RPG: The Six Wizards

[salemboy]

Damien checked his watch. They had slept for over 12 hours. It was the night after the fight already.

He turned to Ouki, who was standing next to him, looking at the moon. Damien could see the reflection in her eyes. He could also see that she was extremely tired, still. "Come, Ouki. We need our rest. I've got a bed inside for you to sleep on."

[FawkesthePhoenix]

Yuta turned to look at Inu as he spoke, having been thoughtfully examining one of the more grotesque forms lying on the ground. At Inu's urging, she willing pulled out her wand and sent out the pulse, obliterating any chance of communication fro their location. "Well," she said, walking over to where Inu stood, looking at Neko, "I'd wager a guess that Damien has not gone to the meeting place, as we had planned, but to one of his little hidey-holes. Judging from the blood," Yuta gestured at the trail of red that ended very abruptly some space away, "He, or someone he took with him, perhaps Ouki, is seriously, mortally wounded. If my previous inferences are correct, then they won't be contacting us for a while." Inu's face became angry at this, annoyed that anyone would dare disobey him in this way. "If they send anything out, it could be traced both ways, revealing us all."
"But what about the dispatch you sent me earlier?"
"They don't know how to do it, have only ever replied to one sent to them."
"So what do we do?" Yuta smiled.
"We follow suit. We go to our own little hidey-hole, do underground for awhile until the heat is past. I'm a fair healer myself, and can treat Neko, if not as well as Damien would have. So much for that concert, eh?"

[salemboy]

Damien woke up again, sweating heavily onto his bed. He had had the same dream again. This time, the zombies had only gotten to his leg, but the pain still felt very real in the dream.

Opening his eyes, he saw sunlight streaming into his room from the window. A pair of birds were perched on a beam above him that was holding up the ceiling. He could hear the ocean washing against the island's beach, and the sounds of the wildlife below.

Ouki was on the other bed across from him. She was still asleep, and was actually snoring slightly. Damien chuckled to himself. Hopefully, no fool ever told Ouki that she snored, or they'd be dead in seconds. Quietly pulling of the blankets, Damien sat up and cracked his back. It made several popping noises, until at last he was done. Reaching to his back, Damien softly felt the stitches. They were done nicely. In 3 to 4 weeks, he'd be able to take them out. It would still take a longer time to fully heal. He guessed at around 1 to 2 months. His cut was really deep, even through the muscle. He'd have to be careful on his workload.

Damien slowly got up, being careful not to stretch his muscle. Standing, he walked out to his balcony. There was a rope ladder rolled up in a ball next to it. Using his foot, Damien pushed the ladder off of the balcony. It fell until it reached it's length, held taut to the balcony by a steel bolt.

Pulling himself over the balcony, Damien began his slow descent downwards. 650 foot drop. Not a fun death. And the treehouse was only about half-way up in the tree. The muggles believed the Coast Redwood to be the tallest trees in the world. They obviously hadn't found his island. 5 of the trees on the island were over 400 feet tall. The tree he was in: roughly 1316 feet.

And they wouldn't find this island. He had every possible defensive spell put up, so that only he could get on the island, people who were with him, and people who had been there before. So far, it had only been him and Ouki.

Continuing his steady climb downwards, he realized that Ouki would be scared out of her mind if she woke up this high alone. So, with a sigh, Damien climbed back up, and awaited Ouki's awakening just outside the entrance to the room.

[Note: I really don't know how long it takes for wounds that go through muscle to heal. I just took a guess.]

[Ms. Elsewhere]

Inu clenched his fists and then looked down at Neko. She was in terrible shape, and she needed time to recover. He looked at Yuta. "I expect you have a place in mind? I will do whatever it takes to get her well again. thank you for your help." He bowed deeply to Yuta. Inu gently picked up Neko. He stared into her still, tormented face. It might take months for her to be well enough to venture out again. It was time to go into hiding for a time. Until they could make contact again with each other, Inu made his mind up to shelter with Yuta until the time was right to reconnect with Buta, Ouki and Damien. Inu laughed to himself. Would they ever be the six again? He wondered how things would be at that very moment if they had agreed to be bound. They would be crushed not to be together, the six of them. He wondered if magical binding felt like how he felt about Neko; he was mad for her, and was struggling to breathe just from the sight of her suffering. He turned to Yuta. "Take us away from here. We will hide for a time, and recouperate. I'm sure Neko will enjoy a good outing when she's feeling better... yes... pity about Tokyo."

[FawkesthePhoenix]

Yuta giggled inwardly as Inu gave a regal bow. Say what you will about Inu, but never say he wasn't courteous. Outwardly, she gave a regal nod and thought for a moment. Would it wise to take them where she planned? Another secret of hers would be lost. Surely it would be much safer for her to lead them somewhere else, anywhere else... But as she looked down into Neko's pale face, she knew what she had to do. Despite feeling separate, apart from this group in many ways, she had grown fond of all of them, and really didn't want to see Neko dead. Or Inu if she died.
"I know of a place," she said, resigning herself to revealing a part of her life, "but it will be... hard... for you to get in. Not impossible, but... a challenge." Yuta looked up at Inu, who nodded, his face set as he looked down at Neko. "You have to trust me." Yuta said, meeting Inu's eyes. "Not the way you have confidence in my abilities, but the way you trust a friend." Inu looked startled, but hid it quickly. Yuta didn't know what was going through his mind right now, but had a feeling she didn't want to know. So without a word, Yuta placed a firm hand on both Inu and Neko, and turned on the spot to Apparate.
They appeared in a dusty alleyway, riddled with broken glass and garbage, but without any people. There never was, except for Yuta. She walked crisply down its length, not bothering to see if Inu was following with Neko.
Eventually Yuta stopped by a rusting metal trash can. "Inu," Yuta said softly, "give me Neko." At Inu's strange look she elaborated, gesturing towards the can. "You won't fit in at the same time." Inu nodded silently, and handed Neko into her arms. My, but she's frail, Yuta thought to herself absently as she carried Neko's weight with ease. With a jerk of her head as instruction, Inu lifted the lid of the garbage can, wrinkling his nose at it with slight distaste. "It's perfectly hygienic," Yuta said as she stepped into the rusty thing. "Now, see where my feet are? Put them in the same place when you get in, until you're ready. When you are, then just--" Yuta shifted her feet into the center of the trash can and felt herself sink into the bottom with a slight whooshing sound. As always, it brought back the memories of the first time she entered, the awful test of her worth and the facing of her fears in their purest form. Now, though, having done it many times before, it was just like falling down a dark hole, which was scary in itself, but preferable to what it could be.
Lead here by a friend, once, Yuta counted their destination as one of her favorite places in the world. A labyrinth of tunnels twisting beneath the city built by long dead generations past, it was soothing and a comfort. Yuta didn't know what it would be like after their little vacation, if Inu would come back. The space had been all Yuta's, her friend having been killed by Aurors a few years back, and she hadn't seen anyone in the place since. While the underground place wouldn't have the best environment for healing, it was the best she had other than a few islands in the South Pacific, which were far too risky to go to. Their existence was known and the occasional witch or wizard sometimes came, thinking to claim one for their own. This place was nice and unknown, comfortable even; Yuta had spent years stocking supplies and necessities into the storerooms, preparing for such a time as this.
Landing surprisingly softly upon the floor of the entrance tunnel, Yuta waited for Inu to pass or fail.

[salemboy]

Ouki awoke quietly, hardly making a sound. She had slept soundly throughout the night. Rubbing her eyes, she sat up in bed. She was wearing a nightgown, one that Damien had conjured for her.

Standing up, she walked out to the balcony. Damien was waiting there, the sun going down across his face. He was also sweating slightly from the sunlight. She walked over to him and gave him a hug. "How's your back," she asked quietly.

"It's fine. It'll heal in a few weeks," Damien replied as he went over to the edge of the balcony. There was a bamboo rail along the edge, allowing for Ouki to see where it stopped. "Ouki," Damien began. "I want for you to prepare yourself when you come over here. It's REALLY high up."

Ouki snorted. "And still you think that I'm a little kid, Damien." She walked briskly and confidently over to the rail and looked over the edge. Just as soon as she did so, her eyes widened, her face went pale, and she just about wet herself.

Ouki felt Damien pulling her backwards. "I tried to warn you," he said quietly. Sitting her down on the floor, he sat down next to her, and said, "This is the tallest tree in the world. No muggle on Earth knows about it. This island... is one of the few places that only I know of. We will stay here, and rest for a few weeks, until I heal and until I can restock my potions."

Ouki nodded, not able to say anything. She could not believe how high up she was. And she had thought the ferris wheel was scary. "Don't worry, Ouki, you'll get used to it. Just give yourself a day or two."

[Ms. Elsewhere]

Inu stood alone for a moment, pondering what he had just been told. He had to trust someone, simply trust them, as a friend. He felt his heart ache again. He had never felt this way before, the way he felt about Neko. He had always looked to improve his own situation by surrounding himself with people who were like him. But he DID care about them all; he wanted to help Ouki when she came to him looking for the same things he was. He wanted to be around all of them, not just because they were powerful, but because they were important. And now Yuta had saved HIS life, and it wasn't a matter of being even, it was a matter of where do we go now? They had history, and they could have a future too. He wanted a future with Yuta as his friend. He stepped into the rubbish bin and closed his eyes. "Led here by a friend." he muttered, and a whooshing sound blew past his ears as gravity failed him and his stomach hit the roof of his mouth. He couldn't even yell out, he was falling that fast. But he felt excited, like a child on a rollercoaster. He collapsed at Yutas feet, but did not get up right away. He looked up at her, and he smiled. No matter what happened now, he was going to be stronger for it. He liked the feeling, because it was the feeling the old Inu liked the most - the feeling of gaining something powerful.

*******************************

(This part would appear in the same spot in the chapter, but I put ****** there to show I'm writing about Ouki)

Somewhere else equally secret, Ouki stared out over the tree tops. She would get used to all the things that caused her fear. She often thought about what hell would be like, and she decided it would be her in a room with all of her fears at once. She decided to knock them off, one by one, so that the only fear left would be loosing someone she loved. She laughed out loud as she looked down. Usually, the only place to go when you hit rock bottom is up, but in this case, she had a long way to go to get back down. They would stay here for a while, not just for Damien to heal and restock, but for her to gain more power but not being a slave to any of her fears anymore. She turned and looked at Damien. "Teach me to climb these trees." She said, "And I will teach you to play." And she took her ______________ (forgot the name but don't want to risk loosing this page!) out and started to play it. The sound filled the stillness and the wind started to pick up, catching Ouki's long, whispy hair.


Next: Chapter 2 The Reformed

[salemboy]

And Thus begins Chapter 2 of the story of the Six Wizards


Damien blew a long, steady note. It resounded throughout the island as it traveled through the air from tree to tree, all the way until it reached the shoreline and was lost in the sound of the waves washing against the sand.

Then another note came, not from his Shakuhachi, but from a different one, just a few feet to his left. It was a slightly higher decibel level, and then slowly did a decrescendo until it stopped.

The second sound came from the Shakuhachi that Ouki was playing. They both paused for a minute, taking deep breaths. Then they began playing a rendition of "Sakura, Sakura" a song that originated at around the 19th century in Japan, or at least, so Damien heard.

When they finished playing the song, they paused for another few minutes or so. "That was fun," Damien said.

"Yeah," Ouki concurred. "Hey, you want to climb down now, Damien?"

"Sounds fun, let's go." They both dropped their Shakuchachis as they swung backwards on their branch. Hanging on to the branch with their legs, they dangled downwards, the fact that their shirts were tucked into their jeans being the only thing that stopped their shirts from falling downwards.

"Ready..." Ouki said. Damien started looking at a possible route he could travel... then he chose it. "Set..." He was beginning to feel the blood go to his head, the sweat as he awaited her mark. "GO!" Ouki yelled.

As soon as she yelled "GO!" both of them unlatched their legs from the branch and began falling Earthward. Damien immediately began directing himself towards a branch just a few yards forward from the starting point. Grabbing onto it, he swung and jumped from there to a nook in the tree. Letting go from there, he fell several yards before grabbing onto a smaller branch. The branch bent several feet, slowing Damien's descent, before snapping and allowing him to drop again. He began directing himself towards a group of branches leafing together. Landing in the group of leaves, he felt sticks and thorns poke at him as he went through the branches. Just as he felt his feet leave the group, he grabbed onto a branch, and hung there. Climbing down slowly, he eventually got a look beneath it. He was ten feet from the ground.

Dropping the rest of the way, he pulled a few bugs off of him as he looked for Ouki. Just half-a-second later, a loud thud could be heard as Ouki landed right behind him. Damien turned to see her standing up. Her hair was infested with twigs and leaves. Damien went to her saying, "Let's head back to the house and get you cleaned up."

Ouki laughed. "You don't look much better yourself."

"Well, then we can both clean up," remarked. "But we have to get there to clean up, still. So let's go." They began walking back to the house. Both having memorized the landmarks, they found the house without a problem.

They both began ascending the ladder, with Damien first. The ladder swayed and shook as they climbed, but with both having climbed the ladder many times, it scared neither of them. Eventually, Damien reached the top, and gave Ouki a hand up over the balcony. They went into the room. It was now decorated with but one bed, the other being replaced with a couch. The blood stain of when they'd first come was covered by a fur rug made from one of the local wild cats. There was a pipe from which they obtained fresh water from the ground, and the roof was now fitted with a little door that could be opened to view the stars.

Damien went over to the couch, and Ouki sat on the floor in front of him. He began picking out the leaves and sticks and bugs. As he did so, Ouki said, "Damien..."

"Yes, Ouki?" Damien asked. He pulled out a particularly nasty bug and threw it out of the window.

"It's been two months since we separated from the others." Her voice was restrained. "And... I think that we should go back and find them." She awaited Damien's scolding. She knew that he disliked Inu.

Damien stopped picking the debris out of her hair. Sitting on the floor next to her, he asked, "You want to rejoin with the others?" Ouki nodded. Her fear of Damien saying no and being angry at her was obvious. He was going to say no. She knew that he was going to say no.

Then Damien did the unexpected. He leaned in and kissed Ouki passionately, holding her close for her sweet embrace. They sat there for several moments, enjoying themselves, and then they broke the kiss. "If you want to go back to the others," Damien said softly. "Then I'll go with you. We can leave tomorrow morning."

[Ms. Elsewhere]

Ouki leaned back, staring into Damien's face. She searched his eyes, her own wide with first shock, and then happiness. "You mean it? Oh!" Ouki leaped on Damien and they rolled across the floor. Ouki stopped them and sat astride Damien, looking down into his face. "You're not just saying that? You really will come with me?" She stared so contently at him and thought to herself how beautiful he was, and how perfect it would be if Damien could trully be accepting of what she had come to know as her only family. She missed Inu and worried for his safety. She felt connected to him like a sister to a brother. She had also done a lot of thinking since she had been away from civilisation.

She had aspirations she couldn't dream of implimenting on her own. She smiled at the idea of playing on each of the six and their strengths. They deserved revenge, at the very least. They were capable of trully being feared, if they had the courage and committment to really use what they had, there would be no stopping them; ever. Ouki savered the thought of shattering her last unsorted fear - being persecuted for being a monster. She didn't mind so much her bloodthirst and her insanity, but she wanted to be linked to fellowship who were the same as she was. She was no lone profile of a killer. She was a witch, and all witches need their coven.

She leaned down and kissed Damien, pushing her fingers roughly into his hair, giggling as twigs cut at her. She was so completely happy, but she was dying to get back too. She let out a tiny yelp as one twig pierced the tip of her finger. She sat up and pushed her finger into her mouth, sucking away the blood. Damien pulled her hand to him, took a look at her cut, and affectionately kissed it better, his lips staining red from her blood. He licked her blood away from his lips, the look on his face like he had been satified by a delicious meal. This sent Ouki's heart racing and she pressed her lips on his again. She was so crazy about him. And he was coming with her. They were going back.

[salemboy]

Damien reached up and grabbed Ouki, pushing her to the side so fast that he was able to stand up with her in wrapped around him. He carried her to the bed and collapsed onto the futon mattress. He looked into her face. "We can leave tonight if you want?" he pressed, his voice no louder than a whisper. Ouki smiled. "Tommorrow will be fine. I think we're ready." And they both laughed briefly before turning out the light...

[Ms. Elsewhere]

Inu woke up with the sun pouring on his face. He looked to his right and saw Neko's slender form sleeping soundly beside him in a huge, feather down futon bed. There were white curtains flowing on the edges of a window that was wide open, revealing a city view. Inu stood up, his clothes were strewn across the velvet daybed by the window, so he approached and started to dress. Neko stirred slightly, and he looked back. She faced him now, and he smiled at how beautiful she was. She had healed well, and they both enjoyed traveling by plane. The hotel was amazing, and the food was perfection. And it didnt' cost a penny. They were learning some great skills from Yuta, and it didn't have to be violent ends to all of their endeavours. Inu stared out over the city, and then something strange; it was an owl, and in it's beak, was a letter. Inu continued to stare at it, watching as it approached ever closer. The owl landed on the window sill. He took the letter and opened it, and with the same motion paid the owl with some seeds from a mix on the table. He read the one statement on it. "We're ready to reform at the meeting place, if you are willing too." It was Ouki's handwriting. We. She and Damien were returning to Japan. He didn't think to ask Neko or Yuta what they thought. He replied on the same parchment. "We will be there in 2 days. Travel carefully. " and he sent it again with the owl. He turned and lifted the hotel phone. It rang once. Yuta picked up the other line. "They have contacted us. I told them we would meet them. " there was silence. He continued. "I will go alone if you wish?" he asked.

[salemboy]

Damien was in the wasteland again. He could see the bodies again. This time, it was populated only with children. He could hear them screaming as they rose. The blood from their wounds flowed freely, foam ran from their mouths, the children with eyes were bleeding from them. They were screaming high pitched squeals that pierced Damien's eardrums.

A little girl, no older than ten, pulled out a knife. Grabbing Damien by the hand with a strength unnatural for a girl her age, she brought the knife to his index finger. Then, in what swift motion, she severed Damien's finger. Blood spurted out of it as he screamed in pain, feeling the steel go through his muscle and bone and skin. Several other children joined her, each with a knife. Damien recognised one of the little boys. It was the Japanese boy he had killed with Buta on his way back to the base. The boy took his knife, and plunged it into Damien's left eye. Damien screamed even harder, the pain searing through his entire body as the knife penetrated his eye and skull until it reached his brain. Then the boy pulled out the knife and stabbed the other eye. Damien was not longer crying, as his tear glands were gouged out. The pain. The immense, indescribable pain... Then the voice again, "Why did you kill us, Damien?"

Damien suddenly awoke. He was sweating terribly. A stewardess was talking to him, asking if he'd like a drink. Damien graciously denied, and looked to Ouki. She was awake, sipping a glass of wine.

First class, she'd asked for. So he'd gotten it. Expensive, but only if you're a muggle. "Hey, Ouki, how long until we land in Hiroshima?"

[Meeting place is not in Hiroshima.]

[Ms. Elsewhere]

Ouki swirled her blood red wine and took another sip. She looked over at Damien and nearly dropped her glass. "Are you alright?" she hissed. "you look positively ill." she put her hand up to Damiens forehead and winced. He was so hot. "What's the matter?" Ouki pleaded.

[salemboy]

"It's nothing," Damien said, putting her hand away. "I just don't like plane rides.." That was a lie. He loved plane rides, at least when he was driving... and crashing.

[Ms. Elsewhere]

Ouki let it rest, and then looked out of the window. "We're flying over Hiroshima now. We should land in 20 minutes. I booked the car, but we can choose whatever you like..." Ouki handed him the paperwork for the car and put her finger on the list of cars available.