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or not. Don't sue me. Here's part 4

IV. But there was nothing.

While events unraveled in the mortal realm, a messenger made his way to his master's court with news he knew his master would want to hear. He had been observing the actions of Kanzeon Bosatsu and hir aid since the three usurpers were reincarnated and reunited with the heretic creature not long ago. He had waited through all of the petty scuffles and problems, looking for something he could bring back to his master, and this new turn of events might just be what he had been assigned to find. The kami hurried away to deliver the information thinking back on the purpose of his assignment.

While they were in Tenkai, the four had been constant sources of discord. Konzen, now the priest Genjo Sanzo; his foul disposition and superiority complex seemed to have followed him even into his new life, Tenpou, now Cho Hakkai, the damnable marshal who seemed to prefer books over actual people, Kenren, now Sha Gojyo who's irreverence was well known and well reviled throughout Tenkai, and then of course there was the heretic child. At this, the messenger had to shake off a chill; he was after all the unfortunate person who was assigned to fetch the creature after it sprang forth from that rock. Why it was allowed to stay amongst the peace and civility of Tenkai, he would never truly understand, but when the beast was sealed in the cave on Gogyou, he was relieved to think that the higher gods had finally come to their senses.

The other three…the other three had found death in Tenkai, which meant life in the world, and for a time he and those like him agreed that reincarnation was a suitable punishment for such traitors. With the creature locked away, the group would suffer a pathetic existence, weak and impotent, locked in mortal flesh. The alliance they had formed in Tenkai was broken, and they would ever be insignificant shadows in a world of pain and suffering. At least that's how it was supposed to work. The present course of events had changed that.

When he had brought back news that the priest had somehow freed the monkey, his master was very annoyed. When he brought further news that all four of the companions were reunited, it seemed as though there would be no end to his master's rage. As a servant, the messenger understood and shared his master's feelings. Life in the world was meant to be a torment. They were supposed to be helpless. Their enemies never envisioned them as being powerful, respected, and integral to the survival of all humans and youkai alike! It was almost as though they had resumed the roles from their previous incarnations.

Their importance to the balance of the world however was the greatest deterrent to his assignment. His master wanted to find a way to ensure the suffering of those who had dared to defy him, but because they were so involved in the plan to stop the resurrection of Gyumaou, and because the majority of the group were now beings of the world, the Sanzo party was basically hands-off for any being in Tenkai. The only exception to this rule was Kanzeon Bosatsu who was responsible for keeping an eye on the group and making sure they were able to reach their destination. However, the current chain of events might allow for a very interesting loop-hole to open.

Because the heretic was an anomaly in the gods' ultimate plan, he was a special case. As the priest said himself, when dealing with the creature, normal rules didn't apply. The creature was attempting to loose itself from the gods' control. If played properly, this bit of information could be exactly what they needed to show the group the punishment they all so deeply deserved. The messenger smiled inwardly at the thought. He walked into the estate of Li Touten.

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

Lonely. Empty. Hollow. Alone. Alone. Alone. alone.

Flashes of blood. Stabs of pain. Whose blood? He should know…it was all tied to lonely-empty-hollow-alone. Whose blood, and why was he alone? What was it like to not be alone? It somehow felt as though he should know, but there was this emptiness that was his world, and it seemed to steal any thought of life beyond. This was life.

What was it like to hear the voice of another? What did other people look like? Where there other people in the world, or was it just him? But it couldn't be just him, because someone put him in this place; he just couldn't remember who. Whoever had must have done it for a good reason though, right? He must have done something really bad and so now he was being punished. It couldn't last for too long, though. They would come and get him out when he had learned his lesson. They would let him out any day now and he would tell them how sorry he was and ask what he had done so that he would never do it again.

Any day now…….any day…………………………………………………..

Was it possible to die of boredom? Could you really suffocate on silence? Could the emptiness inside of you consume you from the inside out? All of these things had to be true, in which case, death should have claimed him long, long ago. Yet it had not. Somehow, he still existed, continued living despite the fact that there was nothing. Despite the fact that is mind and body itched for contact with another living creature; ANY other living creature. Some sound, some sign of life outside of his prison. Anything to ease the gnawing, aching…only-ness that was his existence. He wanted, no he needed…..something. Just something.

But there was nothing.

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

Goku woke in a cold sweat. His heart was pounding, his head spinning. What the hell had that just been about? Another half remembered dream. His insides were churning, his body aching with a need that he had not felt for a very long time…not since Sanzo had entered his life. He sat trembling in the desert heat struggling to remember the dream, trying to figure out why he was suddenly so terrified of being alone. The presence of his friends had put that fear to rest long ago, yet here he was, near paralyzed by that same old fear.

He looked over to Sanzo who currently occupied the seat across from him, and noticed the monk pointedly ignoring him. It was okay, though. Just having Sanzo so near was enough. He was free now, he didn't have to be afraid anymore. Sanzo, Gojyo, Hakkai, Jeepu…they were all here…he was not alone. Goku took solace from the presence of those who had become his family, and little by little was able to relax, shoving the dream aside. He did not, however, fall asleep again for the rest of the day.

They stopped in the next town to re-supply. It was already near sunset, so they also chose an inn to stay in for the night. This inn was better than the last one. They were able to get two rooms with two beds each. This was good news to Goku because it meant that he would get to sleep in a bed again tonight! The only question was whose company he would be keeping for the night. He like rooming with Hakkai best because he got to play with Jeepu and Hakkai was always nice to him. Both Gojyo and Sanzo always wanted to smoke in the room, and Goku hated that, but given the choice between the two, judging by Sanzo's recent behavior, Gojyo would probably make a better roommate than the droopy-eyed monk.

Obviously the other three had been contemplating the same question, and to Goku's great shock, Gojyo actually called claim to him as a roommate. The second shock of the evening came when Hakkai actually protested the point in his own quiet way. Gojyo and Hakkai were actually fighting over who would get to room with him! On second thought though, after a glance at the irate monk who was storming off to his quarters, Goku realized that the argument was probably less about who would get to room with him, and more about who would not have to room with Sanzo.

In the end, Gojyo won. He had stopped shouting, then whispered something in Hakkai's ear, and with a resigned shrug, the other man gave up. Jeepu offered a mournful "Kyuu" for his friend as the two made their way to the room where a disgruntled monk was already getting settled. Goku and Gojyo made their way up to their room with a bit of good natured bickering and dropped of their things. They ran into Hakkai in the hall way on their way back out.

"I'm on my way into town to purchase supplies. Would either of you like to join me?"

"I wanna go! Hey, Hakkai, if I come with you, you'll buy me something cool right?"

"Bakasaru, bananas ain't in season anymore."

"So Gojyo, will you be joining us as well?"

"Well you know what they say. Ladies dig a guy who can shop."

It turned out to be a really great evening, despite the conspicuous absence of a certain ill-tempered monk. The three wandered back into the inn much later smiling and laughing having actually enjoyed each other's company, but it was late, and they had to get an early start as usual.

Hakkai bid the others goodnight as he and Jeepu entered their room, then all that was left was for Goku and Gojyo to go into theirs and hit the sac. Goku hesitated just outside their door. He knew that the evening would have to end at some pint, and he had hoped that by the time it had, the weird feeling in his stomach would have gone away, but it hadn't, and that might be a problem.

"What is it, saru?" Gojyo asked cuffing him in the head as he shoved past and into their room. "You plannin' to stand in the door way all night?"

"No," Goku pouted as he entered the room after Gojyo and closed the door behind him. "I was just thinking."

"You didn't hurt yourself did you?" The kappa smirked as he changed into his sleep-ware. Goku did not respond once again lost to his thoughts. "Hey, seriously. What's up?" Goku figured that he was being pretty obvious if Gojyo was really asking if he was ok. He decided to go for what usually worked and said what he was feeling.

"It's just that for the past few nights I've been having these really weird dreams." He admitted. "And they always end really badly…at least I think they do 'cause I always end up waking up freaked out. I guess I'm just worried. I'm sick of being scared every night and not knowing why."

The words were greeted with a pillow to the back of his head.

"Since when did you become such a wus?" Gojyo was already in bed lying on his back staring up at the ceiling. Surprisingly, he was not smoking a cigarette, and this was the main sign to Goku that he was seriously listening to him. "If you're gonna get spooked by some dream, you might as well turn around and go home, cause what we've got ahead is probably a lot scarier."

"But—" Goku was cut off before he could protest.

"Besides, I'm right here, and Hakkai and the great and holy Sanzo-sama are right next door. We haven't been beat yet, right? I'm sure we could handle some dumb-ass dream."

"Yeah. You're probably right." Goku said smiling inwardly at the image of Sanzo fighting off some dream monster form under the bed.

"Damn straight I'm right. Now turn off the light already and go the hell to sleep." The kappa rolled over to his side, back to Goku.

"Goodnight, Gojyo." Goku turned off the lights and lay down in bed thinking. Gojyo was right of course. They did face a lot scarier things in real life than he did in his dreams. He really was overreacting. It was strange, but in his own gruff way, Gojyo had said all the right things to make Goku feel better. He was still nervous about sleeping, but he also knew that his friends were near-by and that they would be there when he woke, so it was ok. He could handle the dark dreams as long as he had the bright reality to return to. With these pleasant thoughts in mind, Goku was able to drift off to sleep.

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

A kid…almost the same age as he was, maybe a little bit older. An adult was chasing the other kid, he pulled Goku behind a statue to hide. This was the first person he'd run into that he could actually do stuff with. This was EXCELLENT!

The other boy asked him his name. Name? He didn't have a name…when he was born, there was no one there to give him one. But the other boy didn't think it was strange. The other boy wasn't afraid when he told him that the others called him a heretic or when he told him that he'd been born form a rock. In fact, the other boy thought that it was amazing! He said that being born from a rock meant that there was no other like him…that he was special…and those words made him happy. He didn't know why, but his heart filled with warmth at the other boy's words.

They had been caught…no real shock with all the noise they'd been making, but it was okay. Next time he saw the other boy, he would definitely have a name to give him. Until then, he would hold onto the other boy's name and keep it as a precious treasure close to his heart.

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

"Nataku."

Gojyo probably wouldn't have heard the word had he not been so tuned in to the space where the saru had occupied the night. Normally, Gojyo would have been sound asleep right now, dreaming sweet dreams of girls and sex and cigarettes. Normally, that damned ape would have been the last thing on his mind. Unfortunately, the saru had destroyed all normalcies in their lives which meant that Gojyo had been twilight sleeping for the better portion of the night incase the kid got spooked again for some reason. After all, he had told the kid that he'd chase off his bad dreams. He didn't want to be made liar by sleeping through the crucial moment. As much as he was loathed to say it, as much as he would deny it if anyone confronted him about it outright, he was really worried about Goku, and he would do what little he could to help the kid through this tough spot.

So Gojyo had heard the kid whisper the strange word in his sleep. He knew the moment that Goku was awake when he spoke the word again with more clarity. Gojyo also knew the moment when understanding clicked in the kid's empty head because he was suddenly wrestling with a lap full of saru.

"Gojyo! I remembered!" The chimp cried nearly vibrating with excitement. Gojyo was fairly alarmed by this turn of events. Here he was staying awake half the night in case of bad dreams, and the kid wakes up like this?

"What are you babbling about, dumb-ass? And it'd better be good." Gojyo was taken by the urge to smoke a cigarette, but resisted.

"I still remember the dream that I just had! I think it's actually a memory from before!" Gojyo knew that 'before' referred to the time before Goku had been locked in the cave on Mount Gogyou. This was an interesting development. "There was this kid named Nataku I think he was a friend of mine he seemed really cool—"

The saru was cut off as Gojyo promptly shoved him off the bed and onto the floor.

"Tell me about it when the sun's a little higher in the sky." Gojyo said, and promptly rolled over and fell back asleep.

True to the instructions he was given, Goku told Gojyo all about his dream…at great length…in great detail…for the entire day. By time they stopped for lunch, it took Hakkai, Gojyo, and Jeepu in Jeep form to stop Sanzo from shooting the idiot in the head. By time they had stopped for the evening to set up camp, all were inclined to allow Sanzo to act out on his initial impulse, but then they'd have saru brains all over everything, and it just didn't seem worth the hassle of the clean up…

"Ne, Sanzo! You think he's still alive some where? You think there are other kids who were my friends? You think he remembers me?" Each of the questions had been asked a few hundred times already over the course of the day.

"Goku." Hakkai quickly interjected before Sanzo went totally ballistic. "Perhaps if you dream again, you'll get some answers to these questions."

"You're totally right, Hakkai! I'm gonna get ready for bed right now!" The saru ran off to set up his bedroll, and the others sighed as they were gifted with their first moment of silence of the day.

"Goku seems to be back to his usual self." Hakkai commented, silhouetted in the golden rays of a steadily setting sun. "Perhaps the worst of it is over."

"I don't know." Gojyo commented letting his cigarette hang limply from the corner of his mouth. "I've got a weird feeling…like we're missing something important."

"I'm sure that it's just a lingering concern about the possibility of Goku's other half awakening." Gojyo knew that the words in Hakkai-speak translated to 'I have the same weird feeling but I hoped that it was just me.'

"What's your take on this, corrupt monk." Gojyo turned to Sanzo who was silent as usual.

"Idiots will be idiots," the monk said turning away from the group. Goku had set up his bedroll and was now complaining loudly that he couldn't sleep on an empty stomach. Gojyo shared a look with Hakkai and they both sighed and followed the monk back over to the center of their camp site. Sanzo was in charge of this little joy ride. Gojyo just hoped that the guy knew what he was doing.

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

Author's Notes:

So this chapter was pretty calm…I think the most action we got was in Goku's dream. That's ok, next chapter will make up for that. This was sort of the calm before the storm I guess…

I noticed belatedly that when I load chapters to the page, my section dividers don't show up. I'll be going back through the previous chapters to fix that.

So I'm curious as to whether anyone has caught on to the fact that each chapter title comes from a line within the chapter. And hey, randomly, I'll do some fanart for the first interested party who can correctly tell me the chapter in which the story's title is mentioned. Let's see who noticed…