Exploring the View Kyo curled up on his side, pulling the soft, voluminous eiderdown cover over his head. He didn't want to wake up. Everything just felt so warm and soft. Perfect. If it weren't for the nagging hollow feeling in his stomach. He tried to ignore it but he couldn't stop the blissful, all-obscuring embrace of sleep slipping slowly from him. It could no longer dull the growing ache of hunger that crawled insistently at the back of his spine. With a soft groan Kyo finally admitted his defeat and opened his eyes. Dim, honeyed light filled the room blurring and softening the edges of the furniture and the decorations on the wall, further adding to the illusionary play of paintings, ornaments and mirrors. It took Kyo some moments to focus on the slender, robed man sitting on a chair beside his bed. Kaoru-san, the priest was keeping watch over him, like so many times before now. Whenever Kyo had awakened, for the last weeks, it had been to find that gaunt face framed by the purple hair hovering close by. But this time Kaoru-san's head had sunken back against the backrest of the chair and his eyes were closed. Kyo didn't move but silently observed the priest. The lean chest hugged tightly by the bodice of the priest's robe was heaving evenly. Slow, deep intakes of breath. //Asleep. He's fast asleep...// Careful not to make any noise Kyo pushed back the covers and climbed out of the big four-poster bed, keeping a weary eye on the priest. Kaoru-san didn't stir, his hands resting limply in his lap. He looked pale and exhausted, Kyo realized, the thin lips pressed tightly together in his sleep. The purple hair that fell into his face cast harsh shadows across his features, thus making his cheekbones look very sharp and prominent and his eyes sunken. Still it was a face that had grown oddly familiar to the new Saint, the one constant thing in this freaky Temple and the drug dreams. With an annoyed frown, Kyo turned away from the sleeping priest. He shouldn't waste time on such idle contemplation when he finally had a chance to explore the Temple in search for a way of escape. Kyo left the bedroom and closed the doors silently behind himself. On bare feet he padded softly across the antechamber, when his gaze fell on the table. There a small feast was spread like nothing the child from the slums had ever seen before. The mere sight of the delicious food and its scent wafting towards him made Kyo's stomach cramp. Without noticing it Kyo had redirected his steps towards the low table. He sank down on his knees in front of it and reached out for a loaf of white bread. It felt still a little warm to his touch and as he broke it apart the milky-sweet scent rising from it made Kyo sway. He brought one half of the bread to his mouth and then hesitated for the fraction of a heartbeat, considering the possibility that the food was filled with more drugs or worse... But then his teeth dug into the soft bread roll and he didn't care at all as he chewed the bread greedily. It tasted like nothing he'd ever eaten before and felt like it would melt on his tongue. Still kneeling half-naked on the floor and gobbling down the bread he reached out with his other hand picking up a thin slice of red meat. There were pastries and fruits and Kyo actually didn't know half of the things he was stuffing himself with. A part of his brain insisted that it was not a good idea that he gorged himself like that after he hadn't really eaten anything in such a long time, but Kyo couldn't stop himself until he felt like he'd burst. Still there was a lot left on the silver plate but the Saint reached for an elaborate crystal decanter that held a dark red liquid. He poured himself a glass, splashing some of the liquid on his hand and the table in his greed. Thirsty, he lifted the delicate drinking goblet to his lips and took a deep drought, almost coughing it all up again. But then he took another gulp and an incredible rich aroma flooded his mouth. //Wine? Is that wine?// The Saint marveled, taking another sip from the heady drink. As he emptied the glass he noticed just how light-headed it made him feel and he refilled it with water from another decanter standing beside the first one. Even the water tasted sweeter than any he'd ever had before and he drunk greedily. Finally he put the glass away and licked his hands clean, then used the sleeve of his oversized robe to wipe his mouth with it. Blinking eyes that felt heavy again from the voluptuous feast he looked around the room. His gaze fell on a set of rich garments that were draped on the divan on the other side of the table. Kyo got up, walked over to the divan and picked up a dark robe embroidered with flaming dragons in shades of red and yellow. It felt heavy, but the cloth was subtle and soft to his touch. //Are those for me? I guess. Just like the food. Kaoru said these were my rooms. So why put stuff here if it wasn't meant for me?// Weighing the robe in his hands, Kyo hesitated his gaze straying to the door that led out on the corridor. His hunger had made him forget for a moment that he wanted to search the Temple for an escape rout. //But perhaps I should dress in that stuff. If I wear that and I meet someone they'd think I'm a Saint out on some business and won't ask me no questions. If Saints are allowed to move around the Temple on their own... but at least Die seemed to be allowed to do so...// His mind made up Kyo shrugged out of the oversized robe and instead slipped into the new one, which fitted him better. He found a broad belt and struggled to close the voluminous, wide sleeved garment properly. The final result still looked somewhat disheveled especially along with his ruffled shock of hair, but Kyo didn't bother and sneaked out of his chambers into the empty corridor. --------- It was silent in this part of the Temple as Kyo crept along its dimly lit corridors. Those corridors stretched out before him, broader than most lanes back in the slums. Arches, pillars and panels covered their walls and ceiling in a fashion similar to his room, gold glinting from the intricate ornaments and milky mirrors reflecting the light cast by oil lamps and candles. Kyo's steps faltered and he stared down the long corridor with its floor of colored marble slabs. It seemed to go on and on. Never had he dreamed that there would be a building big enough to hold such a long corridor. It wouldn't be easy to find a way out of it... suddenly the young man's eyes widened as he saw that the corridor led through an archway on a terraced garden. Richly blooming bushes bracketed a marble balustrade and beyond that unraveled a vast landscape. Hills covered with grass that was baked golden brown by the sun, curious rock formations, shining white in the light and high slender trees. The view went on forever, the blue winding ribbon of a river drawing the eye to the distant mountains that blurred a light blue with the horizon. And as Kyo's gaze moved further up, the pale blue of the sky turned darker shades, until it was a deep vibrant blue. The young man felt his heart race in his throat and he took a hesitant step closer to the arch at the end of the corridor. //That...that's how it looks like outside the city? That... that can't be... it can't!// His bare feet took him slowly closer and closer to the terraced garden, till finally he faltered. There was no archway. There was no view. It all had suddenly turned flat. //A paintin'! It's one of 'em fuckin' paintin's!// Disbelieving Kyo put his hand flat against the painted wall, splaying his fingers against the far horizon. Just a painting. With a sneer, he suddenly lowered his arm again and turned his back on the illusionary view. His gaze followed the intersecting corridor to his left, past further mirrors, and painted panels with fake views, to a wide sweeping staircase at its end. He wanted to get a view-a real view. None of those lies. He wanted to look at that damn, fucking city and the filthy as ever overcast sky. Resolutely he strode down the corridor towards the staircase. It wound up and up, in sweeping curves, the marble steps and railing soon making way for intricate works of brass, entwining vines, with thin grotesque creatures playing amongst them. Pixies with long fingers and toes and elongated faces that were distorted into grimaces. Their eyes were set in sparkling stones or shards of stained glass. And there were ornamental birds as well, their brilliant plumage likewise made of colored glass and clips of mirrors. The staircase opened onto a gallery and as Kyo looked down over the railing he swallowed uncomfortably for the floor of the room was a long way down. He hadn't realized he'd taken such a long climb, but he was now looking down into a high hall with arching ribs of steel. He turned and at the other side of the gallery, behind arcades set with glass, he saw a garden that was overflowing with lush, rampantly growing vegetation. Disbelieving Kyo stared at it, but this time it was no painting. It was a small, enclosed garden beneath a dome of colored glass. Suddenly he heard steps coming closer and he tensed, throwing a gaze along the gallery. A middle-aged man approached him, dressed in a shirt and trousers. As the man spotted him he bowed deeply. "Saint." He murmured reverently and then edged past him towards the stairs Kyo had taken upwards. Kyo's heart was beating frantically and he had to force himself to relax again as the man had moved on without another word or inquiry to what he was doing here. //So Saints are allowed to move around here on their own... Good... Though, I guess this was a servant. A priest would probably question me.// Kyo decided to move on in the direction the servant had come from. At the other end of the gallery that circled one half of the hall he found another staircase leading further up. For a moment Kyo hesitated, considering that an escape rout would rather be found downwards, but then one thing had already gotten clear to him on this short expedition. The Temple was probably bigger than the whole district in the slums where he used to live. And it was a maze, not only extending on ground level but incredibly high up. Even from the slums he'd gotten glimpses at the Hightown and the name wasn't for naught. //I've gotta do more explorin' than that to find a way out. So I can go up now... I want to go up. I wanna look down at the city.// So Kyo went further up even though his bruised rips and his right ankle started to give a dull ache. The climb took quite sometime and he passed corridors and galleries leading away from the staircase. Still Kyo kept moving up. Finally the staircase opened on another gallery, an artful thing of dark steel and brass clinging to the vaulting wall of a huge dome. The gallery ran all the way around the dome that was coated with an intricate pattern of lead ribs. Between those ribs there were panels of colored glass, deep reds and blues, greens and gold. Those entwining shards of glass blinked and shone translucently in the occasional light of a number of golden globes floating beneath the vaulting ceiling. Dazed Kyo stared at the dizzying sight, keeping one hand tightly clenched around the railing of the gallery. He didn't quite get himself to look down, but he felt the bottomless fall stretching beneath him, felt the huge echoing room ready to swallow him up. Taking a shallow breath Kyo edged further out on the gallery, turning his gaze to the wall of glass and lead to his right hand. The outside world was distorted by a large panel of red glass, nothing but indistinct, blood colored shapes moving on the other side. The rolling shadows turned a dark blue as he passed another panel, then back to red and then green. But finally Kyo reached a panel of pure colorless glass, like the crystal goblets he'd drunk from down in his rooms. The Saint turned towards the wall, splaying both his hands against the smooth cold glass and gazed out at the view that opened to him. The pregnant clouds hung low over the city, sickly yellow light illuminating their engorged bellies as they rolled slowly on. They were so heavy with contagious, dirty liquid that the high spires of the nobles' fortresses scraped through their fat, oily looking bodies. Thick languorous wisps of vapors curled around the artfully entwining buildings of black steel and stained glass. Most of the noble's and merchant's towers were brightly illuminated from the inside, casting dancing specks of deep reds, blues and gold at the gray clouds looming so threateningly low. Clinging to the foot of the Hightown were the rundown buildings and small, crooked lanes of the Middle Districts. And from there spread the slums with their heaps of rubble, ruins and sheds, clustering as close as possible to the moot protection of the Hightown and the Temple. But along with the sewage from the city the slums sloshed far out onto the planes by now. And they were ever growing as all the people fled the devastated countryside, which was infested by strange beasts. They sought refuge in the city and they found hunger, plagues and relentless wars amongst uncountable gangs. And high above the nobles and merchants hid beneath their fake skies of blue and pink and gold. Kyo stared silently out at the infernal scenery. A terrifying, sickly, beautiful image. The impact of the vision and the vastness made him grow cold inside. He had been part of this, but he hadn't guessed the dimension of it all. He'd just seen a small part, the small district with its rundown buildings, its small dirty streets, and small scraps of dark overcast sky. All that had been important then was to survive. Get something to eat, something to drink, find a safe place to sleep, and avoid getting beaten to death; there had been no room beside this for any other thoughts or feelings. Now as he stared down from this beautiful dome he felt a vast room open up, a void that waited to be filled and he felt how the coldness inside him turned into rage, pouring into the void. //There never ever is no bloody sun! There's no such thing as a sun. No such thing as a Sun God! This fuckin' Temple's just feedin' us bloody lies to keep us calm, to keep us all from freakin' out.// Kyo pressed his trembling hands hard against the glass, like he wanted to push through it, to reach out for the city laying at his feet and to grab it and smash it. There was no one he'd give so much as a damn if they were dead. No one. He wanted to shatter the Hightown's spires and palaces, wanted all those noble bastards and fucking merchants to be buried beneath their fake heavens. //Out. I need to get out of this cursed place where the walls are smeared with lies. There's no such thing...no such thing... There's nothing, nothing but knowin' that all this is a lie.// "It is a terrifying view." A soft voice suddenly said from behind him. It sent a jolt through Kyo and he spun around feeling his body hum with sudden alertness. Behind him stood a young man of about the same height as Kyo. He wore dark blue robes with wide, open sleeves and his blue-black hair was done up in an artful bun at the top of his head, only some long bangs falling freely down to frame his serious face. The sun pendant hanging around the young man's neck proclaimed him to be a priest and realizing that Kyo tensed further. But the priest didn't make any threatening move. His dark, thoughtful eyes rested calmly at the Saint, observing him intently for a moment then his gaze turned back to the panel behind Kyo. "A terrifying view." He repeated conversationally. "And nonetheless I find myself coming up here quite often to look out across the city." Kyo's eyes narrowed with distrust. He didn't know where to put the young priest's calmness and serious beauty. He didn't know what to expect of him. Kaoru would probably be mocking him with those words, but then there was no hidden wryness or smugness to this one's calm voice. "Yeah, well perhaps ya find yourself here so ya can think, my am I happy t' be safe 'n' cozy in here with all those pretty golden skies." Kyo snapped bitterly, annoyed that this small priest had him so puzzled. To Kyo's further irritation the priest only considered this thoughtfully, then he turned back to look at the Saint. "I am Izumi." He offered calmly, utterly unprovoked by Kyo's sarcastic remark. Kyo just glared at the priest, obviously not intending to give his name in return. The Saint's obstinacy didn't seem to bother Izumi-san, for he didn't press the matter and turned back to what they'd been speaking off without showing any sings of displeasure. It quite infuriated Kyo. "I think there should be more views on the real city, painful as it is." Izumi told the glowering Saint, patiently trying to get him to talk again. It only earned him a gap-toothed snarl from the small blonde. "Yeah? What d' ya know anyway, priest?" Kyo scorned, but he felt rather uncomfortable. Somehow it seemed like this priest knew what he'd been thinking, what made him come up here to look outside. Izumi smiled slightly. "What do I know? Not enough, I'm afraid." With an annoyed huff, Kyo tried to cover his confusion about the young priest's serious, gentle manner. "Yeah, great. Well, then just go out there." "I do sometimes." Izumi's gaze was drawn back to the view across the city, to the slums girding it like a belt of shingles. "But I fear I won't survive for long if I'd decided to live in the slums. And then I couldn't make much of that experience." Suddenly Kyo glared angrily at the priest again, feeling led on by his weird musings. "Experience the fuck! Ya go there for some experience with some whores and hustlers?" To the Saint's utter surprise Izumi-san's porcelain skin flushed slightly at that. "No." He told Kyo seriously. It put the little Saint off that his wild accusation was answered with such calm honesty. And even more than that the ghost of a blush on the priest's solemn face. //Damn ya, stupid, weak guy. Ya'd be eaten alive on your first day in the slums!// But then he grew aware of Izumi observing him again, the flush vanished. "You are rather old for your powers to be revealed. Has never anything...unusual happened around you before the Revelation? Concerning your Voice. It needn't have been big things at first, nothing like what happened before you were found." The priest inquired with friendly interest. It only made Kyo grow alert. //That guy...he must know about me, who I am. Damn!// Then Kyo hesitated, realizing that the young priest hadn't said anything that he wasn't allowed to run around the Temple. A bit more at ease Kyo considered Izumi-san's question and then only shrugged. "Dunno. Didn't really notice nothin'." "Hmm." For a moment Izumi thought about this then he smiled slightly at Kyo. "So you came up here on your own to have a look outside at the city. I can see why you'd like to do so, but the Temple is very big and if you're new here it's hard to find your way around. Therefore you shouldn't be wandering around on your own. I'll take you back to your quarters, Saint." From the stairs there suddenly came a familiar voice, startling both priest and saint. "Kyo wasn't wandering on his own, Izumi-san. I've been with him... only I had to leave him for a moment. Call of nature thing." Die was sitting casually on the railing of the gallery, apparently not bothered by the dizzying sheer drop underneath him. It made Kyo's knees go soft just to look at him. And neither he nor Izumi had heard Saint Neko sneaking up on them like that. A fact from which Die quite obviously derived a lot of satisfaction. He grinned broadly at the two small men savoring their stunned looks, then jumped lightly down from the railing onto the gangway and strolled closer. "Die-sama..." Izumi-san finally found his voice again. "So Kaoru-san asked you to show Kyo-sama around the Temple." "Kaoru-san trusts me." Die answered with apparent na�ve openness that made Kyo wonder. There was a fraction of a second of hesitation from the priest and then the young man nodded. "I know. So I take it you'll accompany him back to his quarters now?" It made Kyo frown with annoyance and confusion. //Oh came on! Ya didn't buy that, did ya? Ya can't be so stupid as to fall for this.// "Yes, that's my intention, Izumi-san" Die told the priest and grinned cheerfully at Kyo who shot him a dark scowl. "Fine. I'll accompany you down the stairs then, if you don't mind, Saints." Izumi suggested in a friendly manner, turning to give Kyo a questing look. As Kyo just shrugged glumly the priest walked past Die towards the staircase, starting to descend. With another smirk Die followed him, but at the third step leading downward he stopped and turned around, gazing back at Kyo, who still stood where they'd left him, staring once more out at the city below. Die tilted his head slightly sideways. "You coming Kyo?" Startled the small Saint blinked and then tore himself away from the gloomy view. "Yeah, yeah." He muttered surly while he walked over to the other Saint who waited for him at the top of the stairs. Die's sensual lips curved into a smile as he watched Kyo coming closer till they were eye-to-eye due to Die standing three steps below the smaller man. Appreciatively his gaze roamed over Kyo, noting how his robe had slid open in front of the pale chest, revealing a glimpse of smoothly muscled stomach and a rosy nipple. After a moment the red-haired saint reached out and tugged playfully at Kyo's robe. "That suits you." His voice sounded warm like fur, sliding over naked skin. Kyo glowered as he realized what Die was on to and with a rough gesture he pulled his robe close and stuffed it down the belt. The other saint's Voice had made the small hair at the nape of his neck raise in an electrifying sensation. He didn't want to be screwed around with this Voice-thing. Noting Kyo's discomfort Die just laughed good-natured and waved him on to follow Izumi while he himself brought up the rear. They had descended a good deal of the stairs together like that, when they heard someone climbing up towards them. A young man with pale-blond hair rounded the corner spotting Izumi, who had stopped. "Izumi, I thought you'd probably be up here. I..." The young man blurted out then faltered as he noticed the two Saints behind Izumi. For a moment he stared at them then shyly lowered his gaze so his almond shaped eyes were hidden beneath the pale-blond bangs that hung deeply into his face. "I'm sorry, Saints." He murmured softly, indicating a bow. "Nah, no worries, Shin-san." Die waved off genuinely. As the young man straightened uncertainly up again, Kyo noticed that he too wore the sun pendant of the priest's around his neck and neither could he help noticing that Shin-san's light blue robe was almost slipping from one of his thin shoulders. It was obvious that the unexpected presence of the two Saints had put Shin off, but then he turned his attention back to the other priest, a worried expression in his dark almond eyes, which contrasted strongly with his pale skin and hair. "Izumi-san..." Nervously the tip of his tongue darted over the delicate curve of his upper lip. "It's one of the servants... Inoran. He needs help. He's not feeling too well." A look of concern crossed Izumi's solemn face. "Inoran?" Shin nodded, shooting uneasy glances at Die and Kyo from beneath his white-blond bangs. "I see." Izumi turned back to the two Saints watching them thoughtfully for a moment. "I trust you then to bring Kyo-sama back to his quarters, Die-sama." He finally said with a small smile at Die and then at Kyo. It was a warm smile, even though the concern in his dark eyes betrayed that he was already thinking of that servant. "You'll excuse me." Die and Kyo gazed after the two priests who quickly descended down the staircase, talking in hushed voices. "...but you know him... he never talks much..." Shin's soft worried voice drifted up to them before the pair left through an archway at the next bend. "Well then." Die announced cheerfully, turning his attention to Kyo as the two priests had vanished from sight. "Let's get the little runaway safely tugged in again!" It earned him an annoyed growl from Kyo, but he didn't give the other Saint a chance to speak up. "You know you're lucky Izumi-san found you. He's a really nice guy - so very unlike Kaoru when he finds out that you sneaked away while he was sleeping like a baby. So better let's get back before he wakes up." Kyo opened his mouth, but then snapped it shut again, squinting gruffly up at Die. After all that trickster had saved his ass up there... sort of. At least he hadn't given him away. "Humph. How d' you know? That Kaoru's asleep and me gone?" "I broke into your rooms and found that the pretty treasure had vanished from beneath the nose of the snoring dragon." Die teased with a smug smile. For a moment Kyo didn't know if he ought to laugh or snort. He settled for a huff and to ignore the pretty treasure remark. "You broke in?" The small saint scorned, remembering that the doors to his rooms weren't locked at all. Die smirked. "Indulge me, will you." "So you've been one of the Middle-North district's thieves?" Reproachfully Die clacked his tongue. "Hey, I didn't steal sleeping beauty from your room. You've got no grounds for this accusation." Somehow the insulted air lacked a lot of conviction, which was probably due to the broad, smug grin on the redhead's face. Kyo gave Die a rather doubtful look. "Yeah, sure." He muttered, shaking his head, but then he inhaled. "Uhm... anyway... thanks... sort of..." "It was my pleasure." If possible, Die's smile grew even wider. It made Kyo squint up once more at the other man and he felt the urge to answer that bright smile. "How did you find me anyway?" He asked gruffly instead. While they spoke the two Saints had resumed walking. Just in the back of his mind Kyo noticed that they took another way back to his rooms and he had no idea where they were by now. But Die seemed to know his way perfectly well. "As I found you gone I just looked around the place and asked some servants if they had seen a little blond Saint. One of them told me that he had met you on the gallery of the Small Hall." Die shrugged eloquently as they rounded a bend and stepped into a long corridor. "From there it was easy. I followed my intuition and that told me that a silly rash guy like you would seek an escape rout at the most stupid place, so up I went to the top of the Temple. You had in mind to leave by air-ship?" The red head teased. Kyo's expression settled into a glare once more. "Just shut up. I wasn't lookin' for no escape rout up there!" "So you changed your mind about escaping?" "No. But that's none of your business." Kyo rebuffed Die's inquiry curtly. With a look of mock offense Die lifted his hands. "Pardon me." Quite unexpectedly a door was suddenly pushed open in front of the two Saints making them stop dead in their tracks. After a moment of delayed realization they recognized that they had already reached Kyo's chambers and that it was the lean figure of Kaoru-san waiting for them in the doorway. "Yes indeed. Pardon me." The priest said in a cutting voice. "Step inside, Saints." With a brisk movement he held the door open for Kyo and Die, his gaze drilling into them. "Kaoru..." Die tried to reconcile him with a winning smile, but he didn't get a chance to finish his sentence. "Step inside!" Kaoru hissed sharply and although he didn't possess the power of Voice both Saints felt they wouldn't disobey him. Please continue with Part 5 here ! | Tavernroom | Tales | Hosted by www.Geocities.ws