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s2.koiishii.s2
Author of 3 Stories |
NIGHT SEDUCTION
I can't hide the monster anymore
One can only feel desolate for so long
Until one starts to change
Into something the mirror doesn't recognize
I metamorphasize
The darkness has been biding its time
To claim its latest victim
Fresh meat for carnal desires
To become what I became
I viewed the sun for the last time
As expected of a Friday night, the streets were overflowing with wandering people. They huddled in groups, their shrill laughter carried unknowingly by the breeze unto the darkened skies. She broke into a sprint, hurrying across a secluded street and into an unlit alley. The area was a quick short cut to her place of work and she liked the momentary solitude it granted her. Not many people dared to venture around the particular area, unless they wished to be mugged or attacked. But she only felt sorry for the hooligans who would choose to be on her way. She didn't mind having her share of fun but unfortunately as if she already had a warning sign stuck on her forehead, she had not been as lucky as to face any street thug recently. Her last encounter drenched the alleyway with blood, but not a drop of her own. She itched to unwind and take up a challenge. She had become slightly rusty since her days training in the dojo and human challenges only but insulted her abilities. It was a wonder why she had not been as fortunate as to meet any creature such as herself… having escaped the tainted world, who would have thought that she would yearn to go back just to pick a fight. She had been so frustrated lately.
Looking ahead¸ she swiftly swerved around every dumpster on her path, keeping well away from the grimy, urine-covered walls. She crinkled her nose at the stench but hurried on her way. Reaching the end of the dark passage, an ominous metal fence stood as a barricade to prevent the general public from loitering around the area. Just diagonally from where she stood behind the enclosure, the small, old tavern she worked at was squashed between a clothing factory and a contemporary accounting office. The out-of-date tavern stood out in an odd sort of way, it was the only property that had no flashing neon sign-board, the small shop possessed a resemblance to a hut than anything else, made out of discoloured mud bricks and thick, antique timber. It even had a small, grubby chimney that had not puffed out smoke for more than 3 decades. The owner who was a temperamental old woman had long snubbed all offers to buy out and destroy her little tavern by the big, rich top guns in the building industry. The proprietor of the accounting building in particular had threatened and bribed the old woman in hope to have the dingy, eye-sore of a tavern from destroying the image of his new, high-rise business building but Aryan refused all offers and braved out the pressure. Even Sakura, having known the old bat for quite some time and long used to her unstable personality, developed a similar sense of endearment for the tavern. She even helped the old woman egg the new property the night before its grand opening, using the yolks as natural adhesive, they adorned the walls with cascading tissues rolls and settled in the tavern to toast to their handy work. Ridding of all evidence to the sabotage they had done, they were taken in as witnesses but were not reprimanded. She had become somewhat like a daughter to the lonely old Aryan.
Sakura glanced around just to ensure that no one was about, she did not want to have any clueless human discerning her abilities or her true nature. Slightly bending her knees to prepare her body to leap over the towering metal fence, she was rudely disrupted by a snickering presence behind her. Huffing in irritation, she stood up to her full height and inclined her head to look at the intruders. In the midst of the darkness, she clearly saw a bulky man out at the front, around him six other men carrying metal pipes and broken glass bottles. She could smell liquor in their breath from where she stood, sense the sweat trickling from their skin and faintly perceive the anger radiating amongst them. A sweet smile pulled at her lips as she turned around to face them completely.
"You!" the bulky man growled, "Were you the bitch who killed my brother?" He could barely see the façade of the rumoured woman who apparently killed his brother in the very same alley but he could discern the silhouette of the soft contours of her hips, arms, long legs and breasts.
"Who knows?" she purred, placing a hand on her hip, "I've killed so many idiots. The question you really should be asking is wether your brother happened to be one of those unfortunate idiots."
He gritted his teeth and motioned for his men to surround her, "You're messing with the wrong person bitch!"
"Ah, perhaps it WAS your brother after all," she said thoughtfully, "He said the same stupid thing. Too bad he never lived to say it again… I just couldn't stop myself…he was so pathetic, begging for his life, tears, snot and all… You should have seen the fear in his small, blue eyes… or how his dark hair stuck to his face with all that blood and piss… Pathetic." She grinned innocently despite the words escaping her glossed lips, at that moment, she could care less if she really had taken the life of the man's brother. She had no recollection of the faces of her victims, only the taste of their blood. Glancing towards the tavern and then down to her wrist watch, she smiled apologetically, "Oh boy, I don't intend to be late for my shift so let's make this nice and quick."
"Kill the bitch!" the man barked out and all at once, all of his followers ran towards her, metal pipes and broken glass bottles raised high up over their heads, ready to strike.
She tilted her head to the side, her smile never leaving her lips; she was clearly entertained by their clueless show of courage and blind valour. Raising her left hand in front of her, she elegantly clawed at the air, her palms facing the night sky. She did not need to conjure much of her power as water from the surrounding puddles magically rose from the asphalt and with great speed and force, shot out to the head of every one of the men who were closing in on her. The water droplets acted like bullets fired from a gun, each penetrated their skulls and instantly sprayed out with the blood and gut that erupted from their heads. She watched as they fell limp to the ground, drowning in their own meaningless deaths. She brought her fingers to comb her auburn locks from her face and as she reached the tips, she twirled the strands playfully by her breast. She looked down at her handy work and inhaled deeply, enjoying the metallic essence of the pool of blood by her boots. Using water as bullets, she thought to herself, the police will have no lead to solve this crime. A pity that my creativity can't be used for something more worth while.
Returning to her original task, she flexed her knees and sprung from the ground before the blood could slither to her black, velvet boots. She got over the fence with no sign of effort and landed softly on the other side, smoothing her clothes before walking to the door of her beloved tavern. In the light of a nearby street post, her eyes glowed in its usual mesmerising emerald colour, only this time is had hues of ruby and gold. The smell of blood without doubt heightened her senses and so she had to wait awhile by the door to let the gripping, innate sensations pass.
She looked up at the starless sky, suddenly reminiscing about home, "Brother, who would have thought that the answer we were seeking was nothing but my exposure to the world outside the dojo? Was this the power you kept on hounding me to summon?" She looked away from the sky bitterly and exhaled, "It's been 5 years brother… will you be proud at how much stronger I've gotten? Will you show your approval only with a stiff nod of your head…?" She placed her hand on the door and pushed, welcoming the warmth within the tavern that clung to her face. With the trace of ruby and gold out of her eyes, she proceeded behind the bar and plastered a cheerful smile on her face. Succumbing to work, she busied herself chatting away with the loyal costumers who greeted her happily and told her of the sad miseries of their life. She liked working; it made her forget of her pain, her own sadness and loneliness.
She was a different Sakura to the one who left the dojo 5 years ago.
She had walked like a cursed plague for months assimilating among the shadows of the human crowd. Death followed her path like a loyal companion, drenching her hunger and reminding her time and time again of her true nature. She was no longer a careless novice that killed with hesitant, shaking hands – she had become numb to the fear, the guilt and the nightmares that came when she drifted off to sleep. The mere smell of blood thrilled her, and now being on her own, she was free to do as she pleased and act solely upon the whim of her lust for blood. Although she had to admit, she had become shamelessly attached to humans and their mundane affairs. Her world took shape from the 4-walled wooden dojo she had spent most of her life to that of the cultivating realm of false light, technology and the music of the human society. Not once did she come across a tainted being such as she.
Humans were peculiar creatures, closely knitted to their family and friends, easy to react to the impulse of their emotions and vulnerable to everything. They were so physically and emotionally weak and fragile. At first she thought them irritating and pathetic – they found happiness in the most trivial things, wept over them for a period of time and then manage to plaster a smile of false bravery in order to resume their next phase of happiness. The cycle appalled her but she found herself being drawn to watch and satisfy her vivacious curiosity. There was a strange lure in the complexity of their simple, preoccupied and bustling life.
So she watched and watched until she became one of them. A lurking wolf in a flock of sheep.
He looked down on the two figures bowed down before him, irritation clear in his amber eyes. They weren't the ones who annoyed him but the news that they brought to tell him. He signalled for them to stand up as he shifted in his throne, "They have something against us."
"That would seem so, but we have no idea what it is, your Highness," one of the two figures spoke, his voice even and mellow, "How can we act against something we are not aware of or know nothing of?"
"I know," Syaoran said simply, rubbing his temples, "Their army is growing small, two of their most skilful fighters have been defeated and killed, their system of protection is diminishing… this war should have been ours a long time ago."
"And yet they do not surrender," the other figure stated, who was a female with long flowing raven hair, "Perhaps their king have gone mad."
"No." Syaoran objected in a whisper, "The only rational reasoning is that they have something against us that they're sure will take us down."
"What could it possibly be?" the female spoke again and then paled instantly, "Could it be that they have found the Sanglen?"
"Sanglen?" the other repeated and paled himself, "Impossible! That is nothing but a fable… a myth…"
"The Sanglen," Syaoran said thoughtfully, looking out the window, "One who walks among the tainted but can also walk when the sun is at its peak. One who possesses powers unnamed… the rumoured salvation and protector of the under world."
"Insanity!" the male figure bellowed, "Complete insanity."
He returned his gaze to his two most skilled fighters and sighed, "Being prepared is the best defence at this point. I want you two to go around cities and get as much information as you can find."
The two bowed low and turned for the door, their footsteps echoing through out the darkened dome. Behind them, their leader sat restlessly, evidently angered at the fact that he must play the wise king and delay the plan of taking over the enemy lines. Patience was a weakness of his but he had decided to keep himself at bay. The opposing side had barely anything to keep their barriers up, once everything was cleared up, it would be nothing but a piece of cake to completely ruin Yue and his resistance…
He was, after all, already winning this war…
She took a step back and willed for the man to stop his howling, her sensitive ears were hurting from the volume of his voice. "She's not worth it okay?" she said to him, patting his back lightly, "There are so much more beautiful women out there… forget about her."
He shook his head and howled louder, "I can't! I love her… too much…"
Producing another bottle of beer, she placed it in front of him and walked to the other end of the bar to serve another costumer, "Just drink it up, , and when you see that conniving woman, give her a piece of your mind." She sighed in relief as the man chugged down more of his beer and quietened down. It was a surprise that the place didn't dampen her mood or spirit, hearing other people's problems and thinking about them and not her own made her feel somewhat comforted.
The other costumer was younger, but a more recent costumer compared to . He was in his 30's and loved mulling over his unhappy career and how he had not been able to find a decent woman for nearly 4 years. Sakura grimaced at his appearance as she stepped closer to him, he smelt like he had not washed himself for days. This man, Sakura noted, although miserable, never once shed a tear in her presence. He would speak to her in a drone-like whisper, more to himself than to her, and intoxicate himself until he would fall asleep, drooling on the bar. Sakura hated cleaning after him.
"Whiskey shots or bottle of beer?" she asked and watched as he brought his fingers to shape a beer bottle in the air in front of her. "Beer then."
She placed 3 bottles in front of him and looked up at the clock above her head. It had only been 2 hours since her shift started and it was proving to be boring one. Most of the costumers were already too drunk to spurt out stories worth listening to, even if they were the same ones they would tell her repeatedly. She looked to the door and wished for more costumers, preferably a new one since she had about memorised the tales of the others. Unfortunately, they rarely got new costumers thanks to the shabby appearance of the tavern which doesn't even stand a chance against the modernised clubs down the road. On top of that, Aryan was not the best hostess; she enjoyed throwing people out if she felt like it and making trouble if things did not go to her wishes. Even Sakura could not grasp the rationality of the old short woman, but never once did Aryan direct her anger and tetchiness to her favoured bar tender. Sakura's punctuality, reliability and tenderness to their costumers and not to mention her surpassing beauty have lured many a men to come back again and again to their tavern, being the stable source of the tavern's income.
Gasping, she stared in disbelief as the door opened and a tall, young man entered and glided to one of the cushioned stools by the bar. He looked up at her and smiled, the gesture made her raise a brow. She had never seen the man in her life and her curiosity was apparent in her vivid emerald eyes. He was a strange creature, tall and willowy with cascading white locks that framed his small face. She found herself questioning wether he was even a man at all.
She approached him and upon closer inspection, she could not take her own gaze from his feline, silver eyes. She did not miss the blood mark on his left eye either. He too raised a brow and reciprocated the inspection. He could tell that she knew he was tainted.
"Who are you?" she asked meekly, utterly surprised since it had been years since she had encountered a vampire like herself, "And what do you want?"
He met her gaze and furrowed his brows; she did not have the blood mark so how did she know that he was tainted?
"How do you know I am what I am?" he asked in return, also befuddled. He watched as her features creased in irritation, it was clear that she did not appreciate having her questions rebuffed by questions.
"I am called Yue," he said, deciding to proceed with some tactic as he, also yearned to learn who she was, "I did not come here for anything but a glass of drink."
"We don't sell blood here," she stated dryly, "You've come to the wrong place."
"I have answered your questions, you have not answered mine." He retaliated, not at all concerned by her brusqueness. He truly did only want to drink liquor after all and was not guilty of her cold allegations. "Are you a hunter? Is that how you know?"
"No, I'm not a hunter," she said, pouring him a shot of whiskey in a small glass, "I'm Sakura and obviously, I know because of your blood mark." She spoke to him as if he was asking her the most ridiculous question she had even been asked in her life.
"How do you know of blood marks then? If you are not a hunter and you are not tainted yourself?"
She gave him a questioning glare, "I am tainted. I just don't possess a blood mark like most others like you. You must be so weak that you can't even distinguish my vampiric aura."
"How can I?" he asked baffled, "You must know that you do not have that either?"
"Really?" she muttered and laughed, "But if it is true, I wouldn't be surprised, it's probably yet one of my many birth defects." She laughed again and looked at him, surprised by his serious face. His eyes, especially, irked her; the blood mark was almost glowing amidst his silver pupil.
He smiled back at her but his gaze was growing in intensity that she had to look away, "So what brings you here?" she asked, attempting to break the ice and get the conversation flowing.
"I'm looking for the culprit for the abattoir outside," he said simply, "The stench of fresh kill lured me here."
She nodded her head to show her comprehension, "And what were you going to do to the culprit?"
"I would tell HER that mass human murder is against the dark law, especially when the killing is unreasonable and only done to satisfy blood lust."
"Her?" she enquired, feigning innocence.
"Yes, you."
"I was not aware of any such law." She pushed the whiskey closer to him, urging for him to drink it, "But now that I am aware of it, I still choose to not abide by it. I follow no law." She grinned as she knew she had succeeded in irritating him.
He remained quiet for a few minutes as he lifted the small glass to his lips and gulped it in one go. The burning sensation in his throat did not pull any reaction on his blank, serene face. "Do you not find me intimidating Sakura?"
She poured him another glass and shook her head, "Why, am I suppose to?"
"Perhaps." He said neutrally, resting his head on his right palm, "I am stronger and older than you after all."
Leaning forward, she inched closer to his ear and whispered, "Don't be so cocky."
He chuckled, "I am not."
She crossed her arms and frowned at him, "Are you challenging me?"
"No, I have a better idea. Have you been to the Cavern?" he asked and instantly knew she did not even have the slightest clue to what he was talking about.
"Cavern?"
"Why do I get the feeling that you are more human than vampire?"
Sakura glared at him menacingly, clearly insulted. She did not bother responding to his apparent rhetorical question.
"I apologise, I did not mean to offend."
"Of course not," she said, rolling her eyes, "So what's in this Cavern?"
"Something worth going to I can reassure you," he stated, drinking the second whiskey shot, "When can you take off?"
"What makes you think I'm just going to willingly let you take me to some unknown place?"
"Because it is apparent that you take pride of your strength, refusing me now means you admit defeat." He smiled up at her and watched as her features contorted from disbelief to complete exasperation, "You know I am right."
"I knew you would be a nuisance the moment you stepped-in in here," she puffed, anger dancing in her green eyes, "Wait outside by the door, I'll be there in a few minutes."
He nodded and smirked, placing a 1000 yen bill in her hands, "Keep the change. I'll be outside."
Sakura deposited the money in the till and headed to the back door which led to a small room where Aryan was. She found her sitting by her table, going through pages and pages of bills and order papers. She looked up from what she was doing and smiled warmly at Sakura, "You need something?"
"Would I be able to get off early today?" Sakura asked softly, "I think I'm coming down with something."
Aryan was quick to her tiny feet, shuffling near Sakura and placing a soft hand to her forehead, "No fever, that's good."
"It's probably a cold or something." Sakura said, smiling down at the woman.
"Off you go then! Get home quickly and get to bed." Aryan ordered, pushing her out the door, "I'll see you on your next shift."
"Thank you so much," she said, untying her black apron and putting her black coat back on, "I owe you one."
"Don't worry about it, just get better."
"By the way, there's a 1000 yen bill in the till," Sakura said, "Some retard didn't mind giving his money away."
Stepping outside, Sakura shivered from the sudden cold. The wind whipped her hair against her face and once it died down, left it in disarray. She found Yue leaning by the lamp post, his hair dancing wildly in the air. His eyes were glued to the direction of the darkened alley where the bloody corpses lay, he was pre-occupied in his own thoughts. She neared him, examining him from head to toe, "How can you walk around looking like that?" Aside from his white hair which nearly touched the floor, he was wearing an odd styled navy suit and on top of it, a flowing mauve cloak.
"You see me as you do now because you are tainted," he explained, drawing his gaze away from the metal fence of the alley way, "Ordinary humans perceive differently."
"How do you do it?" she asked curiously, "Is it magic?"
"Somewhat." He muttered and started walking down the road, "Let's go."
She looked back to the metal fence, attempting to figure out why Yue had been troubled by it. Did he not find death and blood as appealing as she did? Sakura closed her eyes momentarily and summoned some of her power. The lifeless bodies suddenly ignited and were engulfed in smouldering amber flames. In a few seconds, they crumbled into ash and were carried away by the wind, scattered like worthless dirt. Once she was certain that there was no trace of blood left on the asphalt, she hurried to follow Yue, trailing behind him quietly.
"You burnt the bodies?" he said as he raised his petit nose unto the air and inhaled, "I'm guessing you have been birth with the ability to control the element of fire?"
"Yes." She replied, surprised as to how he knew. She thought she was the only one who knew and used elemental powers, "Do you possess it too?"
"I have been birth to the element of wind not fire. Possessing elemental powers is rare and has only ever known to occur to full-blooded, noble vampires. Aside from elemental powers, there are those who are birth to other special abilities such as using magic, having the ability to heal, fighting, hypnosis… the variety is indefinite but one vampire can only but possess one unique ability. Elemental power work in the same way, when a vampire is gifted to control an element, they must stay true to one and master it."
"Is it possible to possess the power to control and master all elements?" she asked, following close behind him as they weaved through the many streets and corners of the city.
"I have not heard of such a thing to occur. To fully master the use of an element takes a lifetime to complete, the possibility is actually endless. It all depends on the perseverance, dedication and creativity of the user. Elemental power is quite malleable, its use and form is left to the imagination of its user."
"As you said, you control the elemental wind but how is it you know how to use magic?"
"A side hobby," he muttered, "A vampire's limit is only dictated by his power. Stronger vampires have the endurance to take on more than one birth ability but not completely. I had a friend teach me some magic tricks and with much practice, I can now do little bits of this and that. Although let me emphasise that these are totally minor, pathetic tricks but even so, it took me almost a decade to master them. The elemental wind is and will always be my true calling."
She listened intently, absorbing every last detail as if they were food and she was a malnourished, starving animal. She only knew of her own strength and power and nothing of the world she was suppose to belong in. The world of the tainted was a complete mystery to her.
He led her to an unlit street, adjusting her eyes, she could make out the tall, solid walls erected both to their left and to their right. Walking deeper into the darkness, Yue abruptly stopped in his tracks and sharply turned left. He took Sakura's wrist so she wouldn't fall behind. Right on the corner was a gigantic dumpster, filled to the brim with carton boxes. Beside it, a small wooden door stood ajar, it reached only to Sakura's waist. She squinted to make sure it was a door, "What in hell is that?"
"That would be the door we have to crawl into so we can get into the underground passage way." He said, squatting right in front of it, "Beyond it is a 100 m descent, it should get us to the Cavern in half an hour."
Sakura crossed her arms, "Are you serious? I don't intend to be on my knees for half an hour."
He looked at her impatiently, "It's only the door way that you need to crawl into, once you get to the other side, it's big enough to stand up and start walking down the stairs." He motioned for her to go through first but she only glared down at him and shook her head.
"Fine, I'll go in first then," he said, getting on all fours and disappearing through the door, "Hurry up."
Sakura unhappily followed suit and quickly stood up when she reached the other side, dusting off her knees. It was even darker and colder inside and it smelt of soil and grime.
"Can I procure a flame?"
He gathered his white locks to one side and binded it with a ribbon that he fished out from his pocket. "I don't see why not."
Concentrating on her right index finger, she felt the wave of the heat travel from within her and across to her arm and unto her hand until it centred upon her finger. At first it was nothing but a small ember-like spark that trembled weakly on the tip of her finger but as she put more effort into it, the flame instantaneously shot out and flew to the ceiling, making a blackened soot mark on the cement over their heads. Sakura eased on her power little by little until she only had the amount of fire she wanted. She grinned at Yue's glare, "Shall we start descending then?"
"You are far from properly controlling your elemental," he stated flatly, "Now I am somewhat regretting taking you here."
"Shut up and start walking," she snapped, "I can control it fine."
They started descending down the flight of stairs, Sakura leading the way with her dazzling, bright flame. The further they went, the colder and darker it got. Sakura's heart was racing with excitement, she didn't know what to expect.
What exactly is this Cavern?
A/N: that's it folks! hope it wasn't too confusing? . let me know what you think, all comments, suggestions, flames, anything are welcome. lol it didnt turn out to be a one-shot after all. i cldnt resist!
wana take a guess as to what the Cavern is and what's in it?
hope u guys enjoyed reading as much as i enjoyed writing that. and it is nearly 4 in the morning...
luv, the authoress
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