Chapter 7 Tsubame

Adrenaline seized me. Were the demons coming towards us? There was no doubt they were. When demons grouped together into one swarm, it generally meant that they were in the hunt. And there were quite a few of them; I could not pick out any individual species among the horde. Yet one thing I grasped: none of them looked friendly.

I had no time to wonder how so many demons could be on Mount Hakurei. "Tsubame!" I exclaimed urgently. "Into the cave – hide!"

Tsubame darted into the cave Bankotsu had entered. I was about to follow her when I heard a loud crashing noise above me and gazed sharply upwards. The demons, drawing near, had bumped roughly against the cliff face as they descended the mountain. The top part of the cliff, which had probably been on the verge of collapse, simply broke off from the cliff and fell dangerously. I stumbled backwards. If I ran for the cave, I would be crushed beneath the falling rocks.

When the rocks landed noisily on the ground, a choking veil of dust filled the air. I fell on my bottom and raised my arms protectively, screwing my eyes shut. I felt something sharp sear my arm briefly; my eyes watered and I wanted to sneeze. Remembering that the demons were close by, I hastily reopened my eyes and took stock of my surroundings.

The fallen rocks completely blocked the entrance to the cave. My arm was bleeding because a smaller rock and bounced up and hit it. I hoped nothing similar or worse had happened to Tsubame.

The demons flew by, ignoring me for the most part. I suppose just one boy didn't look too appetising to them. Yet about five of them did take notice of me and flew down towards me. They were winged demons with purple, coarse skin and with bull-like heads. Their sinewy arms were accompanied by razor-sharp claws and hoofed feet.

This was annoying. I was unarmed, separated from Tsubame and there was no Bankotsu with his Banryu to save me. I clicked my tongue in frustration. There had to be something I could do.

My eyes fell on Renkotsu's discarded gun. I was unsure of how to use it but it sure looked like better than nothing. I picked it up hastily.

How to load the darn thing?

Never mind, I thought. There was probably some ammunition already inside. The trigger, a small black button located at the base of the gun, was to be squeezed with my right hand. I had not detected it at first but since panic had caused my hands to perform actions quicker than they normally did, I pressed the button without quite knowing what I had done or what would happen.

My luck was remarkable. Renkotsu had created a weapon that even a child could manipulate. The gun shot something that looked very painful to be hit with, although my first shot missed the demons completely. But only narrowly. The aiming of Renkotsu's gun was very accurate.

Recalling how Renkotsu had not succeeded in hitting Bankotsu with his gun because of his panicking, I decided to take a deep breath and stood back. Taking careful aim at the closest demon, I squeezed the trigger and fired. The demon silently fell. I knew immediately that it had died. Emboldened by my success, I aimed at the next demon and fired. This time, nothing happened.

My heart sank within my torso. Inwardly, I groaned. It was out of ammunition! Renkotsu's backpack surely had some but finding it and figuring out how to put it in was beyond my mental capacity. I didn't have time! The demons were coming and they seemed extra aggravated for the pot-shots I had taken at them.

Before I could think of another way of handling the situation, I saw something in the corner of my vision. I almost missed it. If I had not seen one of the demons stumble and hit the ground, I would not have noticed the familiar grey chain that had been the cause.

I turned my head around once, looking. Could it be? "Aikotsu!" I yelled out.

He had arrived with Okikotsu behind me. A burst of euphoria and a general sense of relief overcame me. My friends had come for me, hadn't they? I watched Aikotsu entrap another demon with the chain of love. Okikotsu stood at his full, impressive height and snuffed the other demons with his powerful hands. I didn't know how they got here or anything else, for that matter. But still, it felt somewhat good to have help by my side.

With the demons safely annihilated, Aikotsu casually slung his weapon over his shoulder and regarded me in a very Bankotsu-like fashion. "You were late," he explained. "It got dark, so we decided to look for you."

I nodded. "Thanks, guys."

"No problem," Aikotsu smiled. "We didn't want to miss out on any fun."

While Tsubame and I had been up on the mountain conversing with Bankotsu's Aikotsu's story had been brief and simple. He had stayed at the village and had repaired the chain of love while Okikotsu steadily recovered. And then, when night came, he had looked up at Mount Hakurei and had noticed that the barrier had been removed.

"It was very easy to tell," he related to me. "All the fog had vanished. Also, you should have seen the number of demons storming down from the mountaintop. I'm surprised more didn't chase you."

"They're headed somewhere, I think." I took an opportunity to look around for more demons. There were none in sight. Before now, they must have been hiding behind the barrier until someone had taken it down. It must have had something to do with Bankotsu entering the cave, I thought. All the weird people Bankotsu had mentioned to me before must be inside with him. Within Mount Hakurei, more must be going on for things to be noticed on the outside. A great battle, perhaps…

Tsubame was inside!

"We've got to hurry," I said. "We've got to get inside the mountain – Tsubame might be in danger! Okikotsu, can you move these rocks?" I pointed to the rocks that had fallen outside the cave entrance. They were the size of small boulders.

Okikotsu grunted and wordlessly set to work. I noticed his muscles straining as he applied his inhuman strength. The rocks began to move. I felt a little better watching that but not much. Inside, I was kicking myself. What had I done? I had been trying to protect Tsubame but instead shoved her into the unknown to her peril. How frightened she must have been when the rocks had separated us! I should have kept her with me. Now I had to stay on the mountain longer to retrieve her.

I might see Bankotsu again…

No! I should my head. No! It wasn't going to happen.

"I take it," Aikotsu said slowly, "that you met Bankotsu, leader of the Band of Seven?"

I looked at him. He had read my mind. Aikotsu must have been dying to know what had happened to me. "Yes," I replied. "I did meet him."

"What was he like?"

"As I thought he would be." I smiled. "Extremely cool."

"But he left you, right?"

"It couldn't be helped."

At that moment, Okikotsu let out his heaviest grunt and pushed the final rock aside. The entrance to the cave was now open. After thanking Okikotsu for his efforts, we briskly stepped inside.

The walls were dark. From deep within, I could hear strange noises. I stopped and perked my ears, listening intently. It sounded like fighting. But from where? It came from one place, I was sure, but the sounds appeared to be coming from all directions, such was the effects of the echoing.

My heart beat faster and I stepped further within. Where could Tsubame be?

The noises seemed to sound louder. There were indiscernible voices as well as what sounded like the wind howling within the mountain. I wondered what was going on. Like me, Tsubame must have felt curious and as a result wandered deeper inside. Damn her.

Suddenly, I felt dizzy. The world around me, the close proximity of the walls, were shifting. An eruption? An earthquake?

Aikotsu looked outside and came back to report what was going on. "The mountain is collapsing!"

I didn't know how that was possible. First the barrier going down, then the demons, now this. What on earth was happening to Mount Hakurei?!

"Quickly!" Aikotsu exclaimed sternly yet calmly. "We've got to get out of here!"

Looking up at the ceiling, I noticed some small bits of rubble fall down as the passageway continued to sway.

"What about Tsubame?" I demanded. "She's still in here!"

I didn't turn around to look at Aikotsu, knowing that all I would come to face with was his worried expression.

I heard his anxious-sounding voice. "No! There's no time!"

"Shut up!" I growled. "I must go deeper!"

Didn't my friends understand?

I was about to leave them when I noticed Okikotsu step up next to me. He raised his hand to my head and the world fell black.

I woke up just as dawn broke.

Aikotsu hung over me, peering at my face anxiously.

I was about to ask him where I was when I figured it out just by looking around me. I was several miles from the base of Mount Hakurei. I was lying on the grass, trees overhanging, and Aikotsu and Okikotsu were at my side. Gazing up, I saw the mountain and it was still in the final stages of falling.

It was a transfixing sight. Huge segments of rocks cascaded down the mountain's top, coming to rest at a heap at the bottom. It looked like a mighty animal was shedding its skin, only it wasn't natural. It was destruction. Well, I suppose that was natural, but to me, watching a mountain, one of the things on earth most like a god, fall into chaos and destruction, it was one of the least natural things I had ever seen. Full-blown human wars could not compare to the sight of Mount Hakurei breathing its last.

The dust began to settle and no more rocks fell. I noticed that the pile of fallen rocks differed from being a mountain: it no longer reached out to the heavens. Never again would this part of the earth be a mountain and exude an atmosphere of holiness and tranquillity.

Mount Hakurei was no more.

I heard myself muttering, "Why? Why? Why?"

Okikotsu had saved my life by knocking me out and carrying me down the mountain. But now I had to return to the former Mount Hakurei. My heavy heart was drawn to it, as it had always been.

I was looking for Tsubame. Everywhere amongst the rubble I searched, and as the day matured and the sun rose high into the sky, I felt my own spirits refuse to heighten or lower. I did not dare believe I would not find her. I forced myself to concentrate on but one thought as I overturned each rock and found no living thing:

"The next one... The next one... The next one..."