From: Jade One Hi there, Here is the reposted first chapter of Rurouni Knight Hazard. Disclaimer: Rurouni Kenshin (C) characters belong to Watsuki Nobuhiro (All Hail), Shueisha, Sony Entertainment and perhaps some others but most definitely not to me. I am borrowing characters without asking permission and I am not making any money out of this. Also I am not worth suing as I am a broke student. However this story and any characters I create do belong to me. I hope anyone who takes the time to read this will enjoy it. Special thanks to Nicky-oneesan since this was inspired by her "A New Life". Thanks also to Luriko-Ysabeth-san, Serizawa Kamo-san and Ashfae-san for answering a question I asked in July about a name. ^_^ This has been siting in my head for a while and the rest of it will probably remain there for quite some time. Thanks too to Sylvia who did a little pre reading of an unfinished copy and then nagged for five days straight to see the middle scene. ^_^ <> Thought ** Emphasis Rurouni Knight Hazard - Arrival Chapter 1 By Jade One The sky burned beautifully. Pink, amber, red, the whole spectrum of color. It was magnificent but its beauty was disturbed by flaming gems which scattered themselves against its background; green, amethyst, blue, yellow. Brilliant centres shattering into trailing points of light. Fireworks celebrating the return of the King and the peace his presence brought to the realm of Kousaten. Kenshin turned away from the fireworks. He looked at his companion, smiling a bit at the costumes the people expected them to wear. But cloths could not detract from her beauty and the exotic appearance they lent her just made her seem more beautiful to his eyes. He held out his hand, smile widening as he felt her hand slip into his. Together they turned away from the scene, back in to the yellow warmth of the Great Hall and the celebrating masses. Kaoru looked over at Kenshin and smiled. He was happy, this was one of the first times she had even seen his face unguarded and even though he was nearly thirty five, he still looked almost like a child. Even the Rurouni she had known in Tokyo had barriers but here in Kousaten there was not need for them. Here no one knew the Hitokiri Battousai, no one wanted to challenge Kenshin, no one wanted to fight. Here they could be free. Perhaps the only disadvantage of staying here was the clothes they expected them to wear. She sighed, flicking her hair over her shoulder, before she remembered that she didn't have to. She usually wore her hair loose, tied back only by her ribbon, but tonight it was tied in a complicated knot. It was curled several times around itself and tendrils of hair had been woven through it making it all the more complicated. A few were allowed to hang loose to frame her face. Small seed pearls adorned the ends of the pins which were holding the mass in place. They were like stars on the black background of her hair. A thin circlet crossed her forehead, its ends disappearing into her hair, but it helped to hold everything in place. But her hair wasn't the only change which had been made. She was used to wearing sandals but instead she had been given a pair of soft slippers. They weren't too bad though, Kaoru admitted to herself. At least the rest of her ensemble was similar to what she wore in Tokyo. And that had been an up hill battle. The halls had echoed with the shouts between her and the dressmakers and were only now fading, being replaced by jubilant cheers. What she wore was a compromise. It was a kimono like garment but the sleeves had been enlarged and trailed almost to the floor. It was not tied with an obi but rather with a sash but it still firmly held the cloth to her waist. She'd caught Kenshin's appreciative glance several times tonight. She'd ignored the others. The whole thing was a dark shade of blue, spotted with stars. And its main pattern, a long sinuous embroided green and red dragon, wove its way up from the hem and ended with its head coming over her right shoulder. Protection and warning together. She'd admitted privately that the whole thing looked beautiful, even if it was far more flamboyant than what she was used to. Kenshin was dressed in similar colors, proclaiming them to belong to each other but his clothing was of a slightly more western feel. He was dressed in a plain undershirt and pants but this was covered with an embroided knee length and sleeveless jacket. The embroidery was similar but his dragon was red, highlighted with green. His circlet was shaped like a dragon, snaking its way about his head, its jaws biting its tail. Tiny sapphire eyes winked out of the gold in which every fine scale was etched. It held back most of his hair, but he had added a tie, half way down its length. Violet eyes glazed at her as he turned them back into the Great Hall. There would be more fireworks later to watch, when the sun fully set and everyone could appreciate them. He smiled at her and she couldn't help but to remember the events which had brought them to this point. It wasn't that long ago, that he had smiled at her, passing that rice bowl when Hiko had so precipitously visited the Dojo with his news. "Long live the King!" The call came from the assembled people, yelled in joy for the ruler who would give them justice and peace. "Long live the King!" King, Emperor, Ruler. They meant so many different things to so many people. Isn't that what Hiko-san had said? How right he had been, but the first thing a King should do is protect his people, which is why he had visited and why they were here. She smiled, remembering Hiko's curses about his baka deshi and the directions he gave to people... "Arigatou, Kenshin." She had said quietly, accepting the bowl of rice from him in a reversal of traditional roles. She idly wondered where Yahiko was. He had been practicing hard lately but he was not one to miss a meal, so where was he? "Oi, Kenshin!" The call answered her question. As both she and Kenshin turned slightly towards Yahiko's voice, he appeared from the corner of the dojo, adding the comment, "You've got a visitor!" He appeared excited, breathless. His face was surprised but happy. Kaoru put down her bowl. The fall of an impossibly large shadow and the flicker of a cloak gave her a seconds warning, enough so she was composed when Hiko-san walked into view. She thought, frowning slightly, as she rose to greet her guest. "Welcome, Hiko-san." "Aa, Kaoru," Hiko's gaze flicked over her, coming to rest on his deshi. "*You* give bad directions," he snapped. "'Please come and visit.' Then you make sure that I can't find the place!" Kenshin looked suitably cowed, but there was a slight smile on his face as he agreed with his Shishou. Did it matter that he had never given his Master instructions on how to get here? "I'm sorry for the bad instructions, Shishou," he appologised as he prepared a fourth serving and handed it to Hiko. "I didn't come for a social visit, baka deshi." "Deshi?" Kenshin echoed, his face cutely confused. Hadn't Hiko disavowed him when he had refused to become Hiko Seijuro the Fourteenth? So why that comment now? "You are still my deshi, because there are one or two things I haven't taught you about Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu. No techniques, you have completely mastered them, but some information which has been passed down from Hiko the First and has been used occasionally by the Masters of Hiten Mitsurugi." Hiko looked his most insufferable. "Information?" Yahiko question. He was ecstatic. They hadn't asked him to leave yet. "Hai, information. Usually this is only told Master to Student but this time, it effects everyone." He turned to Kenshin, "You just can't keep your problems to yourself, can you Baka deshi?" "Oro?..." Kenshin shook his head. "My problems, Shishou?" He questioned mildly. Blaming him for something he didn't even know about was going a little too far. "*Your* problems!" Hiko repeated firmly. "You *should* be the master of Hiten, so these are your problems. But they will effect us all," Hiko looked serious. "I was told that," he added quietly, his face uncharacteristically serious. "Everybody..?" "Told?... Told by who?" Hiko ignored the question, eating some rice before he continued. "Yes, I was told. I came about Kousaten." "Kousaten..? What is Kousaten?" "It is a land. The current Ruling group have managed to really get themselves in trouble. And now they need the real ruler, the only man with the skills to help, to bring order to Kousaten again," Hiko looked up, into the disbelieving and confused faces of his deshi, Kaoru-chan and Yahiko-kun. "Kousaten?" "Where is Kousaten?" "I've never heard of a country called Kousaten!" The questions came all in a rush. "I should hope not!" Hiko seemed indignant before his expression became amused. "As for where it is, I don't know. I only know how to get there." "Shishou! That doesn't make any sense." "Of course it doesn't. I didn't believe it when my Shishou told me about Kousaten, which is why I never bothered to mention it to you, but..." He paused, looking slightly sheepish. It was a unique expression for him. "Something happened," Yahiko surmised. "Aa, something happened," Hiko agreed solemnly with Yahiko. He turned to look Kenshin in the eye, discarding his now empty bowl and placing his hands on his lap. "Himura Kenshin," he started again, formally. "You are heir to more than just the mantle of Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu. With the mantle comes the rulership, the Kingship of Kousaten, the authority over thousands and the right to command the land itself." Far way a cricket "Chirrupped!" in the silence. "I know it sounds insane," Hiko sighed, folding his arms under his manto. "And I didn't really believe it until they contacted me. Obviously I haven't been ruling there, instead Kousaten is ruled by a Commission of... Well, I guess priests is the right definition, in the name of the King. They deal with the day to day problems but if anything really big comes up, something which threatens the entire world, they then seek guidance from their King, the Master of Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu. "History tells us that they have only need to call upon the King twice since Hiko Seijuro became the ruler. Hiko the Sixth and Ninth both supposedly spent a brief time there as King and both of them are recorded as saying that their task there was the hardest thing they have ever had to do. All I know is that several days ago, I was contacted by the Priests of Kousaten and they requested their Kings help in dealing with a problem they refused to elaborate on. They only said that it would require both the King and Heir. And unless I have got something wrong, and I'm never wrong, that's you and me, baka deshi," he finished. "Priests, can't keep anything under control," he muttered under his breath. "Hiko-san?" Kaoru questioned quietly. "If you are the King of Kousaten, where, or what is Kousaten?" "Kousaten Kaoru-chan, is a mythical world. It is, as I understand it to be, elemental, the creatures of fiction woven in a childrens story exist there. The dragons of legend and other creatures stranger, live side by side with the human inhabitants, but more than that I can not say. "I do not know what problem has arisen. But I do know that the request for help was definitely for both Kenshin and myself. And since my baka deshi now comes with baggage, the request for help now includes the rest of you." "Yosha!" The delighted cry came from Yahiko. "Of course we will help, Hiko-san. And you are correct, I will not allow Kenshin to wander off by himself." Kaoru stated in a firm voice, but she was smiling, as she gently placed one hand in Kenshin's. "I will help, Shishou," Kenshin said, squeezing Kaoru's hand gently. "But will Yahiko, Kaoru, you and my humble self be enough?" "Nope! I don't think so!" The voice was light and cheerful. "Misao-chan!" Kaoru cried, jumping up to embrace the girl. "Hiko-san asked us to help, and the Oniwa Banshu always honors its debts," the voice was Aoshi's. "Did you get them, Shinomori?" Hiko questioned. "Aa, Hiko-san," Misao answered. "Can we go now? I can't wait to see Kousaten!" "Yes, it's probably better to go right now. It will save problems in the long run." Hiko said, rising. "What? Now?" "Yes, now! If I am to be drawn into this rabbit hunt, I want to get it over as quickly as possible," a voice snapped harshly from the corner. "Saitou!" "Aa?" He questioned, raising an eye brow, as he stood, flicking his cigarette away. "Is there anyone else, Shishou?" "Just me and the Fox Lady," Sano answered. "Misao said that you needed our help, so we came around." "Good we're all here. We can go now." "Go where?" Saitou questioned. "To Kousaten Saitou-san, to Kousaten. To show you exactly why Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu is the one technique you can't beat," Hiko said with a smirk. He lowered his head and clapped his hands together in an imitation of prayer. "Shish..." Kenshin began. He trailed off as Hiko pulled his hands apart, allowing mini lightnings to travel between them. The ribbons jumped between each finger, more appeared every instant until his hands were wrapped in swirling ribbons of white light. Hiko looked up briefly, genius grin in place, ignoring the shocked looks he was receiving. "I'll have to teach you how to do this someday, baka deshi." He moved his hands, tracing a circle in light before he tossed the ball into the centre of the assembled people. The light expanded, embracing them all as the dojo dissappeared and the world became nothing but light. "KENSHIN!" Kaoru screamed as day changed into night and the sky fell, the stars whipping past her, visable as nothing more than lines of light. There was no floor, no walls, no roof. She couldn't see the others but she could dimly feel them all around her. Ten presences, ten colors, all falling towards Kousaten. She could hear their calls. And then she could feel nothing, save the sensation of falling, or was she flying? She couldn't see. Worse than the howling stars was the silent darkness. There was nothing here. She would be here forever, lost in the darkness. "KENSHIN!" She was falling forever. "Gah! I hate that!" Hiko swore as he materialised into Kousaten. He looked around, spotting a group of people who were bowing before him. "You could have told me the journey would be rough!" He snapped. They deserved that. Pulling him out of a nice peaceful life. "Y... your Majesty..?" One of them, in slightly more elabotare robes questioned, looking up. "Hai, hai. Hiko Seijuro the thirteenth is here. I did bring the others with me," Hiko said looking around, "But it looks like they got lost somewhere in the transit. Hmm, didn't think that would happen." "Ah, that's good, your Majesty." The priest responded before he frowned. "Others? Shouldn't that be other?" "I wish," Hiko's voice was long suffering. "My baka deshi comes with baggage. His girlfriend and all her associated friends. It's not that bad though, they can make themselves useful at times." The far door burst open. "Sir!" A young guard cried, running up to the ornately dressed priest. "Sir! We have captured an intruder. We caught them when they fell into the fish pond. She was armed sir," the young man proudly held out a sword. "Where have you got her, Garhow?" The priest questioned taking the prooffered weapon gingerly. Hiko smirked as he lounged in the throne. A girl, with a sword like that? This was going to be amusing. "Outside sir!" "Well, I will see them there then." "Why not have them brought in?" "Huh?" the High Priest turned. "Your Majesty," he began, ignoring the bulging eyes of the guard. "This is such a small matter that it hardly rates your attention. We have be capturing intruders for weeks now. Ever since the gate was opened." "I would like to see this intruder." "Hai, your Majesty!" The trooper saluted sharply before he turned and left the room. He soon returned, accompanied by several other guards who were escorting a small wet figure. The prisoners hair was lank and plastered over 'her' face. 'Her' hands had been tied in front of them. Hiko could see that 'her' eyes were still swirlly from the transition, or from the fall into the pond. "The prisoner, your Majesty," Garhow presented them. The guards saluted but the aforementioned prisoner just stood there dripping. Hiko hid his amusement. This was going to be fun! "Well, you certainly have made an interesting catch." "Oro?" The 'prisoners' head came up. "What is the usual proceedure for handling such intruders," Hiko asked the chief priest, ignoring the look of surprise the prisoner was giving him. "Ah, your Majesty," the priest answered carefully, aware that something was happening but unable to determing exactly what. The chronicles recorded that the Kings were gifted rulers, but that they tended not to reveal all their knowledge to their subordinates and that they had, quirky, was the word used, senses of humor. "The usual proceedure is to place them in the cells before questioning. We haven't learnt anything truly significant yet. They all say they have been send to test us but for what, we do not know." "Well, have you been sent to test me, baka?" Hiko asked. "Orororo... Test, Shishou?" "Yes, test?" Hiko blitherly continued on. The court obviously didn't believe the prisoners word. "Have you been sent here to test me, baka deshi?" "Shishou!" The prisoner exclaimed in surprise, ignoring as Hiko was, the looks of surprise and horror that were adorning the faces of the court. The guards had flinched back from their captive. "D... d...Deshi!" The high priest spluttered, freezing in place horrified. "Sh... Shishou!" The guards reacted similiarly. A cold wind whistled in the silence. "Well, what were you expecting - a carbon copy of me?" Hiko asked acidly. "I did bring my student with me when I came. You did ask me to, so is it any surprise that they would arrive in a similar location? You have caught no one this time and if anyone else has been captured, they are probably members of our party. You can untie them now." Hiko addressed the frozen guards. "Shishou, what happened," Kenshin asked, twisting his hands free of the bindings and retrieving his sword from the priest. "Where are Kaoru and the others?" "Yeesh baka deshi! This is Kousaten. As to where your girl friend is, don't ask me. It's not my job to keep track of her but I'd imagine that everyone is here, somewhere." "It didn't go as planned did it?" Kenshin asked. He didn't really expect an answer but he wanted his master to know, just how much he didn't like being separated from Kaoru. "Oomph!" At least the ground was sort of soft, even if her eyes were still dazzled from what had happened. She blinked trying to clear them. Slowly the scenary came into focus. Green, lots of green. She blinked again. Green but with splashes of color and the call of birds. Leaves and flowers. It was not the dojo. Huge trees loomed all around her, towering to the sky. The ground was a soft carpet of grass, speckled with fine flowers. And all round her dense bush wove its way betweens the trees. It was not Japan. Could it really be Kousaten? A rustle came from the side. She instinctively rolled aside just in time to avoid the feet of a...? What ever the creature was, it wasn't something she had seen before. It was about half as tall as she was. It had two long legs which ended it fierce claws which were ripping up the grass. At the other end of the legs, its body was an oval and it had a long neck. It had small forelegs which were tucked under its body. It's head was shaped like a birds and in its beak, at least she thought it was a beak, was a shinai. It "Squawed" at her through its mouthful of shinai before it turned to run off. "Get back here!" she dimmly heard the enraged call. Kaoru leapt for the shinai catching a hold of it as the creature leapt back into the underbush, squawing as it disappeared. Yahiko burst through the bush. "Get back here! Give that back!" He skidded to a halt. "Kaoru..!" His eyes went wide. "You got it back!" He cried, grabbing the shinai from her and hugging it to his chest. "Hey Kaoru," he said looking back at her, his eyes serious. "Do you know where we are?" "No, I just woke up, Yahiko. But I think this is the world Hiko-san was talking about. You know, Kousaten. Unless you know what that creature was?" Yahiko shook his head. "I guess this must be Kousaten." "But were we meant to get here like this?" "I don't know, Kaoru. But I don't think so. I think Hiko-san would have mentioned it if we were meant to be split up. Something must have gone wrong." "Kenshin!" Kaoru called, looking around "He was close to us at the dojo, so he should be around here somewhere," Yahiko said, helping Kaoru to stand. "I guess we should look for him then. Or someone else who can help us." Kaoru said, firmly squashing the doubt and fear rising in her. "But which way do we go?" "Heh! You're right. But I don't think it really matters. Does any way look easier to you?" "I think we should go that way," Yahiko gestured with his shinai before he tied it to his back. "Okay then. Let's go," Kaoru said, stepping in the direction indicated. TBC Meanings Kousaten - junction, nexus, something like that! Bye, again Jade One __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com --------------------------- ONElist Sponsor ---------------------------- The best place to buy movies online -- Reel.com. Click Here ------------------------------------------------------------------------