Saint Seiya Fan Fiction ❯ Unnamed ❯ Ransom ( Chapter 2 )

This was originally only going to be 2 chapter thing, but I decided to extend it to three, just to hold you in suspense a little longer. ^_^

Disclaimer: I don't own anything in here but Auriga. Feh.

Unknown

Chapter 2: Ransom

"Shun!" Seiya gasped, staring at the screen.

The green-haired boy was on his knees, his hands bound behind his back and tied in a visibly uncomfortable position to a wooden pole. His feet were tied together, and he mumbled something illegible against the white cloth gagging him. A pile of familiar, dark pink armor was in the corner behind him, and from the rips in his shirt and cuts on his skin, it'd been pulled off roughly. He struggled weakly against his bonds, occasionally being racked with a sudden fits of coughing.

A navy-garbed hand appeared and rustled its way through Shun's long hair. The captive attempted to pull his head away, unsuccessfully. The new Knight grinned, looking back at the camera.

"Why that…!" Hyoga growled, climbing to his feet next to Seiya.

"Yes, I thought that would get your attention." he chuckled. "Now listen closely: Inside the box is a map to our present location. Bring the Helmet here by noon tomorrow, or I may just have to…dispose of…your little friend."

The tape ended very abruptly.

~ * ~ * ~

Auriga snickered a bit, biting into the flesh of a ripe apple. The island they had chosen for this was rich with fruit trees and they had found quite a luscious feast.

He glanced across the room at Andromeda, still bound as he had been when they made the tape. He wasn't fighting anymore, barely moving at all except for savage coughs every ten minutes or so. His head drooped in exhaustion, long hair hiding his face.

Auriga smirked, picking a peach out of the pile. He got up and walked to the captive and lifted his head by a tuft of hair. He yanked the gag off, evoking a short gasp of pain from the smaller boy as hairs were pulled out.

"Hungry?" he taunted, holding the fruit enticingly under his nose, making sure the sweet smell wafted towards him. Andromeda glared, keeping his mouth shut, but a growl from his stomach area betrayed the body's need.

Auriga smirked, pressing the peach to his now-freed lips. "I know you want it, pretty thing. Go on…eat it…"

His victim kept his mouth clenched shut, refusing to take anything from the deranged Knight. Auriga frowned a bit, then his smirked widened as he got an idea. "Okay, then…If you don't want to take it…"

He pulled the fruit away a moment, then suddenly took a hunk of Shun's hair and yanked to the point of pulling it all out. The boy let out a sudden gasp of pain, and in that split instant his mouth was open enough, Auriga stuffed the peach in.

"There, you see? It's good!" he laughed, now digging sharply-manicured nails into his victim's scalp, drawing blood and more exclamations of pain. He turned the fruit around, scraping the flesh on his teeth so rapidly Shun could hardly breathe. Shun gasped for air, the juice from the peach spilling out of his lips even as most of it was stuffed down his throat..

Auriga continued to force-feed his captive until the fruit was down to nothing but the pit. This he discarded with a devilish grin, showing pearly white teeth that looked distinctly like fangs.

Andromeda was now sputtering, gasping for breath. Small pieces of fruit clung to stands of the hair that once again hung in front of his face. Auriga snickered, reaching forward and lifting his head up by the chin, looking into half-lidded eyes damp with what may soon become tears.

He gazed at the boy's face a moment, studying him. He'd be a fool not to admit that he was attractive, yes, and that there was an odd air of feminism around him…the Andromeda cloth suited him perfectly.

He stroked the boy's cheek with his thumb, who pulled weakly at his bonds in response. "If I were you…" he snickered. "I'd be thankful for that food I just gave you. It could very well be your last meal…"

~ * ~ * ~

The location turned out to be a remote island near the northern coast of China. It would take them all night to get there, at least, so they set off immediately.

Shiryu and Hyoga quickly retreated to their respective cabins, needing a night's sleep to be at full form. But Seiya stayed up long after the others had gone to sleep. He sat on the deck a while, playing a nameless tune on his guitar, but soon he stopped and just looked at the sky.

Immediately, he picked out a few familiar stars. Pegasus…and Cygnus, the Swan, on the other side…Draco, also known as Dragon, between the Ursa Minor and Major… and right there, practically connected to his own constellation, was Andromeda.

Seiya stared at it a moment, biting his lip. He felt…just a tiny bit guilty. He knew it was stupid, yes, but still…he had been the one to insist Shun stay home. If no one had been there, they might have trashed the place, but…

"Seiya?"

He jumped and turned in his chair. Sienna was standing behind him, a heavy velvet robe pulled over her. "Princess." he gasped. "What're you doing up?"

"I could ask you the same thing." she sat in the chair next to him, turning her head to gaze in the direction he'd been staring in. "Oh, I see…Andromeda…"

She turned back to gaze at the Pegasus Knight. "Seiya…are you feeling guilty?"

"…" he didn't respond for a while, getting up to lean against the railing of the ship's deck. Sienna stared after him a moment, letting him sort out his thoughts before he dared to speak.

"I…I just can't believe we let them get Shun!" he muttered sourly, gripping the rails. "We knew he was sick…We knew…but as weak as he was, we left him alone! We should've…at least…"

"We thought he was safe, Seiya." Sienna soothed, placing her hand over his. "How were we to guess that Auriga would attack? He did what he was trained to do… protect his home…"

Seiya looked up at the shining stars, still a bit upset. "If that creep hurts him…" he muttered, mostly to himself, but left it about at that.

"He'll be fine, Seiya." Sienna whispered. "He has to be…"

~ * ~ * ~

They pulled into the makeshift harbor at about 10:30 in the morning. It was the only place for them to go ashore, but the arranged meeting spot was on the other side of the island. Seiya, Shiryu and Hyoga went on foot to cross, while Sienna and Tatsumi to steer around the island, the Princess reminding them that their priority was to get Shun out of danger, not to keep the Helmet.

Like they needed reminding.

It was only a half-an-hour walk to the place Auriga had specified, a the smallest in a series of cliffs that jutted over the deeper waters. The dark Knight stood alone, framed by a much higher crag.

"Ah…" he spread his hands out, as though in greeting. "I see you were smart, and brought the helmet."

Seiya tightened his grip on the artifact. "Hold it, dirt bag." he growled. "Where's Shun?"

"He's here." Auriga grinned, pointing above him.

A dark-clothed figure stood at the top of the cliff, a good fifty meters above them and sixty from the water. He was holding the green-haired boy precariously close to the edge. His hands were once again tied behind his back, but there was something large and gray-black shackled to his ankles. The near-spectral figure held had his hand clamped tightly over his mouth, keeping the weakly struggling boy still.

The three Bronze Knights stared, then glared at Auriga with fierce hate. He just grinned at them.

"Only a precaution, boys." he snickered. "Of course, I was thinking about keeping him if you didn't show up…It'd be a shame to let such a pretty thing rot at the bottom of the sea…"

"You…!" Hyoga growled. Shiryu put a hand on his shoulder to hold him back.

Auriga grinned a bit wider and held out his hand. "Well?"

They suddenly heard a cry of pain from above. Four heads snapped up.

The shout had come from the Black Knight, now clutching a bleeding hand. From the slight bit of red on the boy's teeth, it looked as though Shun had bitten him.

"Guys, be careful!" the green-haired knight warned. "That guy's Auriga…he's really…"

"Shut it, brat!" his guard snapped, clamping a hand over his mouth once again. And this time, he punched the boy in the stomach, knocking the air out of him for good measure. Even muffled as it was, they could hear the coughs that sprung from his throat.

"Shun!" Shiryu growled, his look of distaste mirrored on the other's faces.

"Just hang on!" Hyoga shouted up.

Auriga exchanged a glare with Seiya, glancing into the defiant teen's eyes. Then he glanced up at his accomplice and jutted his head towards the sea.

The dark figure grinned at the silent command, shoving Shun forward. The three Bronze Knights gasped, but he stopped suddenly, holding Shun far over the edge. If he released, the boy would fall.

"Now…" Auriga growled at Seiya. "Give…me…the helmet!"

Seiya glared at him, the slowly walked forward, holding the helmet out. He hesitated a moment, glanced nervously at the precarious-looking Shun, then handed the helmet over.

As soon as the object was in his grasp, Auriga started to laugh. His partner grinned as well, removing his hand from Shun's mouth and pulling him back on solid ground.

"There." Seiya growled. "You've got it, now get him down here!"

"Oh, I'll get him down…" Auriga looked up and motioned with his hand.

The evil fighter grinned and, very suddenly, pushed Shun off the cliff.

To Be Continued…

*laughs evilly* Speaking of cliff hangers…ACK!! *ducks sudden hail of projectiles thrown by angry readers* No…no…stop!! I'm not gonna end it here, dammit! LEAVE ME ALONE!! *starts defending with the nearest object…a frying pan* IF YOU DON'T STOP THROWING THINGS I WON'T BE ABLE TO FINISH!!! *a sudden stop in the projectile-ing* Phew…okay, back to writing! Should be concluded by the weekend, depending on how fast I can come up with a good battle scene…and ending…