent. It was really an act of negligence in the end. Sorry about that.
However by the time it had occurred to us of this error, a few chapters had already been posted up and we really couldn't picture our character going by any other name. We just like the simplicity yet strong characteristics of the name 'Kayla' and seems to fit so well with our OC that we decided that it was better to just let the name stick instead of changing it. We're sure that some of you fanfic writers out there understand how we feel. Kayla just wouldn't be Kayla by any other name. Therefore, we hope that you readers will forgive us for this little mistake and still enjoy our story because despite this overlook, we really do put a lot of effort into writing it.
However for future references, we will put more attention in researching a name before naming our characters.
Thank you for all your patience,
Love Twin Girls