"Did you think I would let you kill me that easily, fool?" Chichiri gasped. What do I do now? He'll kill Chiriko, no da, or… He'll make ME do it, no da!
His eye spotted the toy Miboshi had been holding, and before Chiriko could pick it up, he crushed it with the butt of his staff.
"Chiriko!" He called, again casting a spell to freeze Miboshi. "Can you hear me, Chiriko? You have to fight it, no da!" Chiriko came back to himself for a moment. His eyes and voice went back to their normal, innocent version.
"Chichiri? What-" He put his face in his hands. "Help me, Chichiri!" But when he looked up, it was Miboshi peering through his friend's eyes.
"Fool. When I take a body, it is mine. Whoever owned it before dies, as you will soon see." Chichiri knew that couldn't be true, especially of a Suzaku celestial warrior. Chiriko is tough. He can make it, no da. He suddenly felt a huge power surge, and knew Miboshi was taking hold of Chiriko.
"Come out! Leave him be, no da!" Miboshi just laughed and easily broke out of Chichiri's spell. Chichiri was tired, but he couldn't give up. Chiriko's life depended on his strength. He hadn't had to concentrate so much chi since his encounter with that last Seiryu warrior, Soi, and that was a pittance compared to this final struggle.
Chichiri looked up in time to see a demon form behind him. Under the direction of Miboshi, the scaly humanoid creature swiped at Chichiri with his foot-long claws, leaving Chichiri barely enough time to get out of the way. Then he realized his mistake. Miboshi had known Chichiri would dodge, and slashed through where Chichiri had been. The problem was, Chiriko was standing right next to him. Chichiri looked back in mid-jump to see the creature's claws come into contact with the child-warrior, ripping a gash across Chiriko's stomach. Blood splashed to the courtyard as Chiriko's possessed body began floating, just as Miboshi's former body had done. Chichiri looked closer, and realized that the real Chiriko was back in control. He held up the damaged sharp toy, crying to Chichiri.
"Get out of here! I'll kill him, if I can, but you have to tell the others what happened!" Chichiri dodged a blow from the large monster and gasped when he saw Chiriko stab himself.
"Chiriko! What are you doing, no da!?" He cried to Chiriko.
"I can kill this Seiryu warrior! He tried to kill you, so he has to die!" He held the spindle, driving it further into his chest. Chichiri could feel Miboshi's spirit wane, but Chiriko's was fading as well.
"Chiriko! Listen to me, no da! Let Miboshi out, no da! NOW! There's no one else here for him to possess, no da." Chiriko sank to the ground as Chichiri watched a spirit flow out from Chiriko. Chichiri slashed at it with his staff, and it exploded, disappearing into a thousand tiny tendrils of smoke.
"Chiriko, are you okay, no da?" Chiriko opened his eyes and looked up at Chichiri standing over him. He was breathing heavily and sweat trickled down his forehead. His hands were covered in blood, but he was still alive.
"Hey, Chichiri." He said. "Don't ever let yourself become possessed by a demon. It HURTS." Chichiri laughed with relief.
"I'll keep that in mind, no da. But you were great, no da!" Chiriko sat up, wincing slightly, bleeding all over. He looked worried.
"What about the priestess of Seiryu? How will she summon Seiryu now? We killed one of her warriors…" Chichiri wondered about Chiriko sometimes.
"Forget them, for the moment at least, I have to get you to Taiitsukun, no da." Chichiri pulled off his straw hat and dropped it over Chiriko, leading him to where he could be healed. They landed neatly on target for once, right in front of Taiitsukun. Immediately, her little helper, Nyan Nyan, set about treating the younger warrior, her expert attention bringing Chiriko back from the threshold of death. Chichiri stayed close by, remembering how frightening Taiitsukun could be when you saw her for the first, or even the hundredth, time.
"I can't help but think that if the Seiryu priestess is a friend of Her Eminence, then she can't be bad. She won't abuse her powers, will she?" Chichiri shook his head.
"I don't have all the answers, no da. But if Megumi is strong, then she can still summon Seiryu." Now I understand why I wanted Yumi to help her. Megumi will need support.
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"Sir?" Nakago looked down at the soldier before him. "I await my orders." Nakago couldn't help but be angry. He tried to contain it, but he was sure his eyes were slightly narrower than normal.
"I trust that you can do the task I send you out to perform, correct?" The soldier nodded nervously. Nakago thought about the last soldiers. They had nearly killed the priestess of Suzaku! But Tasuki had saved her. I salute you, Tasuki. You saved all my plans. I wasn't counting on anything like that, but now I have new weaknesses to exploit. Tasuki. The man the priestess loves. He smiled slightly, bringing his attention back to the man awaiting orders.
"Kutou will attack the capitol of Konan soon. You will not take part in the fighting." The soldier nodded his head. Nakago could tell he was confused, but he was too scared to ask questions. That was good. It was a sign of obedience.
"You are to choose a small group of the best spies, and follow the attack undercover. In the confusion, you are to take the priestess of Suzaku and bring her back here. Do not do anything to her, just give her to me." He nodded again.
"The mission I give you is of the utmost importance. You will carry it out flawlessly. The whole point of our attack is a diversion so that I can get the priestess. You are dismissed." The soldier nodded one last time and teleported himself out of Nakago's sight. Nakago sat down in an ornate chair. He didn't remember standing up to give his orders, a sign of how important this assignment was. He picked up a glass of wine that sat on a small side table for him.
"If this works, then the next step of my plan doesn't even need to work at all…" He said softly to himself. "Of course, it will be entertaining to watch Tasuki kill his friends, but if I take away the priestess' right to summon Suzaku, there will be no point."
"You plan to rape her?" A soft voice carried to his ears. Nakago looked around and saw the silhouette of a man standing in the shadows. Nakago was a little angry for not noticing Tomo's presence, but then again, that was one of the man's specialties, along with illusion.
"A crude term, but yes, that is the plan. If she is not a virgin, Suzaku will never be summoned." Tomo came out of the shadows. His face was painted black, gold, white and blue. He wore a headdress with feathers that hung as far down as his dark hair, which was about mid-calf. He had his arms crossed over his chest, which attracted attention to his red claws. He looked at Nakago.
"You'll do this yourself?" Tomo asked him. Nakago smiled slightly and shrugged.
"Of course. Anyway, don't you have something you need to be doing?" Nakago was referring to the other plans already in motion.
"Amiboshi is ready to fall. I must deal with the Suzaku warrior delicately. I will check back soon, but Tasuki and the priestess are too close for me to interfere. Maybe I can get him to do your dirty work?" Nakago shook his head, but Tomo tried to insist. "It would be very easy."
"No, that won't achieve what I want. She'll hate herself, and I want her to hate me. I won't take Konan's priestess until after she sees how you have changed her love. Remember: he must not kill her." Nakago looked sternly at the Seiryu warrior.
"You need to be wary around the Suzaku seven. You must have noticed that Miboshi has died." Tomo nodded.
"Yes, I felt his passing. What was he supposed to be doing?" Nakago held back a sigh.
"He couldn't even murder the child warrior of Suzaku. He deserved to die. If he can't even do that, then he is worthless to me alive." But that does make it harder for the priestess to summon Seiryu. She will have to do a lot more traveling, but she'll do it. It doesn't affect me.
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Now that their party had gained an additional member, Yumi was back to sharing a horse with one of her warriors. Tasuki had made sure that it was him. Nuriko had managed to bring Kohaku back, and they decided to ride him, leaving the dark gray, Yatsu, for Mitsukake. The man was big. He made Yatsu look like a pony. Tasuki had already tried to talk to him a couple of times, but Mitsukake always gave him extremely short replies and stayed quiet afterward. Tasuki wasn't sure how to thank the man for saving his life. He put one arm around Yumi, pulling her against his chest. Can't let ya fall… She was breathing slowly, sleeping. He thought about what it must have been like for her, watching him die. Probably worse than it was for me… Sure, it hurt a hell of a lot, but the worst part was thinking I would never see her again. And her tears… He couldn't even imagine how he would have felt if their positions had been reversed. He had made her cry. He didn't mean to, but he kept seeing her tears even though they were gone now.
"Hotohori-sama," he heard Nuriko say. "We should find somewhere to rest soon. Her Eminence is tired." Tasuki almost laughed when he heard Nuriko call Yumi "Her Eminence." Hotohori looked back at Yumi and nodded when he saw that the priestess was asleep. He supposed Nuriko used the honorific to get Hotohori to listen.
Tasuki looked around and recognized the surroundings. In about an hour's ride or so, they would come within hailing distance of Mt. Reikaku. They would reach it shortly after dark. If we go there to camp, then I won't have to leave Yumi and I can fulfill my duties as boss. I NEED to tell Koji what's going on. I know I put him in charge, but I didn't give any type of explanation before.
"We could stop at my place. We can't keep going back to the same town, and Mt. Reikaku is only a stone's throw away. I'm boss there, and I could get us some comfy lodging." Tasuki could see Hotohori stiffen.
"There is no way we are taking Yumi to your headquarters. Do I need to remind you of your profession? You are a criminal and so are all of your friends." Tasuki didn't want to wake Yumi, so he kept his voice low.
"Yumi stayed there before and she was…" He was about to say she had been fine, but that would be a lie. But this time I won't leave her for a moment! He changed what he was going to say.
"We'll be fine there, and anyway, I need to tell the guys what's up. How can you pass up free lodging? You might have responsibilities, but that doesn't mean the rest of us don't do anything."
"Close enough. You run a group of rogues. I don't know why I haven't run your people out of that mountain yet." Tasuki gritted his teeth. Okay, so we don't obey your laws, but we've always helped out when it came to defending Konan, right? And we're better fighters than the pansies you call an army! This time, he couldn't keep all of his thoughts to himself.
"You haven't 'gotten rid' of us because you can't. I would like to see you try." He remembered to keep his voice to a minimum, as Yumi was sleeping against his chest and he didn't want to disturb her.
"Please, can't you two ever get along?" Nuriko asked despairingly. He turned to Mitsukake apologetically. "You'll have to forgive them. When it comes to the priestess, they act like children fighting over a toy." Tasuki didn't particularly like the analogy. Yumi ain't no damned TOY! But he didn't voice his opinions.
The party was quiet as they continued, and Tasuki couldn't help but notice Mt. Reikaku growing larger in the distance. The mountain itself was shaped like a wolf howling at the sky. It was perfect. As the sun was setting, he felt Yumi stirring against him. She looked up at him and smiled.
"You're still here…" she muttered sleepily and snuggled against him. "Don't you ever die again, okay?" Tasuki grinned. It's good to see that she's okay. She suddenly lifted her head and looked around, but relaxed when she saw Mitsukake.
"Yes, Yumi. Mitsukake is still with us." He said, reassuring her. Yumi sat up a little, shifting on the saddle until she could see around Kohaku's head and mane.
"Hey, look!" She said excitedly, pointing ahead. "It's your home, Tasuki! Mt. Reikaku is just over there! Is that where we're going to stay tonight?" She partially turned around to look at him. Tasuki shook his head. Yumi's expression fell.
"Why not? I know it's not the safest place for me to be, but as long as you stay with me, I'll be okay. I know you have to talk to Koji. Yeah, I remember Koji." She smiled to herself. Tasuki noticed Hotohori looking at Yumi strangely. What? Did he think I was lying when I said Yumi's been there before? Hotohori looked back at the mountain. Yumi must have realized where the problem was and appealed to the emperor.
"Hotohori, I know it doesn't sound like a very good idea from your point of view, but it really is pretty cozy there. And we can extend our search for Tamahome. I don't think he'll be there, naturally. It would be crazy for two celestial warriors to be in the same place and not even know about each other. But we can look beyond the mountain tomorrow, and have free lodging tonight. And if you are worried about the bandits hurting me, well, I think between you, Nuriko, Mitsukake, and Tasuki, I'll be just fine." Tasuki looked down at Yumi. Maybe she can convince him… Hotohori nodded, and Tasuki thought he had given in.
"We will continue and camp under the protection of the mountain." Hotohori decided to compromise, then. "We will be close enough for Tasuki to do whatever he has to, but far enough to ensure the safety of the priestess." Tasuki sighed, but knew that he wouldn't win his case if Yumi couldn't convince him.