Chapter 16: Broken Wings

Tasuki woke up to the mother of all hangovers and stiff, bruised muscles. His entire body felt sore, but the worst part of it was that he had no idea why he was feeling like he'd lost an argument with a herd of stampeding water-buffalo.

He gingerly pushed himself upright, and the room seemed to spin alarmingly in response. His mouth tasted like something had died in it, and the pounding behind his temples intensified with every movement he attempted. He turned his head too quickly when the door opened, and instantly regretted it when his vision flared white with pain and his stomach heaved sickeningly.

Chichiri entered and peered closely at him in the most annoying way, "How are you feeling no da?" the monk inquired a bit too cheerfully for Tasuki's taste. Without waiting for an answer, Chichiri walked across the room and threw open the windows, letting in the full glare of the morning sun.

Tasuki swore eloquently, replying to the blue-haired monk's too-cheerful morning greeting with a long string of unrepeatable epithets. He had never been a morning person. He winced as the sunlight shone into his eyes, causing them to water and at the same time encouraging his headache to swell to massive proportions. "Uhhhh…what the hell happened—OUCH! WHAT D'YA THINK YOU'RE DOING?" he yelled when Chichiri prodded a large multi-coloured bruise with his staff.

His friend looked at him, "Nakago happened, no da." Before Tasuki could say anything, Chichiri quickly added, "…but you started it."

Was it his imagination, or did Chichiri sound less than sympathetic? Shit! I got into a fight with Nakago? I don't remember…I hope the bastard's in worse shape than I'm in right now! Great, Miaka's gonna to KILL me! Wait a minute…Miaka…she was… Tasuki frowned, trying to piece together the fuzzy, disjointed memories of the previous night. He remembered being upset over the incident concerning Miaka and Nakago. On their arrival in town, he had plyed himself with copious amounts of alcohol to drown the burning anger inside him; hoping that drinking himself into unconsciousness would allow him forget what he had witnessed. Unfortunately, things did not seem to have turned out according to plan…

He closed his eyes, trying to recall. There was a vague memory of making his way to Miaka's room…then, her voice…pleading with him…to stop…

With growing horror he realised what had happened as all the pieces clicked into place. Oh my god…What have I done! He suddenly felt very ill, sick with self-loathing. Staggering to his feet, he stumbled across the room to the chamber-pot in the corner and promptly threw up.

He retched until there was nothing left in his stomach before collapsing heavily against the wall, staring blankly at Chichiri. A sob rose up in his throat, still raw from the retching. Tears of guilt and remorse all but blinded him, dripping off his chin to splatter unheeded on the floor.

"This wasn't supposed to happen…I never meant to—…Miaka…Is she—"

The blue-haired monk placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, kneeling down beside him, "Miaka is fine no da. Nakago arrived before you could do anything and threw you across the room…" Chichiri explained as tactfully as the truth would allow.

"Thank Suzaku…" Tasuki whispered fervently, pressing a trembling hand over his eyes. He let out a long, shuddering breath, and remained quiet for several minutes. It scared him to think that last night, he had been the enemy, the monster…not Nakago. The thought of what he had almost done made him feel nauseous all over again. "Never dreamed that I'd actually be grateful to that blonde bastard for anythin', but I am," he said slowly. The words left a bitter taste in his mouth and he hated admitting them…Hated himself for losing control and endangering Miaka like that. "That don't mean that I like him any better though," he muttered defiantly under his breath.

There was suddenly a puff of white smoke which caused Tasuki to start in surprise. His head snapped up instantly to look at Chichiri…

…and found Nakago staring back at him, smiling cheerfully. It was extremely disconcerting. "I think we should be glad that he doesn't have his powers, or there would not have been enough of you left to scrape off the wall no da," Chichiri pointed out bluntly in a good imitation of the blonde shogun's voice.

"AAAAARRRRGGGH! CHICHIRI, YOU SCARED THE CRAP OUTTA ME! DON'T DO THAT!"

He stood nervously in front of her, searching for the words to tell her how sorry he was for what he had done. He'd spent the last hour preparing a speech of apology, but now that he had to actually say it to her…he found himself tongue-tied and pathetically at a loss for words.

She looked up at him with her luminuous hazel eyes. There were large dark circles under them, emphasising the fact that she was ghastly pale from the lack of sleep. She seemed to age before his eyes, weighed down by worry and fatigue.

Guilt flooded over him. He had been responsible for at least part of her distress. "Miaka, I…"

Before he had a chance to blurt out his highly inadequate apology, she stepped up to him and hugged him tightly. "You're alright…Yokatta. I was worried that Nakago had hurt you badly," she said softly, a genuine, albeit tired, smile on her face. Her actions took him by surprise, but he gratefully returned her embrace, fighting back the tears which were threatening to spill from his eyes.

He had come to her, ready to grovel at her feet, but she had saved him the effort of saying all those uncomfortable words. She had simply hugged him and he was forgiven. Just like that. In that moment, he knew that he loved her…had always loved her… He knew he would never have a chance with her in the romantic sense, but it didn't really matter to him. She would always be his imouto, his little sister, and he would do anything, ANYTHING, to make her happy…

They left the inn, finding a secluded place where they could use Chichiri's kasa to take them the rest of the way to Kutou without alarming any of the townsfolk.

Miaka looked around, a shiver of recognition going through her. Chichiri's powers had transported them right inside the imperial palace, and they had materialised under the large flowering tree in the middle of the palace garden…where she had arranged to meet Tamahome once upon a time, only to find that he had changed…

She gritted her teeth, pushing the memory away. Iie! I won't think about that. It will be different this time…I'm sure of it. Nakago is on our side now, and everything is going to be fine. She shot a sidelong glance at the blonde man beside her, feeling somewhat comforted by his presence, although she still wasn't sure where things lay between them. He looked surprisingly unaffected by the previous night's episode with the alcohol, giving no indication that he was suffering from even the slightest of hangovers…nor did he seem angry at her for invading his mind. Unfortunately, it was always hard to tell with Nakago, for all she knew, he could be planning to move to Hawaii and never talk to her ever again.

Her attention was jerked back to the present when she realised that Nakago was speaking.

"We should split up to look for them, and meet back here in an hour," he said with his usual brand of cool logic, giving no hint of any of the emotion she had seen the night before.

Chichiri nodded thoughtfully, agreeing with him, "Miaka will come with me, and Tasuki, you'll go with Nakago—"

"NANI? There is NO WAY I'm goin' anywhere with HIM! I would rather DIE than be bossed around by Blondie!" Tasuki growled, glaring at his arch enemy. He was thankful to Nakago for stopping him from committing a heinous deed, but no one had said anything about being civil to the man…

Nicholas stared at the flame-haired bandit with an air of aloof disdain, "That can be arranged," he drawled calmly, lips twisting into a humourless smirk…And there was just enough of the cold-blooded shogun in Nicholas' icy demeanour to let everyone know that he'd enjoy it.

"Maaa, maaa…" Chichiri waved his hands in a placating gesture, trying to calm everyone down, "Tasuki, you accompany Miaka and check the dungeons…and please try not to burn down anything no da! Nakago and I will search the rooms in the palace. We'll meet back here in one hour no da."

Tasuki snorted rudely and glared once more at his worst enemy. "Fine," he sneered, showing his fangs. He cracked his knuckles and unsheathed his tessen, but before he could say anything more, he was dragged away by a highly exasperated Miko who had finally lost her patience.

Nicholas ran a hand irritably through his hair before pressing his fingertips to the bridge of his nose, forcing the hangover-induced headache he had back to a more tolerable level. He was alone, and the Suzaku monk was nowhere to be seen. They had become separated unexpectedly when they'd run into a group of patrolling guards. Being on his own did not really bother him…in fact, he worked a lot better when he did not have to put up with the peanut gallery tagging along. His thoughts went back to what had happened the previous night, when he had inadvertently allowed Miaka to see something he had never intended for her to find out. Contrary to what she believed, he wasn't angry with her, but neither did he need her pity or want her sympathy. He knew she was deeply distressed over what she had seen in his mind, unfortunately, he was not prepared to discuss his innermost thoughts with her, so in truth, he was rather relieved that the Suzaku no Miko and the idiot bandit were off searching somewhere in the dungeons…

He glanced at his watch. Ten more minutes before he had to meet the others at the tree. He'd already checked almost every possible place he could think of, but there was still no sign of Tamahome or the Suzaku no Miko's brother, and he was starting to get annoyed.

He slipped undetected into the adjoining corridor. The one which led to Seiryuu's shrine.

Standing in front of the imposing double doors of the temple, every muscle in his body went rigid as he sensed a presence inside…a presence he remembered all too well. And it was inside there, waiting for him…beckoning to him. Damn. Should have known it would not be so easy, his eyes narrowed as he clenched his fists. He had played right into a very elaborate, very well set trap…one which he had not even seen coming until it was too late. There was only one thing he could do now. Inhaling deeply, Nicholas closed his eyes, suddenly feeling very tired…and made a choice.

It was a choice he knew he was going to live to regret.

He pushed open the doors in stepped into the shrine, not bothering to hide his presence. Nicholas was sure any attempt to do so would be futile anyway, because whatever was inside the temple already knew he was there…it had probably been watching him since the moment he had arrived in the universe of the four gods.

Entering the inner hall of the temple, he was confronted with the sight of Taka and Keisuke hanging suspended in spheres of shimmering blue energy, but he did not spare them more than a quick glance. Instead, he stared up in silence at the glowing sapphire eyes in the towering golden dragon statue.

"You." It wasn't a question.

The dragon's eyes glowed more brightly, and words formed unbidden in his mind.

Welcome home, my seishi…

Miaka, Tasuki and Chichiri were anxiously waiting at the designated meeting place. She and Tasuki had not found anything in the dungeons, and Chichiri had come back with nothing. That left Nakago… As the minutes passed, she began getting more and more worried. He's late! Where is he! He should have come back by now!

Without warning, there was a bright flash of light which faded instantly, leaving behind two very familiar forms. Miaka's eyes widened in disbelief, "Tamahome? Oniichan! How…?" she exclaimed, immediately throwing herself at Taka, wrapping her arms around him and hugging him as if she would never let go. They're safe! Thank god…They're finally back…

The dark-haired man blinked, looking disoriented, as if he had just woken from a very long sleep, "Miaka?"

Before she could answer she felt a prickle at the back of her neck. Beside her, Tasuki and Chichiri tensed, dropping into defensive stances. Something inside her urged her to hide, to start running and never look back…Miaka slowly looked up, suddenly very afraid of what she might see.

The translucent form of a handsome man with hair the colour of the sky floated above them, "An exchange has been made," he stated, smiling faintly. He appeared ethereal and unearthly, but there was something unpleasant in the smile. He fixed his eyes on her, and Miaka felt a cold, indefinable sense of dread crawling up her spine, "You have gotten what you have come for, Suzaku no Miko, now you must leave."

Miaka gathered all the courage she possessed and glared at the stranger, "Exchange! What exchange? Who are you? And where is Nakago?" she demanded angrily.

The entity did not answer, but the corners of his mouth lifted once more in that eerie, condescending smile; the same way Nakago's did when he was up to something. And then, just as suddenly as he had appeared, the blue -haired man vanished without a trace.

Tasuki was the first to recover, "What the HELL…?"

"Masaka…" Everyone turned to Miaka. All the blood had drained from her face, and she had gone was white as a sheet. She turned to Chichiri, her eyes wide with panic, "That…That was Seiryuu seikun."

Exchange…Seiryuu spoke of an exchange…Oh my god—…NAKAGO! NO!

Everything dropped into place, and in a moment of stunning clarity, she realised that the only reason they had gotten Tamahome and Keisuke back was because of something Nakago had done. An exchange…Miaka did not wait for the monk's response. Time was running out. All she knew was that she had to get to Seiryuu's shrine, before something irreversible happened. She had to get to him…before it was too late…

She ran, as fast as her legs could carry her; sick with fear and worry. She didn't know where the shrine was located, or how she knew the way to it…but somehow, she finally found herself in front of it. The doors had been thrown open and beyond them, she saw Nakago holding a glass vial, staring contemplatively at it. She started forward, determined to drag him out with her if she had to…

…And slammed straight into an invisible barrier.

She was thrown back with the force of the impact. This was the sacred shrine of Seiryuu, and she was the Priestess of Suzaku…No one belonging to Suzaku could enter. Fortunately, someone caught her before she could hit the ground. Miaka found herself looking up into Chichiri's concerned face. "We have to get in! Chichiri, please! We can't leave him in there!"

Her friend nodded without comment, seeing the desperate plea in her eyes and began the incantation of a spell which would disrupt the barrier guarding the shrine. She scrambled to the doorway, going as far as the energy field would allow her. She was just in time to see Nakago lifting the glass vial to his lips and swallowing its contents.

"NAKAGO NO BAKA!" she screamed, angry tears streaming down her face, almost blinding her, as she pounded her fists against the invisible obstruction. She couldn't afford to lose him, not when they had been through so much together…Not when he meant so much to her. She would not allow another person to be taken away from her!

Nakago slowly turned his head to look at her, his eyes hard and unreadable. (You don't belong here, Miaka. Leave.) His words echoed in her mind, ominous and final.

(NO! NOT WITHOUT YOU!) she thought fiercely at him, but to her increasing despair, he gave no indication that he had heard her. He was tuning her out of his thoughts, systematically pushing her out of his mind! (Nakago! Come back…Don't do this! Onegai…) she begged as he turned his back on her and walked further into the shrine.

Abruptly, Chichiri was beside her, thrusting his staff through the doorway, his face set in an expression of intense concentration, beads of sweat trickling down over his forehead.

The barrier crackled…and vanished.

Miaka lunged inside after Nakago, Chichiri directly behind her. We're going to make it…We have to! I won't lose! Please don't let me lose him…

They passed through into the inner sanctum of the shrine. A huge golden statue of a dragon with sapphire eyes loomed before them…and in the shadow it cast across the floor, Nakago stood, matching it with his golden hair and blue eyes. He turned around at their sudden appearance, "Go away, Suzaku no Miko," he said harshly, his voice tight with anger.

The next moment, he closed his eyes as an expression of pain flitted across his face. He wavered and sank to his knees, his body trembling violently. He looked up with what seemed to be a great effort, as if he was struggling to keep focused, "Get her out of here. NOW!" he ordered the monk roughly, fixing a stare on Chichiri, his blue eyes fever bright, "Keep her away from me…because the next time I see her…I will kill her."

He fell forward, slumping to the floor.

"NAKAGO!" Miaka ignored his puzzling words, screaming his name when he collapsed. She broke away from Chichiri, running towards the blonde man she had come to care deeply about, her only concern was to get to him to see that he was all right. However, before she could reach him, blue chi flared around Nakago's still body, the glow increasing in intensity until even the darkest corners of the shrine were illuminated.

Miaka stopped short, gasping with shock and bewilderment. What's happening! He's…he's gone! She could see him with her eyes, but she couldn't feel him anymore! She had always been able to feel his presence through their bond, had been able to sense that he was there although she usually came up against his mental shields; but now…he wasn't there anymore. It was like his presence had disappeared; from her mind, from her heart…from her soul.

The figure on the floor moved, and slowly got to his feet, every movement sinuous and graceful…and unmistakably dangerous. Miaka paled and took a step back in horror as glacial silver-blue eyes flicked up to meet hers, regarding her with cold, unadulterated contempt.

The blue kokoro symbol of Seiryuu shichi seishi Nakago glowed on his forehead.

Pale lips curved into a thin, malicious smile, "It's nice to see you again…Suzaku no Miko."

The next few moments passed in a blur for Miaka. Her mind had stopped working, unable to wrap itself around that fact that the blonde man standing before her was no longer the same person who had been protecting her. She only vaguely recalled Chichiri grabbing her and shielding her from a blast of deadly blue chi…from Nakago…from the man she had come to trust unconditionally. The blast had sent both she and her seishi flying backwards to sprawl painfully on the cold marble of the temple floor. After that, she had felt herself being hurriedly shoved through the Chichiri's straw hat…

Suddenly, she was back under the tree in the middle of the palace garden again, with worried faces all around her, staring at her in concern. Somewhere behind her, she heard Tasuki swearing angrily as he took in her bedraggled appearance as well as the scorch marks on both her uniform and Chichiri's clothes, "Shit! What the HELL happened? And where's Blondie?"

"We need to get out of here immediately no da!" the blue-haired monk said urgently. He knelt beside Miaka, who was huddled on the ground. Her knees were drawn up to her chin, her arms wrapped tightly around her legs. She wasn't crying, but her entire body was shaking like a leaf in a storm. Deathly pale and rapidly going into shock, there was very little anyone could do for her. Chichiri lifted his head, looking up at everyone, "Nakago will not be coming with us," he told them solemnly.

The monk undid the blue cloth slung over his shoulder and spread it on the ground, bidding everybody to step on it. He struck his staff into against the ground, the metal rings rattling loudly at the movement. However, no sooner had he began concentrating on the spell which would teleport them away when his eyes flew open in alarm. "Oh no! He's here!" Chichiri managed to yell a split-second before a ball of chi came out of nowhere, slamming into the tree behind them. The blast shook the entire tree, dislodging leaves and flowers, causing them to rain down on everyone.

"Who's here?" Keisuke questioned, his eyes wide with fear and confusion, his cheek starting to bleed from where a wood splinter had grazed it.

"I am," a familiar deep voice interrupted smoothly. To their left, the air shimmered and Nakago materialised with a glowing ball of chi in his hand; phasing into existence like a ghost. His pale blue eyes swept over the group, before the full weight of his gaze settled on one person in particular, singling her out from among her companions, "Leaving so soon, Suzaku no Miko?" he inquired mockingly, a sardonic smirk hovering over his lips.

Miaka stared numbly at him. She did not move, either unable or unwilling to defend herself, not even when he extended his hand and launched the chi-blast at her…

Taka threw himself in Miaka's direction, the action instinctive; the need to protect her overriding everything else. He collided with her, knocking her to the ground and out of the line of fire; his body on top of hers, trying to shield her. The blue chi streaked over their heads, missing its intended target. Unfortunately, a second blast came immediately after the first, catching him squarely in the back, the powerful energy searing into his flesh. He gritted his teeth in defiance, refusing cry out or let himself black out from the pain.

The next instant, Tasuki was standing over them, deflecting the blonde Seiryuu seishi's attacks with his tessen. The bandit's face was twisted in murderous fury, all of it directed at Nakago. He snarled something and sent a huge wave of flame towards his opponent, as Chichiri hastily began the incantation to get them to safety…They did not have very much time before Nakago cut off their only route of escape. Nakago's power was increasing to its full deadly extent with every passing moment, and soon, he would be powerful enough to be able to seal their Suzaku given powers with a chi binding spell. Once that happened, he would not have much trouble killing them. Even now, Chichiri could feel the blonde man's power closing around his own, trying to stop them…

The surroundings began to fade; the trees and plants around them dissolving into a white mist…The last they saw of Kutou was the sight of Nicholas standing calmly behind the blue shimmer of a powerful psychic barrier, completely untouched by Tasuki's flame; watching them expressionlessly as they sank through Chichiri's kesa...

…While all around him, the palace garden burned.

Notes:

1) And just when you thought things were finally going to be OK...Blinks innocently Well…isn't this great? Nakago's back to the wonderful evil self which we all know and love (to hate)! I felt that Nicholas was becoming a bit too predictable, so I decided to make things a little difficult for him by giving a taste of his own medicine! (Ducks rotten eggs and tomatoes at the really lame pun). For the purposes of this story, Kodoku is fabulous stuff…

2) HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!