Shaman King Fan Fiction ❯ Catacombs ❯ A Blackened Heart, A Sickened Mind ( Chapter 4 )

Author Note: Translations for words used in the previous chapter: "Chipatama" means "dickhead"; "baka kusojiji" is "stupid old fart"; and kuso shite shinezo, bakayarou, roughly translated, means something like "die shitting, arsehole!".

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"Faust?" Horo Horo asked. "Who the heck is Faust?"

"Why would Faust have anything to do with it, Yoh?" Manta asked, running at Yoh's heels and completely ignoring Horo Horo.

"Don't you remember, Manta? He'll do anything to win, anything. I'm going to get him!"

"Yoh, we don't even have any proof that it is Faust! And can't you walk a little slower? I'm having to jog to keep up with you!"

"Hello? Am I suddenly not here? Who's Faust?" Horo asked, getting increasingly annoyed. Yoh strode on.

"What do I need proof for, Manta, of course it's Faust. Who else would do such a thing?"

"Well, gee, Yoh, I can't think of anyone offhand but I'm sure it's not Faust."

"Ok, you two." Horo had somehow managed to slip in front of Yoh and Manta and was now blocking their way. "You don't get past until you answer me. Who the hell is Faust?"

"Oh," Yoh waved a dismissive hand, "Boneyard sorcerer. Blond hair. Purple lipstick. Acts gay. Fancies a skeleton. Schizos if you insult said skeleton."

"Oh, Necromancer dude?" the Ainu asked. "Didn't you hear? He was hospitalised after his last match. Apparently it was pretty intense. They say he's been unconscious for four days."

Yoh stopped dead.

"Four days?"

"Yup."

"Then that means…"

"… he can't have done it, Yoh, I told you! We've got proof it isn't Faust, unless Faust is somehow using mind control, but if he's unconscious…" Manta babbled excitedly.

"And he's not a psychic anyway, he's a Necromancer. Well, crud!"

"Hmm. Yoh, was there any reason for that insult or was it just a random cuss?" Horo asked.

"Of course there was a reason for it, nithead. The reason is that now I have no leads to Amidamaru and I can't tell where the hell he is and if I don't have my guardian ghost back, then I'll have to drop out of the Shaman Tournament!" And I'm so worried about him - what if something bad is happening to him? Asakura added silently.

"… oh." The Ainu seemed to finally understand Yoh's predicament. "I didn't realise it was that… serious."

"Well, how serious would it be? I can't just saunter down to the graveyard and ask the spirits if they want to take Amidamaru's place!"

"Why the hell not?"

"Because Amidamaru killed most of them!"

There was silence for a while as Horo Horo digested the information. Manta checked his watch.

"Hey, guys, it's pretty late. Shouldn't we be turning in?" He asked. Yoh whirled round.

"What? Did I hear you right, man? Coz I thought you just said that we should go to sleep while Amidamaru's in danger or worse!"

"I did, Yoh." Manta insisted. "Remember that time when we all felt that Ren was in trouble? I think that was because we'd all just connected with him. But you're the only one who really connects with Amidamaru apart from Ren and Bason, who aren't here, so if you go to sleep you might find out where he is!"

Yoh looked doubtful.

"Hmm… worth a try, I suppose, though I probably won't be able to get to sleep…"

"Don't worry." Horo ginned. "If you're having trouble, I'll just hit you with a mallet."

Yoh's mouth made the infamous "S" shape of uncertainty.

"Er… thanks, I think."

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Amidamaru slowly came back to the land of the conscious. His head was swimming and it was a little while before he realised he was no longer lying on the stone slab. He was now sitting slumped against a wall in what looked like a normal cellar, except for the bars on the window and - was that a riding crop on the far wall?

He was still chained, though the manacles around his neck and ankles had been removed and now only those on his wrists secured him to the wall. He chinked them together gently and the sound hung on the cold, dank air of his prison.

His throat was raw and every swallow grated against it. He was hungry and thirsty, but his sleep had taken away his fatigue. He was still feeling slightly overwhelmed by the rush of sensations, both complex and simple, that were part of being alive.

There were heavy footsteps from the other side of the door. The young samurai dragged his head towards the sound as there was a clatter of metal and the barrier of wrought iron swung inwards. The tall, sinister man from earlier sauntered in.

"My dear samurai!" He said, seeing Amidamaru watching him. "Awake at last? And how was your sleep? You are not too uncomfortable, I hope?"

Amidamaru tried to speak but could only manage a hoarse, croaking sound as the dryness in his throat destroyed his coherency. His captor held a beaker of water to the young man's lips and he drank greedily.

"Why?" He asked after pushing the beaker away. "Why have you done this?"

There was a pause as the sneering figure before him considered the point.

"Yokiama did it purely to see if the ancient art of voodoo would still work. Yoki was a fool. He wanted and needed someone else to help him with the ritual. My knowledge was far more expansive than his and I volunteered, purely for my own reasons, you understand."

Amidamaru frowned in confusion.

"I had seen the flaws in the ritual, you see. No one can fully incarnate the dead. You, as you are now, are not truly alive. And, not being truly alive, you cannot truly die. You will not age, nor will you die no matter how extensive or serious an illness or injury may be. It is a perfect opportunity."

"For what?" Amidamaru growled, his eyebrows knitting together in indignation at a speed that would have made Michael Jordan piss his pants.

"Yoki disagreed, of course." The other man continued, casually ignoring Amidamaru. "But Yoki was a fool and no longer important to my needs. He died as easily as a gnat, though disposing of him was probably messier than killing a small flying insect."

Amidamaru's eyes widened in horror. This man was standing in front of him calmly admitting to murdering the short dumpy man that was his companion. Even Amidamaru, who was a seasoned killer, could not have done that with the calmness exhibited by his captor.

"You have not answered my question." He swallowed. "Why have you done this to me?"

"Well… that is a difficult question to answer merely because I am having trouble wording the answer. Let me just say that you… fascinate me. I was most displeased when our earlier interchange was interrupted."

Amidamaru turned his head away from the taunting man above him, knowing just what interchange was being referred to.

"I would love so much for us to complete what was earlier left unfinished."

"Do not touch me!" Amidamaru snapped. There was a cold laugh from above which sent involuntary shivers down the samurai's spine.

"You would rather that I leave you here, without food or water, for the rest of eternity? You would not die, oh no. You would go through the normal processes of starvation and dehydration, your body would rot away but you would be alive to experience it… imagine how painful it must be to have maggots hatch in festering open wounds that have been caused by the ants tearing away chunks of your dead flesh…"

"Enough!" Amidamaru cried suddenly. He was beginning to feel sickened… dying was one thing, but being alive to experience it… he shuddered slightly, causing the chains to ring together gently.

He saw the man above him smile frostily and knew that he had now no choice. Whatever this cold-hearted monster had in store for him, he would have to last it out and hope that someone would eventually find him.

"You and I can have fun, you know…" Amidamaru flinched as the words were hissed right next to his ear. The knowledge of being in such close proximity with a murderer was making him feel distinctly uncomfortable.

The man drew away, leaving Amidamaru alone for a moment. The young samurai visibly sagged, he had not realised how tense he had been, or that he had been holding his breath until lack of oxygen forced him to exhale deeply. He looked around wildly for his tormentor, the murky blackness of the cell clouding over his vision.

There was a long pause and then a disturbance in the air behind him and a noise that could only be described as "fwzip"

Amidamaru looked round to see the riding crop descending at full speed towards his exposed back.