Chapter Fifty-Nine

The lightning split the battlefield in two, separating Sakura from the two warriors like a stone wall. Leg brace shattering, she fell on her face, inches from the outermost fingers of lightning.

Syaoran had about half a second to ascertain that she'd survived before he felt a hand coil around his throat. A snarl ripped through his teeth, and he pulled his sword from his body in one sinuous movement. Without even looking up, he knew it was Fai who'd attacked him. He was the only one besides Seishirou with the speed to get here that fast.

Risking Sakura's life on a bolt of lightning had been difficult. Bringing his sword around to tear open the magician's throat was easy.

Fai sprung up, avoiding the strike before falling back several steps. Don't think, just react, some part of his mind commanded. He brought the blade across in a wide arc, telegraphing his attack. Fai moved to evade him, oblivious to the feint, and Syaoran switched his angle of his strike, aiming for a vertical cut along the mage's windpipe. This time, the magician barely managed to avoid the hit.

"What are you doing?" Fai demanded, recoiling.

A rush of fury jolted through him, boiling the blood in his veins. What am I doing? he wanted to respond. You tried to kill me last time I saw you! I'm defending myself.

He didn't waste his breath. Fighting was strenuous exercise, and he didn't dare waste any oxygen speaking when it ought to be going to his muscles to make them work.

He brought his sword around again. Behind him, he heard two voices rise up in panic.

"Little Wolf!"

"Kid!"

Syaoran didn't look back. Instead, he tried to make the next blow count. Fai dodged, but the tip of the blade nearly stuck him in the neck as it came around. Just a little bit closer.

"Fix your stance. A solid stance will keep you from losing your balance." The words, and their variations, ran through his mind so fast he could barely process them. Kurogane-san's words, he thought, his fingers tightening around the hilt. His next attack missed by a wider margin, affording Fai the time to regain his footing.

Behind him, he heard two sets of footsteps approaching. He hurried to finish the fight. You tried to kill me, he thought, looking at the one-eyed vampire in front of him. Fai's claws were fully extended now, and his eye glowed gold. He has his weapons. I have mine. A fair fight.

So why isn't he attacking?

Syaoran swung again, the motion less controlled in his adrenaline-fueled hands.

"Kid, stop it!" That was Kurogane. He still calls me kid, Syaoran thought. Why? Because he calls everyone my age "kid" or because he doesn't want to acknowledge me by name?

Fai sidestepped this strike. His natural grace had only been enhanced by his transformation. The magician brushed aside the blade, claws running along the dull side. Too late, Syaoran moved to change its direction. Fai snatched his wrist before he could and twisted it around.

The sound of Syaoran's wrist snapping was nothing next to the shrill cry that exploded from his lips.

His sword fell the ground, landing softly in the grass. Fireworks of pain shot up his whole arm, and it was only by the mercy of adrenaline that he remained conscious.

"Calm down now," Fai murmured, as if he was comforting a crying Sakura. He's the only one who can, now, Syaoran thought bitterly. His fingers closed over Fai's wrist, sending another bolt of pain up his arm. But it didn't matter how much pain he was in, this fight wasn't over.

After all, he'd learned some new tricks since Seishirou had taken him in.

Ignoring the flashes of pain it caused him, he yanked on Fai's wrist. The sudden movement threw the magician off balance. Fai hit the ground, shoulder first, and rolled so he was lying on his back. Syaoran snatched his sword from the ground, never letting go. His left hand was not skilled with the blade as his right was, but with his opponent on the ground, he didn't have to be. It would only take one decisive blow.

"Kid!"

The word reached his ears as his blade carved a path through the air, but he ignored them. This was how the fight was supposed to end. He had to kill Fai before Fai killed him.

You're a monster. The accusation seemed to come from somewhere else just as much as it came from within. For the barest fraction of a second, the blade slowed.

I can't lose this fight.

This isn't who you are.

Images of Souma's dead body flashed in front of his eyes, faster than he could've blinked. Killing her had been the single worst crime he'd ever committed, a sin that couldn't be forgiven. And that had been an accident.

This isn't self-defense, this is murder! some part of his mind shouted at him. His sword slowed further, then came to rest at the edge of Fai's throat, right where his carotid artery pulsed the strongest. A single blue eye stared up at him, pupil dilated with fear.

He's defenseless, Syaoran realized. He can fight just fine when he's standing up, but he doesn't know how to fight from the ground.

Finish him and be done with it.

If I kill him now . . . He's not trying to hurt me, or if he is, he's not succeeding. I'm in control now. It won't be an accident if he dies.

Shouts from outside pierced his eardrums. "Boy! Cut it out!"

Boy, Syaoran thought. Kurogane-san only ever calls me that when he's upset. Otherwise it's just "kid."

Another voice pierced the air, this one much closer than the other. "Finish it! He's a danger to us."

Us? Yes, it's always "us" when Seishirou's talking to me. But . . . His gaze drifted back down to the magician's face. His eye was still blue, but some of the fear had gone away, been replaced with resignation. He's not even trying to fight me. I can't call this self-defense. This is murder.

"Syaoran-kun!" interrupted a new voice. Her voice, strained with tears. "Syaoran-kun!"

It would hurt her if he died, Syaoran thought. Seishirou and Kurogane continued running toward him in slow-motion. And that would be one less person to protect her until I return.

His left hand hand went limp around the hilt. The other hand still clung to Fai's wrist, tight enough to make the magician lose circulation in his hand. Syaoran's own wrist throbbed with pain.

It will hurt Sakura if she loses him.

You'll be a monster if you do it.

This is murder.

He let go of the magician's wrist, taking a shaky breath as he stepped away. The world spun around him, but he managed to catch the look of surprise on Kurogane's face as the ninja reached them.

Time froze in the park. For an impossibly long moment, Kurogane stared at him. The look on his face seemed to ask: why?

If Syaoran could've answered, he would've said, "I don't know." Before he could say anything, a pressure on his left hand alerted him to Seishirou's presence. The dark-haired man tugged his arm urgently, dragging him away from the park. After a moment, Syaoran followed. I can't go back yet. I still have a duty to attend to.

He was only partially aware of the multihued buildings they passed, only distantly cognizant of the black sky over their heads. His right wrist was swollen, and a deep ache pulsed through the flesh around the bone. With less adrenaline in his blood, the pain might've been enough to push him to tears. Right now, though, he was too dazed to register anything but the fight in the park.

I can't believe I'm alive, he thought, as they stepped into Adele's house.