Life as A Fox

Chapter 82

NSW- The Forsaken Author.

Darkness, she could feel it pulling in around her, closing and cutting her off from everything. Trapping her in tenebrous night. She couldn't speak, what words could she say? Who would listen? She couldn't fight it, He body was bound and beaten, she was a broken thing, a hapless broken thing. She could lie there and accept it. Like a large quilted blanket, it wrapped and folded around her, slowly suffocating her.

But deep down she knew it was the right thing to do, that what she got was what she deserved, she deserved to be known as a traitor, had she not betrayed him? She deserved to die this way, it was better for she to die then them. Those beautiful creatures that had so much potential, that clarified so much about us humans, showed that by cohabiting, demons and humans could make the world a better place.

Yes it was better for her to bear this burden of death than any other, it was batter this way, it was, it was. She lay on the ground, all information taken from her. Suki sat on a chair, across the room. Sirya could faintly sense her. A silent tear rolled from her eyes, blurring her vision, she made no effort to move and wipe it away, why? Another would soon take its place and another and another.

She wept silently upon the ground, her spirit dashed upon the stones, grounded and mutilated it was taken away from her, without any sign of coming back. Her stomach called out in hunger, but she knew that no food would be provided. She knew know that there was no use for her. Suki sighed and got up.

"You have helped me greatly, and so you have helped our cause as well, maybe we should keep you alive, long enough so you can see your village fall." Sirya before would yell back at her, tell her that she was wrong, than Konoha would never fall, but that was untrue, all great things fall, all great things must die, everything has an end and a close, even if you don't want to admit it.

The splendors of spring fade away to autumn and bleak snow. The vigor and beauty of youth fades away as well, and over time deteriorates, than after all youth was gone, our bodies are left only to decompose as our spirits escape to the possibility of an afterlife or peace. Would there be peace for her? She wondered, did betrayal of love condemn one to an afterlife of woe?

Maybe it did maybe it didn't, but either way she would accept it, she would accept everything with a silent, forsaken compliance. She moved her head ever so slightly to turn to Suki. The woman and her poisonous beauty, it made a cold anger run through Sirya, but it was too late for anger, it was too late for anything.

Suki spoke "No half formed rebuttals, or fights? Has the dog been whipped into place?" Suki chuckled and suddenly kicked Sirya across the face with her elegant flats. Suki turned chuckling to herself, "I want to make your end enjoyable," she said turning to her "you took away my demons, the only things I had to amuse me."

Suki leaned down, and clenched Sirya's face with her cold fingers, studying her. "I guess you will be sufficient enough, but I will have to wait, you are not the only one who had their 'amusements' taken away. She grinned viciously. She turned and let in five men, all of whom leered down at Sirya. Sirya knew what would happen to next.

She spoke finally, some life rekindling inside of her, a small ember of spirit flared. "What would your son say to you, if he was older and knew how terrible you were." Suki snapped at her. "Silence you bitch! You have no idea of what I have suffered! The one man I ever loved, taken and destroyed before my eyes! My life dreams taken away from me! That child is all I have left to remember my lover, that child is my whole world, never would he say a thing against me, I am his mother I am the one who loves him most."

Sirya spoke "You love yourself most, the child is just an object to you, like you said, he just a living memorial of another creature you once held in your clutches." Suki crackled her fingers in sudden anger. Wanting to kill the thing that lay before her, but no, no, she would not let that cur get off easy, she would make the dying long and painful.

She turned to the men "Do your worst to her, just make sure she's still breathing when you're done." The men nodded and advanced towards Sirya who was brutally picked up and slamed her against the pole. Her clothes were then shredded and like beasts, each man was upon her each having his own long and gruesome way with her.

Suki grinned, good, more pain for that thing. She briefly wondered though how much pain could the bitch handle before dying? This would be an interesting experiment. Suki chuckled to herself as she walked back to her tent, she needed rest and possible another bath, this time with lotus petals. Upon returning to her tent she saw that her son was eating, the thought of food reminded Suki she would need to feed herself and that wretch after she had been raped good and long.

Suki spoke to the other wretch within her life, the serving girl. "You, get me food, prepare the bath then tell the cook to deliver food to the spare tent in an hours time." The girl nodded and scurried about silent and obedient, like all servants should be.

The cook left at exactly an hour later. When he arrived upon the scene, men were exiting the tent, readjusting their clothing, and looking calm. By their demeanor he could already tell what had happened. A cold pit formed in his stomach, true he was a simple man, but he was raised with some ideals about how woman should be treated, like a stove, they should be treated with respect and with love, not anything should be just shoved into them on a whim.

Keeping his eyes to the ground as he passed by them, he tightened the grip on his tray and entered the tent. There she lay, in a crumpled heap, her limbs bending and twisted over her body in a desperate attempt to cover herself and her shame. He looked away as he stepped towards her, a sadness and pity extending from him to her.

She was crying silently, clear crystalline tears, seeping slowly from her vacant sad eyes. He spoke softly, a shiver ran through her body, reminding him of when a horse shakes flies from its flank. "It's okay Sirya, it's me, I'm not going to hurt you." She made no recognition at first.

He eased down next to her taking care to move slow, even tough his old bones protested at it. She shook from cold and from fear. He found an article of what looked to once be clothing. He laid it over her skin, she clutched at it and hid herself beneath it. Clinging to it like it was her only thing that could save her.

Many emotions tore though him, so many it made him question why exactly was he here? It made him question if this was the correct way to follow the god. Would he really want his creations treating others like this? There was something not right about this, this was terrible, sick and saddening.

He could hear a whimper from beneath the cloth. He looked around for something more to cover her with. He found a blanket, then he exited the tent quickly and fetched a bowl of water and a towel from his own tent, to hell with making lunch right now, his staff knew how anyway.

He went back to the tent, she was sitting up, her knees in front of her. She peered out like a caged injured animal, wary of everything. He spoke calming, slowly, ever so slowly, he got her to relax, the wildness came out of her eyes. He finally was able to touch her, he washed her hands, then arms.

Moving the wet cloth across her pale cold skin. He washed as much as she would let him. Then she seemed to take over her body once more and began to clean her more intimate regions. He kindly turned his back as she did. Then after a while, her soft voice, that once held warmth was now decapitated to a wispy pale version of what it once was.

She croaked out a garbled "thank-you" He nodded "It would be inhuman of me not to" she closed her eyes slowly in place of a nod. He pushed the food tray forward and removed the murky water bowl. "Eat, you need your strength" "For what?" she asked in that wisp of a voice, it sounded like wind blowing across hollow bones.

He sighed, "To live to keep on going" She shook her head, "don't you know? Who I am?" He shrugged "A hell of a good helper? A good caring person?" She shook her head "all of it a guise, I am a spy, from Konoha." The news shocked him little. "Does it matter? I am a cook, not a fighter, nothing you did affected me any did it? I have my stove, I have my supplies, I have my spoon and knife, you being a spy does not affect that."

She stared up at him, then slowly her face crumpled, she cried, but it was different it was happiness, with shaking sobs she sobbed into him, her head resting upon his chest. He set his hands on her shoulders. "Shhh now, you forget everything that happened, forget all the badness there is, it's okay now."

She calmed down slightly. "But...they will kill me, its only a matter of time." Once again he felt a coldness grow inside of him. "Then why do they keep you alive?" "Amusement, since I agreed to it" he shook his head "Why would you do such a thing?" She glanced up to him "so that innocent lives could be saved, four demons, were released because I was willing to suffer for them."

He sighed "You really are to caring you know that?" he said. She sniffed, he closed his eyes. "You know" he began. "I think, if one, such as you, is willing to go through this for demons, then just maybe...just maybe, I am a fool, and I am cooking for the wrong men." Her eyes cleared then a brightness returned to them.

"I would say so, though I don't even think the gods deserved your meat pies." He grinned, "there it is, that fire inside." She paused for just a second, "What's wrong?" he asked quickly. "I don't understand, why is it...why are you helping me and caring for me?" He sighed "Because you did the same for me, I guess it's karma either way, I am getting you out of here."

She stared at him as he reached over and cut her bounds with his small shearing knife he carried on his person. She sat there blankly for a couple of seconds, until the awareness that they didn't have a lot of time to be idle came over her. She shuffled to her knees, going slow, the pain that was inside of her was throbbing and excruciating.

The feeling of being torn in two and having to live with the shame of having men do that to her. She shuddered, she was lucky she let her mind go blank when it began. she just surrendered and let it happen, her mind thankfully did not remember much, it was only now did she start to feel the full force of what had been done.

But she shook her head, she had to escape now, she had the chance so she was going to take it. Maybe somehow redeem herself to the village she betrayed, and maybe then, someday, redeem herself to Mammoth. The cook, whose name she never learned walked to the tent flap, glancing out, he turned and motioned for her.

She staggered to her feet, she walked slightly hunched over and limping in pain she forced herself to go forward to him. Wrapping the blanket tightly around herself. He paused, "Wait...you can't escape with nothing but a blanket...hold on." He turned then rifled through one of the boxes, muttering under his breath "I remember seeing it before...were did they put it?"

Then with a sudden beat, he found it, a smile breaking across his pudgy features. He turned to her and held out what looked to be simple garments, gray pants and shirt, then on further inspection of the box, he found a pair of shoes. They were slightly big for her, but she took them with vigor, it was nice to be dressed.

Once more he turned and let her place the clothes on. When she was done she spoke. "Thank-you, thank-you so much for all you have done." He nodded "I'm just doing what I think is right, I am no hero, I am just doing what's right." She cried softly, this man, he was truly sweet, just like the pastries he created.

She walked up and gave him a hug. Wrapping her arms around his larger frame and his round belly that all great cooks seem to have, it was the mark of a cook, to be plump and happy, except for when people get in their way or mess up their food. She spoke "You are a good man, if I was years younger I would have married you."

He chuckled "We both are passed that age my dear, plus, your heart belongs to someone else, just as mine does." She smiled softly, he was right, the stove would always be his lover, it controlled him more than any other wife could. She chuckled at the thought. He spoke "shh, we must hurry." He peeked out, no one was coming.

He grabbed her hand and they walked swiftly. Weaving in-between tents and dodging and hiding when they heard a voice or footstep. Their hearts raced in the fear of being noticed. It felt like ages before they saw the edge of camp. The cook led her to the marker of trees that grew and still stood. He spoke to her "Hide in their until the men and Lumenion move out, then while they are on the move go and travel to the forest that grows on the side, go around the battle field, even though it's shorter it's dangerous, and you are in no condition."

She nodded and hugged him once more "I never though..." she began. "Shh..." he said and pushed her into the trees "Wait!" She whispered loudly. "Your name, please tell me." He spoke "My dear, I have always been known as 'Chubbs' and wouldn't have it any other way." She stared into Chubbs eye's for but a few more moments before she nodded and spoke.

"Then good-bye it is to my good dear friend, Chubbs." He leaned forward and kissed her on her forehead, "Good-bye child, and be safe." Their hands skimmed and brushed each other as they split apart. They turned away from each other. Tears striking her face as she tried not to turn and grab him and drag him into the trees with her.

Chubbs stood there, listening to the sound of brush being moved as Sirya walked through it. Then it went silent as she found a suitable position to hide and wait for. He felt the urge to turn back and hide himself, but he knew it would be a lost cause, a person built like him could not hide within a forest, for one the clothes he wore stood out, and secondly, he had no idea how to do such thing, he knew how to cook every animal in the forest, which leaves and which plants go good together, but to move about through a forest silently?

Impossible for him, the best he could do would to blunder about like an elephant with three legs. He sighed and moved forward. Heading into camp, only he didn't make it quite that far. Six lumenion and the five men appeared. "Hello there" one said. Chubbs nodded to them, pretending he had been on a stroll or walk.

"Hello yourself, good day for a battle no?" The men smiled in a strange way to each other as if they knew something. "Out for a stroll?" one asked. Chubbs noted that the Lumenion were circling about him, cutting off escape. He pretended like he didn't notice. "Of course, after the morning breakfast rush sometimes I like to unwind by taking a walk, it also lets me experience fresh air and sun, rather than my cook fire and the smells of the kitchen."

One man spoke "oh, I bet, but...speaking of smells, don't you smell anything?" Chubbs glanced to him "pardon if I have an odor, but I work up a sweat in the kitchen." The man shook his head and stepped closer "no, no, it's not that." Chubbs thought "what kind of scent is it?" The man shrugged "I can't put my tongue on it, it's just...reeks."

Chubbs turned "Something might be decaying on the battlefield, I don't think we got all the bodies." The man shook his head "nah, it's not that either, you know what I think I smell?" He glanced to the others "I smell a dirty, little fat rat." Chubbs made no outward expression "Is that so?" he asked. "Yeah, because apparently, someone says that they saw this peculiar little fat rat, go into one of the tents, that held a nice piece of cheese, and he took it all for himself."

Chubbs nodded 'You are right, that is what rats do, but then again, the rat only got to the cheese after five pigs had their way with it." Chubbs buckled over as pain tore through his entire body. He fell to the ground, clutching his midsection. The man who punched him stood over, eyes burning in fury. "You fat little man, how dare you call us pigs! You are big enough to be mistaken for one!

Chubbs looked up as the five men laughed at the not so clever joke, he had been large all his life, such jokes hurt him no more. Then he heard a screech as something came flying in, knocking the man aside into the dirt. The Lumenion scattered, it was such a sudden attack. All of them were in confusion for a few seconds.

Chubbs managed to twist his body to see what was going on. There stood Sirya, a tree branch in her hands, wielding it like a samurai sword. She swung and attacked the next one, her fury and pain put into her blows. She hacked and hacked with her tree branch, pathetic as it was, it made the ninja back down for a few moments.

But a Lumenion grabbed her branch and broke it with it's jaws. Another lept for her. She took the little chunk of branch that she had and slapped the Lumenion in the head hard. The wolf Lumenion whimpered and crashed against the side of a nearby tent. The tent buckled and fell over top of it, burying the creature in layers of fabric and rope.

You could hear it growl and see it wriggle and squirm trying to free itself. She quickly grabbed a nearby stool that stood outside of another tent opening. She broke it with her foot then held two pieces of wood that had made the legs of the stool in her hands. She used them like mêlée clubs. Spinning and slashing with a ferocity at anything that came near her.

She kept knocking the Lumenion away. Anger and fury in her eyes, for one as old as her, and for one who never did this kind of stuff before, her actions seemed like nothing anyone could comprehend. She was a spy, a normal one, they went through some self-defense training, but most of the time, they were taught to run and hide, that is what they did.

But here she stood, waving and wielding around two pieces of wood against five ninja and five Lumenion on the edges of an enemy camp doing this all to protect a man who some would consider her enemy still. But like Chubbs had said, sometimes you do stuff, only because it was the right thing to do. But even though she had all this courage and rage, the enemies still over took her.

She was pressed back faster and faster, soon she was just fighting to stay alive, her limbs were weak and sluggish. She panted ragged. Fear grew inside her, she knew soon she would not be able to protect herself. She glanced to Chubbs, he had stood now, and was backed into a corner, his little shearing knife was out and he was hacking at the Lumenion that kept snapping and lungeing at him.

Two Lumenion bore scars across their faces, fresh cuts that bleed. Chubbs was sweating in effort, she could see fear in him as well, but he would not back down, he would stand and fight. She quickly ducked beneath a few wild punches of one ninja then ran to Chubbs, throwing one of her sticks like a dagger it spun in the air, then with a loud crack it knocked into a Lumenions head, it made a satisfying crack as well, then the Lumenion fell to the ground in a heap.

The other two beside it, turned to it and sniffed, sensing its weakness and pain. They turned to her with dazed looks, not knowing how a simple wooden stick had hurt one of their own. With a leap she landed in their midst and hit both across the muzzle, knocking them back.

She grabbed Chubbs arm and they ran towards the woods. But their escape was not to be. The Lumenion had regained their composure faster than she had anticipated. Because suddenly with a loud cry Chubbs was torn away from her hand. She turned a stick at the ready. But it was too late both Lumenion were upon him, tearing into his gut with greedy muzzles.

Blood pouring forth from his wounds, Chubbs screamed in agony. She flung herself forward, tears in her eyes. She had to help him, it was who she was. All the training in the world could not fix or hide who she truly was. She was a helper, a kind and caring person, one who was willing to five her life so carelessly for others, it was who she always have been.

It was a defining trait in her, one that was once her strength, was now her weakness. With a sudden ferocity she lay blow after blow on the Lumenion, beating them back into submission. They backed away. Which was unheard of, Lumenion never back away, they didn't understand fear, but now...now they did, they for the first time had met a creature who was obviously weaker than they. Yet here it was hacking and fighting against them with such strength, it confused them and unnerved them, that day was the day in marking when they had learned that even the creatures created by the gods, could know fear.

She collapsed down next to Chubbs, grabbing his hand, holding it, knowing that he didn't have long. He gazed up at her, his eyes having a hint of fear, but he mostly held a calmness in him. He was ready, this look was the one that brought fresh tears into her eyes. She smoothed back some of his thinning hair.

Without a word he handed her his shearing knife. Then he spoke to her, "Better wash it twice before cooking with it, don't want to spoil the food." It was so strange, to hear him say those words to her, that she let a small laugh out, despite the situation, however it was a sad laugh that made her wish she could save this man.

She spoke "I'm so sorry...I...I..you didn't deserve this" He shook his head "no, I do, I do, I helped feed this army, I helped keep this war by cooking for these ninja and giving them strength to do so much evil, I realize this...now...and..well...gods know I regret this greatly, but if hell is what awaits me for choosing your side at the last second, well then, hell I will gladly accept...I'm a cook aren't I? We feel at home when we are in the heat of a stove."

She let a sob out. She leaned down and hugged him, holding him as his spirit, his gentle, caring spirit, so much like hers, faded into the afterlife. She prayed, for the first time in a long time she prayed, asking every god there was, to let this gentle man into a place of peace and not torture, he deserved that at least.

But she knew she would have to go soon, the Lumenion were gathering and rearranging themselves once more. Sirya stood, her resolve complete. She turned, a stick in one hand and a knife in the other. She then took one last look at Chubbs, who lay looking almost peaceful.

She then turned and ran, if they wanted her, they would have to catch her first. Behind her she could hear the sound of feet falling in pursuit after her. She glanced down at her knife as she weaved between the trees, bounding gracefully over fallen logs and obstacles, she didn't know how long she would last against them, but gods be damned she would bring as many down with her as possible.

NSW