EIGHTH BLOOD
Chapter 56: The Devoured
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Asuka's tenth birthday had coincided with the day of the Devouring.
The Devouring occurred every year on the summer solstice, when the sun was at its highest point. It was a tradition that had existed since ancient times, and their village was one of the few who still practised it. A child under thirteen was randomly selected by the village elders to be presented as a sacrifice to the Radiant One, who was the guardian deity of their region.
The Radiant One was a being of pure light who had driven away a dark god called the Shadow. Although the former was victorious, the battle depleted much of its power, so in order to replenish its strength, the Radiant One required the soul of a child. A child's soul was the purest source of energy in existence, and when given willingly, the amount of energy was doubled. Therefore, the founders of the village happily offered up their children in exchange for the Radiant One's favour.
This year, it was Asuka's turn.
Her friends had all congratulated her and her family couldn't have been prouder. It was a great honour to be chosen, and Asuka had been pleased to have finally made the cut . . . until she overheard her parents talking the night before the Devouring.
She couldn't make out what they were saying through the wall that separated her room and theirs, but it sounded like they were crying.
Now, it wasn't unheard of for parents to cry when their children were chosen, but the tears were usually reserved for once the Devouring had been completed. To do so before would be incredibly selfish. Their lives belonged to the Radiant One. They weren't theirs to mourn. It had been that way for centuries, and if they wanted the deity to keep protecting them, it would remain that way for many more.
Asuka's mother had been all smiles the next morning as she helped her get ready for the ceremony. Asuka wore a collection of gold and white kimonos layered on top of each other, as well as a large headpiece with tassels and a purple crystal at the forefront. She looked like a bride. She felt like one, too, only once the ceremony was done, her husband was going to devour her. Literally.
"You look beautiful," said her mother, powdering Asuka's face.
"Thank you, Mama."
She pulled Asuka into a hug. The headpiece came loose and sagged sideways, but Asuka's mother only hugged her tighter. "We love you," she whispered, letting go and refitting the headpiece. "Don't forget us."
Asuka smiled. "I won't," she promised.
She spent the rest of the morning being paraded around the village in a golden palanquin, before being taken to the Old Temple. The priests carried her up the stone stairs and set the palanquin down in the entrance. There, they escorted her inside, where the crowd that had followed them could no longer see her, as it was forbidden for anyone who wasn't a servant of the Radiant One to enter the Old Temple. The New Temple, on the other hand, was open to all, whereas the old one was reserved for private rituals. The Devouring was one of those rituals.
The priests led Asuka to the heart of the temple, where a statue of the Radiant One loomed like a giant. It was considerably larger than the one in the New Temple, and there were a couple of details that weren't present on the other statue; the most noticeable one being the eyes. This statue's eyes were purple and crystalline.
Asuka was so startled by them that she did what her parents had taught her never to do . . . She met the Radiant One's stare.
Mortified, she quickly looked away.
Fortunately, the statue didn't pry its clawed feet from the dais and swipe at her with them.
It stayed frozen on its stand.
As the priests began their chanting, Asuka found the strength to sneak another peek at the statue's face. To a stranger, the Radiant One might look more like a monster than a deity. Its huge jaws and long snout often reminded Asuka of a dragon, however, the large splayed open wings were undisputedly bird-like. The priests and elders all claimed it had once been an angel – which explained the wings – that had been forsaken by the four malevolent gods it had dared to defy.
A boy stepped out from behind the statue and slowly walked towards her. He was wearing a similar junihitoe to Asuka, only the lower half of his face was covered by a golden veil. The chanting grew louder as the boy stopped in front of Asuka, who was trembling now. A wind blew in from behind her, pushing her towards him.
Asuka looked past the boy and saw a strange hole in the air that hadn't been there a second ago. The edges were frayed and the hole itself moved like a flame.
It was pulling them in.
"No!" she shouted, tearing her gaze away from the boy's.
His eyes widened briefly in surprise before returning to their regular shape.
The priests carried on chanting. Either they hadn't heard her, or they knew it was too late to stop. She would see about that. Asuka picked up her skirts and bolted. The pull of the hole was strong, but her desire to survive was stronger. She ran out of the temple and down the stone stairs, where the crowd at the bottom blocked her exit.
Everyone in the crowd fell silent when they saw her.
Somehow that was worse than what had happened inside the temple.
She felt a tap on her shoulder. Turning around, she saw that the boy had followed her. Tears burned in her eyes as he offered her his hand and said, "Come with me."
The crowd waited below with bated breath.
Asuka looked into the boy's pale green eyes and sniffed. She slid her hand into his and let him lead her up the stone stairs. Her vision was still blurred by tears, so she stumbled a few times, but the boy made sure she never fell. When they got to the top, instead of taking her straight to the entrance, he let her sit and catch her breath.
"What's your name?" he asked, sitting next to her.
"Asuka," she answered between sobs.
"How old are you, Asuka?"
"I just turned ten."
"And when was that?"
"Today."
His brows lifted. "Oh."
She tried to calm her breathing, which was hard since she hadn't finished crying. "I don't want to die," she sniffled. "I thought I was ready, but I'm not. I don't want to leave my parents. I want to go home . . . I don't want to be devoured!"
The boy closed his eyes and sighed. When he opened them again, they had a peculiar spark. "Do you want to know a secret, Asuka?"
She nodded.
"You're not going to die."
Her quivering mouth curved into a frown. "You don't have to lie," she snapped, her tears forgotten. "Of course I'm going to. I'm not stupid. It happens every year."
"No, it doesn't."
Although she couldn't see his whole face, he looked so earnest. How was he this naive? He was literally a part of the ceremony. There was no way he was oblivious. He was obviously lying in order to get her to come back and complete the ritual.
"You don't know what you're talking about."
His eyes softened. "What can I do to convince you?"
She ignored him and focused on stopping her tears. Meanwhile, the boy untied the left side of his veil and let it fall sideways, exposing the lower half of his face.
Asuka stifled a gasp.
He had matching vertical scars on each cheek and even more on his neck.
"How did—"
"I fell through the schism five years ago," he explained. "Or rather, I was dragged. I got these scars from a demon that once served the Shadow. They're called the ngea. They live in the darkness between dimensions."
"How did you get away?" she croaked, her voice sore from crying.
"I can't really remember. Divine intervention, I suppose."
He shuffled closer and used his thumb to wipe away her tears.
"Who are you?" Asuka breathed.
"A friend," he answered.
"A friend wouldn't want to send me to a place where there's monsters."
"You won't be alone."
She paused. "I won't?"
The boy shook his head. "You'll need someone to show you the way."
She studied his many scars before muttering, "Aren't you scared?"
He smiled. "Not anymore."
Asuka watched him retie the veil that hid his scars. She wondered why the priests kept him a secret from everyone else. He didn't appear at any of the masses that were hosted in the New Temple, nor was he mentioned even once when she was chosen as this year's sacrifice. If he was to be her guide through a strange hole in the air instead of her executioner, why hadn't they just told her?
You'll need someone to show you the way.
"Where are we going?" she asked him.
The boy rose to his feet. "You'll see."
He helped her up and escorted her back into the temple. The hole in the air was still there, held intact by the priests' archaic chanting. Asuka stole a glimpse at the boy and saw his pale green eyes locked on what he had called 'the schism'.
If he wasn't afraid of the monsters, then neither was she.
They walked towards the schism and gazed at the vast sea of darkness within. The boy grabbed her hand and looked at her, waiting for her to give the signal. She nodded and gripped his hand tight. Finally, after tilting her head up to meet the statue's glittering eyes one last time, Asuka and the boy entered the schism. It closed behind them and, like the rest of the Devoured, she didn't come back.
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"You're just in time."
Octavia flinched at the sound of Asuka's voice.
She'd discovered the clearing mere minutes before daybreak and stepped out into the space. The woman was standing between her and a horde of sleeping children. The little bear hanyou, Haru, was among them. Octavia's shoulders sagged when she saw him, which made Asuka smile and say, "Hello again, beast-lover."
The one and only, she thought and sighed.
"You know, for a moment there, I was worried you weren't coming. I don't like killing kids."
Octavia's stomach turned.
"Have you killed many?"
Asuka shrugged. "Not really."
Octavia shifted her attention to the children. The conversation hadn't roused them. They hardly moved, and if they did, they seemed pained. Were they hurt? Or was it a magical sleep that could only be broken by the caster of the spell?
"Well," said Octavia, discretely clearing her throat. "I did what you asked."
"Is that it?" queried Asuka, pointing to the box.
"I think so. It has a smudge on the lid like the scary lady said."
"Good. Bring it here."
Octavia hesitated.
"Let them go first," she said. "That was the deal."
"Give me the box and I will."
"I don't believe you."
Asuka snorted. "I don't care what you believe. We don't need the half-breeds. What we need is in that box. Just give it to me and I promise I'll let them go free."
"What's inside?"
"The Commander didn't give me permission to tell you."
Her courage picked the wrong time to reappear. "Didn't you say you were second-in-command?" she asked. "It sounds to me like you're just a lackey."
Asuka frowned.
"I won't ask you again, beast-lover."
Octavia's eyes flitted back and forth between Asuka and the box. She briefly wondered if she'd made a mistake coming here alone, only to then convince herself she hadn't. Whatever was inside the box, it was clearly more important to this faceless Commander than the lives of these children. Surely he knew that if Asuka tried to harm them, Octavia would destroy both her and the box in retaliation. The woman had already been knocked down once. How many more times would it take before she could no longer pick herself up and continue as if nothing had happened?
Octavia glared at Asuka. "If you even think about hurting them, I'll do worse things to you myself."
"Oh, I know. I'm not foolish enough to think I could beat you."
"You seemed to think you could in Ebisu." The memory of her magic launching Asuka against the cavern wall was ingrained in Octavia's mind, as were the woman's gasping breaths as she cradled her badly broken arm.
"That was before I realised who you were."
The Commander won't let me die.
Especially now that I've found you!
"Who am I?" Octavia asked. "Why am I so important to you?"
"Because you're like him," Asuka replied, as if it was obvious. "The two of you are exactly the same." She paused before adding, "You even look like him. It's freaky."
"What are you talking about?"
"You'll see. Once you meet him, everything will make sense. Now, hand over the box so we can leave. It'll take us at least a day to get to the sandbar."
Hesitating, Octavia asked, "Where are we going?"
"Home," said Asuka, and Octavia's heart pounded in her chest.
Wherever they were going, it certainly wasn't that.
She walked over to Asuka and begrudgingly gave her the box. Asuka wrapped it in a cloth that she produced from her robes and carefully tucked it under her arm.
Octavia watched as she strode over one of the children and headed towards the edge of the glade. "Come along," she said. "We don't want to keep him waiting."
"You can't just leave them here. You promised—"
"Don't worry about them, Hana. The spell is broken. They'll awaken soon. But if you try anything, I'll send someone to put them to sleep for good."
To Asuka's credit, they were showing signs of stirring. Octavia knelt beside Haru and massaged one of his ears. His nose twitched and he mumbled something unintelligible. "I'm sorry I couldn't do more," she murmured softly, wishing he could hear it. "Nagisa is with Sesshoumaru. Find them. They'll protect you."
She stood and met Asuka's flinty stare.
"For the record, my name isn't Hana. It's Octavia."
Asuka arched a brow. "I see. In that case, follow me . . . Octavia."
They travelled south from the glade. Eventually, the trees thinned and they reached a secret bay, where a small sailboat was moored to a pier. The Dressmaker raised her head from her fabrics and aimed her puce eyes at Octavia. "You found it," she said and smiled wittingly. "How lovely. I wonder which one you'll choose."
Octavia's brow pinched.
"Ignore her," Asuka muttered. "She's always saying weird stuff like that."
The Dressmaker patted the seat beside her. As Octavia climbed into the boat, the woman suddenly reached out and twirled a piece of bronze hair around her bony finger. "What a pickle. Gold won't suit you at all. Black, on the other hand—"
"She's not wearing black."
The Dressmaker sighed. "You commoners have no taste."
Asuka untied the boat and jumped in. She placed the cloth containing the box inside a basket full of supplies and covered it with a lid.
Instead of reaching for the paddles, she opened the sail and secured it firmly in place. Octavia wondered how she expected any wind to reach them in a bay this sheltered, but her musings were cut short when the Dressmaker plucked a hairpin from under her hood and used it to draw a strange symbol in the air. The symbol glowed lilac as the Dressmaker used the palm of her other hand to shove it towards the sail, where it seemingly vanished.
Octavia jolted as a powerful gust of wind pushed against the sail and propelled the boat forwards.
Asuka steered them away from the bay and out onto the open sea. The water was a perfect turquoise and there wasn't a storm cloud in sight. Still, Octavia clutched the sides of the boat in terror. The Dressmaker giggled and slid the hairpin back under her hood. Mercifully, the boat slowed down enough for Octavia to loosen her grip and look back over her shoulder at the swiftly shrinking land.
Her eyelids were heavy with exhaustion.
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