-CHAPTER 4-
Reprieve
It seemed that his world stood upon a precipice.
He had wanted to die. For the first time in his life, he had sought death as an escape.
The unescapable pain, unceasing, unrelenting… he didn't want to go through that again.
But for now, there was peace for a while. Just the darkness, empty, devoid of thought, devoid of feeling, devoid of touch. Just the welcomed darkness.
Shit.
He tensed as the presence of that… creature… grew within his mind. Scenes flashed dimly across his vision – Goku attacking, Goku falling backwards in a shower of blood. Light. Light and fire. They hadn't killed the bastard.
No. I am immortal. Indestructable. Unkillable.
Bullshit. If you're that hard to kill, why didn't you stay to kill all of us?
All of them, you mean.
Sanzo winced in his sleep.
Because I enjoy toying with people. It makes life so much more interesting. And when the time comes, I will kill them. One by one. In front of your eyes.
FUCK YOU!
You swear a lot, for a monk. Let's see. Now that those annoyances are out of the way, shall we continue where we left off? Let's work on those memories of your mentor, shall we? They promise to be so much fun…
He dived into nightmares.
Hakkai watched the ceiling. They were back in the inn, having caught a lift from Kougaiji's flying dragon. He wondered how Kougaiji's group was doing. They would be back, Kougaiji had promised, after a little time to rest and recover.
Kougaiji was certain that his fire demon hadn't damaged the Being to any extent. Why had it fled? Why hadn't it taken Sanzo with it? After going through all that trouble…
A whisper caught his attention. He glanced down. Sanzo shook his head violently, muttered something, then subsided.
Nightmares.
Hakkai pressed a hand against Sanzo's forehead. No fever, which was good. Just a shattered left arm, broken ribs, and claw marks. Humans healed more slowly than youkai.
Ki. That elusive thing that could be used as a weapon or as a healing agent. The Being had used its to devastating effect. The amount of power… Hakkai shook his head. Incredible. Just incredible.
Something tingled, just at the edge of his senses. He glanced sharply around the room. Nothing.
The feeling persisted. But it felt distant, almost as if it was…
It was … coming from Sanzo.
That feeling, that almost-smell of ozone and that alien feeling, was unmistakably the Being's. Perhaps… perhaps…
"Hakkai!" Gojyo called from the next room.
"Nani?"
"Kougaiji's here, and he's looking for you!"
Kougaiji. It was almost hysterically funny, Kougaiji dropping in as if on a visit. As if they were the best of friends. Hakkai rose and headed for the door.
***
Sanzo snapped awake, breathing hard. Not again. Not those memories again. Wasn't living through it once bad enough? Did he have to live through his teacher's death again and again?
If I want you to, the Being mocked him.
He knew he should look for the rest. Tell them. Tell them that the bastard wasn't dead.
No you won't.
He fought it, staggering out of bed and heading for the door. Fought it with every ounce of will and self-control that he still had.
You're so amusing.
The Being's presence rose in his mind. He tried to call out, yell for help, yell for someone, but something took over. It crushed him down, took control, and pushed him kicking and screaming into a dark corner of his own mind where he bridled in fury at his helplessness.
The Being assessed the damage through his eyes.
His left arm was in a sling, both the upper arm and the lower arm casted solidly. His left wrist was splinted. The tape around his ribs was an annoyance, but made breathing and walking possible with less discomfort from the broken ribs. The flesh wounds – slashes from youkai claws – were bandaged, and already well on their way to recovery, thanks to Hakkai.
He was wearing his usual robe, minus the body suit. It had probably gotten in the way of the bandages. With the sling around the sleeve of his left arm, changing out would be a major operation.
The little part of his mind that was still his own noted that his sutras were still gone from his shoulders. He clamped down on that thought as fast as possible.
What do you intend to do? he asked the parasite in his mind.
I intend to make you come to me this time, the Being said lazily. Walk, Genjo Sanzo.
Against his will, he spun away from the door and headed for the window. Silently, he climbed out, and stepped onto the road. For some reason, there was a flying dragon waiting outside the inn, but he couldn't think why. The Being wasn't interested. The Being forced him, step by step, down the long road heading out of town.
***
Kougaiji placed both elbows on the table and watched them over clawed hands. "Doku tells me that this creature cannot be harmed by physical means. The aura that surrounds him is too strong. Any physical object that touches it is destroyed."
"What about ki? And your demon?" Gojyo asked.
"My ki blast appeared to affect it slightly," Hakkai said. "However, the effect… negligible. Any ordinary creature would have been vaporized by a blast of that magnitude."
"As with the demon. It was vaquished," Kougaiji said sourly. "And the Being survived." His eyes smouldered. "I have been considering the possibility of a concerted attack, but I suspect that even that would be insufficient."
"What about Nyoibu?" Goku asked. "Could his aura destroy that?"
Kougaiji narrowed his eyes, thinking.
"I do not know," he replied finally. "There is a chance, yes. However, I think it more likely that even if Nyoibu is not destroyed, it will not be able to penetrate that aura."
"Then it's quite hopeless, isn't it?" Gojyo asked. "What about Yaone and those bomb things?"
"Also ineffective," Kougaiji sighed. "The aura absorbs all damage."
"But it can't absorb indefinitely, can it?" Goku said. "If we keep attacking it, eventually it'll go down."
"Hm," Hakkai said. "What about an Exorcism Gun? It might not be able to kill it, but it might be able to get through the aura."
"Physical weapon," Gojyo pointed out.
"Not a standard physical weapon."
"It would be worth a try, if we had bullets, and if Sanzo was in any shape to shoot anything."
"Sanzo can shoot in any shape," Goku muttered.
Kougaiji traced an outline on the table with a slender claw. "Why did they capture Sanzo?"
Hakkai frowned. Come to think of it, he wasn't sure. He didn't know. There were several reasons why youkai went after Sanzo – the whole thing about Sanzo flesh conferring immortality, then Kougaiji normally hunted them for the sutras…
Hakkai's eyes narrowed. "If they wanted to eat him, they would have done it earlier."
Kougaiji didn't reply.
"They wanted his sutras," Hakkai said softly. But he didn't have them. I have them. "But why?"
Kougaiji shrugged.
***
He was staggering after a few hours. The ribs were giving him hell, and he simply didn't have the strength to keep walking. He couldn't concentrate on anything more than putting one foot in front of the other. Finally, he tripped and fell over, unable to get up.
Weak. Humans are so weak, the Being taunted him.
He didn't reply. There wasn't any need to.
He felt the Being drag him to his feet, feeling the protest in every muscle and every bone, but unable to control himself. It's amazing what you can do when you're pushed, though, the Being mused. So many limits exist only in the mind.
Sweat was streaming down his face, soaking through his robe, and making him damned uncomfortable. In the little corner of his mind, he raged at this hostile takeover, raged at his inability to drive out the invader, raged at his own weakness. That bastard was going to fucking die when he got his hands on him.
He must have blacked out for a moment, for when he came to, the gravel on the road was pressing into his cheek.
I am so disappointed. I thought you were stronger than that.
"Fuck off," he whispered. "Leave me alone."
There was a sigh. Somehow, he was on his feet again, no recollection of how he had done that. His mind was graying out from exhaustion, but his limbs kept moving, carrying him towards the abode of the enemy.
***
"Sanzo? Are you awake?" Hakkai called, as he opened the door. And stopped.
Goku ran into him from behind. "Nani?"
The bed was empty. The window was open.
He wouldn't have. He couldn't have. Hakkai rushed to the window. There were footprints on the muddy ground, heading towards the road.
Why would he…
His gun was still here. His sutras were still here. He would never have left unarmed. Never.
A stray memory clicked. That feeling of the enemy's presence just before Kougaiji had arrived.
Sanzo leaving without a weapon.
The enemy letting them retake his prisoner without a fight.
Things were starting to come together with horrifying clarity. Somehow, the enemy had taken over Sanzo's mind. And had led him… where?
"Call Kougaiji. We need to borrow his dragon again," Hakkai said to Goku.
The footprints disappeared by the time they reached the hard surface of the road. Even Goku couldn't sense which way Sanzo had gone, not after the delay. A human was harder to pick up than youkai.
"We'll fly a circuit around the area and see whether we can find him," Kougaiji said. "How long ago did he leave?"
"Assuming he left directly after I left the room, just over 2 hours." Hakkai replied. He glanced over. "Goku? Are you okay?"
"We shouldn't have left him alone," Goku said softly. "I should have stayed with him…"
"It might not have made a difference," Gojyo told him. "He would have found another opportunity to get away."
"But…" frustration and depression battled on Goku's face. Hakkai could imagine the thoughts running through his head. Couldn't protect him. Couldn't protect him twice.
He wished he knew what was running through Sanzo's mind at the moment…
***
His mind come back at about the time his legs gave up. The sun had set again. He wasn't sure when he had set out, but he suspected it was around late afternoon. He fell for the umpteenth time, except that he somehow knew that this would be the last. He simply collapsed, too tired even to shiver as the cold seeped into him, and his wounds protested at the mistreatment.
The Being tsked, and sent a little flash of pain through his nervous system. He was beyond reacting.
He was going to die here, far away from any civilization. Alone, as he'd always been in life.
The rest would have to drop the name Sanzo-ikkou. Who knew what they would call themselves now. Hakkai-ikkou? Hakuuryu-ikkou, to give credit where it was due? They would probably end up being known as the baka-ikkou, at the rate they were going.
Delirium. Hell, they always thought I was crazy, anyway. Maybe I am.
He felt, rather than saw, the Being manifest in front of him. Saw the white light even through closed eyelids. Felt deceptively gentle hands gather him up.
Damn damn damn. Can't even have the decency to leave me alone…
The Being teleported away.
***
Kougaiji's head snapped around towards the East. "A surge of power," he told them.
"As good a lead as any we have," Gojyo said.
The flying dragon headed eastwards.
"My scouts reported the presence of some town or city around this area a few months ago," Kougaiji said, after a long silence. "We didn't pay much heed, except that it appears to be a youkai establishment. I suspect that this is the creature's hide-out."
"Town or city?" Hakkai said. "Does he have that many youkai under his command?"
"Judging from the number that attacked us?" Goku piped up, "I'd say that he has an army."
"Great. Just great," Gojyo sighed. "Us against the world again."
Kougaiji stared off into the distance. "I think not."
"Oh? We have to break and enter an entire city and you think it isn't a big deal?" Gojyo bristled.
"I trust that, as youkai, we can enter the city unchallenged. Many youkai use youryoku limiters, even amongst their own. And the average youkai will not pick a fight with us. It is only with the Enemy's guards that we will have to contend with, and without their leader's support, I doubt that they will be a match for us."
"What if the Enemy is there?"
"He will almost certainly be," Kougaiji said sourly. "But he will send his guards to deal with us first. Wear us down, so that it will be easier for him when he meets us."
