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R A I
I don't hate you, I just want to save you
while there's still something left to save.

And so, time passed...
xxxxxxScene I - Greenxxxxxx
xxxxxxScene I - Greenxxxxxx

It had been a bright, sunny day. Birds had been happily singing the arrival of spring, and children who had been cooped up in their homes all winter had enjoyed their first taste in a long while of a day outside without having their movements restricted by coats.

However, that had been during the day. Now it was night, and a deep fog had settled over the town along with a late winter chill. Most families had locked their doors and were settling down, preparing for bed. Some early risers had already been asleep for a time, and a few night dwellers were still up and about, although very few could still be seen wandering the streets. But alas, there were still some -- poor souls who were just now returning home after a get together, or who had been held late after work or served some sort of night shift. And among these there was a young girl -- sixteen or seventeen years of age, blue eyes, crimson hair and pale skin that was currently flushed bright red as she raced along the streets.

Throwing a nervous glance over her shoulder, the girl's breath caught in her throat at the blurry sight of the three men following her. At first she had only been mildly unnerved by their presence, but as they had continued to trail her around every corner and street, she had gradually picked up her pace, only to find that they had matched it. And now she could only be certain -- they were following her. And gaining, at that. But she was close to her house now; only a few more street corners and she'd be safely behind her own door, a lock and bar between her and her stalkers. Then she could call the police, and all would be well. If only she could make it that far.

As the girl turned the next corner, she collided with someone, gasping as she tumbled backward onto the ground. Looking up, she was met with a pair of dark eyes, sunk into the skull of a tall, heavily built man with a smug expression plastered on his face. "Hello, little girl." Trembling, she forced herself to her feet, turning in an attempt to flee in the opposite direction. However, as she did she was caught on each side by the men who had been trailing her, and one of them clasped a hand over her mouth, quieting her attempted scream.

The girl struggled vainly for a few moments, and then gave in, closing her eyes and hanging limply in their hands. "Good girl," the man in front of her chuckled, his voice low. Thoughts of what they might do to her now flooded through the girl's mind and her nails dug into her hands, her tiny fingers curled into trembling fists. After a few moments, she gained the courage to open her eyes, only to find herself surrounded by even more tall, dark figures. Soon, the familiar streets that led to her house were replaced with dark alleyways surrounded by tall buildings she had only taken vague notice of before. Guided by the rough hands of her kidnappers, she continued, a prisoner, down the narrow passageways until they stopped before a large, stone door. Through it was a room, dark and reeking with the thick scent of rot and decay. Once inside, several of the men peeled away to station themselves in various corners and parts of the room and the apparent leader of the group, the man she had run into at the street corner, seized the girl's wrist and dragged her to the back of the room.

The man quickly clasped a metal band around each of her wrists, chaining her in place. As soon as he let go off her, she sunk down to her knees, still shaking as she leaned against the damp wall. "What are you going to do with me?" she whispered, her voice steady despite her trembling body. However, she received no answer as the man instead turned to his followers and began to mumble something before laughing in mocking amusement. The sound dug into the girl's mind like frozen knives, and she pressed her face against her knees, as if to hide from their voices. Hours passed, or at least so it seemed, as she sat in the back of the room, listening to the muffled words of the men that surrounded her.

Then there was a knock at the door, and the room feel eerily silent. The girl's head rose, blue eyes lifting as her captures momentarily froze, and then began frantically whispering. The man she had assumed was the leader of the group moved away from the others, taking up a position beside her. Then he nodded at a man by the door, and said man slowly turned the nob, swinging the door open. In the doorway stood a figure, dressed all in green, with a light coat draped over his shoulders and a large staff in his right hand. His eyes were a bright, golden color, and his long green hair hung over his shoulder, messily yet orderly at the same time, somehow, and tied into a neat ponytail. He was of average height for a grown man, although rather lacking when it came to physical build. He didn't seem to possess any sort of muscle at all, yet managed to appear acceptably healthy nonetheless. "Good evening~" he sang, his cheerful tone matching the smile on his face.

At this, all those in the room immediately took up defense positions, their expressions tense and their hands placed over their pistols as they eyed the man with careful expressions. The girl watched silently, unsure of what to make of the situation. Obviously, this newcomer was not welcome here. But why had his arrival caused such a dramatic reaction? Although it was dark, the girl was sure she could make out at least twenty men in the room, all of which could have easily wrestled a bear and came out on top in her opinion, much unlike the man currently standing in door way of the room.

"Don't come any closer!" The man beside her hissed, his eyes narrowed. "If you do," he growled, reaching down to his side and swiftly removing a small, silver dagger from his belt. "The girl will die." He held the weapon to her throat, and the girl gasped, eyes wide with terror. So that was what she was: a hostage.

"Oh?" The green-haired man hummed, his eyes searching the dark figures until they landed on the girl. His smile disappeared, and was replaced with a frown. However, it was not so much a sad frown as it was a childish look of... disapproval. "Really, that's all you could come up with? Honestly..." He sighed, turning and leaning his staff against one of the buildings just outside the room. "I feel like I see this exact set up at least once or twice a month. People are so unoriginal!"

"Hah." The man beside the girl huffed, a grin spreading across his face. "As long as it works, nothing is too cliche." He nodded at a few of the others in the room, who quickly held up their guns toward the man in the doorway. "Now, put your hands up and walk forward slowly."

"If I do that," the newcomer said, his voice still managing to remain cheerful, "will you release the girl? Promise me that."

"Of course," the leader laughed, his smile widening. "It's a promise."

"Good!" The man exclaimed brightly, raising his hands into the air. "I'll hold you to it, then." He took a few steps forward, slowly, until he was far enough in that the door could be closed behind him. "How dreary," he complained, "you really ought to invest in some lighting." At that moment, several of the men closed in on him, pointing their pistols at his head from every possible side. The green-haired man remained very still, still retaining his good-humored demeanor as his eyes fixed expectantly on the leader of the group.

"Humph," the man chortled. "That was easier than expected." He removed the dagger from its position next to the girl's throat, and took a step toward the person currently being held hostage in the center of the room. "And after all the terrifying things I've heard about you. I should have expected they were nothing but groundless rumors."

"You should never trust rumors," the man agreed thoughtfully, nodding his head.

The leader frowned, obviously finding no amusement in the other's playful comments."You're really annoying, you know that?" He huffed, holding his knife up and pressing it against his prisoner's throat. "But I'll happily take the glory of killing the all too well known Demon Thief." From behind him, the girl watched the scene in disbelief. They were really going to murder him, right in front of her. Because of her. She felt like she was going to be sick.

However, the golden-eyed man seemed undaunted by the announcement of his death, and instead looked straight into the eyes of the man before him with as much confidence as he had held entering the room. "Now hold on a moment," he spoke, moving a hand down and pointing at the girl still chained to the wall. "I believe we had an agreement. I did what you asked, so release her."

The man with the knife grinned, leaning in close yet speaking loud enough for everyone in the room to hear. "Did I promise that? I don't remember." He glanced back at the girl, eyes glistening. "Cute, isn't she? I think I'll keep her." Then he turned back to the Demon Thief. "Sorry, I have a terrible memory."

The captive smiled, "Ahh, not to worry. Mine is pretty horrible as well." The girl sighed, having at this point given up all hope she had previously been granted by the arrival of the man. She had never really expected to be set free in the first place, but what she had just heard confirmed it. Staring at the floor, she thought for a moment about what they would do after killing this man. One way or another, they'd definitely kill her in the end. What they did between now and then, however, was what frightened her the most. And now the life of someone else would be pointlessly taken away as well.

As her eyes lifted again, she was surprised to find the Demon Thief's gaze fixed directly on her, a bright smile on his face. She blinked, unable to understand. How could he be so cheerful? He was about to die! Had his life been so unsatisfactory that he welcomed death in such a miserable way? As she stared at him in disbelief, the man's eyes closed, and his smile straightened into the first serious look she'd seen from him since his arrival. "That's too bad. I really hate people who break their promises," he said, his voice quiet.

"You say something?" The bandit leader asked, but was met with silence. He laughed. "Finally come to terms with your position, eh? Well, I'll put you out of your misery. Sweet dre--" The man stopped mid sentence, his eyes widening and his face growing deathly pale. There was a brief silence as the men exchanged curious glances. After a moment, one of them spoke, "S..sir?" The speaker reached out to touch his leader, and in the moment he did the man fell backwards, his head tumbling from his body as he did. Shouts of alarm rose among the group. Some fell to their knees, others tore the door open and fled, and some shot hateful glares toward the Demon Thief, keeping their shaking guns in place as best they could.

As the man hit the ground, blood splattered the floor from his neck, as well as the young girl positioned against the wall. His disconnected head rolled across the room, and the prisoner stared at it in disbelief. "Wh..what... happened..?" she choked, squeezing her eyes shut as the fresh scent of blood invaded her senses.

"Get out." The Demon Thief hissed, his voice low and menacing. His tone had shifted so drastically, it was almost unrecognizable. His expression wasn't visible by the dark shadows that were cast on his face, but the girl could imagine what sort of demonic look currently defined the man's features that caused those near him to grow so inhumanly pale. In response to his demand, many of the men fled through the door, proclaiming that they had seen a demon as they ran. Those that stayed immediately began to make use of their weapons, and the the room began to flicker with gunfire and smoke. At the same time, a strong wind entered the room, and the screams of those present filled the air. The girl watched the disarray with wide eyes, unable to tear her gaze from the horrors unfolding before her. Although it was difficult to see, she could make out the figures of some as they were thrown violently against the walls. Howls of agony erupted from the mens' mouths, and then they each fell silent, falling limply to the ground of the dark room.

Then there was silence. It didn't last long, but to the girl it was forever several times. She stared at the man before her, breathing unevenly, trembling far greater than she had when the men had captured her. The Demon Thief's eyes lifted slowly, and the shadows fell back to reveal his soft, golden eyes. At first, his face was expressionless, but after a moment a smile returned to his face. Not cheerful as it had been, and not demonic. It was difficult to describe, but it seemed to the girl that it wasn't really a smile at all. He was sad.

"And what shall I think of him now?" He spoke quietly, slowly walking toward the girl. "One who kills so mercilessly?" He crouched before the girl, leaning down until he was eye level. "I'm sorry. It's my fault you had to go through all of this. But now..." As he spoke, the bands around the girl's hands shattered, allowing her arms to fall to the ground. "...it's over. You're free to go. And I'm terribly sorry about your outfit," he said, his expression turning a bit sheepish. "It was certainly not my intention to stain it." Then the Demon Thief stood, turning away from her and walking toward one of the corners of the room.

The girl sat for a moment, staring at her hands in disbelief, and unable to think of what to make of his words. He was a monster, clearly. He had killed all of those men without a second thought. Yet at the same time, he had saved her. Taking a deep breath, she clumsily climbed to her feet, using the wall as support and making a face at the horrible smell that surrounded her. "Wait!" She called, her voice regaining some stability. "What's your name?"

"Hm?" The man glanced at her briefly. "I believe I'm called the Demon Thief here. Didn't you hear?"

"Not that," she said, frowning. "Your real name."

"It's Rai," he said, turning back to the table he had been searching before she had spoken to him.

"Rai..." she said quietly, casting a disturbed look at the men lying around in the room. "Why did you kill them?"

He paused for a moment, not facing her as he spoke. "I don't like bandits, and I don't tolerate liars. They got what they deserved."

The girl swallowed hard, her eyes turning to the ground. "That's not your decision to make," she said quietly. "You didn't have to kill them."

"They tried to kill you." He reminded her. Then he sighed, turning and pointing at the men lying about the room. "A lot of them were victims of friendly fire when they were all trying to get at me, so I can't speak for all of them -- but the ones that weren't killed in such a way should only be unconscious. With the exception of the headless one, of course."

"And what about you?" She demanded, folding her arms. At this point, her voice had returned to normal, and she was leaned up against the wall in an almost casual manner, although the mention that the men around her may still be alive had unnerved her considerably. "The Demon Thief -- are you so different from them?"

"I don't steal." He said plainly. "I retrieve stolen things -- although from a thief's point of view I suppose that could be called stealing. And The Demon Thief is just one of many titles people have given me."

"Oh." The girl remained quiet for a few minutes as the man before her searched around the room, stepping over unmoving bodies and opening various lockers and searching through drawers in desks and under tables. Whatever he was looking for, the girl was beginning to wonder if it was even here at all. "How did you do that, anyway?" She questioned Rai, glancing around at all the men on the floor. "Cut the leader's head off, breaks the chains, dodge the bullets. What are you, superhuman?"

"Ahh, now we're curious." The man laughed, digging through a small drawer. "Didn't I say you were free to go? What's keeping you, then?"

"That's not an answer." The girl huffed, dodging his question as well.

Rai sighed, closing the drawer. "I suppose you could call me superhuman, if that would satisfy you. And to be honest all of those men had quite horrible aim, more than likely aided by the fact that this room has less than decent lighting." Knocking on a nearby table, he slid his fingers under what looked like a sort of latch, opening a hidden compartment. Reaching into a hidden space, he pulled out a small red box, and eyed it with a pleased expression. Then he turned, pacing over to the now-open door and reaching outside to grab his staff.

"What's that?" The girl inquired, pointing to the box in the Rai's hands.

"What I came here for," he smiled, and then motioned toward the outside of the room with his staff. "Coming?" The girl nodded, hesitantly walking around the decapitated body before her as though she expected it to suddenly stand back up and grab her. Then she hurried out of the door, releasing a sigh of relief at the sound of it closing behind her.

Rai took a few steps forward and paused, facing away from her. Then he extended his arm, holding up the red box he had found. The girl watched curiously, taking a few careful steps to the side to see what he was doing. The container didn't have any apparent openings -- just a plain, dark red box with a few scarcely visible silver markings that twisted around the edges. But it had to be important somehow, the girl imagined, if these people had been willing to kill for it.

Even as Rai took his hand away, the box remained floating. "ανοικτή," he whispered, taking a few steps back. The girl leaned forward, eyes growing ever wider in curiosity as she stared at the small object. Magic? She wondered, watching as the silver designs on the box began to move, connecting and spreading at a rapid pace. Then it began to change shape, making a high-pitched scraping sound as it did. The girl covered her ears, pressing herself against the building behind her. And yet, the noise didn't really bother her. Her attention remained focused on the little red object that was slowly being turned silver as it twisted into a sort of oval shape. Her eyes moved away from it only for a moment, to glance at the green-haired man beside her. Nothing she knew could explain the existence of the stranger. He had to be a magician -- something she had always been taught only lived in the realm of fairy tales. Surely he was a man that conspired with devils, which would make sense of the title the men had called him by: the Demon Thief. And yet, he didn't seem like a bad person at all. Though he was certainly far more dangerous than the men who had captured her, she wasn't nearly as frightened of him.

The girl's eyes flitted back to the box, only to find that by this point it no longer resembled one in the slightest. Rather, it had taken on the shape of a necklace -- a long, silver chain with a crimson red gem caught in the center. Simple, yet beautiful. She stared in amazement, resisting with great effort the urge to touch the delicate ornament. It almost seemed alive, breathing with a faint pink glow.

Beside her, Rai had shifted his position, holding up his green, winged staff. The girl looked at him questioningly, watching as he slowly lifted the staff above his head. "What are you..?" She started. He offered her a grin, and then swung his weapon down in an almost inhumanly quick motion, colliding with the necklace.

The girl's mouth dropped open in disbelief, watching in what could only be described as slow-motion as the pendant was forced to the ground, shattering as it made contact with the stone. Pieces of the red centerpiece were scattered all around, and even the chain snapped in several places, much to the horror of the poor female onlooker. "Wha..." She started, eyes darting to the man standing before her as he slowly moved his staff back to his side, a thoughtful look on his face. "What did... you do!?" She hissed, eyebrows raised.

"Sigh," was the man's response as he reached into his pocket, pulling out a small sack. "It broke."

"You broke it," the girl huffed, bringing a hand to her forehead. "You smashed it against the pavement, of course it would break! What were you thinking?" If he didn't want it, he could have at least sold it or something... or given to her. Anything would have been better than letting it go to waste like that.

"It was a fake," the man said as he fished through his bag, evidently unaffected by her accusing tone. "The real one wouldn't have broken so easily."

"Did you have to be so violent, though?" She sighed, looking at the beautiful pieces of red on the ground. "Wasn't there some other way to figure out if it was fake?"

"Of course," he smiled, pausing for moment to look up at the girl. "But this was easier. And faster. And more fun~"

Unbelievable. The girl sighed. Even if it had been a fake or whatever, it was obviously a pretty good one. She never would have guessed it was anything but authentic. "Are they hiding it somewhere else, then?"

"No, I doubt these men have it at all," Rai hummed, seemingly deeply involved in his search through his little bag, which was actually no bigger than an average coin sack. Yet he was somehow having difficulties finding whatever he was looking for in it. "They probably thought it was just as real as you did."

"Oh." The girl frowned, watching the man before her as he reached his arm into his little coin-purse-looking-thing, unsure of what exactly was taking him so long to --. Wait a second, she blinked, mouth opening again in surprise. His arm, all the way up to his elbow, was literally completely inside the bag. Impossible! She gawked, rubbing her eyes a few times. The sack couldn't have been any bigger than his hand, and yet he had half of his arm inside of it.

"Aha!" The man exclaimed happily, completely oblivious to the shock of the female beside him as he pulled a small black headset out of the physics-defying bag. Turning it on, he placed it on his head and waited for a moment before speaking into it with his usual cheery voice. "You were wrong again~"

The girl shook her head, deciding it would be best if she didn't even try to understand what had just happened. As Rai held his conversation with whoever happened to be on the other end of his communication device, she began looking around at the surrounding buildings. Although she'd never come down this particular alleyway before, she had a pretty good idea of where she was at. She could certainly find her way home from here. However... it was awfully dark tonight. There were very few lights, and she was worried the men who had fled hadn't gone very far.

Her gaze lifted to the roof of a building when she heard a soft clicking sound, and her eyes widened as she found a man sitting atop it, a long, black device clutched in his arms and pointed toward Rai. A firearm, she named it, taking a nervous breath. Although she knew the world certainly had the technology to mass produce such devices, while other areas of invention had taken a great leap lately the main source of weapons had remained swords, not guns. She had never actually seen one before, but she was well aware of what they were capable of -- and how dangerous they were. "Ra--!" She attempted to warn the man beside her, only to be cut off by the loud sound of a shot being fired. She stared at Rai, expecting the worst, but instead found he hadn't reacted in the slightest when it happened, not even pausing mid-sentence as he continued his conversation. The bullet that had been shot in his direction never even reached him, bouncing back midair and sailing straight into the forehead of the one who had shot it. The girl blinked, watching as the shooter howled in pain and then fell backward, disappearing from view.

"What did you..." she whispered, her voice trailing off. Right, Rai was a magician -- of course he'd be capable of deflecting a bullet... without even looking at it. Or noticing it at all. Really..? Her eyes drifted to other buildings, noticing a number of other figures looking down from them. She shivered, imagining how many more were likely hidden just out of sight along the alleyway as well. Just lovely...

"Nixterra!" Rai exclaimed beside her, his tone laced with childish complaint. "What a paaaain. I've just about had it chasing down these necklaces. Are you absolutely certain this time?" After a brief pause, he shrugged. "Alright then. Bye~" Removing the headset, he slipped it back into his bag, which was actually smaller than the headset itself, and turned his attention back to the girl. "I'll see you later, then. Nice meeting you."

"You too.. I guess," she said, turning her eyes to the ground. Even though he was saying goodbye, she had every intention of following him until they were safely out of this place. She feared what might happen if she left his side before then. However, it seemed his definition of "leaving" wasn't quite the same as her own.

Holding his staff up, the magician spoke a string of words in a language she, once again, did not understand. "Diastáseo̱n strofí̱ - Nixterra," he said. The moment the words left his mouth, there was a flash of light. Startled, the girl lurched forward, clinging to the nearest thing she could find -- which was, in this case, Rai's coat. She thought she heard a strained, "Let go!", but she couldn't be sure. And it was too late now, anyway.

In the same moment she had grabbed onto the man, a loud noise erupted in her ears. No, that wasn't it. It wasn't a noise at all -- in fact, it was just the opposite. It was so devoid of any sound, it was as though her mind had gone into a panic at the unnatural silence, and began to imagine anything it could in order to fill the void. At the same time, an uncanny weightlessness enveloped her body, and the air was pulled from her lungs. Her limbs grew heavy, and her eyes stretched wide, unable to see anything but an endless array of colors she was unable to put a name to. Terrified, the girl struggled helplessly in a futile attempt to move -- speak -- feel -- do something. Anything.

"Breath."

The girl drew a long breath, gasping at the air that filled her starved lungs. Her eyes flew open, relieved to find a color (well, shade at least) she could identify -- white. It was all around her, accompanied by a stinging cold, but she didn't care. Her heart began to beat again, and she slowly regained feeling in her limbs. The nonexistent noise that had pounded in her mind disappeared and was replaced with the sound of her own uneasy breathing. "Wh-wh..." she gasped.

"You really shouldn't have done that." The girl turned her head to see Rai looking down at her, smiling, but with a sort of concerned look on his face. "You're lucky to be alive, and even luckier that you made it in one piece. Do you remember my name?"

"R-Rai..."

"And yours?"

"Innistria."

"So that's your name," he grinned, eyes sparkling. "I was wondering."

"Eh?" The girl blinked, realizing for the first time that she was actually lying in the man's lap. "Aah!" Sitting up abruptly, she pushed herself away from him, flinching at the cold that met her hands when she touched the ground. Snow?

"Looks like your memories made it okay, then. It's usually an all-or-nothing sort of deal when you cross dimensions, so if you can remember names I doubt you lost anything else." Rai stood up, brushing himself off and turning away from the girl for a moment.

Innistria blinked and gave the man an odd look, shaking her head in disbelief. "You're saying we just moved into another dimension?"

"Indeed we did," was his response. He pointed a gloved finger to the seemingly unending expanse of whiteness before them. In the distance, snowy mountains lifted out of the ground, reaching up toward the equally colorless sky. Nothing but snowy plains could be seen no matter where you looked, and the wind buffeted the two new arrivals with such harshness one might easily be fooled into thinking it were angry with them. Of course, while Innistria felt as though she may freeze to death at any given time, Rai appeared entirely unaffected by the harsh climate. "Welcome to Nixterra," he hummed, sounding pleased.

Scene II

Story © Xiraphox
Rai © Hunter_Aran & Xiraphox
Other characters © Xiraphox
Image © Heise Jin Yao

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