A New Member

So let me get this straight, there are eight Energies and I am one of them? As is Zuel, Kotaro, and you? Laine asked.

Yes. Why is that so hard to understand? Dijuno asked.

It doesn’t seem real. None of it does. Especially this place. Laine said, looking around at all the tombstones and turned graves.

It never does. Dijuno said, sighing. So, are you with us or not Light?

Laine stared at a dead tree a few feet from them, thinking. There were several perks to doing this but there were also several dangers. He sighed.

Yeah. I’ll do it.

Zuel hugged him. That’s great. Kotaro-kun will be happy to hear that! So I have found now two of the six I was supposed to find?

Dijuno nodded. Only four to go. Then you can release me and we can destroy the people in question.

We need to get going. I don’t feel like getting hurt by Kotaro. Laine said, a bit uncomfortable with the current conversation.

Zuel nodded. Dijuno bowed before disappearing and a moment later, everything shifted back to the earthly plane. Zuel moved off of Laine and smiled at him. He looked away, blushing a little. Kotaro walked in to see them and looked at Zuel questioningly.

“He’s Light.” She said simply.

“So, he was one of us. Interesting.” Kotaro said, walking over to Zuel. “How are you feeling?”

“Fine. Thanks to Laine, I actually get to live another day.” Zuel smiled.

Kotaro looked at Laine. “Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it.” Laine shrugged, standing and walking to the door.

“Where are you going?” Zuel asked.

“Home. I need to think and the only place I can do that is my chamber.” He said, walking out the door.

Zuel looked at the now closed door for a moment. Was it something she had said? Something she had done? Maybe he didn’t want to be part of what was going on. She had basically forced him to coincide with their plan. It was a good plan to her, at least they wouldn’t have to stay in the hell hole of Kazeshi under rule of the royal b***h Takamiya and her b*****d lapdog Vector. Zuel looked at Kotaro with a worried look.

“Did I push him too hard? I kind of forced him to agree with us. I didn’t give him time to think.”

“No. You did as Dijuno asked you to. Now, all we can do is find the others and hope that they all agree.” Kotaro said, bending down and hugging her.

She wrapped her arms around him. “Thank you Kotaro for understanding.”

He just smiled. He liked the little moments they had like this. He wished they could have them more often, but living in a psychotic hospital didn’t exactly provide for a romantic atmosphere. He sighed, letting her go.

“I came here originally to ask you about something.” He said, rubbing the back of his head.

“What is it?” She asked.

“Lamento and Naomii are trying to find a way to escape this place. I asked if we could join and they didn’t have a problem with it. I wanted to run it by you first to see if you thought it was a good idea. You have been here longer than any of us.” Kotaro explained.

“Escape? It’s nearly impossible.” Zuel said, looking down. “If I can gather the other four Energies, it might be possible, but not until then. Still, there is no guarantee that they will agree to help.”

“True. But we have to at least try.” Lamento said, walking in the room with Naomii close behind. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to be nosy. We just heard Kotaro say something about escape. And what are these ‘Energies’ you keep referring to, if you don’t mind my asking.”

“There are eight Energies in the magic world. Sun, Moon, Earth, Air, Fire, Water, Light, and Dark. There is one guardian for each Energies. I am Dark, Kotaro is Fire, Dijuno is Moon, and, as we just discovered, Laine is Light. I have to find the other four in order to release Dijuno from the Energy world.” Zuel explained.

“What happens once you release this ‘Dijuno’ guy? It is a guy right?” Naomii asked.

Zuel nodded. “I’m not sure what we are going to do after we release him. I know we are going to get out of here though. One way or another, we are going to escape.”

Kotaro and Lamento looked at each other. Naomii nodded.

“I see. Then me and Lamento will help. It’s the lease we can do. You have saved us several times.”

“Are you sure? It’s dangerous. You won’t go without injury.” Kotaro asked.

It was Lamento that answered this time. “We are sure. I will protect any one that I can. As I’m sure you will.”

Kotaro nodded. The three looked at Zuel. Being in Kazeshi the longest gave her an advantage above them. She knew where every vent went, where every trash dump emptied out and where every door and every hall lead. She also knew every blind spot from the cameras. Takamiya had tried several times to fix the blind spots but never got them. Zuel knew that these would come in handy. She needed a few items before they could make a solid plan.

“I need a map of this whole vicinity. Every floor, every room, every venting system. It may be hard to get, especially with Takamiya and Vector on high alert since the incident at the arena, but I think I know someone who can do it.” Zuel said, standing.

“Who?” Naomii asked.

Zuel looked at Kotaro from the corner of her eyes and smiled.

“You can’t mean him?” Kotaro asked.

“I’ll be back.” She said, walking out the door.

Zuel had arrived at a darker part of the chambers. She knew that he would be able to help and knew he wouldn’t say no to her. Knocking on his door, she waited. No answer. She knocked again. This time someone opened the door. Hikkro Kitsuke stood there. He was two years older than Zuel and had been in Kazeshi about a year or two after her. His white hair spiked up a bit but would reach his chin if it was laying down. His bangs covered one of his golden eyes, the left one to be exact. He was a sorcerer and a vampire mix. The scar under his eye was from a fight with Zuel and the one across his nose he had had since he got to Kazeshi.

Hikkro smiled, his voice a bit raspy and demonic. “Zuel, what brings you to my slice of hell?”

“I need to ask a favor of you.” She smiled.

“Hm? A favor from me? What can I do for you?” He asked.

“I need a map of this place. Every corner, every vent, everything. Can you get it for me?” Zuel asked.

“Sure.” He shrugged. “But you know my price. You still owe me from last time.”

“I know.” She said, digging in her bag and pulling out a box.

She handed it to him and watched as he opened it. Inside was an assortment of candy. Hikkro was almost as skilled as Zuel but had a huge weakness for candy. He smiled, pleased with the amount in the box.

“You are forgetting something.” He said, looking at her.

She rolled her eyes and kissed him on the cheek. “Happy?”

“Always. I’ll bring the map to you tonight.” He said.

“Thank you Hikkro.” She said, waving as she left.

He was amazed that Takamiya never noticed their plots before. They were always planning something together. They had never gotten caught, which was a good thing in Kazeshi. The punishment for treason was a swift beating and sometimes something worse. Hikkro knew about what Vector had done to Zuel and, like her, he wished to kill him. Slowly and painfully, showing him the same pain that Zuel went through. He wasn’t ashamed of the fact that he was going to do the same thing he had done (which probably wouldn’t make him any better than Vector) but the monster deserved it. Hikkro went back inside. His chamber was practically empty, except for a bed roll, a small eating table, a few dishes, a mini fridge, and some training equipment. Hikkro often meditated and therefore didn’t really like the ideas of having a T.V. or a game console.

How am I going to pull this one off? She didn’t even tell me what she needed it for. Not that it really matters. I don’t mind helping, after all, she did save my life on more than one occasion. Hikkro thought, sighing.

He walked to his room and opened the closet, pulling out his two katanas and the dagger that he kept hidden under his left sleeve (the other sleeve was cut off). He was a master swordsman but could never actually beat Zuel in a match, even though he could unarm her within five minutes of the match. He smiled. She was fun to battle with. Takamiya never actually let any of her subjects die. She would push them to the edge, where they wished they were dead, but in the end, Akiyo would always save them. He was a kind man and a bit close to Zuel, everyone here respected her and usually did as she asked (with the exception of a few people). He strapped his weapons to him and headed towards the front door. There was still one major problem to deal with: the maps Zuel required were in Vector’s office. If he was there, then Hikkro would have to wait until he left and then get a copy, put the original back, and get out before he came back. He sighed, leaving, as ready as he’d ever be.

Once outside, he looked around for the most available route where no one would notice him. He was a master at hiding in the shadows and was a grade A stealth ninja in his clan, the highest you could be. He smiled when he saw an opening just big enough to squeeze through without being noticed behind the left row of chambers. That was actually a really good thing. Zuel’s chamber was on the left side, as was Kotaro and Lamento’s. If Hikkro knew Zuel, those two were definitely in on whatever it was that she was planning, which also meant that he was in on what she was planning. He looked at the surrounding carefully, making sure no one could see him then he dashed to the opening behind the left chambers. There were no camera’s here. It was one of the only spots that Takamiya hadn’t found, nor ever would. Zuel had made sure to use her magic to make it hidden to certain people.

He ran through the dark opening with confidence. He knew that he wouldn’t hit anything for the simple fact that there wasn’t anything to hit. He saw the light from the other side of the opening and stopped when a shadow entered. It took him a moment to realize who it was. Zora Touhou, one of Zuel’s friends. She had been here two years longer than Lamento. Her dark brown hair flowed to her lower back and was usually kept up in a bun with a small section left out. Her chocolate brown eyes were always serious and she always seemed to be wearing a pair of chopsticks in her hair that her grandmother gave her before she died and a bracelet that her older brother gave her. She was nineteen and she was a hell demon.

“Zora, what brings you to the shadows?” Hikkro asked, relaxing a little.

“I always come here to think.” She shrugged, walking up to him.

“Nice.” He said, smiling. “By the way, have you talked to Zuel lately?”

“Not since the other day? Why?” Zora asked.

“Just wondering.” He said. “I have to go.”

“Wait.” Zora hollered as he ran off. “Is she alright? Has something happened? I know Takamiya asked for everyone to gather but I didn’t go. I figured she just wanted to nag us about something again.”

“She was wounded earlier. Go and see her.” Hikkro said, waving and running off. I hope Zuel doesn’t kill me for telling Zora to just go over and see her. I don’t think she’ll mind, but still.

He ran through the rest of the small opening before stopping right before the exit. No one usually came back here during the day so he really had nothing to worry about, but something didn’t feel right. As a highly skilled ninja, he knew he should wait until something happened, but he had promised Zuel the maps before dark. He peeked out and saw the reasoning for the unease. Vector was standing at the entrance to the chambers, a smug smile on his face. Uno was on the ground, crying, blood running down her face. Hikkro’s anger flared. He had never actually spoken to the ten year old hell demon, but knew that Zuel would be pissed if anything happened to her. He appeared behind Uno and picked her up, staring at Vector.

“Are you so low that you would hurt a little girl, Vector Tyron?” Hikkro asked.

“Hikkro, nice to see you. We only ever catch glimpses of you on the cameras and even then we aren’t sure it’s you. What business do you have with the little demon?” Vector asked, his smiled widening.

“That’s none of your concern now is it?” Hikkro asked, turning his back to Vector.

Suddenly, he spun around and kicked a pistol from Vectors hands. Apparently Vector would stoop as low as to hurt a little girl. Hikkro knew he was wasting precious time, but the well being of this little girl depended on him at the moment and he knew that Zuel wouldn’t mind if his reasoning was something as this.

“You know, for a toy, you sure are cocky as hell Hikkro.” Vector said, rubbing his wrist where Hikkro had kicked.

“And you’re a lapdog, no different than us.” Hikkro said, staring at Vector coldly. “I still want to rip your damn head off for doing what you did to Zuel. She did nothing to deserve how you treated her.”

“Hm?” Vector was momentarily confused, but then his memories snapped into place. “Ah yes. I remember now. She was crying so hard, telling me to stop. I couldn’t help but do more.”

Suddenly, Hikkro had Vector slammed against the wall of one of the chamber buildings by the throat. Uno sat on the ground, trying to get her head to stop bleeding.

“Listen here you a*****e piece of filth lapdog, if you so much as look at her in that manner again, you won’t have anything to do but look. Got that? The only reason I won’t kill you is because I think Zuel deserves the right to do that herself.” Hikkro said, letting go and picking Uno back up and disappearing.

He reappeared in front of Sinro’s door. He knocked once before the door opened. Sinro Syshi stood in a pair of jeans. He was nineteen and had been in Kazeshi for only five years, a fairly new subject. His dark brown hair was waist length and his bangs covered his red eyes. He had horns poking out from each side of his head just as Uno did and he also had a tail. He was a former environmental scientist and had earned a great degree at the age of twelve but lived in a local orphanage. He was fused with demonic DNA and ended up a close species to what Uno was, therefore they lived together, knowing the same pain. He was like a big brother to her.

“Uno? Hikkro? What happened?!” Sinro asked, seeing Uno’s head bleeding.

“Vector attacked her. I got there in time to get her away nearly unscathed. She will probably need medical attention so you should probably call Akiyo.” Hikkro said, handing a handkerchief to Uno before turning to leave.

“Wait, won’t you stay? I’m cooking supper and we would love some company.” Sinro asked.

Hikkro shook his head. “I have business to attend to. Zuel has asked me personally to do something for her. Perhaps another time.”

“I see.” Sinro smiled. “Very well. But you owe us now.”

Hikkro smiled and left. He had to find a way to get out before actually coming up with a plan to get the maps that Zuel required of him. He knew that the vent above the main door didn’t have any camera’s on it and it was loose so that was his best bet at the moment. He jumped from shadow to shadow, pausing when people would walk by. He knew that none of them could sense his presence so he wasn’t exactly nervous. It was more anticipation than anything. He made the final jump and used a bit of magic to keep him on the wall long enough to open the vent. It was hidden from sight of anything so he was safe. Once inside he paused to think.

The maps are in Vector’s office which is probably where he went if he didn’t report our little scuffle to Takamiya. That means that if he’s there, I’ll have to wait until he leaves, get a copy of the maps, and leave before he gets back. If only I knew that a******s schedule this would be a lot easier. There is no room for mistakes. I have to do this right because I only have one chance at it.

Hikkro crawled through the vents quiet as could be. He had to think of where each office was. There were so many, but most were abandoned or used for storage. There were more subjects then workers which usually proposed a threat, but Takamiya had good back up. He saw a vent looking down into a lighted office. He carefully crawled over to it and looked down. It was Akiyo’s chamber. It was pretty plain, with the exception of papers scattered all over the place. He saw Akiyo walk out of another door, his hair dripping wet and wearing nothing but a towel. He thought about popping in and letting him know about Uno, but decided against it.

He kept going and saw another lighted area up ahead. Looking down, he saw that it was Takamiya’s office. She wasn’t in there, but some files lay on her desk, most of them saying something like “deceased” or “infected”. He shivered and kept moving. A few minutes later, he saw a third lighted area. It was Vector’s office. Vector sat in his chair, looking over some papers when someone called in.

“Takamiya wants to see you now.” The harsh voice on the other end said.

“Tell her I’ll be there momentarily. I have to finish looking over these files.” Vector said.

“She said now and that you can’t refuse her this time.” The voice said.

Vector sighed and stood up. “How long is this going to take?”

“About five minutes.”

Vector pushed a button and looked around before heading out the door, locking it behind him. Hikkro waited a moment before jumping down. The office was pretty standard, an oak desk with a bit leather office chair, a couple file cabinets, two comfortable looking chairs in front of the desk and papers all over the desk. He saw one of the file cabinet drawers ajar and walked over. Today had to be his lucky day because it was the drawer that held extra maps of the institute. He pulled some out and made sure they were the right ones before place the drawer back as it had been. He jumped back up in the vent just in time. He could hear Vector unlocking the door. He left before he could see anything Vector was up to. He made his way back through the vents, being careful when he crossed Takamiya and Akiyo’s vents. He finally made it to the other side where the chambers were and saw that it was pretty much dark. He pushed the vent open and jumped down carefully, flicking his hand so that the vent closed quietly. He looked up at the chambers and saw that Zuel, Kotaro, and Lamento all still had their lights on. Odds are, she was at home so he would start there first.