I wish you the same...
To walk beside and carry on this flame,
To see you again,
With a radiance of pure and holiness,
When the sorrow it breaks them,
I will replace them for you.
Dead flowers for the torn apart,
Laid at the grave to heal a broken heart,
Let it rain until it floods,
Let the sun breathe life once more...
Reborn.

-Dead Flowers, Demon Hunter

10

Drip. Drip.

Fury groaned as she attempted to push herself up upon her good arm, panting slightly as she fought to catch her breath above the pain that was beginning to clench at her chest. It reminded her much of someone taking a knife and dragging it through her. She probably had a few broken ribs at least; she had a reminiscence lingering in the back of her mind of the Demons surrounding her, laughing as they beat her. She could assume that being beaten was probably the gentlest thing that they could have done to her and mostly now since she was just human.

Drip. Drip.

Her yellow eyes fell onto the stone floor, latching onto a growing puddle. She tried to remain focused on it and failed after a little while. The pain was just too much. It spread from her arm -she had a feeling that it was dislocated- up through her head, making a mind splitting headache grow. But, then again, everything hurt. Half of her body was swollen from the beatings and she could hardly hear out of her left ear. When she reached up to wipe at her forehead, leaning against the dirt wall of the cell that she was in, she found blood caked between her fingers. It was then that she realized that her gauntlet wasn't on her hand. She cautiously felt for her whip that should be resting on her hip -it was gone as well.

Drip. Drip.

Cursing, Fury attempted to rise to her feet. Nausea swelled over her and, if she had anything in her stomach, she probably would have hurled it all over the floor. Panting, she glanced around the cell uneasily. It was dark since the only light was being made by a torch that was outside her cell, flickering and snapping with life. Most of the cell was made from dirt. Even the roof of the small place had roots dangling from the ceiling in an almost creepy way, like they were reaching out to her despite their inanimate state. One of the walls looked like something had smashed their fist into it; Fury took a moment to examine the mark when she had stumbled up close and found that it wasn't a fist that had made them -claw marks dragged down to the floor. The only wall that wasn't made from the earth was the door and the random window that had been punched into it, allowing more light to filter in around the height of her knees. It was simply a slab of misshapen metal poorly constructed into the dirt to make an entrance with a weird looking window that she was just tall enough to peek through if she stood on her tip-toes.

Drip. Drip.

The first thing that she saw when peeked outside of her cell was the torch. She stared at it until it hurt, ripping her gaze away and managing to study the rest of the dreary prison that she was in once the fuzzy dots had disappeared from her vision. She could see more of those dirt walls; she was definitely underground in something that the Demons had taken control of. Torches every so few meters appeared to be lit and she found that she was correct as she peeked further down through one of the windows that she had been granted and saw several tunnels branching off from this one. There were torture devices lying around as well; Fury couldn't help but to notice how blood was on many still.

Drip. Drip.

And, with horror, she found where the dripping noise was coming from.

Drip. Drip.

It wasn't from the puddle that had been there when she had awaken; it was something much more horrifying than that. So much more. It was from a human male that had been chained up across from her cell, dangling from rusted chains connected to his wrists. Blood rolled off his body from several large and gaping wounds like the surprisingly deep, three long gashes across the left side of his chest. His head lolled to the side almost lifelessly; what betrayed him was his muscular chest as it lifted and fell rhythmically as he breathed, blood reflecting from the torch light that had gathered in the indentions of his muscles. His torso, which was wide and muscular, was bare and he was wearing a pair of jeans that were bloody, ripped, and had certainly seen better days. Even with his face partially in the shadows, Fury could make out the majority of it. The reddish colored beard was mangled, having flecks of dried blood in it, and didn't seem to belong on his gentle features. His nose wasn't all that large and his mouth moved gently as if speaking a silent prayer. It was then when she noticed that something was in his right hand; his fingers shifted a small metallic cross between them in a pattern that she couldn't make out -he was a religious man, then. When his eyes opened suddenly, almost scaring Fury half to death, she found them to be a light green, a determined, rebellious flicker dancing through them.

"Who are you?" His voice was surprisingly loud and deep for someone who seemed like they had beaten an inch from their life. She'd flinched as he had spoken and now she waited for him to tilt his head toward her.

An internal battle waged inside her. What would she tell someone that was clearly human? No Demon or Angel could bleed so freely; while they could lose droplets, gushes that had clearly worked their way down his chest was all but impossible. Besides, the very fact that he couldn't tell that she was a Horseman was a sign that he wasn't Angel or Demon. The Nephilim tattoos that decorated her arms and face still were a dead give away. Even if she did talk to him, which she might as well not, what was she supposed to say? It seemed silly to tell him what she truly was. And her name wasn't a normal, standard human name that he could relate too with anyone that he had ever met-

"Fine, then I'll be the talkative one." He surprised her when he spoke, causing her to cringe, breaking her train of thought. The chains along his wrists clanked as he shifted, his neck making loud cracking noises as he slowly turned his bruised face toward her. The side that had been in shadows sported a large, swollen black eye and a cut on that side of his face that was half hidden from his beard. "The name's Zakee. Nice to finally see someone else in this hell hole."

How appropriate, Fury thought to herself as she rested back upon her feet.

"I've been in here for at least a week now. Damn bastards tortured me from the start to now -I don't remember half of it. I'm guessin' that it has been a week anyways." He spat, the noise causing Fury to curl her nose as she felt about her dislocated arm, finding  the exact spot that her right shoulder wasn't in the correct position. "I think that you've been in here for about a day, but I don't know. Those damn bastards skipped my meal the other night because they brought you in here. You looked awful by the way. Not because you are or anything, but 'cause they had you by the back of your hair and everything else. Get caught by surprise or something? They don't normally handle just anyone like that."

Fury gritted her teeth as she prepared herself. Zakee was in mid-sentence when Fury jerked it back in place, an involuntary gasp escaping her as she crumbled to her knees from surprise. She had not felt that sort of pain in a very, very long time. Mumbling curses as she panted, Zakee's chains shook violently. "Shit, you alright?" Fury waited a few seconds, moving her right arm as the pain began to become bearable.

"Better now," she answered softly, her yellow eyes locking onto a dent in one of the windows of the wall. She approached it slowly before taking her hand and running her fingers down the little dent, a slow smile growing across her face when she found a small dent that was just there. A small, only noticeable weakness in a prison cell. How delighting. What was even better was that the window was Shadow magic, the only kind of magic that a Demon could manipulate. This she could deal with, Nephilim or not.
"She speaks, huh? Uh, what are you doing?"

Rolling her eyes, Fury took a step back. The man's chains shook again when he jerked at the loud noise of Fury's heel connecting with the small crack of the holographic window. Sparks flew through the little spot. When nothing happened, Fury repeated the action, this time with more force. She almost stumbled through the window when it gave a shrill shriek and the energy that was keeping her trapped inside of the cell vanished. Blackness crept along the area the window had been made and she quickly moved away from it, watching carefully until the shadows had been sucked into the rest of the darkness. She tested the wall where the window had been -Shadow magic occasionally lasted a little longer when destroyed suddenly and had the potential of mutating unsuspecting weaker beings- before peeking her head through. Zakee stared at her, one eyebrow lifted. "I'm getting us out of here."

"You need to do more than just breaking through a window," Zakee called after her as she disappeared back into her cell.

"When I find my whip, then we can escape successfully, but not before."

"Your whip? How's that going to help?"

Deciding that it was best not to answer, Fury double-checked that her cell didn't have anything useful before heading back to the window. She shoved her head through first. Unlucky for her, the hole was really only large enough for her shoulders to get through; she had to try to suck in her chest and then sighed in frustration when her hips got stuck. Zakee was finding it amusing as he chuckled when she paused to catch her breath, her torso half suspended in the air. Her shoulder was killing her and the swelling made all movement hard.

"Stuck? Got a big ass?"

Fury raised an eyebrow, noticing how much the comment reminded her just a little of her twin brother. But there was something different between Zakee and the White Horseman; Zakee had said his comment in a good-natured way (though that might have been because he had just met her and all) and didn't smirk when he spoke. He chuckled. If it had been Strife, he would smirk and make fun of her.

"Got a big mouth?" she replied, wiggling just a tad bit. She grunted when she fell forward suddenly, her back half finally slipping through. Kicking her legs the rest of the way, Fury pushed herself up into her feet and glanced around.

Either way she looked there was a large tunnel that disappeared in the dark. Cells lined the walls and, since she had made movement outside, hands and heads had stuck out, some making strange, animalistic noises. She was surprised by the lack of humans and Angels; most sounded like animals -a bird was somewhere nearby and she could hear its panicked chirping- and disfigured forms of punished Demons were calling out to her, begging for her to release them from their prison. Blood soaked the floor from past victims and it glistened. The only thing saving her from being sick was that she had seen worse. But she definitely had to be careful. Though the tunnels mostly vanished into the dark, the occasional flicker of light from torches suggested that there were Demons still scrambling about. If they wanted to escape, then they needed to leave.

Now.

Zakee's head lifted in confusion almost when she scrambled over to him, her hands grabbing at the shackles around his wrists. "What are you doing?" his voice was softer than before like he might scare her.

"I'm getting you out." Fury didn't stop as she began to pull at them, trying to ignore the blood that had dried about the shackles and even the man's wrists. Certain movements caused Zakee to suck in a painful breath, his eyes scrunching up. She wasn't able to remove the shackles yet, but, as she moved them slightly, she was aware of the raw and bloodied skin underneath them. What horrors had this man gone through, hidden underneath civilization and rotting in the prison of a Demon-filled hole?

"You don't have too. Just leave me to rot, won't be much harm. Not like anyone else has came to get me yet."

"Was someone supposed too?" A theory formed in Fury's head as her eyes locked on the cross that was now dangling from his hand loosely but faithfully. Was it possible that it belonged to someone else that was close to him?

"In a way." His yelp surprised her enough to jump away from him. Pain had etched itself into his face and, for a brief moment when his eyes met hers, she could have sworn that she saw a broken man staring back at her. One that had been through Hell and back and was finally deciding on just giving up. She guessed that he already had. Either way, it was strange to see such a muscular man that had to be at least six feet and five inches tall just giving up almost casually. She couldn't blame him at all. "Someone was supposed to at least see if I was okay. Like, you know, a check-up or something. But they never came. I don't know if something happened or if they couldn't get here in time..."

His words struck home in Fury's busy mind after a few moments as she tried to pry one of the shackles off by using a nearby broken spear. "Wait, 'they?' Is there someone with you?"

"We're a group of people who fight against Heaven and Hell to retake Earth for ourselves. It's not that big but there's a good number of humans and aliens or whatever shit you would call them. I don't know what you would call us... Our self-proclaimed leader is named Andrew. He was the one who promised me that he would come and get me after a little while, but I don't think he found the time."

There was a loud cracking noise. Fury froze, spear still bent as she pressed her weight into it, as the noise in the prison that had been roaring around them suddenly died. Both her and Zakee glanced at the shackle that she had been attacking, both expecting the rusted metal to be at least snapped in half. But it wasn't. Another noise echoed through the prison and Fury turned her head toward the wall, in the middle of two cells that both held two smaller Demons that had also stood in confusion. She watched as a dent appeared suddenly in the wall; new voices grew as the wall was pushed further and further inward, never truly giving in but beginning to give in. Fury glanced around, looking for a weapon. She scooped up the other half of the spear, twirled both halves to fit more comfortably in her hands, and settled to await the new threat.

One more hit and the wall crumpled. Dirt exploded in, flinging dust into the fire lit tunnel, and Fury took a step forward, readying the spear in her better arm as a shadow stood from the rubble. It took Fury a moment to realize the shadow was a human and a minute more to see that they were a female. A shield, a shiny metallic silver that caught the torches' light in the most annoying way, with a bear's face on the front, slowly fell down to reveal the rest of the woman. Dressed in thick armor and fur along her shoulders, Fury stood face-to-face with a strong-faced woman. Her features were sharp, her eyes a brilliant forest green, and scars littered face wherever possible, one slicing through her eyebrow and another cutting her lips at the far side. Her hair didn't exist, instead she had a buzz cut and, even then, two or three scars decorated her head. She was a huge woman; her bare arms brandished both muscles and scars and she stood easily a whole head taller than Fury in height. A frown grew on the woman's face when she saw Zakee and she propped a leg onto a nearby rock, resting a hand upon a claymore sheathed on her hip.

"Well, well, Mr. Zakee, do I need to worry about saving your sorry ass since you've seen to have gone and picked up a gorgeous lady to spend time with?"

While Fury stood there in confusion, Zakee laughed. It was choked and mostly forced, cracking halfway through it, and she turned to see that the determination had returned upon his bruised face. "It seems I have. I see that you've became even more manly than when I left you, fair warrior."

The woman threw her head back and laughed uproariously. Fury glanced between the two in surprise- were they flirting?

"I missed you Zakee," the woman cooed, beginning to step up from the rubble that she had created. She seized Fury's gaze in her own, an iciness growing to them, and said in a low, threatening tone, "Now, who the hell are you?"

"Uh..."

"Shel," Zakee suddenly snapped. "Leave her alone. We bring her to camp and question her then, not before. I just want to get the hell outta here."

"Yeah, yeah," mumbled the woman apparently named Shel as she walked by Fury, who was lowering her weapons in shock as she took everything in. "I'm getting you, you wimp." She examined the shackles for a moment before grabbing one side and, with a small grunt, ripping it in half without so much of a blink. She did the same with the other.

Zakee gasped as he crumpled forward, Shel half catching him to prevent the man from smashing onto the ground as an exhausted wreck. "Shit," he almost whimpered, wrapping an arm about Shel for support. "I hurt."

"We're almost there," Shel replied in a soft tone, gently patting his chest, obviously doing her best to ignore the blood that smeared along with her gloved fingers.

Shel looked up at Fury as the two almost reached her, her green eyes narrowing once again defensively. Fury blinked and straightened as she tossed both ends of the spear away. Clearly they weren't going to help her against this tank of a woman that Shel apparently was. "You're coming with us." When Fury looked at her, not moving, Shel scowled. "Unless you want to stay here."

"Just lead the way," Fury grunted.

The woman pointed and gestured for Fury to continue through the hole that she had created before them. Fury frowned and picked her way carefully through the rubble and was surprised to find that a man was waiting for her. She was greeted by a smiling face that honestly confused her. His hair was pulled back into a slim, black ponytail and he wore a vest that Fury believed was from what humans used to call bullet-proof vests above a long sleeved gray shirt. He was lean, unlike the other two humans behind Fury, and had a hand outstretched toward her.

"Hey! Nice to meet you! Name's Anin! Ready to get out of this shit hole?"

Well, here's only two characters out of the five that people emailed/message me about :) hope Shel and Anin are what you guys were expecting! (Anin will have a bigger part -sorry, he's only in there for two paragraphs)

It's still open to throw in a few more characters! The others will appear soon, or at least when Fury or Alooc's next chapter come up. hint, hint, wink, wink ;)

Until the next chapter!