Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Demon Dance ❯ Tables have Turned ( Chapter 6 )

Skyre's steps falter as her blades fell to her side. She kept her eyes on the target she knew would take the bait. There! It charged, not knowing the danger it was in and exposed the soft underbelly as it leapt for her throat. She brought her blades up in an underhand arc, slicing open the soft flesh. Blood squirted out, coving her in the sticky substance. But she didn't care. She dragged the blades from its navel and up the chest, breaking the rib cage to come out through the shoulders, making a perfect X through its body. Blood was everywhere, especially over her. Entrails had spilled onto the ground, their smell making her hungry for more death. She howled into the dead of night, her rage unsatisfied. Her bloodcurdling scream echoed throughout the valley, like a lost tormented soul that could never rest.

Ifurita only watched from a safe distance in a tree. Skyre had been giving into instinct time and again for the past two months, becoming a heartless killer that enjoyed ripping victims apart with her blades. She no longer walked around campus. The wolf stalked, wearing a permanent scowl that warded away all human contact. They had done their project for German weeks ago, and that was when it had started. Something about Shuiichi made her want to kill. Something about Shuiichi made her want to kill him. She watched with morbid fascination as the wolf drank down the ruby liquid from her blades, a smile on her face as she licked them clean. She's blooding her kill?

A new sound echoed through the night. Skyre's ears swiveled to them as a new sadistic grin spread across her features. With a growl in her throat, she sped off into the night with Ifurita not far behind. She had become almost too fast for the ice demon to follow now, her movements liquid and smooth like an assassin made of wind. A new threat loomed into view, its teeth parted in silent challenge. That was all that was needed for battle lines to be drawn. Ifurita never saw it, but when she did arrive, only body parts remained, scattered carelessly as she saw the wolf eating the creature's heart.

"Bloodrage," she muttered, now understand what had consumed the girl she had once called friend.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The wolf youkai panted with exertion. Blood dripped from her body, but none of it was hers. She grinned, her fangs shining in the moonlight. Her hooded eyes raised to the moon, blood red from edge to edge. There was no pupil, no iris, nothing but the endless blood of death filled her eyes. She wiped her mouth with the back of a hand, smearing the blood on it further. Her now black ears and tail quivered, ready for her next victim. She no longer knew a name, friends, family, or a home. She only knew death and the lovely taste it brought her.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Kurama sighed. He hadn't seen Matsuko in weeks now, except for the brief time when they had turned in their paper. School was over for the summer and only those with apartments had stayed, keeping their jobs and getting ready for next year. Matsuko had lost her job, having not come into work for several weeks without even calling with a reason as to why. Ifurita was still around campus, having a job of her own. She had run into Kurama only a handful of times, but would hurry away, saying that she had things to take care of. The kitsune was confused by it all and couldn't puzzle out the smell of blood that followed the poor girl everywhere. He walked through the forest on the edge of town, looking for Hiei to ask him some questions. The fire youkai had been keeping watch on the pair and hadn't reported back to him in some time now.

"Baka fox. You dare to walk alone in such a dangerous place?" Hiei asked from his treetop perch. He gave a half smile to the fox and jumped down with his usual graceful landing. "These woods have become a dangerous place. Something haunts them at night, killing any demon that it comes across."

"Truly? Could that beast be you?" he joked, thinking that Hiei was overreacting.

"Baka!" he shouted. "Come with me then and see the carnage that has been left for humans to find." With that declaration, he flitted away, leaving Kurama to follow regardless. The two ran on, keeping pace with each other with out incident when the arrived at the battlefield. Blood and body parts where everywhere. A hollowed out torso was propped up against one tree with the head several yards away, the eyes missing from that. A gaping hole was in the torso, the heart having been removed. For what purpose, they did not know. One thing was sure: whoever did this wasn't going to be easy to stop.

"I wonder what could have done this massacre," Kurama whispered. He couldn't even recognize what it had been. The kitsune scratched at his head, unable to think of what could have done this. The cuts were too fine to by made by claws, meaning that their adversary had blades of some kind. But then, why the brutality? It didn't make sense. As he sat there pondering with Hiei looking at the wreckage some distance away, a pair of shrieks broke their thoughts.

"This way!" Hiei shouted, flitting off into the darkness. Kurama dashed after him, taking to the trees just to be safe. They arrived at the next clearing over to see a pair of young girl locked in mortal combat. One had wolf ears and a tail, both ebony in the dense undergrowth. She was covered in blood from head to toe and didn't seem to even notice. Her only thoughts were on the girl that was avoiding her blades. But the second girl . . .

"Nariko!" the kitsune shouted, jumping down to help her. He reached back into his hair to pull out his signature red rose. "Rose whip!" His whip of thorns lashed out at the attacked, striking her on the cheek. She growled and sprang out of range, showing her full form to those that had gathered. "Matsuko? What is this? What are you doing?" She only gifted him with a snarl, her teeth halfway between those of a human and those of a wolf. Her eyes glowed red like fresh blood. Like the blood of those demons . . .

"Shu . . . ii . . . chi . . ." came a hollow voice from the killer before him. She gave a most demented head splitting grin, tilting her head to one side with eyes wide open. Her hands still held her scimitars, both stained with the lives of scores of demons no doubt. He shifted his feet, ready to strike again at the girl he had called friend. She gave a laugh and righted her head, still wearing that grin with her eyes bulging out.

"DIE!" She streaked forward without any other warning, swinging her blades with unimaginable skill. He retreated, blocking the blurs of steel with his whip. Hiei dropped in and took over blocking one of them. Her rage only increased and with it her speed. Soon both youkai were having difficulty fending off the unending attack when Nariko intervened.

"HAIL STORM!" With those words they jumped to the safety of the trees as a hail of ice shards flew in the air, catching Matsuko off guard. Many gouged her back, drawing forth screams of pain as she dropped her blades for the first time. She staggered forward, falling to her knees from the pain. Over a dozen ice daggers were buried into her flesh and left her gasping for breath. Her jaw clenched as she clutched at her body, her life's blood streaming down her backside. Her eyes locked onto Nariko as the girl walked forward, a scythe in her hands. The almost translucent blade that had only the faintest shade of blue was attached to a black ironwood handle, shaking hands wrapped firmly around it. Rage emanated from the fallen creature, a fresh growl shaking in her throat.

Hiei sheathed his sword, putting his hands in his pockets. "Kurama, perhaps you should bind her now while she is unable to move." The fire demon stood a safe distance from the wolf, now understand what she could do. Kurama nodded and did so, summoning vines to bind the feral creature. "What could have driven her to such madness?"

"I don't know. She's been like this for two months now. Ever since someone attacked her when she was out running one night," Nariko replied, bringing her arms to a defensive position. "Why did you attack her Shuiichi?"

"Wait. You must be mistaken. I didn't attack her," he retorted, his temper flaring at such an accusation.

"SHE SAW YOU!" the girl shouted, clearly unable to take much more. "She saw you. You and him. She showed me when she got back. There was a slash on her back and a burn on her shoulder. She had been out running like she does every night to help fight her wolf instincts so she doesn't hurt anyone. She transforms into her wolf body and runs for an hour or two. She had stopped to drink from her normal spot at the river when she heard voices. She checked it out and found you guys there talking and then you attacked her. Now just tell me why."

"Wait Kurama. I remember feeling as though we were being watched when we had met out here around two months ago. I remember we chased something, thinking it to be a spy sent to kill us. Could it have been her?" he pointed to Matsuko, her body beginning to shake as shock settled in.

"What? So this whole mess was all a mistake?" Nariko gasped.

"Actually, this "whole mess" as you put it has been my most successful experiment to date." A man walked forward flanked by a score of human soldiers. They formed a circle around the group of demons with guns drawn as the man continued to speak. "Maybe you don't remember me little lady. I remember you." He had a square jaw and was dressed like a commando. Brown thatch hair splayed in every direction possible. His nose looked to be a piece of putty, haven broken and healed wrong to make it abnormal in shape. His cold gray eyes held them immobile as a pair of soldiers walked forward to Matsuko to free her with the machetes they carried.

"You! I remember you. From four years ago. You were enslaving demons to do your dirty work with collars that controlled their minds," she declared, feeling sick at the very sight of him. He smiled softly and nodded in agreement.

"Indeed I am. But I don't think we were ever formally introduced. My name is Admiral Camber and I am in charge of overseeing experiments run on demons and non-human creatures. Now you can all come with me, or you can all die slow painful deaths on the operating table. The choice is yours."