Disclaimer: Refer to Chapter 1
NOTE: I lied. Sessh is not going to India just yet. But don't worry I finished that chapter, when I did I realized I haven't given you much backstory of Ryuukotsusei, so I thought I should stick in this scene to properly introduce you to InuT's Commanders and give you more info on Ryuu.
The Royal Family
Chapter 6: Aftermath
Morimoro, the boar youkai, commander of Lord Inu no Taisho's infantry, watched amusedly as defense and siege commander, the tiger youkai, Masuyo, pitched a full blown hissy fit at the gaping hole in the Northwestern wall.
"My beautiful defenses! How could this have happened?" the tiger youkai growled as he stormed up to Morimoro. "Armies couldn't breech my defenses! How could one youkai do it!"
Morimoro just shrugged, he knew Masuyo's question was more of a rant.
The sound of familiar footsteps behind them caught Morimoro's attention and he turned around to greet the new comer.
"What's the matter Kotaru, your face seems longer than usual." Morimoro snickered, as the horse youkai approached.
Kotaru shot the boar youkai a "this is not the time for that," look, but said nothing else.
"Where is InuTaisho?" Masuyo asked carefully.
"He is comforting his son at the moment. Losing his mother and nearly dying himself, is quite traumatizing for a pup." Kotaru said bluntly as he sat down and stared pensively at the hole in the wall. Above him he heard the sharp intake of breath from the other two commanders. Kotaru had to remind himself that messages he had sent off to Morimoro and Masuyo had only indicated an attack on the palace, but not any information as to what had happened. They had no idea that the queen was dead and the heir to the throne had almost followed her.
"You mean….The queen is…" Masuyo asked shakily.
"Yes." Kotaru answered flatly, but it had a dash of melancholy to it.
"I wonder how India is going to take this." Morimoro growled, crossing his arms over his chest and joined Kotaru in staring pensively at the hole in the wall. "I think old Lokesh is going to pitch a bigger hissy fit than Masuyo did back there."
"Eh. Heh." Masuyo looked a little embarrassed. " I suppose I did lose control a little bit. But my defenses have stood up against armies and typhoons! How could one demon break through my defenses!"
"You once said only and eruption from a volcano could break your defenses." Kotaru looked up at the tiger youkai. "The volcano came to you. The dragon Ryuukotsusei came here and he brought Sakurajima with him."
"Sakurajima?" Morimoro looked at the horse youkai in shock.
"Yes, Mori. Sakurajima." Kotaru said flatly.
"Then this is the Ryuukotsusei! Damn!" Morimoro growled, Masuyo just stared in disbelief.
"You know him?" Kotaru raised his eyebrows in surprise.
"Know him, we faught him." Masuyo answered. "He was the commander at the stronghold on Sakurjima. He held out for three months against us, that's the longest anyone has gone against one of my sieges. And he was basically alone, with InuTaisho moving in on the capital at that time. He was brilliant, no wonder he was able to get through my defenses…"
Masuyo trailed off as he turned toward the hole in the wall, lost in thought.
"So this is a vengeance attack from the south." Morimoro punch his fist into the palm of the other.
"I don't think it's that, at least not completely." Kotaru stood up and began to pace in a small circle. "If he had been, young Sesshoumaru would be dead. The dragon spike in his shoulder could have just as easily been in his heart. So what is driving his vengeance."
There was a moment of silence as the three commanders tried to piece together the puzzle of the renegade Ryuukotsusei.
"Did he have any family? Mate? Young?" Kotaru stopped pacing and turned to the other two commanders.
Masuyo shrugged not knowing, but Morimoro shut his eyes and clenched his teeth.
"Mori?" Kotaru looked sideways at the boar youkai.
"After we had broken the stronghold, while InuTaisho was still unconscious, I ordered my soldiers to destroy the neighboring houses on the mountain. I wanted to make sure Sakurajima could not rise again, after all the hardship of bringing it down, it seemed the right choice then." Morimoro bowed his head. "A group of my soldiers reported to me the job had been done, and that their toughest resistance had been a family of dragons on the mountain which they had quickly, 'dispatched'."
Kotaru shut his eyes. "It all comes together."
"But that still doesn't explain why he left the prince alive." Masuyo spoke up.
"Think hard. He is a parent on a cycle of vengeance, but still a parent, perhaps he recognized the prince was just as innocent as his own children, in this affair" Kotaru sighed and sat down again.
"So it all comes together…."
