Disclaimer: I don't own Fushigi Yuugi.
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Narrator's POV
A strange man with silver hair and a black eye patch over his right eye looked on unseen from behind a tree as the young boy, who looked like he came from one of the northern tribes, struggled against the extremely strong cloth-type binds that held him against his will. His female companion watched in dismay as he slowly dropped his bow in the snow and was dragged toward his black caped and masked captor. She was so scared and worried about her companion that she didn't notice the second darkly caped man coming up behind her. Luckily for her, the boy was being a little more observant and saw the danger.
"Takiko! Look out! Behind you!" He yelled to her. 'That must mean that Takiko is that girls name,' thought the man, 'Strange... It's not one I've heard before. It must be an unusual one.' The girl spun around to face the man, but it was already too late. The cloaked man grabbed her and then pressed a sharp knife to her pale throat...
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Hikitsu's POV
"Now, cooperate with us or else the Genbu no Miko dies!" Said the man, whom I assumed was a Kutou spy, which was holding the girl. 'The Genbu no Miko?' I thought surprised. 'Could he be talking about the girl from the legend? Could that girl be the legendary Genbu no Miko? But who is the boy?'
"T-T-Tomite," she shuddered.
Tomite was the name of one of the seven legendary Genbu Seishi! Was this boy one of them? I absently touched the black eye patch over my right eye. It hid my mutated eye that I'd had since I was born and was only milky white instead of my normal stormy gray color.
When the boy looked up and saw that his companion's life was in danger, he immediately did what the man said and stopped struggling. I watched as he eyed his fallen bow and I knew that he was calculating the distance, trying to see if he could get it before one of the men killed the girl or himself. Then a look of despair filled his proud face and his shoulders slumped as he realized that it was impossible. He looked so childish at that moment that I realized that he couldn't be much more than sixteen. I almost felt sorry for him...
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Tomite's POV
Great. I couldn't get to my bow, and each second I wasted Takiko was in more danger. And to top it all of, if I didn't do anything, that man would kill her. The man smiled and then made a tiny cut in her throat. She flinched and I felt my blood boil. How dare he do this to the Genbu no Miko! But I couldn't do anything, and the worst part of that was that both of the men knew it. I struggled uselessly against my binds and the man holding me tightened them. Then, suddenly, he dug his knife deep into my gut. I stumbled and fell, bleeding badly.
"Tomite!" I heard Takiko yell. Her voice was fading quickly. Was I going to die? Would I die and leave Takiko helpless in a mountain range? Well... At least I'd get to see my family again...
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Takiko's POV
No. Tomite couldn't die. I couldn't be the Genbu no Miko without him! I still didn't know enough about the legend. I had only begun to get to know him. A pool of blood began to form around Tomite's body, staining the white snow red. Oh god! Was he dead already? The man who had been holding Tomite walked over to his fallen body. He silently nudged it with his foot. I heard a muffled groan come from it. Relief flooded me. Tomite was still alive.
"The bastard ain't dead," said the man who had stabbed him.
"I guess we can have some fun killing him then," said the other one.
"No," I heard myself whisper, "Please. I'll do whatever you want. But, please, don't kill him."
"Fine," said the one who had called Tomite a bastard, "then become the Seiryuu no Miko!" I was stunned. It wasn't the answer I'd expected. I looked at Tomite. He wouldn't want me to say yes. He'd want me to deny. To find the other Genbu Seishi and summon Genbu, even if he died. But I didn't even know where to begin. I didn't even know how to get back to the capital. Also, he'd saved my life. Twice. I had to make sure he lived. I knew what I had to say. I opened my mouth to reply, but just as I began a dragon made of ice shot out from behind a tree and hit the man who had just asked me to be the Seiryu no Miko. I screamed in fright and surprise as he began to freeze into an ice statue. A tall man with silver hair and an eye patch over his right eye stepped out from behind the tree. A green light was emitting from behind the patch.
"Step away from the girl," he said stepping into the sunlight, reminding me of Tomite when he had saved me on that fathful day when I had come to this strange new world..
The man holding me stared at his comrade. "Ah-ah..."
He dropped me and ran into the woods. I immediately crawled over to Tomite and pulled him on my lap. The man with the eye patch sent another ice dragon after the man who had run and a second later I heard a scream come from that general direction as the dragon hit its target.
"Tomite? Tomite? Please wake up Tomite. Oh God! Tomite!" I cried. 'Please don't let him be dead. Oh please. I don't know much about you... and I've never worshiped you... but you're his god... so please Genbu... be merciful and please let him live.' I preyed silently to the tortoise god. The man who had saved me walked over to me, the green light slowly fading. I looked up at him, tears running down my cheeks.
"Is he still alive?" I asked him, "Please say he's alive!" The man silently took Tomite's pulse. Then he leaned his ear to his slightly open mouth to see in he was breathing.
"He's alive," I breathed a sigh of relief, "but barely. I don't have enough medical knowledge to help him." I felt tears well up in my eyes again.
"You mean he's going to die?" I asked. He couldn't die! He just couldn't! I hadn't realized how much I'd come to depend on Tomite. He was always strong when I was weak. He was my guide and protector in this strange new world. Maybe even my friend.
I looked at Tomite's still face and said more to myself than to the man, "Isn't there anything we can do for him?"
"We must try to find some sort of civilization. I think that there's a mountain tribe camped about a mile south from here. Let's hope he can make it that long," the man told me as he put Tomite on a horse and began to tie him on so he wouldn't fall off. Soon we where heading for the tribe. At first I couldn't think of anything but Tomite, and I found myself staring at his limp body. He looked quite dead. Then, I realized that there was something I really needed to ask the man.
"Say... I don't think I know your name. I'm Takiko. And what was that green light?" Then I got it, "Could you be...?" He smiled.
"Yes. My name is Chen Entato, but you may call me Hikitsu." So, I'd found the next Genbu Seishi. But I was about to lose the first.
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End of chapter 4
Will Tomite die? If he does, then how will Takiko summon Genbu? And what about this Hikitsu character? Who is he? What's he like? Does anyone care? More coming soon! Please review!
--Hydra-Star
