Disclaimer: I don't own Fushigi Yuugi.

Chapter 10: Blue Demon


Narrator

Miboshi watched as the girl aimed her sword at the silver haired man. Uruki and Hikitsu. Those were their seishi names, he remembered. The two were alone. They'd left the Genbu no Miko and Tomite by the tents and gone alone into the woods. They were foolish.

Uruki's symbol glowed and she ran towards Hikitsu. He didn't move to stop her or defend himself. Her sword landed at his heart, but she stopped before she cut him. The tip of her blade rested gently on his chest for a few seconds before she lowered her blade and walked back to her starting point. Again her symbol glowed and again she charged. This time her sword landed at his kidneys. Again and again she charged, her blade landing at a different point each time. She was panting, sweat rolling down her face and back.

"Stop," Hikitsu said. She sat down, breathing hard. "Go back."

"You're not coming?"

"I will soon." She shrugged and headed back towards the tent. Hikitsu looked up to where Miboshi hid. Their eyes met and Miboshi smirked. Finally, here was an opponent worth fighting. The other Genbu seishi were young and weak. This one was in complete control of his chi.

"You can come down now," Hikitsu said softly, his voice calm and controlled. Miboshi levitated himself down to earth.

"How did you know?" he asked. Hikitsu didn't bother to answer.

"You've been following us for three days, Miboshi," he said instead. Miboshi cackled. He was good. A green glow filled the woods and ice snakes appeared around Hikitsu. Miboshi twirled his spindle, blue light joining the green. From the ground seven demons arose. They were lizard type creatures, although they stood on only two legs like humans. They were each about as tall as Hikitsu and in place of hands they had large, blade-like claws. Hikitsu didn't flinch.

In an instant his snakes flew at the monsters. Three were frozen instantly. The other four slashed at the snakes, shattering them. One slashed at Hikitsu. He moved aside, the claw only brushing his cheek. He could feel warm blood ooze from the wound. He ignored it. One of his snakes bit into the leg of the being that had attacked him. The creature opened its mouth as though it was screaming but, Hikitsu noted grimly, no sound came out. Had Miboshi purposely chosen monsters that wouldn't make a sound so his companions wouldn't come? That was fine with him. He had sent Uruki away for a reason. They didn't need to get involved. He would take care of Miboshi himself.

A snake flew at the Seiryuu seishi. Miboshi flew up, the snake following him relentlessly. It bit into his shoulder. Miboshi grinned and grabbed the snake. Black fire enveloped it and it was gone, the ice that had begun to freeze his shoulder also obliterated. All that was left were two puncture wounds that bled sluggishly.

Miboshi's monsters advanced on Hikitsu. His ice snakes froze one after the other, but Miboshi calmly summoned more for him to fight. Another slashed at his face. A narrow dodge saved him, but his eye patch fell to the ground. He opened the eye, revealing milky whiteness with no pupil or iris. The symbol To — Ladle — glowed there instead.

As he backed up his foot caught on a root. Before he knew it he was falling. He cursed his carelessness in his head. One of the monsters stood above him and lifted its claws. Both were stabbed into his gut. Hikitsu gasped, his eyes going wide. The snakes vanished. Miboshi's monsters did as well.

Miboshi floated down from the sky. He smirked down at Hikitsu. His defeated foe's breath was labored. Blood pooled about him. Miboshi spit on the man, his salvia landing on Hikitsu's cheek.

"You didn't stand a chance," he said. He turned to leave.

Hikitsu was as fast as the snakes he controlled. Within the blink of an eye his hand was around Miboshi's ankle, his dagger buried in the man's thigh. Miboshi growled and kicked him, his foot connecting solidly with Hikitsu's jaw. He pulled the knife out and grinned as he licked the blood off the blade. His foot pressed Hikitsu's neck, cutting off the air supply. Hikitsu's hands grappled with the foot, trying to move it, but Miboshi merely applied more of his weight. Hikitsu could feel his strength rapidly failing. His wound and the lack of air scattered his brain. He tried to summon an ice snake, but found that he couldn't.

"You can't defeat me, Hikitsu of the Genbi Seishi," Miboshi said venomously. "You're going to die first. Then I'll kill the boy, and the girl, and finally your precious miko. They'll die slowly and painfully, I promise you that. I have a special surprise cooked up for them. One that'll make your opponents seem like cuddly little rabbits." He spat the last word. He had originally planed to only kill one of the seishi, or maybe the miko. It was easier that way. They wouldn't be able to summon Genbu and he could go back to his scrolls. But Hikitsu had angered him greatly. It had been a very long time since anyone had so much as scratched Miboshi, and the man lying on the ground before him had managed to injure him twice. He would pay.


Uruki

I was worried about Hikitsu. It had been almost three hours and he still hadn't returned.

"Where is he? Don't you think we should go looking for him?" I asked.

"Leave him be," Tomite replied. "He's a private guy. He probably wants to be alone." I sighed. Something felt wrong about the whole thing. Yes, Hikitsu was private. He rarely spoke and everyone knew that he preferred to be alone. But in the three days I had traveled with him he'd never disappeared for hours at a time. Then again, I'd only known him for three days. That was hardly enough time to find out what he was like.

"Does he do this often?" I asked. Tomite hesitated.

"Not really, no. But he's gone off for a couple hours a few times. Just leave him be. He'll come back eventually."

"What if something happened to him?"

"Hikitsu's plenty strong. He can take care of himself."

A cackle reverberated about the forest as he said it. I jumped up, grabbing my sword. Tomite's bow was with his pack. Instead he gripped his belt knife, the only weapon on him.

"What's going on?" asked Takiko, peaking her head out of the tent she and I shared. Tomite hesitated, as if decided whether to order her back into the tent or keep her close to him. I grabbed the miko's arm, pulling her between the two of us.

"Hey —!"

"Stay close to us," I said. A tent wouldn't be much protection. She was safer where we could look out for her. The cackle filled the woods again.

"Who are you?" yelled Tomite.

"You should know me." Blue light filled the area and a monster emerged from the trees. The thing was huge — at least fifteen feet tall. It could be called nothing less than horrifying. Its skin seemed to be slimy, lightly coated with some sort of clear goo. It's claws were razor sharp and as long as swords. It radiated a stench that made me want to hurl — something between rotten eggs and decaying carcasses. On its shoulder sat a man. He was tall and slender, with a narrow face and eyes. Blood trickled from his shoulder and thigh. In his hands was a bit of cloth, which he threw down at out feet.

It was Hikitsu's eye patch.

I bent down and carefully picked it up. I heard Tomite inhale sharply. Takiko was shaking her head. I clenched my fist around it. The leather was soft and warm.

"I don't believe it," I said. "I won't!" My symbol blazed to life and instantly I could see through the skin of every living thing, just as Hikitsu had so carefully taught me. The monster's organs were strange. His heart was central, not off to the side. His lungs were lower than a humans and his liver larger. Everything was placed slightly strangely.

Miboshi was laughing again. I could feel my knees begin to tremble, just slightly, and forced myself to remain calm. I couldn't panic now. If I did, it would all be over. I risked a glance over at Tomite. He was shaking, although he hid it so well you had to look to see it, and I could see the sweat soaking through his clothes. Tomite didn't scare easily, but only a fool wouldn't be afraid of this monster.

My eyes shifted from Tomite to Takiko. She even looked worse. Unlike Tomite, she was trembling violently. She did not sweat, but she looked as if she were about to pass out from fright.

The monster raised one huge fist. It came smashing down, destroying both of our tents in one blow. I leapt right. Tomite, pulling Takiko with him, went left. The monster looked at me with those ugly eyes, then it looked at Tomite. It didn't even bother to look at Takiko standing behind Tomite. It knew she was no threat.

It moved towards Tomite. He gave a shrill cry, stumbling back, pulling Takiko with him. His knife was held firmly in his hand, but it wouldn't be much use against a monster of this size. He stood between Takiko and the claw that was rushing towards him. She screamed.

I moved at the same time as the monster. I unearthed our packs from our ruined tents and had Tomite's bow in hand in seconds. Tomite had pushed Takiko down and was standing over her trying to fend it off. It rapped its claw around him, lifting him off the ground. He stabbed his knife into its hand. It roared and dropped him.

"Tomite!" I yelled as I threw his bow and arrows in his direction. About half the arrows fell out of the quiver on the way over, but at least it got there.

"You don't just throw other people's weapons! You could have damaged it!" he cried as he desperately tried to string the bow.

"What? Not even a 'thank you'?" I asked, paying no heed to his comment.

"Thanks!" He strung the bow and lifted it with an arrow already on the string just as the monster lunged again. I was instantly struck with how he looked at that moment; sweat rolling down his face, standing over Takiko with his bow aimed at the monster trying to attack them. It was as if he was a prince in one of those fairy tales and Takiko was his princess. He stood there, brave and strong, a living wall between his princess and danger. If I had ever wondered how he felt about our miko now I knew.

But the illusion only lasted a moment. Tomite shot as the monster lunged for the two of them. His aim was true; the arrow pierced the monsters left eye. A dark yellow substance began to ooze from the eye as the monster roared. The back of its claw caught Tomite in the stomach. He went flying, his body slamming into a tree with an impact that I didn't believe any body could take. His mouth opened in shock or pain and I watched in horror as blood came out. His body slid down the trunk of the tree until it lay in a crumpled heap at its base.

"TOMITE!" Takiko screamed. The monster turned to where Tomite had fallen ready to finish him off. It began a slow pounding walk towards where he lay.

"No." Takiko's voice was little above a whisper but I heard it. Suddenly she was up and running. Running to Tomite's fallen form. Running to the very spot the monster was heading towards.

"Takiko! Stop! Don't be a fool!" She ignored me. Faster than the monster, she managed to reach Tomite first. She threw herself in between him and the monster.

"You won't touch him," she growled. She was a fool. Did she honestly think she could protect him? I lunged for the monster. My sword bit into its foot. It kicked out and I felt my body lift into the air. I hit the ground stunned.

The monster turned back to Takiko and Tomite. It brought his arm back, ready to strike. Takiko screamed, covering her face but still refusing to move. The monster's arm came down towards her and… Stopped. There was an arrow embedded so deeply in it's arm that only the feathers at the end stuck out. The monster roared but I barely even heard it. Tomite stood, bracing himself against the tree. In one hand was his bow. His other was clutching his chest where he had been hit. He reached up and wiped the blood coming out of his mouth on his sleeve, then spit to try to get the taste out of his mouth.

"Takiko," he said in between gasps. His voice was raspy and full of pain. "Never, ever, do that again. You hear me? Never do that-" he didn't get to finish his sentence. Takiko had him in a bear hug and was sobbing into his shirt.

"Oh God… I thought… I thought you were dead!" she managed to say in between sobs. He stifled a gasp and tried to unlock her from him. She quickly let go, realizing that she was causing him pain. His face was chalk white and he could barely stand.

"Takiko," I called, standing up. My chest hurt and I'd had the wind knocked out of me, but I was okay. She looked at me, fear and worry in her eyes. "Get Tomite out of here. I'll take care of Big Boy over here."

"I can still fight!" Tomite protested.

"You can barely stand, you dunce." Tomite opened his mouth to protest but coughed instead. He looked at his hand, noting the blood there. Takiko placed a hand lightly on his arm.

"Uruki can handle this," she told him softly.

Their moment was interrupted as the monster looked at Tomite with rage in it's remaining eye. It reached out and grabbed him. Takiko screamed, reaching for him. She grabbed onto its hand and was lifted up along with him. The monster was squeezing Tomite, crushing him. Miboshi was laughing again. I saw red.

I dived between the monster's legs, raising my sword to slash in what would be for a human a not-so-pleasant-place. My sword cut and it went deep into the monster like a hot knife into butter. The same yellowish substance that had come out of its eye was dripping onto me, burning like acid. I flinched, but didn't allow myself to stop.

I came out from between the legs, immediately crouching into a fighting position. I hadn't hit anything vital but I'd definitely done it some damage. The monster roared and dropped Tomite. He fell, crumpled onto the ground. Something in the back of my mind wondered it he was dead, but I ignored it. There was no time for such thoughts. Takiko still clung to the monster's claws.

"Takiko, let go!" I yelled. She squeezed her eyes shut and obeyed. She flew into the air. I stood firmly, preparing myself to catch her. She rammed into my body, knocking me to the ground, but she didn't seem to hurt.

"Are you okay, Uruki?" she asked.

"Fine," I responded. Her eyes searched for Tomite. She hadn't seen where he fell. Seeing his crumpled body she let out a cry and ran to him. I let her go. She could take care of him. This monster was mine.

It roared and made a swipe at me. I jumped, avoiding it just in time. I landed on its arm, quickly running up it. I slipped a bit on the strange, sticky substance that covered it, but quickly regained my footing and made it up to the head. Miboshi had disappeared. Coward. I rammed my sword into the place where the neck met the shoulder. It was the last blow. I severed its spinal column with my strike. It stumbled, then fell. I watched the ground quickly approaching. At the last minute I jumped. My hands caught the branches of a tree and I hung there.

The woods were silent. The only sound was Takiko's soft sobbing. I allowed myself to drop, dread filling my heart. I approached her. She held Tomite in her arms. I placed a hand on her shoulder and she looked at me, tears running down her cheeks.

"Is he alive?" she asked softly, and I knew she expected the answer to be no. I looked carefully at him. What I saw wasn't good. His torso was a mess. Bones were broken and organs damaged. But his heart was beating and his lungs were still inflating.

"Yes," I said. "But I don't know how long he'll stay that way." She shook her head, denying it if only to herself. "Do what you can for now," I continued, knowing that it wouldn't be much. "We'll get him to a real doctor as soon as we can. I'm going to look for Hikitsu." She nodded and I left. Miboshi had said that Hikitsu was already dead. Tomite was dying. I didn't think he could be saved. I was exhausted. Was this the end? Was all hope for summoning Genbu already lost?

I went to the place where we had practiced before. It was where I'd left Hikitsu so it seemed the ideal place to start. I immediately saw signs of a battle. Branches were broken and there was blood splattered on the ground. Hikitsu wasn't far away. His stomach was covered in blood and it had pooled around him. A quick adjustment of my sight told me that he was still alive. Barely. I bound his stomach tightly, hoping it would stop the bleeding. How long had he been just lying here? Surely since our battle with Miboshi started, but how long before then? Had Miboshi ambushed him? I felt terrible. I should have gone looking for him. I should have been there. I picked him up. He was heavy, but I managed to take him back to where Takiko and Tomite were.

Takiko and I managed to lay Tomite on Bluma and Hikitsu on Zenith. She rode with Tomite. I don't think I could have pried her away from him with a crowbar. Hikitsu lay in front of me. He was bleeding through his bandages. I could feel the warm wetness staining my clothing. It wasn't a comfortable feeling.

Our only small blessing was that Zenith cooperated. Perhaps the mare knew that her master's life hung in the balance. I knew the Ma tribe claimed this area as their territory. We rode for two hours before we found them. By that time it was dark. Their headman met us at the edge of their encampment, having seen us approach.

"Who are you?" he asked. "What do you want with us?"

"Please," I said, "our friends are badly wounded. They need medical care immediately." He looked at Hikitsu and Tomite and quickly called for the doctor. Takiko followed the doctor as he took them away but the headmaster stopped me.

"How did your friends obtain such grievous wounds?" he asked. How could I explain what had happened? He seemed to have decided that I spoke for our little party.

"We were attacked."

"By what?" I hesitated.

"It's a long story, sir."

"Then you'd best explain. I won't risk putting my people in danger for you." He led me into his tent and I did my best to explain what had happened earlier that day.

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