EIGHTH BLOOD

Chapter 16: Puppeteer

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Ah-Un dropped them off a few miles away from the stronghold. They said their goodbyes and watched its shrinking silhouette disappear beyond the horizon. By then, the sky was streaked with scarlet. They walked through the night, avoiding the main roads for Sesshoumaru's sake. Not because he was weak, but to keep a low profile whilst they were travelling. Even without his youki, Sesshoumaru's gaudy attire and extensive weaponry were bound to attract unwanted attention.

The next day was cold and rainy. It wasn't until after midday when a break in the rain came and they were able to continue on their way. Sesshoumaru was unhappy with the delay. As a Daiyoukai, a little rain posed no problems for him, but for a human, pneumonia was no joke. Sesshoumaru had hardly spoken to her since Ah-Un's departure yesterday. Octavia found herself missing Rin and Jaken's endless chatter.

Twilight came and went. Her feet were bruised and blistered, but she knew better than to ask if they could stop again. It was her fault for not requesting a pair of boots instead of sandals. Maybe she could trick Sesshoumaru into carrying her. Lying down and refusing to move ought to do it. She was considering doing just that when a cluster of panicked cries sounded up ahead. A horde of people scrambled towards them like a herd of wildebeest. Their clothes were torn and they were caked in mud, but they were dressed too well to be farmers. Sesshoumaru sneered as a middle-aged man collapsed at their feet. He clutched his injured side and coughed up a mouthful of blood.

"Please, help us!" he begged.

"What happened to you?" Octavia asked.

"Our fortress was attacked by a youkai. It slaughtered our army and took our lord's daughter, the Lady Chiyo, prisoner." Tears streamed down his cheeks. "We left her at the mercy of that monster. We're nothing but cowards!"

"That's not true." Octavia lifted her head and saw that Sesshoumaru had walked off. "Where are you going?"

"North," he said.

"We can't just leave. We have to help these people."

"We haven't the time."

"Then we'll make time!"

Pausing, he tilted his head to glance back at her. When she didn't relent, he narrowed his eyes and said, "If you wish to get involved, go ahead, but I never agreed to diverge from our intended path."

The man in front of her doubled over in pain. Octavia lifted his haori and winced at the bloody gash above his hip. Digging through her pack, she withdrew a roll of bandage and wrapped some around his waist, pulling it tight in an attempt to slow the bleeding.

"Which way is it to the valley?" she asked.

"I'll show you," he whimpered. "Thank you so much."

"You should rest. Just point me in the right direction and I'll be fine."

He smiled. "It's quite all right. The path can be difficult to spot for newcomers."

Defeated, she nodded and pulled him to his feet.

Sesshoumaru turned away. "Do not expect me to come and save you."

She shot him an icy glare. "Don't worry, I won't."

The man stumbled down the road. Octavia followed him through the sea of survivors, wondering what kind of youkai she'd be facing. She needed to think of a strategy before she charged into the fortress. It was located in a valley shrouded in mist. From the cliff's edge, it looked more like a lake than a valley. "Did you see the youkai before you ran?"

He shivered. "Yes."

"Can you describe it?"

"I only caught a glimpse of it, but I remember that it didn't have a face." Her pulse quickened. "Here," he said, offering her a small knife. "It's not much, but it's sharp enough. Be careful in there."

Nodding, she accepted the knife and put on a brave face. "I will. Thank you."

The man smiled and pointed out the path. She followed it down, feeling her way with her hands once the mist became too thick to see through. The cliff to her right kept her oriented. As long as she didn't let go, she was unlikely to go tumbling over the edge.

The path was simple and direct, so she reached the bottom without any issues. The real challenge began now. The valley was submerged in mist. She couldn't see more than a couple of inches in front of her. How was she going to rescue the lord's daughter if she couldn't even find the fortress where she was being held hostage? She picked a direction and started walking. An hour passed before she discovered a large structure that resembled a building. The mist was a lot thinner here. She couldn't decide if that was a good omen or a bad one. She found an engawa on the ground floor with an open shoji screen. Stepping over the threshold, she realised that she'd found what she was looking for.

There was no mist within the fortress's walls. The floorboards creaked beneath her feet. Some of them were on the verge of breaking. Octavia tiptoed down the long corridor, brandishing the knife that the man had given her. Meanwhile, her heart hammered in her chest. Every hair on her body was erect, and her palms were slick with sweat. She wasn't sure why, but she had a feeling that something was following her.

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Despite his better instincts, Sesshoumaru found himself in pursuit of the human's scent.

He arrived at a ledge overlooking the valley and grimaced at the sight of the blue mist below. The human was long gone, but the man who'd led her there was resting by a boulder. His eyes were fixed on the misty basin before him, his expression passive. "You came," he said. "How unexpected. We were under the impression that you didn't care what became of her."

"I don't."

The man turned and stared at him. "I haven't exchanged words with a Daiyoukai in so long. Tell me, son of Touga, do you taste as good as your ancestors did?"

Sesshoumaru's brow furrowed. "What are you?"

"We live in the darkness between worlds. We are as old as time itself. You know what we are."

"Then where is the harm in saying what I already know?"

The man's eyes flashed. "I'm in no mood for chit-chat. Anyway, I'm afraid this is as far as you'll be going. You are not to interfere."

"And if I do?"

A wet, nasally laugh escaped from the man's throat. His pupils expanded and turned the whites of his eyes black. The Tenseiga rattled in its sheath as the man rose to his feet. "You are nothing without your youki, Lord Sesshoumaru," the creature inside him hissed.

Sesshoumaru snarled and cracked his knuckles.

"Let us have her and we won't touch a single hair on your head."

"Do you take me for a fool?"

"We will not harm her."

"Your intentions with her mean nothing to me. You took something that belongs to me. I want it back."

"I do not have it."

"Don't lie. I saw you."

"That wasn't me." The man's lips curved into a smile. "I am one of thousands."

The Tenseiga was screaming to be freed. Sesshoumaru peered down at it and frowned. The sword could only cut beings that weren't from the realm of the living. We live in the darkness between worlds. Whatever they were, they weren't bound to this reality. The shadow flew out of the man's body and lunged for him. Sesshoumaru yanked the Tenseiga out of its sheath and sliced the shadow in two. Unlike the other one, it transformed into a puff of black smoke before disintegrating. It hadn't even crossed his mind that there could be more than one of the creatures. That complicated things. If it was the human they wanted, why bother with him at all?

He had to warn her.

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It was getting darker.

Octavia tried to keep her wits about her, but the increasing paranoia made it difficult to focus. Every time she turned around to check that she wasn't being followed, she trusted her senses less and less. She shouldn't have come alone. What had she been thinking? "Lady Chiyo?" she called, hating how small her voice sounded. "Can you hear me?"

The silence grew louder. Creeping through a dining room, she arrived at a door that had been left ajar. Muffled sobs floated through the crack. Octavia slid the door open and gazed into the small room. A humanoid shape was hunched over in the corner, trembling.

"Is that you, Lady Chiyo?"

The figure lifted its head and sucked in a startled breath. A girl wrapped in expensive silks stared up at Octavia in disbelief. She couldn't be older than sixteen. Her long, ebony hair was messy and unbound, but the rest of her looked untouched.

"Who are you?" she squeaked. "Have you come to rescue me?"

"Yes. My name is Octavia."

Chiyo laid a hand over her heart and exhaled. "Thank the gods. Did you slay the youkai?"

"I didn't see one. Can you stand?"

"No. I twisted my ankle. I'm sorry to be a burden, but could you help me?"

"Of course." Octavia wound an arm around her waist and hoisted her up. "Does it hurt? I'd offer to carry you, but I'm not sure I can manage all those kimono layers."

"I think I'll be all right."

The Reikon Blade felt hot in its holster. The heat penetrated the fabric of her trousers and scalded her skin. She grunted in pain and loosened her grip on Chiyo, who shrieked and wrapped her arms around Octavia's neck. "Whoa! It's okay. I just lost my balance." The girl didn't let go. "Is everything okay?"

Chiyo tightened her grip. "Calm yourself. We're not going to hurt you, little star."

Octavia's stomach dropped. Chiyo pulled back enough for Octavia to see her face, which chilled her to the bone. The girl's eyes were black like a shark's. Octavia thrashed in her hold, trying to break free, but Chiyo's arms were as strong as cast iron. Octavia swung the knife, only for it to transform into a cloud of dark smoke. It had been a fake all along. Without warning, the darkness lifted. Maybe because it hadn't been darkness at all. Octavia felt her body falter as the 'darkness' split into a dozen indistinct shapes, each resembling the shadow that had attacked them in the gardens. They circled her like jaguars, but it wasn't them she was worried about. Chiyo smiled and stroked her hair.

"What are you doing?" she whispered. "I thought you wanted us to go to Namida."

"Is that what they're calling the place now? The last time we came to your dimension, you mortals called it the Gateway to Heaven. Outsiders believed that if you dug deep enough into the ice, you'd reach a portal that would take you to the Celestial Palace where the God Stars live."

"And did it?"

The shadow possessing Chiyo laughed. "Silly girl. The God Stars are gone. There is only one god now, and his name is—"

The other shadows shrieked and fled through the gaps between the floorboards. Chiyo snarled as Sesshoumaru entered the room with the Tenseiga already drawn.

Octavia's heart somersaulted. "Where the hell have you been!"

"Dealing with vermin," he said.

Chiyo pressed her bony fingertips into the flesh of Octavia's throat. "Don't move," the creature inside her warned. "Mortal bodies are so very delicate. I'd hate to make a mess."

"I thought you wanted her alive."

"We thought you wanted to be rid of her, Daiyoukai."

His eyes narrowed. "I won't stand by and let you take her." He pointed the Tenseiga at the shadow's host and growled. "Release her this instant. I won't ask you again."

The shadow stared at the sword. "Curse you," it hissed. "You weren't supposed to interfere."

"You shouldn't have invited me to the island if you didn't want me to get involved."

"I see that now. We didn't expect you to have such a powerful artefact in your possession." The shadow removed its hands from Octavia's neck and took a step back. "She was afraid in the end," it taunted. "The lord's daughter, that is. She was proud, yet she wasn't above begging for her life. She died alone and without witnesses. Her screams were like music."

Octavia shook with rage.

"You lie," Sesshoumaru said. "The girl's heart still beats."

Chiyo's grin vanished. "Quite the killjoy, aren't you?"

"Are you sure?" asked Octavia.

"Hearts never lie. The human who led you here also survived the possession."

"Then it's not too late."

"For what?"

"To save her. That's why we came here, isn't it?"

"I never said that's what I was doing here, human."

"You also said you wouldn't bother rescuing me, yet here you are."

He couldn't come up with a clever response for that.

Her eyes burned with determination. "We can't just leave her."

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The memory of Rin's mangled corpse forced its way to the forefront of Sesshoumaru's mind. We can't just leave her. Was that why he'd done it? Out of pity? He made an effort not to think about that day – or the question that had been with him every waking moment since he'd saved her – but looking back, the answer had been so simple. He'd felt sorry for her, and she'd been kind to him. And brave. Not just by bringing him food and water, but by enduring the struggles she faced on a day-to-day basis. Real bravery was hard to come by.

This human was brave, too. She and Rin were similar in that regard.

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"Step aside," he said.

"Why? What are you going to do?"

The creature inside Chiyo laughed. "I believe he intends to liberate the lord's daughter from my control."

Octavia's eyes widened.

"Go ahead," the shadow taunted. "Your sword might work on the others, but I'm safe inside this protective casing. You can't get to me without destroying her."

"I bet this can, though." Octavia pulled out the Reikon Blade and pointed it at Chiyo. The purple crystal glowed brighter in the shadow's presence. Fear flickered in its jet-black eyes.

Sesshoumaru used its surprise to his advantage and reached for his other sword, the Bakusaiga. Instead of aiming for Chiyo, he threw it several metres to her left. The sword pierced a clay pot in the corner of the room, shattering it. The shadow screamed and flew out of Chiyo's body. Octavia rushed forwards and caught her before she hit the ground. She watched as the shadow gathered up a small white box that had been inside the pot before escaping through a hole in the roof.

Sesshoumaru's expression darkened as he retrieved the Bakusaiga from the pile of broken clay pieces. Before she could ask him what he'd done, Octavia felt Chiyo stirring in her arms. "What happened? The youkai . . ."

"It's over," she said, hugging her. "You're safe now." Chiyo sank into her embrace. Octavia glanced up at her reluctant companion and felt her chest tighten with gratitude. "Thank you, Sesshoumaru."

"Hn."

"You're supposed to say: you're welcome, Octavia. I was happy to help."

He slid his swords back into their sheaths. "I would mind your manners from now on. If you aren't careful, the next time we encounter those creatures, I might just let them have you."

She laughed. "Yeah, right."

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