Lilover131: Okay…so it's been a long time. Happy belated birthday to SakuraSou1307, and happy fifth anniversary! Thanks to all of you that reviewed and asked me to continue! You are all an inspiration! I hope you all enjoy this chapter!
Cry of a Wolf-Chapter Forty-three: Shadow
Syaoran struggled frantically in his binds with anger shining in his eyes and expression. He was infuriated to the point that his feelings were almost tangible to those around him, including Yelan, who bled onto the soil beneath her. She maintained consciousness, but her eyes were shut tightly in pain.
"Mother! Mother!"
The boy winced slightly at the twinge of pain he had from fighting his iron bonds, but he continued despite the intense discomfort. The only thoughts going through his mind at that moment were getting to his mother and saving her a mostly likely deadly wound, and he didn't seem to care that he was in trouble himself. Sakura watched Syaoran with pained emerald eyes and glanced to Yelan in fear. The woman was still alive, but it was so difficult to tell just how much longer she had. Sakura desperately tried to move, and after a good few minutes, she nearly smiled in success at finally being able to move a finger. With a new gleam of hope, Sakura focused as much as she could to move.
'Sakura cards…please help me…help me to save Syaoran and Li-san…'
The girl's heart pleaded desperately as her body shook from the effort she was putting into simply moving her arms and legs. The soft pink glow of the Sakura cards became visible from within her pocket, and Eriol immediately began chanting in, poised for attack and his attention directed towards Naraku. The man hissed after the red-orange flames died off, and his skin and cloak were singed but not significantly damaged. Naraku's eyes glared at the woman on the ground before a dark smirk curled on his lips.
"Foolish woman. You have doomed yourself and saved no one."
Yelan opened her dark eyes and gazed up to Naraku, her pale hands clutching at her throbbing wound. The man watched her amusedly as he licked the crimson blood off the blade victoriously. The Chinese woman managed to mutter words laced with hatred and spite.
"You horrible creature…"
Naraku laughed and removed the charred black robes on his body, revealing his rather pale and muscular upper body. Slowly, he raised and prepared his blade to finish what he had started. Syaoran writhed underneath the chains, growling almost ferociously as if he were a wild animal. His eyes seemed to burn with some unknown fire, and the world seemed to grow very quiet save for Syaoran's enraged screams. Naraku ceased from stabbing the boy, watching him intently before lowering the blade, a dark smile on his face.
"It seems the beast is finally coming out to play," said the man, his gaze turning to Kohaku, who was wide-eyed in distress.
The young wolf form wavered and shuddered as it rapidly lost its strength before tumbling almost lifelessly to the ground. Eriol was quick to rush to the wolf's aid after first giving a worried glance towards Yelan.
'This situation is bad!' he thought to himself as he looked to all of his fallen friends.
"Kohaku! What's wrong?"
Kohaku continued to tremble before muttering in a soft, almost inaudible voice. Eriol gasped
"…My brother…Syaoran is losing control…"
In unison, both Kohaku and Syaoran cried out in agony as Naraku grinned in amusement. Sakura, still on the ground, stared wide eyed in concern for her love. Eriol pondered for a moment before swiftly rushing forward to stop the amber-eyed boy in his rage. However, before he was allowed to reach anyone, Ai, Lin, and Shui leapt down from the trees, a menacing and threatening expression on their features as they approached the dark-haired boy.
"Where do you think you are going, little boy?"
Ai swiftly moved with a dangerous elegance and with a sudden whooshing sound, a chain had been tightly wrapped around Eriol's arm. The young reincarnation of Clow struggled against the chain before sending a flurry of wind in the minion's direction, lifting them off their feet and keeping them away from himself. However, the girls were quick to recover and surrounded him once again. The chain remained coiled around his limb, and the dark haired boy did his best to try and wrench himself free. The three minions licked their lips, watching him struggle before they made their move, leaping forward like gazelles.
The sky grew dark, an intimidating reminder of the day Kyo had died, and Yelan felt the world grow colder. The dark clouds were starting to become fuzzy looking, and her soft, black hair was splayed out over her body, concealing most of the wound. However, it was undeniable that the injury was incredibly bad as crimson pools of blood formed larger puddles beneath her. Yelan felt her breathing increase greatly, her body shaking from the pain as she fought with every fiber of her being to stay conscious. Yelan barely noticed that her hair had come undone, and she thought to herself that it only seemed fitting to die the style her husband thought looked best for her. For a moment, she thought about ending the pain and letting herself go…wouldn't it be nice to just go and be with her husband again? Yes, that sounded wonderful, but her almost lifeless eyes caught sight of her only son. Syaoran was in such turmoil that she knew leaving was not part of her destiny. She needed to live, not just for herself, but for him.
The wind began to pick up all around them as Syaoran writhed in pain. The boy screamed as he felt a sensation similar to his heart being torn apart. He had felt this before, but never had he felt it to this extent, and it was absolutely excruciating. Despite the agony, he became terrified as he felt his vision begin to blur, his mind feeling as if it was falling into an abyss of darkness. Syaoran wondered what would happen if he fell, and he had a feeling he would become completely lost if he did.
Kohaku thrashed around, her situation rather similar. The wolf cub whimpered in pain, trying desperately to stand, but the tiny legs wobbled until they gave in. The pup came crashing to the ground, falling unconscious immediately upon impact with the ground. Suddenly, all of the wind ceased, and the thunders stopped.
There was a mysterious and eerie silence, and it did not go unnoticed. Everyone, even Ai, Lin, and Shui stopped their actions to see what had happened. Eriol glanced nervously to Kohaku before moving to watch Syaoran. His senses caught the shadows quickly invading the boy's aura, and his body had fallen limp in the chains. The hairs on the back of Eriol's neck rose as the dark powers grew stronger and stronger until he got into a defensive position, ready for sudden attacks. Syaoran could no longer be felt, and the power that replaced him was so incredible that even Naraku backed away slightly. Sakura gasped, tears burning at her eyes as she tried to find even a trace of her beloved, but he was nowhere to be found.
"Syaoran…"
The girl's voice was strained with worry. The minions laughed victoriously as Ai pulled Eriol forward by the chain.
"You see that, Clow? You're all too late now. He's go-"
Before Ai finished her sentence, a great flash erupted and struck down on her with such force, she barely managed to scream. Frantically, the two other sisters ran to her aid, but they were met with the same fate, causing Eriol to watch in horror as they were burnt to crisps. Their screams made him wince, but he was quick to call forward a protective spell to stop the electricity from crawling up the chain and hurting him as well. The charred minions fell to the ground in heaps before their bodies disintegrated, leaving nothing but three dead snakes. The chain soon disappeared as well, and Eriol quickly looked to the cause.
Sakura stared with wide emerald eyes as the chains binding Syaoran suddenly shattered, falling to the ground with a loud clinking sound. The boy fell forward slightly before standing straight up, his body moving sluggishly as if it had not moved in years. Naraku watched with anticipation, his body tensing with excitement as he completely disregarded the death of his minions. Syaoran stood in place for a moment, his bangs casting a shadow over his face, which was lowered towards the ground. When he finally did raise his head up, everyone gasped in realization. A wind gently moved across his body, revealing blood red eyes that were not his. They held such intensity that Sakura shivered slightly at the danger they held.
Naraku could not contain his smirk. He had succeeded in awakening the dark spirit, and now the opportunity for him to get what he wanted was near. However, to make sure he did, he had to act as quickly as possible before the dark spirit became aware and unleashed its wrath. The man rushed forward, his sword in hand as he prepared to make his first and final blow. Syaoran's body seemed to stay still even despite the danger and continued to stand its ground until Naraku suddenly stopped, gasping at an unseen force impacting his abdomen. A pillar of earth seemed to rise from the ground, hitting Naraku out of the path and clear up into air, sending him tumbling back down with a sickening thud. The man groaned and glared back at the boy, who was now smirking at him in amusement.
Naraku growled in annoyance before sending fiery red beams of magic in his direction. Yelan, Sakura, and Eriol cried out in worry before the magic seemed to split and move around him like a fork in the road. An eerie and almost playful laugh escaped the boy's lips, and Naraku was fuming. Once again, he was up on his feet and charging with an inhuman speed towards him. Like Yelan, Sakura was helpless to stop it and reached out her hand, screaming in a warning for him to move out of the way.
"Syaoran!"
The dark spirit possessing Syaoran's body seemed to become distracted for a brief moment, the red eyes glancing momentarily to her before he was tackled to the ground by Naraku. Sakura cried out again in worry, her body shaking and struggling to move with the paralyzing poison moving through her veins. The man raised his blade to strike him, but the boy quickly regained his focus and let out another laugh before he seemed to catch fire. Naraku backed away from him to avoid the flames, and the Syaoran stood back up, the red hot fire dancing at his feet without harm. Eriol adjusted his glasses to carefully observe the power, and he seemed impressed.
"Naraku…you're disappointing me…must you waste my time?"
The boy's voice was calm and taunting, enraging the man. It did not sound like Syaoran at all. Sure, he had the same voice, but there was simply no sign of him in there.
"I'm going to kill you! I'll never forgive you for what you did, Shadow!"
Suddenly, the dark spirit seemed to have a name. Naraku had called him Shadow, and the way he spoke inclined that there was much more to the situation than the desire for power. He did not just want the overwhelmingly strong abilities…he wanted revenge. Shadow stared back as if irritated, and a giant gust of wind began to swirl around Naraku ferociously. The man growled angrily as he struggled against the winds that seemed intent on pulling him apart. A crunch of bones dislocating could be heard, and everyone could not help but wince as they watched the man cry out in pain. Eriol made a move to stop the slaughter, but the winds were so strong, he was pushed aside like a piece of paper. Sakura watched in horror as the body of her beloved Syaoran stared so intensely in focus at the tornado being used to kill. She could not bear to watch him do such a horrible thing. It was not in his nature to kill, and she would not let him lose himself in such a way.
"SYAORAN, STOP!"
The Sakura cards let out a burst of pink light in her pocket before it enveloped her entire body. The girl felt the poison become cleaned from her body, and energy seemed to flow into her. Quickly, she was on her feet, and she ran to the boy, her arms instantly reaching out to him. Upon hearing her voice, he gasped and gazed to the girl with her outstretched arms. Without stopping her, he was embraced, and his body seemed to tense before the winds stopped and Naraku fell with a great force. Sakura gripped at the cloth of Syaoran's shirt, looking up at him with desperate, tearful green eyes.
"….Stop…don't kill him…"
Shadow's red eyes stared back at hers, wide in shock before his hand moved to caress her cheek, as if she was something surreal. Sakura blinked a bit in confusion at the touch, but she continued to plead, hoping that it would help to cease the attacks.
"…You're like her," he whispered. Once again, a person defined as 'her' was mentioned, and Sakura could not help but notice the way his eyes softened. They were not the eyes of her Syaoran, but they were far less intimidating like this. Without warning, he wrapped an arm around her waist and pressed his lips to hers.
Lilover131: How was that? Sorry it took so long! I hope you all liked it, and please review! I'll try to get the next chapter up soon!