Sorry, I've been busy and tired this entire last week so I havent been writing, and this chapter ran long so I had to cut off the ending where I did. Sorry if this chapter is boring in any way, but comments are appreciated as always. Thanks for the nice ones so far!
Somewhere in the distance, he could feel his heart beating.
Eyes glowed, armor glinted, rusted, tore away, blood stained swords and knives, and yet nothing for him changed.
Who are you? Why are you called that?
It was easy enough for anyone to understand if they got close to his light. The Red Emperor was always destined to be bathed in blood.
Sand, gravel, and bones crunched under his boots as he walked forward, crimson cape flapping in the slight breeze. The sun had been setting for a while now, dipping the world in the same color. Fair weather tonight, he thought idly, eyes sliding over the disintegrating bodies.
Red at night, sailor's delight! Isn't that right, Sei? What does that mean?
"It means there won't be any storms tonight. So you won't have to sneak into my bed." Saying something like that seemed nostalgic to him, so he allowed himself a moment to reflect, if only to push forward his reason for doing all this. He was not allowed weakness, and therefore, not allowed sentimental notions, but this one was precious enough to pass.
One red eye, one gold eye. Both could see equally well, but one showed a hint of the horror seen to protect one thing. One precious thing. The dark knight paused in his walking, hearing a distressed chirping from one of the fallen branches.
The battlefield was a mess, like a demon had torn through it, and that was a safe assumption. He would be proud to be called one in front of any of his enemies. Still, he kneeled down to a hole in the battered wood, an armored hand rooting around to find the source of distress.
It was a tiny bluebird that chirped angrily in his hands as he pulled it up to his face. The feathers were soft, almost the color of the morning sky, small dark eyes peering out of its precious face. "You must have gotten stuck in there, didn't you?"
He opened his hand and without much protest the bluebird flew away, and silence once again fell over the battleground. "Pity that couldn't have happened to the rest of you, I'm sure."
His words, dripping with sarcasm, were heard by no living being, but that was fine by him. He didn't mind it as he walked away. Soon maybe this could all go to an end, and he could finally fulfill his purpose.
"Kill the king, and a new one shall rise," Akashi said. "How fitting."
"Is it natural for him to be sleeping this much? Are you sure nothing is wrong?" Kagami had been following Hyuuga around for the better part of an hour, and the elf finally looked like he was about to murder the tank where he stood.
"Will you ever shut up?! Yes it is normal for mages to sleep that long, especially if they used as much magic as Kuroko has! Many people with elven blood sleep for days to recharge themselves. And if you don't leave in the next three seconds, I will have Izuki fly you to a cliff so I can PERSONALLY PUSH YOU OFF OF IT!" Hyuuga followed through with a kick to his stomach, and Kagami found it wise to not question it any further.
But seriously, how could he blame a guy for worrying? When he found Kuroko passed out next to the cat bard, he'd immediately picked up him to put him in their temporary shelter at the inn, only to have him sleep for the next two days straight, without any indication he was ever going to wake up. Apparently mages did that to regain power they had lost, but two days? That was only something Magnus pulled!
Even said dumb cat bard hadn't slept that long, though he hadn't overworked himself nearly as much. Apparently this Furihata wasn't much use besides quivering in a corner and stammering out that he could look over Kuroko while he was gone, so Kagami wasn't impressed. He smelled weak and looked weak and that was what mattered.
Well, not in Kuroko's case, but whatever.
The Seirin guild house had sustained heavy damage in the attack, though most of it was made of natural materials like wood or stone that could be replaced. The training field looked like a battleground, but the infirmary, Riko's lab, and most of the area they had hid in seemed relatively untouched.
The villagers had even gone out of their way to help shelter, supply, and even aid them in reconstruction, which Kagami had thought weird. Usually guilds were just add ons to cities, but Seirin seemed to be a single entity that cared for the whole. A different mindset, for sure, but hey, if it got him food to eat, he wasn't complaining.
Of course, being the gigantic size he was, he was automatically drafted into doing all the heavy lifting the senior members wanted it to do, whether he wanted to or not. Riko called it replacement for his training, Kagami called it torture. He was strong-that didn't mean he wanted to lug giant pieces of stuff around for hours on end.
With all the nature mages in the village, under the guidance of one Hyuuga Junpei, they were able to reform and regrow much of the headquarters in the two days that Kuroko was sleeping. There were some parts that still needed touch ups, but Riko had mentioned that guilds get destroyed surprisingly often, so they always had a plan in place to rebuild.
Kiyoshi of course, had attempted to help but every time he was spotted by Hyuuga or Riko they locked him back in the infirmary until one of them literally tied him to the bed. (Kagami freed him a little while later but that was beside the point.)
In the meantime, Kagami decided to look up everything there was on the Kiseki. If he knew more about these idiots, maybe he'd have some understanding of what was going on and just what his partner was trying to do. He'd definitely heard of them, the five top hunters of the Teiko guild, but didn't know them by name, if his encounter with asshole rabbit-man was any indication.
Research for him, however, meant asking people who were wandering around on break since he wasn't the book type of guy. Most were more than willing to gush out information about them which made Kagami wonder just how popular these guys had to be to get this sort of reputation despite being missing for years.
Kise Ryouta was the first he heard about, from several very admiring female fans. According to them he was 'a gorgeous and sexy elf'-information he didn't want-that could copy just about any technique he saw even once. Wielded double daggers, was a blue mage with bright blonde hair and a face that could charm the heart out of even the most cold-hearted person….Kagami sort of wanted to throw up.
Aomine Daiki was a different story. The guy was a beast, first and foremost, strength and agility off the charts, and was a lancer to boot. And a demon. The list kept getting worse and worse and Kagami felt like punching him if/when he ever met the guy, a likely possibility. Apparently he'd never lost a fight.
Midorima he'd already met and hated, so it was onto the fourth member, one Murasakibara Atsushi, with a name far too long for his taste. The guy was apparently a Magnus like Kiyoshi and was really lazy, and rarely ever went out on missions, so people knew less about him. All he seemed to do was eat a lot, they said, though he was terrifying if you were opposing him.
But the one no one could tell him about was the Red Emperor himself. A line of aggressive questioning only got Kagami his name, Akashi Seijuro. There was barely any other information about him, other than the fact he was the Kiseki's leader and had strange heterochromatic eyes.
It really bothered him, but that was all he could get until Kuroko woke, so he angrily sighed and went back to training.
The first thing Kuroko was greeted with after waking up was a face full of brown hair and a stinging pain on his forehead.
"I'm so sorry, I was making sure you were okay!" The other person practically yelled, rebounding from the collision of their heads. The mage clutched at it, his eyes watering for a bit, but it really wasn't that bad. Sitting up, Kuroko realized his companion was none other than Furihata, the cat Bel'ua who had suddenly arrived at Seirin.
"It's okay, it was partly my fault," he said, gazing curiously at the fellow. He remembered the terrifying events of the king's men attacking and the guild being torn apart, but they had survived and he'd been healing people….then nothing.
"You were the one playing that song, right?" He asked in a monotone voice and Furihata eagerly nodded.
"Yes. I'm a bard. It's my job, kind of and well I walked into a disaster zone and you looked about to die, so you know…" Furihata stammered out, his hands putting a stranglehold on his flute. Kuroko merely waited until the bard had managed to calm himself down before starting to talk again.
"I think I remember you helping me out. Thank you for that, I wouldn't have lasted very long without that," Kuroko said, bowing his head slightly. This wasn't his and Kagami's room at the guild-actually, in the time he'd been in deep sleep it might have been completely recovered. As he swung his legs over to get out, Furihata stood up like he was going to stop the little mage, but thankfully, let Kuroko stand up fully. His legs were a bit wobbly but that was only from not eating for a period of time.
"A-are you sure you're okay?" The Bel'ua timidly asked and Kuroko just stared at him.
"I just need to eat." He looked around a bit. "How long was I out?"
"Uh, I think two days. We put you in here while the guild was getting repaired but they're mostly good now…Kagami keeps asking after you like every single hour. It's kind of sweet," Furihata said, averting his eyes.
If he were a weaker person, he might have blushed at such a brash statement but he kept his features under control, doing nothing to show the way his stomach did a weird flip flop at that information. "I see."
He made to exit his room, only to pause when he realized Furihata wasn't following him. "Is something wrong?"
"No. Nothing's wrong. I mean there was something. Something I wanted to ask you!" The bard nervously stammered out. Kuroko couldn't help but wonder if he was always like this with meeting new people but it couldn't be helped. The serious look in the Bel'ua's eyes was giving him a strange vibe.
"I…was travelling to Seirin, from my village, you see? And I got attacked by some of these monster. They were huge, like giant and really nasty and I thought I was cat meat! But suddenly this person appeared and….you know what? Never mind." Furihata was shaking his head. "Sorry, it's just you reminded me of someone I met."
The bard hurried out the door, leaving him behind, very confused.
Kuroko really didn't learn any more, since Furihata seemed intent on avoiding him. He wanted to know just what the bard had meant by his words-he was desperate-but he couldn't force the poor kid, not when it seemed he'd been through a lot already.
So he merely had to sit and let the feelings stew inside of himself, and wonder if Furihata really meant who he thought he did. If so, there really is a chance after all.
After eating a light breakfast the inn owner shared with him, he made his way over to the Seirin guild, only to find it had been mostly reconstructed already. The mage quickly started looking around for Kagami, both to tell him he was okay and to talk to someone, but while he heard his voice echoing through the hallways, Kuroko never really got a chance to get close to him. Oh well, he had other things to do.
He'd borrowed one of Izuki's messenger birds, a special breed of summon designed to carry documents and small items between people, for this task, knowing that Kagami would eventually find him no matter what. But right now Kuroko desperately needed to get stronger.
The attack by the royal soldiers left him with a horrible realization that he was severely lacking in his skills. Kuroko had been relying on being alone, shadow-like, and just using his healing abilities to push through but now that was not enough. He understood what Aomine told him once-if he didn't allow himself to evolve, everyone really would leave him behind, no matter how good a healer he was.
The words had kind of stung, even if Aomine had meant them in a good way. With the light of a necromancer causing trouble, it was essential for him to learn the one skill that white mages and paladins could use exclusively:
Holy magic.
Kuroko finished off the note to Midorima about the certain item he wanted to procure and assuring him they were fine 'I know you don't care or anything, but don't worry I'm not being troublesome'. Sending the bird off, he picked himself up and went out into town to the local library for some research.
He really was lucky he was in a town of mages, even if a lot of information about white magic was lost. The books still contained some incredibly helpful tips and whispers of a power named Ultima, which he knew from his mother was the greatest of holy magic spells and rarely used for its power.
He had a hard task in front of him, essentially having to invent spells on his own. Spells themselves varied heavily individually, but they were called that because they generally produced the same effect over a range of individuals. That's how mages of the same persuasion could help each other out, but Kuroko had no white mages. He didn't know what his magic could do and that scared him a little bit. Holy magic wasn't something that caused rampant destruction, but he didn't want to hurt anyone with it.
Yes, it was better if he didn't tell Kagami about this, because his partner would insist on helping him out, and Kuroko wasn't sure if he was over the moment they shared in the basement yet. It scared him, getting that close to someone.
It was night by the time he returned to the Seirin guild. Riko and Hyuuga were ecstatic to finally see him up, waving off his apologies for not helping with reconstruction. Kiyoshi almost immediately crushed him in a bear hug and while it was painful, it wasn't entirely unwelcome. The mage allowed himself a small smile at how Seirin made him feel welcome even after this short time.
Kagami, oddly enough was nowhere to be seen, even when he finally returned to the room they shared. Night passed as his blanket had magically appeared on him, but Kuroko was confused. If the guy had asked about him every hour like Furihata said, where then was he?
Waking up the next day he saw Furihata training with the other recruits, the Bel'ua giving him a little wave, but Kuroko didn't have time to talk to him. At least he wasn't avoiding the mage, but he desperately wanted answers he knew the bard wouldn't give: he would just have to be patient.
Kuroko explained to Riko what he needed. It was a conundrum for sure, and Riko didn't seem happy he'd have to go off on his own, but she eventually agreed if he brought Izuki along with him. He could do nothing but agree so the white mage and summoner went into the forest to a secluded position and began their training in earnest.
One week later and Kuroko was about to kill something out of frustrating. At the rate he was going, it would probably be himself, since he worked himself to exhaustion almost every day, but he couldn't give up. Izuki was the one to drag his practically lifeless body back to camp and force him to eat, as much as the mage wished it was someone else doing that.
Where was Kagami? Well, Kuroko knew the answer to that question: he was avoiding the tank, but why he wasn't sure himself. Perhaps he was still embarrassed by the weak moment he spent with him, or the embarrassment at the feelings of attachment he was starting to feel.
"You're being stupid," Midorima would say and probably hit him over the head, but Midorima wasn't here to tell him that. Unfortunately, it was all Kuroko could do to not sink into self-loathing every time he saw burn and scratch marks on the Seirin building, or still broken weapons piled up in the corner to be melted down into new armor for the guild.
This attack had been all about him despite what anyone else said, and even though no one had died, he couldn't deny he was horribly inadequate as a white mage and a guild member.
Perhaps they were right. White mages bring nothing despair and pain to people despite their healing magic. Kuroko threw himself even more into his training to bury the disgusting thoughts. He couldn't give up, not now, or ever. That promise was too important.
The others in the guild often saw white flashes coming from the forest, for the next week after that, but no one questioned it because Riko told them not to. A white mage was working, don't disturb him, she said. He wants to get stronger.
And still, there was no Kagami. Sometimes Izuki didn't even show up because he was too busy with guild recovery-(he apologized greatly and promised to come if he could, but Kuroko told him not to push himself). Wrestling with his powers was the hardest thing he had ever done and he didn't want to break down in front of people. Right now he only had Riko's faith that he would finally learn some new magic, and he couldn't disappoint anyone's expectations.
It was hard enough for Kuroko to even figure out how to get his magic to deal damage instead of heal. At first, despite how much he flung the light at other targets, it would do nothing but heal, but the problem lay not in his magic, but in his mind. The other in Kiseki had told him he could be a sweet and gentle person and Kuroko liked to believe that's mostly what he was, but every human, or in his case half-elf, couldn't survive just by being soft.
So instead, he took his mind, took the part of him that angered, that hated, that wanted to attack and defend the people he called family and friends, the part of him that wouldn't stand by to do nothing, and forged it into a blade. After that, he had no problem getting his magic to start causing damage.
Refining it was another process and he lost count of how many snapped wooden targets he'd murdered, and how many weird gouges in the ground there were. His hands were trembling with exhaustion, but he couldn't stop. Not until he got better.
He knew people in the guild were worried about him because some of them came to leave him little things like food, water, even healing supplies when he got too exhausted to use white magic on himself. Izuki and the silent man, Mitobe seemed to try and spend as much time with him as possible, the latter often just watching as he fired of burst after burst of white light into the forest, but most of the time he was alone.
Kuroko could feel it, his power was on the cusp of evolving, but it was like it needed a push from something he didn't have. The desire was there, but the need wasn't. In the two weeks he'd been training, his mind had slipped further down into darkness, and now he wasn't even sure about himself anymore.
Maybe he could stay out here in the forest. It would be easier, the guild wouldn't have to worry about him, the king's men wouldn't attack anymore, and once he was strong enough he could go off to find the rest of his friends and free them. Taking the burden entirely on himself was his own duty and he wouldn't regret anything this way.
Another day had passed and he sat down on the grass, breathing heavily. Today's training had been fruitless, even if his Holy magic had somehow gotten stronger. Not even imagining how HE had done it was helping-the memories were foggy from all the times he tried to force himself not to remember.
"I'm sorry," He mumbled more to himself than anyone else. He was alone out here, with nothing but the wind, trees and gently swaying wildflowers, but it wasn't a good feeling. Kuroko normally drew comfort from being quiet and sentimental, but instead the air felt like it was forcing itself down his throat, the sunlight burning his pale skin too hard.
He idly stared at the unbroken skin of his left hand. He needed some impetus, some force to push him into getting his disorganized powers to finally evolve, so maybe…the sight of his own blood. A slightly trembling hand pulled the dagger out of his belt and drew the blade across his skin, creating a line of red droplets that oozed out and became an unsteady flow.
"KUROKO!"
He dropped the knife and turned around, startled. There, at the edge of the forest, after these two solid weeks, was Kagami. Who looked furious as he thundered his way over to the white mage, grabbing his left arm, and dragging him up by it.
"What the hell is this?!" Kagami's face was uncomfortably close. He could see straight into his eyes and the detail of his split end eyebrows and tiny wrinkles as his face turned into a frown. Kuroko looked away. He couldn't deal with the flash of concern he found beneath all the anger.
"Answer me, you little shit!" Kagami's tight grip shook Kuroko's body hard, but his face didn't change. Then again, it seemed to be finally sinking in what a stupid move that had been. Had he really just cut his own hand to try and do a spell?
"I apologize Kagami-kun. I realize it was stupid of me, so I would appreciate it if you put me down," Kuroko said tonelessly. Kagami just made a disgusted noise and threw him to the side, thankfully not hard enough to cause any permanent damage.
"I go away on a small mission to help you and find you pulling this sort of shit. What is wrong with you?" Kagami asked. It probably would've been better if he shouted.
But his words caught Kuroko's attention. "Kagami-kun was doing what?"
"None of that now. You better explain yourself now before I kill ya!" His harsh words sounded odd against the fact that Kagami gently reached down and tipped him up to a sitting position. "I'm betting you don't have enough magic to heal yourself."
Kuroko shook his head numbly and just watched as the tank pulled out his water flask and took of his own, taking the mage's injured hand in his own. Pouring water over it stung, but he showed no discomfort, just watching Kagami's large fingers move gently across his palm. He was surprised: Kuroko didn't know the tank could be so soft with his touches. Their skin barely brushed at times, but it was a pleasing feeling that sent a tiny shiver up his arm.
Kagami wound the almost blindingly white bandage around his hand, tying it in a knot above his knuckles. Kuroko flexed the hand, thankful that it wasn't too tight and the wound was very shallow. "Thank you, Kagami-ku-"
There was something soft against his hand that wasn't his partner's fingers. Kuroko's eyes widened as he witnessed Kagami lean down and press his lips against his skin, peppering his hand with a light kiss.
He froze in his spot and he was sure the heat on his face wasn't just from the sun. Looking at Kagami, the red seemed to spread on his face too as he realized what he did. "Uh. Oh shit. Well sorry, my teacher kinda…did that for me. When I injured myself. Yeah."
Kuroko was one to shy away from physical expressions of kindness, but Kagami seemed to be just as embarrassed as he was. That somehow made it better. Or was it because it was Kagami? He didn't know and was very confused.
"I don't mind, Kagami-kun," He said very matter-of-factly, causing the tank to look over at him with wide eyes. "My mother used to do something slightly similar."
That was a lie, but it seemed to make Kagami feel better. "W-well, whatever! Not the point! Point is you're being a fucking idiot and injuring yourself like that. Plus Riko said you'd been up here almost two weeks non-stop without eating like anything!"
Kuroko didn't have anything to say to deny that, for that was exactly what he'd done. And being rather ashamed about it, seeing how worried his f-friend?-had gotten, all he could do was apologize.
"I am very sorry, Kagami-kun. The attack on Seirin left me in a bad state of mind and I did not deal with it correctly. I was merely trying to gain strength, but it seems I have worried both Aida-san and Kagami-kun," Kuroko said.
"I'm just here because you have a tendency to do stupid things and get yourself killed, okay? And it looks like I'm always right! Now will you stop moping around on your own and be useful for once?" Kagami said bluntly.
He was trying. He really was. Kuroko almost smiled. He'd spent enough time around Midorima to know when people who were no good at expressing feelings were actually, well, trying to express themselves. Kagami's words were harsh and crude, but they didn't hurt as much as he thought they might. The tone wasn't even that angry, just low and growling.
"We're a team now, right? Remember how you forced yourself on us when we first met? If I didn't leave then, and didn't leave when I met your crazy rabbit friend and realized there were four more crazies just like him, I'm not gonna leave now," the tank continued. "You seem to have this shitty idea in your head you need to suffer alone and whatever. I don't really get your mental issues, but we're a team! So stop it!"
There weren't any words for the things he was feeling, but Kuroko realized he'd been truly mistaken in thinking being alone would help him out. Every person had their weaknesses and while Kuroko thought they'd covered something important in their basement jaunt, he'd reverted. The reminders of his dead mother and the kings men got him to think like he did back when he was horribly young and all his progress had been lost.
Annoying, stupid, and incredibly counter-productive as Kagami had basically put it. No one recovered from their traumas in one blow, but…"That's right. I'd forgotten something important, Kagami-kun. Thank you. We will be partners for a very long time it seems."
"I can't seem to get rid of you so I gave up," Kagami said, trying to shrug off the sentiment and hiding half his face behind his hand. "And about earlier, I did some asking around while you were asleep. Your Kiseki pals are fucking wild."
"Did you expect anything else from them after meeting Midorima-kun?" Kuroko asked passively, but inwardly his heart was twisting around like a noodle.
"No, not really, but I was hoping one of them would be reasonable! Speaking of which, blondie, whatever the fuck his name is, I have a lead on where he might be. That's what I've been doing this past week," Kagami said almost nonchalantly, and Kuroko couldn't hide the tiny gasp that came from his mouth.
"Kise-kun? You know where he is?"
"Well, not entirely, but I've a good lead. Once this necromancer deal gets sorted out, we can go after him," the tank finished up. He stared at the white mage for a moment, his expression suddenly twisting into worry. "You're not reacting, did you not want me to?"
"That's not it Kagami-kun. I'm actually very happy." He was. Kuroko was feeling better than he had in weeks, all because he couldn't believe Kagami would actually do something like THIS for him. He truly was spoiled when it came to friends.
"Your face hasn't changed!"
"My face is always like this."
"You're fuckin' creepy, you know that," Kagami let out a huge sigh, running his hand through his hair. Kuroko had visibly relaxed, even if he didn't trust his face anymore with his emotions, so perhaps some of the sentiment got through.
"I'm sorry to hear that."
"Anyways, you really should get some sleep. You look like you're about to pass out again," Kagami said, poking said mage in the forehead. He inwardly sighed. Kuroko really didn't have the energy to move and he didn't want to go all the way back to the guild building.
"I don't want to move. Kagami-kun has to carry me," Kuroko said, earning a horrible sputtering noise from his partner.
"If you're gonna be that way then just stay here!" Kagami yelled, looking horrified when the mage plopped over on his side, clearly intent on doing just that. "Don't sleep on the ground!"
"It's nice and soft. Besides, there are no monsters in this area," Kuroko mumbled, curling up into a small ball. He expected large arms to come down and lift him up but they didn't come. Instead he heard a clanking sound, the sound of a sword being stabbed into the ground, then all of a sudden, a large Kagami slammed down next to him.
"If you're gonna be stupid and sleep out here by yourself, I can't leave you alone," the tank muttered, having shed all of his armor.
Kuroko merely hummed a tiny bit and after a bit, pulled Kagami's arm so it was over him, ignoring the stinging in his wounded hand. He'd already decided to not heal that wound, as it would erase the phantom feeling of his partner's lips on his skin.
"What the hell are you doing? Why are you touching me?" Kagami yelped, almost trying to pull away, but being held in place by Kuroko's small hands.
"I don't have a blanket out here. Therefore, Kagami-kun will have to replace it. Now shut up and go to sleep," Kuroko said and tugged him once more before closing his eyes. Despite the muttered protests he could hear, not once did his partner pull away from him, and they were both able to fall asleep with flowers as their pillows.
It had only been another week and somehow Kagami had ended up in this situation, running away from a few very angry, flaming skeletons.
"GET AWAY FROM ME YOU DEAD FUCK!" He screamed as his sword chopped off one of the skeleton's heads, his kick sweeping the legs from under it. His boot reduced it to dust and he could only hope Riko and Kuroko were doing better.
It had all started the day Kuroko received a strange package. Kagami was suspicious at first, not knowing the boy had contacted his friend, but still wasn't happy when the mage reassured him it was just something from Midorima. The package itself was a heavily decorated white staff, tipped in a blood-red jewel with gold carvings weaving its way down the side. The head was like a twisted branch and narrowed down into a pole, capped with metal on the end. Needless to say, he was very confused.
Kuroko had explained the stick to be known as the Staff of Holy Magi, a forgotten relic that white mages used to use to enhance their casting. Midorima had a knack for finding the most obscure of objects, and this venture was obviously a success, especially attached to it with a note from Takao, who apparently was really good at spotting people, much like Izuki.
"Dear Tet-chan! (Shin-chan finally told me your full name.
He complained the entire time, but we finally got this to you. You do NOT want to know what it took for us to get it: think dark, smelly, and me attempting to pull Shin-chan out of a shark's intestine. And goats. Lots of goats. As I said, you don't want to know. But here you go, and you owe us a BIG favor. Especially since I can tell you your lovely necromancer is holed up in the Tomb of Aegia, just south of Shuutoku, the city of sand. You know the place, it's a few miles south of where we first met each other. Good luck and don't die, or Shin-chan will be very sad!~
P.S. send the big guy my regards.
Showing the note to Riko went about as well as one would think it would, and it was all their guild leader could do to keep Kiyoshi and Hyuuga from rushing off immediately to fight him. "Teppei is still injured, and you need to be around to take care of him, Hyuuga!" She had shouted, hitting both of them again.
Which was how Kuroko had somehow singlehandedly convinced Riko to take the two of them along, because obviously Kagami was good zombie bait, and his new holy magic could easily take down the various creatures Hanamiya managed to summon.
Which was also how Kagami ended up being chased by a horde of angry flaming skeletons, before a splash potion from Riko melted their legs and he could finally slow down.
"Out of everything, you couldn't have picked something OTHER THAN FIRE TO HIT THEM WITH?!" Kagami yelled at his guild leader, too angry for politeness. Riko was wearing a pair of gigantic gloves, ones that looked like blacksmith's gloves that had a number of colorful vials running down the sides of them. Combined with her myriad golems and splash potions in her bag, Kagami was fairly certain he didn't not want to get in her way.
"Are you questioning my methods, Ka-gam-mi-kun?" Riko smiled sweetly, accentuating each syllable of his name and sending shivers down his spine.
"Uh, no! But I'd um, like it if you didn't endanger my life…please." Kagami said, somewhere between hatred and terror at this very moment. The voice by his elbow didn't help matters either.
"It's my job to make sure you don't die, Kagami-kun. It is your job to make sure all the zombies try to eat you," Kuroko said, and the tank wanted to smash his little smug face in.
"Shut up! I know that, but don't fuckin' make my job harder by setting them on fire!" Kagami growled, shouldering his giant sword and giving them both a death glare. This was only the entrance to the tomb, too. The ground hadn't turned to sand yet, but it was tough and full of dead grass and broken stone. There were things that seemed to be the bases of broken pillars, leading up to a huge stone door, hollowed out the side of another rock formation.
There were effigies of dragons and other creatures running up the sides and he sure it would look breathtaking and lovely if he actually cared about what the tomb looked like, but he didn't, so all he wanted to do was get inside and take out the smug bastard who dared to threaten his friends.
The skeletons had mostly been cleared out, a few more being stabbed by Kuroko's newfound staff as they climbed the steps to the top, the door opening ominously without anything to push it. The trio entered, the door closing almost immediately behind them with a dull thud, shutting them in.
"Well fuck," Kagami said, his voice echoing strangely in the barely lit chamber. The crystal lamps looked slightly dead but it was enough to not trip over their own feet.
"Both of you, watch out, Kuroko especially. Hanamiya's creations love going after the scent of magic and they are very hard to spot. Sometimes they come out of the ground after you've walked past them," Riko said. The two nodded before walking forward again. There was a small pedestal in front of them that lit up when Kagami touched it, a circle forming below their feet and whisking them away somewhere so fast he didn't even have time to get motion sick.
"Woah. Teleportation devices. That is ancient magic," Kuroko said, not even having the decency to sound surprised. He was right though, and they were in a different area of the tomb, the lamps showing two stairways descending away from each other.
The three chose the left one, but what bothered Kagami the most was the fact his nose couldn't smell anything. Normally he could tell if a creature was coming by smelling it, but the dead had no scent except rot, and this entire tomb was covered in it. It was impossible to distinguish individual scents.
Drawn out of his thoughts, there was a strange clicking sound behind him, and it was all he could do to pull out his sword and block a zombie wolf from eating his face. "Shit, they're behind us!"
Kuroko and Riko immediately turned to his aid, Kagami managing to push back the wolf up the stairs. Two skeleton warriors had emerged behind them, along with several human looking zombies that had massive angry claws.
Needing no further prompting, he felt the glow of a protection spell before letting out a fearsome yell and jumping on the wolf as it ran towards him. The sword tore into its back, though the wolf's tail hit him in his face and knocked him into the steps. There was a loud smash above him, several of the zombies wilting away in green fire from one of Riko's splash potions.
The wolf was suddenly on top of him, and he shoved his arm into its slobbering mouth before it could bite down on his head. A few teeth scraped him, but it was nothing he couldn't handle as he twisted it to the side and driving the sword once again into dead flesh. The wolf just wouldn't fucking die and he backed up to where Kuroko was, only he wasn't anymore.
He had no time to go and look around, as the mage appeared standing on top of the banister to the staircase. Riko had another zombie in a headlock, decapitating it with a serrated edge that stuck out from her glove. "What the hell are you doing, kid?!"
Kuroko held up his staff just as the next wave of zombies attack. Beams of light cascaded out from the tip of it, shooting violently through the attacking figures like a swordblade. The beams burned a brilliant white, turning the zombies' bodies to ashes where they stood. Without another pause the white mage jumped to the ground, miming a bow and arrow motion with his right hand, and another piercing light leaped from his hands and shot the wolf dead center in the forehead.
Kagami's jaw couldn't drop lower than it already had. If he hadn't known from personal experience that Kuroko was from Teiko, he did now. "I…."
"We must get moving. Aida-san, can we switch roles? My magic is more effective for attacking than healing in this place," Kuroko said, completely unaffected by continuous shocked glances. Riko did recover first and nodded, urging Kagami to keep going down the stairs.
She immediately gave Kagami an Esuna for the poison he had accidentally gotten, as well as Regen for both of them. It tasted nasty, but he was healing better and felt better, so he couldn't argue. Like before, more zombies awaited them just a few steps down, but this time the tank was ready.
They kept coming back up when he struck them with his sword, but he wasn't one to give up and flashing his steel like a whirlwind he gave several massive blows to the zombies, knocking them back so Kuroko could deal the finishing blow.
Sometimes it was a flash of holy fire consuming the subject and one time it was a giant swathe of white light that extended out like a scythe and cut down the front row, but either way, the white magic completely decimated. There was a cracking sound, and suddenly Riko's fists were covered in the same green fire. A few snaps of her fingers was what it took to beat down whatever the white mage missed in his initial attack. Kagami leaped over the two wolves, only to cut them nearly in half as he came down. They both howled in agony and Kuroko swiftly put an end to their misery.
"Hanamiya is just trying to distract us! I swear I'll get him for this…Kagami, we're not killing them anymore. Clear a path for us to run through to that gate there, by the bridge. I'll deal with it later!" Riko shouted, and sounded so confident in herself that he couldn't help but nod. More undead soldiers were appeared on the stairs, so he readied his sword and charged through like a bull. Zombies didn't need a lot of finesse, but even swinging his sword around in massive sweeps was barely keeping them at bay. He kept running, keeping enough of them down-even vaulting over Kuroko's head as one tried to slit his throat.
He had stumbled to the bottom of the stairs, pushing the two of them through the gate before himself, kicking at a zombie that tried to follow. "If you're gonna do something, do it now!"
Kagami threw another back, cutting off the legs of a third, hoping that somewhere in their rotted brains they'd just get the idea. Luckily Riko rushed forward, and with another crack of her gloves, dirt started crumbling out of them. Slamming both of her fists into the ground, the power of her magic sent a shockwave through the ground and sent slabs of high-flying rock jutting from the ground in a semi-circle around them.
"I didn't know alchemists could do that," Kagami said, looking up at the giant stone slabs, impressed.
"Study more, Kagami, and maybe you can get on my level," Riko said, brushing the dirt off of her clothes and looking very smug.
Suddenly a clapping sound was echoing throughout the huge chamber, and Kagami turned to the giant bridge in front of them, at the end of which were another pair of massive doors, this time crowned with a dragon that was at least ten or so meters in wingspan. Something about it creeped him out, but his attention was drawn by the small black figure who was sitting on the endpost to the bridge.
Kagami couldn't see anything remarkable about him except for his large eyebrows and slightly crazed look in his eyes, but Riko's yell from behind him confirmed his identity.
"Hanamiya! You'll pay for what you did!" She yelled, an arm from Kagami holding her back.
"Oh, Aida Riko came all the way herself? Too bad Kiyoshi isn't here, I wanted to break him thoroughly instead of that little injury I got, but you can do. These are your new recruits, huh?" Hanamiya laughed and it wasn't an unpleasant sound, but thoroughly creepy. Perhaps it was the magic, but everything about this guy rubbed him the wrong way.
"You aren't going to touch another member of my guild, ever!" Riko growled.
"Yeah, yeah, I know, all that sappy shit. But you're too weak so I don't care. This guy looks interesting, however." The necromancer's attention was suddenly drawn to Kagami and he was certain that was a bad thing. "A new brash hero arrives, in an attempt to defend his friends from their untimely death? I love breaking people like you."
His feet hit the ground and pointed a slightly glowing finger at the tank. "Tanks and warriors like you are worthless once they're broken. If they can't fight, they can't protect, and they have no use. I wonder, what will your face look like after you've realized that despair?"
He couldn't take any more of this. Kagami raised his sword, not caring what spell the asshole fired off-until it went in a completely different direction and he heard a soft gasp. Shit.
"Kuroko!" He yelled, turning around, relieved to see the mage still standing. Kuroko was staring at him with wide eyes, his mouth open to reply, but nothing came out. No words, and even though he flicked his wrist, no magic either. "Silence?"
"A pity, but a white mage is cheating against someone like me. You can't expect me to NOT take out my biggest threat, can you?" Hanamiya purred, backing up in his steps. Riko yelled some profanities and threw another splash potion at him, but the necromancer was surprisingly nimble and dodged it.
"Play time's over. It's time for all of you to get crushed. I satisfy my contract and personal grudge all in one." Hanamiya's eyes lit up and he stuck out his tongue, and before Kagami could ask what the hell he meant, the necromancer's fingers snapped and a door at the end of the bridge opened slowly.
A pair of glowing eyes opened, a rumbling sound pouring out along with a copious amount of green smoke. The world was silent for a moment before the other wall broke open, knocking all three of them onto their backs. A giant green dragon burst out of the wall, its scaly tail whipping around and knocking down some of the outer pillars of the abyss.
All the curse words in the world wouldn't save Kagami now. There were a few things in the world his brother had told him never to do unless he wanted to cry, and one of them was fighting a giant evil dragon without a white mage. "This is not gonna be fun."