Chapter 13
Two weeks later, San was still furious.
She was still infuriated that he was preparing himself for the inevitable clash with that Lucifer creature without talking to her about it. He probably knew that telling her everything meant a black eye, at the least.
What infuriated her about this was that she knew that John had to fight him alone, and she would have to stand aside.
She despised being kept out of a fight, and was incensed that John had put himself in that much danger.
She wished to rip that Michael apart for what he had done to John. John hadn't told her everything that had happened with the Pevensies, but she could tell that the battle between Michael and Lucifer tired him, and cost him many life-threatening wounds.
She would be damned if she didn't try to help him in the fight, because that's what family did.
Watching him practice at the Den, she allowed herself a brief wry chuckle. Only a year ago, she wouldn't have lost any sleep from slitting the arrogant Assassin's throat.
How things have changed!
To be fair to her brother, San had a few things she did not tell John, mostly having to do with the visiting Lion after her Mother's passing.
Three weeks ago
After Moro's skinned body had been buried, she turned to the Lion, her brothers watching the two converse. "What do I do now?"
The Lion turned to her. "Now, you shall lead. John has a far greater trial ahead of him, and the fight is one in which he shall face alone, for his enemy possesses power that which only Michael and John can match."
San frowned. "That's not going to happen. When battle comes, we Wolves strike as one!"
The Lion smiled. "I have no doubt that, come what may, you will and your pack will be ready. But this is one fight that the Wolf Tribe would be nigh powerless to fight. John already has the...unfortunate tendency to put his body in front of any attacks on those he considers family."
San swore, knowing full well that the Lion was correct. "What do you want me to do?"
The Lion shook his head. "Do what you will. All I ask is that you understand that there are some battles where all one can do is offer support to those that need it, and assuredly he will need you very much, although he would be loath to admit it."
San turned to the Lion. "I've already lost my mother. You can't ask me to lose him too without me fighting for him."
The Lion pressed a whiskery kiss to her forehead, and she gasped in surprise as the sorrow and emotional pain evaporated, and was replaced by courage and purpose.
"I never suggested otherwise, Dear one. He shall need you more than ever, and when the time comes, you will know what to do."
San nodded, then changed the subject. "I want to know how to deal with Eboshi. Now that she is weak, I should kill her."
Aslan gave her a gentle but stern look. "And do you really think that will make your situation any better? Let us be realistic: it will only do the opposite, and you know that."
San bristled, but Aslan shook his head. "Now that she is weak, she will realize what John has been trying to tell her: that both sides must co-exist."
"I will not-"
"Oh, but you will. Assuredly, there will come a time, when she will come to you through your brother, asking for forgiveness and assistance. It will behoove you to at least listen to what they have to say."
San opened her mouth to argue, but deep down, there was a treacherous part of her that agreed with the Lion.
The Lion sighed at the rebellious look on her face. "Oh, Dear Child, if only you could see what the hate and anger are doing to you."
San looked deep into the creatures' eyes, wanting at first to challenge him on that, but his eyes were so full of love and understanding that she could not bear to do so.
He understood the pain and anger, and that was enough for her.
Present time
Now San had no clue what that odd but loving creature was, as she watched John practice fighting and using his various powers, preparing for the inevitable fight. San understood the principles of preparing for a fight, but she thought that John didn't need to spend so much time doing so. San considered John to be without peer, even without that Archangel's powers and expertise. He had to be, she supposed, for the battle that he had to fight.
The fact that he would have to do so alone sickened her to the point of physical illness, but she promised to herself that she would support him as much as she could. She smirked, wondering how her brother's ego must be coping with this. She knew men could be arrogant, but not as much as John was. The fact that Michael gave him strange powers, and that John was the best fighter, made things much more complicated.
But loving someone meant putting up with their quirks, and it was safe to say that there was no other human she loved or trusted more than John...except Ashitaka.
She yearned to see him again, but he was busy helping that damned bitch with farming, which Iron Town was now doing at a surprisingly rapid pace.
Damn that woman to hell!
Even though Eboshi may have had a change of heart, San would never stop hating her.
The latest reason for her hatred was Eboshi attempting to seduce her brother, and like any foolish man, he had almost fell for it.
But that was the human in him, not the Wolf.
How she would love to make him all Wolf! It was only a matter of patience and conditioning.
Two weeks had passed since Eboshi and I broke it off, and our run-ins with Asano's men persuaded me to get ready for Lucifer, and I took to practicing as much as I could.
As much as I hated to admit it, I was scared of failure.
I hated fear, but I felt it nonetheless.
If I lost, Lucifer would win. If I lost, then evil would triumph at the expense of goodness. If I lost, then everybody I would love would be in mortal danger.
And if I won, what if Michael sent me back to the Pevensies too soon?
Being with the Pevensies wasn't terrible, but I hid so much of myself from them that they barely knew the extent of the darkness within me.
To make things worse, San's silent glares of wrath and bitterness, coupled with the amusement of the two brothers, made it unbearable to be in her presence.
I wanted to assure her that all would be fine, but I couldn't.
How could she not see that.
Eboshi sighed. It was hard enough leading her people with two hands, but with one? Anger and frustration ruled her mind, and she wanted to scream.
She knew she had made mistakes, and made many enemies, but was this justice?
Did she have to be brought so low to realize what a mess she had made?
It wasn't all her fault, damn it!
If the Forest and those damned Wolves had given her an inch, this all could have been avoided!
She would not bow and scrape to those damn wolves, but she would apologize and try to work with that little beast, if the latter was remotely possible.
She sighed again, knowing that John and Ashitaka would be the only two people who could help her.
She had the latter, but the former eluded her control at every step.
Curse that arrogant, smirking, handsome, overly charming...
She shook her head, damning him to hell as well, albiet reluctantly.
He was the one person who could help the most, although she didn't really know why. He was the one who drove the monsters of her past away, but she had pushed him away out of necessity.
Sometimes, there was no justice in this damned world!
The tension between San and I reached a boiling point when she learned that I had practicing for Lucifer near the lake while she was on a hunt.
It was sort of my fault for not giving her advance notice, but I didn't feel that I deserved the stinging slap that was waiting for me when I got back to the Den.
San was never one to pull punches, but this particular slap was somehow given with more venom, her fingernails slashing across my face.
"I should have known that you'd put yourself over the tribe!" San snarled, as I spat out blood from a cut lip.
"So I forgot one fucking hunt. For fuck's sake-"
"Oh, spare me! Why don't we break through your usual gabble and cut to the chase, shall we?"
I glared back. "Let's kick this off, yeah? Do you have any idea how hard it is for me getting ready to take on evil incarnate? I can't do enough practicing when my little bitch of a sister is sulking and feeling sorry for herself."
The brothers watched like spectators at some sporting event with more interest than usual, sensing the raw emotion coming from their siblings.
"Well, I'm sorry, but I thought that you'd gotten it through your thick skull that your days as a lone wolf are done!"
I spat out more blood and let out a short laugh. "That's a laugh, and you sodding know it! You don't counsel me for shite when you make decisions for the tribe."
San blushed and avoided my eyes. "I want to, but Mother never counseled me."
I nodded. "I can help with that, if you let me."
San hid a smile, folding her arms over her chest, and changed the subject. "I can help you too, with Lucifer. You've been avoiding me, you know."
I sighed. "I would love it if you could help, but there's not much you can do. I'm going into a fight blind, so I'm just trying to practice as much as I can to get myself as ready as bloody possible."
San shook her head, her anger fading rapidly. "There must be something I can do."
I smiled tiredly. "You already are doing something by just being around. I'm going to have to face that tosser sometime soon, and I-"
I broke off, realizing my hands were shaking.
San realized it too. She had seen such spasmotic motions from other humans when they came face to face to her in battle, but never with John.
"What's wrong-"
John cut her off, his voice barely audible. "I'm scared. I'm scared!" He finished loudly, when I realized San didn't understand the first time.
"Wh-what?" San asked, not believing what she heard.
Out of all the things she expected to hear, this wasn't it.
"Did I stutter? For the first time in my life, I have to fight without a plan! I'm going into a fight against the enemy of the Free Universe with no idea of how to fight him! There are billions of lives at stake, and I'm going into a fight blind!"
"Stop it, that's enough," San said quietly, but he ignored her.
"And if I somehow do the impossible, I don't know where they would send me next. What happens if he kills me-"
"Stop it!" San roared, cutting him off.
I turned to her, my eyes meeting hers.
San's chest was heaving, and there were angry tears in her eyes. "I can't believe what I'm hearing. I'd never thought I would hear this from you, not ever!" She finished, and he flinched as she approached him.
"San, I-"
"No! For once in your damned life, Shut up, and listen! If there is anything that has kept me going after Mother's death, it's you! You have always been confident to the point of arrogance, and as maddeningly annoying as you can be, sometimes you're what I need to maintain some sense of sodding sanity. I never, ever, want to hear that coming out of your mouth again! Do you understand me, or do I have to bash some sense into that thick skull of yours?"
There was a long pause, and he nodded, looking embarrased. "I'm sorry. I just...wish I had a better chance at this."
San sighed, her anger fading at the pain in his eyes. "Just don't talk like this again."
Then she rested her hands on his muscled shoulders. "I'll always be here where and when you need me. Now, you are thinking like a human: thinking about what things might be or may be.
Think like a Wolf: think about what is, and what you can do about it."
He smiled, and kissed her cheek. "I love you, Sis."
San's eyes welled up with tears again, only this time, her heart warmed toward him like never before, never having heard him admit this before.
"I love you too, Brother." She said shyly, but firmly.
The next morning, it finally happened.
It started like any other prior attack: Asano's troops assaulting Iron Town.
As I cut through the usual underlings, a Samurai with golden armor came riding on horseback into the fray, straight at me!
"Lucifer! Get out of my way, Boy!"
I acquiesed to his demand, and I winced as I felt the warmth and power of Michael's presense surround and inhabit me.
"Lucifer!" Michael roared, drawing his sword.
The man leaped from his horse, and I realized that he was over six feet tall. He had a mop of black hair tied into a bun and had a full beard that stretched to his waist. "Michael! It is such pleasure to meet your Vessel properly." The man answered, his voice a cold hiss.
"You would have met him sooner if you hadn't allowed your former vessel to be killed by a girl Queen!" Michael said, his voice a warm, powerful baritone, the opposite of Lucifer's voice.
Lucifer hissed in rage. "I'll never get my chance to pay her back, and I would have made her squeal!"
I shoved Michael aside. "If you even touch her, I'll make you scream in agony!"
Lucifer laughed, as Michael got back in the driver's seat. "I like this one, Michael! It's a shame I'll have to kill him."
San made to stand next to me, but Michael used his powers to throw her back, Ashitaka conveniently there to catch her.
"Stay back, little Wolf-woman! This is my fight, and you shall not interfere with destiny!"
Lucifer turned to her. "For once, I agree with my nemesis, little girl. You cannot even touch me!"
Eboshi then appeared, followed by more townspeople, who surrounded the two fighters in a span of a few seconds.
Lucifer turned toward her, as I gained control for a minute to call to her. "Don't interfere! He'll destroy you if you do-"
San's roar of alarm interrupted me, as Michael regained control to bat away a swipe from Lucifer. "Idiot boy, stay out of my way!"
Michael's voice cut through my consciousness, as Lucifer and Michael engaged in a furious flurry of blows and stabs.
I realized why Michael hadn't given me any advice: Michael knew everything himself!
Ashitaka stared as the two warriors engaged, their stabs and slashes so fast and powerful that he could barely see them.
John's eyes glowed with golden light, while his enemie's eyes were black and souless.
He realized, as the fighters continued to batter at each other, that John was...not John. The warrior he knew could not move so fast or strike so well. Whatever this creature was, Ashitaka could sense power beyond that of the Great Forest Spirit.
After trading blows, the two backed away from each other. "As usual, Michael, well fought!" Lucifer applauded.
I realized that there was a grudging mutual respect between them, amidst the hatred, of course.
"Is that all you can do, Lucifer? You dissapoint me."
Lucifer smiled with such smugness and cruelty that Michael was alarmed. "Oh, I've learned a few things over the millenia. Allow me to demonstrate!"
With that, Lucifer spoke in a language that sounded like an early type of Hebrew (Enochian), and I felt Michael shout in alarm before his presence left my body.
"Now, my young Assassin, I think it's time we became acquainted."
Oh, Bollocks!
I took a deep breath, and raised the Sword of Heaven, shoving my fear aside. "Care to dance, Lucy?"
Lucifer shook his head, an almost pitying smile on his face. "Fighting? Oh no, I have something more...civilized in mind!"
Before I could move, Lucifer seized me by the throat with one hand, and ripped the sword from my grasp with the other.
San cried out, and made to move forward, but Ashitaka held her back. "Let him go, human bastard!"
Lucifer turned to her, sneering with amusement, as I gasped for air, writhing in the inhumanly strong grip of the Devil. "Human? Oh no, I am so much more."
With that, he removed my cape and the rest of my weapons, and threw them, along with the Sword, at her feet. "For you, my dear. Your brother won't need them where he is going! Say your good byes now!"
I struggled in his grip, and looked over my shoulder at San. "Don't be afraid, luv. Trust in Aslan-"
Before I could continue, darkness covered my eyes.
Eboshi, realizing what would happened, hastened forward with a cry, joined by the two wolf brothers, but both the Devil and the Assassin disappered with a snap of the former's fingers before the three reached them.
A few seconds later, San's howl of rage and horror rent the air, with Eboshi and the brothers staring at the empty spot where John had been just a few seconds before.
The three exchanged a look of horror and dismay, as Ashitaka held the inconsolable San.
Lucifer had won.
I love this stuff!
