Chapter Eight: Oncoming Darkness

~ Oh God, help me hold my breath

As I wish for death

Oh please God help me ~

                The room was crowded beyond belief causing a certain younger twin to fidget nervously in the corner. Eyes of deep indigo blue wavered, as he looked about he room noting those present. From Suzaku's lot he noticed the former cross dresser, fang boy, Taka the baka, and their priestess. They seemed to have gotten first dibs on 'the book' and the other groups present found themselves skirting the outer edges jam packed into various crooks in the tiny club room. Looking at the two he didn't recognize, he noted their platinum white hair and blinked. Perhaps they were from Byakko, but he wasn't really sure.

                As for Genbu, to his great dismay, Tomite had come along, and somewhere along the line dragged Hikitsu along as well. He hadn't really met them in his previous life, but at this point, he was rather glad he hadn't. If nothing else, Hikitsu was calm and considerate if not a bit annoying due to his intellect. Tomite was just plain obnoxious and he hated him. The others present he didn't even really consider Seishi since it was Siân and Ayame.

                But now that he thought about it, he soon realized he was the only person there that resided under Seiryuu. This one little fact made him extremely nervous. Since Yui had entered the book the second time as the Genbu priestess, he no longer saw her as part of Seiryuu. And as a matter of fact, up until this point, he hadn't even given the blonde a second thought.

                Giving a low sigh, he finally perked up and listened to the conversations being carried around him as he unconsciously moved closer to Siân. "Tokaki! Stop pushing me!" Taka snarled at his former master as he tried to look through the pages that had mysteriously went blank.

                "Boy! I have seniority so move over! I want to see the book." Carelessly shoving the Suzaku Seishi aside, Tokaki then reached out to grasp the book between bronzed fingers only to drop it instantly. At that very moment the whole room filled with a bright sparkling white light.

                All went silent then, and Taka was the first to come out of the daze. Timidly retrieving the book his dark blue eyes went wide. Closing them in frustration, he then turned the book to show the others whom clearly saw that yet another chapter had vanished. "This is getting serious…"

                Genrou didn't seem to like the tone he used and bared his fangs angrily. "Of course it's not good you baka! Lemme see the thing!" Reaching out, his fingertips barely brushed the cover before he yelped and cradled his hand against him. This time red light lit up the room and as it faded away, a chorus of groans sounded off almost simultaneously.

                "You idiot! Look what you did! People! Just stop touching the thing! You're making the situation worse!" Taka growled as he chunked the book onto the table only to send it sliding across its surface and start to fall off the other side.

                Reflexively, Ryuuen reached out and caught it only to send the room into another flare of red. This brought about another rage that filled the room almost as completely as the light had. Shivering in place, Shunkaku glanced at Siân only to see her in a state of complete confusion. It was quite obvious that she knew just as much about what was going on as he did. "How do you know this is a bad thing? Maybe it's a good thing!"

                This brought Suboshi's vision back up to the violet haired seishi as he glared at Taka across the table. "How can our former lives vanishing be a GOOD thing?"

                Had it been possible, sparks would have flown from the too angry looks as they met with one another over the unsuspecting piece of furniture. But as the two seemed rather engrossed with one another, Subaru leaned down and picked up the discarded book. "So… It's reacted to Tokaki, Hotohori, Tasuki, Chichiri, Nuriko, and myself. Why is it picking and choosing the people it reacts to?"

                Hikitsu blinked then leaned closer to her following her gaze to the book with a thoughtful look. "That's a good question. And it's not discriminating either. It's reacted to two out of the four gods."

                This brought the boy with amethyst hair to attention as he turned and arched a brow at his platinum haired friend. "But what if it rejects the Genbu Seishi?"

                "There's only one way to find out." Smiling warmly at his counter part, he then reached out for the book. "May I Hahm-san?"

                Nodding her head, she gently started to place the book into his hands only to have a bright flash of green spread through out the room. Retracting her offer, she blinked and once more stared at the old Chinese book thoughtfully. "Whoa… the room just went green. OK! Who touched it?"

                Tasuki was the one that spoke up and instantly his eyes fell on Tomite glaring at him coldly. "Didn't Taka tell you to keep your hands off you see through pervert?"

                Snarling in reply, Tomite took a step toward the fiery haired man not far from him only to be caught by Siân. Looking down in surprise to the hand on his arm he then jumped accidentally bumping into Subaru sending the book flying. This time, both Siân and Tomite made a run to catch it, but as it touched both of their fingertips at the same time, the blast was enough to send both of them as well as those around them to the floor.

                Giving an owlish look, Siân rubbed her head trying to get the haze out of her vision before accepting someone's hand in order to stand. Taking a deep breath, she gave the book on the floor a terrified look before backing into the person who's helped her to her feet. "That thing is possessed!"

                Tomite could only give a dazed nod as he also backed away from the offending piece of ancient literature. "It packs quite a punch too…"

                Tilting her head to the side, long strands of pearl white fell to one side as Subaru then held the book out to Ayame whom for once remained utterly silent. "We might as well find out all the ones the book seems to be targeting." Looking a bit stunned, Ayame withdrew and shook her head unwilling to touch the item being offered. "It's ok. The only reason it hurt your friend was because she and Tomite touched it at the same time…"

                Wide ice blue eyes shifted to where her cousin leaned against Shunkaku then back to the book before swallowing hard. Stepping forward shakily, she then reached out and touched the book filling the room once more with green colored light. Yelping in surprise, Ayame somehow found her way behind Hikitsu peering at the book nervously. "That's freaky!"

                Letting out a soft chuckle, Hikitsu only shook his head as he gently pat her head. "Just think of it as the book showing a liking for you…"

                "Hey! That's not fair! It didn't react to me!"

                "That's because it's smart Taka…" Smirking mildly, Suboshi finally released Siân and smiled at her before inquiring on whether or not she was ok.

                The statement didn't go over well, and soon Taka's entire form was surrounded in a flame of red.  "Want to repeat that Suboshi?" Before either could say anything more, Subaru sent Taka a sharp look that spoke of a painful death if he continued on with the fighting.

                "Suboshi… Would you mind seeing if it reacts to you? You're the only one present that seems to be under Seiryuu, and he's the only god the book hasn't responded to as of yet." Giving him a kind look, Dourin offered him the book noting the look of flightiness that he took at the mere thought.

                Eyeing the book suspiciously, he then hardened his determination. He wasn't about to have any of the other Seishi show him up. Blatantly placing his hand on the book, the room instantly became filled with a light blue light for a brief moment. Yanking back away from both the book and Subaru, he gave a soft snarl. "I guess it likes me too…"

                "Oh that is SOOO wrong!" Taka at that moment plopped down into the only available chair in the room as Miaka hugged him gently hoping to comfort him at least a little. "Why does it like that punk and not me?"

                This sent quite a few present into a fit of chuckles and giggles that only made the dark blue haired boy angrier. Turning his nose up at them, he closed his eyes perfectly intending on ignoring them completely. The sound of pages rustled as the laughter died down sending everything back into silence. "Only six chapters left all together…"

                "This can't be good…" Ryuuen said softly resting his chin in his hand. "I have a really bad feeling about this…"

                "Hmm… It's picked four Suzaku Seishi, four Genbu, two Byakko, and one Seiryuu so far… So there isn't any number pattern that I can see…" Siân spoke softly surprising everyone else in the room. She didn't speak up often, but what she said caused everyone to nod slowly. "Who hasn't had a chance to touch it?"

                "Well, it seems we haven't found all of our Byakko friends, so I assume they aren't all in Japan…" Tokaki spoke up before winking at Siân only to be pinched hard by his young wife. "OUCH!"

                As the two began to argue, Tasuki then interjected on behalf of Suzaku. "I think all of us have touched it accept Chiriko and Mitsukake. "

                "We're the only four Genbu… So I'm not sure any of the others are even around…" Siân added before looking thoughtfully to the floor.

                "Well, we should be grateful that Aniki and I are the only Seiryuu I'm aware of… Hopefully none of the others were reborn…" It was mainly a mumble, but most present agreed except one.

                "You know, I think I met Soi on campus…" All eyes fixed on Taka whom suddenly turned red. "Nani??? It's not like I know her personally! She can't be that bad anyways!"

                Miaka only gave him a suspicious look while Shunkaku arched a brow slightly. "Soi? Well, if I had to pick one out of the lot, I suppose she would be it. She wasn't so bad once you got to know her and she wasn't obsessing over Nakago."

                Beside him Siân laughed briefly before smiling at Taka. "Why don't you look her up and find out? Maybe she'll be one of the one's as well. We need to figure out why this is happening… So we may as well find those the book seems to be calling for."

                Nodding his head slowly, Taka then smiled in return. "Sure thing Siân-san!"

                "We'll need to get Koutoku in here as well… But that will have to wait until he's feeling better." All eyes once again fell on Siân questioningly but she could only shake her head. If Koutoku wished to tell them about his abuse, that was his choice. She hadn't the right. "Now… we should be going. Shunkaku and I have a curfew." Smiling politely, she bowed to the others then took Suboshi's hand gently pulling him after her. "Ja ne, minna-san." Not even realizing that Shawn was blushing deeply, they both disappeared out of the room sending the lot into a long silence that many seemed afraid to break.

~*~

                "Book?" Amiboshi gave his twin a blank look before looking to Siân for an explanation.

                "Hai, it seems there is a book that recorded our previous lives. But now, when certain Seishi touch it, it erases itself." Siân spoke calmly even though her face held a great deal of anxiety over the matter. "Do you think it means anything?"

                Arching a deep blonde brow, the teen then shifted in his spot upon the bed. "Other than our very existence being erased? I really don't know…"

                Grimacing, Shunkaku gave his brother a weary look before dropping against the headboard next to his twin. "Do you have to make it sound so horrible? It's just a stupid book…"

                "And the thing used to summon Genbu was just a stupid scroll. Take that into consideration Shun-chan…" Smiling wryly, she reveled in the look of disgust that filtered over Suboshi's expression.

                Laughing softly, Amiboshi then looked to Umiyame and smiled softly. "You think I should touch the book as well?"

                "Hai… It's a sound idea…" Nodding in reply, she then wedged her way between the twins with a grin on her porcelain like countenance. "Until the book does what it wants to do, we're at a total loss… and the only Seishi left that we know of are you and I think Taka said Soi. Maybe if we're lucky you two are the last…"

                With a sage nod, Koutoku then turned to look at her with wide indigo blue eyes. "Tell me… don't you know where anymore of the Genbu Shichiseishi are?"

                "Iie…" Suddenly frowning, she glanced up at the ceiling allowing her mind to drift back to her fellow comrades from so long ago. "I wish I did… I'd like to apologize to them all…"

                Looks of utter surprise crossed over the twin's faces causing them to perfectly mirror one another. But the one to break the silence was Suboshi in a tone of compete disbelief. "What could you possibly have to apologize about?"

                Laughing dryly in response, Siân gave a shrug of her shoulders. "There were a lot of things that I did wrong back then…"

                "The question is… did you part on good terms?" Koutoku smiled at her gently and took her hand. "If you don't mind… could you tell me how you died?"

                It was obvious that Koutoku thought she'd died a normal death, and that made her want to almost laugh scornfully. Closing her eyes, she thought back and replayed the day of the summoning over and over again in her mind before voicing what she saw.

                It had been another day covered in a blanket of white. Many of the days in Hokkan were like that, and in all truth there were hardly times that it wasn't like that. All seven had been gathered, and they sat calmly around a large sitting room in various small clicks talking in whispers.

                Iname seemed to have monopolized Namame while Tomite and Hikitsu stood off to the side talking about the future. Uruki also seemed a bit excited as she incessantly prodded the older Hatsui trying to milk him for all the information he was willing to give being that he was the only one with a political position to begin with. Then there was Umiyame.

                As cold as the ice that coated the ground outside, she kept a rigid pose leaning against a pillar closest to the entrance. Takiko was prepping for the ceremony leaving them with nothing else better to do. None had done the ceremony prior to this, and to be honest, none of them really knew how it was to be done. That explained the sense of worry that seemed to hang in the air like a thick shroud.

                Shifting her weight between her feet, dark green eyes opened in time to see the dark haired priestess walk up to her unseen by the others. "Umiyame-san! What do you think?" Twirling slowly before the silent warrior, her elegant dress robes danced about her.

                Arching a brow slowly, Umiyame blinked then shrugged her shoulders not really knowing how to reply. "It's nice I suppose…" Ignoring the look of hurt that instantly covered the priestess' face, she automatically looked out into the hall silently.

                "Umiyame… What is it that you wish for?"

                "To die…" She heard the soft gasp before seeing the look of shock that shone like a neon sign in the dark blue eyes. "Don't look so surprised Takiko-sama…" Smiling with an air of detachment, she then turned to see that all the other Seishi were staring at her wide-eyed.

                Shrugging it off, she then straightened up and looked to Hikitsu expectantly. After shaking off his surprise, he then nodded and cleared his throat catching everyone's attention. "All right everyone… It's time."

                As he turned to enter the main ceremony hall, a sudden cry of alarms and horns sounded causing all seven and the priestess to turn and look around in surprise. It was the sound they had so dreaded all along. The sound that told them that Hokkan was being invaded. In moments, a runner entered their midst blood dripping from his shoulder where an arrow had pierced it. "Please! Help us! They took us by surprise! And we can't stop them!"

                Namame was the first to move as he ran to the man and gently guided him to a seat where he began his healing magic. Not much was said, but looks of dismay spread through out the room. Moving from her spot next to the door, Umiyame spoke softly. "We can continue the ceremony while people die… or we can go save lives… The choice is yours. I really don't care."

                Staring at her intently, Tomite clenched his fists tightly at his sides before marching over to Umiyame and glaring into her countenance. "You're colder than the ice outside Umiyame…"

                Unflinching, she merely narrowed her eyes before smiling frigidly. "Of course…After all, I was named after the substance." Looking past him, she then sighed. "If we go ahead with the ceremony, we can stop them without fighting."

                There was a chorus of nods that ran through out the room. But as they stood to head into the shrine, loud thundering footsteps echoed down the hall. It seemed that their invaders weren't as ignorant as they had hoped. Shoving Tomite away from the door, Umiyame then grabbed his wrist and pulled him over to the other Seishi facing the door as it burst open to reveal quite a mass of troops.

                Elite to say the least, and they knew it wouldn't be easy. Closing her eyes briefly, she glanced back at Takiko and the messenger then looked to the shrine door. "You two get into the shrine, Namame, go with them and protect the priestess. It seems we aren't going to be having the summoning just yet."

                Nodding to the request, Namame gently took Takiko's arm and pulled her into the shrine securely closing the door behind them. No more time was given for talk as the soldiers from Kutou. Gritting her teeth, the blades slipped out of her wrists as she took a fighting stance. Glancing over at Tomite, she gave him a sad smile and shook her head. "This is it…"

                "Don't you go dying… not until Genbu is summoned…"

                Smirking lightly she nodded her head then leapt forward twining her self into hand-to-hand combat. As many as there were, they would have to conserve their energy. Not only that, they needed to stay strong enough to be able to summon the beast god.

                Tomite could only sigh as he watched his friends engage in battle all around him. He hated that the girls were just as bound to this scene of blood as he and the other males in the group. War wasn't fair, and it never would be. Blood seemed to fall like rain all around them, and wouldn't have been surprised if some of it had been his own. The fury and emotional pain would have blinded him to anything physical at that moment.

                Turning his head to the side, he saw Iname and Uruki covering for one another back to back. He had to admit, they were definitely going about it the right way. Hikitsu was close to him, and it was easy to feel his gentle throb of energy, which seemed to soothe his already shot nerves. But the one thing that bothered him the most was that Umiyame purposely drew away from them fighting alone.

                Glancing at Hatsui he saw how the older man seemed drawn to the girls keeping a close eye on both Uruki and Iname, he felt thankful that the girls weren't alone. Trailing his eyes over to his opponent once more he smirked and drew back his bow allowing arrows of ice to rain down upon him and his comrades knocking them effortlessly to the ground.

                Umiyame seemed to be doing well on her own, as a matter of fact; she knew she would do well. She preferred to fight alone rather than fight with others. Glancing at her comrades she felt her eyes widen visibly as Uruki was knocked away from the other two against the wall. Shoving her opponent away she then turned and ran full speed with the grace of a deer to where her itoko had fallen. There wasn't time to think, and all she could do as the swordsman ran toward Uruki was get in the way and slice into his chest at the same moment that the sword ran through her left shoulder.

                As the soldier fell away from her, she wavered on her feet staring down at the warm blood oozing from her stomach with glassy eyes. Blinking a few times, she tilted her head at the sight before gasping and falling to her knees. It was more from shock than pain as she placed a hand over the wound attempting to stop the blood from blooming any more over her black and green attire.

                It wasn't long before Uruki ran to her cousin and grasped her shoulders tightly staring down at her with tear filled blue eyes. "YOU IDIOT! I COULD HAVE HANDLED IT YOU BRAT!"

                Smiling crookedly at her only living relative, she then shrugged and shakily rose to her feet ignoring the pain. "Sure you could… I told you you were worthless…"

                It wasn't meant to be mean, but Uruki growled anyway obviously fighting the urge to slap the brunette. "You… you… you… MORON!" Narrowing her blue eyes, she barely noticed when the green eyed girl grabbed her arm and threw her aside as she sent a blade of brilliant green energy flying at an oncoming attacker.

                "Shut up and fight you blonde idiot!" Glaring at Uruki a brief moment she instantly drifted away from her intent on not letting herself be doted on. It was her choice to get hurt. Her vision was starting to blur slightly as she lurched back into the fray. She was sure her comrades didn't realize the severity, but then again, it wasn't severe in her mind.

                Edging closer to Tomite, she noticed that they were clearly over running him. He wouldn't last long at the rate he was going. It wasn't disrespect, for she knew he was quite capable of taking care of himself, but she didn't want him to die either.

                As the fight continued, it truly seemed as though there was no end to them and their strength was wearing thin. From impatience, the priestess peeked through the shrine doors only to gape at the scene before her. The floor was nearly solid red with blood and she wasn't even sure if the blood belonged only to the opposing side, slipping past Namame's protection she ran out desperate to do something for the people she called friends.

                That's when Umiyame snapped to attention through the haze caused by blood loss. The priestess was wide open, and they Kutou warriors were painfully aware of that fact. Rushing to the dark haired girl at the same moment that a soldier did, she launched toward Takiko placing herself between his weapon and the priestess. Closing her eyes, she felt her weight shift against Takiko due to the loss of strength going to her legs.

                Things seemed to swirl in her mind's eye, as she was certain she heard the attacker's own cry of pain. She could only assume that Tomite or some one else had done away with the problem for her. Reopening her eyes, she forced them to focus on the maiden that was supporting her slight weight as best she could. "Namame! Help Umiyame! She's been stabbed! So much blood…"

                Tilting her head curiously at the sound of concern, she then felt someone pulling her away from the priestess gently. "It's ok Umiyame… hold on… please…" The voice belonged to Tomite, she was sure of that.

                "Leave me be!" Crying out suddenly, she tried to struggle feeling the blood pour out of the wound that went through her lower back and ended at her stomach. "You're putting yourself in danger! Damn you Priestess! I told you to stay in the shrine!" Her voice quaked as she gave in. There was no longer any use.

                Pushing Takiko back into the shrine, Tomite then rested Umiyame against the door and started to back away smiling gently with concern in his iridescent green eyes. "It'll be ok…" Still walking backwards, Umiyame slowly returned the smile. But it was short lived as her eyes focused on a wayward arrow heading for him. Reaching out to him she couldn't find the words to speak up even as the arrow struck him.

                He collapsed forward, and she barely managed to lurch forward to catch him. Holding him close all she could do was shake her head as she muttered in disbelief. "No… Tomite… Tomite?"

                Looking up slowly, he continued to smile even though he knew the arrow was a hair short of hitting his heart. In all his years of archery, he'd never though he'd die by it. "I told you.. it'll be ok…"

                Frowning deeply she shook her head as tears filled her eyes. "No it won't! You're lying! Don't lie to make me feel better!" All he could do was smile, and all she could do was hug him to her. "All of you are idiots…"

                "Then you are as well… Umiyame…" Smiling at this, she sighed and began to close her eyes. But that didn't last either as she heard the shriek coming from her cousin. Looking up sharply, her eyes rested on Uruki frantic to see if she'd been hit, only to see Hikitsu standing before her with a wavering repose. A long sword protruded from his chest causing her skin to crawl. None of Kutou was left standing, but three of the Seishi were well on their way to dying.

                Hatsui walked over to Hikitsu with wide eyes as he helped the blonde stay on his feet. Fear was evident in his pale colored face as they slowly limped toward the shrine. Clinging tighter to Tomite she felt a sob escape her throat. "It seems we'll be going together… ne?"

                Looking down at the amethyst head leaning on her good shoulder, new tears spilled down her cheeks. "I… suppose…demo… was it worth it?"

                Tears began to fall down her cheeks as she clenched her teeth. Remembering was hard, especially when remembering entailed feeling it as though it were happening all over again. She wasn't even aware that Shunkaku was hugging her to him or that Koutoku was whispering soft reassurances. All she could see was the blood and all she could hear were the soft voices that told her that it was worth it. And the worst part was, that she couldn't really tell if it was worth it.

~*~

                Taka stood stone still before one of the university buildings looking about anxiously. Tugging slightly at his collar, he felt the sweat build on his forehead. It wasn't everyday that he sat and waited for one of his past nemesis. Sighing softly, his dark eyes traveled over the area before stopping on the lithe figure that held the perfect female body. Gulping, he glanced at the long burgundy hair before nodding slowly. It just had to be Soi.

                Pausing in his walk toward her, his eyes rested on a small girl bouncing happily at her side smiling happily. The older seemed patient enough and replied whenever spoken to, but it didn't look good for him either. He didn't need to talk about some odd previous life around someone who had no idea what was going on.

                Giving a frown, he then glanced once more at the younger noting her soft pink hair and light blue eyes before laughing softly. She was definitely a different sort to behold. Blinking suddenly, he then noticed that both of them were now staring rather intently at him. Moving nervously he then gave a small wave while smiling wanly.

                Approaching him calmly, the pink haired girl grinned and offered him her hand. "Konnichiwa! I'm Tanne Chu! I'll be attending this university next year." Giggling happily, she shook his hand while pushing the short pink hair that barely reached her chin, behind her ear. "Mind telling me why you were staring at me?"

                Soi could only smile at the whole situation as Taka stared at the girl with wide blue eyes. "Ano… No reason… Is this young woman showing you around campus?"

                Nodding her head, a few magenta strands slipped past her shoulders as she smiled kindly. "I was. Haku Kaen…" A sudden smirk curled her lips as she locked her gaze on the dark blue haired boy. "Some call me Soi."

                She remembered. Smiling thankfully, he then nodded his head. "Sukunami Taka, it's a pleasure. Some call me Tamahome…"

                That's when the pink haired girl started to blink in confusion before something that looked like realization hit her. "OH! You guys too?" Both looked at her gaping as she grinned broadly and v'ed her fingers in the air. "I'm Iname! A Genbu Shichiseishi! You two must be from Seiryuu and Suzaku! HOW COOL!"

                Soi and Taka stared at her in disbelief for a long moment before they both shook their heads. That's when Taka came out of it and gave the older a serious look. "I'm glad you were who I thought you were. It seems all of the Seishi, no matter which beast god they're under, is in trouble…"

                "Honto ni?" Giving him a steady glance, she then crossed her arms over her chest while arching a brow. "It surprises me that you want any of the Seiryuu to help you out…"

                "Yeah well…" Laughing nervously, he then grinned and shrugged his shoulders. "I don't care to hold anymore grudges. Besides, if I can forgive that brat Suboshi, I can certainly forgive you." Smiling warmly he then looked to the shortest of the group. "You should come along as well! Sense you are one of us…"

                Almost jumping into the air, Chu clapped then flashed him another peace sign. "SUGOI! Sounds good to me! Maybe I'll see some of my friends again! This is just SO great!" Dancing in place, the other two could only blink at her exuberance. Even at a time like this, it seemed Iname couldn't help but be happy. And he almost envied her for that considering the danger the whole situation presented…

~*~

Oh my looky here. O.O I wrote another chapter. SHORT but another nonetheless! Considering I've been at a rather terrible block in my writing. I can't seem to stay focused. I'm sure this part may be confusing, depressing, gruesome and what not… But hey, at least I wrote more, right? *sweatdrops* Eh heh… anyways, I can't guarantee this will come out too quickly and I'm sorry. Please forgive me? Hope you enjoy this… Thanks for reading!