Disclaimer: I do not own Claymore's
AN: There isn't actually that much enthusiasm for this story, but I'm still gonna go ahead and post it :) I just wish that some one would leave a review to tell me what they think, even if it's to say that it's shit and this story should be taken down. We're moving back into canon now too. Enjoy :)
DON'T MIND ME I'M A LINE BREAK
I feel no sympathy.
You live inside a cave
You barely get by, the rest of us are trying
There's no need to apologise
I've got no time for feeling sorry.
Well I try not to think of what might happen.
When your reality it finally cuts through.
Well as for me I got out and I'm on the road.
The worst part is that this, this could be you.
You know it too.
You can't work from your cave.
You're not getting any younger.
Time keeps passing by
but you waited a way.
Its time to roll over.
~Feeling Sorry, Paramore
DON'T MIND ME I'M A LINE BREAK
(Eighteen years later)
"Alrighty then. Let's add another pole now."
Dauf turned his head to look at Riful over his shoulder and nodded. He concentrated for a second, and a bump appeared on his shoulder. The bump grew upwards and started to turn grey. When the rod was long enough, Dauf yanked it out with an almost silent grunt.
He turned his head to look at the Claymore in front of him. She was chained to the cave ceiling by her hands, with her feet dangling off the ground. There were five poles, identical to the one Dauf was holding, already jutting out of her, having been stabbed through her stomach. There was blood dripping from the wounds, some dribbling out of her mouth and some seeping from a cut hidden by her hair.
She gritted her teeth as Dauf half shouted, "Here's the sixth one!" He stabbed the pole through her abdomen, twisting it cruelly. The Claymore jerked in pain, crying out as more blood spilled from her mouth.
Riful gave a sigh and sat up straighter in her padded chair, "This is so weird. It'd be really great if you could awaken soon . . ." She turned her head towards the door as she heard faint foot steps echoing down from a nearby corridor.
Dauf licked his lips as the Claymore twitched from the pain. He twisted the pole and pushed it in deeper, watching as more blood spill out around the rod. He laughed slightly as the woman tried to pull away, aggravating her other injuries as she did so.
"You're so stubborn." Riful sounded put out, and a little bit frustrated. "If you don't awaken soon, you're going to end up like her . . . with holes all over your body and dying . . ." She looked to the right, where the body of another Claymore lay on the ground. The corpse was filled with holes from where Dauf had been torturing her. "You sure you really want that?" That Claymore had been a stubborn one. Pity, she'd been Number Twenty Six too. Ah well.
The Claymore still chained up winced, "You little . . ." She was cut off by a groaning noise to her left.
There was another warrior, chained up as well with several poles through her body. She was twisting and throwing her head around, long pale blond hair whipping around her face. Thick veins were pulsing all over her body, her face was beginning to contort, and her teeth had become fangs.
"Don't!" The first Claymore yelled out to her, "Suppress it Katea!"
Riful, on the other hand, called out encouragements, "Come on, come on! That's the way to go!" The Abyssal One smiled, looking like an innocent little girl despite her words, "You'll feel all better after you Awaken."
Katea's struggles became stronger, and the other Claymore yelled out to her again, "Bear with it! Do you want to become a monster?"
She opened her mouth to say more, but all that emerged was a grunt of pain as Dauf stabbed her with another pole. "Who you calling a monster?" He looked at her with a glare, "Don't diss us, yo."
"I'll kill the ones that diss us first." He twisted the rod, feeling a deep satisfaction as blood gushed out of the wound.
The Claymore winced and visibly struggled to stay quiet. Riful wasn't pleased though, "Excuse me? What do you think you're doing?" Dauf turned his head to look at her, "Don't be adding poles without my permission."
Dauf stuttered a little, "But she's . . ."
They were cut off by a surge in Katea's yoki, which was now becoming visible due to its intensity. The Claymore bucked and screamed as her yoki began to turn red. Riful gave a little cheer as she leaned forwards, "All right!"
The other restrained Claymore watched in horror, forgetting her own pain as she watched her comrade Awaken. "Katea . . ."
The chains holding Katea to the ceiling broke as her hands twisted and transformed. The newly Awoken Claymore dropped to her hands and knees, unsteady on her feet. She was now much larger, with long, slender limbs and an extended neck. Her hair had disappeared as well.
"Get ready, Dauf!"
The male Awakened being's eyes glowed red, and his own yoki turned reddish black and menacing. His teeth turned into fangs and his skin turned hard and dull red. Thicker rods and poles jutted out of the back of his head and his elbows.
Finally both of them stopped shifting, both of them crouched down. They were both far larger than before, around the same height, but Katea's Awakened form was a mixture of glowing white armour and pitted, black muscles. The former Claymore was slim and lanky, with four blade-like wings on her back.
The Claymore still in human form looked on with wide eyes, "What . . . what's going on?"
The Two Awakened beings looked at each other, until Katea raised her head and looked towards the ceiling, breathing in and out slowly. Dauf lunged forwards and punched her in the face, causing her cheek to fracture.
The human Claymore's gasp of shock was drowned out by the female Awakened being's cry of pain.
Katea looked at Dauf with anger flashing through her golden eyes. The former Number Three chuckled, causing Katea to straighten up. With a battle cry, the wing-blades on her back extended, and the razor sharp tips punctured Dauf's armour. All four of the blades lodged in Dauf, but the male didn't even flinch.
He turned slightly towards Riful, who 'hmmmed' in thought, "How is she, Dauf?"
Dauf opened his mouth to answer, when he was cut off, "I think I should be the one to judge that."
All four of them turned to look at the figure in the door way, Claymore, Awakened beings and Abyssal One.
The Claymore's eyes widened when she saw the green haired boy standing there, 'I can't even sense him!'
Riful turned to the boy, "Noah, you made it!" She smiled happily, something which caused Dauf to grind his teeth together.
Noah scowled, "You know that I don't like watching your 'recruitment' attempts, Riful. And I came to have a look at Number thirty Two."
The Claymore gaped at the boy. What was going on here?
Riful clapped her hands together, "Great! Dauf, back off a little."
Dauf grumbled, but obeyed, shuffling back from the new Awakened One. The wing-blades were jerked free from the former Number Three, but Katea kept them extended, ready to be used on anyone who threatened her.
Noah stepped forwards, quickly walking over to the two Awakened beings, both of which towered over him. He stopped in front of the female, making eye contact with her. The other Claymore watched this in silence, still trying to work out what was going on.
The male Abyssal One started to circle Katea, examining her closely. The Awakened being's head twisted around, keeping an eye on the strange being. As she felt no threat towards her and no yoki, she retracted her wing-blades, but still kept an eye on the tiny boy.
The green haired boy started to speak, "How many is it now, Riful? Thirty five warriors that you've tried to force into Awakening?" He turned to the other Claymore, examining her as well. "Who's this?"
"Number Nine, Jean. She won't Awaken though, she's really stubborn."
Noah looked over at Riful, "That's because of your methods, Riful. Torturing some one isn't the best way to leave a good impression."
Riful pouted slightly, "But it's fun. And they never Awaken when I ask, so I don't really have a choice."
Noah shook his head, "Anyway, Number Thirty Two isn't any good. Her yoki isn't very big, and she's not built for speed or power, a warrior numbered in the teens could probably take her out with a few lower digits."
Dauf growled, "I coulda told you that!" He didn't like Noah. The male Abyssal One was too independent from Riful, and the former Number Three didn't trust the green haired boy. Plus he was always taking Riful's attention away from Dauf.
Noah looked at the red Awakened being, one eyebrow raised, as if to say, 'Could you really?'. Dauf growled at the silent taunt.
The enormous Awakened being would have retaliated, but Riful spoke. The female Abyssal One gave a small sigh "I guess I couldn't have expected anything better from a thirty-something. Okay, destroy it."
Dauf smiled, but Noah frowned at Riful. They all ignored the gasp that Jean gave. The reddish Awakened being took a step forward, but stopped when Noah stood in front of him, "Get outta my way, pip squeak."
"No, if she's going to be destroyed, I'll do it." Dauf looked at Riful for back up, but the little girl just shrugged. She didn't care who did it, as long as it was done.
Noah looked at Jean, "I'll make it quick." That simple statement shocked Jean into silence.
The green haired boy turned around to face Katea, whose wing-blades stirred. Before the former Number Thirty Two could even extend them, Noah attacked.
The Abyssal One's hand rippled and extended, forming one thick tendril. He whipped his arm across, and the tendril lashed out, almost too fast for Jean to follow. In a split second, it retracted and shifted back into a human hand.
Katea didn't make a sound, and her head slowly slipped from her extended neck, both body and skull falling to the ground with a wet thump.
Jean closed her eyes, tears sliding down her face as she muttered, "Katea . . ."
"I told you we needed some one with single digit status."
"Most single digits started off as lower ranked warriors, Riful. Some of the double digits have potential, you have to stop being so picky or you won't have an subordinates at all."
Jean looked up, subordinates? Why would an Awakened being be trying to gather more Awakened beings?
The little girl turned back to Jean, "Hurry up and awaken, Number Nine, Jean."
The Claymore glared at her, "Why you . . ."
She watched as the green haired boy looked over his shoulder. The Number Nine ranked warrior couldn't figure him out. He was a powerful Awakened being, but he was merciful towards Katea, and he disagreed with the torture. What was he?
Noah spoke, "Some one's here."
Riful looked at the tunnel too, "Oh, you're right. But it's much too soon for the girl who escaped to have called for reinforcements . . ." The little girl turned in her chair, grasping the back of it, "Wow, what a tiny yoki . . . it must be some low rank that sensed the yoki energy here, and decided to investigate. I don't think we can expect much of her, even if we got her to Awaken."
Noah frowned, but stayed silent as Riful looked over her shoulder, "Dauf, you can have her. Do whatever you want with her."
Dauf smiled, lips peeling back to reveal razor sharp teeth, "Really?" He started to chuckle, and grabbed one of the rods sticking out of Jean. The Awakened being gave it a twist, causing the Number Nine warrior's eyes to turn gold with a slit pupil as she lost control of some of her yoki.
DON'T MIND ME I'M A LINE BREAK
Jean watched in agony-filled silence as the enormous Awakened being lumbered off, barely fitting through the tunnel.
She glanced over at the other two. The girl was still looking over the back of her chair, while the boy was looking at her. She couldn't read the emotion that filled his pale green eyes, and that confused her. He wasn't looking at her in hunger, anger, sick pleasure at her pain or even curiosity.
After a few minutes, Riful turned around and sat back down on her chair, looking at the ceiling. She might not be any where near as good as Noah at sensing yoki, but she could still easily keep track of Dauf and the Claymore. "She's doing pretty well."
Jean wasn't quite sure if the little girl was talking to her, or the boy, but she had a feeling it was her. If it weren't for her surging yoki, she might have been able to sense the battle taking place above them. She winced as veins started show on her face and arms.
The girl continued to talk, completely ignoring her, although the boy was still watching the Number Nine warrior. "Maybe it would've been better if I hadn't given her to Dauf and had him bring her back here."
"What are you . . . what are you up to?" Jean could barely speak, the pain combined with her growing yoki saw to that.
The Awakened being spoke in a sing song tone, "~That's-a-secret~!" She smiled, "I'll tell you if you Awaken and become my ally."
Jean gasped, "No way! Who wants to become a monster's ally . . .?"
Riful giggled into her hand, while Noah tilted his head at the Claymore. This one was interesting, very strong willed and righteous. The female Abyssal One brought her hands to her face, "Well, to the normal humans, you're pretty much a monster too."
Jean paused, taken back by the statement, "Awakened or half-human, half-yoma, there's not really much difference between the two. It's just about what side your conscience lies on."
The boy frowned at the girl, apparently not agreeing with her view. This only created more questions for Jean.
The girl smiled, "Neither is human though. That is a fact of the matter."
Jean scowled as the girl giggled again, "You're right, I may be the monster that you speak of . . . but since I was born as a human . . . I will live as a human . . . and I want to die as a human. That is the only truth to me."
The girl smiled joyfully and leaned forwards, "I really love people like you." Jean saw her eyes flicker over to Noah, who was leaning against the wall, looking at the ceiling. Maybe the reason that the boy didn't like torture was because that was how the girl had gotten him to join her? It couldn't have been the way that he was Awakened, because by the time that females were mainly used as warriors, there were almost no male warriors left.
"Now, I really want you to join me." The girl tilted her head to the side as Jean closed her eyes, fighting against a larger surge in her yoki.
Riful looked at Noah again. The male Abyssal One didn't like the torture, or the way that Riful and Dauf tried to get the Claymores to Awaken.
The green haired boy may have been one of the most powerful beings in the world, but he was such goody-goody two-shoes. He didn't kill humans and he didn't like torture. He could be a right sadist in a a fight though, oddly enough. Although that was mostly when he was hunting other Awakened beings to feed on.
She'd come to the conclusion that the other Abyssal One had retained far too much of his humanity and morals from his time as a Claymore. Why else would he seal himself away for so long, and refuse to eat humans? She had to admit though, the time he'd spent training in his seclusion under the mountains had paid off. He was a good ally though, so she couldn't really hold it against him, even though she didn't understand his motives.
She watched Noah's eyes flicker to the left slightly, and was about question him when she felt it too. A strong yoki had entered the mountain, and was heading down the tunnel towards Dauf and the other Claymore. The Abyssal One wondered how long Noah had been able to sense the Claymore for, he'd never told her the limit of his yoki sensing ability.
Jean opened her eyes at the sound of Riful's voice, "Oh my. Now a really strong one has arrived."
A few seconds later, Noah's head jerked forwards, and Riful heard a small mutter, "A manipulator . . ." Her eyes widened in understanding. One had to be an extremely powerful sensor to be able to manipulate an opponents yoki.
Noah smirked at the shorter girl, "Looks like she detected you, Riful."
Riful pouted and stood from her chair, "I think we should go meet the people that rudely invaded our home." Both Abyssal Ones walked out into the tunnel, but Riful left some parting words to the struggling Claymore. "Hurry up and Awaken before I get back, Number Nine, Jean."
DON'T MIND ME I'M A LINE BREAK
Please leave a review :) The next chapter will be up Friday.
Phoenix