Notes:  First and foremost I would like to thank Marissa Conners for her help in the incorrect use of the Japanese language that she helped me to correct.  Also, Cinnabar Scarlet was a wonderful help in that he also aided me in the correct use of the Japanese language.  Thank you very much.  For the whole, I believe this chapter to be self explanatory and am merely going to put down a list of all the Kappa.

§ "Akuma", or "fiend" is the head of the Kappa.  Beneath him are "Aku", evil, "Akurei," demon, "Oni", devil, "Warui", bad, "Na Ja'Aku," wicked, "Shunenbukai," vindictive, "Na Chimei-Teki", fatal, "Na Tsuretsu", unrelenting, "Korosu", kill, "Shi", death, "Jigoku", hell, and "Psyche", soul.

            The beautiful woman rested her cheek against her hand, sorrowful ebony eyes gazing off into the sunset, soft raven locks tickling her jaw and fingers, the white beads that adorned her hair clattering softly at the gentle wind that ruffled them.  The blazing colors, fire-y topaz, flaming crimson, rustic orange, reflected within those orbs as the horizon stretched far away from her location upon the tumbled down portion of destroyed wall.

            "Konnichi wa, Seishin*," a voice whispered lushly near her head, making her twitch ever so slightly, yet she did not move.  A large, long-fingered hand baring several cumbersome and lavish rings brushed the raven locks from that smooth white face before leaning in close and tenderly placing a smooth kiss upon that cheek, the deep serpentine baritone resonating nearby.  "I have come to play, Seishin."

            'Psyche,' she thought rebelliously, saying nothing, a twinge of fear hitting her heart, reflected with her eyes and the clouds overhead.

            "Too shy to speak to Na Chimei-Teki?" the baritone purred, deep purple clawed fingers stroking the coiled hair about the nape of her neck.  "I know that I must be too much for such a small… fragile… innocent being as yourself," he seemed to take pleasure in the adjectives, licking his lips, "but don't deny the lust between us."  Whirling her around suddenly, purple-rimmed amber eyes wide with excitement met her black ones.  "Come to me, Seishin!"

            "A – away!" she screamed, leaping to her feet with inhuman speed, despite her prolific abundance of kimono and cloth, the geta she wore on her feet not hindering her in the least.  Quickly, she sped down the length of the wall only to skid to a halt as the other was there, crouched like a dragon before the kill, his four inches of black, golden chain adorned horns sparkling in the dying of the light.  He hissed, serpentine as his voice, issuing a claim before inferiors.

            "You shall be my soul, Seishin," he vowed, narrowing his expressive eyes, thin black brows creasing in rage and anticipation.  "The Kappa own you, body, mind, and soul, and will so forever.  Let us forsake this foreplay, even as I relish it, and begin the exercise in bodily lust."

            "Na Chimei-Teki!" a voice bellowed from the ground, shaking its very foundations.  The two glanced down, the woman allowing a brief expression of relief before she saw who waited within the rubble.

            He was lithe and lanky, much as the other before him had been, with horns nearly six inches of jet, ornately painted to reflect symbols of power, a slim cigarette clenched between his white teeth, the color of his pearl skin.  Amber eyes rimmed in sienna contained bloodlust familiar to the two, staring up at them, his black accented gold patterns playing across his skin, ever shifting, while his knee length raven hair fluttered in the dusk wind, the simple sienna and gold kimono he wore doing the same.  Third in command, Akurei had been watching the exchange.

            "Starting early, without us?" his alto asked, amused and enraged, plucking the cigarette from his lips.  "You've been warned early, Na Chimei-Teki; you were not to attempt again.  Do you know the punishment?"

            Eyes lighting up with glee, he nodded eagerly, forgetting the woman before him.

            "Come down here and bring the little whore with you now – we have tired of her being an insubordinate and she will pay tonight.  Quick – she attempts to run away."

            Then the woman was caught by Na Chimei-Teki's hand and brought to ground, head shoved down until she inhaled dirt, choking her lungs, staining her ordinate robes.  Without seconds, she was surrounded by eleven cackling maniacs, all with degrees of hair and eyes, nearly identical but for a few small unique features, each pawing to get at the frightened woman.

            She screamed, she buckled, she writhed and clawed at the ground and whatever came into her range, shrieking for aid as she did every night, every day, receiving no answer, claws and fangs nipping at flesh and clothing until tiny flecks of blood dotted her skin, clothing nearly shredded, exposing her bare back, which seemed to agitate the horde even more so than usual.  A few began intercourse without the others, grouping together in a small, over-sexed pile to the side.

            "Ah ha hah…  Na Ja'Aku!  Paralyze the wench, we wouldn't want the brand to be illegible…" one chuckled and black eyes grew wide with trepidation.

            Her attempts to free herself became even more frenzied, her own claws and teeth elongating and extending as she tried to give herself the upper hand with several of them busy, her tail whipping out and lashing several about the face until the one who had spoken grabbed it roughly, snapping several of the bones to the symphony of her scream of pain.  He hissed, "Na Ja'Aku!  Now!"

            In the next moment, the woman could not longer move, even as she could feel and hear what was going about her, vision slammed into the unfeeling ground.  Her crumpled tail was limp across her legs and the horde was busy above and beside her, the most vulnerable feeling imaginable taking place within her soul.

            The next moment, a red hot burning sensation hit her in between the shoulder blades as Akurei's cigarette drove a track into her back, the beginnings of a kanji symbol starting, flesh cauterized to a black, charred state.  The scent of burning flesh reached her nose nauseatingly even as several others abandoned the sport for more recreation, leaving only two to leer and jeer at the pain and destructive they were inflicting upon the flesh of one of their own.  The kanji was long and burned in deep, to ensure that it would always remain.

            Soon, the branding was complete and the one who had done it stepped back, smiling grimly, incisors flashing in the dying light, staring at the symbol between her shoulder blades and down her back, bare and blunt for all.  "Now you truly are property, my little bukken*," he chuckled, eyes trained upon the symbol, his libido flaring.  "You are the asset to the Kappa and we will be sustained!"

            "Na Ja'Aku!  How long does this last?" another asked, disentangling himself from the pile as someone gave a moan of exultation.

            "Two glorious hours," the other replied fervently, his peach rimmed eyes gleeful.  "Ours to shape and mold.  She cannot move herself but we can."

            "Beautiful," came the reply as the sun set, darkening the scene into shadow as the terror mounted in the woman to such a height that she was to shriek the coming of darkness as a morbid trumpet.

~ * ~

            Two hours later, the woman fled from the scene, clutching her tattered and shredded clothing about her closely, sobbing harshly as she ran into the night, knowing that there would be no sanctuary – she was merely allowed to run because they willed it.  Unless the horde became too enamored with each other, they would soon track her down, bring her to her knees, and begin again.  Moments as few as the sunset came ever day and moments as plentiful as the dusk always followed or came at their own pace.  The thought terrified and revolted her every moment of her existence.

            She rested, leaning against a tree, disheveled hair splayed out against the trunk, immaculate nails shining in her keen eyes.  Sweat and exertion warred with her strength of will, making her want to rest but knowing that she would only be all the more vulnerable.  Ultimately, she would have to rest; unlike the others, she was human enough to need these basic things to keep her alive.  Alive…  The thought was bitter and she never knew why she would want to continue this pestilent, pathetic "life."

            "Psyche?" a voice called softly out of the darkness, a rich alto voice of sugar and honey, wonderful promises always to be kept and never broken.  She stiffened, her consternation palpable about her, hanging like a burdensome wool cloak, constricting her movements.

            From the shadows, a handsome young man stepped, clothed in a rich blue kimono, white flowing designs curling about it, his feet in the geta that she wore, black-red and blue highlighted hair curling around his features as his amber eyes rimmed in crimson looked towards her tenderly.  He carried a bundle of lilies, white with the promise of death and rebirth, eyes inquisitive, six-inch silver gilded horns flashing innocently in the starlight.  "I thought that I heard you come this way…"

            "Akuma!" she breathed, eyes wide, chest heaving, back pressed against the trunk of the tree, willing it with all her being to swallow her whole.

            He cocked his head almost childlike.  "Akuma?"

            "Akuma-heika*!" she yelped as though she had been struck, nails digging into the bark of the tree, debating on whether to run or not.  She knew that she had no chances of competing with the lord and master, with the one who could bring down the others with a single swipe of his claws, but that never prevented her from attempting before.

            "Don't run," he spoke, sounding more like a plea than a command.

            The statement rung true within the woman's head like a clear crystalline bell and she slumped to the roots of the tree, not even flinching as she customarily did when the other came near her, draping a blanket he had had slung over his shoulder over her, as much to clothe her as to keep her warm.  Staring dejectedly off into space, she thought to herself, 'I'll never get away from them…  They're too fast, too strong, far beyond me and always nearby; there isn't a chance that I'll become stronger, faster, better.  I'll never be able to compare.'  Her head slumped until another thought hit her.  'But they fear Akuma-heika!  Maybe if I … if I'M … h-his, they'll leave me be, at least as long as I'm nearby to Akuma-heika.'  She looked up at the other, a bright smile greeting her.  Shuddering uncontrollably, she hugged the blanket about herself, rocking slowly.  'No.  Never.  He is far, far worse…'

            "Oh, Psyche," the other breathed, wrapping an arm about her thin shoulders, chuckling deep within this throat.  "But you ARE already mine.  Perhaps if you consent, willingly, things will not be as they were for the past fifteen years.  Perhaps, while I am around at least, you will be their empresses, not their filthy whore."  He hugged her pleasantly.  "Or… until your spirit is released from their play, you shall never be anything more."

            Eyes wide, she nodded mutely, the two standing up as one, she slumping against him, he baring the weight easily, crushing the lilies into her hair.

~ * ~

            If Psyche thought that her situation would improve, she was mistaken, and terribly so; the only aspect within her servile existence that improved was the tangible quality of it.  She was given a tent filled with luxuries and clothes that were beautiful beyond compare, flowers garlanding her and her apartments nearly every moment of the day.  Beyond that, her life was another hell, completely different and woefully horrible.

            Akuma came to her several times a day, whether she be busy or not, and she often tried to be busy to fend him off, and [he] encouraged the others to come to her at night.  In this fashion, they starved her of sleep and provisions, leaving her always just below satisfaction so that she never had the strength to improve and perhaps later rid herself of those that plagued her.  Any thoughts of breaking the contract with Akuma were immediately shut down – he would have none of it and so told her whenever she even attempted to broach the subject.  It was a pitiful life.

            All the while, the attacks and raids on the surrounding countryside increased, and they were constantly on the move, staging one excursion after another.  It seemed as though they wished to purge the countryside of all remaining beings and it was done successfully.  By day they bathed and laughed in the blood of their enemies, cavorting about in the battlefield as though in play, which death was to them.

            Na Tsuretsu led the way, knowing almost uncannily just where lingering survivors were, even if they attempted to disguise themselves or their scents, even if they were covered with the blood of the already dead or the musk of animals.  Na Tsuretsu found the way and led the others, Akuma following almost lazily, keeping a rein on Psyche, who was feverish in her wish to escape him even for the pleasures of a hunt.  When the victims were found, he'd let her lose and call back the others to allow her to tire herself out, Na Ja'Aku, Na Chimei-Teki, and Korosu heading out to aid her when she was too fatigued.  Shunenbukai went back to stay at his master's side, smirking secretively when Psyche returned to Akuma's feet to sleep like a broken dog.

            It was in this manner that countless lives were lost and the earth was seeped in blood so plentiful that it could not often be soaked inwards for days at a time.  Whole lands lost their occupants in mere months to the laughter of the Fiend and the snarling of the Soul, pursued by one Unrelenting and punished by the Wicked.  Once a land was dead of its occupants with only the promise of rebirth to revive it, Shunenbukai set fire to it, salting the earth after it was done, spitting upon it with his acidic spittle, knowing that nothing would grow again.  Fatal followed in his footsteps, doggedly panting at his heels, eyes after Vindictive.

            Then, once all the chaos had been unleashed and given land to prowl, the oni* would come after their master opened a panel; they commenced in Tobu*, and went in search of yet another land to defile.  One was never long in coming and extreme pleasure was taken in watching a great civilization fall, one that had been flourishing and was in its Golden Age.  No other pleasure was more so.

            But, after several centuries, the practice, while ever a rising terror for the inhabitants of the countryside, grew tiring and wearisome.  Satisfying their own sexual and physical desires became more of a joy to them, especially the conquest of one of their kin, wishing to make them mates.  It was at this time when the deterioration of the Kappa ran parallel to that of the greatness of Man that Akuma, the Fiend, called a counsel among his powerful minions to deliberate and find a greater play for the thirteen of them.

            They all sat in his smoky tent, the air murky and misty with strong incense and drugs that would befuddle and kill the senses of any mortal but here only added to the mystique and majesty of Akuma-heika.  He settled into his throne of precious metals and furs, gesturing for Psyche, adorned in jewels and silk as she was, to sit next to him on the lower set stool and await whatever her fate would be.  After several hundred years of the behavior, she was used to it and sat with dull eyes as he caressed her smooth cheek, his youthful face smirking into gloom.

            But many of the others were busy with their own matters, openly making love before their master, a threesome in front and to the right of Akuma; soon another sprang into the fray with lust in his eyes and commenced the activity harder, Akurei moaning with pleasure.  Their master only raised an eyebrow and watched, his own lust quickly growing and inviting him to release it upon Psyche, which he did, biting her pointed demon ear and sensationally tonguing away the blood that welled up before nibbling on the point of her ear, stroking it with his tongue.  Opening his amber eyes surrounded by blood, he was met with the sight of Shi locked in a kiss with the unresisting but still unwilling Psyche.  Grapping his minion by the collar, he hauled him upwards to face his master and crushed his mouth with a kiss that lingered until Shi was thrown to a dark corner and forgotten.  Another moan from Akurei rose and fell into the air.

            "My faithful though not-so-humble minions," Akuma began, eying the four who still panted, bodies gleaming with sweat, "Desist in your activities momentarily; I have much to speak about.  I'm sure all of you will find much interest in it."  He paused, surveying those before and noted with disgust that the free-for-all had yet to conclude.  He blinked sideways, blood pooling into his irises as horns slide from the headdress he wore, voice deepening slightly as he said with meaning, "And, if none of you think that you owe me the respect and fear that you do, I will personally rip what pleasures you out and eat them."  The room grew silent as the four blinked at him.  Holding up his hand, palm facing himself, his claws extended with a slice of air, glistening wickedly.  "Or do you wish to contest me?"  Quickly, the four disengaged and dutifully perched themselves on various furniture about the room, leaning forward to look at him in rapture.

            "Excellent," he smiled pleasantly, leaning to the side and swiping his open claws across Psyche's bare shoulder before retracting and scooping up a dollop of it on his index finger, which he placed in his mouth and used his tongue to play with it, conscious of the heat rising about him.

            "Now, as Kappa, the most feared of all the oni and the most vile, detestable of them all," he laughed merrily, joined by the echoing laughter of the others in various timbres.  "We … are not doing what we set out to do: destroy all and bring the rightful chaos to this insipid little plain.  It has yet to tremble every moment of its existence in fear of our wrath.  And who should we blame?"  Almost as one, every head snapped towards Psyche, who in turn sat bolt upright, fire shining in her eyes.  Akuma chuckled.  "Yes, yes, perhaps she is the cause but who else?  Come, my Kappa, who else is to blame for the lack of our complete supremacy?  After all the kami* are gone, are they not?  So.  Just who, if not this delightfully delicious Psyche, is to blame?"  Only silence met him.

            "YOU, you pathetic, pusillanimous, sniveling, over-sexed, lust-crazed imbeciles!" he suddenly roared, leaping forward with a speed that many had forgotten he possessed, wings slamming from his back to puncture the tent walls and nearly collapse it about their heads, red eyes burning in his head as he grew, incisors lengthening, nails and claws extending as well.  The others were immediately kowtowed and Psyche whimpered, curling into a ball and shivering, rocking herself.  "If it were not for YOUR sloth, we would be ruling the known universe, INCLUDING the oni realm!  And YET, we are not doing either!  You worship the spirit of the Kappa, rapists and of a logical brilliance nearly unsurpassed but cannot accomplish a simple goal!  And do you know why, Akurei?"  Suddenly, the Demon was being put to the test even as he recovered.

            "I… I mean, Akuma-san –"

            "NO!  That is the very FIRST thing wrong with the lot of you fools: no respect!  No respect and no fear!  Once I was referred to as Akuma-heika and you sniveling lot worshipped the ground I soiled.  Now, now, what have you?  Little respect, a tiny bit that lingers, and the very thought that you could pleasure yourselves in MY presence!  Well," he shrunk a little, hands on hips, the very image of hell, "Who among you, for there are some, thinks that he may challenge me, your lord and verily god?"

            Only silence met him but he caught the belligerent and defiant stares.

            "You wish to sneak behind my back like cowards, never going for the greater glory that I can lead you to?  Well, speak!  No… you will not speak to me, will you, not while your lover sits there, content with a seed sown on land not to bare it.  Their masculinity excites you as does mine and yet you have not the courage to speak to me, your MASTER.  Then you will speak to Izanagi, Goddess of Hell!"  He leapt forward, going for the throat of Shunenbukai, the Vindictive One who would dance and spit upon his grave, and thrust his arm out, ripping most of his throat out, bathing in the shower of blood that spouted like a torrent as the others watched in awe and terror.

            "Baka yaro*!" Na Chimei-Teki screeched, seeing his lover dying upon the ground, their ruler exulting in his crimson/ebony blood, mouth sealed to the spouting mouth, sucking in life, drinking it greedily.*  He lurched forward, claws extending as his own transformation came to pass, only to be met by blood eyes that mocked him cruelly before the hand went to rip his gut open, splitting his abdomen to his chest, damaging him as lengthily as he could before invading the chest cavity and removing the pumping heart. Licking his lips, he ripped into it as Fatal fell, devouring most of it before slamming it back into Na Chimei-Teki's chest.   The others stared up at him, nothing but fear and devotion in their slitted eyes.

            "You see??  YOU SEE??" he roared, spitting flecks of blood and flesh upon all of them as their fallen comrades labored heavily, their bodies speedily working to regain their health.  "THAT –" he pointed at the destroyed masses that were Na Chimei-Teki's and Shunenbukai's abdomen and throat, "is a small, small sample of what I can do to ALL of you, even the mightiest among you, Aku."  He smiled chillingly at the one suddenly thrown into the light.  "Yes, Aku, I know how much you fancy your strength but I can annihilate you without breaking a sweat.  Remember this, all!  Reflect!  Fear!  Respect!  Now who am I?"

            "Akuma-heika!  AKUMA-HEIKA!  AKUMA-HEIKA!  AKUMA-HEIKA!" Psyche shrieked wildly, hugging herself and rocking, mentally distressed and disturbed.

            "Indeed."  He smiled and looked to the others, snapping his teeth.  "Who – who am I?"

            "A- Akuma… h- heika…" Shunenbukai gurgled, clutching his throat as he sat upright, hacking blood.

            "Akuma… heika…" Na Chimei-Teki echoed before rolling over and vomiting upon the ornate rug beneath him.

            The cry was echoed, Psyche's screeching cat wail rising above it as its conviction was increased and its volume so.  The skies reverberated with its power and he smiled, satisfied.

~ * ~

            "Now," Akuma settled back into his throne, reduced to his normal state, pleased with the trepidation that wafted all about, fingers steepled.  "I'll assume that all wish to know what my scheme is and accept it with aplomb and enthusiasm; after all, I came up with it.

            "Now… these mortal fools are quite the game, but that is all they are: a game and nothing more.  They are not a challenge or, to an extent, a real pleasure.  They cause not pain or adrenaline and do not make us feel the ecstasy we once did when we faced the champions of the kami and, yes, if all you may remember, the very kami.

            "They linger, the kami still, within Tengoku*, their precious paradise.  Heh," he chuckled dryly.  "As though that could truly stop any one of us?"

            The sudden realization of his plan hit the others.

            "Yes… yes…  All of you must know it now; we will directly siege Tengoku and make those pompous kami beg their master to let them know no more!"  He rose, throwing any arm to the side and hauling Psyche up to stand next to him, the top of her head brushing his jaw-line.  "Are you with me?  Will you face those pitiful bringers of the Light and triumph?"

            "AKUMA-HEIKA!" Aku bellowed, quieting any beginning mutter.  He quickly strode in front of his master and knelt, kissing his feet and then each toe in return before murmuring, "An honor, my lord, is all that would be for us.  I speak for the group, your humble minions."  Palms flat to the ground, he looked up with his sapphire rimmed eyes, admiration striking him deep into their depths.  "I beg you, lord, allow us to complete this glorious mission you have constructed for our worthless hides."

            "Hmm.  Rise, Aku," Akuma chuckled, pleased.  "The wish shall be granted and we Tobu tomorrow, as the sun burns a hot, merciless heat.  The attack will be as that orb is born into their eyes and we will raise from it as though devils from its womb.  Prepare yourselves," he eyes blinked sideways into their crimson before shifting just as quickly back to amber.  "This siege will be the one that we will be known for forever more and victors, no matter how many times we come must come back, no matter how many we lose and nearly lose, no matter how arduous it may be, we shall be."  He smiled cruelly, perfect in his evil, surrounded by those who would not cross him and those who would crawl from the bowels of torment to follow his lead.

~ ^ ~

* "Opening"

* "Greeting, Soul."

* "property (assets, holdings)"

* "King Akuma"

* "devil"

* "Jump"

* "god"

* "You bastard!"

* This is the principle of the Slayers' defilement and absorption of their prey: to drink the life flowing from them in order to strike terror into the others and gain his strength and defiant nature.  In this way, they increase their own abilities and are the stronger.

* "Heaven"