The Unknown

All Characters are originals of the creators, and should not be used for anything.


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Kazumei leaned casually against a tree, puffing on a cigarette. He was slightly bored, and the day wasn't beginning to show any sign of changing. He thought of the last time he saw Tsuzuki.........it had been so nice to tease him. He got so nervous it excited him. His true intentions for the strange man were a mystery to all of his accomplices and would stay that way unless he deemed them worthy of knowing anything about it. He sighed, pushing himself up straight and walking over to the lake, still puffing on his cigarette. He stared out at the lake, seeing it but not really seeing it as his mind was on other things-


Sagura left her city to be alone. Those people were bothersome it made her sick at times. Especially Gertrude who was practically a second shadow to Sagura.
Angel was alright at times, but her worry got out of hand. Sagura sighed deeply as she neared the Lake of Memories Lost. She stared at her reflection awhile thinking about her encounter with the Dark Lord of Magicoz.

"Exarionel" she whispered under her breath, the very name made her angry.

How could a weakling like him, get the better of me? Am I losing my touch? No...he has some sort of trick up his sleeve.,

Sagura continued along the bankment and came across a lone soul, she paid no attention to him at first, but a second glance she saw that he was a new citizen of her fine city.
Sagura sat down on a bench in the shade, and looked out into the dark slow moving waters; Silently.


Kazumei turned with the cigarette in his mouth and a curious expression when he felt someones presence behind him. He puffed his cigarette, holding it in his hand as he looked at her

"what have we here? what brings you to be so silent my lady?"he smirked, took one more drag and flicked the cigarette into the lake

"bad thoughts plaguing your mind?"looked at her over his shoulder with an amused smirk- interesting. perhaps the day isn't totally at a loss. -he sighed, putting his hands in his pockets and leaning against a tree next to the bench where she sat


"Now why would I tell what I'm thinking to a complete stranger. I'm not the kind of person who goes around blabbing everything things and passes through my mind."
She looked at him briefly, then turned her attention elsewhere


looks away, smirks with amusement

"silly me, i thought you were some foolish girl i could play with. Be your pardon for my mistake, my lady." evil, amused grin

"I'm not one for courtesy. So you'd have to begin the introductions if you wish me not to be a stranger." smirks


She looked at him through the side of her eyes, she smirked
"My name is Sagura Sasori...and what is yours?" she asked a little irritated at the disturbance of her peaceful afternoon


-smirks with satisfaction-

"Kazumei Houkakuro." -he looks at his watch, seemingly bored-

"forgive me, i didn't mean to intrude on your solitary moment." -smiles a mysterious and cruel smile, having read her thoughts quite easily-


"It is a pleasure to meet you Kazumei, and you weren't really intruding; you were here first. I just had to get away from the pests back at the castle."

"irritating monsters" she said under her breath


-laughs a wicked laugh-

"so it would seem. After all, you are here are you not?" -sighs, and pulls out a knife from his jacket and twiddles it in his fingers-

"Here, are we not all monsters? Or is that not why we make Zaqqum our home?" -smiles that cold, cool smile-

"i can understand how annoying underlings can be. I delight in reminding them not to bother me." -sees a hare and with a quick flick of his wrist it twists into itself with a high-pitched wail-

"oh yes, they soon learn their place as well as learn to fear forgetting it." -evil smile as he continues to fiddles with the knife-


-"I guess you're right" she said in a board tone as she watched him twist a little hare, with just a flick of his wrist.

"But fear from anything is not acceptable in Zaqqum. Fear only sends you to the torture chambers, where Gertrude can have some fun."
she smirked evilly thinking of the torture that was taking place at that moment.

"In any case they do get the idea not to fear, but after being with Gertrude for an minute. They are sacred for life physically...and mentally."
Sagura saw a little butterfly flying by the waters of the lake. She stared at it for a moment before it burst into flames, the ashes blowing in the wind.


-smiles with pleasure as he watches the butterfly disintegrate-

"Ah, but fear and pain are both signals. If you learn to use them wisely, you can learn to treasure the true values that such sensations hold." -he sighs, throwing the knife in the air and catching it in his hand, over and over-

"Might i ask how many years you have spent in existence? You still seem quite young, perhaps you truly have yet to experience the value of pain and fear." -smiles that sadist smile that unnerves people-

"But of course, you can refuse to answer me or accept what i say as truth." -shrugs-
" i am, after all, just a simple man." -cruel smile-


-Sagura paused for a minute she shook her head.

"You know...it is quiet rude to ask a lady her age, But I have learned my fair share of pain and fear. Which did not help in anyway to get me where I am today. That is how I prefer to run my city, without fear."

*Oh dear..I'm beginning to talk like father. Great that's all I wanted out of life, to become like him*


-shrugs-
"meh, what do i care? I've learned the value of them and that's enough to satisfy me. You can live however you choose, makes no difference to me. Though..." -looks at her-
"one has to wonder where this hatred of fear comes from? True, fear can be quite painful and it too can leave very deep wounds but fear in itself makes quite a pleasant tool for the torture of others." -sadistic grin. He takes out a cigarette, lights it, and casually begins to smoke it. looks at her from the corner of his eye-

"What type is it? What type of fear do you despise? or is all fear?" -he wears no expression-


-She smirked

"You're a brave one aren't you, asking such things. I fear nothing, not even fear itself. I grew up causing others to feel fear, and there is nothing more I wish to share with you on that topic."


-evil laugh-
"very well, suit yourself. But did you not just contradict yourself? you said you do not allow fear in your realm and then deny all hatred of it. Or perhaps that is because you don't allow others to put fear into people." -smiles evilly-

"I will always dare to ask the unaskable questions, my lady. It's a sort of passion that drives me." -sits casually in the grass, resting his chin on his hands, still holding his cigarette(both his knees are up, he's slightly crouched), and smiles at her-

"i stand amused, my dear." -laughs and leans back slightly, taking a drag of his cigarette-


-Sagura thought about the last few things she said, he was right, she contradicted herself.
*I'm becoming more like him everyday, I hate this kid*
she glared at him for a brief minute

"Maybe I did, but who bloody cares. Just forget everything I said."


-clicks his tongue three times-

"tsk, tsk, what a temper." -looks at with those cold, cruel eyes-

"I piss you off, don't i?" -chuckles evilly-

"Fine, I'll forget all you said but in that case...." -stands and looks at her-

"shouldn't you forget all i said? It kinda pulls reason from your sudden temper, my dear." -smiles-
"But then, does your temper really need a reason?" -turns from her-

he laughs that cold, evil laugh-

"Forgive me, I seem to be enjoying myself far too much. I'll leave you to your solitude, my lady." -chuckles as he walks closer to the lake, leaving her behind-


-"Now if you think that you can piss me off that easily, then your mistaken, it takes more than a few unnerving words to really tick me off. But if you insist on leaving, then by all means do so. Just remember...keep a limit on what you say, and to whom."
she said as he walked further away, she didn't care if he even heard her.


-his laughter at her words rings in the air. He calls back to her-

" As you wish, my lady. I'll try to keep myself more in check from now on." -laughter continues. He stops and sits on a rock a couple yards away from her. He puffs softly on his cigarette for awhile, then flicks it into the lake. He sighs and lays casually on the rock, closing his eyes with a satisfied smirk-


-Sagura lend back on the bench and watched the erry sunset, she went into a trance like state, trying to think of a way to get back at Exarionel. She didn't realize that her Lion Pendant disappeared from her neck. A large male lion was hiding behind the trees watching Kazumei from the shadows. He moved closer, silently. and without a sound he pounced on top of him growling, breathing hard on him, and looking him in the eyes.
(Sagura's pet lion)


-jumps with a start as something lands on him. He glares at the lion, the lion's breath close to his face. He grins evilly-

"oh, so you wish to pummel me for the treatment of your lady? Ha!" -punches the lion hard in the mouth, throwing him off him. He dusts himself off and approaches the lion-

"if its a fight you want you big pussycat then bring it. I await the pain." -evil sneer. He flicks his wrist at the lions front paw and you hear a few bones snap-

"I'm not going to go easy on you, pussycat." -he laughs that cold, cruel laugh and raises his hand to strike again-


-Roary growled at him and his paw was twisted, and the bones breaking a little. He just shook the pain away, as best he could and lunged forwards biting Kazumei's leg hard.


-he grits his teeth from the pain with a evil smile-

"Do you like pain? Well, i do." -he hits the lion square in the chest, and fractures his ribs with a quick twist-

"Shall i stop?" -he grins slyly, looking at Sagura out of the corner of his eye-


-Sagura turned to see what the commotion was about, and she saw Roary growling at Kazumei and attacking him. She touched her neck where the pendant was supposed to be, but saw(felt) it was gone. She stood up and slowly walked over to the two fighting.

"Roary Heal" she said, her voice as calm as before

She stopped in front of Kazumi, she took him gently but the throat, her long nails digging into his flesh, She lifted him up a little.

"If you don't want to die right here and now, I suggest you leave my pet alone. Otherwise I might have to send you where you belong." She said calmly and looking at him with her cold black eyes, like she was piercing his soul.


-laughs-
"very well, but you should keep better track of your pets." -grabs the hand holding his throat and rips it away from him. He stands, his neck bleeding, and twists her hand away from him-

"Don't make such idle threats to me my lady. He came at me so it is he who must suffer the consequences of those actions." -he grins evilly-
" or didn't daddy ever teach you that? send me where i belong? How do you know I am not already dead?" -smiles that cold, cruel smile-

"but, I'll yield, since that is your wish. But know this, your threats fall limp against such a heartless soul. I'd hate for you to waste that delicious evil energy on trying to hurt me." -evil smile as he releases her. He looks at the lion with cold eyes-

"pity, but I'm sure he'll need to be healed soon. It must hurt to breath right now." -looks at her-
"Anything else you wish to punish me for?" -he waits for her to attack him again-


-"Who said I would waste my time on fighting you, I have more important things to do...but rest assured Roary won't get off easy for attacking you. He knows never to come forth unless summoned by me, unless my life is at risk. Which it is most certainly not.." She turned to Roary.

"Return now"
He growled at Kaz and limped towards sagura, before Turing white, he stuck his tongue out at him, and took his form of a lion pendant around her neck once more.

Sagura kept her back to him.

"If it's any consolation, I'm sorry for Roary's behavior."


-smirks- "I see no reason why you should apologize, but it is accepted either way." -he puts his hands in his pockets, turning slightly to the side, closing his eyes with a smile-
"You show mercy..........that's an unusual trait for a lady of the darkness." -sly smile
"ah well, suit yourself." -he starts to walk away, his neck and leg still bleeding-


-"Believe me...I'm not this nice to everyone, but don't get used to it." she said and started walking in the opposite direction of Kaz.

"One more thing...where are you from?" she was curious to know if he was from Hell, considering he knew her and her father.


-stops, with a sly smile-
"where?" -looks at the sky with a sigh-
" I was born in Dintas but that is not where i am from. I guess you could say I'm a child of Hell." -soft chuckle-

"why do you ask, my lady?" -he looks back at her, face blank-


-She didn't speak for a minute.
"...No reason, just wondering. Will you be visiting Zaqqum anytime soon?"


-shrugs- "perhaps. I visit many places during my travels. I guess you could say I'm a traveling physician......without the ability to heal using magic." -he sighs-

"Most likely I'll be staying in the village somewhere for awhile." -continues walking, and waves-

"Farewell, Mistress Sagura."-he walks off into the treeline just as the moon starts to rise-


-"Goodbye Kazumei"
She started walking back to Zaqqum.

"Then I'll have to keep my eyes and hears alert at all times." she didn't know why, but Sagura didn't trust him. Maybe it was because he was from Dintas...and Hell.
She entered the gates and headed back to the Castle, she needed to find Gertrude to bandage up her little Roary.
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End of Chapter 1