Title; Fading
Disclaimer; Nope I don't own any of the Naruto characters.
Chapter - 5
There has never been any kind of bestiary of the various Daemons even attempted, the closest being the Raiders general groupings; the wolves are the most common Daemons of the plains- at night anyway- though the only common element between all the different variants were that they walked on four legs and had powerful jaws, some had armoured scales as hard as Iron- never in the same place making each encounter different- others had venom in their fangs or on spiked protrusions from their backs and always there sizes varied the average being around two hundred pounds.
Wolves weren't really such a big threat though, only ever picking off the weak and most inexperienced, it was the bigger Daemons that were to be avoided, Worms- dangerous Daemons who haunted swamps pulling the unwary to their deaths- Wyverns- giant monster birds with spiked stinger tails- or the legendary Dragons- powerful Daemons only known for being capable of destroying entire cities leaving nothing but stones and skeletons; some said they had wings and flew, others swore they haunted the sea, some even claimed they lived beneath the earth itself ready to swallow you up from beneath without warning.
There were other names for different groups that controlled the land outside the rain but they were more obscure, Daemons only talked about around a fire by those who had been drinking heavily and hence questionable in there accuracy.
There's no standard way to kill a Daemon, even within the same group what might kill one subspecies won't scratch another, a successful Raider needs more than just an able body to survive.
I almost thought I heard a whimper come from the monster before there was a sharp squelch as flesh and sinew parted beneath force- for a moment I thought the sound was my death- then I was being dragged from beneath the Daemon it's oozing green blood covering the front of my armour.
I screamed as I saw another pair of red eyes leer down at me through the darkness, bucking and trashing trying to break its grip on me, my panic increased as the buckles on my armour came undone and whatever was on top of me ripped my armour off throwing it to the side.
Blood pumped in my ears and I couldn't hear anything but my heart beating madly in my chest as if it would explode at any moment.
"He alright!" I heard a voice call as someone approached with a torch, in the dull light I made out the creature straddling my hips.
"Sasuke…" he was missing his own armour and I only saw one of his blades dangling from his cross belts, I felt a wetness where his left hand pressed on my shoulder, scarlet blood spilt from his forearm.
"He's alright." Sasuke bellowed back to whoever held the torch patting down my chest and stomach much to my confusion and embarressment before he stood helping me to my feet.
I glanced at the torchlight and realised that the remainder of the Vanguard stood at the ready, except for the archer each lacked a piece or two of their armour, I found my blade chipped near the top lying a few feet from me and my chest plate- a large hole burned into its centre- I looked to Sasuke for an explanation.
"Their blood is acidic, I found out the hard way." He grunted drawing some wrap from the pouch at the back of his belt encasing the wound tightly, the light from the rest of the squad drew closer, would we still be asked to lead the way lacking armour and with damaged weapons?
"Where did you go?" I asked in a small voice, only the Uchiha heard my question thankfully and the pathetic tone I asked it in.
"A trap…there was a light ahead in the distance, I moved forward to investigate it but it was just bodies, boxes and torches. I don't think the first squad is returning from the ruins." Explained Sasuke using his teeth when he finished to pull the bandage tight.
The rest of the squad had caught up now and I saw Rex come storming forward- no less than four grim faced Raiders by his side- shouting for the reason we had stopped, I turned to see what Sasuke was going to do…only to realise the Uchiha had begun walking away, towards where Tage stood over his young former charge.
I followed him, Rex trailing only a second behind me, Sasuke had begun scrapping at the soil with his remaining sword managing to dig the beginnings of what I suspected was a grave.
"What are you doing?" questioned Rex stomping past me like some wild beast and pulling the Uchiha away from his task…it might not have been the best approach, Sasuke swung his arm back striking the Captain on the jaw with the pommel of his blade.
The Uchiha proceeded to continue digging as Rex held his wounded face in his hands and scrambled back to his guards, I joined the Uchiha helping him as best I could.
"We don't have time for this." I heard Captain Rex shout from a safe distance, in another situation it might have been funny how frightened the man had become.
"Fifteen metres ahead there's the remains of another squad, their cargo is still there." Answered Sasuke continuing his work, in about fifteen minutes we had Ander buried and the squad had gathered up the boxes from the fallen squad, Sasuke had me gather the remains of my armour.
The corrosive blood had burned half a dozen holes some bigger than my hand on the breast plate and the neck guard was now more of an oval than the circle it had been, small holes from where the Daemons teeth had pierced the iron.
"We're returning home, Uchiha take point with your squad." Ordered Rex, I evaluated what was left of our 'squad', Tage had a full set of armour but only the handle of his war hammer remained, the pike man similarly only had the shaft of his pike left but was also missing his gauntlets, the blonde man who gave me the creeps had lost his sword but still had everything else.
We would not do well on point.
"My squad is missing equipment, they can't take point." I wondered if Sasuke would threaten to hit him again, that would probably quell any arguments the good Captain had.
"You're responsible for leading the Vanguard, and lead you will." Shot back Rex with a sneer on his face.
"And I will, but switch my squad with some reserves." Demanded the Uchiha his tone sharp and threatening, Rex consented although reluctantly before he began giving out orders, we were led to the middle of the main squad while Sasuke marched back the way we came with a dozen or so other Raiders I didn't recognise.
Maybe it was the fear or shock that silenced me and kept me from doing anything, nobly marching forward to fight beside my under equipped friend, anything really but instead I dragged my feet guilt and shame plaguing at my insides.
A cold wind blew chilling my bare neck and I pulled my cloak tightly around me, I rubbed my hand through my hair at the back of my head shocked when it came back wet, I felt around finding a stinging cut on the back of my head, I must have gotten cut during the attack.
I felt dizzy and concentrated on simply moving forward and getting home, back to the safe grey walls.
It was still dark when we entered through the gates to Naru, the city hummed with a comforting noise that I had never noticed before, the little sounds of life that were absent outside the gates.
We marched back to the barracks dumping our thrashed gear and plunder in a small room Captain Rex directed us towards before he handed each of us out a small brown pouch, it contained two silver and ten copper coins.
When I returned to the barracks I looked for Sasuke, after all I did owe him for the drinks he had bought me, but he was nowhere to be found.
For a moment I felt a horrible sense of dread until I realised his sword and some of his armour, the undamaged parts, were strewn out on his bed…of course he had arrived earlier and had went somewhere, the only question was where had he went.
There was only one place I thought he would go, I striped off my armour wincing when my helmet brushed against the wound on the back of my head, it felt good to be out of the heavy armour again.
The rain was oddly light when I made my way to the pub we had went drinking in the night before, it was empty and quiet tonight only a handful of patrons sat by the bar drinking in silence.
Sasuke was not one of them.
"The Uchiha's in back." One of the women behind the bar, a short buxom brunette skimpily clad, pointing me towards the chipped wooden door; she looked somewhat familiar and given that she had recognised me as Sasuke's friend I must have met her the night before.
I thanked her and moved toward the door I didn't knock which in hindsight was probably a bad idea, Sasuke sat topless on a stool his friend Sakura behind him in what I suppose amounted to the uniform, my first thought was that I had walked in on the pair in an intimate moment.
Then I noticed the various bandages and medical salves.
"Fuck." I offered by way of greeting staring a little wide eyed at the Uchiha, it had been so dark in the field that I hadn't realised the extent of the his injuries, the cut on his left forearm was grisly and he had another on his stomach but it was covered with a scarlet stained rag.
"I've been worse." Answered the Raider with a shrug as Sakura attended to his wounded arm.
"Not by much, what exactly happened out there." Asked the pinkette tightening the bandage a little roughly if the Uchiha's wince was anything to go by.
"Business as usual." Replied the Uchiha, I took a seat in silence watching the woman work as she moved onto his stomach wound.
"It's not going to be that bad every time is it?" I asked more than a little worried, that had been a disaster tonight.
"Some nights will be even worse. Are you afraid?" returned Sasuke as he flexed his left arm experimentally, I doubted afraid quiet covered what I was feeling, but it was a good place to start.
"Yeah, I guess I am." I wouldn't last long as a Raider, I knew that for certain now, I'd have to advance my plans if I wanted to succeed instead of dying…not that I had made any progress yet or even had the slightest idea how to go about it.
"You're hurt too?" Sakura had noticed my wound apparently, she crossed the room to me before I could protest that I was fine, I felt her cool fingers brush against the back of my neck, there was an odd tingling sensation that sent a shiver down my spine.
I gave her a confused look but she simply smiled wistfully, I felt around at the back of my neck feeling the skin completely healed over.
"You're gifted?" I asked more than a little confused, the last time I checked anyone with a Gift- especially a healer- lived in comfortable luxury within castle Naru…not in a shoddy brothel.
"Sort of." Answered Sakura with a shrug, my expression must have conveyed some of my confusion earning an explanation and a giggle from the pink haired woman while Sasuke redressed.
"It's an imperfect gift." She told me, my confused expression remained firmly in place.
"Think of it as a double edged sword…the gifts as strong as the perfect one, but it's made me pretty sick, you gotta keep this secret though, I'd probably be executed if the wrong people found out." I grimaced, surprised the woman trusted me with this after all we barely knew one another.
As Sasuke thanked her for the first aid a thought occurred to me.
"Why didn't you just heal him then." I asked, Sasuke's wounds had been pretty bad, certainly enough to warrant the best possible form of treatment.
"Gifts don't work on me." Cut in the Uchiha's gruff voice Sakura had her lips pursed her lips likely thinking of an explanation, I blinked at the red eyed warrior muttering a disbelieving 'really'.
"Magically fire won't burn me and healing Gifts won't help me, I don't know why." He added, Sakura left us at that moment, to check on something outside I assumed.
"You're a weird pair." I found myself commenting, of course I had my own oddities but nothing like them, though at the moment mine seemed just as impossible to resolve as theirs.
"Do you want to talk about it?" asked the Uchiha suddenly, his scarlet gaze sent a shiver through me, his eyes were too similar to a Daemons for my liking.
"What?" I returned a little dumbly still lost in thoughts of how to gain the information I needed, what did he know or simply suspect about me.
"Tonight…it was close." That was a relief, I had almost thought he was asking about my former thoughts, not that he had any reason too it was just me being paranoid.
"Yeah, Ander….and then I…" I stumbled over my words, I'd been keeping from thoughts of the experience, just putting one foot in front of the other and keeping horrid thoughts of my fragile mortality and my failure to help another recruit resulting in his death at bay, the thoughts were just lingering there like some dark phantom, I couldn't place my grief into words, I wasn't even sure where to start and I was almost certain it would never end or leave me.
"It's not your fault." Sasuke commented pulling me from my downward spiral where I tried to figure out if it was the guilt, self-loathing or fear that I wanted to force myself to relive; I guess Sasuke was going to decide how we did this.
"You saved me." I shot back, I had let a man die when had I been a little more intelligent I could have saved him, instead I panicked and just swung wildly at the creature.
"I got lucky, I fought one before I reached you and noticed the weak area of its jaw." He argued back, I wish I could say I followed the logic but I didn't or maybe I just refused to.
"I should have noticed too, it seems obvious now." He continued to tell me it wasn't, arguing but it seemed only to be white noise now and I couldn't even comprehend what he was trying to tell me.
"It had me too, I-I." I couldn't even make sense of what I was saying anymore as something in me snapped, I had been holding off since Sasuke had dragged me from underneath the acid bleeding beast I had been so certain was destined to kill me.
I didn't notice Sakura re-enter the room until in a moment of clarity I looked up to realise I was sobbing into her chest, Sasuke stood several feet away looking so uncomfortable I could almost have laughed if…well if it had been yesterday instead maybe.
I awoke a few hours later a bad taste in my mouth and a sense of newfound shame from crying before- despite all their kindness- people I had just met, but I'd regained a measure of control that I was at least thankful for.
The bed was lumpy and uncomfortable even compared to the ones in the barracks as I propped myself up on one elbow, my shoulders were tight, my joints stiff and I regretted moving as it seemed to irritate a previously unnoticed headache, though that might have been due to the decor of the room, there was far too much pink in the room for my tastes.
I quickly rolled off the bed ignoring my bodies groans of protest after I noticed several suspicious stains on the bed covers…I'd have preferred the bastard dumping me on the stone floor rather than the company bed of a bloody brothel.
I heard voices and made my way towards the door intent on opening it, until I recognised the speakers and the topic.
"You want to tell me why you care about this kid so much? Kid's cute but I hadn't thought you went for that sort of…" I thought it was Sakura's voice but I wasn't certain.
"That's not…'the kid' needed my help." Responded Sasuke's voice, clearly quite irritated at the accusation, I personally had to blush at it too.
"An awful lot of recruits need help, this is the first I've seen you even talk to." Responded Sakura, I realised I was eavesdropping on the two but I was curious and quelled my worries about being caught, somewhere in the back of my mind I realised I was using this as a distraction, from my own troubles, figuring out Sasuke instead of confronting them again.
"Honestly I can't really explain it, have you ever felt simply compelled to help someone?" asked the Uchiha, honestly I could think of another reason but it seemed an arrogant one on my part.
"Yeah, I know a little of what that's like." a gentle quality had entered her voice now and I backed away from the door my conscious finally getting the better of me.
In the few minutes more I had before Sasuke entered the room I came to a decision, I'd ask for his help in my mission or at least I'd ask for a little information from him, the door creaked open and I was surprised when only Sasuke entered, looking somewhat tense and awkward.
It had probably been the crying that had him so tense.
"You alright." I nodded sharing a look with him for only a moment before I had to look away, I knew what he had meant, I felt something compel me to him too, maybe it was only that I was scared and alone I'd latched onto someone stronger to weather the storm.
Okay that's chapter five, sorry for the wait but I've been preoccupied.
R&R