SFU's Fan Fic Archive

He came to a stop when his arms reached one of the many lamp posts in the street. Resting himself on it, he wiped his sweat-drenched brow, ignoring the ache that followed the movement of his hand. Locks of crimson hair covered his eyes, but still he could see the street he walked on was bustling with people. Some walked past him as they feigned ignorance, pretending that he was not even there. The others stared at him as they stood still in their tracks, their wide-open eyes looking at his pathetic state in horror, curiosity, and fascination. One young man tried to help him, but he pushed the lad away, his pride refusing the notion of dependence . Of admitting that he was weak.

He decided to walk again, leaving the lamp post that supported him. He only took a few steps before a wave of dizziness overcame him. Everything around him was now a blur, disorienting him even further.The world was spinning, and the next thing he knew, his face crashed onto the hard pavement. He could hear screams in the air, probably from a frightened girl who saw him tumble like a beaten rag-doll. He didn't have the strength to move, even if he wanted to. That was solved, however, when he felt hands gripping his form. In an instant, he was raised gently off the ground. He felt himself being cradled by strong arms, supporting his weight firmly. He tried to catch a glimpse of his savior, but the rays of the afternoon sun blinded him. All he could only make up was the shape of the person, and the spectacles that reflected the light before everything became...black.

The alley was silent that day. Usually, the sounds of cats and dogs foraging for food in the numerous trashcans in the area would be evident. Even the rats were absent. It was...too silent. The passageway was dimly lit, the sun's rays obstructed by the various canopies and towering buildings above. Combined with the silence, the darkness brought a sense of gloominess to the section of the city, full of despair and hopelessness.

Iori Yagami didn't mind all this, though. He casually made his way through the area, walking at his own pace. He noticed the difference in the atmosphere of the passage that he commonly used whenever he felt the mood to go on a vagabond, drifting around the city without a care in the world. He passed it off as a slight change in the air, something not worth pondering on.

His attention, however, was drawn to a pile of neatly-stacked cardboard boxes not far from him. His could not take his eyes off it. The boxes were arranged in a systematic manner, heaped onto each other with careful attention. It projects a feeling of sturdiness and strength...something which was definitely in contrast with the alley itself. It did not belong in an area such as that, and Iori couldn't agree more. With one kick, he destroyed the illusion, tumbling down the boxes that subsequently laid scattered all over the ground. A smile formed on his lips, acknowledging his action with wicked delight. The scene was now perfect. Iori chuckled, and it suddenly burst into a maniacal laugh that rang throughout the alley. It sounded like the cries of a jackal, repetitions of the sounds of mockery.

" Tch, tch, tch...bad, bad Iori,"

Iori froze. He recognised that voice, and its owner. Slowly, he turned to face him. His slit-like eyes formed into a glare.

" Kyo Kusanagi..." Iori whispered out his caller's name.

Kyo Kusanagi was in front of him, leaning on the alley's walls. He was clad in his black schoolboy uniform, complete with white shoes and fingerless-gloves, the symbol of his clan adorning the wrists. His white bandanna kept off his long hair from his face, which was now wearing an expression of haughtiness. Smirking, Kyo raised his hand in a two-finger salute.

" Ohayo, Iori," Kyo said," I see that you're already a trouble-maker in the morning."

Iori still maintained his glare, watching Kyo closely, " What are you doing here, Kyo? Did you follow me?"

" Heh...you can't even leave those boxes alone, can you? What an immature bas..."

"ANSWER ME, KUSANAGI!" Iori growled, demanding an answer.

Kyo gave a shrug, and ceased to lean on the wall. Standing now in his full 6 feet height with his arms folded, he gave Iori a wicked grin.

" I think I will do the world a very big favour today, Yagami," Kyo said. He then raised his left hand slowly in front of him, which in an instant was covered in flames that materialised from his fingertips. The glow was brilliant; it was bright yellow merged with a reddish hue, crackling menacingly. " I'm going to kill you, " Kyo continued, the evil expression on his face was intensified by the light from the fire.

Iori, realising this, quickly responded with equal hostility. He assumed his fighting stance, preparing himself for the fight that will ensue this bickering. " So you've finally got the guts to challenge me alone, eh?" Iori sneered, " Sorry to tell you this, Kyo, but I'll be the one who'll do the exterminating today."

" We'll see about that..." Kyo said as he raised his hand, and brought it down with a sweep," IKUZE!"

In an instant, both men rushed at each other, intending to shed the other's blood. Bloodthirsty battle cries rang in the air as they pummelled each other with swift and powerful strikes. It was clear that there was no turning back from this fight; it's either kill or be killed.

" DAMN!" Iori swore as he barely blocked Kyo's punch.

" What's the matter?" Kyo jeered, " Too fast for you?"

" Shut up!!" Iori responded with a roar, pushing away Kyo's arm.

This dog is much better than I expected, Iori thought to himself. Kyo was strangely much faster than the last time they both fought. He was able to precisely anticipate Iori's offensive, evading them with much ease like an acrobat when he was about to launch them. It was also not comforting to know that his attacks were equally unpredictable. Iori had been caught by surprise at various moments when Kyo had successfully deceived him. His strikes were planted at the precise places where it would hurt the most, but not before preceeding them with fast mock punches that fooled Iori. Kyo himself was behaving differently; he was...barbaric. Kyo had been known as a fierce fighter, but he would still hold something back in battle, never fighting to the extreme. Instead, he would plan his blows like a strategist, rather winning on wits than all-out brawn, and he was respected for that, even by the Yagamis. But the Kyo that he was fighting now was like a demon.

" AAAGH!!" Iori screamed when the flames of Kyo's Oniyaki came in contact with his skin. The pain was excruciating although no traces of the intense heat that burned was visible on his sleeves; the flames damaged his internal flesh. He staggered backwards, holding his injured arm, cursing his carelessness.

Kyo, still in his fighting stance, started to laugh, " Is that the best the Yagamis can offer? Very...disappointing."

" Don't you dare insult my clan, Ky...?!!!"

Iori didn't have a chance to finish his sentence as Kyo's hand was already on his face. " You poor boy," Kyo seethed as he tightened his grip on Iori's head, " You are nothing but a little insect!". In a flash, Kyo smashed Iori onto the brick wall with an incredible force. " Argh!" Iori cried. The impact smashed away part of the wall but he was still lying in one piece on the ground, but the pain was indescribable. He felt like his spine had been broken apart. Before he could do anything, however, Kyo pulled him up again. " Pathetic Yagami," Kyo chuckled sinisterly, this time raising Iori above the ground.

" Y...you bastard...URGH!" Iori's verbal retaliation was stopped by another blow, this time head first onto the ground. Intense pain followed, numbing every part of Iori's body. Weak from the merciless blows, Iori struggled to raise himself off the ground, but fell back down again.

Kyo Kusanagi promptly kicked the fallen Iori, turning him over to face him. Standing triumphantly over his opponent, Kyo let out a chilling laugh.

" Oh dear, I think I've done it this time," Kyo chuckled.

" K..Kyo..." Iori moaned out his enemy's name in pain. Deep in his heart, he cursed himself for underestimating his rival. He was helpless now; he was at Kyo's mercy.

" You look so pitiful...let me release you from your misery..." Kyo said grimly. He slowly raised his left hand in the air, summoning his clan's deadly flames. Iori's eyes widened when he realised Kyo's intended action. " N..no..." he whispered.

" Sono mama shine, Iori Yagami....OROCHINAGI!!!!"

Bursts of flames engulfed Iori, and the alley was filled by the most horrible, bloodcurdling scream anyone could have ever heard in their entire life.

Iori opened his eyes.

This was not the alley where he was writhing in agony. He was now in a brightly-lit room that was painted in white, exuding a comforting ambience. His body ached, but at least he knew that whatever happened, he had prevailed it and managed to live another day. Iori didn't know how he managed to survive the ordeal; he still remembered the moment when the flames Kyo conjured immersed his weak and beaten form. It was horrible; a mortal without a strong will could not even hope to endure the agony without losing his sanity. The flames were like claws of a wild demon, digging deep into his flesh and surging hell's fury upon him like the potent venom of a thousand lethal creatures; the torment was so vile that he prayed for his life to be taken away right there and then. But now, as he looked up at the white light on the ceiling of the room, he whispered a prayer under his breath, grateful that he was alive.

He moved, and realised that he was lying in a soft, comfy mattress with a blanket over him. Where am I?, he thought to himself as he slowly raised himself from the bed, and then realised... his clothes were missing! In their place were bandages which barely covered his muscular physique. " What the..." Iori exclaimed.

" Oh? You're awake."

Surprised, Iori turned to the left where the voice came from. He blinked. It belonged to an Oriental woman who was sitting on a chair next to the window. She was dressed in a black pantsuit, and was holding a magazine in her hands. Her dark brown hair was short, with a silky lock covering her right bespectacled eye. She looked at Iori and gave him a warm smile.

" How are you feeling?" She asked, her voice sweet and soothing, like the sounds of a flute.

Iori didn't answer, feeling a bit apprehensive at the woman's presence. Instead, he hurled her a question "Where am I?" Iori asked, never taking his eyes away from the woman.

The woman raised herself from the chair, and slowly made her way to the bed. "The hospital. You were a walking mess when I found you falling straight to the ground in some street. The obvious place to bring you was here, since you were unconscious," she explained as she stood next to the bed. Iori scanned the woman from head to toe, and noticed that she was quite tall for an Asian woman; her height roughly matching his. He also didn't fail to notice that she had a nice figure that complimented her aforementioned trait. She was lovely, too; she had somewhat almond-shaped eyes that fitted nicely on her oval face while the round, John Lennon-esque spectacles added an adorable quality to them. Her red lips were full but not too thick. His eye, however, caught something peculiar although it wasn't meant to be obvious; her right hand was fitted by a black leather glove, while the other was not. He was puzzled by this awkwardness, but passed it off as the woman's odd sense of fashion.

" You've been asleep for about 3 hours, " she continued, " I was worried about your condition, looking at your injuries, but the doctor said that you were okay."

" Is that so..." Iori said to himself. He was surprised at his fast recovery from Kyo's attack. Judging from the pain he went through, even a week would not be enough rest for him to reach consciousness.

" If you're wondering where your clothes have gone to, it's on top of the shelf on your right."

Iori turned to that direction. Indeed, his clothes were folded neatly; his black jacket, long white shirt, red jeans, they were all there. They were clean too, the blood and dirt from his battle had disappeared. He turned to look at the woman again, this time ceasing the mistrust. Who was she? Why was a seemingly nice lady like her doing here, standing by him in his recovering slumber; a stranger waiting for him to open his eyes to the world patiently? Him, of all people; a person who would not even consider wasting his time attending to mortal weaklings, considering them beneath him, not worth his attention. A twinge of shame appeared in him, feeling guilty at receiving a civility that he was unworthy of.

" I sent it to the cleaners while you were asleep. Hope you don't mind," The woman said again. She then raised her hand to have a look at her wrist-watch. " Oh!" she gasped," I have to make a move now!" She then quickly grabbed her handbag that hung from the chair, and hastily made her way to the door.

" W...wait!" Iori called out.

" Yes?" the woman was already turning the door-knob.

" What's...your name?"

The woman gave a sparkling laugh when she heard this, somewhat amused by the question, " Is that really important? Well...if you must know, my name is Rei...Rei Hamada." She pulled open the door, and before stepping out, she smiled at Iori again, " Maybe we'll meet again someday , and then we can settle down for a proper chat." Not long after that, the sound of the closing door was heard.

Iori was now alone.

" Auuugh.."

Iori groaned as he stepped out of the hospital's main entrance. Pain followed his every movement, although it was milder now. Treading his steps slowly, Iori adjusted his clothes properly but decided he'd rather not clad himself in his tight black jacket, or else any slight motion would mean hell for him. He knew that people were looking at him, but why should he care? So what if the bruises of his battle were evident on his face? So what if he had to scare off the weakling nurses that tried to keep him in his room with his bestial roars? So what if he shoved people roughly when they stood in his way? He was Iori Yagami, and Iori Yagami doesn't CARE!

" Mr. Yagami."

" Hmm?" Iori raised his head at the call of his name. The area he stood on was bustling with people, but it wasn't difficult to spot his accoster. Standing not far before him was a woman, a blonde Caucasian dressed in black. She was shorter than him, and at the same time he remembered about Rei, and found the irony in the two women's contrasting height amusing. The woman's hair was tied in a neat bun, leaving a silky lock free to adorn the left side of her face. What drew Iori's attention to the woman, however, were her clear, blue eyes. They exuded a magnetic radiance, an aura of sensuality; Iori could not move his gaze from them. Whatever the woman was doing to attract his attention, she was damn good at it.

The woman approached him, her movement graceful and ladylike. " Mr.Yagami?" She said again as she stopped merely inches away from Iori, with a smile alluring in nature.

"Yes?" Iori responded in return, acknowledging the woman's presence.

" I have orders to escort you back to your residence," The woman replied in a voice that was hypnotic. She then motioned Iori to a sleek, black limousine parked in front of the entrance," Please follow me to the car." She immediately turned around and walked towards the vehicle. Iori wondered who the woman was, and what were her motives in inviting him. He hesitated to follow her at first, but changed his mind, thinking that refusing transport in his condition would be foolish.

A chauffer stood beside the limo, opening the door for Iori. The woman stood beside the door, letting Iori enter first. As he got in, he noticed that the woman was gazing at him intentfully. Hmm, must be my looks, Iori thought to himself with a grin. After his form disappeared from view, the woman stepped inside, and the door was closed.

Iori found the spaciousness of the limo's interior agreeable. It was dimly lit, the dark windscreen prevented the ray's of the afternoon sun from entering, but he didn't mind. The leather seat he was sitting on provided comfort to his aching body, and he silently praised himself for making a wise decision.

" Welcome, Iori."

Iori thought that the woman was talking to him, but he suddenly realised that the voice was...a man's! His eyes, scanning the dimness before him, made out two distinct shapes, sitting as they faced Iori and the blonde woman. There was another woman dressed in red, her hair cropped short, leaning against a man. The man was broad-shouldered, sitting with his legs crossed, and was wearing a black suit. His short hair, coupled with his youthful appearance, made him look like a schoolboy. At first glance, Iori couldn't quite recognise him...but he soon noticed his almost-glowing jade green eyes, and the golden earring that hung from his right earlobe. He knew who the man was, and wasted no time in saying out his name.

" Ryuhyo Orochi..."