InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Dark Hour: Resurrection ❯ King without a Crown ( Chapter 1 )

DISCLAIMER: Of course I don't own Inuyasha

 

A/N: Ok, I've put this off long enough…a lot of you have asked if I would either write more chapters to The Dark Hour or simply write a sequel. Since I felt the story had come to a definite end, I didn't want to write more chapters, but the more I thought about it, the more I felt a sequel would be better so here it is! Hope you enjoy!

 

~Ch. 1~

 

King Without a Crown…

 

 

 

What was it they said about the best laid plans?

 

With a humorless laugh, he rose from behind his desk and crossed to the wall of glass behind him. His bright blue gaze narrowed against the blinding sunshine. Such natural beauty made him irrationally angry and his hands clenched into fists by his side and he had to take a deep, calming breath to get his emotions under control.

 

His hands flexed reflexively and he grit his teeth against a stab of pain that pierced his chest.

 

Turning sharply on his heel, he walked back to his desk and sat down. He still had appearances to keep up. Besides, this was merely a minor setback. What kind of man would he be if he couldn't handle something so small and insignificant?

 

`Is it really so small and insignificant?'

 

He frowned at the taunting voice in his head. He didn't have time for doubts. He needed actions. Now.

 

He pressed a button on the phone.

 

“Yes, Mr. Takeuchi?”

 

“Inform the lab that I'll be visiting them shortly.”

 

“Yes, Mr. Takeuchi.”

 

He leaned back in the padded swivel chair, folding his hands in his lap. He thought he'd entrusted his task to the right person, but he'd been wrong. Well, one thing was certain. He wouldn't be making the same mistake twice. This time, he was leaving no room for error.

 

Rising quickly, he strode from his office, ignoring the inquiring look of his assistant. The little suck-up couldn't go one minute without trying to kiss his ass. With a disgusted sneer, he headed for the elevators. One was just emptying and again he ignored the polite greetings and admiring looks. He pressed the corresponding button for the floor where the lab was located and tapped impatiently against his leg while he waited.

 

Minutes later, he stepped from the elevator into a brightly lit corridor. A short, squat man with thinning black hair and a white lab coat was waiting for him.

 

“Mr. Takeuchi, I didn't expect you until the end of the week.”

 

He shook his head. “I realized that I simply can't wait anymore. This little project has taken up enough of my time and I want to see some results now.” There was no room for argument in his tight tone.

 

The flustered man straightened his coat nervously and smiled. “Of course, Mr. Takeuchi. Well, follow me and I'll…” He trailed off as the taller man started walking down the corridor toward a set of heavy metal double doors. He sighed and scurried after his boss.

 

“Please let me first explain the progress we have made in the short amount of time you've given us -”

 

He instantly realized the disparaging words he'd chosen and glanced up in alarm at the quiet man walking beside him. He hadn't seemed to caught his slip and was about to continue when Mr. Takeuchi interrupted him.

 

“I was told that your team of scientists was the best there was and I assumed that you all could handle something as simple as this, Dr. Waslowski.”

 

The squat doctor didn't dare remind the man that the task they were undertaking was hardly simple. Looking up into the man's brilliant, eerie blue gaze, he wondered what about the man made him so uneasy.

 

It wasn't anything physical. Although Mr. Takeuchi was at least 6'2, he was slender, almost girlishly so. His features were sharp and defined, making him more than attractive, although more so in a feminine way. Long, dark lashes framed the most startling pair of ice blue eyes the doctor had ever seen. And then there was his hair…hair so black it almost appeared blue. It was waist-length, much too long for a man, in the doctor's opinion.

 

The doctor decided that, oddly enough, it was his voice. Mr. Takeuchi's voice was soft and not entirely masculine, much like the rest of him, but there was an undercurrent of…madness. That was the only word the doctor could provide that made sense. His voice was deceptively sweet; something the doctor had learned first-hand.

 

“Do you understand what I'm saying, Dr. Waslowski?”

 

The doctor realized that Mr. Takeuchi had stopped and was staring down at him impatiently. He nodded eagerly. “Perfectly, Mr. Takeuchi.” He hurried through the double doors, Mr. Takeuchi following closely behind him.

 

They walked down another short corridor until they came to a locked door. The doctor pulled out his ID card and slid it through a thin slot. The door slid open and he escorted Mr. Takeuchi inside.

 

A group of similarly dressed people were busy at work; some seated at computers while others gathered around a large table off to the left, talking in low murmurs.

 

Dr. Waslowski cleared his throat until all eyes were turned his way. Everyone in the room seemed to visibly straighten when they realized Mr. Takeuchi was present. Dr. Waslowski gestured toward the far side of the room where a door led to another room.

 

“How are the subjects, Dr. Liddy?” He directed the question toward a pretty blonde sitting at a computer nearest them. She glanced at Mr. Takeuchi before looking at the doctor. “They're stable, but…” She hesitated, casting another glance toward their imposing boss.

 

“But?” He prompted, his tone strained. She visibly cringed before continuing in a cautious tone.

 

“But their heart rates are alarmingly high. None of the tests we've done point to anything out of the ordinary and their other vital signs are otherwise normal.”

 

Mr. Takeuchi's gaze narrowed and his bow-shaped mouth puckered. “It that all?” His tone was suddenly cordial and a temperate smile spread over his face. Dr. Waslowski and Dr. Liddy exchanged wary glances. Why would this bit of news appease him?

 

“That's hardly anything to worry about,” Mr. Takeuchi went on, clasping his hands behind his back. “Compared to how far you all have come, I'd call it a step up.”

 

Dr. Waslowski nodded uneasily, not sure how to interpret the sudden mood change. “As I was telling you earlier, Mr. Takeuchi, we have made significant progress -”

 

Mr. Takeuchi walked toward the far door, ignoring the doctor. “I want to see them.”

 

Dr. Liddy looked to her superior, Dr. Waslowski. Even though she wouldn't dare disobey a direct order from Mr. Takeuchi, she still wanted to get the okay from Dr. Waslowski, though she knew it would immediately be given. As much as she wouldn't dare go against the boss, Dr. Waslowski wouldn't so much as breathe wrong in his presence.

 

The short man nodded, though his expression was clearly one of disapproval. She pressed a button and the lock mechanism clicked. Mr. Takeuchi opened the door and closed it firmly behind him.

 

Once inside the clean, sterile room, he surveyed the scene before him. Nothing had changed about them, not that he had really expected much to. He had the sudden feeling that he was being watched. Of course they were staring at him with vacant, dead expressions, but still…

 

“Can you hear me?” He asked suddenly. His voice was unusually loud in the large, sparsely-furnished room. Save for the three identical beds and various wires running throughout the room, there was nothing else except for the harsh fluorescent lights hanging bare from the ceiling.

 

He hadn't expected an answer and didn't get one. A grim smile slashed his lips as his gaze flicked from one bed to the next. “Perhaps you can hear me, hmm? Maybe you can hear every single word I'm saying. In that case, maybe I should provide some incentive to wake your asses up.”

 

His voice was low and even, his eyes a frosty blue. “You bring me what I want and I'll give you life. Real life.”

 

He watched their faces for any signs of movement. They remained just as blank as they'd been before. Maybe there was the tiniest glint of recognition or maybe he was just seeing what he wanted to see.

 

His hands clenched and unclenched by his side.

 

“You will wake up and soon. I failed once and I will not allow it to happen again. The day -”

 

He stopped mid-sentence, realizing he was getting worked up. He cast one last glance at the beds and then left the room.

 

“Do all that you can to awaken them,” he looked at Dr. Waslowski. The squat man nodded his head hard, like a little bobble-head doll. “Yes, Mr. Takeuchi.”

 

As he exited the room and walked back down the corridor, he couldn't help the impatience that boiled through him like hot water. He'd missed his chance last time, watching as his hard-sought prey slipped through his fingers like sand. He wouldn't, couldn't miss this time. This might be his last chance before…

 

Even as the thought took root in his mind, he felt a dull pain in his chest. He frowned, stopping to lean against the wall. He flexed his hand and held it in front of his face. He saw nothing but the faint lines creased in the tender flesh. He flexed again, this time seeing a quick flash of the jagged scar. Just as quickly as it had appeared, it was gone in the blink of an eye.

 

“Damn,” he muttered, dropping his hand to his side. Day by day, the mark faded. Soon, it would disappear forever.

 

He wouldn't let that happen. Not now when he was so close…