Warning: this fic contains images of graphic violence, child abuse,
and gods humiliating each other. If you can't handle mature subject
matter, then I suggest you run for the hills. Now.

Thanks go out to John Conner, prereader extraordinare who keeps me in
line, and to Christopher "God-Boy" Angel, who's letting me use his SI
character. Oh, yeah, thanks to them and to Lurker and Flashman for
letting me whine to them when I got confused. =^_^=

C&C/MST's/flames/etc. are, as usual, begged for/much appreciated. 

Enough chatter - on with the fic!

*~*

	Darkness. Nightmares. And the bittersweet ache of memory . . . .
	An icy, bitter blizzard wind whipped through the forest, searing the
coldness through his thin clothing, down through the flesh, down to
the very bone. The darkness that surrounded him was so thick and
malevolent that his shivering escalated to trembling. A thick
maelstrom of snowflakes made it almost impossible to see further than
six inches in front of his face. The floor of the forest was covered
with grey maple leaves, leaves frozen so stiff that they sliced
through his bare feet like razors with every step he took. Thin
rivulets of verdant blood traced back his path through the woods.
Despite those obvious hardships, he staggered on through the gloom,
the thin tatters of clothing he wore doing nothing to shield him from
the intense cold.
	After what seemed an eternity, he reached a small sheltered copse.
The snow had dwindled to a light, gentle drift; tiny clumps of soft
grasses dotted the exposed ground. Faint starlight danced upon the
snow, an entrancing ballet that seemed to invite him to rest his weary
bones to rest.
	One swollen, frostbitten foot touched down in the circle of light.
The forest floor shifted slightly; there was a hollow crack of ice;
and he found himself flailing in the air as the ground crumbled under
him, sending him plummeting through to the very bowels of the earth .
. . .

Tora-chan Productions, Ltd. presents:

*~* Namida no Tokoshinae - Eternity's Tears *~*

Book I: Shinketsu no Akuma - Demon's Blood

Chapter 3

	. . . . After what seemed like hours of falling, he abruptly crashed
into the hard-packed dirt floor with a sickening thud. "Ohhh, kuso,"
he groaned, clutching his right arm, which had taken the brunt of the
blow. He had apparently fallen into a largish subterranean cave;
smooth and domelike, it sent shivers up his spine just looking at it.
"What happened?"
	A soft chuckle echoed from behind him. He whirled around and dropped
into a defensive stance, but no one was there. More laughter, the
cruel, teasing laughter of children, swelled around him. Memories,
things he had kept repressed in his soul, began to swim before his
eyes. "Who are you?" he shouted out to the empty cavern, his eyes
frantically searching for the source of the laughter. "Dammit, show
yourself!"
	"Why'd you hurt me?"
	He turned around to see a young boy, perhaps nine or ten years old,
laying on the ground in a pool of blood. The child's left arm was
shattered; bone jutted out of the wound at odd angles, a touch of
white amid the crimson. Bright arterial blood spurted from the wound
with every heartbeat. "Why did you do this to me?"
	Time seemed to stop; having his memory confront him was almost too
much to bear. "No," he whispered, backing away from the apparition.
"Gomen, I'm sorry . . . . Don't do this to me . . . please, don't-"
	"Why did you kill my husband?"
	Behind him was a young mother, cradling an infant in her arms. At her
feet was the dismembered body of a man in a suit; a small gun was
still loosely held in one lifeless hand. "He was just trying to
protect us, to keep us safe. Why did you take him from me?"
	As she stepped towards him, other faces began to melt out of the
darkness. They all held their hands out, beseeching, crying out to him
for answers he could not give.
	"Why did you kill my brother?"
	"Why did my mother have to die?"
	"My father -"
	"My brother -"
	"My child -"
	"- why did you take them from us? Why . . . ?"
	He clutched his head, covering his ears, and squeezed his eyes tight
against the tears that threatened to spill forth. "Stop this," he
moaned. "Please . . . I'm sorry, I'm so sorry . . . please . . . stop
this . . . . Stop this . . . . STOP THIS!!!"
	" . . . . "
	" . . . . I'm sorry . . . . "
	The tiny whimper shot through his heart. He whirled around;
everything else instantly vanished as he sank to his knees in agony.
"Oh, Kami-sama, not this . . . . "
	Before him was an image of himself as a small child: dirty, ragged
clothing hanging loosely on a gaunt frame, with a shaggy mop of hair
obscuring his face as he knelt on the floor and wept. 'Sumimasen, I
didn't mean to . . . . '
	*You disobeyed me, boy,* a disembodied voice rumbled from every
corner of the chamber. The barely restrained fury in that voice seemed
to drip from every word. *I warned you what would happen if you
disobeyed me again-*
	The child huddled up even tighter and began sobbing, his whole body
trembling in fear. 'Please, I- I'm sorry! I promise I'll never do it
again! Please . . . please . . . .'
	There was a sharp crack - a flash of something moving - and the
little boy screamed as a whip-like object sliced into his back. The
whip continued to come down - crack! crack! crack! - until his sobs
had died down to whimpers and his shirt was soaked and dripping with
blood. 
	The young man fought against himself, but it was no use; he broke
down into desperate sobs, his weeping a vocal complement to his past
suffering. His strong shoulders shook uncontrollably; tears began to
splash down upon the dirt floor. "Please . . . ." he hiccuped between
sobs, "please stop this . . . . I'm so sorry . . . . "
	"Murderer."
	Bricks and stones suddenly began to pelt him from all corners.
Steel-toed boots kicked him; whips and chains beat through the flesh
until the bone broke and blood spilled around him in a pool of deepest
green. Living and dead, all of his victims surrounded him, damning him
for his sins by beating him, tearing his soul to pieces with their
words.
	"You killed my son, bastard. I hope you rot in hell forever!" 
	"You left my husband to die! Why did you kill him?!?"
	"Why did you murder my son? He was just a child!"
	"Soulless bastard!"
	"Cold-blooded murderer!"
	"Killer!"
	"Butcher of children!"
	"NO!!" He curled up into a tight ball, trying futily to block out the
sounds of his accusers. "I'm sorry . . . . Please . . . . Kami-sama,
*please*!!!"
	"No god will forgive you now."
	He glanced up hesitantly at the sound of that sweet voice, a voice
now hardened with anger, and openly let the tears flow at the sight of
the revulsion that marred her face. "No . . . . Ai shiteru . . . . I
love you . . . . please forgive me-"
	Towering above him, Momiji's beautiful green eyes hardened into steel
as she drew out the sword of her ancestors. "I hate you," she said
flatly, her words cold as ice.
	"Momiji-chan, *please*-"
	- and the blade swung down -
	And that was when Kusanagi Mamoru woke up screaming.

*~*

	"Fuu-chan, you can't possibly mean that - "
	Hikaru was near tears. Fuu had always been the strong one, the person
that she and Umi could rely on to keep her cool in any situation. Even
after the fiasco in Cephiro, they had looked to her for a sense of
stability. Now the pillar that she had depended on was crumbling under
her very eyes. 
	"Do you ever think about Cephiro, Hikaru-san?"
	The question caught her off-guard. "I- I try not to," she finally
answered. "It's hard to, after everything that's happened."
	Fuu nodded slightly. She paused, then in an even lower voice asked,
"Do you ever think of those we . . . we left behind?"
	Hikaru shook her head sadly as a realization hit her. "Oh, Fuu-chan,"
she sighed. 
            "I've though about- about him ever since we came back. I
used to dream that I'd see him again . . . but look at me now!" Her
whole expression was one of utter defeat. "Could I really hope that
Ferio-san could still care for me now, looking like this?"
            She put an arm around her friend's shoulders. "Why do you
think Umi-chan gave her life by going back into that building to save
you from the fire? Why do you think I went back in there after the
both of you? We love you; you're our friend!" She paused. "If he was
truly worthy of you, Fuu-chan, it wouldn't mater to him. Besides," and
she shrugged halfheartedly, "we'll never see them again; Cephiro is
out of our lives for good."
            "That's where you're wrong, Hikaru-san."
            "Nani?"
	"Something's happening in this world, Hikaru-san. Something's not
quite right . . . . I keep feeling that this isn't over yet, that
Cephiro is still destined to be part of our lives-"
	"Cephiro can rot in hell for all I care," the redhead snapped. "We
risked our lives because of some selfish bitch's ignorance, and now
what do we have to show for it? All that hard work wasted-" She
stopped mid-rant to take a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Fuu-chan. It just-
it hurts to think about everything that's happened."
	Light suddenly entered the room as someone pushed the tent flap open.
"Fuu-chan? Hikaru-san?"
	Hikaru turned to see Fuu's older sister Kuu standing in the opening.
"Sumimasen, imouto, but there are some gaijin doctors here who want to
examine you."
            "Hai, Kuu-oneesan," Fuu reluctantly answered.
            As Kuu left, Hikaru hugged her friend one last time. "I'll
stop back by tomorrow to see you," she promised. "Maybe they'll let
Hikari come in, too; he's been worried about you."
	She smiled briefly. "Maybe so. Arigatou . . . Hikaru-chan."
            "Sayonara, Fuu-chan."
            Hikaru stepped out into the bright sunshine and walked
over to the broken sidewalk, where Hikari sat patiently. She knelt
down and put her arms around the wolf's neck, letting the tears
finally flow. "Hikari-chan," she sniffed into her pet's thick fur,
"what are we going to do? What can I do?"
            The wolf simply whined and licked his mistress's cheek.

*~*

            The Norns were uncomfortably silent as they sat before
Kami-sama. He watched them as they shared worried glances; Belldandy
nodded at Chris, who fidgeted slightly. "Boss," he finally said, "it
just doesn't . . . doesn't seem possible that we can't know *anything*
about how Armageddon is coming! I mean, there's the Doublet System and-"
            "Those systems were never meant for a time like this. My
children," and He looked at them sadly, "did you really think that I
would sit back and let this happen without a fight? I have My cherubim
and seraphim on the worlds now, searching for information; until I
hear from them, My hands are tied." God paused for a second and looked
at them slyly. "My hands . . . . not yours."
            Skuld stared at Him in shock. "But-"
            Chris, however, broke out into a huge grin. "Sneaky,
Boss," he said. "Very sneaky . . . I like it!"
            He shrugged. "There is no clause in Our agreement that
says that you cannot involve yourselves- but remember, I will not
force any of you to do this. Because of Yggdrasil's shutdown, the
Doublet System is no longer enforced. This puts you all in very real
danger, My children; the Gods can now be hurt with no ramifications to
their demon counterparts."
            Silence descended upon the group again as the Norns tried
to digest the news. "I'm willing to do what I can, Boss," Chris
finally spoke.
           "As are we all, Kami-sama," Belldandy, Urd, and Skuld said
simultaneously.
           He nodded His head, as though He was expecting such a
response. "Very well, My children. I cannot do much to support you,
given My agreement, but I can grant you all unlimited status for the
duration. Urd, Skuld, I want you two to stay in Heaven and mediate
between My angels and Myself. Also, the bugs that are popping up must
be stopped, for they complicate the lives of My children below.
Belldandy, Christopher, I want you two to stay here for a moment; I
need to discuss something with you."
           "Hai, Kami-sama," they said, rising to kneel before Him. He
waved them away with one hand, waiting until the office door was
closed before turning back to the others.
           "I am sure you know what I wanted to discuss with you, so I
will keep this brief. Belldandy, go bring Keiichi up here. I will
provide him a place to stay until this . . . matter is resolved.
Christopher, the same goes for you; if you want to bring Rachel and
Ami here, I will accommodate them as well." Kami-sama paused and
picked up His small globe, studying it without really seeing it.
"Actually, I have another reason. When Kamui," and His voice seemed to
drop, "left Me for My Adversary, it upset the delicate balance of good
and evil in the worlds. I must now choose another Avatar to defend all
that is good- and that is where you come in, Christopher."
           Chris blinked. "Me?"
           "I need someone to observe the earth, to try and discover
what My Adversary's plans are. And with that, I need you to help Me
find another Avatar to battle Kamui at the Dawn of Reckoning."
           "Dawn of Reckoning?" Belldandy asked.
           "The time when Kamui will try to merge the worlds into one
of his own creation," He explained. "If I can discover by what means
he will try to accomplish this, I can try to counter it-"
           "-and thus prevent Ragnarok altogether." Chris shook his
head. "How are we supposed to find out who knows what? And as
appealing as it sounds, we can't start abducting Kamui's minions and
pulling out their toenails until they talk!"
           Kami-sama actually smiled slightly at that. "There are
others on earth that know of the impending confrontation. Those who
are gifted as Dreamwalkers; those special ones of My children who
serve Me with their lives; those whose worlds have already been
ravaged; any of these could possibly hold clues as to what will happen."
           "We did have a Dreamwalker among us . . . once," Belldandy
said under her breath.
           Chris looked at her, puzzled; God heaved a sigh and looked
pointedly at her. "My daughter, I know that you still disagree with My
decision to-"
           "I'll never be able to agree with that decision," she
snapped; it was the first time Chris had ever seen her show any kind
of resentment towards their Father. "I couldn't understand it then,
and I can't understand it now-"
           "ENOUGH!" He slammed His fist against the desk; His deep,
ageless grey eyes reflected a great sadness too deep for the Norns to
comprehend. "Verthandi, I cannot and will not explain My reasons to
you now. She knew the consequences of her decision and accepted the
penalty. The time will come when you will know why I did what I did,
but until then . . . . "
            "Hai, Kami-sama," the goddess said remorsefully. The grief
in His eyes was chastisement enough. She slipped from her seat and
bowed until her forehead touched the carpet. "I beg for Your
forgiveness in speaking out against You."
            He slowly rose from his chair and walked to her. "Stand,
My child," He said, reaching out for her. She accepted His help; when
she was on her feet, He embraced her in a fatherly hug. "You do not
need to ask for My forgiveness, Belldandy. I know all too well the
inner workings of your heart and know that you only want the best for
your cousin. All I can ask is that you trust Me to do what is best."
He wiped a tear from her cheek. "Now go on; I believe Keiichi's
waiting for you right now, isn't he?"
            She blushed and nodded and turned to Chris, who had slunk
over to the door. He looked a bit uncomfortable, as though he was
intruding on their moment. "What's wrong, Christopher?" Kami-sama
asked lightly, noticing the god's retreat. "Do you want a hug too?"
             The God of Moments stopped dead in his tracks. They
watched him as he tried to assimilate the question; obviously he
wasn't entirely comfortable with the sudden offer of a big tight hug
with another guy, but this was God, his Father . . . . "Uh, well, I-
I, uh . . . . "
             Kami-sama roared with laughter as he turned beet red.
"I'm sorry, Chris," He chuckled, slapping the young man on the back,
"but I couldn't resist . . . the look on your face . . . . "
              Chris turned to Belldandy, who was trying to keep from
laughing. "Don't worry, Chris," she reassured him, "I won't tell Urd
or Skuld . . . for a while, anyway."
               "Are you two done stomping on my dignity?" he asked,
resigned to their laughter. "I'd like to pick up Rachel and Ami and
get them out of harm's way before I start the search."
               "All right, I'm ready." Belldandy walked towards him,
still giggling slightly; they bowed before leaving the office. He
listened to them bicker as they walked away, then He shut the door and
sank into His recliner with a sigh.
                "I'm sorry, My children . . . I'm so sorry . . . . "

*~*
 
              A young woman sat amidst the bloody ruins of the hidden
chamber, idly cradling Hien's mutilated head in her hands. Her tall,
stately frame was perfectly still, unmoving despite the thick stench
of blood. Her ebony eyes, set deeply within a calm, regal face, stared
calmly at the crimson walls. "Hinoto-hime," she whispered. "Sohi-chan.
Hien-chan. There's so much evil here . . . . Are you all gone to
Buddha's mercy?"
                She rose, gently laying her comrade's head on the
tatami. The fallen bodies had been gathered together in a corner;
special ofuda, or spirit shields, protected them from further
degrading until a proper burial could commence. "I must inform
Subaru-sama of this. The Sumeragi clan must begin to prepare- Nani yo?"
                 The miko paused, whipping her bloodied hands in front
of her. "Who dares intrude in the chamber of the Dreaming Princess?"
she asked evenly, her voice flat and calm. "Come forth and speak your
piece to me."
                 _who are you?_ The voice, so ghostly and whining,
seemed to emanate from the walls.
                 She stood her ground. "I am Kishuu Arashi, miko of
Ise Jinguu, servant of Hinoto-hime, and daughter of the Sumeragi clan.
Who are you that speaks from beyond?"
                 _kishuu arashi . . . a former dragon of heaven, no
less._ Three forms began to melt out of the far wall: three vague men
in business suits, their faces hidden from view. Her eyes narrowed
dangerously as they stepped towards her. _our master bids you
greeting, daughter of the light._
                 "I have no time for pleasantries. Speak; who is your
master and why have you come here?"
                 The trio paused, moving in perfect unison. _the time
of the dragons has passed, kishuu arashi. our master now promotes a
new age of darkness, with your princess as a blood sacrifice- _
                 Her hand began glowing; winds whipped her long black
hair around her body as a glittering sword began to burst from her
palm. "You have chosen the wrong person to confess to, curse zombies,"
she snarled as she thrust her obscenely long sword through the main
speaker's torso. "Your master shall pay- " and another's head fell to
the floor- "for harming Hinoto-hime!" She ripped the third in half
from crotch to head, making sure to take the slip of paper out of it's
chest. Arashi slowly crumbled the ofuda in her fist, ignoring it's
screams of pain.
                  "Is this the beginning? The time of the Reckoning
that you spoke so much of, mistress?" she asked the air, tossing the
scraps of paper to the floor. She stared at the carnage again, a hint
of anger showing through her stoic facade. "I shall find out what is
happening," she swore, letting the sword sheath itself back in her
hand. "I shall continue your work, Hinoto-hime, and I will protect the
one you wanted so . . . . "
                  Arashi stepped to the door and, turning, knelt to
the floor. "I swear to do all I can, Hinoto-hime. I swear . . .  I
swear on my life . . . ."
                  " . . . I will protect Kamui!"




==
Romantic Gesture #345: Packing your boyfriend's severed arm with you
       wherever you go. Just be sure to keep it in a cooler.

               *~* Tora-chan Productions, Ltd. *~*
      -Proudly presenting BlueSeed fanfiction since 1997!-
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