Author's Note: Nothing to say here. Enjoy the update and please review.

The Story So Far: Grand General Elec saw three issues with their attack on Blake, all of which seemed to have been solved except one: how the heck are they going to take him out? Hiruma is training with Zeke, Zork with Dalboz, Kali's slaving over poisons, and Malhavoc is sleeping. Most everyone else is busying themselves with pointless things to pass the time.

Hidden

By: Bar-Ohki

Chapter 38: Takami of Oujou

Between the unconscious Takami and Sakuraba, Takami was the first one to wake. When he came to he found himself in an unfamiliar room with and old man with pointy ears. The old man was wearing some strange, medieval blue armor and looked rather bored.

"Awake now?" The old man asked.

"W-what happened?" Takami couldn't remember anything, his memory was so fuzzy.

"I was hoping you could tell me." The old man sighed a little. "You were captured by a very horrible person and put under his complete control."

"...Who are you and where am I?" Takami asked after a moment.

"I'm Ronic, a mage under the command of Grand General Elec Fumaescar of Vent." Ronic introduced himself. "And before you ask, I am not human, I am an elf."

"Elves exist?" Takami blinked slowly, carefully digesting the information.

"Yes, we do." Ronic chuckled. "As does magic."

"Magic!?" Takami gasped.

"I suppose I could humor you with an explaination of your world and all the parts you've been missing." Ronic remarked after a little thought. He launched into a quick explaination of the Upground, Underground, Blake (without actually saying his name), and what had approximately happened to Takami and the rest of the members of Oujou.

"I see." Takami nodded, still having a great deal of difficultly believing everything the old elf had told him.

"Now, would you humor me by telling me everything you recall last?" Ronic asked.

"Well, it'd been a fairly normal practice, except that Shin was missing." Takami began. "Some woman showed up and had to talk to Shoji about something."

"A woman?" Ronic was curious.

"I don't know, she just gave me bad vibes." Takami shook his head. "After talking to her Shoji announced that we were going to go on a long run. That run led us to the side of Mount Fuji that felt really weird."

"Okay." Ronic nodded, taking more from Takami's words than Takami was telling.

"The air tingled a little and I felt like I'd been pushed out of my own body…." Takami shivered at the recollection of the sensation. "I don't really recall much after that, everything was a blurr."

"That's probably for the best." Ronic nodded gravely. "That was when our enemy had you under his spell, if you are curious."

"…Well I do faintly recall the world coming kind of back into focus…." Takami admitted. "I was outside Deimon's clubhouse and there was a burning on the hand I was using to hold onto the door. Some liquid, I think it might have been acid…."

"Acid?" Ronic blinked, not familiar with the word.

"You don't know what acid is?" Takami was stunned.

"I was recently told that a dinglebon was in fact properly called a 'doorbell'." Ronic shrugged. "I might know what this 'acid' is, but under another name."

"It's a chemical that eats other substances." Takami explained, only getting a blank stare from Ronic.

"I don't know alchemy, you should talk to someone else." Ronic simply shook his head. "I happen to know the liquid you felt beneath your hand was blood."

"Blood!?" Takami gasped.

"Belonging to the Half-Ice child." Ronic nodded.

"Wait! Didn't you say that Half-Fire was that Necromancer that was half-Incubus, half-elf?" Takami asked and pressed on before Ronic could answer. "There's a half-Succubus, half-elf running around?"

"Half-human, half-Succubus." Ronic corrected. "I am told by him that the two of you are already aquainted."

"I know him?" Takami was slightly upset by the notion.

"It is not my place to say his name, he has not given me the right." Ronic admitted. "But if you like, I can take you to him."

"I would like that very much." Takami got off the bed and followed Ronic out of the room.

"We're in the Headquarters of the Elders." Ronic remarked as the walked down the halls.

"Ronic!" A voice called from behind them. They both turned around to see Elec standing there in his armor.

"Grand General!" Ronic stood at attention quickly.

"…Did you find anything?" Elec asked quickly.

"Only that our suspicons were true." Ronic answered.

"Thank you." Elec nodded to Ronic then turned to Takami. "Jero lad."

"Umm… hello?" Takamit wasn't quite sure what the tall elf ment by 'jero'.

"It is nice to meet you awake, Takami of Oujou." Elec smiled. "I am Elec of Vent."

"Nice to meet you, General." Takami nodded and bowed slightly. Elec only let out a small laugh.

"Please do not bow," Elec requested, "I am not your royality."

"You're royality!?" Takami gasped.

"In the sense that my mother was the daughter of a prince, yes." Elec explained with a smile. "But I am distracting you from your journey, so perhaps I shall accompany you for a moment if we continue to speak to one another?"

"Actually, sir, I was wondering if you could take us to where Half-Ice is?" Ronic asked. "I am not sure exactly where he is at the moment…."

"He is training with Lord Zeke." Elec answered. "Come, I will take you." Elec quickly marched down the hallway, not waiting to see if the other two were following. Takami followed right up behind Elec.

"Who is this Half-Ice?" Takamai asked Elec.

"Ah, Youichi of Moon Mountain." Elec answered. Unfortunately for Takami he did not recall was Hiruma's first name was and gave Ronic a look.

"I do not recall meeting a Youichi of Moon Moutain." Takami told Ronic blandly.

"No, you do know him." Elec assured Takami. "In fact, he considers you a good rival and peer in the realm of football if what Shin said was true."

"Shin!?" Takami gasped. "Shin is here!?"

"He's sleeping at this time." Elec informed Takami curtly. "As are most of his compainions."

"Companions?" Takami frowned.

"The men of Deimon." Elec answered quickly as he stopped in front of a door that just appeared on the wall. Elec knocked four times and opened it.

"Ah, good timing Elec!" Zeke cried joyously. "Would you mind generating a simple shield spell?"

"…What would you be using it for?" Elec asked, eyeing Zeke wearily.

"You're just like your mother." Zeke muttered. "Always being suspicious of me."

"Well the first time I met you, you did try to kill me." Elec pointed out offhandedly.

"Well, we'd be testing what Akumetsu does to your shield." Zeke explained.

"I won't be standing behind it then." Elec told Zeke with a tone that left no room for argument. "But that will wait until Takami has spoken to your pupil." And with that Elec pushed the door open the rest of the way. Takami found himself staring at a Hiruma Youichi holding a gun of a brand he didn't recognize. To top that off Hiruma was wearing some medieval era-looking garb. Hiruma simply quirked an eyebrow at Takami.

"…Ronic here told me you were a half-Succubus." Takami explained, startled to think that Hiruma of all the people he knew wouldn't be human.

"And Ronic didn't lie to you, fucking glasses." Hiruma answered simply. "Did he bother to explain the whole fucking Underground shit to you?"

"Er, yes." Takami couldn't help but to nod.

"…Looks like your men aren't complete idiots, fucking General." Hiruma addressed Elec, who in turn rolled his eyes.

"The men I brought with me are considered intelligent by most." Elec reminded Hiruma simply. "Now let us finish your exercises."

Hiruma sniffed the air. In the time he had been training his magic with Zeke he had learned how to smell where magic was coming from. It wasn't the best skill Hiruma had by any means, but at least he could tell it was from his left or right. Elec had a very small-scented magic, which made it extra hard for Hiruma to find, but he did find it in the end. Without anymore waiting Hiruma pointed and aimed Akumetsu at the magic and fired.

Takami watched as the air exploded slightly, rushed back in and left a small blue cube on the floor. He simply blinked then turned back to Hiruma who looked tired and sweaty, as if he had just played a football game. Takami then turned to Elec who also looked tired and sweaty.

"…It kept on taking magic until I cut myself off from the spell." Elec remarked.

"Good." Zeke smiled, relieved about something. "I say we stop for a bit."

"…And do fucking what?" Hiruma asked Zeke.

"In your case, eat." Zeke told Hiruma. "In my case, make notes and plan another lesson."

"Tch." Hiruma put Akumetsu away.

"…Hiruma, could you tell me what happened to Shin?" Takami asked as Hiruma walked over to them.

"…Fine." Hiruma explained, with several swear words, about his kidnapping, why Shin had been selected to help with the rescue, and how he got caught up with all the shit that was currently happening.

"No one's been saying the enemy's name." Takami observed.

"Because fucking saying it sends some of his fucking magic over this way." Hiruma answered gruffly.

"…I had no idea Tsubasa-sensei was an Elder." Takami ran a hand through his hair.

"I had no idea I was a fucking Succubus prince." Hiruma snorted, annoyed. "Or that a fucking General would put me in charge."

"You're in charge!?" Takami gasped.

"Fucking General says I am." Hiruma explained. "And all the other Underground fuckers decided to agree with him."

"Damn!" Takami shook his head, not sure what to make of it.

"Hiruma!" A curt, female voice demanded from behind them. Both turned around to see a short woman with pink hair.

"Fucking assassin." Hiruma commented.

"Call me Kali or I'll run a katar through your thigh." Kali told Hiruma flatly, pulling out one of her katars to emphasis the point. Hiruma simply snorted.

"Who is she?" Takami asked.

"I am Kali Shadowchaser, assassin of Rune." Kali answered before Hiruma could make an introduction for her. "And the poison is done."

"Good." Hiruma nodded.

"…Who should I give it to?" Kali asked, realizing that Hiruma wouldn't know what sort of instruction she would want.

"…Ask fucking elf." Hiruma told her.

"Do you mean Malhavoc?" Kali asked, not familiar with Hiruma's nicknames for people.

"Him."

"Alright then." Kali nodded and stepped back, appearing to disappear into the wall. Hiruma and Takami shared a startled look.

"Is there anything else I need to know?" Takami asked.

"I have a fucking half brother." Hiruma remarked. "Named Zork."

"A half brother, huh?" Takami nodded. "…How the heck are you swallowing all this shit?"

"I can't do a fucking thing about it right now." Hiruma pointed out. "So I might as well take everything as fucking true until I know otherwise."

"I see." Takami nodded. "…Are you really going to fight this enemy guy?"

"He has my parents," Hiruma answered, "and the fucking parents of my teammates."

"Ah." Takami nodded.

"And almost all of your fucking team under his control." Hiruma added as an afterthought.

"…If there is anything I can do, let me know." Takami told Hiruma.

"I will." Hiruma nodded. "I fucking will."

_=_=_=_=_

Now Takami's on board, Hiruma and Zork have been getting training and in the next chapter we start the march against Blake! Review please!