The Fox and the Lion

I usually don't delay the action of this particular story by writing to my readers, but this time I believe an apology is in order. I am so sorry for not updating for so long. I was first involved with final exit exams for my master's degree and then in Indonesia for a month. Not that that is any really valid excuse, but there was also the question of how this story has been built up so much for this moment. You can't just built a mountain only to slide down the bunny hill, know what I mean? I had set the stage for major epicness and I wanted this chapter to be…well…epic. Thank you to all those who took the time to read the story and review it, all the reviews that I received helped tremendously. I want to especially thank midnight41 and melancholy dreams and the reader who goes by M, thank you so much for always reviewing for me! You guys are the best! After Indonesia I was tempted to just sort of label the story as being on hiatus and return (maybe) someday to finish it. However, with the amazing reviews people wrote I found that I couldn't just chicken out, even though I had put myself into the position of deliver or die. So, for those of you were diligent enough to write reviews even during my long literary absence, this one is for you. May it be all you have hoped and waited for.

The place between worlds was dark, that was to be expected, but it was not empty. Things flowed through thick mists, coming into existence for a bare moment before winking out again into oblivion. There was no light and yet, sometimes, a form or a shape would achieve illumination only to fade again before becoming clear. Watanuki shivered and wondered if he and Doumeki, too, were only fractionally existent. The young seer wondered if all of them, even Kahn, only dipped into reality for an instant and then lapsed back into the void. Doumeki felt Watanuki shudder and turned to pat his armored thigh. The gesture was affectionate and even comforting despite its strangeness. The seer hugged himself tighter against Doumeki's wide back, musing to himself as the dragon carried them further into the murky darkness. Yuko, riding just behind Kahn's great head was uncharacteristically quiet and only the witch's long flowing hair gave Watanuki any clue that she was still there. The silence was ominous, as if sound could not even be formed in such a place. The thick quiet made Watanuki want to scream just to hear his own voice. The seer rested his cheek against Doumeki's shoulder, content to foster their strange romance in the face of soundless death.

Doumeki felt something light and hot thrill in the pit of his stomach at the seer's touch. Even here, even in a place that was not even really a place at all, Watanuki could set all his senses ablaze. That was the power that the pale ghost-watcher had over him. If he hadn't been so eager for the feelings, Doumeki might have been afraid. However, fear was not a large component of his nature and he yearned for Watanuki's passion more than a drowning man yearned for air. The archer was beginning to understand why he was having such difficulty mastering the armor. Watanuki, at the deepest core of his essence, was afraid of feeling too much. When the instinctual madness rumbled within his soul, Watanuki simply retreated, saving his conscious mind. The seer was avoiding the feelings, never engaging or acknowledging the urges. It was only when his own logical mind sought to use the power of the armor that the seer let himself feel the totem. Doumeki, however, was tempted into the inferno and helpless to resist its pull. All he could do was fight the instincts and the archer knew, even now, that he could not fight it forever.

The void opened, shifting before their very eyes into something dark, but solid. At first Watanuki thought he was seeing an ocean of dark waves, moving in a sort of muted synchrony. As they moved closer, however, the peaks of the waves resolved into separate shapes. The seer squinted; trying to see as each shape nodded against the darkness, obscuring the others. Watanuki opened himself to the totem, letting the power of his own fundamental being fuel his sight. He gasped. The blackness stretching beneath Kahn's talons was not an ocean…but an army. The "waves" were great masses, thousands strong, of shadowy soldiers all moving in some sort of obscene meditation. As the dragon flew, they passed uncountable figures, all rhythmically nodding.

"Yuko…there's…there's millions of them." Watanuki whispered, his voice booming in the unnatural quiet.

"Yes, but they are meaningless to you." The witch whispered.

"What?"

"Set's army is only partly present on this plane of existence. He holds them here through the power of dark magic and his own will. They exist on the fringe of reality and so for you, who can see into the cracks between worlds, the soldiers are easy to avoid." Yuko replied.

"What about for Doumeki?" Watanuki whispered, feeling the archer tense against him. Yuko was silent for a heartbeat.

"As long as he rejects Set's deceptions, he can fight them. Do not be distracted by them, Watanuki Kimihiro, look for Set's body. Most likely, he has hidden it somewhere within the army." The witch said, here voice sounding empty.

"Yuko, enough. We are here." Kahn rumbled.

Hovering above the vast, roiling army was a score of dragons. The great beasts whispered to one another and flew uneasily above the shadowy soldiers, staying close to one another. Every so often, a dragon would dive toward the army, spitting fire into the ranks of Set's host. Each time, the gap between the bodies closed almost before the fire ceased and the soldiers continued their mindless nodding. Watanuki shivered. The countless dark beings beneath their feet did not even seem to acknowledge the dragon's attacks. Even more disturbing, the seer could tell that the fire never actually thinned Set's ranks. The soldiers merely faded out of existence to reappear once the danger from the dragons was past. Kahn joined them and was immediately accosted by an enormous white dragon almost twice his own size. Apparently Kahn was not kidding about being relatively young for his kind, the ivory giant made the great golden dragon seem like little more than a child.

"Kahnivon Ri Dukatu! What is this? I ask you to gather our allies and you bring me insects from the Earth world? By the Gods! You might have at least managed a serpent or something while you were at it." The white snarled, flames curling from his jaws in frustration. Yuko yawned.

"They may be young, father, but these creatures are our greatest allies! Behold, the Dimensional Witch and her Seer!" Kahn announced, his head high.

"Good to see you again too, Caironivon Ri Dukatu Ma… Sama." Yuko said formally, nodding her head. Watanuki was not sure how, but the witch managed to make a formal introduction sound sarcastic.

"You! Why my offspring seeks the bed of something so young and tiny is beyond me." The great dragon huffed.

"As I have reminded you before, Kahn's choice of bedmates is no business of yours." Yuko said with just a touch of ice.

"Ah yes, Yuko, let us talk business. It is your forte, is it not? Last time you joined us in battle, you managed to weasel an inter-dimensional taxi service out of us. Not only is such an arrangement unnatural, it is also strictly forbidden. What will it be this time, I wonder? Some sort of dialogue with one of the Gods, perhaps? Something equally blasphemous?" Cair snarled. Yuko smiled.

"Tempting, but my price for this assistance is substantially less irksome. With the dark energy from Set's soldiers leaking into our world, my seer cannot survive for much longer. I bargain my talents in your struggle for his life." The witch said. The dragon frowned, but eyed Watanuki critically.

"He is…more than he appears. I can see why you would not be keen to lose such a powerful shaman. He has not even been opened and already he exudes power. This other…the archer, such a pure spirit!" Cair said sounding almost impressed.

"It would seem that they are far greater assets than you initially realized. Not all things diminutive are unimportant." Kahn said, raising an eyebrow.

"Minutiae is by its nature unimportant." Cair snarled.

"Have you formulated any kind of strategy?" Yuko asked, crossing her arms. She was not interested in hearing what seemed to be a very old argument.

"We have been searching at random for the eye, but Set has hidden it well. Any kind of organized assault is worthless while the eye remains hidden." Cair conceded.

"Good thing I brought a seer." Yuko smirked.

"Humph, even one as fine as this will be unable to find the eye. Even our own seers are blinded." Cair practically shouted.

"Watanuki has met his totem. I believe his power will be sufficient." Yuko said.

"By the Gods! A true shaman then! Still unopened though…aren't you a bit…concerned. Kahn had already opened you when you took the totem…" The dragon asked, looking at Watanuki with something almost like pity. The youth pouted.

"I did not want it this way if that is what you are asking." Yuko snapped.

"Truly child, I am sorry. Desperate times call for desperate measures I suppose." The great white dragon sighed. Watanuki could not tell if the beast was addressing him or Yuko. Doumeki shifted uncomfortably in front of Watanuki.

"Watanuki, release the pipe fox. You will need him to clear enough space for you and Doumeki to land." Yuko instructed.

"L...L…Land? In that?" Watanuki yelped, gesturing to the surging waves of nodding shadows.

"How else are you supposed to search for the eye? Besides, Set's creatures wont bother to attack you until you actually threaten the eye anyway. It is taking a vast amount of Set's energy just to keep them here." Yuko explained.

"So we can just go down and stroll around?" Watanuki asked, rasing an eyebrow.

"I never said that. Use the sword to defend Doumeki against any of the creatures that seem different from the others in any way. Not all of these things are mere illusions and Doumeki cannot avoid them the way you can. Doumeki, if anything moves to touch you…shoot it. All you have to do is search for the eye and guide Doumeki to shoot it. Doumeki…do not believe what you are seeing unless Watanuki tells you to…ever. We will distract the army once you find the eye." Yuko said her cranberry eyes hooded and dark.

Grumbling, Watanuki pulled the pipe from beneath his armor and released the fox. The little creature poked its nose from the pipe and then snarled, all its fur on end. Watanuki understood just how the animal felt. Sensing the dark energy, the pipe fox instantly morphed into it larger form to stand in front of the seer. Watanuki could not help but smile as the fox sat beside the seer wreathed in holy fire, snarling at the press of dark troops. Who would have thought a little fluffy snake could be so ferocious? Watanuki laid a comforting hand against the ruddy beast's head and whispered to it. The pipe fox quieted and licked his face affectionately.

"Okay, can you burn some of those things down there?" Watanuki asked. The fox snarled excitedly.

In a single leap, the creature flew from Kahn's back already spitting foxfire down onto the weaving hordes. Unlike the fire produced by the dragon, the fox's flames sent the shadowy troops into a screaming pandemonium. Like paper puppets, the soldiers burned in the inferno and crinkled into nothingness. Shadows ceased moving and moved to avoid the flames, bumping into others and causing even greater confusion. The fox, unmoved by their screams, spat the flames in a wide arch. Even a single tongue of the fox fire could destroy and entire soldier. The creatures seemed almost…flammable. Set's army ignited as if every dark figure had already been splashed with gasoline. The once quiet gloom was deafening with the sound of inhuman screams and the crackle of the sacred flames. Soon a wide path had been cut through the army. Yet the creatures did not fight. They moved to avoid the fire, but never once sought to attack the fox. It was as Yuko said. Merely holding them in reality was sapping a considerable part of the dark god's power.

"Go! Now! Before they reform!" Yuko shouted.

"What?" Watanuki said cupping his ear against the cacophony.

Yuko didn't give the order again. Instead she had Kahn fly them to the field in a stomach wrenching arch. Once close enough the ground, or whatever counted as ground in the place between worlds, the dragon undulated. Watanuki and Doumeki flew off of Kahn's back like two fleas being shaken from a dog, landing side by side on the still smoldering field. Doumeki somehow managed to land on his feet, but the seer tumbled to the ground in a heap. Rubbing his bruised buttocks, Watanuki stood and looked around at the surrounding army. Now free of the fox fire, the soldiers had returned to their inane nodding. Even up close the features of the warriors were still dark and obscure. Watanuki hoped that they weren't trapped souls or something. The thought made him shiver.

Suddenly, a darkened figure moved. The archer's face contorted into firm resolve and Doumeki raised his hand to fit an arrow to his bow. The creature turned and moved to try to stand between Watanuki and Doumeki, but it walked as if trapped in amber. Every flick of the phantom's wrists, every step that it took was so slow! Watanuki felt as though as he had hours to move around the creature and stand at Doumeki's side. He avoided the creature by miles, not even feeling the wind of it's passing. Watanuki stood beside the archer as Doumeki drew the bow back. Doumeki seemed to move as he usually did, but Watanuki could not understand why he was still aiming for the apparition. He tapped on the archer's shoulder, certain that Doumeki wouldn't want to waste the arrow on the creature after the danger was already past. Doumeki jumped in surprise and looked at him. Watanuki had rarely seen his friend affect any kind of facial expression, but he had never seen Doumeki look so confused and stunned.

"What? How did you get over here?" The archer asked.

"What do you mean? It's not like I can't walk and, if you haven't noticed, these things are really slow." Watanuki said, rolling his eyes. Doumeki's face had returned to its normal impassive mask, but the youth's eyes were wide and dilated.

"They are not slow. You are merely avoiding them. You are 'walking' to quickly for me to see." Doumeki whispered. Watanuki's eyes widened.

Two more of the creatures broke from the swaying ranks and shifted, trying to lay their shadowy fingers on the archer. Watanuki ducked behind his friend, pulling the sword from its scabbard and slashing with infinite care. The seer arched the sword, taking the time to slip it neatly into the phantom's neck. He turned and cut the other creature down before it could even turn on its sluggish feet to protect itself. Like a wasp flying between slowly twining trees, the seer stabbed and slashed twice more before the other shadows could even move to separate themselves from throng. Suddenly, Watanuki perceived color. One of the things almost looked like it had a slight blue radiance. Remembering that Yuko had said to look for ones that were different, Watanuki turned to face the thing. While the soldier was not attacking, it was still staring at Doumeki through the empty portals of its eyes. The young seer swung the sword, but at the last moment he insidious shadow blocked the weapon. A dark saber of black fire had caught Watanuki's weapon even as it descended!

"Doumeki! Here! Shoot here!" Watanuki shouted, turning away just as a shining arrow lanced through the darkness, shredding the monster into vapors.

"The eye! Look for the eye!" Doumeki shouted, his bow already taught with another arrow.

Watanuki took a breath and looked, searching the roiling masses for something that would indicate the presence of the eye. The young seer was not sure what the eye would look like, but Yuko seemed to think that he would be able to find it. Watanuki gazed out over the soldiers, but all he could see was dark shapes moving against even darker gloom. Another warrior broke ranks, reaching its clawed hands for Doumeki. Watanuki turned, distracted, and swung the sword at the thing. Even as the blade touched it, the creature screamed and evaporated into nothingness. Three creatures swung towards the archer, but Watanuki dispached them easily. A pair of giants lumbered towards Watanuki and the seer ran with inhuman speed to cut them down, but in doing so he left Doumeki's side. In the split instant that it took Watanuki to dispatch the paired monsters, a sickly green wraith slithered closer to the archer. As the seer turned, another phantom moved to his left, brushing its hand against Doumeki's cheek. The archer screamed in pain and jumped to the side. Even though they moved like flies trapped in butter, the shadows could harm Doumeki if Watanuki allowed them to. A creature with glowing eyes approached, but instead of moving to intercept it Watanuki merely pointed to the beast. A bright chi arrow sizzling with power caught the thing in the chest and it howled. Scarlet blood trickled from Doumeki's face where the monster had touched him. The archer was breathing hard.

"They are trying to distract you! Look for the eye!" He shouted. Watanuki nodded.

The seer once again stilled himself and hunted for the eye. This time it was not only blackness that filled his gaze, but subtle colors too. Just as some of the warriors appeared with color rather than formless darkness, some parts of the army as a whole also seemed to radiate color. To his left, Doumeki loosed another arrow into the shadows causing a cacophony of howls. Watanuki looked, searching for something different…something colorful. The army massed together in rows, but other than how the shadows stood there seemed to be no organization. Watanuki could not tell who was ordering who or if there was some centralized power sending the creatures to attack them. Another arrow burned like a star overhead as Doumeki defended himself. Watanuki tried to see if the shadows were moving from somewhere specific, but everything still looked too vague and muzzy.

"I can't see it! I can't see anything!" Watanuki shouted in frustration. Another arrow burned its way through a soldier reaching for his best friend.

"Then you must be looking for it in the wrong way!" Doumeki shouted, drawing the bow tight once more.

Watanuki stepped closer to Doumeki, hoping to discourage the demons merely by his presence. He looked through the gloom and still saw nothing to indicate anything like an eye of a god. He hissed through clenched teeth, close to panic. He could feel Doumeki behind him, drawing arrows with inhuman speed and precision. Where could the damn thing be? The archer had said he was looking for it in the wrong way, not in the wrong place necessarily, just the wrong way. Watanuki slowed his breathing and concentrated. As he had when Doumeki was struggling against the totem, Watanuki opened himself and stretched out his consciousness, looking for an edge. The seer felt with his psyche like a blind man searching with his fingers, hunting for a corner, a place where one plane met another. The seer found many edges, but none seemed sufficiently deep or open. Watanuki brushed a border and forced himself through the space, using the power of his own fear to make himself small. There, deep in a crevasse between worlds, something was hidden. The seer smiled. There, in a pit of darkness so black no normal eye could ever see it, a small green jewel glowed maliciously.