Of Assassins, Samurai, and Magic
A/N: And the next chapter is up! I've tried to keep everyone as close as possible to their characters in the anime though I'm sure there will be a few OOC moments. Comments and reviews are much appreciated.
For those of you who left unsigned reviews, see my replies below:
kris-tim – Thanks for the review. :) I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter. ^^ I think Subaru and Tea make a cute ninja pair, don't you? XD As for Fate, hehehe. Isn't she full of surprises. XD Question though. You sure that black assassin is Fate? XD There will be more nanofate coming up, don't you worry. As for Hayate and if Carim will make an appearence too, you'll just have to wait and see. ;)
Enjoy!
Disclaimer: The characters and the worlds I write in do not belong to me. The stories that I write are intended for entertainment purposes. I do not make any money from them.
*** ~ Chapter 21: Chance Meeting ~ ***
"Erio-kun?" A weak question.
"Shh Caro, go back to sleep." A gloved hand ran through sweaty pink locks of hair.
"Alright…" Caro murmured, already falling into a deep yet troubled sleep.
A mewl.
"I'll be right back, Friedrich," the red head said. He patted the silver baby dragon on the head. "Watch over Caro for me until I get back."
The little dragon looked down at its master, before looking up at Erio again. But by then, the boy was gone, seeking out the sounds of battle that shattered the quiet air not too far away.
Teana watched in complete awe, the pain in her shoulder forgotten, as the black garbed assassin traded blow for blow with the blue garbed assassin. Neither of them showed any signs of relenting, weapons clashing over and over again to the loud clank of metal on metal. All throughout, Teana stared at the scythe-like weapon wielded by the black assassin.
The shaft of the scythe seemed to be made of either platinum or silver, accented with onyx at the bottom tip. The joint shaft connected to the casing for the lightning blade was also made of onyx. But while that was impressive in itself, the most impressive part of it was the fist size golden magatama jewel rotating slowly in the weapon, at the point where the shaft met the blade. The weapon was unlike any Teana had ever seen before.
"Photon Lancer."
The assassin in black leaped into the air, somersaulting backwards as the assassin in blue swung her boomerang weapon at them like a sword. The boomerang blade just missed the black assassin, much to the blue assassin's frustration. The black clad assassin landed in a crouch, mere feet separating the fighters. Rose coloured eyes widened at the sight of four yellow orbs, of what appeared to be condensed lightning, materializing around the assassin in black.
A whisper. "Shoot."
The blue assassin flipped backwards, just narrowly missing the projectiles zipping towards her. She hissed, when one of the orbs clipped her shoulder sending her whole body in spasms, leaving a nasty burn. The other orbs exploded around her out of harms way.
The black assassin winced, noting the damage their stray shots made to the surrounding area. The City Guard Captain would not appreciate this. Nor would the Captain of the Samurai.
A roar.
Wine coloured eyes snapped back to the assassin in blue, who staggered backwards stiffly clutching their shoulder. Fushia coloured eyes glared at the assassin in black, the assassin in blue gripping her boomerang tightly in her free hand. Soon the boomerang blurred black, before one blade became two, and then three, and then four.
Teana blinked, rubbing her eyes for good measure. Was she seeing things? She could have sworn she saw the boomerang blade multiply into four blades. Was this some sort of illusionary technique? Teana may not have known what that technique was, but the black clad assassin did. The Shadow Technique.
With a mighty heave, all four boomerang blades were hurtled at the assassin in black. The assassin in blue grinned as her blades spiralled left and right in haphazard arcs towards her opponent. It was nearly impossible to calculate their trajectories at that rate, each blade acting on their own.
"Sonic Move."
The blue assassin watched incredulously as each of her four blades seemingly passed right through the assassin in black leaving them unharmed. Though if one could slow down time, they would realize that was not the case. As skilled as the black assassin was, even they could not change the density of their body to allow objects to pass through them unhindered. Their trick was to dodge the attacks and return to their original position faster than the blink of the eye, making it appear as if the blades went straight through them. Burgundy coloured eyes watched the blue assassin in amusement.
The blue assassin growled. This would be the last time she would be made a fool of! The startling chime from the onyx scythe alarmed its wielder, the black assassin quickly searching for the stray boomerang blades. Wine coloured eyes widened to see the blades now glowing an almost deep pink colour, each one of them arcing back around towards them at an even faster speed.
"Thunder Arm!"
The black assassin raised their left arm in front of them, just in time to deflect the first magically enhanced blade away. The impact from the weapon, despite their thunder barrier, sent the black assassin stumbling back a few steps, arm shaking from the blow.
As the second blade closed in, the assassin in black just barely managed to dodge out of the way, missing the slicing edge by a hair's breadth.
"Scythe Slash!"
Thunder rumbled through the area as an explosion kicked up a cloud of dust into the air in the immediate area. Erio coughed and choked in the nearby alley, where he watched the fight progress. Once the dust cleared, he was startled to see the black assassin still standing, the remaining bits of the last two boomerang blades nothing but shrapnel at their feet. He gritted his teeth.
Teana's jaw would have hit the ground had it not been attached to her face. She was having trouble as is keeping up with just watching how the fight unfolded before her. But that last move the black assassin made was just… wow. All she saw was the pink pulsing boomerang blades swerving towards the black assassin, and just as the blades hit, there was a flash of light, and an explosion. Teana scrambled to cover an unconscious Subaru with her body as the dust swirled around them. When the dust settled and she looked back, Teana couldn't but gawk at the unharmed black assassin, their scythe still crackling with lightning. Just who were these people?
Wine coloured eyes narrowed at the blue assassin. Rose coloured eyes narrowed back. The blue assassin snatched her returning boomerang blades from the air, gritting her teeth. This battle was taking too long. Half of the City Guard, if not the Samurai, would now be on their way to investigate the ruckus. Her lord would not be pleased about that. But while she knew a hasty retreat was her best option right now, it was very doubtful the black assassin would just let her go on her merry way. She needed-
The scuffling of feet.
A grin stretched across the blue assassin's face, though hidden under her mask. The black assassin tensed once they saw her pull back her arm to throw her blades. But rather than throw it directly at them, the boomerang blade went veering off to the side at-
A breath caught in Erio's throat. The redhead had finally seen enough of the battle and was on his way back to Caro when he stumbled on a patch of uneven ground. A fatal mistake on his part for now one of those crazy boomerang blades hurtled towards him ready to take off his head! There was a blur of black, the assassin in black diving in front of him, narrowly deflecting the blade away from them both. Déjà vu hit the redhead like a ton of bricks. Breathing heavily, the assassin in black turned to look at him, relief in those scarlet coloured eyes of theirs. Erio couldn't but stare.
"Why did you-"
"Look out!"
Teana cried out in warning, but it was too little too late. The assassin in blue had already sent her last boomerang blade at the assassin in black, whose focus was elsewhere at the time. She watched in horror as the black assassin turned back in time as-
"Barrel Shot."
The assassin in blue yelped, suddenly finding herself bound where she stood. The shadow boomerang blade hurtling towards the black assassin disappeared just a split second before impaling them, as the shadow technique relied on the wielder's concentration. Rose coloured eyes looked up in horror, at the slowly growing pink light originally hidden by the glare of the moon.
"Shoot."
A beam of pure pink magic tore through the air at the assassin in blue. She screamed.
BOOM!
An explosion rocked the area.
"Sette, we're leaving."
"T-Tre." Sette stared wide eyed at her sister, her mind momentarily fuzzy from the magical blast. "You're hurt!"
Tre grimaced, but said nothing. She ignored the stinging pulse in her bloody side. It wasn't easy breaking her sister out of that magical bind, at the same time outmanoeuvring the blast of magic that would have surely incapacitated both. Thankfully, Tre specialized in speed and her Ride Impulse ability was second to none.
"Our Lord is waiting for us," Tre said, cringing slightly as she felt Sette tentatively apply pressure to her wounded side.
"H-hai…" was all Sette said.
The assassin in white landed on the ground, brows furled in annoyance. Their target had escaped. Violet coloured eyes darted left, giving the assassin in black a once over. Their gaze fell upon their onyx scythe, specifically the fist sized golden magatama jewel floating in the middle of it. The scythe chimed softly, as did the white assassin's staff.
The black assassin stared wide eyed at the white assassin. It was him! The black assassin was absolutely floored. Never did they expect to see him again. Then again, it shouldn't have been a surprise considering what had been happening lately. The black assassin shivered slightly, under the cold and calculating gaze of the white assassin. This caused the white assassin to raise an eyebrow. Clearly that was not something they anticipated. Without thinking, the black assassin stepped forward and opened their mouth to speak. But they immediately froze the moment the white staff was pointed at them, the white assassin looking at them cautiously.
A groan.
"Subaru!"
Both assassins turned to the pair they had forgotten was even there. A quick glance behind let the black assassin know that Erio was gone. Perhaps it was better this way.
Subaru groaned again, her hands weakly grasping the closest thing to her, that being Teana's white garb. "Tea…" she murmured weakly, barely opening her eyes.
Teana held her companion gently in her arms. "Baka!" she scolded softly. "What were you thinking, blocking that shot for me!" The pain in her shoulder return, the wound no longer bleeding profusely, but nevertheless sore.
Burgundy and violet coloured eyes widened in realization.
Subaru gave a weak chuckle. "I had to… make sure…" she mumbled. Her eyes closed again.
"Subaru?" Teana shook her friend. "Subaru!"
Both the black and white assassin moved to assist the pair only to jerk away from the scene at the sound of booted feet pounding on the stone road.
"In the name of the Empress, you will drop your weapons and surrender!" Signum gritted her teeth, eyes narrowed at the assassin in white. Her gaze quickly darted over to the assassin in black, noting their weapon as well. Raising Levantine at the assassin in white, she spoke again. "Come peacefully and none of you will be harmed."
The black and white assassins quickly glanced at each other and then at the contingent of samurais surrounding them. They were surrounded on all sides. From every alleyway and rooftop and roadway around them, there were samurai. At least thirty in all if not more. Signum had come prepared.
The black assassin locked eyes with the white assassin once more. They tilted their head slightly towards Subaru and Teana, while their eyes momentarily darted to Signum. Seeming of the same mind, the white assassin understood the black assassin's intentions. They had to disappear. All of them. They could not get caught here.
The white assassin shouldn't, in truth, trust the black assassin. This was another dangerous person, like them, their unusual weapon proof of that fact. But the black assassin defended the boy earlier, something that didn't go unnoticed by the white assassin. What kind of bad guy did that? So for the time being, they would trust each other. Little did they realize, they had more in common with each other than they knew.
"Axel Shooter."
Before Signum or any of the samurai could react, the assassin in white raised their staff to the sky and let loose a bombardment of pink magic. Bolts of pink energy rained down from the sky, exploding in front of each and every samurai, knocking some of them off their feet while blinding everyone else with the mini explosion.
The white assassin turned their head back in time to see the black assassin stooping next to Teana and Subaru, a triangular seal of magic already spinning underneath them on the ground. When burgundy eyes locked on violet, the black assassin bowed their head before all three of them disappeared in the flash of the Dimensional Transfer.
Getting her wits about her, Signum charged into the cloud of dust kicked up from white assassin's attack, swinging Levantine blindly. Her sword only met air and when the dust settled, the area was empty save for her and her contingent of samurai. The Captain of the Samurai growled in frustration. Her quarry had escaped yet again.
"Subaru!" Teana sat up with a yell.
Her heart hammered wildly in her chest, blood pounding loudly in her ears. Blue eyes searched the darkness for a familiar form with short navy hair and emerald coloured eyes. She immediately grabbed her shoulder, which burned in pain, only to realize that she currently wore a sleeveless vest. Her shoulder was already wrapped in bandages. "What-"
A giggle. "That was so cool…" A murmur.
Teana spun around to find Subaru, in bed, curled up next to her. A damp cloth rested on her friend's forehead, Subaru babbling nonsense as she slept. Teana blinked. They were home. How did they get home? The last thing she remembered was the black assassin next to her, a flash of light and then… and then…
Blue eyes went wide. Scrambling off the bed, Teana searched her pants pockets. Her pockets were empty. Moon light streamed through the window, falling upon the small table next to the bed. Teana caught sight of her broken bow on the table, along with a note marked with finely written script. Four lines of text marked the parchment.
A kusushi will pass by in the morning to check on you.
I have relieved you of your Spirit Seed as payment.
Stay out of trouble.
I won't be around the next time.
Teana crumpled the note in her fist, tossing it to the ground. Her eyes softened when they looked over to the form in bed.
"Tea…" Subaru murmured.
After dropping Subaru and Teana home, ensuring they were no worse for wear, the black assassin stalked towards the imperial palace. With the samurai practically in uproar about the incident in the middle district an hour ago, no one would notice a blur sneaking into a certain blonde attendant's room to drop off a quick message about visiting some battered cafe servers in the morning. And now that the message had been dropped off, the black assassin made their way back home for a night of sleep. But only after dropping by a certain café to check up on certain someone.
Fingers clenched tightly around the shaft of their scythe. A blur of white zipped towards the Midori-ya Café from the opposite direction and ducked inside a window on the other side of the second floor. Nanoha!
Throwing caution to the wind, the assassin in black jumped rooftop to rooftop before landing on the Midori-ya rooftop as quietly as they could. What business the white assassin had here, in the middle of the night no less, caused great alarm in the black assassin. Were they hired by those who hurt Kyouya and Miyuki to finish the job? Were they here to hurt Nanoha?
Anxiety swelled inside the black assassin as they followed the same path the white assassin took to enter into the Takamachi residence. Climbing through the partially ajar window, the black assassin found themselves in Miyuki's room. Gulping back the lump in their throat, the black assassin crept past Miyuki's belongings and quietly slid open the paper door leading out into the hallway.
Peeking into Kyouya's room and seeing noticing amiss, the black assassin continued their way down the hallway soundlessly. The bathroom and storage closet was also clear which left only one more room to investigate. Light spilled into the hallway, through the partially ajar paper door to Nanoha's room. The sound of a grunt and the rough shuffling of clothes sent the black assassin speeding down the hallway with their scythe raised.
Upon peeking through the space between the door and the frame, a breath caught in the black assassin's throat. There, in the middle of the room stood Nanoha, the girl's back to the door. She was half undressed. Heat rose to the black assassin's cheeks, wine coloured eyes slowly gliding down the creamy flesh of Nanoha's back. Nanoha was brushing her hair, every so often tugging roughly at a particularly stubborn bunch of knots. The white material draped around her waist slowly drooped lower in the motion as Nanoha tried to wrench the hairbrush free. The black assassin unconsciously leaned forward, just as the the clothing around Nanoha's waist slowly slid down her hips. A loud creak erupted from the wood under the black assassin's front foot, from the sudden shift in weight.
Nanoha flinched at the sound, dropping her hairbrush and covering her bare chest with her arm. "N-Nii-san?"
When she received no reply, Nanoha reluctantly turned around, walked up to her bedroom door, and pulled it open peering into the hallway. The black assassin was long gone by then, Nanoha seeing only an empty hallway. Raging Heart, hanging around the Nanoha's neck in its dormant form, chimed softly at the departure of its golden counterpart.
A/N: The Shadow Technique mentioned in this chapter is similar to the Shadow Cloning technique in the anime Naruto.
For those of you unfamiliar with the non-English words, I have translated them below.
Hai = Yes
Baka = Idiot
Kusushi = Doctor
For an explanation of Japanese honorifics (eg. [name]-sama), please check out: http:/en[dot]wikipedia[dot]org/wiki/Japanese_honorifics