Taking from where I left off in the previous part, please read all warnings and such on the first section. That being said, on to the story...
Kuronue had been left at the edge of the youko's territory to whatever fate befell him. From there, with some difficulty he managed to find his way into a small town where he began talking to people about the current lord and people's opinions on the matter. No one was too impressed with the guy, but general consensis agreed that he's too powerful to mess with and that you'd need an army to try anything.
With that agreement stated, the next step was to find a source somewhere that would enable him to find an army. But no one would fight for nothing, and poor Kuronue had nothing but his body. And he soon found out that all that was worth was a few scraps of food and a place to sleep in the cellar as he began prostituting himself out in order to get by.
Over the following weeks, as he began to settle a little more into this new-found freedom, he began hearing stories from near and far. The stories, as were what intrested youkai, were centered around tales of adventure and paths to power. They spoke of bandit lords with so many men at their bidding they could raid any castle and steal any treasure they liked. He heard that the lord of the area, his old master who had overthrown his parents, was one such bandit lord who had gathered quite a large army.
Having found this out, he began to request further tales of great bandits and before long it became clear that far beyond all others, the greatest in the traid was the mysterious youko: Kurama. Described throughout the tales as being as fast as lightning, silent as a shadow, as cold as a blizard, and more beautiful than the gods themselves. That his power was so great that event the very trees bowed down before him, and that if he didn't want to be found, he could become as intangable as a mirage. Kuronue came to the realization that if he was to succeed, this Kurama fellow was his best bet, and he was in luck because in the recent years Kurama had been hanging around this area.
After some proding for information, it was discovered that there was a rumour of people having seen one who was supposed to be Kurama would be spotted from time to time between hiests at a certain glen within the woods near by. So the next evening (seeing as bats are nocturnal, he sleeps during the day) Kuronue headed out in search of a means to completing his destiny. Upon reaching the glen, he settled down to wait for what could be hours or could be weeks, depending on where this Kurama was at the moment.
As luck would have it, he only had to wait a few days for something to happen, which was fortunate for him due to his poor survival skills. It was an evening, much like the others that had passed before it, when suddenly the grass and roots around him came to life and bound him tightly. He struggled for a moment, but when the plants only tightened in responce he let himself relax into their hold once more.
A part of the forest seemed to detach itself before forming more clearly into the shape of a surprisingly familiar silver-coated youko. The figure raised a single critical eyebrow at the captive. "Well, well. If it isn't the used sex toy. I do believe I told you that if I found you around again I would kill you?"
Kuronue pulled against his binds and lifted his hands to his mouth, ripping away the grass that worked to gag him. It escaped his notice how the perked ears twitched to and fro at this display and merely went on to demand incredulously, "YOU'RE Kurama?!"
A sly smile that served to look simply creepy as there was a total lack of change in his hard and critical eyes. "That all depends on who's asking, slave-boy."
"Kuronue." he informed without even a second thought, before explaining himself further as the tendrils of plant matter began to tighten themselves once more. "I was told that there was a powerful youkai who's been seen from time to time in these parts and who's skills could be of great service to me."
The binding finally let up and Kuronue was left to crumple to the ground as the fox casually leaned against a tree. Quickly getting to his feet, Kuronue looked to the silver haired youkai expectantly a moment while he himself was regarded out of the corner of a golden eye as if he were some unusual gunk picked from under one's fingernail. Finally, seeming to come to a decision, the fox spoke again. "I am he," he admitted, "but what makes you think that I'd help the likes of you?"
"I aim to get revenge on the one who enslaved me." Kuronue began confidently.
"Not interested." came Kurama's reply as he looked away with a bored expression.
"I am the rightful lord of Gandara!"
"Don't you know that the topics of religion and politics are social taboos?"
"If you assist me, I will give you whatever you want!"
"I can TAKE whatever I want, whether I assist you or not."
"So... you refuse?"
“In essence.”
“Why?”
“Why not? You've shown me nothing to make it worth my while.”
Glaring for a moment in indignation, Kuronue averted his eyes in thought, seeming to struggle with an idea at hand. Such internal struggle managed to perk the youko's interest enough to stop him from up and leaving right then and there. Finally the bat got to his knees and placed his forehead to the soil. “Please. I beg you. You are my only hope.”
Kurama only snorted. “A slave on his knees begging means little to anyone.” and with that he stood to leave.
However, he halted at the look that the bat gave him. It was not the look of a broken soul, but rather one filled with stubborn determination. Instead of leaving, Kurama found himself walking up to the bowing figure. Dropping to one knee, he took the bat's face between his forefinger and thumb and brought it up until it was mere centimeters from his own. “No, you are no slave. You were cuffed and beaten and raped, most likely repeatedly, but you were never broken.” he murmured sensually, as he stared into the prideful eyes.
After studying them a moment, he dropped the ebony haired one's chin and moved away. He didn't like the idea of getting involved where he didn't prosper from it; however, he had to admit that he was curious what this youth thought he could do against an army of such a nation as Gandara. Damn his curiosity, it gets him in so much trouble. “I'm not saying that I will help you, or anything close to it, but for the sake of curiosity, what exactly did you think I could do to aid you in your venture?”
"Well, you see... It came to my attention not long ago that Lord _____ had started out as nothing but some megar bandit and built up an army which he used to overthrow my father with. As it stands, I am the only rightful heir to the throne; however, that fact alone wont stir the masses into revolt and so I figured if I became a bandit lord myself and built up an army then I could take back what's mine by force."
"And so you want me to get this army for you?"
"No."
"No?"
"No. If I am to do this, I will not rely on the skill of others, or else it will just be taken from me once again. So, no. I came to you to request that you teach me so that I can succeed in my goals."
"You want an apprenticeship? From me?"
"Yes. They say--everyone says--that you're the best there is, so therefore you're the best chance I've got to become great and achieve my goals."
"Well, then. Have you ever stolen before?"
"No."
"Ever killed anyone?"
"No."
"What tallents does your youryouku give you?"
"I... don't remember. It's been a long time since my imprisonment began and I wasn't exactly given free reign to use my powers while in there."
"So in other words, you want me to train you from scratch, without any idea what sort of skills you may or may not have, so that you can overthrow Lord ____ and take your rightful place as king on the throne of Gandara?"
Kuronue straitened his posture and took on the form of a king the best he could. "In a manner of speaking, yes."
Kurama burst into laughter.
And this wasn't the friendly sort of laughter either. But as Kuronue stood unwavering before the ridicule, the fox got his mirth under control. "You know kid, it may just be worth the trouble of training your worthless hide just for the sake of saying that I saw it happen. Alright, you've got yourself a deal."
And simple as that, his life took a new turn, and the path to destiny began to be paved.
Well, that's part two, the main characters have finally properly met each other and the plot of the story has been stated. And from now on it's clear sailings...
NOT! This is where the troubles only barely begin, and as a story that spans over an aproximate 4000 years, you can bet there's going to be a lot of chances for things to get messy.