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 stared, hopelessly transfixed,
captured by the enthralling golden gaze of her rescuer, encircled within his
strong arms, her bruised and battered body held with surprising gentle care, a
sharp contrast to the fierce expression tightening the features of the harsh
planes of his face. She drew in a
quick, shallow breath, heart thudding painfully within the tight confines of
her chest, and winced at the sharp twinge of discomfort jolting through her
injured ribs. As the moment stretched
into eternity and the tense silence reigned, she began to feel decidedly
anxious and licked her lips in a nervous gesture, tasting the salty sweetness
of her attacker’s blood and something else, something bitter and
nauseating. She barely resisted the
urge to gag and glared at the amusement filling the amber depths studying her
with disconcerting intensity.
She turned her head away, tearing her
gaze from the mesmerizing golden stare, focusing on the first thing her eyes
fell upon, and gasped, paling as she felt the nausea rise up again. It was like in her dreams. So much blood… She thought with a shudder, filled with a
mixture of sorrow and horror, with an underlying sense of morbid fascination.
“Yes…Great oceans of it…coaxing,
beckoning to you. Can’t you hear its
seductive call?” She trembled at the
low, purred words, her startled gaze flying back to his, and she struggled
against his superior strength, uneasily aware that it was an effort in futility. “Why fight it? It’s in your nature, Kaoru.”
Sapphire blue eyes going wide with
growing alarm, Kaoru shivered and swallowed convulsively, rising fear
constricting the movement. “How do you
know my name?” She whispered through
trembling lips, dread filling her as he continued to stare at her with his
mocking golden gaze, expression smug and knowing.
“There are many things that I know about
you, Kamiya Kaoru.”
Frantically, she fought to free herself
from his relentless hold, panic rising with the certainty that she’d exchanged
one dire and hopeless situation for something far worse. Drawing in a quick breath, she screamed for
all she was worth, kicking out at the larger man’s shins desperately and then
pummeling his chest with her clenched fists helplessly when he lifted her off
of the ground, effectively removing her leverage and ability to kick, holding
her flush against his hard muscular body.
His low chuckle brought her up short.
She stared at him in shock, eyes wide and terrified, her labored breath
coming in soft pants as she held herself rigidly within his embrace.
“Are you finished?” Carefully lowering her until her feet rested
on the ground again, the man with the uncanny eyes released her and shrugged
out of his dark jacket, draping it around her shoulders. He smirked at the incredulous look in her
expressive blue eyes. “What? Did you wish to remain naked?”
Kaoru
flushed hotly and clutched the edges of the jacket tightly together as she sank
to the ground again, her knees refusing to support her weight. “Of course not!” She snapped irritably and glared furiously up at the man who’d
rescued her only to threaten her and then insult her. “Who are you?” She glared
up at him, deciding to cover her fear by brazening the situation our and
pretending to have more courage than she actually possessed.
Before he could answer sound at the
entrance to the alley drew their attention.
Kaoru’s eyes widened in astonishment.
“Kenshin?” She whispered
uncertainly, staring in bewilderment at the darkly clad man swiftly
approaching, strides silent, stalking, resembling the graceful movements of a
deadly predator more than those of a man.
The alert, predatory amber gaze roved
over the tight confines of the shadowed alley, taking in the details for
instant analysis, missing nothing, finally coming to rest on the man looming
above Kaoru’s disheveled form.
“You!” Drawing his sword, he
attacked, golden eyes narrowed and glittering with unrestrained fury. “Saito!”
The snarled challenge was unmistakable, neither was the gleaming blade
whistling through the air followed by the harsh metallic clang of steel meeting
steel.
“It’s been a while, Battousai.” The man identified as Saito smirked
condescendingly at the shorter man as he deftly parried the enraged swings of
the sword.
Skillfully maneuvering until he was
between Saito and Kaoru, Kenshin returned the other man’s smirk with an icy,
implacable stare, contempt evident in his uncompromising bearing. “What are you doing here?” His voice was velvet smooth, deceptively
mild, sending shivers of apprehension and something more racing along Kaoru’s
spine.
“Answering a call for assistance.” His eyes narrowed briefly, taking in the
protective stance of the other man, noting the possessive gleam in his narrowed
eyes with dry amusement. “You?”
“That is of no concern to you, Saito
Hajime.” His eyes flicked briefly over
the corpse of Kaoru’s attacker, seeing the unkempt appearance, knowing that
this was the man who had threatened her.
His gaze paused over the pool of blood before moving back to the gaping
wound where his throat used to be, quickly sheathing his sword with a fluid
motion, turning a little away from Saito, his hand hovering over the smooth
hilt. “Your work?” He asked softly, low tones permeated with
quiet menace as he focused entirely on the taller man standing a short distance
from him.
With a sharp nod of affirmation, Saito
shifted his stance, becoming tensely alert, leading leg straight, the other
partially bent at the knee supporting the majority of his weight, sword held
parallel to the ground, and prepared himself to spring forward in his
specialized powerful thrusting attack to meet the smaller man’s own attack head
on. “It seemed necessary.” His lips curved into a deliberately mocking
smirk, intentionally goading his opponent in a blatant attempt to unnerve him
enough to take away his edge.
Kaoru watched the exchange with wide,
frightened eyes, uncertain how her sweet and mild mannered neighbor could
suddenly be displaying what appeared to be homicidal tendencies. She blinked in surprise and shook her head
sharply, a blurred image from her dreams entering her mind, stunning her with
sudden horrified understanding.
“You!” She cried, scrambling to
her feet. “It was you!” She began to hastily back away when
Kenshin’s narrowed amber gaze moved to her briefly before swinging back to
watch the taller man warily.
Slowly, Saito lowered his blade, shaking
his head with an amused smirk. “Well,
well…you’ve been careless, Battousai.”
“Shut up.” He focused his attention fully on the other man, clearly
irritated by his amused, drawling observations. “What re you doing here?”
His stance relaxed minutely, his hand slowly moving away from the hilt
of his sheathed sword as he straightened to glare at Saito.
Kaoru’s retreat was halted by a wall
signaling the end of the alley. With a
scowl she pressed herself against the cold, damp bricks and watched the
exchange between the two men with narrowed eyes. There was no doubt in her mind now that the man she’d witnessed
in her dreams killing in the dark shadows of night was Himura Kenshin, her
neighbor and a man to whom she still owed a cup of sugar. Somehow she knew that the dreams hadn’t just
been symbolic…they’d been real. “Oh God…”
She whispered. “I’m attracted to a
psychotic nutcase!” Two pairs of amber
eyes swiveled to face her with identical incredulous expressions in their
golden depths. She blinked, a hot flush
of embarrassment creeping up her neck into her face when a low chuckle echoed
through her mind.
Attracted to a psychotic
nutcase? Such an accurate description,
my dear.
Kaoru glared at the tall man wearing the
mockingly amused expression. “Stay out
of my head.” She didn’t know how she
knew it was him, but she was certain that the hateful words belonged to the man
named Saito.
Kenshin turned back to his rival. “What do you think you’re doing, Saito?”
Kaoru drew in a sharp breath in surprise
as an image of an enormous stone wall appeared within her mind’s eye. She focused on Saito again when he began to
clap slowly, sword sheathed again, lips curved into a taunting smile. “Impressive. You’ve improved, Battousai.
However, “ All pretense of good humor fell away, eyes hardening as he
stared at Kenshin. “Your feeble
attempts at telepathic blocking can’t keep me out…not if I wish to be in.” Kaoru frowned uncertainly, assuming
Battousai to be Kenshin, not understanding the odd exchange, but recognized it
for the blatant challenge between two rivals that it was. “Shall I demonstrate?” Kaoru gasped in sudden pain, grabbing her
head as unbearable shards of light stabbed through her mind, paralyzing her
with excruciating agony.
Slowly she sank to her knees, a soft cry
escaping her parted lips, and blinked in surprise when strong arms caught her
up in a gentle, comforting embrace.
“Stop, Saito! She has done
nothing to deserve this!” Weakly she
rested her cheek against Kenshin’s shoulder, breath coming in harsh pants as
she tried to overcome the nausea threatening to empty her stomach. Dimly she was aware that his hand was moving
over her hair, smoothing the dark strands tenderly, his arms a protective
barrier around her, sheltering her from the other man’s attack as best he
could. She trembled at the odd thoughts
she was having about a man she suspected to be a murderer.
“Then do not presume to challenge me on
this level, Battousai!’ Saito released
his hold over Kaoru abruptly. “In this
you will never be my equal.”
**To Be Continued…**
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