Heirot

Soran stared at her blankly, trying to decide how to handle this information. Like it or not, the feeling that finally resolved in his gut was fury. He'd found a family. A home. How could he not be angry, when he knew it would be destroyed in a matter of hours by a force far larger then they could handle?

"They're going to destroy the city. They'll burn it to the ground and slaughter the survivors," he growled. "It's Arken - they're too big for us." He turned away from Mizuki and threw his fist into the wall with all his strength, splintering the wood with his hand. The sensation did little to vent his anger. "Shit!" he shouted.

Panic ran through her body like an electric force. Memories not her own passed through her mind's eye. People dying; women, children; homes destroyed... none lived through this. And this was beginning now, so the man had said so--

"RAI!" Mizuki gasped. They had left her alone in that madman's house. If the invasion and slaughter was starting now then Rai was left with none to protect her! Without a word, Mizuki turned and bolted for the stairs.

"Wait," Soran called, turning after Mizuki and grabbing her arm so suddenly he almost swung her into the wall of the stairwell. She had the right idea... "Take Rai as far away from the city as you can. I'm staying behind," he said, vengeance shining in his angry eyes.

"What?!" Mizuki felt a surge of anger at him. He'd leave them again? What could he even hope to accomplish? She opened her mouth to tell him what she thought about his 'plans' but she abruptly closed it. Rai was... more important then fighting with a rouge.

"Fine..." she conflicted with the idea of kissing him goodbye. 'No... not goodbye...', she thought. With a pleading look into his eyes she said, "Be safe." Then ran off up the stairs and out of the building back to where Micha's place was. Tears escaped her eyes. Would it be the last time she ever saw him? Had it been the right choice not to kiss him for what may be the last time?

No... She tried to focus. She had to get Rai, take her someplace safe and... Figure out what to do.

Rai was standing in the doorway, watching them curiously. "You shouldn't fight!" she said loud enough to get there attention. "You should talk it out!"

Rai wandered into the room and stood to their side. "Unless he did something bad, in that case... Beat him up!" She giggled cutely, wrinking up her nose.

"What?!...Fine." Soran watched after Mizuki as she pulled away, catching the anger in her voice. He wanted to pull her back to him, and find some way to make the moment smoother. There was too high a chance that they wouldn't meet again...but she had to go, immediately. It would only be selfish to stop her. He was feeling too many things at once. The rogue paused for a moment and pressed his fingers to his head, ordering his thoughts. He had be objective, one goal at a time. Nothing had begun yet. There may be enough time to start an evacuation procedure. Then he would find Sid, and settle this. Mizuki's expression flashed in his memory. No, he couldn't, not now. He ran up the stairs and out into the street.

In the distance, he could hear shouting and saw a row of smoke rising in the southern end of the city. Damn. Soon they'd have the whole city surrounded, and the fire could spread throughout in a matter of minutes.

* * *

Micah stared down at the little girl who had shown up beside them. Crap.

"What have we here?" said the assassin flatly, turning his eyes on the child without releasing Micah.

"Stupid kid! Run!" Groaned Micah, holding the assassin's hand off his neck with all the strength he had.

* * *

As Mizuki ran, a large form suddenly emerged from an alleyway directly in front of her, and the two forms collided hard and crashed in a heap on the road. "Pardon-," gasped the man as he struggled to sit up, his breath knocked away. He froze as he met her eyes and recognized them. "Soran's girl?" Sid murmured uncertainly.

Mizuki felt like she had hit a wall as she was flung back on her bottom.

"Soran's girl?" the man muttered as he recovered from just colliding with her. Mizuki had a hard time recongnizing him when she stood up, she was too worried about their current situation.

"I'm sorry," she said quickly and stepped around him to run off. There was no time to spare, she had to get Rai now.

Rai looked up at the man. "Well, you must have done something bad if he wants to fight!" she said, puting her hands on her hips and looking up at the man.

"You don't have to fight him...." She walked to the kitchen table and pulled a chair over to the assassin. Then she walked back and got another chair. "Sit, and we can see what's bothering you two!"

She giggled as she turned to get her own chair.

"Cute, kid, but it's not going to work," said the assassin, suddenly whipping out and gripping Rai, hurling her against the wall next to Micah. "You seem to have an interesting housemate here. If you value her life, talk."

"About the weather?" grunted Micah.

"Funny," the assassin said, and pinned Rai harder to the wall next to him. "Now, it seems one of ours was abducted by your men today."

Micah looked confused. "HOw do you?"

"You seem to think you control everything within this city, my dear Micah."

"I do."

"Yes, you do. But we aren't from this city. And now it seems you may have complicated our plans. And now everything depends on what you know about the country OUTSIDE of this city, because in a matter of hours, it will no longer exist." Micah stared in wary confusion. THe assassin leaned down into his face. "If you can't tell me something of spectacular importance about the geography and security of this pathetic country, I will cease to value your life. You don't want that, and this child definitely doesn't want that," he said darkly, twisting the knife that pinned Micah to the cabinets. Micah groaned and glanced at Rai, weighing his options.

* * *

Sid sprung up and ran after Mizuki, grabbing her arm. "Wait! What's happening?"

Rai screamed in fright when the man grabbed her. "Hey! What did I do?!" She said and glared at the man. She listened to his conversation, and got the impression that this man thuoght that she and Micah were pals. Was he threatening her toget to Micah?

"Erm, will it help my chances if I say I just met him?" she giggled half-heartedly and struggled in the man's grasp. "See, my daddy, Soran, came in here and we ran after him and this man locked me in a room with STRING!"

"Soran?" The assassin seemed confused for a moment, as if he recognized the name, and then shook his head. "Well thanks, kid. You just reassured me that you're expendible," he said flatly, pulling another knife from his belt and aiming it for the girl's heart.

Micah grimaced and shot his foot out to kick the man in the shin. It threw off his aim slightly, but unless she moved fast, Rai was in for a nasty wound.

"Soran Nightblade!!!" She said, in fear when he went to stab her. She was frozen, sure she would die any moment now. She wanted to see her mommy and daddy one more time. She moved left and right to try and get out of the man's grip.

"No!" Mizuki cried, trying to get away from this man she couldn't even recongize. "I have to get my child! Let me go!" She wrestled out of his and ran off farther from him. What did he need her for? What was so important that this man delay her from retrieving her little girl? Then again...

"You get out of here!" Mizuki yelled over her shoulder as she ran back towards Micha's home. "We're all in danger! Get everyone out of their homes now!!"

Sid paused for a second in confusion. He'd come looking for them to warn her, but did she already know? Why wasn't Soran with her? By the time he'd thought about it, she was already several yards ahead of him. He frowned and decided it was wisest to follow at a distance for now and see what was going on.

* * *

The assassin cocked his head at the child as her struggles made her lucky enough to take the knife in her side instead of her chest. But her addition of a last name to Soran's had confirmed his certainty that it was not the person he was thinking of. "What's wrong, kid? No one's showing up to help you, so you'd be wise to stay quiet," he threatened impatiently, holding the knife near the child's face.

"Stop it!" shouted Micah. "You're here for me, so what the hell do you want to know?"

"That's more like it, Lord Micah. But we won't be talking here. This place doesn't have much longer," he said, not bothering to elaborate. He grabbed Rai up into his arms, the knife sheer against her neck. "Follow me, and don't pull anything," he ordered, yanking Micah hard by the collar to break him free of the cupboard. Micah cried out and would have sunk to his knees if the attacker hadn't held him up.

Just then, the door of the house slammed open and Micah's guard ran in, having heard the cries from down the street. He was holding a bag of cookies in his left hand, which he promptly dropped to the floor to go for his knife.

"Hold, Krad!" Micah ordered. The bodyguard stared in confusion and slowly put away his knife. "This gentleman and I are going to do some business. Don't follow us. Feel free to eat the cookies," he said casually, but his eyes were ordering the man to sound the alarm and get the hell away from here as soon as he was gone. Krad grudgingly obeyed, setting his knife on the ground and holding his hands up.

"Wise, Micah. Now let's go." Micah followed without struggle as the assassin brought Rai out the front door and led them off down the street toward the Western gate of the city.

Mizuki saw the man just as they were exiting. She cared not for Micha, but the small child the man was holding threateningly.

"RAI!" Mizuki screamed and barreled forward, charging the man with a recklessness that would've had Soran shaking his head. Mizuki pulled the small dagger from her belt and readied it at her side as she ran forward.