The Sinner and the Saint

by Vergil Creiger

A Saint, patron of murderers and with a history steeped in blood. A Sinner, her soul a graveyard of demons and Malice. Pursued by madmen, they stand alone against the darkness. Alone, but for eachother.

3. Zhaoyang Village

Chapter 3

Hinata and the Saint of Killers had been walking for some time - having lapsed into a comfortable silence - when the village came into view. The Saint could recall stopping here fifteen years ago, and one thing about the place that really stuck in his mind was his own disbelief: that people were capable of surviving even in terrain as harsh and barren as the plains and marshes of Rain. Even those who dwelt in the Hidden Rain were forced to rely on food traded for with their many technological marvels. The people of this village, however, had no such problems growing crops despite the water-logged ground, a miracle they attributed to their local deity.

"Hey," said Hinata excitedly. "Look at those lights! It's a town." The Saint didn't answer, but simply gazed impassively at the familiar settlement. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but it seemed different somehow. Though it had been fifteen years...

"Why the long face?" said Hinata, interrupting his train of thought. "We'll have food, and a bed to rest on!" She set off for the village without bothering to wait for an answer. However, just as the Saint made to follow she fell to one knee, clutching her head in agony as a familiar voice echoed through the night.

Be carefu...Gua...di...of Pu...gato...y...

...man-eat...r's tr...p...wai...s you...

As the voice faded Hinata struggled to her feet, panting heavily. "Its... gone?" The Saint just watched as she let out a sudden frustrated howl, kicking the ground like a child having a tantrum. "Leave me alone, damn you! Leave me alone! I'm not a damn marionette, you hear me!"

"Hinata, that voice..."

She glared at him irritably. "Yeah, what about it?"

If he was affected by her tone, he didn't show it. "I don't think it means us any harm. I didn't sense anything... evil about it. I think it feels like it just wants to tell us something."

Hinata was silent for several minutes, then muttered, "Oh yeah?"

The Saint nodded. "Let's head for the village." He walked past her. Hinata just stood there, staring at the spot he had previously stood in. Her shoulders slumped.

"Damn blonde, he hears the voice but it doesn't bother him." She flung her hands in the air in exasperation. "Why!" She suddenly realized how far the Saint had walked. "Hey, wait up! Don't leave me here!"

She caught up to him just as he reached the village gates. They were large, considering the size of the settlement, were made of sturdy wood - obtained from god only knew where - and were barred like a prison cell. They were set into a large stone wall which encircled the entire village, most likely erected to keep out the wolves that they themselves encountered. Hinata sighed in relief. "We're here," she said happily. "Looks like we'll be able to get food and a place to rest." Again the Saint didn't answer, retaining the faraway look on his face he had gained after first laying eyes on the village. "What's up? Something wrong?"

"The voice," he murmured quietly. "It tried to warn us about danger in this village, something waiting to devour us. That's what it started to say anyway, so I think we should be extra careful."

Hinata just laughed in response. "How cool n' collected you are! You talk as if it's happening to someone else." Her chuckles died down at the serious expression on his face. "But not to worry. Nothin' can surprise me at this point." As she said this a pair of young children - eight year old boys - stepped out of the darkness within the village and peered through the bars of the gate. They were identical, save for the fact that one wore red clothes and had yellow eyes while the other had yellow clothes and red eyes. Hinata (who had her back to the gate) didn't notice them, but the Saint could clearly see them over her her shoulder.

"Hey, look!" shouted the yellow-eyed child.

Hinata leapt vertically into the air, letting out an ear-piercing shriek of surprise. After landing back on the ground she whipped around to glare in pure, unadulterated hate at the two who had surprised her so. "Damn brats," she screamed. "Don't freak me out like that or I'll kick your scrawny little asses."

She had utterly failed to intimidate them. "I knew it!" exclaimed the red eyed child.

"You're right," cheered the yellow eyed child. "It's true!"

Hinata twitched in irritation. "Look," she sighed. "You brats live here, right? Here in town? Great. Open the gate."

The twins shared a look before answering. "Um, nobody gets in at night, so you're gunna hafta stay out there," said the yellow eyed child.

"Yup," nodded the red eyed child. "We can't let you in."

"Run along," Hinata ground out. "And get your mommy. Tell her you've got guests." She took a menacing step forward and unintentionally entered the light. Immediately, the twins' eyes homed in on - of all things - Hinata's chest.

"Hey," said the red eyed child, a noticeable trace of awe in his voice. "That's a woman right?"

Hinata looked like she was about to pop a blood vessel. "You only just noticed?"

"Yeah, she's TOTALLY a girl, right?" said the yellow eyed child enthusiastically. "Nice and soft!"

Hinata had to force herself not to try out her new fusion soul on them right then and there. "Do you understand the words that are coming out of my mouth?" she said slowly.

The Saint of Killers stepped forward and placed his hands on Hinata's shoulders, pushing her forwards so she was standing fully in the light. "Sorry to trouble you so late," he said politely. "But we're lost. Would you allow us to stay here for the night?"

"Ooh," sighed the red eyed child creepily. "She looks so tender!"

His brother nodded in agreement. "A nice, juicy girl!"

Hinata wanted to wring their skinny little necks.

The twins ran over to a huge winch connected to the gate and managed to turn it, despite the fact that it was bigger than the both of them put together. As soon as the way was open the twins ran up to Hinata and gazed up at her adoringly. She glared back murderously, and it was only the Saint's steadying hands on her shoulders that prevented her from killing the pair then and there. The red eyed child gave a shy giggle, and she resisted the urge to throttle him. "It's okay, you can come in."

The yellow eyed child mirrored his brother's laugh. "Yeah, you can come in now."

All four of them stepped within the village walls. "Thank you," said the Saint, but it wasn't him they were paying attention to.

"Our house is at the very end of the square," the red eyed child said to Hinata, ignoring her companion. "We'll be waiting! Bye!" He ran off into the village.

"Whee, whee," hollered the yellow eyed child. "We have a girl! We have a girl! Gotta go tell Granny Mayor right away!" He dashed off to join his brother.

"Well," began the Saint of Killers, but was interrupted by the gates suddenly slamming shut behind them. They both looked at the sealed exit for a moment before he continued. "Well, that was certainly a different reception to what I received fifteen years ago."

Hinata raised an eyebrow. "Oh? You stopped here?"

"Oh yes. The village's name is Zhaoyang. They have there very own guardian deity - a real one at that - who ensures the harvest for them every year."

"But I didn't see any crops."

The Saint blinked slowly, then smacked the palm of his hand against his forehead. "That was what it was!"

"What what was?"

"I thought the village looked different when we first got here. That was probably it."

"But why? Surely they need the crops, or else they can't eat."

The Saint shrugged. "Who knows. Maybe those man-eaters the voice mentioned are behind it." He let his words sink in before continuing. "Let's check the village shrine before visiting the mayor's house. And Hinata..." He looked her in the eye, his face deadly serious. "Don't make eye contact. We don't know who's human in there."

The pair set off through the village - which was surprisingly crowded, considering it was night - as the Saint tried to remember where the village shrine was. They passed through a long street, which appeared to be the local market with stalls and shops of every kind lining the walls. It was here they encountered the townspeople, dozens of men and women in the rustic garb of peasants, all of them turning to stare hungrily at Hinata as they passed. Thoughts of man-eaters still whirling through her brain, she began to walk closer to the Saint's side. He didn't comment on this but simply walked closer in turn, glowering at any who got too curious. Soon the street opened into what looked more like a town hexagon than a town square, the decrepit houses that formed its rim crouching like crows at the edge of vision. A filthy well squatted at its center and what was probably the promised mayor's house sat at its end. While slightly grander than the other houses they'd passed it was still relatively simple.

Excited reiterations of the words 'girl' and 'juicy' could be clearly heard from inside.

The Saint of Killers walked straight past the grim, half-timbered house without hesitating, obviously having remembered where he was going. Hinata followed him down a narrow alley, the lights of Zhaoyang proper fading behind her as they journeyed into the very bowels of the village. Then they turned a corner, and the shrine was in view.

They could barely see it, as it was surrounded by an enormous fence. The only thing visible was the shrine roof, which was a dark red color. However, it wasn't the color of the shingles that caught their eye.

"These are all..." the Saint murmured, placing one hand on the fence. "Bones. Human bones." While not the most ghastly thing they had seen it certainly made the top twenty. Most of the structure from the bottom up was composed of skulls, the rest of the wall having been made after whoever built the thing discovered that skulls alone wouldn't be enough. The whole thing was dotted with shinto talismans, stuck on seemingly at random. "The bones of people killed here," the Saint continued. "What's happening in this village?"

"Looks like the voice was right," said Hinata, as unaffected by the gruesome sight as her companion. "These people're cannibals."

The Saint tilted his head back, squinting at what little of the shrine was visible. "The shrine," he whispered. "It's as if it holds all the anger of the people that died here."

"Good travelers, you like the shrine?" They both whipped around, startled by the sudden remark. The newcomer was an old man, his eyes frighteningly vacant.

"What is it, pops?" snapped Hinata, who was getting annoyed at everyone sneaking up on her. The old man ignored her, gazing on the wall of bones with a look of grandfatherly fondness on his face.

"Looking for the Black Tortoise God that was enshrined here?" the old man cackled. "He's been gone for six months!"

"The Black Tortoise God?" said the Saint in alarm.

"Yes, to pacify the Earth Spirits, humans deified him and built this shrine. It's all such nonsense!" The man stepped forwards and slowly ran a finger over the fence, as one would caress a lover. "But now, with the Black Tortoise God gone, we're free to do as we please. We can even take the forms of humans! We couldn't ask for more! The only problem is, now we get hungry..." He turned and gave them a broad grin. "It's all thanks to the new protector of our town, Yamaraja!"

"Yamaraja?" said Hinata. "What kind of a name for a demon is that?" She turned to look at the barely-visible roof. "I suppose I'd find him in that shrine there?"

The old man scowled irritably. "How insolent! But no matter, you won't last long." He gave Hinata the same creepy look the two boys had given her earlier. "For tonight there'll be a special feast for our rare guests..." He turned his back, having lost interest. "Now, you just run along and say hello to the Granny Mayor." The creature disguised as an old man departed with a last, deranged cackle.

The Saint of Killers gave a resigned, world-weary sigh. "Don't tell me, we're going to be eaten?"

Hinata shrugged nonchalantly. "Well, I don't know about you, but I'm not too fond of the idea."

The Saint chuckled, equally unimpressed with the situation. "I'm not happy about it either, I can tell you!"

Hinata gave a good-natured laugh in return. "Don't worry, I'll protect you."

They were still laughing when they arrived back at the mayor's house, the twins from earlier waiting anxiously at the door. "It's the girl from before," said the red eyed child in relief. "Thank goodness!"

"You really came," cheered his brother. "We're so glad! C'mon, c'mon, come inside!" They rushed inside, their guests sedately following.

The interior was surprisingly opulent, with red drapes and red cushions almost completely obscuring the walls and floor from view. On one such cushion sat an old woman, the twins standing at her sides. "Granny Mayor! Granny Mayor!" shouted the yellow eyed child excitedly. "We got visitors! Visitors with lotsa juicy, juicy meat!"

"Juicy!" echoed his brother. Hinata stepped forward, a bright and friendly smile on her face that told the Saint exactly how much she was looking forward to killing the little gremlins.

"You're the mayor's wife? Great!" she grinned savagely. "We sure could use a bed for the night."

The old woman nodded benevolently. "Yes, yes. I heard all about you from the children. You just make yourselves at home. We rarely get visitors here. We don't have much for you, but please rest your weary bones."

"Hey, thanks ma'am," beamed Hinata radiantly. "We'll be out of your way by early morning."

She was rewarded with a grandmotherly smile. "Now now, no need to rush. You just stay as long as you like."

"Thanks ma'am," said the Saint. "It's kind of you to let us stay, having just shown up in the middle of the night like this."

"What a nice-mannered young man," tittered Granny Mayor. "But you don't have to worry about your manners so much here." She paused, in a transparent attempt to sound more sinister. "For it won't change the taste of your meat."

"Kind woman," grinned Hinata. "You all talk as if you're going to have us for supper."

Suddenly, the old woman didn't look so grandmotherly. "Well, at least one of you has brains! Eat you both, we will!" Hinata and the Saint of Killers shared a look, then nearly doubled over with laughter. Granny Mayor smirked in blissful ignorance. They all thought it was a joke at first. "I've got to go tell Yamaraja we have an offering for him. Let me get through here, okay okay..." She pushed past her still chortling guests for the door.

"C'mon you two, here, take a load off!" called the yellow eyed child, regaining their attention.

"Don't worry," added the red eyed child. "We'll be right outside so you can't get away!" Both boys scampered through the front door, leaving their guests alone.

"We're in trouble now," smirked the Saint. "Looks like they've got us trapped."

"It appears so," returned Hinata, chuckling merrily. Those monsters were in so much trouble...

The Saint placed one hand on his chest and gaped in mock astonishment. "My dear Harmonixer, how can you be so calm at a time like this!" It amused Hinata that her companion would only truly lighten up after they were trapped in a village full of man-eating demons.

"Aw, c'mon," she laughed. "If you get too anxious it'll just make you hungry."

"I wouldn't be the only one." Again the pair erupted into laughter. Seriously, those monsters must have the worst luck ever!

"But really now," said Hinata, being the first to regain herself. "Let's take a rest, and see what their next move is." The Saint nodded. They each found a comfortable spot to sit and lean against the wall, resting their bodies from the long journey.

However, no sooner had they closed their eyes than they heard a familiar voice stage whisper through the door, "They asleep?"

"Looks like it," came the answer. The twins who had so thoroughly earned Hinata's everlasting hatred snuck through the door, their voices nowhere near quiet enough to avoid waking them. "Hooray," cheered the yellow eyed child. "Let's just have a tiny little taste."

"Quietly now," warned the red eyed child. "Or Granny Mayor's gunna kill us!"

Before either of them could make any further move, the instruments of their demise casually got to their feet. "Th-they're not asleep!" shrieked the yellow eyed child, stating the obvious.

"Y-you tricked us!" babbled the red eyed child. Hinata stepped forward, cracking her knuckles menacingly.

"Oh-ho-ho-hoooooooo yeah," grinned the Harmonixer sadistically. "I've been soooooooo looking forward to this."

"Damn," hissed the yellow eyed child. "If they get away, everyone'll get mad and then they'll eat us up! And if you don't get away, they'll know we tried to sneak a taste so they'll eat us anyway!"

"If we're gunna get eaten no matter what," snarled the red eyed child. "I at least wanna taste the girl! Lemme have the girl!"

Hinata snorted. "Puny goblin brats, if anyone's gunna be eaten, it's you!"

"WE'LL KILL YOU!" they howled. They leapt forward, shedding their human skins in mid-air. They resembled a pair of bipedal cats, hairless and skinless, their red muscles exposed to the world.

It did not, however, do them the slightest bit of good.

Their claws hit air as Hinata grabbed them by the heads, and they felt fear for the last time as she gave a terrifying, fanged grin.

The Saint edged out onto the porch, ignoring the howls of agony as Hinata vented on the unfortunate hellcats. After several minutes the screams were abruptly cut off, and his companion stepped out to join him. "You'd just get the runs if you ate us," she tossed over her shoulder. "Ya got that, fools!"

"Feeling better?" the Saint asked dryly.

"Much," she nodded happily. Silence fell as they gazed on the true appearance of Zhaoyang. A red mist floated over ground paved with blood and human innards. The howls of horrors yet unencountered echoed across the gory scene.

"It's like a sea of blood," murmured the Saint. "Is this what the village really looks like?"

"Yep," said Hinata. "This is what was left after the demons devoured the humans. Be careful, I think they mean business this time."

Granny Mayor almost choked on her tonsils when her prayers were interrupted. "How did you get here," she hissed. "What have you done to my beloved children!"

"I put the kiddies to sleep," smirked Hinata, who was enjoying herself far too much for her own good. "Permanently."

"Why don't you show us your true form too," said the Saint reasonably. "We're tired of this endless procession of fiends." Indeed, on the short journey between the house and the shrine a ridiculously large number zombies had thrown themselves at the duo, their undead brains soon painting the ground courtesy of the Saint's guns.

It got old. Fast.

"We figured," said Hinata. "If we came here, and took care of you... well, you know how it always works."

"Fools!" snarled Granny Mayor. "Even if I die, the monsters will remain and you'll still be imprisoned in this town. Because all of this is the will of the great Yamaraja, protector of our village!"

"Yamaraja?" snorted Hinata. "C'mon, I could take care of him just by destroying the shrine back there."

"Take a good look," hissed the hag, running a hand along the fence of bones in the same alarming fashion as the vacant eyed old man from earlier. "These are the bones of all those I've sacrificed to him. I used the Malice of the townspeople, and made this fence to keep one and all away from here. As long as I'm alive, this fence will protect Yamaraja. Because without killing me, you can't get near the shrine!"

"So we were right after all," said the Saint smugly. "You are the one to kill."

"You'll have to catch me first." And in a flash of white light, she was gone.

This elicited a raised eyebrow from the Saint of Killers, while Hinata scowled in annoyance. "Hey, where'd the demon-cat go?" As if in answer, the cat hag's shrill laughter drifted in on the wind, seeming to come from all directions.

"You're going to wander aimlessly through this village forever! Wither and die in this village where morning never comes!" As her voice faded the shadows began to move, lurching towards them ungracefully. Zombies, of course, their stinking flesh perfuming the air as they stumbled forwards, merely reanimated and without a trace of life. Creatures resembling young girls crawled along the walls, their bodies mutilated and scarred, unnatural shrieks erupting from their throats. Weaving between the hungry corpses were what could have once been wolves, their fur replaced by blue, reptilian scales.

"Well," said the Saint. "This sucks."

"Worse than that nest of giant spiders we ran into on the way here," agreed Hinata. She had actually rather enjoyed the experience, as it had been her real use of her new fusion soul.

The Saint glanced at her, flashing his foxy grin. "About that. Is your earth fusion a tiger, or did mine eyes deceive me?"

Hinata narrowed her eyes at the odd question. "It was, but-"

"Great. Turn into it." All the time they had been talking, the gathered horde of Zhaoyang had been creeping steadily closer.

"Why? I'm more in the mood for my darkness form to be perfectly honest."

"Trust me, just do it." Reluctantly Hinata did as she was asked, noting with satisfaction that she was taller than him in this form. "Thanks," said the Saint, and put his hands around his mouth. "Oi, Granny Mayor, what's your real name!"

"Felinus," came the answering cackle. "It's the last name you'll ever-"

"Yeah yeah yeah," said the Saint dismissively. He gestured to the were-tiger next to him. "Hinata here would like to challenge you to a battle for dominance, feline to feline." Immediately, the horde stopped moving. There was a long, tense silence.

With a furious battle-yowl, Felinus sprang at them out of no-where. She now strongly resembled a super-sized version of the hellcats from earlier, only she enjoyed the benefits of skin and a coat of scraggly grey fur. The Saint of Killers deftly sidestepped her, allowing her to collide headlong with the transformed Harmonixer. Deciding to leave the situation to Hinata he drew his guns, casually sauntering towards the Zhaoyang horde.

Back with Hinata, she was quickly discovering where the term 'cat-fight' came from. The two of them were rolling around on the ground, each limited to fangs and claws alone by the close quarters. This wasn't the best way to cause damage, as the earth fusion's granite like skin was impervious to most bladed weapons while Felinus was already dead, and as such couldn't feel pain.

Yeah, she wasn't just a demon cat, she was an undead demon cat.

Perfect.

The two disentangled themselves and quickly got some distance, starting to circle each other warily. Felinus, the bigger of the two, began to advance slowly. She was nearly twice Hinata's size, an advantage that left her overconfident and full of openings. With speed that didn't seem possible for one with such disproportionately long arms, Hinata capitalized on these openings and ducked in under her guard, slashing the cat matriarch's torso with both claws and leaving an X shaped gouge on her chest. As Felinus stumbled back - letting out a yowl of surprise rather than pain - Hinata reversed the motion of her arms and delivered a double backhand to the demon cat's chin, knocking her backwards to crash into the wall of a nearby house. With a rumble, the entire structure collapsed to the ground.

As Hinata made the mistake of pausing for breath Felinus rose from the rubble and gave her opponent a murderous glare, the effect enhanced by her slitted cat eyes. She tilted her head back and let loose yet another ear-grating yowl, a shock wave of wind blasting out from her body and clearing the rubble littered at her feet. Hinata got a taste her own medicine when the wind hit her, tumbling back to bust into a second house on the opposite side of the street.

And that, unfortunately for Felinus, was where things got messy.

The rubble beneath which Hinata was buried began to float into the air, orbiting slowly around her as though she possessed her own gravitational field. Felinus watched in growing trepidation as the transformed Harmonixer slowly got to her feet, a lethargy born more of a need to draw out dramatic tension than any real pain.

For Hinata - Felinus finally realized - just wasn't taking her seriously.

She didn't need to.

Rather than throw the chunks of hovering debris one at a time Hinata brought the entirety of the ex-house down on the other feline at once, a colossal landslide of rock and detritus. The cat matriarch was taken totally off guard by the onslaught, her coiled muscles rendered useless by the flood of rock. Before she could attempt to dig her way out an enormous clawed hand reached through the dirt, grabbed her by the hair atop her head and hauled her clear. Death stared down at her.

Felinus closed her eyes. It was over. "You'll never understand the pain of giving birth," she whispered. "Only to have them devoured." The tiger monster growled deep in her chest, then raked her claws across the other feline's exposed throat. Her black blood frothed forth in a wave, she gave one last shuddering breath and she had joined her offspring in the next life.

"What a disappointingly short battle." came the Saint's familiar voice. The tiger turned around, morphing back into Hinata as she did so. He was completely unharmed, his pistols hung smoking from his hands and the corpses of countless monsters lay around him, their slaughtered legions piling in great heaps. He smiled at her gobsmacked expression. "They really did pick the worst people imaginable to try and eat, didn't they?" He walked past her, stepping carefully through the large gap that had formed in the fence of bones.

The shrine was exactly as he remembered, with the possible exception of the enormous demon stepping out of it. It had the general proportions of a human, with two arms and two legs, but was easily as tall as the shrine itself. Its skin was a dark, mottled blue, its eyes a soulless white and its mouth was sewn shut. It was wearing a golden crown and an elaborate loin-cloth, the latter barely holding up its immense, protruding gut. In its right hand it held a staff, as thick as a tree, as tall as itself and made of solid gold.

The Saint of Killers pointed both guns at Yamaraja's head. He did not share Hinata's habit of playing with her food. This would all be over in moments. "In the name of those who have died here," he whispered, his voice rising into a shout. "LET THE VILLAGE OF ZHAOYANG BE CLEANSED!"

BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!