Chapter 02: The Road to Nowhere
This feeling
It's soo familiar
Just like when I first fell into the darkness
Is this it?
Am I gonna Disappear now?
But...I don't want to disappear
Not yet
I don't wanna be alone anymore
Eyes lids cringed, and slid open slowly, a blank almost lifeless expression rested in the fallen swordsman's pale eyes, as he fell slowly into the watery depths. He felt his hand limply rise up towards a faint light.
How is this possible, am I dead?
How is it I can breathe underwater like this?
This has never happened before
What do I do?
I don't know how to deal with this
Suddenly his eyes widened, seeing a soft ripple on the water's surface, and he could see a ethereal light above him. He reached for it, wanting soo badly to reach it, but he hadn't the strength. He began to drift further back, as his grip on the demon sword began to slip. Before he could let go, a thick black claw like hand grabbed onto his, keeping him from dropping it. The darkness grew around him as he faintly glanced about, and soon saw a muscular arm, black as the night holding onto his frail body, as it began to pull the exhausted swordsman upwards, towards the surface. As he got closer to the light, the helpless swordsman squinted, shielding his face with a hand slightly, until his tired pale eyes could adjust. As soon to his astonishment, he saw rose petals on the water's glittering surface, and an upside down, elegant white castle.
An upside down castle?
How is this even possible? What is this place, where am I?
I feel like I shouldn't be here...
No, I have to get back
The others will be worried about me
Suddenly the light became soo bright, that he could hardly see anymore, as the dark being pulled him further into the light above then. Soon he was laid down upon the dark cold grass, as the white gloves carefully brushed the soaked pink locks out of his face. "Crona" came the creature's voice "hey, idiot, how long are you gonna stay passed out huh? Hey Crona, you listening to me? I said wake up dammit" the creature snapped angrily, but Crona didn't move. The creature, feeling at a loss, glanced about and saw no one around, before it looked at the unconscious swordsman. "Dammit, oh you soo better thank me for this" Ragnarok spoke annoyed, before it hovered over him, and placed it's hands on his chest, and began pressing down in a pumping motion. He soon realized to his annoyance, that it didn't seem to be working. The abdominal thrusts weren't working on Crona, so there was only one thing left that Ragnarok could think of, before pinching the boy's nose, and moved it's mouth over his. Suddenly Crona cringed, and his eye lids slid open slowly, before he realized it. The young swordsman turned dark red, and coughed out the water. "Ragnarok?! Wha, why'd you do that you pervert?" Crona blurted out inching away from the creature, and wiped off his mouth.
Ragnarok twitched getting an angry vein "what?!" he snapped, and started punching Crona in the head. "That's the thanks I get for saving your life?! You accuse me of being a pervert, instead of thanking me?! What kind of ungrateful idiot are you?!" Ragnarok snapped. Crona instinctively scrunched up on the ground, and raised his hands in an attempt to shield his head. "Ow, ow, alright I'm sorry, please don't hit me anymore that hurts, I didn't mean it, ow, stop hitting me that hurts, stop it Ragnarok, you're hurting me" he whimpered and pleaded, before Ragnarok seemed to fold it's hands over it's chest seeming annoyed. "Well, do I at least get a thank you?!" it asked "th, thank you" Crona managed "you mean thank you very much don't you?!" Ragnarok snapped. "Ahh, th, thank you very much, please don't hit me again" Crona begged. "hmph, alright, I'll forgive you this time Crona" the creature stated, Crona glanced around and looked worried. "U, um Ragnarok?" he asked shivering "what?" it replied curtly. "Where are we?" Crona asked starting to feel scared. "What?! You mean to tell me we're lost you idiot?!" Ragnarok snapped and grabbed Crona's cheeks, and began tugging on them, seeming aggravated now. "Ow stop it Ragnarok, your making my cheeks hurt, please stop tugging on my cheeks like that, you're making my face look weird, I don't like it" Crona protested helplessly. Ragnarok soon seemed to realize this getting both of them nowhere, and decided to back into Crona's back disappearing from view.
Crona sighed sadly before he brushed some wet locks out of his face, and looked about. No sign of the castle from before anywhere, maybe it was all just a dream, didn't matter now, he had to find out where he was, and find a way to get back to his friends. He managed to see a hill, and forced himself to muster up all the strength he had left, to climb up and walked until he found a road of some kind, one that he knew he'd never seen before. Everything was soo heavenly looking, even this street, with it's elegant street lamps, and the white London bridge feeling it possessed. He needed to figure out where he was, he managed to turn faintly, and looked down both sides. He didn't see an end in sight either way, all he could hope to do, was choose one and hope for the best. Finally he made a decision and began walking, he swayed tiredly as he walked along the far side of the road. He was still exhausted from running from the enraged witch Mizune. He continued to walk, for how long he wasn't sure. As he began to feel tired and helpless, he just wanted to curl up into a ball, and cry into a pillow.
It's alright, I'm used to it
Maybe I should just disappear
Suddenly the sound of a car motor broke through the silence, and Crona shivered. His clothes and his hair were still soaking wet, and the night air was cold. Crona hugged his arms close to his body and shivered, before two pillars of light shone upon him, causing him to pause, as he heard the engine die down, and blinked glancing over. The car looked like a fancy red convertible of some sort, and the man sitting in the driver's seat had pale hair, that was short and elegant in the front, and the rest was tied back into a long emerald ponytail, wearing a crimson red fancy shirt, and black slacks. The stranger was tall and slender, with a rather handsome face, his skin was luxurious and tan, and his emerald eyes seemed to have an almost haunting effect to them. Crona tensed and looked at him, feeling himself getting nervous.
"You're not from around here" the man spoke in a smooth sultry voice, causing Crona to feel his cheeks burn, as he inched back feeling nervous. "Are you lost?" the man asked, calmly extending a slender hand out to him. Crona felt his heart beating furiously, his legs trembled even more. He'd never encountered such a charming man, he didn't how to deal with it. The man smoothly ran a hand through his hair, seeming to slightly revel in the motion briefly. "You know, it's rude not to answer someone, when they're talking to you" he stated smoothly. Crona twitched and looked at him, his face turning a little pale, and managed an innocent smile, closing his eyes cutely as he did. "S, sorry, I, I, j, just mother a, always told me not to talk to strangers" he stammered nervously. The man chuckled, and looked at him in an odd manner for a moment, before smirking charmingly, extending a hand. "You can relax, I'm not going to hurt you, I'd feel simply awful, leaving such a precious young one like you, out here alone" he stated.
His voice was luxurious and sultry, and Crona's instincts were telling him to run, but Crona knew he was exhausted, and this man seemed to want to help him. Despite his better instincts, he hesitantly moved closer to the car. "A, are you sure it's okay?" he asked meekly. The man opened the car door grinning, his eyes closing halfway in an almost hypnotic manner. The strange man moved behind Crona, and slid his slender hands over Crona's shoulders, causing Crona to jolt at first. His face felt like it was on fire, as he glanced over his shoulder at the man, he felt his heart pounding in his chest, and for some reason, he could've sworn the man had a rose like fragrance to him. "Please, I insist" he cooed softly into Crona's ear, Crona's eyes widened in shock, and absently felt his own hand grip the black fabric on the front of his dress, his other hand clutching his arm, his hands trembling.
"Um, w, well, o, okay, I, if you insist, I, I guess, I have no choice, r, right?" he asked, feeling a frail and helpless in his man's hands, and confused at this strange feeling, that he didn't know how to deal with. "Not really, unless you want to risk catching you death out here" the man cooed into his ear. Crona shivered more, the feeling of the man's warm breath in his ear felt soo strange. The man finally moved back, and opened the passenger door for him. "Really, it's quite alright, I was just on my way back to my place, I have some fresh towels there, so you can dry off and call someone to come get you" the man told him. Crona's eyes widened blinking. 'I could call the academy and tell them where I am' Crona thought before managing a nod, and sat down onto the seat offered to him, as the elegant man soon got into the driver's seat, after closing the doors and turned on the car.
The engine roared slightly as the car sped off, and the man calmly changed gears as necessary. "You know it just occurred to me, I never really caught your name did I?" the man asked. Crona gripped the side of the seat tightly, and used the other to hold down the dress blushing, keeping his head slightly lowered. Crona looked at him innocently. "Oh of course, how rude of me, I should introduce myself first, before asking you for your name" the man spoke calmly, before looking at him charmingly. "I'm Akio Ohtori, and you?" the man spoke, Crona blushed and managed a shy smile "oh I, I see, thank you very much Mr. Ohtori" he managed before glancing down, a saddened look on the young swordsman's face.
"I'm the demon swordsman Crona Gorgon, former son of the Witch known as Lady Medusa" he confessed, flinching at his mother's name. Akio's eyes widened slightly. 'The son of a witch? Could this innocent boy be the one I've been searching for? If he is, can I really risk letting him go? I have to know for sure, but how?' he thought, as he felt a sinister grin beginning to form. Akio had an idea how he could attempt to find out. Crona found himself glancing up at the night sky, it was soo different than the one he was familiar with. It was soo resilient and beautiful, and yet, his expression went from awestruck, to a saddened one. He missed his friends, he felt like slowly, he was losing them somehow, but he was gonna call them when they got to Akio's place right? So why was he missing them soo much? It wasn't like he was going to lose them forever right? And yet, as he stared at the night sky he felt lost. Crona felt Akio's hand on his shoulder, and looked over next to him, and soon his eyes widened, seeing what looked like Death the Kid smirking seductively at him and was driving.
'What's going on here? why's Kid here? And where'd Mr. Ohtori go? What's going on here? I, is this some kind of magic? What do I do? I don't know how to deal with this' Crona thought as he blinked, trying to figure out what to do. Suddenly he felt Kid's hand slide onto his leg, causing Crona to tense slightly. "Wha, what's going on here?" Crona spoke softly, feeling himself tensing, and saw what looked like Death the Kid continuing to grin at him, as the pink haired swordsman felt his cheeks flush, and started to feel nervous. 'Wha, why're you looking at me like that?' he found himself wondering, as suddenly Crona's eyes widened, seeing Kid take his hands off the wheel, and grab Crona's shoulders, before abruptly pinning him down.
Crona stared up helplessly into the young reaper's golden yellow spheres, and felt his heart racing. 'Is this really happening, but how?' Crona's thoughts were cut off unexpectantly, feeling something warm pressed against his lips. Crona's pale eyes widened in shock, seeing Kid's mouth pressed softly against his. He stared in shock, as the young shinigami soon pulled his lips away from Crona's. "H, how are you?" Crona whispered, shivering under the reaper's touch.
The reaper reached out touching the pale swordsman's cheek, and brought him into a hug. "It's alright Crona, I'm here now, that's all that matters" he heard the other boy's voice, and he felt a sting of tears in the corners of his eyes. Could this really be happening? Was any of this real? Suddenly the image of Death the Kid faded away, and he saw Akio glancing at him, causing Crona to suddenly feel as if his veins were turning to ice. Could this man be doing this somehow? Could this man actually be a witch? Fear now began to race through his mind, he had to get away from him, young Crona's mind was screaming for him to get as far away from the enchanting man as he could, but how.
Akio saw the sudden change in Crona's demeanor, from relaxed and hypnotized, to fearful and guarded, this wasn't good. If he didn't do something soon, Crona might try to run from him, and he needed Crona, in order to become the Rose Prince again. It was enough that he had lost Anthy, right when he had been soo close to victory, all because of that wannabe prince Utena, he'd be damned if he let his second chance slip away. He revved the engine harder, and started driving even faster. Crona's nails began to dig into the side of the seat, he yelped in surprise as the car engine roared, and the wind whipped his hair about. "Eyahh, p, please slow down, y, you're driving too fast!" Crona cried out "what's that?" Akio called out trying not to laugh. "I, I said, slow down please?!" Crona pleaded "do you like it?" Akio asked grinning "wha, what?! What're you talking about?!" Crona cried out, starting to feel very worried now.
"The throbbing of the engine....does it feel good Crona?" Akio asked maliciously, Crona felt the car tremble with him, and he desperately tried to keep the dress from lifting up due to the wind. "N, no, stop it please!" Crona begged. Akio glanced at him, and realized why the young teen was protesting, and smirked. 'Let's see how you react to this then Crona' he thought cruelly, as he suddenly revved the engine harder, switching gears roughly, before his image changed. Crona's eyes widened in shock, seeing the man was suddenly a majestic prince and blushed darkly, seeing that the prince's shirt suddenly was open, as the prince abruptly took both hands off the wheel, and grabbed the top rim of the windshield and began to stand up.
Crona's eyes widened and trembled in horror. "Wha, what're you doing?! S, stop it that's dangerous, s, stop it, you'll kill us both if you keep doing that" Crona begged, as he tried desperately to figure out what to do. He could try to grab the man's arm and pull him back down, he could grab the wheel and try to keep them from possible death, or he could try to reason with him. He attempted to get up and grab the man's arm, but the prince startled him, when he flipped himself suddenly over the windshield, landing on the hood on his feet, before sitting down and hooked his right elbow over an edge. Akio grinned sadistically, his legs slightly spread, as the car continued to drive somehow. Crona missed and barely caught himself, before glancing up and saw the tower that they were approaching very quickly. Crona shrieked and tried to seize the wheel, and soon realized he'd never driven a car before.
"Mr. Ohtori, please, g, get back over here and take the wheel, I, I don't know how to drive this thing, I don't know how to handle this!" he cried out, but the arrogant prince simply ignored him. Crona's eyes widened in sheer horror, before tears formed, and he tried to pull on his arm. "Please, I'm begging you, d, do something" he begged, his hands shaking violently now, but still the prince ignored him. "I don't wanna die!" Crona screamed, tears coming from his tightly closed eyes, if he was gonna die, he didn't want to see it coming. Suddenly he realized he wasn't dead, and he felt something embracing him. Crona felt the comforting embrace making him feel safe, so warm and strong, and seeing the pale fabric in eyesight, he thought he was back at school, and at first he thought it was Professor Stein.
Crona felt his cheeks flush in shame, as his tears flowed strongly now, and he sobbed helplessly. Crona desperately hoped to hear the demented professor's comforting voice, telling him it was all just a bad dream, and that everything was fine. But to his horror, as his senses began to return to him, due to the shock dissipating, he soon recognized that soft fragrance of roses. His pale eyes widened through tears, to which he began shaking. He managed to look up, and saw the tan skinned prince smirking down at him, causing the young swordsman to feel horror race through him. 'S, somebody, Help me' he thought weakly, as the man slid his hands onto Crona's cheeks. "I'm sorry....I didn't mean to scare you Crona, forgive me" the prince spoke softly, in moments the prince leaned in and kissed Crona's tears away. Crona blushed furiously, his frail body, becoming rigid in shock. 'What’s happening to me?! I should run away, b, but I can't move, what do I do?' Crona thought desperately, as the darkness began to form near Crona's hand, and soon transformed into the two handed demon sword Ragnarok, as he weakly gripped the hilt of it in his pale quivering hand.
Finally his fear had fully drained him, of what small amount of energy he had remaining, and his vision went dark, his eyes closing halfway, as his legs finally gave out, and he fell forward. The prince calmly caught the young swordsman into his arms, before he looked to the sword, and attempted to reach for the hilt. 'Is this the sword, that will help me regain my powers?' he thought to himself, before suddenly a black claw like hand grabbed onto the hilt, keeping it from his grasp shocking Akio, causing the fallen prince to look up, and saw the demonic looking guardian, hugging onto Crona protectively, and it's hand keeping the hilt in Crona's, while glaring at him. "What manner of creature is this?" Akio wondered aloud softly, noticing the creature didn't appear to like him, and assumed a slightly cautious posture. "The name's Ragnarok" the creature spoke, a twinge of anger in his tone, as it then leaned in closer, getting it's face inches from the prince's. "Allow me to make something perfectly clear with you, Crona's the only one allowed to use me as his weapon, you got that? Try that again, and I'll eat your soul without hesitation, are we clear?" Ragnarok spoke defensively.
Akio locked eyes with it 'a haunted sword? I wasn't expecting that...well, he said I can't wield the sword myself, but he never said anything about owning his young master' Akio thought carefully, before looking up at it. "I see, forgive me, I wasn't aware of that this magnificent blade, had a spirit of sorts attached to it. Ragnarok continued to glare at the prince, but soon noticed that Crona was passed out from fatigue, and something about this strange man that smelled of roses, something about the prince made him feel uneasy. "Well, Ragnarok was it?" Akio began, calmly smiling and extending a hand. "It would appear to me, that young Crona looks awfully exhausted, if you'd like, he can rest up here until he has recovered his strength, even you probably noticed, the poor child clearly needs to rest for now" Akio coaxed smoothly. Ragnarok looked at the unconscious pink haired boy in his arms, and soon realized, though he hated to admit it, the prince was actually right.
Akio held out his arms "may I?" he asked patiently, Ragnarok looked at him, then at the innocent young boy in his arms, and decided to carefully hold Crona out to the prince. Akio calmly accepted Crona into his embrace, before he carefully brought the young boy into his arms, only to then carry him bridal style, as Ragnarok soon vanished. He took a moment to look at the cursed swordsman, how innocent and lifeless he looked, like his sister had when she became the rose bride, for a brief second he felt a twinge of guilt, but soon dismissed it, and began to take Crona inside his residence. He brought the young swordsman to the observatory room, before carefully laying him down onto the sofa. 'I'm sorry, but I'm not going to give you the chance to escape from me, I'll release you as soon as I no longer need you' he thought, as he went over to a nearby sofa. He then poured himself a glass of wine, boredly swishing it lightly after sitting down, and stared at the boy's sleeping face, as he then grinned. 'Hopefully if you're a good child, you won't have to be my prisoner for long...it's nothing personal young Crona, but I need you, if I'm ever going to get my power back'