Weiss Kreuz Fan Fiction ❯ The Hope Diamond ❯ Tsukiyono - 23 ( Chapter 23 )

Chapter Twenty-Three

The moon was hidden behind a thick bank of clouds when Weiss arrived at Magnoris Inlet.

When Bombay would have taken the time to survey the situation before acting, Balinese threw caution to the wind. He pushed through the security stealthily and quickly, impatient to reach his lover. His fellow assassins have no choice but to stay with him, just to make sure he wouldn't alert the enemy.

"What now?" Siberian whispered when they reached the wall of the museum.

"Find a way to get to the ghetto amphitheater without alerting the guards," Bombay ordered. "I'll be looking for the arms cache inside the museum. I'll join you as quickly as I can."

"Right." Balinese scanned the area intently and then rose to his feet. "This way."

They split up in different directions, Bombay sneaking into the museum via his favorite entry style - the ventilation shaft, while Balinese and Siberian moved swiftly to the amphitheater.

It was high tide, leaving the narrow strip of sandbar linking the coast to the rocky island even narrower. Crossing it was a tense dangerous business. Both Weiss assassins were out in the open, vulnerable to being spotted and if they were attacked, there was no way they could evade the enemy. The only choice left to them was to cross it as quickly as possibly, which they did at a dead run.

Keeping to the darkness and shelters offered by piles of rocks, they circumvented the rocky island to where the entrance to the ghetto amphitheater was. The entrance was guarded but that did not stop them. Siberian pounced on the farthest one, claws unsheathed to cut into the tender skin of the guard's neck. Behind him, he heard a choked cry cut off suddenly as Balinese garroted the second guard.

Then they were inside the cavern tunnel. Yohji made a motion to pause and they hunkered down behind some shielding rocks.

Ken glanced at his softly panting friend in concern. "You still okay?"

"Yeah…just let me get my breath back."

Ken forced himself to ignore the lines of strain etching Yohji's face and kept an eye on their surrounding.

It was clear that Yohji was not at the top of his game. His wounds were still bothering him despite Botan and Birman's healing sessions; his magic reserves still only halfway replenished. His reserves could only be regained through time, a commodity they did not have in abundance right now. Yohji would have to depend heavily on his skill with the wire and as a trained assassin to conserve his power.

Yohji was at a distinct disadvantage on this mission. Ken would have preferred him to take a backseat but he knew Yohji would not hear of it. Yohji, more than anyone else on the team, had a personal stake in this mission.

"Okay, let's go." Yohji muttered.

They rose silently to their feet and pushed forward into the deeper darkness of the cavern.

The walk felt indeterminately long and silent. They had to tread carefully over the rocky surface to avoid disturbing loose stone fragments. A lightening in the darkness ahead was their first sign that they were approaching their destination. Then they heard chanting, soft at first but grew louder as they got closer. Finally they emerged into the ghetto amphitheater and saw on the stone stage the ritual summoning in progress.

Yohji gritted his teeth. Beside him, Ken's hackles rose and he growled low in his throat. There was a dark heaviness in the air; a leaden tension that churned with black power. It made Yohji's skin crawl and anger and fear to coil deep in his gut.

Down below, on the stone stage, the Elders stood within a protective circle facing a giant stone idol. They were clad in robes of black and their arms raised as they chanted the words of the summoning spell. Before the giant idol was a stone altar and it was there Yohji could not take his eyes off.

Ran lay on the stone altar, wearing nothing more than white baggy pants, bared and vulnerable - a sacrificial offering for the ritual. Even from this distance, Yohji could read the tension in the lines of his body.

"Are we too late?" Ken muttered next to him.

Yohji listened carefully to the chant and shook his head. "They are just starting. Quick, this way down."

* * *

The air in the ghetto amphitheater was cold and damp, and smelled of brine and smoke from the flickering torches.

Ran shivered when he was made to lie down on the stone altar, the surface beneath his bare skin rough and clammy. The thin cotton of his white baggy pants did nothing to keep out the briny chill. Usually, Ran was immune to changes in the temperature, but for some reason, he could not help feeling chilled. And neither could he ignore the dark heaviness descending upon him like a suffocating blanket.

It was taking every ounce of his willpower not to bolt from the stone altar where he rested upon. He felt exposed and distinctly vulnerable, fear thrumming through him with every beat of his heart. The fear was driving the comfortable numbness from his heart, waking self-preservation instincts. He had long forgotten what Takatori had told him. Only the mantra 'for Aya-chan' gave him the strength to stay put.

Then he felt it - a disturbance in the boundaries between the Planes.

Ran shut his eyes, unwilling to witness the ascension of Belial from the Demons' Plane through the portal the ritual had opened within the giant idol. Dimly, through the blood roaring in his ears, he heard a faint faraway explosion. Distracted and surprised, violet eyes flew open again.

That was a mistake.

Ran froze as he stared right into the face of devil himself.

Somewhere else in the ghetto amphitheater, Yohji wasn't going to wait for Omi any longer, as according to the plan.

Belial had come through the portal. Right now, the demon prince was an insubstantial shade without a physical form, but that would change when he possessed the body of the sacrifice - that is if he could possess Ran's body. Yohji doubted if the demon prince or the Elders knew about Ran's tainted nature, but he wasn't going to let that prevent him from thwarting their plans.

Mouth set in a grim line, Yohji advanced towards the stone stage. The Elders took no notice of his approach, too deep in their ritual. He could see Ran frozen in fear, staring up at Belial's insubstantial grinning shade hovering above him.

Then the shade of Belial disappeared, slipping into Ran's body so quickly that Yohji missed it. A violent shudder ran through Ran's pale body, arcing taut like the bow of a violin. Eyes wide and unseeing, Ran convulsed on the stone altar, mouth opened in a silent scream as he fought the possession.

Without hesitation, Yohji summoned up a fireball and threw it.

The fireball smashed to smithereens against the Elders' protective shield but it did catch their attention. As one, they turned to glare at him.

"Who are you?"

"Old geezers like you have no need to know my name," Yohji returned coolly.

"And old people shouldn't be so power-hungry either," Ken added as he advanced from the other end of the stage.

"It really give old people in the world a bad image," Omi called from a third direction. "Sorry I'm late, guys. Came as quickly as I could."

Omi directed his next words to the Elders. "The arms cache at the museum is destroyed. Your people are fighting to put out the fire right now. No one will come to your aid."

"Impertinent fools, you can't stop the ritual anymore. Belial will possess the sacrifice's body and we will rule the world."

Yohji's eyes narrowed. "I got news for you, you old bag of wind. It's not going to work."

On an unspoken signal, Weiss attacked.

* * *

For Aya-chan, I can do this, Ran repeated the panicky mantra over and over again in his head.

But staring face-to-face with Belial, it was hard to hold onto that thought. Even harder to resist was the instinctual urge to flee as Belial descended closer to him.

Then the shade of Belial slid into his body.

Ran barely had a chance to register Belial's presence when a searing heat unlike anything he had ever known flooded his body. He arched and convulsed, screaming in agony, as the hellish spirit of Belial permeated through his body, his being. It was like drowning in molten fire, like being eaten alive by countless tiny sharp-teethed mouths, like a thousand knives skewering him; it was a presence so alien and overpowering that Ran realized abruptly and clearly - despite a Gem's life-bond to his master - the possession would indeed kill him, crushed every bit of his consciousness and will till there was nothing left of him.

And his sister would be left alone in the world in the hands of a cruel man.

No!

Takatori's order be damned! The bastard never intend for Ran to survive this!

With a strength born of sheer desperation and fury, Ran fought back. He felt the demonic presence within him recoiling slightly at the ferocity of his rejection before continuing relentlessly to overwhelm him.

NO!

Angry and wildly hysterical, Ran tapped all the raw magic power at his disposal, pulling even more from the Nether Plane. He hammered at Belial's presence with the pure force of his power in mindless panic.

He would not give in! Would not give in!

You are mine…

Face contorting with pain, a strangled scream escaped him as Belial, despite his resistance, easily settled in his mind. The alien overwhelming presence seeped through his memories, his emotions, leaving nothing untouched, as Belial began to consume him. Ran froze, a bizarre twisted shape on the stone altar, a hand clawed and reaching for the sky.

"Ran!"

He still fought but it was the dying struggle of the futile. Tears slipped down his face in helpless fury. He couldn't fight this, this usurper within himself!

"Ran!"

He heard the desperate shout, dimly realized someone had been shouting his name for some time. A familiar voice, one his dying heart said shouldn't, couldn't exist.

"Ran, come back to me! Hear me! Fight - Damn it, you old geezers, get out of my way!"

Yohji…?

"Ran! Fight it! You can do it!"

Yohji…I must be dreaming. This is Belial's deception…I can't believe in it.

"Fight that old goat of a demon! He can't win over you!"

He can't…?

Gradually, Ran became aware of something. Belial was taking too long to finish the possession. Ran was still conscious, still retain his mind and will. He became aware of the demon's spirit struggling to complete the process, struggling to retain a hold on him. Something had clearly gone wrong. And Belial knew it. Gamely, Ran began to push the demonic spirit out, cringing at the feel of that burning foul touch.

He would not fail now.

Despite the fierceness of the battle, Yohji couldn't help but grinned when he saw Ran slumping down from its rigid contorted position into a limp sprawl on the stone altar. Ran's pale body began to glow as he began his struggle anew.

"What are you smiling at?" the Elders demanded.

"Nothing in particular," Yohji smirked at the old bitch launching another wave of spirit wyrms at him. He ducked and neutralized the attack. Ignoring just how much his body was screaming in protest, he flung an attack of his own, a flood of golden spears of power streaming through the air.

A low infuriated cry sounded through the ghetto amphitheater, cutting over the noise of the battle and effectively stopping all the combatants. It was an inhuman sound, a sound felt more by everyone than heard, and it made their blood freeze.

They turned as one to look at the altar.

The shade of Belial had appeared again, high above the altar and Ran, a look of disbelief and outrage plain on his demonic face. Beneath him, half propped up on his arm, Ran literally shone with power as he held the demon crown prince at bay.

Betrayers…The voice that was not a voice hissed through the ghetto. Impure sacrifice.

The Elders recoiled from Belial's fury. "We seek only the best for you, my lord. We don't understand!"

"Takatori played you out," Yohji darted past his opponent towards the stone altar. He had a sudden inspiration on how to take out the old bags of bones.

Sprinting as fast he was able to, he dove forward, using the skidding motion of his body to rub out portions of the chalk lines of the Elders' protective circle. He sprang back to his feet, threw himself upon Ran, pushing him down as a portal blinked open in the giant idol again right above their heads.

Belial screamed in furious helplessness as he struggled to break free from the implacable pulling force of the portal, dragging him back into the Demons' Plane. A gale wind howled through the ghetto as he unleashed his power in a desperate bid to fight the inevitable, lashing and cutting. The ground shook; chunks of rock and dust crashed to the ground.

Yohji curled tighter around Ran, trying to shield the smaller man as best as he could as Belial struggled mightily above them. He could feel Ran's death grip on him, clinging on for dear life. Yohji squeezed his eyes shut when he heard over the storm of Belial's rage the terrified screams and shrieks of the Elders as Belial delivered his wrath upon them. He wasn't going to look; no way in hell he was going to look at a scene that was bound to give him nightmares for months to come.

Then Belial let loose one last shattering roar of futile defiance, and the portal slammed shut.

Silence.

Pure silence and stillness descended so abruptly it actually made Yohji's ears ring. He remained where he was for a while longer…just in case, before daring to raise his head and look around cautiously.

The stone stage was a mess of rubbles, cracked and collapsing at a far end. Above the ringing in his ears, he heard ominous sounds of cracking and shifting stone. The Elders' broken protective circle still remained, a charred circle burnt into the surface. Yohji doubted anyone could remove the mark. There were no Elders to be seen, no demons to fight with, and the most important thing was, Ran was still alive and breathing beneath his protective self.

"Yohji!" The frantic call reached his ear before he could turn back to his pale lover.

Omi and Ken came running up to him, both looking as battered and injured as he felt. Ken had fared a lot worse than Omi, being the only non Techno-Mage, but still he wasn't hurt so bad he couldn't walk.

"You two all right?" Ken asked in his abrupt direct manner.

"I think so."

"It was awful," Omi blurted out, distressed and relieved at the same time. "The way Belial reached past their broken protective circle and just pulled them into the Demons' Plane with him! You knew that would happen, didn't you?!"

But Yohji wasn't listening to him anymore. All his attention was riveted on the pale motionless body he was still lying protectively over. "Ran," he called softly, anxiously. "Ran, are you all right?"

Violet eyes unblinking, Ran stared up at him mutely.

He gently cupped Ran's face, trying to break the worrying stillness. "Love, please say something."

"…I've gone mad," came the barely audible admission.

"Why did you say that?" Yohji asked. He never noticed Ken and Omi backing away, leaving them alone.

"You're here…with me."

"I'm not dead, Ran." Yohji grabbed a pale limp hand and brought it to his cheek. "See? I'm warm, sweaty, alive. You didn't kill me."

"…Belial has possessed me."

"No, he didn't. He's back where he's supposed to be, in the Demons' Plane." Yohji kissed Ran's palm. "If I'm dead, can I do this? Or this?"

He bent his head and kissed Ran hard, tongue nudging past petal-soft lips to reclaim the moist sweetness of Ran's mouth, pouring all his emotions into that one kiss. Slowly, Ran began to respond, shaky arms reaching up and curling around Yohji's neck as he kissed his blond lover back feverishly, trying to convince himself that this was real.

"You're alive," Ran choked out the words when they finally parted for air, half laughing and half crying in his relief. "You're alive!"

"Yes, Ran." Yohji tightened his embrace around his violently shaking lover, kissing the red silk of his hair. "I'm too stubborn to die."

"I thought I've killed you!"

"My friends saved me. Omi and Ken."

"Then I owe them a debt of gratitude." Ran kissed Yohji again. "I love you, Yohji. I love you so much."

"And I love you too." Yohji took off his coat and placed it around Ran's shoulders. "Come on, we have to get out of here."

Ran nodded, eyes shining brilliantly with giddy joy and relief. He took a deep breath to calm his emotions but the roller-coaster emotional ride of the past few hours wasn't about to run its course so quickly. Pulling on Yohji's coat properly, he stuck close to his lover, never letting go of Yohji's hand as they approached the other two Weiss assassins.

"We can still leave undetected, hopefully." Omi announced. "Estet's guards are late."

"Good." Yohji eyed the ceiling of the ghetto worriedly. Dust and sand were still falling, and the ominous cracking sound had increased in intensity. "Let's get out of here while we can."

They had barely reached the tunnel when Ken suddenly barked for them to stop. Growling low in his throat, Siberian dropped into a fighting stance as he stared hard into the darkness.

Ran tensed suddenly. "Schwartz."

They watched tersely as the four members of Schwartz stepped out from the darkness of the tunnel. Compared to the battered members of Weiss, they were fresh and rested. And all of them were looking at Weiss with individual expressions of confidence and disdain.

"A little late for the party, aren't you?" Balinese said evenly. "Your masters are dead."

"And we thank you for doing the work for us," Oracle replied with false politeness.

"You're welcomed. The place is going to collapse pretty soon. I strongly suggest we all get out of here now."

"I'm afraid we can't do that. You see, we are Schwartz and we are obliged to at least show we are taking vengeance for the Elders' deaths."

"Well, shit." Yohji released Ran's hand and stepped in front of him. Green eyes narrowed, he raised his watch-clad arm in a ready position. "Guess we got to do this the hard way then."

"Exactly."

Siberian bared his teeth, catching Berserker's attention. Without warning the albino Irishman attacked and Siberian promptly clashed with him.

Scowling, Bombay started to go after Schuldich but Prodigy intercepted him. The young boy, smaller than Omi, smirked and blasted him with a fierce telekinetic blow. Gritting his teeth as he was slammed into the tunnel wall, Omi struggled back to his feet and struck back with his ofuda spell.

Ran watched fists clenched at his sides, as Oracle tackled Balinese. He never knew the American pre-cog was a boxer and an extremely skilled one at that. He kept Balinese in close quarters, giving him no time to cast spells, forcing him to fight on the pre-cog's terms, which was a disadvantage to Balinese.

There must be something he could do, something to help Yohji and his friends even out the odds. But he dared not interfere. He was deathly afraid of the backlash if he wielded his sword one more time, terrified of the consequences if he actively sought to spill blood once more. He bit his lower lip, railing at the fates for tying his hands.

"Why, liebe, you looked like you need someone to entertain you."

Ran half-whirled, violet gaze fixing unerringly on the German telepath standing not too far away from him. Shit, he had plain forgotten about Schuldich in his worry over Yohji's well being.

In a flash, Schuldich had covered the distance to croon softly into his ear, "Don't fret, klein diamant. I'll play with you."

Ran snarled, elbow striking into Schuldich's stomach as he spun to confront the telepath. Unconsciously, he called his katana to him.

Schuldich licked his lips in anticipation. "The Juwel has teeth. I like that."

With his uncanny speed, Schuldich attacked again, aiming for a punch at Ran's gut. To his surprise, Ran dodged his punch and slammed the sheathed length of his katana into his side. Schuldich staggered back, gasping and clutching his side in pain.

"Your speed and mind power won't work against me," Ran said coldly. "You can't read my mind and I can match your speed anytime."

"Heh, heh, I forgot." Schuldich chuckled. "So tell me then, klein diamant. How does being betrayed feel?"

Violet eyes narrowed.

"Don't tell me you haven't realize that Takatori never meant for you to survive that ritual." Schuldich noticed the way Ran's body stiffened and smirked. Seizing the chance, he darted in again and landed a punch across Ran's face.

"Terrible, isn't it?" he continued conversationally as he danced out of reach. "Makes you wonder why he was willing to sacrifice you, why were you so…expendable."

"Shut up," Ran grated.

"You mean you don't want to hear the best part?" Schuldich faked a feint and darted behind Ran. He grabbed hold of the katana from behind and cruelly pulled it against Ran's throat, trapping the pale young man between him and the choking barrier of his own katana. Gasping, Ran strained to push the katana away from him but Schuldich was surprisingly strong.

The telepath leaned down and whispered into his ear, "Let me tell you everything about Takatori, pretty."

Ran froze, eyes widening in shock, as Schuldich whispered the startlingly news into his ear. It can't be…he didn't…the bastard, the goddamned bastard!

With a cry of fury, Ran lashed out unthinkingly with his power. He tossed Schuldich off without so much lifting a finger, shining fiercely as his fury fueled the strength of his power.

A low rumble sounded through the tunnel, vibrating through the ground. Dust and sand tumbled down through cracks in the tunnel ceiling and it was getting difficult for anyone to remain standing on their feet.

Schuldich looked up at him from where he laid, a smirk on his bloodied lips. "Poor pitiful pawn."

"You lie!"

"I manipulate, but I don't lie, pretty. Your parents' deaths, your sacrifices, all of it were his manipulations. He had his eyes on you ever since he first saw you and he schemed daily on how to get his hands on you. He killed your parents, put your sister in a coma, and destroyed your world so completely that you have no choice but to accept his help. But you didn't know that, did you? You thought him a dear family friend. Walked right into his palm like a willing sheep to the slaughter.

"He used you to defeat Estet. He knew it would kill you but he didn't tell you that too, did he? Did you really think he was so possessive of you that he'll give up the opportunity to gain more power? Let me tell you something else, even someone as audacious as him isn't stupid enough to keep a tainted Gem around for long."

Ran shook with rage. If Schuldich was right, and deep down he knew the German telepath was right, then Takatori had been planning his demise for months. Everything Takatori had told him was just lies to keep him from rebelling.

Schuldich's smirk grew wider. "The man you bound yourself to took everything you loved in the first place."

"Shut up!" Ran let loose another power blast.

Huge chunks of rock crashed to the ground, setting off a chain reaction through the ghetto.

Yohji swore as a chunk missed him by bare inches. He risked a look around. Not good. The place was falling apart around them. They had to leave. Now. Suiting actions to words, he broke off his fight with Oracle. Yelling to Ken and Omi to beat it, he dashed over to the livid Ran and pulled him along as well.

"Time to go!"

"Leave me be!" Ran yelled. "I have unfinished business with Mastermind!"

"Later! This place is collapsing!"

Ran growled and followed reluctantly, helped along by Yohji's persistent tugging. They broke out into a frantic flight for the exit, trying to escape the collapsing cavern. But like an avalanche, the collapse gathered momentum faster than they could outrun it.

Outside, the police swarming over Magnoris Inlet gaped in shocked disbelief as the ghetto amphitheater - a historical monument for centuries - collapsed and tumbled back into the ocean with a rumbling roar that could be heard for miles around.