It's modern day. The streets are rife with violence; corporations
are corrupt; assassinations, commonplace.
Himura Kenshin, known only as Battousai, is a shadow assassin for an
organization so secret even he doesn't know who
truly runs it. BUT
Battousai has an even bigger secret; one that if it were ever discovered would
mean more than his death...it would end in the total annihilation of his
soul. Battousai is not only the
deadliest assassin to ever prowl the dark streets of night...he is also a
vampire, one of the oldest still in existence…and a rarity among his kind.
He has a soul.
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Rurouni Kenshin & Samurai X Original Japanese Version ©N.
Watsuki/Shueisha * Fuji-TV * SME Visual Works Inc. * Sony Pictures
Entertainment
All Fanfics created by Chiruken (me) were
written for the sole purpose of shared entertainment and not intended for
publication or sale.
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Tears of Eternity
by: Chiruken
Kaoru
sat down heavily on the well-used and comfortable chair in the crowded waiting
room, throwing a slender arm across her face, features pinched and pale, in an
attempt to blot out the bright light bearing down on her from the fluorescent lights
overhead to stab into her eyes, aggravating the throbbing headache threatening
to take the top off of her head. Why
hadn’t she realized before how painful bright lights could be? She moaned softly and tried to blink
quietly.
It
hurt to think…heck it hurt to breathe, never mind anything else. The noise from the other patients crowding
into Dr. Genzai’s waiting room pressed in on her, beating at her hearing,
delving into her mind, threatening to drive her insane from the pain. The scuffling of feet, the sporadic
coughing, the screech of hinges that need oiling badly…the noise was becoming
unbearable and Kaoru moaned in agony again.
She raised a shaking hand and gingerly massaged her temples, carefully
keeping her eyes closed. When that
didn’t help, she went back to simply holding her head and trying not to think
to loudly.
The
jangling sound of a telephone ringing sounded loud enough to be an explosion of
nuclear proportions and Kaoru whimpered, tears leaking out the corners of her
eyes. She should’ve stayed at
home. It was relatively quiet there,
her room blessedly dark, and she had access to soothing cool ice packs to place
on her head. God but it hurt!
A
gentle hand rested on her shoulder.
“Kaoru?” She lowered her hands
slowly and blinked at the soft voice speaking her name with quiet concern. She found herself staring into the anxious
eyes of Dr. Genzai’s assistant, Dr. Takani.
“You can come in now. Do you
need some assistance?”
Kaoru
tried to swallow, but found her throat suddenly unbearably dry. “Yes…please…” She whispered, her voice
sounding hoarse and unused.
The
doctor reached down and carefully helped the young woman to her feet, alarmed
by her unnatural pallor. When Kaoru leaned
heavily on her for support, she quickly placed an arm around her for added
support and hurriedly moved her into the waiting examining room.
Twenty
minutes later, Kaoru emerged feeling somewhat better and armed with a
prescription for iron pills to treat her severe anemia and another for
medication to treat her migraines. She
turned at the door and smiled at her doctor and friend. “Thank you, Megumi.” She whispered quietly.
Takani
Megumi folded her arms over her chest and leveled a reproving glare at the
younger woman. “Next time, don’t wait
so long. And I want you to come back in
three days so we can check your blood again.”
The doctor frowned and raised a hand to rub the side of her nose. “I want to get to the bottom of your low
blood sugar readings. It’s a miracle
that you didn’t go into shock! Next
time you feel like that, drink some orange juice to get your glucose up again,
you hear?”
Kaoru
nodded and smiled sheepishly. “I’m
sorry, Megumi. I should have known
that.” Turning for the door she waved
over her shoulder. “See you in a couple
days.”
“Hold
it…” Kaoru turned slowly back to the older woman. “You aren’t driving, are you?”
When she shook her head the doctor nodded. “Glad to hear that. Do
you want me to call a cab?”
“No
thanks. I don’t have that far to
walk. Thanks again.”
“Be
careful.” Megumi watched as the young
woman exited, an odd feeling of doom settling in the pit of her stomach. Somehow she just knew that she shouldn’t
have let Kaoru leave by herself. Shaking
off the odd thoughts, she silently berated herself. There was nothing else she could’ve done. Kaoru was a big girl and didn’t need her
doctor to baby-sit her.
Kaoru
closed the door firmly behind her, turning to survey the dark and nearly
deserted street before moving away from the familiar shelter of the clinic’s
entrance, heading in the direction of her apartment building. She frowned slightly, observing how the pain
of her migraine was rapidly diminishing now that she wasn’t caught beneath
glaring fluorescent light bulbs. With a
soft sigh, she walked away from the comforting familiarity of the clinic,
marveling at the crisp clarity of the night being brought into sharp focus. It was no longer a surprise that she could
see so well in low-light areas. She
wasn’t certain if that realization should frighten her or bring relief. Thrusting the disturbing thoughts from her
mind, she quickened her pace, feeling an inexplicable surge of energy course
through her body creating an excited flush and increased heart rate. She drew in a deep breath, inhaling the
scent of a sleeping city, sifting through the unpleasant odors and reveling in
the fresh aromas wafting to her of gardens and dew damp grass.
Steps
faltering, Kaoru frowned. “Gardens and
grass?” She whispered and looked around
uncertainly. She was surrounded by a
concrete jungle…fresh country scents were not commonplace in an area like
this. She shook her head and continued
walking briskly through the night, increasing her pace when she heard a scuffling
footstep fall into stride behind her.
Glancing over her shoulder, she sucked in a sharp breath, fear racing
along her spine. She walked faster
until she was nearly running up the deserted street, the street lamps
flickering in the night, her steps echoing off the close buildings, her
pursuer’s strides followed.
Kaoru
felt fear begin to overcome her common sense as the footsteps behind her closed
the distance rapidly and, giving up all pretense of caution, she bolted in
panic, running without thought, fleeing the terror gaining on her. Eyes wide with growing desperation, she
looked all around for possible salvation, knowing deep in her heart that it was
a futile hope. The streets were empty
save for herself and whoever was chasing her, quickly closing the gap between
them until she could feel hear his labored breathing and thudding pulse.
She
opened her mouth to scream for help and was roughly shoved into the dark
yawning opening of a nearby alley, falling to her hands and knees, she choked
on a gasp of pain as her palms scraped agonizingly over the jagged and gravelly
cement. Frantically she tried to crawl
away into the concealing darkness and cried out when she was kicked viciously
in the side, falling against the brick wall of the passage. She blinked up through her dark hair falling
into her eyes, coughing as she pressed her arms against her bruised ribs, and
cringed at the sight that greeted her.
Looming
above her, a large man reeking of alcohol and stale sweat leered with a hungry
gleam in his eyes. Reaching down with
huge, pawing hands, he grabbed her by the front of her blouse, hauling her up
and closer to him, grinning at his easy victory. In desperation, Kaoru swung her purse, catching her attacker
weakly against the side of his shaggy head.
With a snarled oath he backhanded her across the face with one large,
meaty hand, snapping her head back sharply and releasing her at once, allowing
her to falling heavily to the ground.
“H-help…me…” She whimpered as he loomed above her, his bulky form
menacing in the gloom of the alley, smirking as he grabbed her by the hair and
slapped her roughly a few times.
Tears of pain,
fear, humiliation, and impotent anger fell unchecked down her pale cheeks,
dripping from her chin, mingling with the blood tricking from the corner of her
mouth. No one would come. No one cared.
She whimpered again
at the sound of cloth ripping, her slender form jerking with the motion as
rough hands tore her blouse from her bruised and aching body. The cold, hard concrete beneath her bit into
her battered flesh as she was shoved roughly onto her back, her torn and
muddied skirt pushed up past her hips.
She
choked on a sob, squeezing her eyes shut tight as she felt her undergarments
being seized by rough, grasping hands. Somebody…help
me…please…She couldn’t stop the desperate, hopeless thoughts. She gasped in pain as the cruel fingers dug
into the tender flesh of her thighs. No
one would come. No one cared.
Suddenly
her attacker jerked away. Shocked,
afraid, she opened her eyes and stared, stunned disbelief quickly turning to
sick horror as the warmth of freshly spilled blood splashed across her, the
metallic scent strong in the air. Her
lips parted on a soft gasp and she nearly gagged on the sweet, tangy flavor of
the blood, appalled at her sudden craving for more. She stared up into coldly amused amber eyes and trembled with
growing unease as her rescuer slowly leaned down to lift her by her arms, lips
curved into a mocking smirk.
**To Be Continued…**
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