|
|
Lady Kayura
gasped. She stood up and gripped the Ancient's Staff until her
knuckles nearly turned white. She whirled around and glared through
the living room window. Anubis stood up beside her, looking very
concerned.
"What is it?" he asked cautiously.
"We have some unwelcomed guests outside
waiting for us," Kayura stated in a low voice.
Anubis snarled. "Adrien..."
Without any other exchange of words the two
raced outside of the house. Out front they were confronted
by several ninjas. Each of them were holding a giant shuriken
as they quickly surrounded both Anubis and Kayura. They stood
back to back as the ninjas slowly approach them.
"Let me handle this, Lady Kayura,"
Anubis instructed without taking his eyes off his opponents.
She shook her head. "Anubis, you have
sacrificed your life for me. Allow me to return the favor, please."
The ninjas wordlessly attack by charging towards
them. However Anubis and Kayura were more than prepared.
They leaped into the air and landed on the other side of
their enemies. Anubis charged forth and attacked the ninja in
a
fury of punches and kicks. Kayura, on the other hand, used the
staff to dispose of those who dared to attacked her. The ninjas
were much like the Dynasty Soldiers from Emperor Talpa's evil
army--they battled in huge numbers
yet were no match for the power of good. They were quickly destroyed,
all lying on the ground but then moments later, vanished in a
puff of smoke. "Anubis, are you alright?"
Kayura asked, going over and standing behind
him.
"Not until I find Mia will I be at peace,"
Anubis stated, his eyes narrowed at the forest which laid before
them.
Unexpectedly, a huge portal materialized in
front of them. A wicked laughter was heard and it echoed throughout
the forest. Adrien stepped out of the portal, wearing his dark
armor. The portal closed and vanished behind him. He fixed his
cold ebony eyes upon Anubis and Kayura; he smirked.
"Well, I didn't expect you to still be here, Dark Warlord,"
he snorted,
ignoring Kayura's presence.
"Do not call me that," Anubis warned.
"I am no longer a member of the Dynasty no do I wish to associate
myself with them."
The other man shrugged. "As you wish...
Anubis." Kayura took a bold step forward.
"Where is Mia?"
"Oh... Mia... She is fine. Trust me."
Adrien flashed her a cold smile before he turned around and began
to make his way into the dark forest.
Enraged, Anubis growled," WHERE IS MY
WIFE!?"
He went over and reached out to grab Adrien
but gasped when he found that his hand when right through him--like
some kind of apparition. Anubis stumbled to the ground, finding
that he was suddenly out of breath. He was on his hands and knees,
his body suddenly feeling like jelly.
Kayura quickly went over and knelt beside him.
"Anubis! What's the matter?"
Adrien grinned as he continued to walk. "He'll
be fine. Just remind him not to trifle with me next time, okay?"
With those words said, he vanished into the forest.
Anubis groaned. "Where... is M-Mia...?
Bring her back!"
He managed to get to his feet without help
from Lady Kayura. His eyes were filled with anger and determination.
He did not give up that easily. And once he got his hands on Adrien,
the boy will soon realize his fatal mistake. Anubis proceeded
to follow Adrien when without warning, Mia was thrown at him from
the side. Both went tumbling to the ground; this was so sudden,
that
even Kayura had been caught off guard.
Anubis was the first to recover. He sat up and gathered Mia into
his
arms, embracing her. He stroked the back of her hair and kissed
her forehead. "Mia, I'm so relieved that you're back!"
Mia opened her eyes and smiled. She slipped
her arms around his neck and kissed him softly on the lips. She
then rested her head against his chest and said, "Anubis...
I missed you so much...!"
Lady Kayura stood and watched the two for a
moment. She was extremely happy for them but she knew that something
was wrong. The way Adrien appeared and disappeared the way he
did, the way that Mia was brought back to Anubis...
"Lady Kayura."
Shaking her head, Kayura averted her attention
away from her thoughts to Mia. She and Anubis were standing together,
arm in arm and looking over at her. Mia said to her, "Anubis
told me what happened. Thank you for helping
him..."
"I'm glad I can be of some assistance,"
Kayura replied gently. She went over and stood with the couple.
"But let's not claim victory just yet. I have a feeling that
man is up to something... Mia, can you tell us what happened between
the two? How do you know him?"
Anubis shook his head. "Let us go inside
the house first. I want to make sure Mia is really okay and then
we will start figuring out what exactly is going on."
"Very well then." Kayura glanced
at Mia. "Are you feeling well?"
Mia hesitated. "I... I don't know... E-Everything
is... is a blur to me... I..."
"Shhh, don't say anything now," Anubis
whispered softly. He kissed her forehead and lifted her into his
arms. He then carried her back over to the house with Lady Kayura
right beside him.
***
"Master,
why did you give her back to him?"
Adrien gave the ninja a side glance. "Don't
you start with me. I've waited too long for this moment. I know
that deep in my heart, Mia still cares about me. But what I don't
understand is how she and that Dark Warlord got together in the
first place!"
The ninja didn't say anything.
Adrien sighed. "It doesn't matter. Once
Anubis is out of the picture, Mia will surely come back to me.
We were so in love... why did it have to end the way it did...?"
He turned around and placed a hand on the stone
cold wall of his domain. "No, I want her to be happy. I've
told her this before--argh! What am I say!?" He slammed his
fist against the wall, his right eye glowing eerily. "What...
is happening to me...?"
"Master!" The ninja went over to
assist him but Adrien waved him away. "Leave
me be... I'm alright... I-I think..." Mia, I promise you...
we'll be together soon.
He placed a hand over his right eye and sighed.
He shook his head and slowly made his way down the empty hallways.
***
Kayura came into the living room with a glass
of water. She went over and handed it to Mia, who sat on the couch
with a blanket over her shoulders. Mia smiled as she took the
glass and said thank you. Kayura took a seat across from her and
smiled wearily. "How are you feeling?"
Mia smiled back. "A little better, thanks..."
"Don't worry. Anubis is making his rounds
about the area, to make sure that Adrien and his cronies aren't
still around."
"I-I see."
Kayura frowned. "Mia, are you sure you're
feeling well? You suddenly turned as white as a sheet."
Before Mia could respond, Anubis came back.
He was wearing his full armor but without the helmet. He looked
so bold and noble just standing there. For a few moments, Mia
was simply mesmerized. However, she felt nausea wash over
her and she turned away. She lowered her head into her hands and
sighed heavily.
Anubis immediately went to her side. He took
a seat next to her on the couch, having banished his armor; he
was now in his civilian clothing. Carefully he put his arms around
her and gently forced her to lay her head on his lap. Too dazed
to argue, Mia did as he wanted. She moved so that she put her
legs up on the couch and rested her head on her husband's lap.
She closed
her eyes as she felt his warm fingers caress her cheek ever so
softly.
"Anything out there?" Kayura asked,
her blue eyes fixed upon the warrior. Anubis
shook his head, still stroking Mia's cheek. "Mia, how is
it thatyou and this Adrien know one another?"
Mia's eyes snapped open but she remained where
she was. Kayura could feel the tension in Anubis' voice, as though
afraid of the answer he would receive. They both knew that by
the way Adrien would speak to them about Mia,
it was more than passing concern and usual taunting.
"Adrien..." Mia's voice was soft, barely audible. Never
the less, she
spoke. "Adrien was my boyfriend."
Kayura gasped. "Boyfriend?!"
Anubis simply cleared his throat, a look of uneasiness
on his face. "Please... go on, love."
"When I first met Adrien," Mia continued,
her voice a bit louder, "he was working for Talpa."
Now both Anubis and Kayura had looks of astonishment
on their faces. They knew that Mia had been well aware of the
Dynasty's existence, but not for so long! What puzzled them, was
the fact that they never heard of anyone named
Adrien before. Apparently, Mia did not notice their facial expressions
so she continued. "Adrien was Talpa's
number one assassin. He was very good when it came to his profession.
He was capable of mastering all forms of fighting styles and
weapons--you name it, he can use it. While Talpa trained his soldiers
and Dark Warlords on the surface, he also gathered together a
group of ninjas and assassins underground. He didn't want to mix
his soldiers and warlords with the assassins so he kept them secret.
However, the assassins knew of the soldiers but were not allowed
to associate themselves with them. Adrien was Talpa's most trustworthy
warrior.
"One day, my grandfather found Adrien
lying unconscious outside of my parents' home. I was living with
my mother and father at the time. I helped grandpa take Adrien
inside where we treated him. I was surprised when grandpa identified
Adrien as a warrior from the Nether Realm. Back then I was just
beginning to understand the legend of the armors, the origins
of the original Ronin Warriors, and the existence of the evil
Dynasty. "It was nearly nightfall
when Adrien finally woke up. Grandpa and I didn't know what to
expect. Oddly enough, Adrien didn't see us as a threat and introduced
himself. In turn, we introduced ourselves. I was nervous around
Adrien because I just had this weird feeling. But grandpa had
a talk with him and reassured him that we meant him no harm. Adrien
then told us that this wicked group called The Hand, a group of
killers from the outskirts
of the Dynasty, were after him. He made his way to our world but
not without having to fight off the group. He couldn't remember
what happened after he fell through Gates.
"Adrien stayed with my grandfather without
my parents knowing. I came to visit them often to see how they
were doing. Adrien was a great help to grandpa in his studies,
him being from the Netherworld and his knowledge of weapons and
armors were just out of this world!
"Over time, I developed strong feelings for
Adrien and apparently Adrien had developed feelings for me. It
wasn't long before the two of us started going out and spending
lots of quality time with one another. Everything was going so
wonderfully--it was like a dream come true. But then one day,
that all changed.
"My grandpa was going to go back to Toyama--mainly
to Shinsha University to go back to work. He wanted Adrien to
come along but he couldn't find him. I looked all over for Adrien
but he had simply vanished. He left no note, didn't call, didn't
come back--nothing. I was so heartbroken. I thought he had left
me for someone else but grandpa and I knew very well that Adrien
was not the type to do such a thing."
Mia cleared her throat and brushed aside a
lock of hair from her tense looking eyes. Anubis and Kayura could
feel her uneasiness and could see it by the expression on her
face. Both were questioning: Why? Why now? After all
this time, why would he come after her? But they refrained from
asking her this. Instead Kayura asked her another question.
"Mia, did Adrien tell you anything about
what happened to this Hand group while you were with him?"
She shook her head. "No, he didn't. All
he talked about was wanting me to come back with him."
Anubis frowned, his eyes dark and somewhat
distant. Mia glanced over at him and swallowed. She knew that
he was angry and perhaps even disgusted. Maybe even jealous of
the fact that someone like Adrien was once her lover...
Kayura said, "Mia, are you alright?"
"Huh?" Mia looked over at the blue-haired
woman. "Yes, I'm fine now... why do you ask?"
"Because you are looking very pale all
of a sudden."
"I am?"
Mia lifted her hands in front of her eyes.
Her skin was nearly chalky and shaking like she had arthritis.
Anubis took note of this and wordless picked her up. Kayura watched
as he took her into the bedroom and closed the door momentarily.
"A-Anubis?" Mia inquired softly,
her head resting on his broad chest. "What're you...?"
"You should get some rest, love,"
Anubis replied as he stopped by their bed. He lowered Mia onto
the downy pillows as though she was as fragile as an egg. He then
drew the covers up to her chest, tucking her like a father would
do for his child. Throughout all this Mia did not struggle or
speak. She actually was feeling weaker and tired by the moment.
Perhaps sleep would be the best thing. Anubis
leaned over and kissed Mia's forehead. "I will be in living
room
with Kayura. You just get some rest."
Mia nodded. "Alright."
He stood straight up and made his way to the
door. "Anubis?"
"Yes?" He turned around and gazed
over at his wife.
She smiled at him. "I love you always.
Remember that."
Closing her eyes, Mia fell fast asleep, lulled
by the sounds of the night and the warmth of the bed covers. Anubis
beamed and carefully opened the door again. Before leaving though,
he turned his head and whispered to her, "And I love you
too, Mia."
Innocent
soul now malice...
Virtuous heart now treacherous...
The great silence has arrived...
Come now, defile this gentle breath of life...
Once a part of the light... now is a part of
the dark!
Wake up!
Mia eyes snapped wide open.