Six Years

Lucifer brought his horse to a halt and sniffed the air. Ironclaw had traveled that path some hours before but his scent was still remotely fresh. The half-demon general narrowed his eyes as the scent grew stronger. He would have his revenge on the full-blood general. The glory and reward for finding the demon prince would belong to him. He closed his eyes and mumbled a prayer to the fallen body of Ironclaw. He would make all the full-bloods pay.

Kana sat up straight, his ears twitching intently. It was late in the morning, almost afternoon he noted as he glanced at Izo, whose body had not moved an inch since he had laid down the night before. Ryo sat by his horse studying the scrolls Karu had given him and Kana allowed his skin to harden. He reached back to braid his hair into the style he was known for then drew away having remembered that he had forced Izo to cut his hair again not too long ago.

"Ryo get your bag ready," Kana said and Ryo looked up.

"What?" he asked.

"Get your bag ready. There isn't much time."

"What's going on?"

"If anything happens, I want you to ride as fast as you can and remember everything we've taught you."

"What do you mean if anything happens?"

"Just do it! Don't question me. I know what I'm talking about," Kana said. He turned and laid a hand on Izo's face. He stroked his cheek for a moment then drew away. He would do everything he could to protect them, especially Izo, who was too ill to move. He scanned the area intently then stopped when he saw a glint of armor.

"You killed one of my best men," Lucifer growled as he rode into the clearing.

"It's the way of war," Kana replied.

"You're dead."

"Perhaps, but why don't we let our weapons be the judge of that? That is why you came here after all."

"Polite to the very end, aren't you? That will be your fatal mistake."

Lucifer dismounted and Kana raised a hand. Lucifer gazed at him in annoyance as he took a step forward.

"Wait just a moment, please. This is a campsite with horses and an injured person. This area is not suited for a battle. I propose that we move this dual away from here to provide the most enjoyment for both of us," Kana said.

"Fine. Just don't hold anything back when we get started," Lucifer replied as he followed Kana to another clearing.

They stood about ten feet apart and both stared at each other, mentally making notes about the opponent's strengths and weaknesses. Ryo watched them with interest. He stood next to a large tree and watched as Lucifer made the first move. He swung his sword horizontally and Kana blocked it with ease.

"That better not be your best attempt," Kana said and Lucifer grinned.

"It's not," he replied and reversed his swing. He brought his foot up against Kana's right leg but Kana had already changed directions. Kana winced in pain when Lucifer slashed the tip of his right wing then turned and jabbed his enemy with the hilt of his sword. Lucifer's eyes grew wide in pain as he blocked another swing from Kana.

Ryo watched the melee that followed, trying to see if either one was weakening, but he couldn't tell. They broke apart again and Lucifer wiped away the blood on his face. He grinned and licked the blood off of his hand then pointed the tip of his sword at Kana.

"Give up," he hissed and Kana narrowed his eyes.

"Not likely," Kana replied then held his sword up to the sky.

"This is going to be interesting," Izo said and Ryo spun around.

"Are you supposed to be up?" he asked.

"Probably not, but I am. I'm ignoring all the signals of pain my body is sending. You know how you can control fire, kid?"

"Yeah..."

"Well Kana can control electricity. That guy's in for a shock. I didn't mean it as a joke, you know."

"What do you control?" Ryo asked as Izo yawned.

"Me? I guess my element is wind," Izo replied as a bolt of lightning came out of nowhere and struck Kana's blade.

"You guess? You mean you don't know?"

"It's wind. I would use it to scatter leaves across the yard when I was a kid. It drove the gardener nuts."

Kana swung his sword and Lucifer watched in shock as his blade broke in two. Kana grinned fiercely as he did a vertical slice and Lucifer clutched his chest in pain.

"I think it's over," Kana said as he turned his sword over. Lucifer pulled a hunting knife from his belt and plunged it into Kana's chest. Kana shoved his sword through Lucifer's body then pulled the knife out of his own chest. A sudden breeze blew around Kana's hair as he retrieved his sword. Kana spun around and glared at Izo who stood leaning against a tree, talking to Ryo.

"Why are you awake?" he asked and Izo yawned.

"I don't know, sir. I feel pretty terrible if it's any consolation to you," Izo replied as he continued to hang onto the tree for support.

"Go back to your bed."

"Let me take care of your wound first, sir."

"Major for that antidote to work, you need your sleep."

"And I'll get it right after I take care of your wound."

"Your placing my own health over yours."

"Celcian did the same thing, sir. It's what you do when you care. Something for you to think about when you get older, Ryo."

"I can help too, you know," Ryo said. "I'm not like I was when I first met you."

"Let Ryo do it. You need your rest, major," Kana said as they walked back to the campsite.

"I want to make sure it's done right," Izo said and Kana laid a hand on his shoulder.

"I'll walk him through it. You trust me, don't you?"

"Yes, sir."

"Then go back to sleep."

Izo yawned widely and lay back down on his pallet. He pulled the blanket up over his body while Kana began his explanation on how to properly dress a wound.

 

"Any news yet?" Lee asked as he walked up to D who was sitting down on a park bench plotting torture for small birds.

"There's been some unrest in the west but there hasn't been any hard news," D said as a man with a bucket and rolls of paper walked past them.

"I wonder what that's about," Lee said as D stood up on the park bench.

"Let's go look. I can do this anytime," he said and jumped off the bench. They ran over to where the man stood pasting paper onto a wall. Lee poked at one of the rolled up pieces of paper and the man looked at him.

"Don't go messin' them up. I've got to put these up all over town," he said and Lee drew away.

"What are they for?" D asked as he circled the man.

"Recruitment posters. If you're sixteen you can help destroy the demon menace," the man said and Lee stared at him.

"Menace?" he repeated.

"Don't tell me you haven't heard. Those bastards have laid waste to over ten towns plus they've raped our women. The Slayers have been reinstated to purge our world from evil so that we can all live in peace again as his majesty has promised."

"Wait a minute," D said as the man picked up his bucket. "His majesty?"

"Yes. Apparently there was a false king in control and Levin came out of banishment to reclaim his throne but a group of demon nobles loyal to the fake king fled the kingdom and they're now wreaking havoc over the entire land. Some have even infiltrated this city. It will be the Slayers job to find them and exterminate them. Well I've got to go. I've got more posters to hang," the man said and walked off.

"Just when I thought humans couldn't get any stupider..." D said as he gazed at the poster.

"How many are in the city?" Lee asked as D turned away from the poster.

"At least fifty. Most are males, obviously but there are some females too. Let's go. We're going to arouse suspicion if we stay here too long."

"Where are we going?" Lee asked as D threw a rock at the poster.

"Does it really matter? Let's go anywhere. I just don't want to look at that poster any more."

"I would have thought Lucifer would have better sense," Levin said as he threw a dart at the wall. "So you're telling me he went after Ironclaw."

"That's right, sir," Xylphara said and Levin looked at him.

"Why didn't you go after him?"

"He threatened to kill me."

"Did he? You must have done something to upset him. In any event, they're both dead and I am relieving you of your duties. You're free to do as you please. I'm taking over the hunt for the prince."

"But sir..."

"Guards, remove him from my sight. I have much to think about," Levin said and watched as two guards dragged Xylphara out of the room. He sighed as he threw another dart. The prince's life had slipped through his fingers one too many times.

Izo watched Kana lick his bare chest, the general's elongated tongue traced over each major muscle group. He felt the dampness of saliva on his pectoral muscles as he ran his claws through Kana's hair. He felt the movement of Kana's tongue on his stomach and he could feel the heat within his body growing. He was already feeling hot and Kana wasn't anywhere close to his release valve. The heat within him was becoming unbearable and he wanted to push Kana down to his crotch but he couldn't. He cried out and his eyes snapped open. He breathed heavily for a moment then grabbed his chest in pain. He started when he felt something touch his hand then glanced at Kana, who was kneeling beside him.

"How are you?" he asked and Izo blinked his eyes.

"I feel like I'm burning up," Izo replied.

"At least you're awake. You were out for the past two days. I sent Ryo out for some fresh water. He'll be returning shortly."

"Was that a wise thing to do? It's dangerous out there."

"He'll be fine. It's not as bad as you think it is. At least not the area surrounding here. I would have gone myself, but I shouldn't do any unnecessary movements. The wound isn't as bad as it was, but I don't want to make it worse. The enemy managed to cut me deeply."

"I'm sorry for causing the extra trouble, sir."

"It's not your fault, Izo. You didn't know the enemy would poison you."

Izo said nothing as Kana sat beside him. He winced as he placed a hand over his wound then shut his eyes for a moment. Izo took his free hand and Kana glanced at him.

"I was dreaming about you, sir," Izo said and yawned.

"Really? I was wondering why you were perspiring so much. It isn't natural for our kind to sweat profusely."

"I'm sweating because of the fever, sir."

Kana pushed Izo's hair away from his face then pulled it back into a ponytail. He then secured it with Izo's clasp then secured it a second time. Izo closed his eyes as he allowed a cool burst of wind to blow past his face. Kana laid a hand on his shoulder and Izo glanced back at him.

"What were you dreaming about, major?"

"Sir, I think you know what I was dreaming."

"Major, you are terrible."

"I'm not like Yandel, sir."

"True," Kana said and leaned back slightly. "I'm glad for that. You should be feeling better in a few days. The antidote tears up your system but it's better than being dead. I didn't think you wanted to close those doors for good."

"No, sir. I'm not ready for that feeling again," Izo said and looked away. Kana laid a hand on his lap and looked at him.

"I had almost forgotten about that time. You saved that one private from that snow beast. You had wounds all over you plus frostbite. You were with the medics for at least a week. They didn't know if you were going to make it."

"I almost didn't, sir."

"What kept you alive?"

"My dedication," Izo said then grinned slightly. "My dedication to my people and....you. It didn't matter whether you knew or not but I knew that I couldn't let you down so I fought death."

"And won. You've got more courage than you're willing to show," Kana said and Izo's face paled. Kana placed his hand on the major's chest and gently forced him to recline.

"Not courage, sir. Just dedicated. Like I've said, I'm well-trained."

"Then take this order. Go back to sleep."

"Yes, sir. I don't think I'll argue with you on that. My body's telling me I need it."