Chapter 4:

Blood is Thicker Than Water

Four years later:

Sesshyo raced full-tilt in his full demon form, the wind whipping through his pure-white fur, his incredibly long tail streamed behind him like a fluffy cloud. His animal-like full demon form was smaller than Sesshoumaru's and more cat-like.

Still he was an impressive sight. He usually didn't turn into his cat-wolf form unless he needed the extra power for a fight, or if he needed the extra speed.

Speed was of the essence right now; one of his scouts had just reported a group of foreign demon causing trouble on his northern-most border. He snarled, what idiotic demon thought he could stir up trouble in Sesshyo's land?

******

Maintaining his full-demon form took up a lot of energy, so as soon as he reached the northern border he changed back. He could smell the scent of multiple foreign snake-demons and blood-demons; they had stayed here overnight, he didn't need his nose to tell him that, there were several dead campfires all over the place. The blood-demons concerned him most; they were like superpowered vampires that were capable of traveling in the daylight.

They drank blood, and were especially fond of the blood of other demons.

He was really starting to regret leaving Hinosaiga back at the Damaiyo Den.

******

The hot sun glinted of the blue lacquered sheath of his second sword Hyokama no Saiga ('fang of fire's spirit'; Hinosaiga means 'flame fang';). The Hyokama had no exceptional power like the three Great Fangs; but it was definitely sharp; it was made from a dragon's fang; and if you took away the special power of Hinosaiga, Hyokama was a much better sword; especially if you just wanted to get to the point without killing them. But those blood-demons wouldn't care how sharp Hyokama was; just how nice it would look over their mantle.

Sesshyo sneered. They'll care after I get done with them!

******

The red snake demon finished sucking the marrow out of the bones of one of its victims and turned to face its companion, a sallow-faced blood-demon named Salis. It tossed the bone away and glanced down at its injured tail, sliced off by the human fool whose marrow he had just drunk. "Remind me why we are here, Sssaliss." it hissed. The larger demon didn't look up from the horseflesh he was cooking on a spit. A goatskin was sitting beside him filled with the horses blood.

"Demons, Sharka, demons. That Inu (dog) demon for one. First I shall drink its blood, then its sword shall decorate my cave, and I shall use its fangs to make a neck-lace for my wife."

"Can I have the marrow?"

"Dammit, Sharka, don't you have enough with all these humans?"

"It is known within my people that if you drink the marrow of an Inu you gain their power."

"That's just a stupid superstition. Besides, I take back what I said before; he has hardly any Inu blood anyway, so even if that stupid superstition was true you wouldn't get much power from him, unless it works for Wolves too."

"It's worth a try."

"You're disgusting."

"And you're not?"

"Do you want your blood in a bowl, Sharka?"

"No, My Lord."

"Then shut up, and..."

Salis didn't get to finish his sentence, because Sharka had just keeled over dead, a black-shafted arrow lodged in his heart. Whirling he spotted the young Inu standing in a tree about fifty yards off, already stringing another arrow.

Salis let out a blood-chilling shriek, halfway between a banshees scream and a roar, and almost instantly seven snake demons and two more blood-demons appeared from behind some rocks, sneering, and armed with swords and bows.

Two of the snake demons charged forward, just to fall dead with arrows stuck in their throats. Salis snarled; this Inu demon was a good shot, and his arrows were fast; he could kill all of them in no time at all at this rate, unless they started using some strategy. He called the five remaining snake demon and the other two blood-demons forward. He glanced at the Inu, who was stringing another arrow. "Zara," he said to one of the blood-demons, who was the fastest in their group. "See that stack of rockets the humans brought,over there?" he asked, pointing to a spot close to where they were standing. Rockets were a new invention by the humans, they could kill several demons at a time.

Zara glanced at the rockets. "Yeah, what of them?"

"Bring 'em over here."

Zara dodged another arrow before replying. "Yeah, boss."

Sesshyo couldn't see were the big, ugly, blood-demon had dashed off to but he didn't like it. Stringing another arrow he began shooting at the others again.

As fast as he was, another snake had fallen in the eight seconds it took him to gather up the twelve two-foot long rockets. Sprinting back over to where the others stood, he handed a rocket and a flint lighting-stone to Salis.

"Now, heres how you barbecue a dog."

******

Sesshyo realized what it was a second before they fired it. He leaped from his perch in the tree just before the rocket hit. He was pleased to find that he was Ok with the exception of being rather stunned from the concussion blast.

With a snarl he whirled to face the other demons stringing an arrow and aiming at the leaders head. They were readying another one of those dammed rock-ets, he could see the fuse being lit. Rockets, rockets, rockets....rockets? He quickly re-aimed his arrow from the blood-demons head, to a spot near his feet.

"Have a taste of your own medicine jerk! Hyokazie!" The arrow in his fingers blazed red and as it left his bowstring a flicker of flame began to blaze down the shaft. The flaming arrow flew straight and true, right to its target: the unguarded stack of rockets by the blood-demon's leader. The arrow landed amongst them, lighting the short fuses, sending the demon by them into a panic.

"Put 'em out! Put 'em out!" the demon leader screamed to no avail; the rockets blew up in his face.

******

Sesshyo smiled briefly; but it quickly faded. The two remaining blood-demons were clambering to their feet. "Shit." Sesshyo muttered.

He strung his last two arrows, and aimed down to finish off the creatures, when he heard the sound of twigs snapping, and whirled around...just to be on the receiving end of a sword thrust through the heart.