Author's Note: Nothing much to say.
The Story So Far: To escape the Elders of Northern Europe, the gang runs a bus through the melfin, landing it in a Succubus Roost in an unfamiliar part of the Underground. Yukimitsu, in his attempt to warn Malhavoc (who was innocently climbing a tree) to stay clear of the Succubus' huts, managed to wake, and piss off, the locals.
Hidden
By: Bar-Ohki
Chapter 29: Cerberus, Familiar of Youichi
No one saw Malhavoc's hand move, but he had reached down and pulled a small dagger out from somewhere on his person. Malhavoc's dagger looked like it was the top end of a fat sword that had been lopped off and put onto a simple hilt. The only thing extraordinary about the dagger was that about an inch and a half bellow the tip was a small, red jewel. Malhavoc held the small weapon out at arm's length between himself and the Succubus, who didn't seem to be affected by the gesture a bit.
"…Escarlaje!" Doburoku whispered, having recognized the dagger.
Without any warning Malhavoc dashed forward, his dagger still in front of him. The Succubus cackled a little and her yellow eyes lit up. Her cackling stopped when Malhavoc got within stabbing range, forcing her to dodge to the side. Again, using quick, subtitle movements, Malhavoc danced around the Succubus keeping the dagger pointed between them at all times.
"What the hell is that dagger?" Shin muttered, his eyes wide. The dagger looked like it was a magic sink-hole.
"It's the only weapon in existence that can cut any kind of magic in half." Doburoku muttered. "Most people considered it a legend- but to think that Malhavoc was in possession of such a weapon!"
"When did she get those in her side!?" Mamori gasped, pointing at the thin metal rods that were sticking out of the Succubus' side.
"Darts!" Doburoku recognized them. "They're probably poisoned too."
"Magically poisoned." Shin observed.
The Succubus shrieked, her hands clutching her wounded side. Malhavoc seemed completely unaffected by her agony. He rushed forward again, this time managing to nick her the with the dagger. The Succubus' movements were slowed and unsteady. She fell back against a tree trunk, panting.
"Yield." Malhavoc told her using the Old Words. The Succubus made a move to protest when Cerberus shot out of the bus and got between her and Malhavoc, growling all the while. Malhavoc was unmoved looking at the Succubus with a cold, piercing gaze.
"…Is he going to kill her?" Kurita asked, nervous.
"…If it comes to that, he will." Doburoku answered.
"I-I yield." The Succubus announced. Malhavoc didn't drop his dagger but he walked towards her. Cerberus got louder and louder.
"I'm retrieving my darts." Malhavoc told Cerberus, who promptly shut up. With a small crunch from the dirt, Malhavoc knelt in front of the Succubus. He grabbed one of the darts and pulled it out of her side in a quick, smooth motion. She gasped in pain. Malhavoc pulled the rest of the 14 darts he had stuck in her out, dropping each one onto the ground beside him. After Malhavoc finished pulling out the darts he pulled out a pouch and opened it in front of her.
"Antidote." Malhavoc told her. The Succubus eyed the pouch wearily and took a little bit of the black, dried plant. Malhavoc grabbed all of his darts up in one hand and backed away from the Succubus.
"Why's he keeping that dagger between them?" Yukimitsu asked.
"…It's protecting him from some sort of magic she's trying to cast on him." Shin explained.
"He's protecting his soul from being sucked out." Doburoku explained. Malhavoc sat down and began to carefully clean and hide the darts on his person, one-handed. There was no wasted movement as Malhavoc worked, a clear sign that he had a lot of experience doing that. The Succubus took the bit of antidote and rubbed it on her wounds. Shin observed that the magical interference that had been going on at the site of the wounds was now gone.
"You're the Havoc Weaker, aren't you?" The Succubus' accusation made Malhavoc jerk.
"…I am." Malhavoc admitted after a moment, having just finished cleaning the darts. "I will spare you the process of learning how I gained that name if you take a look at the unconscious boys on that machine."
"Threatening me?" The Succubus growled. Cerberus barked at her, making her stare at the dog.
"That is Cerberus of the Sun Mountain Roost, reborn as a dog familiar." Malhavoc told her flatly. "I think he's trying to tell you to help his grandsons."
The Succubus was awed slightly by this development. "Lotem's sons?"
"Who else?" Malhavoc rolled his eyes, his tone oozing sarcasm. "But only under one condition."
"Condition?" The Succubus eyed Malhavoc wearily.
"You don't consume the souls of their companions." Malhavoc answered simply. The Succubus didn't answer with words, she just marched on by Malhavoc and onto the bus. The awake members of the group shied away from her, their instincts screaming that they should run. The Succubus bent down and touched Hiruma's face with a frown. She shot one look at Zork and nodded.
Malhavoc bounded onto the bus with Cerberus, standing there expectantly. The Succubus noticed that he still had the dagger pointed at her.
"Paranoid?" The Succubus cocked her head at the elf's behavior.
"It's not called 'paranoia' when they really are out to get you." Malhavoc told her simply.
"…He cannot be helped here." The Succubus told Cerberus.
"Can he be moved to a place where he can have help?" Doburoku asked her.
"Yes." The Succubus walked off the bus and shot into the air, making strange noises all the while.
"What's she doing?" Kurita asked.
"Watch." Malhavoc answered simply.
The sound of several loud wing flaps filled the air. Within moments the bus was surrounded by Succubus, all with purple wings, all with green hair, all too beautiful.
"I am Emlyn of the Ven Forest, who is in charge of this lot?" One of the Succubus stepped forward, her clothes an emerald green. Her blue eyes made contact with everyone who was conscious on the bus.
"…I am." Doburoku announced.
"I am an entity to myself," Malhavoc informed her simply, "though currently I choose to travel with these humans."
"You're not with us?" Mamori blinked, not having expected that.
Malhavoc sighed loudly and rolled his eyes. "I never was on your side."
"I have been told my nephews are here." Emlyn told Doburoku, her demand clear.
"They're over by Sena." Doburoku pointed at the sleeping runningback. Emlyn stepped onto the bus and walked down the isle and looked down on Zork and Hiruma. She said nothing for a moment then marched right off the bus. The Succubus outside took flight immediately, shaking the bus a bit violently when they stuck their clawed hands into its sides.
"Why are they moving the bus?" Shin asked as the bus slowly eased into the air.
"We were in the middle of their Sacred Ground I bet." Ayla pointed down at the circular island surrounded by the forest of trees.
"It's more convenient to move us this way." Malhavoc pointed out wisely as he knelt down by the open bus door and stuck his head out of it.
"That's dangerous!" Mamori warned Malhavoc.
"He knows." Doburoku reminded Mamori. "And he chooses to do that knowing that he might well get himself killed."
"Ha!" Malhavoc yelled in triumph.
"You know where we are?" Doburoku asked looking out at the unfamiliar landscape.
"See those mountains yonder?" Everyone was looking out at the window at the mountain range Malhavoc was pointing at. "That's the Cross Roads!"
"The Cross Roads?" Kurita asked.
"The Cross Roads are at the heart of the Underground, we measure everything from them." Malhavoc explained, looking rather pleased with himself. "It's no different than your North Pole in the Upground, right?"
"So we're close to the center of the Underground?" Kurita blinked.
"We're moving northeastward of them right now." Malhavoc commented as he stood up.
"You seem pleased." Shin observed, trying to figure out why Malhavoc was so happy. Malhavoc only smiled in response, pleased that he was no longer lost.
"Do you know where we might be headed?" Doburoku asked as the ground beneath them whizzed by.
"There," Malhavoc pointed out the bus' windshield at another, darker mountain range, "the Moon Mountains."
"Isn't the Moon Mountains a Succubus Roost?" Yukimitsu asked.
"It is." Malhavoc nodded. "But it's also Lotem's Roost and Youichi's birthplace, not that surprising when you think about it."
"Hiruma's birthplace?" Mamori blinked.
"Hiruma-kun was born in the Underground," Doburoku informed them. "His mother brought him to the Upground to be raised by Hiruma-san."
After a few nods the bus descended into silence as everyone watched the Moon Mountains draw closer. During the trip Hiruma opened his eyes, still disoriented and confused. Mamori walked over and put a gentile hand on Hiruma's face, trying to calm him. Hiruma knew something was happening, something important and in his current condition he could not grasp it. The last of the group members also woke up, including one tired, confused Sena. Mamori spent the rest of the trip explaining what had been happening.
The bus was set down on a large cliff on one of the mountain's faces. All the Succubus that had carried them pulled their hand free from the bus and turned back toward the forest they were from. Only Emlyn stayed behind. She stood at beside the open door of the bus and waited. Malhavoc crouched down and made himself small and unnoticeable as he looked out the door, waiting. Doburoku, after a while of no movement from Malhavoc, decided to step out of the bus and stand beside Emlyn.
From a small cave no more than three feet up the mountain side, Lotem hopped out, her curly long hair blowing in the slight breeze. She was again wearing a red dress and this time her purple wings were visible. She approached the party gracefully, her expression curious.
"Lotem-!" Musashi whispered, recognizing the woman.
"That's Hiruma's mother?" Monta pointed at the Succubus. Kurita and Musashi nodded.
"Elder Doburoku," Lotem began, "what brings you to my doorstep?"
"Your sons." Doburoku answered and turned to face the others on the bus. "Carry them out."
Kurita picked up Hiruma while Shin grabbed Zork, the four exited the bus along with everyone else. Lotem's eyes widened slightly and she ran over to get a better look at Hiruma. Though his eyes were open it was obvious he wasn't actually seeing anything. Lotem set her hand on Hiruma's forehead and the quarterback finally stilled his restless twitches. The unseeing eyes looked right at Lotem's face, as if there was some faint understanding of who she was.
"Emlyn, would you take Youichi to be healed?" Lotem asked Emlyn. The two Succubus shared several facial features, making it unquestionable that they were sisters. Emlyn took Hiruma from Kurita's arms and shot off into the air, flying somewhere else in the mountains.
"The rest of you must be tired from your journey." Lotem observed. "Please follow me to your rooms." Lotem snapped on her heel and strode back up to the cave entrance. Tiredly, the others followed her all exhausted for some reason or another. It turned out that there was a ladder carved into the side of the mountain, which allowed everyone to get into the cave. Though the interior still resembled a cave, it had been carved and painted to make the walls resemble some kind of great battle. Little blue orbs of light appeared in various crannies to cast a soft, gentile light over everything.
Lotem continued to walk down the hall, her feet making almost no noise against the cave floor. The group walked in silence, most were absorbed in the stories carved into the walls. Lotem stopped before a large black curtain that covered one side of the wall. She pulled back the curtain to reveal a room with several alcoves. In each alcove was a large pile of pillow and a curtain to pull back for privacy. There were some chests in the center of the room, presumably to store things in.
"For your own safety, I urge that all of you stay in here for now." Lotem informed them. "I will have food sent down shortly."
"I'll take those." Malhavoc took the bone bag off Zork's back and hoisted it over his shoulder.
"What are you doing?" Doburoku demanded.
"Taking these to someone who can free their spirits." Malhavoc answered as he stepped out into the hall beside Lotem.
"Wait, you're leaving?" Sena protested.
Malhavoc nodded. "Till the next dawning, parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme." The elf stepped back again then walked down the hall out of sight.
"Do not worry about him, he has duties to attend to." Lotem assured the group. She looked at Rae and the bus lady, who were twitching neverously.
"Are those two with your group?" Lotem asked, pointing at the busy lady and Rae.
"Not really, they have to be returned to Liverpool." Doburoku answered truthfully.
"I will take care of them then." Lotem nodded and called the woman over.
"What about the bus?" The bus lady asked.
"It will be taken care of." Lotem assured the lady. Cerberus walked over and nodded to Lotem once and walked off down the hall. Lotem and the woman then took their leave, leaving the rest of the group to sit there in silence.
"What now?" Mamori asked no one in particular.
Cerberus navigated the Roost with else, having been here many a time in life. The Succubus left him alone, occationally shooting him a strange look. Within a short while Cerberus had reached the heart of Moon Mountain, the Room of Moon. All Succubus and Incubus were born in this room, most die in that room as well. Hiruma was naked on the very bed he had been born on. The blue crystal ceiling was pulsing in the moonlight, casting a genitle glow on everything in the room.
Carefully Cerberus climbed onto the bed and laid down beside the sleeping Hiruma. The fever was gone and his pulse had come up. Hopefully being ill had not done any perminate damage to Hiruma.
"Father…." Emlyn muttered as she came into the room. Cerberus nodded in acknowledgement.
"I feel like Lotem did the wrong thing." Emlyn remarked as she brushed a stray strand of hair from Hiruma's face. "Leaving Youichi with Yuuya."
"She did not." Cerberus muttered, his voice sounding almost like barks. "Those friends are the most valuble thing he could ever have."
Emlyn nodded and gave Hiruma a small kiss on the forehead.
"Who should I have here when he wakes?" Emlyn asked.
"You should be here, or better yet Lotem." Cerberus answered. "Youichi doesn't know what I am yet."
"Very well then." Emlyn nodded and left the room.
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Long chapter, lots of words, lots of things happened. Tell me what you think!