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Kinohki looked up at Silenia quietly for a moment with a confused look upon his face. He had never heard of a Siren so hearing this, he was naturally curious. He was not hesitant at all to speak, infact his voice held that of a kid in a candy shop almost.

"A Siren? What exactly is that?" Kinohki asked curiously.

Silenia arched her eye at him skeptically. Surely there couldn't be a male alive that was unaware of what a Siren was. Was she really hearing this? After studying his face for a moment, it was easy to tell that he was not faking at all. She then chuckled lightly.

"A long time ago, we were created to help people of this realm. You see, back then most sailors were men so our voices were attuned to attract them. We would help guide them to ports by letting our songs carry on the winds. However, as always, accidents happened. Most of the time, the people of the village would blame us and we would take the bulk of the punishment. Some of us were even executed or exiled.

Nowadays, we Sirens are looked upon as man eaters. My sisters decided to take revenge for being wronged, clearly corrupted by the very hatred that man bore into them for so many years. They attract unwary sailors and devour them, that is if they're lucky enough to get past the rocks." She spoke informatively to him.

Standing up, Kinohki brushed himself off. Being on a lower level of any female was something that he began to detest due to Pronima's lovely treatment over the years. He then thought for a moment.

"I see. Lady Masamune showed me the way to this plane so I wouldn't be destroyed. But to be honest, I'm not sure where to go from here." Hanging his head, the young Celestial spoke sadly.

Silenia's ears twitched at the word Masamune as she spoke curiously, just to reassure herself.

"Did I hear correctly? You just said Masamune, yes?"

Kinohki nodded lightly. "Yes, I did. Why do you ask?"

Silenia crossed her arms infront of her chest as she replied. "Lady Masamune was the one that created us. The Sirens I mean.."

Just then, the cavern behind Silenia eminated a feminine voice.

"Silenia, dear sister are you talking to yourself again? Or perhaps you actually managed to bring us home something to play with for once."

At the voice, Silenia's eyes widened as she looked upon Kinohki. Without hesitation, she immediately rushed over to him, her dress flowing with her movements. She then stood behind him and placed her hands on his shoulders and leaned in, whispering in his ears.

"My sisters will toy with you, then devour you if you stay. Or, knowing your type, you would easilly kill them. I love my sisters and I won't let them die, but I don't condone them just eating any male that they stroll across. Especially one as innocent as yourself which has nothing to do with us. I may have to put you in a trance to make it convincing, I'm sorry for that in advance. Please trust me, I'm trying to save your life. After this, I'll get you off this rock and to the nearest shore."

Kinohki was skeptical. Could he really trust this woman whom he had just met? Skepticism rang true in his mind though he didn't find being eaten by her sister too appealing either. He nodded silently, not wanting to set off any alarms.

As she finished talking, another Siren, much in the same look as Silenia came creeping out of the cave. Her hair however was a deep crimson color, along with a matching skin tight dress that was matching color, probably due to blood. Her nails, unlike Silenia's were not filed, they were long, almost razor sharp looking as well. She probably used them to tear the flesh off of whatever she was eating. She then looked at Kinohki and grinned widely, two large fangs hanging down from the corner of her mouth as she spoke with a malevolant yet seductive tone in her voice.

"My my my...Silenia, you've really out done yourself this time. A real live Celestial, in the flesh even...Or so to speak." She giggled in the same tone.

Silenia clutched his shoulders tightly, keeping her mouth next to his ear as she spoke loudly to her sister, hissing. "Back off. I saw him first and this one is mine. You've always been selfish with the ones you've caught Oceana!" Her demeanor had changed completely. Was this a show to convince her sister or something more? In any case, Kinohki was quite worried at this point as he let a small gulp escape.

Oceana grinned wider at the escaping gesture, seemingly feeding off his worry as she seemed to purr slightly as she spoke more seductively and focusing her line of sight on him. "Oh come now Silenia....Why don't we share? This is a special occasion, it's not often that we get to have such a treat. This one we could play with for a good long time. Perhaps even centuries before we have to eat him." She licked her lips slowly as she studied him up and down.

Silenia growled again, but this time turned her head and sang a very low note, a whisper to be precise, directly into Kinohki's ear. With that he fell limp, his pupils diating to the point to where his eyes were purely black. Silenia then savagely sank her fangs into the left side of his neck, ripping off a piece of flesh and licking the blood off her lips slowly as she hissed at her again.

"I said back off! I never seem to get any privacy with my meals thanks to you." She then lifted him up quite effortlessly and hoisted him over her shoulder. She then stepped out onto the water, letting the Celestial bleed in the water and attract sharks so her sister dared not follow. One thing that most people did not know, was that Sirens could actually walk on the water's surface. Utilizing this ability she walked for half a day carrying him to the nearest shore. Oceana, as she predicted, was too lazy to follow, preferring her meals to come to her.

Upon waking up, Kinohki felt a searing pain in his neck and immediately reached up to touch it, only to feel bandages there. Looking around he noticed a long beachline that seemed to expend infinately over the horizon. He then looked at Silenia, who still had a spot of dry blood on her lips that she missed. He jumped up immediately and looked around. Reaching for a weapon, he didn't see one at all hardly.

"What the hell did you do to me!? You bit me! Are you insane woman!?" He exclaimed at her, his voice angry and confused.

The stone on his crystalline hand pulsated a bit as it spoke.

"Damn bro, talking about some rough foreplay. Silenia, I like you babe, you're right up my alley hun." Kinohki looked down at the stone, just as confused.

"Shade, when the hell...When did you learn that?"

The stone pulsated again as it spoke. "Dude, don't be so surprised. When this stone crystallized me, I tapped it back man. I can so totally use this as a voice communicator of sorts. Granted, if I reveal myself, it'll completely crystallize me. I may be able to store a part of my self in it to keep my speech, but I'm not willing to risk it just yet."

Silenia chuckled lightly at the two boys for a moment. "Boys, settle down now, there's no reason for that. And Shade, thank you for the lovely compliment as well as the conversation while carrying him."

Kinohki looked at her. "Then..That was all an act?" He questioned.

Silenia nodded. "Yes, though I must say you're actually quite tempting. Your blood however, yech. I've tasted fish droppings that have tasted better. One thing is for sure. I feel sorry for any vampires that sink their fangs into you for a meal."

He growled at her. "Don't get any ideas."

The stone began to radiate again. "Dude, no offense, but you should be like kneeling and kissing her feet or some s**t of gratitude. She saved your life. That Oceana babe, while not quite as hot, was planning on eating you. Completely dude. Talk about indigestion..I mean how do you digest crystal? Sheesh."

Kinohki's face turned apologetic as did his voice accompany it. "I'm sorry..Shade is right, I should be thanking you. So thank you. I'm sorry for snapping like that."

Silenia laughed. "That's quite alright Kin. It's to be expected, afterall I did just rip off part of your neck earlier today. In any case, Shade has explained your situation to me in full detail. Granted I'm not master of runes or Celestial creation or anything, but I suppose I can point you in the direction of someone who may be able to help. However, it's very dangerous for you. I mean, you are a male afterall."

Kinohki looked at her funny. "A male? What does my gender have to do with anything?"

Silenia's face grew somewhat grim. "Normally I don't mention these. There's a race on this plane known as Lamiae. They're very mischevious and playful creatures. Half serpent and half humanoid female, they won't hesitate to jump on a Celestial such as yourself. Your breed is rare on this plane, Kin. On top of that, you're a free Celestial. That in itself has never been seen on this plane, period.

Celestials that are sent to this plane are Gate keepers. They guard one spot for eternity and that is it. Finding one, even if you did charm him, you could not drag him away from the duty he was programmed to perform. You however, have not been programmed like other Celestials. In other words, you are easilly able to be manipulated because of your naievity and lack of knowledge of the creatures on this plane. Moving along, Lamiae are natorious for charming a male in a heartbeat if they like him. However, they won't eat him. They prefer to prey on small rabbits and other things. Instead, they will just toy with you, then let you go. In rare cases however, yours for example, they will take you home with them. Once a male enters a Lamiaen city, there's no escape. There has been no male come out alive from there...The ironic thing is that the Lamiae are the most knowledgable of the runes on this plane. They charm through gaze, so if you can don't get caught in their coils and do not under any circumstances look at their eyes."

She then pointed towards the forest off in the distance as she continued to speak.
"From what Shade tells me, what you seek may not even exist, though if it does, it's most likely a rune. You being a Celestial, you have a natural affinity to runes and tend to have a passive ability that allows you to absorb a rune and take it's power. Perhaps there is a rune that can stabilize you and if there is, search for it in ruins. There are a few, though very few, Ethereal structures on this plane. Please, do take care of yourself Kin. I can see already what Lady Masamune saw in you. You're a very sweet person who is also troubled."

Kinohki actually smiled once hearing this as the stone radiated angrily this time.

"Duders, I so hate you! I freaking hate you man, you get all of the babes! Why am I stuck with such a quiet innocent Casanova as yourself? Why?! Dammit it's not fair. I mean when am I going to find some really cute talking sword babe?" The stone sighed. "It's not fair man.."

Embarassedly, Kinohki shook his head as Silenia merely laughed at the stone. Leaning towards Kin, she placed a soft kiss on his cheek, then took his hand and placed another one directly onto the hexagonal stone before speaking.
"If it weren't for Oceana, I'd invite you to stay so I can better get to know you. That however simply won't be possible. If you need to find me though, you know where to look. Just make sure you wear ear plugs."

With a simple "Thank you." and a slight blush covering his face for a moment, Kinohki nodded to her and turned to the forest, darting off through it, wildly smacking the leaves and hanging vines out of his way. Eventually, he came upon the dilapidated entrance of some ruins. Covered in moss and creeping vines, the stones of the ruins appeared to be very ancient. Not quite Ethereal in it's appearance as it was very basic. For one it was built of normal stone and had no means of any type of activation other than pushing open the doors. He stepped forward and slowly pushed open the door as it gave a thunderous rumbling noise when it moved. After it had opened widely, Kinohki's eyes shot open.

There just in the doorway stood a Lamia. Her serpentine tail was incredibly long, atleast four or five foot in length as her scales were lavender in color. Her torso, of course as said, was that of a woman, and very alluring at that. Her skin was silky smooth, one could tell just by looking at it as were her scales. Her torso was not covered hardly. The only article of clothing was a simple bra of sorts to cover her breasts. Her hair was short, also lavender in color and was combed straight as it came down to about her shoulders. Her eyes were, with no surprise a matching lavender color. The expression on her face was a look of embarassment and gratitude as she seemed to giggle before speaking.

"Thank you sssso much. I thought I would never get out of there! I went in there ssssearching for runessss and the door was booby trapped to lock!" As she looked into Kinohki's eyes for a moment, she got enough of them to see their slitted pupils. He however quickly looked away as Silenia had warned him to do. She then let out a gasp.

"You...You're a Cssselessstial aren't you? Do you guard thessse ruinssss?"

Shade's voice eminated in his head. "Bro, remember what Silenia said. Though at this point I don't think you can convince her. She seems ditzy, but don't fall for it. It's probably a ploy of some sort." Kinohki nodded in agreement. Afterall, would he do without Shade there to guide him? He was far too naieve for now.

The lamia assumed he nodded in agreement with her as she spoke, slithering her way out and around him quite slowly. "I'm ssssso ssssorry missster Cssslessstial. I did not mean to intrude in your ruinssss. Pleassse forgive me. But...You sssaved me. Why?" She then gasped again, realizing her lacking manners. "By the way, my name is Lilac. And you are...?" Her name was probably linked to the fact of her lavender hues that decorated the various parts of her body and eyes.

Still not wanting to speak he slowly closed the ruins doors after her tail was cleared. Afterall, he hated to hurt people, even if it was in his own defense. He then sighed dejectedly.

"My name is Kinohki Masamune Muramasa of the Two. Call me Kinohki though. Or Kin." He then shrugged idly at the Lamia.

Lilac's face became filled with a bit of skepticism. "You are undoubtedly a Cssslessstial. I've ssseen many and thossse eyesss are a common factor. Yet...If you guarded thissss placssse. You would've cut me in two by now or turned me to assssh." He crossed her arms lightly as her long lavender tail began to slide behind him. "You're free aren't you..?" She began to grin slyly.

Shade's voice once again echoed into Kin's mind. "s**t. Damn dude, Silenia could've atleast let us know how freaking hard they are to fool! You need to bolt man. Get out of dodge while you can." Kinohki nodded and was just about to take off running. He was unarmed afterall and wasn't about to draw out his actual soul sword form. It was too late. The moment he stepped back, it touched Lilac's tail as she immediately wrapped around him, constricting him and halting his movements. Strength was never one of Kin's factors and being confined in such a way definately did not work to his advantage. With the loss of his Shadow Phase, he was definately at a disadvantage in this position. He immediately turned his head, as it was really all he could do at this point. Anything to keep from looking directly at her.

She seemed to pout in a sense as she held him. "What'ssss wrong? Why don't you look at me? You find me repulsssive don't you? It'ssss becausssse I'm half sssserpent issssn't it?" With that she giggled again. "It really won't matter in the end I ssssuppossse." She placed her hands on each side of his face and turned his head to face her. However his eyes were closed as she let out a disappointed sigh.

"Come now, you're delaying the inevitable." Saying that, her coils began to squeeze tightly around him as one of the bones in his legs let out a loud crack. The sensation of pain forced him to let out a gasp as his eyes were forced open. He found himself face to face with her, her lavender eyes radiating brilliantly with an enchanting illuminance that seemed to cause him to forget everything else. It was easy to see now how they worked. Lamiae truly were a beautiful and clever creature. Slowly his mind clouded and things went black..

Kinohki's eyes finally opened as he could see the world and take in the surroundings finally. His mind was once again able to percieve things without being clouded. Looking down, he noticed his yukata was ragged and his hands were worn. Looking at his arms, he noticed some scars that he didn't remember. Were there that many whip lashes from Pronima? No. That couldn't be it...Something have happened.

Oddly enough, his neck felt strangely tight. Reaching up he felt a leathery collar of sorts around his neck. What on earth had happened to him? Looking around, he noticed he was in a house of some type. It seemed to be created out of clay mixed with some type of ore. The only light there was candles which made the ore glisten and sparkle brightly as well as his crystalline half. Shade's voice rang clear in his mind.

"Bro, can you finally hear me?"

Kin grunted lightly as he replied to Shade in his mind. "Yeah...What...What's going on..?"

Shade shouted in his mind loudly. "About damn time. I've been screaming at you for the last two hundred years!"

Next Chapter: The City of Lilith.