(A/N: I've got a real action packed chapter for you. I know you'll all like this one.)
Disclaimer: Still don't own anything.
Chapter 11: Assassination Attempt
When they returned to the others, Melke ran to greet them, hoping her husband was among them. Her hopeful look became one of worry when she saw that he wasn't with them.
"Ashitaka, where is my husband?" she asked.
Ashitaka didn't reply. How could he tell her that her husband was dead?
"Ashitaka?" A look of horror and heartbreak crossed over her face when he didn't answer.
Closing his eyes, he broke the news to her as best as he could. "I so sorry, Melke. We… didn't get to him in time."
Several emotions crossed over the young woman's face, all of them full of sadness. Tears formed in her eyes as she cried out in despair. "No! No, he can't be dead! He can't be dead!"
She buried her face into Ashitaka's chest and began crying. San immediately tensed up as jealousy filled her when she saw how close the woman was to Ashitaka and the instinct to protect her territory kicked in.
Shaking her head, San immediately put those thoughts of jealousy aside. This woman wasn't doing anything wrong. She had just lost her husband. San started scolding herself for being so insensitive. Here this woman was crying her eyes out from losing a loved one, and she was getting jealous.
San walked over to Melke and rested a hand on the crying woman's shoulder. "I'm sorry we couldn't save him. I really am."
Melke looked up at the Princess Mononoke with red puffy eyes. "Thank you. Thank you for trying. I never thought that you would risk your life to help us. I don't blame you for not getting to my husband in time. I just… I…"
She became too upset to talk anymore and, to San's surprise, she began crying against her just as she had done to Ashitaka moments ago.
"I better get Eboshi." Ashitaka whispered to San.
San nodded as she awkwardly patted Melke's back. This was an unexpected turn of events. Never would she have thought that she would be comforting one of her former enemies after they lost a husband.
"Melke." Eboshi had arrived. "Ashitaka told me what happened. I'm so sorry for your loss."
Melke pulled away from San, and turned to Eboshi, still weeping. "T-Thank you, milady."
Eboshi made a move to take the woman from San, who was happy to get out of this uncomfortable situation. "Come on, my dear. It will be alright."
But before Melke went with Eboshi, she whispered something in San's ear. "Take good care of Ashitaka. You two are very good together. Don't let them take him from you."
With that being said, she went to Eboshi, who led the woman away. San stood transfixed for a moment before looking at Ashitaka. What would she do if she lost him? The idea was unthinkable. San didn't know what she would do without him. She didn't think she could go on without him and didn't want to.
San looked back in the direction that led to Iron Town. There were so many negative emotions in that town right now, and it was affecting Ashitaka's curse, speeding up the process. If this wasn't dealt with soon, Ashitaka would…
'No! I won't let that happen!' San silently vowed. 'He won't be taken from me! I will put an end to this!'
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It was late during the night that a dark figure ran out of the forest, slowly approaching Iron Town. The figure got closer and closer to their destination, making sure to stay hidden in the shadows, not wanting to be spotted by any of Asano's samurai.
Once she was well hidden, San lifted her mask to get a better view of the town from where she was hiding. Somewhere in there was the man responsible for everything that had happened over the past several days. But once she killed him, everything would go back to normal, once the demon was dealt with that is.
But killing Asano was not going to be easy. Eboshi had been difficult enough to get to, but Asano had trained warriors defending him, not to mention that heartless monster, Teralis. Getting past him would be the most difficult part of this mission, especially on her own.
Yes, San was by herself right now. She had told no one of her plan to make an attempt on Asano's life. None of the town folk would stand a remote chance at fighting Teralis. Ashitaka might, but San wasn't going to risk bringing him into a place filled with such negative emotions and having his curse spread any faster. And her brothers wouldn't exactly be able to sneak through Iron Town undetected like she could. No, she had to do this on her own.
Creeping up to the hole in the gate, which was nearly repaired, San checked to see if the cost was clear. Predictably, it wasn't. But there weren't many guards. Only a handful; everyone else was asleep.
Being as quiet as possible, and making sure to stay out of sight, San picked up a rock and threw it as far as she could behind the guards. They immediately reacted to the sound, turning to face the place the rock landed, giving San enough time to sneak in.
She hurried over to the first place she could hide, hoping the samurai hadn't seen her. They hadn't and San sighed in relief. She turned away from the guards and made her way through Iron Town. It wasn't as difficult as she had thought it would be. Nearly everyone was asleep and there were only a few guards in a few random places. There would probably be some guarding Lord Asano as well; wherever he was staying. It didn't take much effort to figure it out. The warlord would obviously stay in the best residence, which would belong to the leader of Iron Town, Eboshi.
Climbing to the top of a house, San made her way to her destination by hopping from rooftop to rooftop. This easily allowed her to avoid the guards, but she had to be extra quiet so she wouldn't wake anyone sleeping in the houses she was running over.
Getting as close to Eboshi's former residence as she could while still remaining on the roof, she spotted a window that looked like it was within jumping distance. The only problem was that it was closed and she wasn't sure if it was locked. But that wouldn't matter, she had her ways of getting in.
Taking a running start, San leapt from the roof and stabbed her spear into the wall, using it to remain hanging in the air. Keeping a tight grip on her spear, San tried the window and wasn't all that surprised to find it locked. Taking out a flat knife she had gotten from one of the town folk, she slid it up the window, lifting the latch off the lock.
Being very careful not to let the window creek as she opened it, San climbed inside, making sure to keep a lookout for any danger, namely Teralis.
She quietly made her way through the house, searching for her target. She turned a corner and her eyes widened before she quickly retreated behind the corner again. There, not ten feet away, was Teralis.
Slowly peaking around the side, San got a good look at the assassin. He was sitting on the floor by a door, seemingly asleep. San listened carefully, before deciding that he really was asleep, based on the way he was breathing.
Being as quiet as possible, San made her way down the hall and walked past the sleeping man. San's eyes narrowed as she picked up the scent of blood. Teralis had made a kill recently. San was tempted to kill the man and prevent him from killing anyone else. But she didn't. She wouldn't risk blowing this mission. Her goal was to kill Asano and end this senseless fighting.
San looked at the door Teralis was sitting by. Since Teralis was Asano's bodyguard, logic suggested that Asano was probably behind the door Teralis was sitting next to.
Carefully, so not to make a noise, San opened the door, constantly glancing at Teralis to make sure he was still asleep. Her heart was pounding so loudly that she thought the assassin might hear it, but he didn't stir and his breathing remained calm and steady, indicating that he was still asleep.
She crept into the room and spotted Asano fast asleep in what was once Eboshi's bed. San narrowed her eyes as she recognized the evil warlord. As quiet as ever, she shut the door and crept over to him. Lifting up her mask, she stood over the bed, knife in hand, and glared at Asano with the deepest loathing.
'If only I could have done this before you caused so much suffering.' She thought, raising the knife. 'It's too late for the lives of those you destroyed, but I can at least stop you and your evil ways.'
She was about to plunge the knife into his black heart when Asano spoke. "So you've finally come." San jumped back in surprise as Asano opened his eyes and smirked at her. "I wondered what took so long. I've been here over a week. I would have thought that you would have sooner."
San recovered from her surprise and held the knife to the warlord's throat. Asano didn't even flinch, and his smug smile never left his face.
"Don't move." She said threateningly. "Don't think I won't kill you."
Asano snickered. "Oh, I know you will. I told you that I even expected you to come sooner."
San's eyes narrowed as she glared at the warlord. "You should have listened to us earlier and left."
Asano's smile didn't falter. "But it's much more fun this way, wouldn't you agree? The thrill of war is so exciting."
San was outraged. "There is nothing fun about playing with the lives of others!" she seethed, making sure to keep her voice low. "What kind of a person are you?"
"The kind that enjoys a good battle." Asano replied calmly, too calmly for someone with a knife held to their throat.
"You're sick!" San whispered. "You're almost as bad as that thing you have outside your door."
Asano laughed. "Yes, Teralis really is one of a kind. There's no other like him. He's the best there is, without doubt. Once he's decided to kill someone, they're dead."
San glared at him. "I'll give you one last chance to leave. Go and never come back. Leave my forest and Iron Town alone. You'll only invoke our wrath, and that will lead to war."
"How exciting."
San pressed the knife against Asano's Adam's apple. "You shouldn't be so confident. I could kill you right now, and your friend Teralis isn't here to help you."
The warlord just sneered at her. "You just don't get it. No one gets away from him or gets by him. Even when he sleeps, no one can get by him."
"I managed to get by him just fine."
An evil smile crept up over the warlord's face. "Did you? Did you really? Are you sure he didn't just let you get by?"
San didn't like the look in his eyes or the smug smile on his face. He should be worried for his life. Not having a conversation with her like he was in control of the situation. That was when she noticed it. Asano wasn't looking at her. He was looking over her should, behindher.
Fear and disbelief gripped her. No, it wasn't possible. No human could sneak up on her, no one; except Ashitaka, but that was only because she taught him. No one else could possible get her from behind without her knowing.
Acting completely on instinct, San jumped as high as she could. Without making the slightest sound, a blood red blade soared beneath her, less than an inch away.
San landed only to have to dodge Teralis' blade again. It was true, he had managed to sneak up on her. No one should be able to move like that. But he did, and he had her death in his eyes.
San continued to jump away from Teralis' deadly blade, nearly getting cut in half each time. How could he be so fast, and while wearing a suit of armor no less? It was impossible, but he here he was, not even appearing tired, his movements a blur even to her eyes.
At one point San wasn't fast enough to dodged his sword, so she caught his blade with the knife. The force of Teralis' blow sent the knife flying out of her hand and landing several feet away.
Teralis stabbed forward and San just managed to jump over his head. Teralis instantly spun around, swinging his sword. It cut open the back of San's shirt as she retreated, but luckily she managed to get away without getting cut herself, but just barely.
Knowing that she missed her chance at getting Asano, San made a run for it. There was no time to run through the house, so she just jumped straight through the window. After living her whole life in the forest, San was used to jumping from high places and she landed unharmed outside. Unfortunately, she was now out in the open, and the guards spotted her. To make matters worse, Teralis immediately jumped out the same window she did. San took off as Teralis landed, charging at her before his feet even completely touched the ground.
"It's the wolf-girl!" a samurai shouted, waking the whole camp.
San swore as more of Asano's men became aware of her presence. Why hadn't she just killed Asano and left? It had been clear that the warlord had been expecting her and set a trap, which she foolishly walked right into, but why hadn't she just gone in, killed the man, and left? Why had she let him distract her? And how did Teralis sneak up on her?
Speaking of Teralis, the assassin was quickly gaining on her. How could he be so fast? He was even faster than she was. Was that possible?
San ran for the hole in the gate, but was forced to change direction in order to avoid Teralis' blade. San jumped to the side and her eyes momentarily locked with his. What she saw in those eyes made her blood run cold. All her life, she had been a wolf, a predator, but she didn't feel like that now. Right now she felt like prey. And that was when she realized it. She was the prey. His prey. This time, she wasn't the wolf, he was.
Never had San ever been afraid of a human. Well that wasn't exactly true. When they had first met, she had been afraid of Ashitaka, but for a different reason. He had stirred up emotions in her that she hadn't thought she was capable of feeling for a human, and she had been afraid of that, though she wasn't any longer.
But with Teralis it was something else entirely. In the presence of this man, this monster, she feared for her life. She was afraid of him. She was afraid. This man was the first and only human to truly terrify her. She hadn't thought it was possible for her to fear a human.
It was then that she realized just how afraid she really was. Never had she experienced fear like this, at least not when she was the one in danger. When she looked into Teralis' eyes, it sent a jolt of fear that scared her more than when she was surrounded by the angry town folk while fight Eboshi, more than when Okkoto had turned into a demon and she was trapped within his living rage, more than when the Forest Spirit had her surrounded and was sucking the life out of everything he touched. She had indeed feared for her life during those times, but right now, looking into those bottle green eyes of death, she felt more vulnerable and scared for her life then she ever had been.
All this ran through her mind for the briefest moment. Once Teralis broke eye contact with her, the fear left and she able to dodge his blade at the last second once again. San quickly realized that she had to leave now or Teralis would surely kill her. She knew now that she was no match for him and never would be. If it ever came to a fight, he would win. No matter how much she didn't want to believe it, she had to admit the truth. Teralis was too good, and if she didn't leave, now, he would kill her.
San ran for the exit, but several samurai moved to bloke her path. She swore and changed directions. There was another hole in the gate on the other side of the town. If she could just avoid Teralis until then she could get to that hole, she could get away… she hoped.
Thinking she had a better chance on higher ground, San quickly climbed up onto a roof again. Teralis was up there with her a moment later. The two ran across the rooftops, jumping to a different house every so often. Teralis' blade was getting closer and closer with each swing. San knew she couldn't evade him much longer.
San jumped to another roof with Teralis right behind. He swung his sword right where she was about to land. San messed up her landing when she avoided the blade and fell off the roof, landing hard on the ground.
Groaning, San sat up. She looked up just in time to see Teralis jumping down towards her. She just barely managed to roll out of the way in time as Teralis' sword buried into the ground up to the hilt right where she had been less than a second ago.
Taking the opportunity, San took off, hoping that having his sword stuck in the ground would slow the assassin down. No such luck. Teralis pulled his sword out of the ground with great ease and was after her once again.
San saw the second exit. There were no guards in her path at the moment for they had all rushed to where she had originally intended to escape. Unbeknownst to her, a samurai was aiming a gun right at her.
"Say goodbye, wolf-girl." He sneered and fired.
He was right on target, the bullet soaring through the air, heading straight for San. But it never reached her, for a hand covered in black armor snatched the bullet from the air. The samurai gasped as he saw Teralis holding the very bullet he had just fired. The samurai wasn't surprised that the bullet didn't seem to hurt him since the assassin was wearing armor over his hand. No, what shocked him was that he was able to snatch the bullet out of the air. Was that even possible for any man to do?
Teralis' eyes turned to the samurai that had attempted to shoot San. "She's mine." He hissed, before throwing the bullet at the samurai. It hit him in the chest, causing him to fall to his knees, clutching his chest in pain; that would definitely leave a nice big bruise. But if Teralis didn't kill him, then he would gladly accept the bruise.
Teralis resumed his pursue of San, who was just managed to reach the hole in the gate and jumped through it, heading for the forest.
'You won't escape.' He thought. 'No one escapes me.'
"Teralis, let her go!"
The assassin came to a halt as heard his master's order. Turning around he saw Lord Asano and several of his samurai approach. The warlord had an amused look on his face. Teralis' grip on his sword tightened as Asano's orders registered to him. He wouldn't be able to kill the wolf-girl, not now anyway.
Noticing the angry look in his bodyguard's eyes, Asano gave him a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, my friend. You'll get to kill her soon enough. But not yet. The game has only just begun. We wouldn't want to take out one of the main characters so soon, would we?"
Teralis didn't meet his master's eyes as he struggled to control his fury. "No, we wouldn't."
He walked by the warlord, returning back to his residence. One of the samurai gave him an impressed smile.
"You're really good." He complemented.
Teralis' response was to whip out his sword and slay the samurai. He may have been denied the right to kill the wolf-girl for now, but he would have a kill.
Asano frowned as he watched Teralis kill yet another one of his men. This was beginning to become troublesome. It wasn't that he cared if his samurai lived or died, but he needed men. And if Teralis kept killing all his samurai, that could prove to be a problem.
Asano realized that he may have underestimated the assassin. He had thought he could control him, but he realized that he couldn't. Teralis had a bloodlust that couldn't be satisfied, a never-ending desire to kill. The only reason Teralis was protecting Asano was because Asano was protecting him, and the only reason Teralis obeyed Asano was because most of Asano's orders for Teralis were for him to kill. Teralis could not be controlled, made to obey maybe, but not controlled. And his bloodlust would never end. Teralis would kill until the day he died or until someone killed him, an impossible task.
'I'll have to be more careful around him.' Asano thought.
(A/N: I hope you liked this chapter; I had a lot of fun writing it. It was only a matter of time before San made an attempt on Asano's life. Unfortunately her attempt failed. Teralis is getting impatient with Asano who is just now realizing how dangerous Teralis is. I've got another really good chapter coming up, full of action. Thanks for reading, now how about some reviews? Please.)