EIGHTH BLOOD

Chapter 31: Reunion

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Octavia searched for Sesshoumaru in the crowd.

She tried asking around, but without his fur pelt and silver hair, he didn't stand out. Sighing, she managed to convince Haru and his friends to help boost her onto a wall. The height made it possible for her to see the entire courtyard. Squinting her eyes, she scanned the crowd for the elusive Daiyoukai, but she couldn't see him anywhere. Had he left without telling her?

"Any luck?" Haru shouted from the ground.

She looked down at him and shook her head. "No."

"Weird. Maybe he went back to Nagi-san's?"

"Maybe." She fought the urge to frown. She knew he wasn't a people person, but he could have at least told her that he was leaving. "I'm gonna look around some more. If anyone asks where I am, just tell them I went for a walk."

Haru nodded. "Okay. I hope you find him."

She walked along the wall before jumping into a deep pile of snow. Her body still couldn't comprehend why it wasn't cold and shivered out of habit. Dusting the snow off her clothes, she set out to find Sesshoumaru. The Reikon Blade pulsed when she rounded a corner and found herself in front of the temple steps. She slipped the dagger out of its sheath and cradled it in her hands. The crystal blinked on and off like a faulty lightbulb. The blinking became more intense when she pointed it at the wall of steps in front of her. The Reikon Blade shone brighter the higher she climbed, before going out when she reached a certain point.

"What the?"

The ground shuddered beneath her. She screamed and almost dropped the dagger as giant cracks appeared in the steps. Her heart thrashed in her chest, and her breaths came out short and laboured. The tremor didn't last long, but the damage was already done. The stone underneath her feet groaned as the cracks continued to spread. Panicking, she leapt onto a rocky ledge and held on as the ground shook again. She peeked down at the city and gasped when she saw that it was unaltered. Whatever this was, it was only affecting the hill.

The Reikon Blade rattled in her hand. She could feel Sesshoumaru's thoughts through the earth. We're still connected. The realisation strengthened her resolve. As soon as the second tremor ended, she shuffled along the ledge with her stomach pressed against the rock. A light below drew her attention to a cave entrance. She manoeuvred her way down and wandered in. Sesshoumaru's thoughts were louder inside. She could feel his frustration and the distress that came with being underground, but those were the least of her concerns.

He wasn't alone.

The Reikon Blade glowed brighter, overpowering the torch, and Octavia swallowed. She understood what he'd meant when he'd said the walls were closing in on him. Her feet dragged as she walked through the shrinking passage, and her chest burned. She clutched her yukata and coughed. The pain wasn't all physical. Her mind swam with memories of a dark space full of rotting bodies. The smell invaded her nostrils and she felt bile rising in her throat.

Dry your eyes, my son, murmured a voice that she didn't recognise. Your father won't let anything happen to us. We're safe down here. I promise.

Tears burned her eyes as Sesshoumaru's memories barrelled into her.

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Sesshoumaru snarled as the shadow lunged for him, knocking him back with his sword. The numerous cuts he'd inflicted on the High Priest's body didn't seem to have hindered the creature inside at all.

It wasn't the only one in the cavern. More shadows were hiding above his head. They seemed reluctant to get involved without host bodies to protect them from the Tenseiga. The sword was glowing, filling the cavern with blue light, which the other shadows flinched away from. If the High Priest was dead like the shadow had claimed, he ought to run him through with the Bakusaiga and be done with it. But what if it had been a lie to try and trick him into taking an innocent life?

Octavia would be angry if she found out that he hadn't even tried to save the heretic. She'd be even angrier when she discovered that his youki had been inside her the whole time. It explained why she had been able to wield the Bakusaiga without difficulty. He was surprised that harbouring all of that youki hadn't driven her mad. Human bodies weren't designed to hold so much raw power. She should be dead, but she'd somehow carried on as normal.

"Are we boring you?" the shadow taunted. "Or have you finally noticed the star's presence?"

Sesshoumaru's eyes widened. Octavia's scent drifted into the cavern, swarming his senses. The Reikon Blade formed a bridge between their minds. He tried to tell her to stay away, but his mind refused to cooperate, too busy sending her unrelated memories. Trying not to think about the tombs, he tore the Tenseiga out of its sheath and swung it at the shadows hanging from the ceiling. They screeched and scurried away like vermin.

The one in the High Priest laughed and cracked its knuckles. "Would you like to watch her die? Or shall we spare you the agony and kill you first?"

"The only one dying today is you." Sheathing his swords, Sesshoumaru embraced his connection with Octavia and felt his youki flowing back into him. It wasn't enough to turn his hair silver, but red filtered into his eyes and his claws bubbled with venom, which dripped onto the ground and tunnelled downwards. The shadow growled when it realised what his plan was and tried to run to safety, but the floor had already begun to collapse. He slammed his foot into the rock, intent on taking the shadow down with him.

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Sesshoumaru's thoughts came to an abrupt halt, frightening her.

She sprinted towards the blue light at the end of the tunnel. The entire hill was quaking. Before she could find out if the light was coming from the Tenseiga as she suspected, a pair of arms grabbed her from behind. She didn't hesitate to elbow whoever they belonged to square in the face. Her attacker shrieked and loosened their grip, allowing Octavia to wrench herself free. She gasped when she saw that it was Nagisa. Blood dribbled down her chin from her lip, marring her otherwise perfect face. "Ow," she groaned. "You're stronger than you look."

"What are you doing here?" Octavia snapped.

"I'm trying to save your life. Now come on! We have to get out of here—"

"I'm not going anywhere without Sesshoumaru."

"You're in more danger than he is."

"What do you mean?"

The tremors worsened.

Nagisa's eyes widened in apparent horror. "It knows you're here." The demoness seized her by the shoulders and stared deep into her eyes. "Listen to me very carefully. You can't stay here. You need to get as far away as you can. If that thing down there gets even one drop of your blood, we're done for. The best thing you can do is run."

"What the hell are you talking about—"

"There isn't time!" Nagisa's expression turned desperate. "If we don't leave right now, this hill is going to come crashing down on top of us!" She took a step closer, but Octavia reacted by pressing the tip of the Reikon Blade against her throat. Nagisa stiffened and held her breath. The dagger might not have been able to pierce flesh, but Nagisa didn't need to know that. "Octavia, please. We'll both be crushed—"

"Not if I can help it." She reached inside herself for the power that had allowed her to beat Asuka. Nagisa's eyes bulged as Octavia lowered the dagger and bared jagged teeth at her. A few seconds later, shards of purple crystal ruptured through the rock behind them, skewering the hill. With the crystals acting as support beams, the tremors ceased.

Nagisa gasped. "You have his youki."

Octavia frowned. "What?"

"You have Sesshoumaru's youki. But that's impossible! No mortal could survive being exposed to that much dark jaki, least of all from within their own body! Unless . . ." She shook her head. "It's you. Sutākuīn. Purple Eye. They're all about you. I can't believe I didn't realise it sooner—"

Octavia cut her off. "Enough of the vague bullshit. Tell me what's going on right now, or I'll slit your throat."

Nagisa swallowed. "This tunnel leads down to a cavern with a cursed spring," she explained. "A dark god lies dead in its depths, so the water is cursed. Only the blood of a star mage can purify it. If that happens, the spring will regain its healing properties and the Shadow will be resurrected!"

"How do I know you're not lying to get me out of the picture so that you and your lackeys can kill Sesshoumaru?" Nagisa looked horrified. Octavia took advantage of her shock and made a break for it. She arrived at a steep drop and gazed into a seemingly endless pit. The blue light was fainter now, but it was still there. Sliding the Reikon Blade back into its sheath, she rolled up her sleeves and knotted them at the top before moving down to tear a slit in the side of her yukata.

Nagisa arrived just in time to see her kicking off her sandals. "Don't throw your life away like this!" she yelled.

"I'm not," said Octavia. "I'm saving his."

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Sesshoumaru landed in shallow water with a splash. He hoped it was just the darkness that was making the water look black. He had lost both of his swords during the fall. His eyes flitted around the larger cavern, searching for them. One was easier to spot than the other. He followed the Tenseiga's blue light out of the water and picked it up like a torch.

A pair of shadows darted away from him when he aimed the Tenseiga's light in their direction. The High Priest lunged at him from his left, but Sesshoumaru's reflexes were faster. He swiped at the bull youkai with his claws, spraying venom onto his robes. It didn't react, even as the corrosive liquid melted through his clothes to his skin.

"Looking for this?" the shadow asked, waving the Bakusaiga at him.

Sesshoumaru's eyes narrowed. "It won't work for you."

"We have no use for such a benign weapon." The Bakusaiga was tossed into the darkness. "It's over, Lord Sesshoumaru. You've lost. The star is ours."

"It's far from over."

"Don't make us laugh. You lived alone, and now you'll die alone."

"No, he won't, you ugly fuck!" The Bakusaiga flew straight into Octavia's hand. Its blade shone as she held it with both hands and aimed it at the High Priest. The dagger at her hip was also glowing, emitting bright purple rays that mixed with the green to create an aurora. Sesshoumaru's stomach dropped. She shouldn't be here. She shouldn't—

The shadow's black eyes sparkled like pieces of coal. "You're not like the other stars we've met. No wonder the boy is so eager to get his hands on you. We've met before, haven't we?"

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