Author's Corner
More plot shenanigans this chapter. It's a long one too, so find a comfy seat or get a crazy Starbucks beverage to settle down with. Also, without giving away any spoilers, something shifts drastically in the relationship between Sesshoumaru and Octavia in this chapter, which I think will make you all pretty happy. There have been some moments in recent chapters (and further back too) that dip into romantic territory, which is only going to increase as we go forward. So, yeah. I hope you enjoy it!
P.S. I made an Instagram for my writing. Check my bio if you're interested :)
EIGHTH BLOOD
Chapter 48: The hunt
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"It's not here," Octavia complained, closing the book she was skimming through and tossing it aside with all the other rejects. "It can't be. If it was, we would've found it by now. I'm not sure how much more of this I can take. My eyes feel like they're gonna fall out."
"That would be most unfortunate," she heard Sesshoumaru mutter from behind the bookcase that separated them.
She met his gaze through a gap in the books and couldn't help but grin.
As he studied the names on their partially damaged spines, she found herself unable to tear her eyes away from his face. She watched him pull out a volume on herbology and flick through it briefly before returning it to the shelf.
He's so comfortable down here, she realised. Despite his enigmatic nature, Sesshoumaru was a bit of an old soul. She was, too, but not to the extent that he was. He was naturally introverted and had no intention of pretending to care about what others thought of him. She wondered if that would change as he got older. If she met him again in the future, would he still be the same disinterested loner, or would he have mellowed over the centuries? She hoped not. She liked him the way he was. He was one of the few people that she could be herself with.
I wonder if he ever came into the shop when I was working.
She wouldn't have known who he was, but he would have known her. Would he still remember her after all that time? And if he did, would he even care enough to go looking?
"I can't believe you don't know what the title was," she grumbled, distracting herself with another book. "This would be a lot easier if you did."
"In my defence, the last time I saw it was three hundred years ago," he countered.
She rolled her eyes. "Excuses, excuses."
He smirked.
"How old are you, anyway?" she asked casually.
"I forget."
"You can't remember your own age?"
"Time passes differently for us. After a while, we stop counting."
"Okay. How old were you when you stopped?"
"Five hundred and ten."
Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped. "What?"
He seemed amused by her reaction. "That surprises you," he said.
"Well . . . Yeah. You don't look five hundred plus."
"Daiyoukai age more slowly than humans," he explained. "I was still a child at two hundred. If I were a human, I would be around the same age as you."
Her brows knitted together. "Really?"
"Yes."
He circled back around the bookcase so that they were standing side by side. Octavia waited until he'd picked out a new book before saying, "I thought you looked good for your age. It makes sense now. A seasoned elder would never be so reckless and immature."
"You're one to talk, human."
"And you just proved my point."
He turned his head and shot her a stony look, which made her laugh. His eyes gleamed in the low light of the library, reminding her of polished gold, whilst the dust floated around them like snow.
Their hands accidentally bumped into each other on the bookshelf, breaking the illusion and causing the butterflies in her stomach to scatter. She shifted her attention to the least exciting book she could see and tried to steady her erratic pulse, but it was to no avail.
"This is taking too long," she said, her voice thick with emotion. "Aren't there records we can check? Or a list of books that your father took out? That would at least narrow it down."
His eyes widened slightly as an idea popped into his head.
"Sato," he called loudly, glancing over his shoulder at a messy desk beside the door.
Octavia gasped when a head peered out from behind it. The head belonged to a large owl who was wearing spectacles. The owl's reddish-brown eyes bulged wide when they landed on Sesshoumaru, and the two tufts sticking out of its head shot upright, resembling rabbit ears.
"Good evening, Sesshoumaru-sama," the owl mumbled, stifling a yawn. "What can I do for you?"
"I need the names of every book my father borrowed from the library."
"That is a very long list. What exactly is it that you're looking for, my lord?"
"I once happened upon a book that was written in a language I didn't recognise. Each line contained curious little pictures that formed what I assumed was a sort of code. I don't remember what it was called, but he had it in his possession about three hundred years ago."
"I'll check the logs and see what I can find."
Sato darted into a back room and returned with an assortment of scrolls, which he dumped onto the desk and unrolled one by one.
Octavia turned to Sesshoumaru and raised her eyebrows expectantly.
"This is Sato," he told her. "He is the stronghold's Master Scholar. Nothing leaves this room without his knowledge."
Wasn't he just asleep on the job?
"Hi," she said, bowing her head. "It's nice to meet you."
Sato stopped reading and his beak curved into a smile. "You must be Cyril's human pupil. I've heard a lot about you. He's quite smitten with you, you know."
She grinned. "Is he now?"
"Oh, yes. He's always talking about you."
"No more small talk," Sesshoumaru cut in. "We've wasted enough time already."
"Apologies, my lord." Sato resumed reading. "Your father borrowed many books that were penned in unknown languages. More than half of them lacked transcripts, so unless he found a way to translate them himself, it was unlikely that he was able to read them."
"What were the books about?" Sesshoumaru asked.
". . . Sorcery," Sato replied, frowning. "How curious. I'm not familiar with these titles, but I wasn't the Master Scholar then." He frowned harder. "According to these logs, your father never returned them. Unless he took them elsewhere, they're probably still in his study."
Sesshoumaru's eyes dimmed. "I see."
Octavia smiled and said, "Thank you. We appreciate your help, Sato."
"It was no trouble at all. I hope you find it soon."
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Touga's study was small and stuffy. When Sesshoumaru had opened the doors and unveiled it to her, she'd been shocked at how out of place it seemed compared to all the other grand rooms in the castle. The furniture was covered in a thick layer of dust, and the air was painfully stale.
She followed Sesshoumaru inside wordlessly, shivering as she felt the temperature drop. The large table at the centre of the room had been left untidy, and a spider was spinning a web in the space between two tall bookcases. There weren't any windows, so the room looked dark and dreary, like a jail cell, except with more furniture. Octavia was glad they'd brought a lamp.
She glanced over at Sesshoumaru and wondered why he still used the study that was meant for the warlord's heir as opposed to this one.
His troubled expression was answer enough.
He didn't seem the type to believe in ghosts, but he was clearly being haunted by something. Who isn't? she thought bitterly. In her experience, ghosts weren't people dressed in grey who stood at the end of your bed to scare you. More often than not, they were simply regrets.
She refrained from asking him what it was he regretted and walked towards the nearest bookcase. The last thing she wanted to do was reopen old wounds. What kind of friend would that make her?
"You're under no obligation to stay with me," Sesshoumaru said abruptly, startling her. "When I asked you to assist me, it was a request, not an order. You can leave whenever you want."
"I know."
He looked baffled. "Then why are you—"
"I'm here because I want to be. You don't have to do everything on your own. You can trust me."
"I know," he sighed, then repeated more softly, "I know . . ."
She smiled tenderly.
They didn't find what they were looking for until after midnight. After hours of combing through leases and land deeds, sea charts and maps, and somewhat questionable romance novels that Octavia definitely didn't judge Touga for, she found a book that was locked with a golden seal on top of a bookcase. The only reason it stood out to her was because of the crest she saw on the cover. It was identical to the one on Asuka's robes.
"Look at this," she said, climbing back down the ladder with it tucked under her arm.
Sesshoumaru cleared a space for it on the desk and watched as she wiped the cover clean with her sleeve, revealing more of the strange symbols above the crest. Recognition flashed through his eyes as he stared at the book in front of him. "That's it."
He tried to undo the seal, but it wouldn't budge. The metal was rusted shut. Not even his claws could cut through it. Octavia reached out to hold it steady for him so that he could draw the Bakusaiga, but the moment her fingers made contact with the book, the seal clicked open. She and Sesshoumaru shared a cautious look before slowly turning to the first page . . .
It was exactly as he'd described. Each page was full of what looked like tiny pictures. Neither of them could decipher what any of the symbols meant, if they even had clear meanings at all.
"This one kind of looks like a key," she mused aloud, pointing to the symbol in question.
"Indeed."
She flipped to a different page and traced the symbols with her fingers.
"I wonder what language this is," she whispered.
"It is called the True Speech."
She tilted her head and found Myoga sitting on her shoulder. "How long have you been there?" she asked, surprised that he hadn't tried to drink her blood.
"Not long," he answered. He hopped onto the book and sat in the dip where the two pages met with his legs crossed. "The True Speech is the oldest language in the world. There are few left that can still read it. Apparently, the symbols act as substitutes for words."
"Can you read it?" asked Sesshoumaru.
Myoga shook his head. "Alas, I cannot. I might be old, but I'm not that old."
"Could my father?"
"I'm afraid not. He died before he could finish deciphering it fully."
Octavia's eyes strayed to the broken seal. "Totosai mentioned that Touga was very interested in spirit magic," she said. "Does this book have anything to do with it? It wouldn't open for Sesshoumaru, but it opened for me. Why is that?"
"I'm not sure. Perhaps it only opens for those who possess spirit magic."
"But then how did Touga open it?"
He rubbed his chin. "Good question."
Sesshoumaru glared at him. "Why are you here, Myoga?"
"I came to see her," he replied, turning to Octavia. "I paid Totosai a visit after our conversation earlier this month. I told him what the shadow said to you."
Two halves are required to make a whole.
"What did he say?"
"He asked me to tell you to be careful."
"Why?"
"Because the darkness is getting closer."
She stiffened. ". . . Can Totosai read the True Speech?"
"I don't believe so, milady."
"Then who can?"
"Bokuseno might be able to," Sesshoumaru offered.
"Who?"
"He was a friend of my father's. He has helped me before in the past, and unlike Myoga, Bokuseno tends to know what he's talking about. He's been alive for thousands of years."
Myoga hung his head in shame. "You wound me, Sesshoumaru-sama."
"Where does he live?" quizzed Octavia.
"In a forest not far from here."
"Great. Let's go and meet with him first thing tomorrow."
Sesshoumaru shook his head. "We can't leave until the other courts have returned to their respective kingdoms. It would reflect badly on us if they believed they were being ignored."
She sighed. "You demons are all so sensitive. Fine. We'll just have to convince them to come with us."
"And how do you propose we do that?"
Her lips curved into a smirk.
"You'll see."
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Octavia trekked through the forest where Bokuseno lived with both the Sword of the Firebird and a wooden longbow strapped to her back. She hadn't the faintest idea how to use the latter, but that didn't matter. It was only for show, anyway.
The whole thing was just an excuse to see Bokuseno, but she couldn't deny that she was enjoying the camaraderie she could feel forming between herself and the other courts. The other warlords had practically been drooling when she'd suggested that they all embark on a hunt together. Even Sesshoumaru had seemed pleasantly surprised. They were animals, after all, and animals loved to hunt. Especially predators.
Octavia trailed behind them with Jaken, who'd been tasked with being her babysitter for the afternoon. He was somehow even less popular than her, as evidenced by the way Taiki's sons kept turning around and snickering at him. Fortunately, he was too busy complaining to notice their cruel stares, which set her mind at ease.
It was quickly spoiled by Hiroto, who was glaring at her from his place behind his father. The wounds on her neck burned as the memory of his claws raking across her skin resurfaced, making her flinch and avert her eyes. Although her lip was no longer swollen, it still hurt if she smiled too much. She was definitely afraid of him, but she also wanted to march over to him and claw his face open with her fingernails. They probably weren't sharp enough to draw blood, and his skin would most likely repair itself in a matter of seconds, but it didn't stop her from dreaming.
"I should be with Sesshoumaru-sama right now," Jaken moaned. "Not a worthless human. Oh, why is it always me? First it was Rin, and now it's you! It just isn't fair!"
"You're right. It's the worst. We should start a coup."
"Don't be absurd! I obviously don't blame Sesshoumaru-sama. Why did you insist on coming along, you selfish woman? Humans don't hunt for sport. You're far too uncivilised."
If they weren't in earshot of the other courts, Octavia would have argued that killing for fun was the opposite of civilised. She didn't understand what was so appealing about taking an innocent creature's life and then bragging about it. She had to pretend that she did, though, otherwise, the three youkai families would wonder why she'd come. She needed to play the part convincingly.
Her eyes travelled to where Yuudai was walking beside Sesshoumaru. She felt a spark of jealousy when the prince smirked and playfully punched him in the arm. Sesshoumaru must have felt the intensity of her gaze because he turned his head and locked eyes with her from across the formation. Swallowing, she looked away and pretended that she was listening to Jaken.
"And I thought I was the talkative one," Myoga mumbled from his perch on her shoulder.
"What did you say!" snapped Jaken.
"Nothing," he answered quickly.
Octavia resisted the urge to smile. The satchel containing the book that she was carrying was an unwanted weight, but it was necessary for when they reached Bokuseno.
She'd spent the remainder of the night flipping through the book until she stumbled across the very symbol that she'd carved into her door. It had an entire page dedicated to it, so it was clearly important. Hopefully this mysterious Bokuseno would be able to tell her why.
Once they reached the heart of the forest, the hunting party split off into smaller groups and the tournament officially began. The rules were simple. Whoever had the biggest kill won. Taiki wholeheartedly believed that either he or one of his sons would emerge victorious, but Princess Kazane was just as competitive. She was the only other woman present, but instead of feeling discouraged, it only made her more ferocious. Her father practically radiated pride.
"Good luck," Sesshoumaru told them before their paths diverged.
Octavia waited until they were all out of sight before saying, "Which way is it to Bokuseno's?"
They followed him through the trees until they reached an especially dense part of the forest. Jaken sped over to his master and jogged at his heels, whilst Octavia kept her distance, just in case anyone happened to be watching them. They were probably all too busy hunting game, but it was better to be safe than sorry.
The farther they walked, the darker the forest became.
"Sesshoumaru . . ." a voice echoed from amongst the gloomy branches. "Sesshoumaru . . ."
Octavia ceased moving and Jaken shrieked before darting behind Sesshoumaru's legs. Myoga, on the other hand, merely rolled his eyes as a spine-chilling moan bounced around the forest.
"Sesshoumaru . . ." the voice continued.
"Enough games," Sesshoumaru hissed. "Come out, Bokuseno."
Octavia's eyes widened and she glanced around for a hidden spectator. She followed Sesshoumaru's gaze to an old magnolia tree – which was larger than any other tree in the forest – and squinted her eyes. A portion of the wood looked remarkably like a face. She was about to mention it to Sesshoumaru when the face opened its mouth and spoke.
"Hello again, my friend. Forgive me for startling you. The imp looks especially on edge."
"No, I don't!" insisted Jaken. "And I wasn't startled! You're a crazy old man!"
"Indeed." His flat, disinterested eyes shifted to Sesshoumaru. "What brings you to my forest?"
"I am in need of your wisdom again," Sesshoumaru answered.
"Oh? Do tell."
Octavia shivered as Sesshoumaru's eyes slid to hers. "This is Bokuseno," he said.
Her lips parted in shock as she examined the face in the bark once more. Bokuseno didn't react when she pointed a trembling finger at him and squeaked, "But he's a tree!"
Myoga chuckled.
"Not quite," corrected Bokuseno. "I began as a simple magnolia tree, but I transformed into a strong youkai as the years passed me by. The Tessaiga's and the Tenseiga's scabbards were created from my branches to contain their extraordinary powers." His pale eyes narrowed as he assessed her carefully. "Speaking of extraordinary power . . . Who might you be?"
"My name is Octavia Petridis."
"And what are you?"
"The people from Namida called me a star mage."
He smiled faintly. "Ah. Now it makes sense. The Tree of Sutāsouru told me about you."
"It spoke to you? How?"
"Most trees live their entire lives without voices, but that doesn't mean they're not alive. We're all connected, so we can communicate with each other without the need for words. The Tree of Sutāsouru reached out to me after your visit. I wondered why Nidawi was interested in another star mage after what happened with the last one, but you're not like the others, are you?"
"What do you mean?"
"Touga-sama knew you would come. He prepared for it in advance. It's why he had the book."
Sesshoumaru frowned slightly. "Tell us what you know about it."
"Do you have it with you?"
Octavia opened the satchel and pulled the book out.
"Come closer," Bokuseno told her.
She moved so that she was standing about half a metre away from his face and held the book up for him to see.
"Do you know what this is?" he asked.
She shook her head.
"It's an ancient grimoire that contains information and spells, all of which are written in the True Speech. The three symbols on the front are 'book', 'soul', and the number 'four'. When placed together like that, the symbols form the phrase 'Shikon no Hon', or 'The Book of Four Souls'." A chill ran down her spine when he asked, "Have you drawn any yet?"
She turned to the page she'd marked earlier and showed it to Bokuseno. "Yes," she said. "I drew this one on my door the other night. It was before we found the book. What is it?"
"That symbol means 'shield'. It's one of the eighty-eight mitama marks."
"What are those?"
"The True Speech is incredibly complex. Some symbols are more powerful than others. To put it simply, mitama marks are essentially ancient spells that can only be cast by those with access to spirit magic. No one has ever managed to master all of them."
"Why did she choose that one?" Sesshoumaru questioned.
"Perhaps she felt threatened," replied Bokuseno. "'Shield' is a protection spell, after all. What can you remember from that night, Octavia?"
She delved into her fractured memories and tried to remember which ones were real. The red-eyed man had given her a warning. Or had that part been another delusion? She wondered if the fear had been a side effect of her nightmare, or if something had been in her room, after all.
"It was like I was there, but I also wasn't, if that makes sense. My body wasn't my own. I was still in it, but I wasn't the one in control. I was just a passenger . . . Something made me do it."
Jaken shuddered.
"Could she have been sleepwalking?" suggested Myoga.
"It's possible," said Bokuseno. "Though I doubt that's what happened."
"But how could I have drawn something I'd never seen before?" she asked, exasperated.
"Are you certain you'd never seen it before?" She nodded. "You might be sure now, but thoughts are unreliable. They can be tampered with and erased; manipulated, untrue. Over time, they break down, like everything else in this life. The head forgets, but the hands do not."
He sounded as if he knew what he was talking about. Octavia felt a rush of pity for him. How many memories had he lost throughout his long, immortal life?
Longevity isn't a gift. It's a curse.
Sesshoumaru frowned harder. "You said that my father was preparing for something. What was it? And why did he need the book?"
"It made him feel less afraid."
A moment passed without anyone speaking.
"Afraid?" Sesshoumaru repeated, curling his lip in disbelief. "Ridiculous. My father feared nothing."
"Except for the woman in Ryukotsusei's care."
"What woman?" he snarled.
"The witch," Octavia whispered. "Hiroto mentioned her when we were fighting. I meant to ask you about it, but I got distracted. He said that she knew how to use the . . ."
She stared at the mark for 'shield' and sucked in a breath.
Use the marks.
"She was like me. Wasn't she?"
"Yes and no," Bokuseno replied. "She was a formidable foe, but her powers were nothing compared to yours."
"H-Hold on a second!" Myoga stammered. "I wasn't aware of this! Who are you talking about?"
"Ryukotsusei's concubine. I believe her name was Rayna."
Myoga's eyes bulged. "She was a witch?"
"Why do you think he liked her so much?"
Octavia could feel her heart pounding in her chest as Bokuseno's eyes once again moved to hers.
"You're dangerous, Octavia Petridis. You mustn't be allowed to become any stronger. For your sake and for ours. Spirit magic is extremely deadly. Sooner or later, you'll lose yourself to it."
Her pity was steadily being replaced by anger. Taking a deep breath, she pressed her mouth into a hard line and asked, "Does this mean you won't translate the book for us?"
"My conscience forbids it," he sighed. "Apologies."
Her eyes darkened. Sesshoumaru shared her frustration as she backed away from Bokuseno and clumsily shoved the book into her satchel, but unlike her, he kept his thoughts to himself.
"Why do you get to decide how strong I should be?" she asked, glaring at Bokuseno. "Why is it only your kind that's allowed to part oceans and shatter mountains? Is it wrong to want to be powerful when you've spent your entire life powerless? I don't think so. You have no fucking right to tell me what I can and can't be. What I do with my magic is none of your business."
"I didn't mean to upset you," Bokuseno said gently. "I merely wish for you to understand."
Oh, she understood, all right. She knew her place. As a human, she'd never be seen as their equal. That was why she needed to become powerful. She wanted to be better than them.
If Bokuseno wasn't going to help her, she'd have to do it on her own.
"Thank you for your help," she said, her voice tight. "We'll be going now."
"Farewell, my friends. Say hello to the other courts for me."
Before his face could retreat back under the bark, a large boar wandered into the clearing and sniffed the soil at its feet. It was the size of two bears stacked on top of each other, and its thick tusks looked sharp enough to skewer a grown man's torso in one charge. It didn't seem to care that they were there. Sesshoumaru was obviously offended that it hadn't taken one look at him and fled, however, Octavia was grateful for the boar's arrogance and stupidity.
She imagined the other warlords' faces when they found out that a human had gone and won their silly little tournament. If that was what it would take for them to stop looking down on her, then it was worth it. She just hoped that the boar wouldn't suffer too much before it died.
Raising her hand, she deliberately tapped into Bokuseno's youki and used it to make roots curl out of the ground, which wrapped around the boar's legs. It squealed and snorted as it struggled to get free, but the roots had already travelled up its legs and around its huge body. Jaken's ears drooped as the boar's breathing became laboured, and Myoga hopped down from her shoulder when her eyes flashed purple.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, closing her hand into a fist.
The boar's neck snapped, and it died instantly, collapsing to the ground with a loud thump. As soon as it was dead, Octavia let go of Bokuseno's youki and strolled over to the giant carcass. She pressed her palm to its neck and closed her eyes, letting the silence echo through her brain.
When she turned her head and met Sesshoumaru's probing stare, her eyes were still purple, and her teeth were jagged. Only Bokuseno heard Sesshoumaru's breath hitch as he looked at her.
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Sesshoumaru felt like he was on fire.
Is it wrong to want to be powerful when you've spent your entire life powerless?
He didn't think so.
He gazed deep into her amethyst eyes and almost purred at what he saw in them. Her rage was beautiful. But most of all, it was inspiring. Why shouldn't she be powerful? She'd certainly earned the right to it. She deserved to have whatever she wanted.
"You're making a mistake," Bokuseno cautioned when the others were out of earshot. "Don't let her fool you, too. She isn't what you think she is, Sesshoumaru."
He ignored the cryptic warning and picked up the boar carcass with ease. It was four times his size, but he'd carried heavier. Octavia's face was back to normal now, so when she smiled, it was the kind that radiated warmth and tenderness. He wanted her to keep smiling, no matter what. He never wanted her to stop. The thought should have alarmed him, but it had the opposite effect.
She is human, he reminded himself as he followed her through the forest. Her blood is putrid and foul, like milk that has gone sour, and her heart is soft and weak, like a piece of fruit left out to rot. Power or no power, she is mortal through and through. Nothing has changed.
Except it had. He wanted something from her, though he had yet to identify what. Some beastly and irrational part of him longed for her without shame. Why did he feel so strongly about her? Was it because of what she'd said? About wanting to be powerful? She wasn't the only one. He'd made a vow when he was young to become the most powerful demon in the world. Maybe she could be the most powerful human. It might be nice to have company up there at the top.
Kill her, the rational half of him pleaded. Kill her before you can't live without her.
It was already far too late.
They reunited with the other courts at twilight, who all marvelled at the size of Octavia's kill. The only one who failed to congratulate her on her victory was Hiroto, who stood tight-lipped beside his father. The prince seemed reluctant to leave as the rest of the group began to depart, and Sesshoumaru waited until they were all out of earshot before speaking to him.
"Touch her again and your life will be forfeited."
Hiroto blinked in surprise.
Sesshoumaru didn't say another word to him as he carried the boar carcass back to the stronghold in silence. He'd made his point. Whether or not the prince understood it was his problem, not Sesshoumaru's.
The only thing on his mind was how he was going to give Octavia what she wanted. Power didn't exactly grow on trees. His life would be significantly easier if it did.
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Author's Corner
Don't forget to leave a review with your thoughts! Do you think Sesshoumaru's decision to threaten Hiroto will come back to bite him in the arse later? And is he liking Octavia a little bit too much as of late... Who can tell? You'll have to wait and see what happens next! Thank you all so much for reading and I'll see you next time!