All I have to say is... wuahahahahahaha! ;)

Fear

Seriah felt the fury within her heart rip through her body. The two men she’d trusted had given her away to Derrick. That was something she couldn’t fix. Derrick would most likely run home and tell his father and everything would be ruined. This was a mess and she didn’t know how to fix it. “How did he get out?” She snapped at her grandmother who lay on the floor in the basement. “Hello?” She grabbed the woman’s long red hair to lift her up and pulled a clump of it away from the woman’s frail scalp. Seriah stared at the hair in her hands and looked down at her grandmother with a sense of satisfaction. “That stuff really does mess you up doesn’t it?” Beryl’s brown eyes slowly fixed on the younger woman and to Seriah’s surprise they had begun to cloud. “I’ll take it you can no longer talk then?”

“Barely.” Beryl managed to choke out blood dripping from the corner of her mouth. Seriah sighed with frustration and walked towards one of the gun racks. Beryl was useless to her like this, a sorry excuse for a human being really.

“Then you’re not worth the air you’re breathing.” Seriah loaded a gun and slowly walked back to where the woman lay on the cold floor. It was a wonder to think that such a small syringe could do so much to someone and now Taiki might face the same fate. “Too bad.”

“Killing me… won’t… bring… that… boy… closer… to… you…” Beryl coughed violently. The scene was so disgusting, so very horrific. Seriah simply raised the gun and fired it into Beryl’s head, it was the same mercy she’d shown her father years ago and the action caused memories of that day to come flooding back to her. She had begged Darien to kill her father yet he hadn’t. He had stood there, with that satisfied smirk on his face. Darien was a monster, more so than her father ever could have been. Seiya had put her mother through physical hell, he had appealed to her in the only way she would connect with him.

Darien on the other hand; he had put her through years of mental torture. He had broken her mother so very badly that she was practically incapable of loving anyone but him. It was disgusting, the way he had conditioned the blonde haired bombshell. What was worse was that he had convinced everyone around him that HE was the right one. HE was the “good guy”. Well, she knew better than that. There were people out there, people like Taiki and Yaten who knew that her father’s quest was a good one. That Seiya Kou was a brilliant man. She looked around the basement stronghold and spotted a picture of her parents together. It was when they were young, it was only half of a picture, the other half had been trimmed away. She focused on the image of her father and smiled. “Don’t worry daddy… I’ll find the rest of them and then… I’ll make Darien pay. I promise you I will.”

Five men sat around a table silently regarding one another. Helios was drumming his fingers on the surface and staring out the lone window in the room. He didn’t want to be here, in this meeting. He wanted to be with Serena and Rini. He wanted to be protecting them, not sitting here in order to indulge some false sense of security.

“I’m familiar with these men.” Sapphire finally drawled and set the pictures of Taiki and Yaten onto the table. “They were dedicated followers of Seiya. They weren’t the only ones but when he died… the entire group disappeared. It was as if they all expected some sort of end… Seiya was crazy but he wasn’t foolish. He would have anticipated possibly losing to you Darien… The fact that these men left and are now starting to reappear concerns me.” Darien leaned forward, his forearms resting against the table as he looked into Sapphire’s deep blue depths.

“So, let me get this straight… there are MORE people after my family?” Darien growled hatefully. “How is that possible? Has the world gone mad? How can anyone think Seiya was… someone to be admired and followed?” Helios looked at Darien sternly before speaking up.

“You have to understand something Darien. In the world he was in… he did some very heroic things. He did many great things. My uncle would have us believe that Seiya was one hundred percent evil but he wasn’t. Seiya pioneered many things that agents today still use. He kept many people safe. Sure, he was a little rough around the edges and definitely ruthless but he was a great leader. Your wife brought out the bad side of him… you brought out the bad side of him. I met him once when I was younger… he was someone to be admired at that point but… he let you and Serena consume him when he wasn’t at work… I’m sorry Darien but to many agents out there, you and your family… well… you’re the enemy.” Helios’ words once again silenced the room. Each man silently recessed into their mind, all but Sapphire that is. Sapphire glared at his nephew, the “prodical son” as some called him was speaking the truth. There were many people who followed Seiya even though he was in a deep grave. “The only thing that can explain the men disappearing and now coming back is that someone… is leading them and now that Seriah’s out… they’re transferring leadership.”

“Will you shut up?” Sapphire stood and slammed his fists into the table. “You’ve always spoken out of turn! How many times have I told you to hold your tongue when issues like this arise?” The two men glared at one another fiercely before Helios looked at Darien sternly.

“I think you’re a fool Darien. Keeping Serena in the dark about this is… wrong! She has to know that she’s in danger. How can she properly guard against harm if she doesn’t know there’s a threat?” Darien blinked a few times before sighing and rubbing his eyes. “You know I’m right! Stop treating her as if she’s a china doll! She’s the one who survived all of those years of abuse! She’s the one who knows how Seiya operated and who her daughter is. You can’t protect her if you hide the truth from her. Frankly I don’t think you’re doing a very good job of protecting your daughter either! Keeping people sheltered helps nothing.”

“Don’t talk to me as though I don’t know my wife!” Darien shouted, the malice in his voice so evident that even Sapphire cringed. “Serena is more fragile then you’ll ever know! I have seen just how delicate she is and the ONLY reason she survived Seiya was because he wouldn’t kill her. I am the one looking out for her now and I will handle this situation as I see fit.”

“At what cost Darien?” Helios growled and leaned over the table. “I’ve noticed that your son is a spineless excuse of a man and my own brother has resigned to sitting back and psychoanalyzing everything. Your son’s a fucking idiot and Peruru’s instincts are lying dormant because of you. Serena’s in a state of denial. She thinks there’s nothing wrong with the world since you “vanquished evil” and your daughter… that sweet little girl… she doesn’t even know there are “bad guys” around! So tell me Darien, what have you accomplished other than a false and fucked up sense of perfection?” The men in the room regarded Helios with shock. Peruru sat in his chair, his eyes narrowed at his brother. This behavior was borderline psychotic and yet, Helios was right. Peruru knew he’d been sitting back far too long.

Derrick hid his hands under the table, each one in a tight knot. His whole life he’d been living in the shadow of his father and as a result, he just rolled with the waves. His want to have Seriah in his life was definitely a mistake but he was far from spineless. “Look, Taiki and Yaten are still at the hospital. Yaten will spill his guts about anything right now… given there will be a hell of a lot of profanity but he’ll still talk. I’ll bet we can get him to tell us about anything.” Helios sat back in his chair and smiled. His brown eyes clashing harshly with the paleness of the rest of him. He and Peruru looked at one another at the same time and Peruru nodded.

“Leave them to us then.” Peruru sighed and looked from Sapphire to Darien then to Derrick. “Taiki will die unless we get a sample of his blood and concoct an antidote to the serum my brother stabbed into him. With leverage like that I’m sure Yaten will sing information to us.”

Sapphire sat in his chair mentally listing all the men in Seiya’s fan club. Face after face, name after name filtered through his mind until there were too many to count. He would have pegged either Taiki or Yaten as a possible leader but now he wasn’t sure. There were so many options for people who could lead a Seiya vengeance group that it was concerning. True, the men in the group would only follow someone who was close to Seiya, they would refuse anyone but a pro. One man stuck out in his mind. A younger man with gray eyes. He’d shadowed Seiya constantly, he’d even stayed at the house with Serena and the kids. “I have to excuse myself gentlemen.” Sapphire stood, his visage was pale with worry.

“What is it?” Darien stood and grabbed the older man’s arm. They stared at one another for a few moments before Sapphire simply smiled and shook his head.

“Just my old age catching up with me… I’m no spring chicken anymore Darien.” Sapphire patted his former apprentice’s arm and walked out of the room. He hadn’t wanted to lie to Darien but he couldn’t share his idea yet. If the young man he was thinking of was indeed Seiya’s replacement then there were issues. Greater issues to confront than the idea of Seriah being loose.

Serena sighed as she let her muscles relax in the steaming water. The boys had been gone all morning and she’d finally gotten a hold of Molly to take Rini out of the house for a while. It was just her now, well, her and the bathtub. The only thing that would make her bath any better was if Darien was with her. She smiled at the thought of him. Even after all the years she endured, he still made her smile. He still made her heartbeat quicken and could send her body into waves of unrivaled pleasure. His absence bothered her but for some reason the boys, all four of them had been going out together every other day. She had no idea where they went going or what they did but she was happy to be able to escape her energetic daughter for a while.

After she’d rolled up a towel, turned on her radio, and lit a few candles she turned off the lights. This was her favorite way of taking a bath. She’d began doing it when she was pregnant with Seriah, back when Seiya would still let her have time to herself. Seiya she thought to herself sadly. How sad he’d been. She regretted ever marrying him, hell she regretted him altogether but something within her had loved him at one point. She closed her eyes and pictured him smiling at her when they were younger, back when he had the scars, back when his eyes would smile at the thought of her. That was the Seiya she had fallen in love with.

When she thought she’d lost Darien she’d thought the old Seiya was back. He acted like the old Seiya but was soon to be revealed as a fraud. He hadn’t changed at all. A sudden realization snapped her from her thoughts. Did she actually miss him a little? No, that was impossible… that couldn’t be it. She was happy with Darien… ecstatic even! She had everything she’d ever wanted. Something was just… off though. Somewhere within her she missed the chaos, she missed the way Seiya would chase after her, the way he demanded that she be his. She was so deep in thought that she failed to see the bathroom door open and a figure slip in. The dark haired man slowly approached the bathtub, relishing in the sight before him. It had been so very long since he’d seen her but she was just as lovely as the last time.

She looked happy, something that both soothed him and angered him at the same time. She was so relaxed that he was standing right beside the tub, close enough to touch her yet she had no awareness of him. Had it really been long enough for her to not notice a change in her atmosphere? He knelt down beside the tub and placed his hands on the side. He slowly moved his hands over her head, so very close!

“Will you stop that Darien. You know you’re not going to scare me.” She giggled with her eyes still closed. Oh! How trusting she was now! “I don’t know why you continue to sneak up on me. I know when people are around me.” She seemed to be waiting for a response. “Tired huh, well, if you want, you can slip in here with me.”

The man smiled at those words. They were said with such love and innuendo it was adorable. He couldn’t help but hold his tongue any longer. “Sure thing sweet face.” Upon hearing his voice, that name, her eyes snapped open and fixed on him immediately. There it was, that fear; that unbridled fear that he remembered so well. Without missing a beat he grabbed her by the hair and roughly pulled her to him. “Have you missed me?”

Okay! I’m just going to say it… I’m evil! Pure evil I tell you! I couldn’t’ help it… I just couldn’t but… I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry! An explanation will come soon so don’t freak out okay? Just… calmly and carefully breath… that’s right… one… two… three… four… well you get it. Anyways hope you enjoyed it! REVIEW! I demand it!