Author's Note: EEEgads! I've been trying to fit a 35 hour work week into 6 days… ugh. I'm beyond tired! *eyes roll back, passes out* Anyways, I decided to put this up before I had to work AGAIN!!! Grrr. This is a new job, so its hard… it pays really well though… :P I'm very sorry I didn't update loong before this!!

The youkai moved in the pre-dawn light, the sounds of leather and metal joining in with the snarl and rumble of voices. Even as the pale sun rose to warm the chill air the glow was harsh, casting a sickly light over all.

The lord stood above the roil of youkai, face expressionless and shuttered as he watched his allies' minions scurrying to comply with their overlord's wishes. The various generals and lords were already mounted on their beasts.

Hiten allowed his eyes to slide over each one, slowly...

Then he stopped-- one was missing; immediately he knew who it was. The arrogant general who at last night's dinner molested the slave-- his slave-- before Hiten's eyes and had then had the audacity to ask for her in his bed as a token of his lord's favor. As if the bastard believed he was entitled to it.

The hair stood stiffly at the back of Hiten's neck; he had not seen the girl at all that morning. With a curse, he spun on his heel, heading back into the darkened halls with hardly an explanation. Threading his way through the structure, he cursed himself for his inattention to detail. Had the general been plotting his demise, Hiten might not have known it till the blade spilled the blood from his chest. When had he become so careless?

The halls became more familiar as the youkai made his way down the hall; a faint stench was drifting towards him. Faint and metallic mixed with the smell of gore; he knew the scents well.

The door hung open, half pulled from its hinges; the smell became sharper as he neared... corpse blood, old and stale.

Through the door, he saw splashes of bright color against the flimsy walls; the blood throbbed in Hiten's ears in the strange stillness. He, the great lord of thunder, found himself beseeching the heavens that what he saw in there would not be the corpse of her lying there, mangled and torn in agony as her life bled onto the floor.

The floor, once spotless and dully glowing was now a sea of crimson; suddenly the youkai was reminded of silk… her red silk. Heart suddenly pounding, he entered the room. The body was crumpled on the floor, so stained with blood that Hiten found he could not identify it. His feet took him across the space, body moving of its own accord. With a shaking hand, he reached out and touched the shoulder, stiff and cold; he could not scent her at all in the filth that seemed to cover every surface.

Lifting the body, the lord caught sight of the face; with a curse he sprinted out of the room, his snarl echoing through the hall.

The youkai under lord stared sightlessly at the ceiling, mouth gaping as wide as the wounds that had been carved into his chest. As blood leaked sluggishly from the reopened scabs the disturbance had caused, a pin fell from his colorless fingers and clattered to the floor.

Leather creaked as the thunder god tugged his armor into place, securing burnished metal plates, running his fingers over the straps; his eyes were cold and his mouth set in a grim line as he wiped the caked blood from his hands. The youkai prepared himself; he would avenge himself on his enemies. I am prepared to undo the wrong that has been waged against me. That damned creature I was wrong to call my general, my ally, will not escape with his life. That I am certain of; that much I know…

A mantra played over and over in his mind, over powering all other thoughts in the youkai's mind. He tried to drown it, knowing his anger would only unbalance him, to smother the moldering fury and the emotion that was resisting his tight control. Not her blood… she is not dead… is alive… thank the heavens

Fighting down the well of feeling Hiten dared not explore, not now, he gave a practiced shrug as if to ward off the dangerous thoughts. Turning from the dragon mirror, the lord left the room in search of his weapon.

As his footsteps sounded on the floor stones in the hallway, a plan laid itself open in his mind. The traitorous underling had taken from Hiten and fled to his rival, taking the slave as a token, a gift to prove the coward's sincerity. Hiten bared his teeth at the thought of that thief deeming himself honorable.

He pulled the doubled pronged spear from its resting place at the center of the great hall, the smooth wood falling comfortably into the youkai's hands, its weight familiar and calming. Muscles little used since his last battle stretched and awakened as Hiten swung the blade in a practiced arc.

As the razor edge gleamed in the light filtering down around him, the thunder god felt with a certainty his revenge would be attained.

Author's Note: Yes, very short. But give me credit, ok? I usually write very long chapters! Thanks for all the reviews!! I check my reviews every day-- I love to hear from you all so much! J Keep them coming!!!!