Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction / Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Shattered Freedom ❯ Chapter Three ( Chapter 3 )

Chapter Three

 

Chapter Three

 

Kurama was pacing. Pacing because he couldn't sit still for a moment and hadn't been able to since he had received that damned toddler's letter the day before. Youko was furious about what had happened to Hiei and Yusuke, but when Shizuru had come over and told him what had happened to her younger brother it had far surpassed mere fury. Youko wanted revenge and he did not want to and would not wait one more second then he had to

 

Kurama's mind had become a war whose wins and losses could clearly be seen in the appearance of his body. The major battlefields of that war seemed to be the hair, eyes, and ears. The hair was still mostly red, but strands and clumps of much longer, silvery white hair could be seen throughout it. One ear was human, but the other was that of a fox even if the short silver fur that covered it did have a few red furs among them. It was the eyes whose battle that was closest to being lost. They were almost entirely gold, with only a handful of microscopic green flecks between the two of them. It was a battle that Kurama knew he would lose especially after almost two days with absolutely no sleep. Youko had reserves that Kurama's human body couldn't hope to match at the best of times and if he so desired could multiply those reserves by thousands. In short, it was a miracle that Youko hadn't already brought this battle to its forgone conclusion.

 

Hours passed slowly as the battle was waged. Kurama's head began to pound with a fierce headache, making concentrating hard and painful. Each time the pain distracted him Youko took full advantage of it, forcing more and more of the eventual transformation. Even before the transformation had been completed and Youko Kurama in all his four-tailed glory stood in the bedroom of the human whose body he shared the battle was already over.

 

As much as Youko Kurama cared for his host, he felt he that had been far too influenced by his human mother and those human ideals he had learned from her were currently in the way. Right now, Youko had things to do, favors to call in, and plans to make and all of them would start with a little known interdimensional portal in a little traveled part of the Makai.

 

~*~

 

Mukuro watched as a young mostly human looking girl blasted her way through her elite guard with such ease that she could not possibly be human. She had no idea who the girl was or what she was but Mukuro was sure that she'd never before sensed energy like what this girl radiated. Everything about her except for one thing seemed completely normal to one who inhabited the Makai. Her appearances, the long, purple hair, ice-blue eyes, and long furry, yet slender tail. The clothes, simple black jeans and a halter top with bold white letters that said 'Princess' in the most common dialect of the Makai, even the black boots. These things were all normal. The abnormal thing was the expression on her face. The way she took joy in each and every demon she killed as though causing others pain and killing them were drugs that she was addicted to. The overall effect was intimidating, even to the Demon Lord Mukuro.

 

The girl began toward Mukuro as if only just realizing who she was. The time she spent on the demons separating the two of them was shorter and shorter till the last few soldiers were killed when their necks were simply snapped.

 

When she stood in front of Mukuro she spoke to the powerful Demon Lord in a demanding, self assured voice. "I suggest you hand Yusuke over. Now."

 

"Who are you to demand anything at all from me?" asked Mukuro, her voice full of every bit of authority and power that had helped her conquer a third of Makai.

 

"I am greatly disappointed that one of your rank has not heard of me. I'll have to fix that. The name is Ariel, second born daughter of the Saiyan Crown Prince Vegeta. My twin, Ariana, and I are the ones who get called in when things go so wrong that not even all the SDF could handle it." The smirk on Ariana's face was quite smug and proud.

 

Mukuro took an involuntary step back as she realized who it was who had killed so many of her people. Everything added up. The fact that the girl radiated such an unknown power, the heritage she claimed and seemed to take so much pride in. Even the smirk she wore on her face that so reminded Mukuro of her heir even if there were many subtle differences between those two smirks. She decided to hide her apprehension behind the emotionless mask that she had perfected long ago and to above that mask pretend that the entire situation was laughable.

 

"And you expect me to believe that. You are relying on pathetic, often copied threats thinking I'll be impressed. I'm not the least bit impressed by you."

 

Ariel rolled her eyes at the Demon Lord.

 

"I didn't want to do this cause I know that I'll be forced to come back and clean up the damned mess it'll leave behind. Damn you bitch. You are going to be making me work even after your soul gets thrown into the depths of hell."

 

Mukuro was falling to the ground before she realized that anything at all had happened.

The world began to fade, colors fading and blending together as the world went black. She knew she had to be bleeding but she didn't know what part of her was doing that bleeding. Numbness and shock hadn't even begun to fade before she died. She never did realize that the cause of her death was that her head had been ripped right off of her body.

 

Ariel walked past Mukuro's remains as though they meant nothing and they did mean nothing to the Saiyan princess. Nothing but a predictor of more work to come when word of the death of this one person combined with the disappearances of Yusuke and Hiei spread wide enough and chaos descended on the little patch of Makai that Reikei had anything resembling control over.

 

Ariel continued on her way, following the elusive trail of ki that had led her to this pathetic excuse for a castle. She encountered a great many soldiers but they were almost too weak to bother with as they scrambled over each other in their attempts to get out of her way. They were entirely too pathetic to be allowed to live. So she killed them. The trail came to an end in the last of a long hallway of dimly lit cells in one of the deeper parts of the dungeon.

 

Chained to the wall of the cell was the one she had come for. This was her new pet, Yusuke. He was covered from head to toe with dark bruises, scrapes and deep cuts. What

was left of his clothes were dirty, blood stained rags that barely managed to suggest that they had once covered anything at all. His black hair that Ariana had seen slicked back with gel in pictures and on Koenma's wall monitor was messy and had not a little dried blood in it. Blood that had to various parts of Yusuke's body, especially the insides of his legs, had formed a trail leading to a not so small puddle of half-dried blood on the dirty and blood-stained floor that his chains kept him above. His chocolate brown eyes were filled with the strangest mixture of pain, anger, and fear. It was a look that excited Ariel.

 

Ariel walked up to him and with precise ki-blasts broke the shackles that held him to the wall and watched as he fell to the cold blood-stained ground. She healed his wounds, completely ignoring his reactions until those reactions began to annoy her. Then she knocked him out with precise pressure to a key nerve. She'd liked the fear and the pain but the out and out panicking had been beyond too much. The rest of the injuries faded away into nothingness, leaving her with nothing but a desire to see that pale skin once again marred, except this time she would be the one doing it.

 

She picked up the unconscious ex-Reikei Tentei and exited the castle by way of ki-blasting a whole trough every part of the castle between her and the open sky. Her destination when she took off flying was a small clearing with a hot spring near her favorite portal to Reikei. She placed him on the ground and retrieved a bookbag she had placed there on her way to Mukuro's castle. All it contained was a set of clothes for her new pet, some stuff to wash him off with and something very special she would be using after she got all the blood and other gunk off of him. She waited, merely because the results of carrying a naked Tentei through the halls of Reikei where one of his friends from his old life might attempt to rescue him just wasn't worth the hassle. After all she had only just begun to think of the multitude of things she could do to hear what was sure to be the delightful sound of her new pet scream in agony or plead for mercy once she'd managed to break him. After that she had yet to decide if she'd just put him out of his misery or give him to her twin so she could watch the weak-hearted fool's attempts to put him back together. Either would be delightful options and there was always the possibility of combining the two and killing him in front of her twin. Ariana waited for Yusuke to wake with an evil smile of joy on her face.

 

~*~

 

Hiei didn't remember when he had fallen asleep, but he knew that he had when he once again woke up under the covers of that same bed. This time when he looked around the room really was empty and he got a good look at what was in the room. A messy desk with an expensive looking computer was between two identical doors and an oversized dresser sat next to a door that matched the other two.

 

This time when he went to get out of bed no one stopped him. His first priority was to find something to wear. After that would be finding a weapon and then escaping from Reikei.

 

The first door he tried was the bathroom. It was a nice, large bathroom, but not what he was looking for. The next door was the front room. He got a glimpse of Ariana sprawled out on a couch reading a book and wearing jeans and a t-shirt. He shut that door as quickly as he could but it wasn't fast enough.

 

Ariana hadn't even looked up from her book, when she began to speak, then as she spoke she placed a bookmark in the book and placed it on the floor next to the couch.

 

"Come here, Hiei." Ordered Ariana.

 

Even though instinct told Hiei that it was a bad idea, he finished closing the door and took a few steps back. He had no idea what to do but he knew that he didn't want to go out there like he was. She would make him feel vulnerable and that was the last thing that he wanted.

 

Scarcely a moment had passed before the door opened and Ariana stepped through it.

 

"I never figured that you'd be the shy type. Guess I was wrong." Her voice was soft, but Hiei took another step back as she took a step toward him. When she took another step he also took another step and felt the bed against the back of his legs. She had him cornered and he hated it. Being cornered always brought back bad memories.

 

She pulled him against her and began running a hand up and down his back. It was everything he could do to keep from tensing up. He knew it would do no good. There was nothing he could do.

 

Hiei did tense when he felt her lips on his neck. A bit of tongue and he couldn't keep from trembling. His heart was racing in his chest. He was afraid. So very afraid in that moment. She could so easily kill him. He tried to push her away but she ignored his attempt as though it had been barely felt.

 

"Please...stop." He whispered it, barely managing to keep it from sounding like the plea that it was.

 

She stopped, but didn't pull away. He could feel her smile against the skin of his neck and when she spoke he could feel the movement of her lips. Her breath was warm against the sensitive skin of his neck.

 

"So nervous." She whispered softly. "Why don't we get you something to wear and then we'll talk. Ok?"

 

Hiei nodded, knowing that this was going to be the best he was going to get.

 

"Wait here. I'll be back in a minute."

 

She said it simply as though it were nothing but Hiei knew exactly what it was. She was ordering him around as casually as one might give orders to a pet. That's what his mind said, but his instinct wasn't so sure that it was that at all.

 

Ariana walked away, opening the one door that Hiei had not touched and entering a cavernous walk in closet. It was less then a minute later when she reappeared with a pair of black jeans, what appeared to be wards for his arms, a white headband for his jagan, a white belt like those that he normally wore, and a small box that looked quite old and as if it had seen better days.

 

Hiei watched as she placed everything on the bed before picking up the old box and opening it. She took out an intricate armband crafted out of materials that Hiei could not even begin to identify. Part of him wondered if Kurama could, if the Fox could live up to his reputation as a thief in identifying what any object was made of, no matter how good the forgery had been.

 

The armband was composed of three braided strands, each one being a different color. Those colors were red, blue, and purple.

 

This time when she approached him he did not back away. That would have been beyond pointless and he knew it. Knew it because of the way his mind kept screaming that he should be afraid and because he could not stop trembling.

 

The feel of her hand on his arm made him jump. He'd been too wrapped up in thought to really pay attention to what she had been doing. Under normal circumstances he'd have been too on guard for such a thing to happen and yet here when he should have been a hundred percent on guard and it had happened. It made him wonder how this strange person could evoke such a strange combination of fear, nervousness, and trust in him.

 

"I almost forgot about this. Actually, I did forget about it till I saw it in the closet. So we will do this and then you will get dressed and then we will have that talk."

 

The metal of the armlet felt cold against his skin as she slid up his arm to a position halfway between the bend of his elbow and his armpit. The tiny amount of her own energy that she fed into it seemed to do nothing at first, but a few seconds later when she held him against herself again it felt different somehow and Hiei was not sure whether that difference was a good one or a bad one.

 

He didn't even think about the pair of pants on the bed until some time later when he heard a door in the room Ariana had come from being broken down. When he heard that he had immediately scanned his vicinity with his jagan. Youko Kurama was here and the fox had brought someone who was not only several times more powerful as Ariana, but the same species as her too.

 

"Why don't you get dressed while I go deal with your friend and my father. I do wonder how the two of them ever met." Said Ariana. A moment later she was in the other room after firmly closing the bedroom door behind her.

 

~*~

 

In Ariana's front room stood two people. One she knew quite well the other one she had seen only in picture's and on Koenma's wall monitor. The later seemed to be in for a surprise.

 

Vegeta was a man who would never be considered tall, unless he was being compared to a midget or others who were just plain abnormally short. His spiky black hair bore a passing resemblance to that of Hiei, as did the smirk he wore. The blue spandex outfit, however; was probably something the Koorime hybrid wouldn't be caught dead in.

 

Youko Kurama on the other hand was most definantly tall. She wasn't sure how tall, but she was sure he was at least six feet tall, making his beyond waist length, silvery white hair all the more impressive a site. The two fox ears atop his head blended almost perfectly with the hair and she knew that if she saw the youko's four tails they would be a perfect match as well. The flowing white garment however was not a match. His golden eyes were narrowed and almost glowing with the angry power that he emanated. Ariana knew exactly why he had come and that his attempt, even though he had no way to know it yet was completely and utterly pointless.

 

Ariana decided she should deal with her father first so that Youko Kurama would see the futility of his plans before Hiei made his appearance.

 

"Hello, Father. It's been quite a long time and while I am quite glad to see you I'd be much more if you hadn't broken down the door to get in. I would have answered if you had knocked." Said Ariana.

 

"He did that part." Said Vegeta, easily casting the blame for the broken door at the kitsune's feet. “As for the time that has passed since we saw each other last, I didn't even know there was a portal between the two dimensions till he came through to call in an old favor."

 

"I'm guessing that he wants his friends back. I'm also guessing that he didn't know what Koenma really has been up to lately. Do you know, Youko? Or is the only information you have from that threat Koenma forced Boton to take to you?" said Ariana.

 

"I fail to see why that damned toddler's actions have any bearing in me correcting the wrongs that have been committed against my allies." Said Youko Kurama.

 

Ariana rolled her eyes at the silver kitsune, showing him exactly what she thought of his 'famed' intelligence.

 

"That's only because you don't know. So I'll tell you what I've already told Hiei. Immediately after Boton returned from taking that threat to you, a threat I've personally forced Koenma to rescind, she came right to this very room where my twin and I were having a conversation and begged for us to intervene, because what Koenma really had done was set both Yusuke and Hiei up to be executed. It is only by a fluke that Hiei survived nearly being killed by a miko and that Mukuro was so upset by news of Hiei's disappearance and who had caused that disappearance that she sent her people out with orders to capture Yusuke instead of killing him. Kuwabara, well he got caught in the crossfire and Koenma is too mad at how his precious plan failed to give a damn about anyone who got hurt. So in short Hiei is going to be staying with me and Yusuke, well, he'll be with my twin sister, Ariel till I can sort that part of the mess out."

 

"You really expect me to believe that nonsense?" asked Youko Kurama.

 

"Believe it or don't, but check your sources next time your in the Makai. I'm pretty sure that by now, knowing my twin the way I do, that Mukuro is dead. Her territory is descending slowly into chaos along with Yusuke's unless the monks there are hellaciously good at keeping order. Yomi probably has all his people on high alert, wondering if everything he's hearing is nothing but people spreading lies and rumor as truth or if he can take advantage of it and conquer the other two territories before things become so chaotic that it would be impossible. The current worst case scenario is that the new chaos in Mukuro's territory will lead to rampant chaos throughout that level of the Makai, extending even to those areas that had not fallen under the control of any of the Demon Lords. And to think that because of Koenma's irrational fears and his petty prejudices that every bit of work that anyone has ever done to bring anything resembling stability to the Makai might simply be wiped away as though none of it had ever happened." Ariana knew that she had gone with one of the more extreme worst case scenarios after the part that her twin sister played a role in but she felt that Youko Kurama needed to be shocked back into reality.

 

~*~

 

Youko Kurama's four tails began to twitch back and fourth as he absorbed the information that he had been given, his face taking on a look of concentration instead of the anger that had previously been there. His attention immediately shifted to the bedroom door when it opened to reveal Hiei. He took a step toward Hiei, but even before he moved Ariana was at his friend's side. One look at Vegeta and even Yoko Kurama had to agree that the man would do nothing to free his friends, especially because it was from his own daughters. His human half was yelling at him that he'd been stupid and endangered the lives of their friends, family, and allies for nothing.

 

Youko Kurama's presence there had been pointless and stupid on so many levels that he wasn't going to attempt to count them all. He'd pulled in the one favor he'd been saving for a worst case scenario and wasted it. It was time for him to leave so he left. He just hoped that someday, Hiei would understand.

 

~*~

 

Ariana introduced Hiei to Vegeta, before gently steering the Koorime hybrid toward the coach. She knew that her father didn't exactly approve of her choice but this was something she could not and would change not even if she could back away from this. She and Vegeta talked for hours about all that had happened since that had last seen each other. People, places, events, and times till all seemed to blur together for Hiei. Those things didn't matter to him half as much as how Ariana had managed to coax him into lying on the coach with his head in her lap while she ran a hand over his stomach. Or even why he felt so relaxed that he was half asleep and couldn't seem to concentrate on anything that should actually matter. He knew he should be wondering why Kurama had let Youko Kurama out and why Youko Kurama had come so obviously expecting to fight and then left as though he had given up before the real fight had even begun. Hiei was beginning to get a headache.

 

By the time that Vegeta left, with a promise to return the next day, Hiei was so close to asleep that he barely registered the man leaving. It was one thing among many that he would berate himself for later when he was awake enough to actually think about all that had happened to him and would happen to him on this day.