Vampire Princess Miyu Fan Fiction ❯ When Friends are True-A Vampire Miyu Saga ❯ Among the Elders ( Chapter 9 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Chapter Nine



Chapter Nine
Among the Elders

The world around her began to become blurry, and it was becoming harder to see her enemies and her friends as a grayness began to swallow them. Was this death? Coldness settled in, and Miyu realized that it was not her vision. The Occidental Shinma looked confused also while the Chinese Shinma stayed in their deep bow. The forest around them went completely silent as a thick fog settled about the area.
Everything was silent and still, and the fog continued to grow thicker. It was becoming more difficult for Miyu to see the Western Shinma around her, their figures only became dark shadows in the dense mist. The blood that flowed from Miyu's wound slowed and the air became cold.
Kia's feathered ear-tuffs perked as she heard the Western Shinma whispering silently among themselves, and then she felt a new spell being woven. A strong spell that a sorcerer would know, and she, as a witch in training, knew well enough that that type of spell would destroy Miyu's body. Please come. Kia prayed. O, my high mighty God Regalia please let them come on time…
A low growling noise rumbled through the air, and the Western Shinma turned just in time to see a large white wolf burst out from the trees behind them, jaws snapping. Spartoi and Water Lipper were just barely able to dodge the ivory fangs and the wolf landed with a heavy thump before the group, then wheeled around to snarl at them. There was a second white flash, and another white wolf joined the first, fangs bared, hackles raised and ears back. "Large" was not an appropriate for them; the two wolves were huge. From a quick estimate, Pazusu guessed that these wolves were six feet at the shoulder. Or at least they had the forms of wolves. They were, in fact, Japanese Shinma, and very powerful ones at that. They were also oddly familiar… but his thoughts were blurred with shock at the sight of those fangs and their size. It was not a pleasant thought to think of what something of that size could do to them.
Miyu blinked slowly at the white flash that burst from the dark growth of the forest, now looking as if they were keeping the Western Shinma at bay. The ground began to rumble slightly, in a rhythmic thumping that signified that something was approaching. Something very big and very close. The fog began to swirl and move, as if parting for the advancing creatures. Something moved in the fog; they were three very large beings, heading towards Miyu, the Chinese Shinma, and the Western Shinma. Around her, Miyu could feel the Western Shinma moving away from her, into a close group, leaving her standing alone between them and the three Japanese Shinma that were approaching them. The Chinese Shinma still have not moved from their deep kneeling position. Miyu felt another wave of pain, and exhaustion overcame her and she collapsed to her knees, straining to look up to meet the gaze of the Japanese Shinma who stood before her.
There was a strong presence that surrounded the Shinma, and it told Miyu that these were the Elders of the lower Layers of the Japanese Shinma Realm. The closest thing the only of them resembled was a huge brown boar, complete with powerful form and high shoulders, narrow eyes and a long snout. The long tusks that grew from his mouth were turned down and stuck out in from of him. Large spike-like growths grew along his back, starting just above his eyes and stopping at his lower back. He was Somuku, the Elder of the Third Layer, and since he had been just recently chosen for the position, he was younger than the other two that stood beside him.
The Elder of the Fourth Layer was huge- he had to be at least ten to fifteen feet tall. He looked like a reptile, with a narrow head set on a long neck set on a lengthy body. His long arms hung down to the ground, his broad hands and slender fingers ended in curved claws. He had a long, thick tail that lay coiled behind him. His skin was dark green splattered with dark brown and pale scars, and thin, stringy hair grew from his forehead to the tip of his tail, hanging long along his back and sides, as well as growing on the back of his arms and powerful legs. Sharp teeth poked out of his thin lips among two sets of long, cracked tusks. His eyes were pale and unfocused; he was blind. His name was Mukashi, the Elder of the Fourth Layer.
It was the Elder of the Fifth Layer that caught the attention of Miyu and the Western Shinma. The feeling of eons past surrounded her. She looked like a black wolf, ten feet tall at the shoulder with steel claws and yellow eyes. No, not yellow; they were as gold as Miyu's eyes, all-seeing and all-knowing in their mysterious, almost seductive gaze. She was Mori, the most powerful Shinma of the entire Realm under Miyu. There had been not one being in all the worlds known who has stood up to her and survived. It has been said that the ground beneath her slender paws became scorched and black. With the speed and the ability to move silently in the dark shadows, combined with her intelligence, she was a perfect portrait of beauty and danger.
One of the smaller white wolf Shinma turned his head slightly, his jaws still twitching as if he was ready to bite into something. WE HAVE FOUND THEM, MOTHER, BUT NOT SOON ENOUGH. THE SENTINAL IS DYING. He said in a male's voice.
Mori eyed the Western Shinma. It felt like she was searching their souls. She said in a Voice of an older woman full of wisdom and knowledge of the past: VERY GOOD, MIOSHI, OKKOTO, AND CHINESE SHINMA. YOU MAY RISE NOW. Her jaws barely moved as she spoke; her Voice was projected from her mind. Only Shinma of incredible power could do that. The Chinese Shinma did not hesitate to move from their spots. Miyu, Tacha and Yoto immediately went over to Miyu while Yoshi and Ryuko drew their magical swords, their eyes telling the Western Shinma that they would tear apart the first one that moved. WHICH ONE OF YOU IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS? Mori demanded. FOR WHAT REASONS DID YOU FEEL YOU HAD TO DO THIS? I DEMAND THAT THE LEADER OF THIS PARTY SPEAK!
To Yoshi and Ryuko's surprise, Cait Sith stepped forward first. "Get back in line, you purple-haired freak of nature!" Yoshi snapped harshly, thrusting his sword at him. The hilt of his sword was a heavy pattern of silver and gold blades with a large blood-red crystal mounted on top, and the long blade forked two different directions into scythe-like curves. "You don't have the balls to be the leader." Cait Sith looked as if he was taken aback, but the fire in their eyes made him fall back a step.
"That vampire took him away from us!" Carlua snapped, holding on tightly to Larva's cloak. "It is what she deserves!" Mori remained silent, narrowing her eyes as she moved her captivating gaze to Larva.
YOU… IS THIS TRUE? She asked calmly. Hearing her Voice that calm was more frightening than hearing her Voice had she showed her anger. I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN THAT SOMETHING LIKE THIS WAS BOUND TO HAPPEN. IF I HAD KNOWN WHAT A PROBLEM YOU WOULD CAUSE I WOULD HAVE HAD YOU KILLED MANY YEARS BEFORE.
WESTERN SHINMA… Somoku snorted loudly. WHAT GOOD HAS EVER COME FROM THEM? He sounded like a very arrogant young man.
IT HAS ALSO BEEN SAID THAT YOUR GOAL IS TO KILL ALL FIVE LAYERS OF THE JAPANESE SHINMA REALM. Mori said coldly. She took a bold step forward. The ground trembled under her black paw, and her claws scourged the earth black where they touched. HERE I AM. I AM MORI, THE ELDER OF THE FIFTH LAYER. WHO DARES CHALLENGE ME? Nobody moved. Only Yoshi and Ryuko shifted their swords in their hands and Mioshi and Okkoto deepened their growls.
Yoto undid the cape that was attached to his shoulder armor and ripped it into thin strips. Miyu's head rested on Tacha's lap, and Kia placed a hand on her head. Yoshi and Ryuko stood guard, holding their swords out in front of them with only a thin line of self-control keeping them from rushing forward and attacking. Miyu groaned lightly, turning her head as sweat appeared on her brow. "She's lost a lot of blood, and she has a fever." Yoto took the strips of light blue cloth and wrapped them with surprising tenderness around Miyu's wound, slowing the blood flow more. The Chinese Shinma women looked at the Elders with pleading eyes. "Is there anything you can do?"
THAT IS WHY WE ARE HERE. Mukashi approached them. His Voice was deep and slow, as if he was very tired. GIVE THE CHILD TO ME. Yoto picked up Miyu slowly, making sure that he did not cause any further pain to her and gently placed her in Mukashi's scaly arms. Miyu groaned again, her head turning from side to side as her breathing became labored.
"Wait a minute!" Carlua said, not letting go of Larva. "Where are you doing?"
WE'RE TAKING THE CHILD. Mori said. AND IF ANY OF YOU FOLLOW US… The two smaller white wolves on either side of her lunged forward, growling loudly with bared teeth. THEY WILL KILL YOU. CHINESE SHINMA, SHEALTH YOUR SWORDS; YOU WILL NOT NEED THEM NOW. YOU WILL FOLLOW US TO THE FIFTH LAYER. BOTH SIDES WILL HOLD FOR THE TIME BEING. WESTERN SHINMA, HAVE YOU ANY PRIDE AT ALL YOU WILL RETURN TO YOUR SHIP AND STAY THERE.. With that the Elders turned and disappeared into the thick mist from which they came, taking Miyu with them.
Kia and Tacha stood and everyone stayed perfectly still after the Elders left, utterly silent. "In the near future, you will rely on us to bale your asses out of a hole that you've dug so deep you can't get out. Don't count on that help any time soon." Kia said, not adverting her gaze from where the Elders stood only moments before. The Chinese Shinma began to follow the Elders into the mist, making a point not to look at the Western Shinma as they departed. Ryuko, on the other hand, did not even move two steps before he swung around to glare at Cait Sith through his hard yellow eyes, then hauled back and punched him in the face, his ring striking him right between the eyes, knocking him out cold. Cait Sith actually hit the ground and tumbled head over heels once before remaining motionless. Ryuko flexed his fingers, his knuckles cracking loudly.
"There. For now, we are even." And they left, just like that, following the Elders into the mist-cloaked forest to a waiting Transportation Gate, leaving the Western Shinma utterly speechless.
They came out the other side of the Gate near the foot of a steeply sloping hill that seemed more like a mountain when they craned their necks to look up at it. The Elders were not too far ahead of them, moving at a slower pace then maybe the Chinese Shinma preferred, with Mioshi and Okkoto following close. Miyu was lying still in Mukashi's arms, not dead, but merely sleeping, occasionally griming in pain when the Elder's foot caught a ditch in the ground. The Chinese Shinma hurried quickly after them, staying close to their sides and being careful as to not to pass them or walk ahead. That would have been a great sign of disrespect. After some time of silence, Ryuko finally asked: "Where exactly are we?"
ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF THE THIRD LAYER. Somoku answered gruffly. CREATING A GATE ANY CLOSER MAY HAVE HURT THE GUARDIAN TO A GREATER EXTENT. THE FOURTH AND FIFTH LAYERS LAY JUST BEYOND THOSE HILLS. Ryuko only nodded, and they were all quiet again. Not even the birds were singing- or whatever inhabited the branches of trees in the Japanese Shinma Realm.
The small awkward party began to climb the hills into the Fourth Layer. There was a distinct change in the atmosphere as they moved deeper into the Japanese Spirit Realm; the magic in the air became heavier, like growing humidity before a raging thunderstorm; influence from the higher Shinma that dwelt here. To the surprise of the Chinese Shinma, the Elders made their way up the hillside very easily and at an even more rapid rate than the younger Chinese Shinma. It was amazing how much energy someone as ancient as the Elders truly had in them. And Mori had to be, what? Fourteen billion? The only thing the Chinese Shinma knew that she an Mukashi were old when the Earth Realm was new. They might have even known some of the vampires before the long-dead clan had been killed off. Soon the group trailed off into two parties; the Elders preceding at a pace that kept them a few hundred yards before the Chinese Shinma, leaving the younger ones puffing behind them. As the forest became denser, they had to rely on the scorched prints that Mori's paws left in the earth to make sure they were not on the wrong trail. The Elders moved so silently while the Chinese Shinma crashed through the brush behind them, disturbing the quiet serenity of the Japanese Shinma Realm. Had they not been so tired, they probably would not have been so loud. It had been almost a full day without and food or sleep, and they had been fighting intense magic battles.
Soon- it felt more like hours- they reached the top of the hill, where they met the Elders taking a break. The Chinese Shinma looked up and saw that where the hilltop ended there was the beginning of a foot of another massive hill. The now seemingly-smaller Douglas firs, evergreens and oaks of the high level Layers gave away to massive cedar, sequoia and conifer trees that stretched hundreds of feet into the gray sky. The landscape around them was becoming more rugged; the ground often dropped off into deep canyons all around them, sometimes leaving a small island or strip of land a few feet across before dropping off into steep cliffs lined by the trunks of massive trees and boulders. Everything was green and brown, the tranquil colors of a forest, and a soft wind blew through the trees, making a gentle hushing noise. The breeze also brought with it the smell of wood, decaying leaves and fresh rain. Despite everything that was going on, Kia took a deep breath and stretched her long arms to the sky and unfolded her wings, spreading them wide. "So pretty..." She mumbled to herself. "Kinda like home." She suddenly shook her head violently from side to side, folding her wings back behind her and dropping her arms to her sides and looked over to where Mukashi stood. Tacha stood over Miyu, her hand on her forehead. "How is she?" Kia asked as she approached. She already knew the answer; red blood, so dark it was nearly black, was already beginning to soak through the strip of cloth that Yoto had tied around the wound.
"Not good." Tacha said. "I think her fever may be getting worse, if that was possible."
SHE CAN NOT HOLD ONTO LIFE MUCH LONGER. Mori said, though there was no tone of worry in her Voice. IF WE REMAIN HERE MUCH LONGER SHE WILL DIE. COME ALONG, WE DO NOT HAVE FAR TO GO.
Tacha never did quite understand how the senses worked in the lower Layers of the Japanese Shinma Realm; the foot of the next hill seemed only a few dozen feet away from where they had rested, yet it took another hour before the land began to slope again. Or at least it seemed like an hour. Time was really odd in the lower levels as well. Time also seemed to move at an abnormal pace when she was anxious about something, like now. If they did not get Miyu to the Fifth Layer soon, then she would die. If Miyu died then so did all the Western Shinma. Tacha even vowed to herself that she would send their dead bodies back to their world on their own ship and the masts would serve as gallows that the corpses would sway from. She swore it!
It looked as if another break-taking and exhausting climb was underway, but the Elders were approaching a part of the hill that rose vertically into the air, and the Chinese Shinma doubted that the Elders had the energy to climb straight up. But they continued walked towards the gray stone wall, into a grove thick with cedar and over-grown shrubs, and disappeared. For a moment the Chinese Shinma could only look at each other, then with a shrug, followed Mori's scorched trail to the stone face of the huge hill. They pushed their way past the shrubs, bending back branches while being no less quiet than they were earlier, and found that the solid wall gave way to a gaping cave that stretched far into the mountain. From where they were standing, the Chinese Shinma could see the end of the cavern as a small dot of pale green light, though much of it was blocked by the immense size of the Elders. The cave was damp and smelt strong of mildew, but was certainly large enough for all three Elders to walk side by side without crowding each other. Without saying a word, the younger Shinma followed them into the darkness. Only the sound of dripping water could be heard over the echo of their footsteps as they moved through the cave. The magic in the air grew stronger to a point where it was almost overpowering by the time they stepped out into the elusive Fifth Layer of the Japanese Shinma Realm.
Large and small islands alike rose from a glassy lake that kept the rest of the forest floor submerged with the same huge, dark, moss-covered trees growing from the dry land as well as the lake's depths. The upper canopy of the forest was so thick that the sunlight could not penetrate the thick branches, if there had been any sunlight. Gray clouds still hung low in the air though a chance of snow here would be unlikely. The waters of the lake were completely calm and smooth, looking like a like of crystal or glass rather than water. And the silence. There was not a sound that stirred the still air; not a bird, not an insect; the only thing that made any noise was the footsteps of the Chinese Shinma as they stepped out of the cavern and observed the land that lay before them. "The Realm of Silence." Yoshi said with a tinge of wonder in his voice. Even at a whisper, he sounded uncomfortably loud. "So this is why it got that name."
"We are walking on sacred ground." Yoto said, trying to lower his voice to a point where they could still make out what he was saying. "I am surprised that they let us come here at all. The ancient scrolls say this is where the vampires of lost yore used to live. For any other Shinma other than the high Elders to come here is a great privilege."
CHINESE SHINMA. DO YOU PLAN TO STAND THERE AND GAWK OR SHALL YOU AID US? Though it did not sound it, Mori's voice was beginning to edge on urgency. The Chinese Shinma immediately snapped themselves back to reality and ran after the Elders. Or tried to, anyways, trying to make as less noise as possible and not to crush anything underfoot. All the plants that covered the ground, which was usually downy green moss that made the rocks below them seem soft, was beaded in silver dew that felt cool beneath their sensitive feet.
The Elders had encircled the pool over to a small raised platform of stone covered in the same green moss and thin creepers that were dotted with red flowers. TAKE HER FROM ME. Mukashi ordered. Yoto again gently took Miyu in his arms and lifted her from Mukashi's embrace. His forearms and wide scaly hands were splotched with blood. NOW LAY HER ON THE PLATFORM. Yoto did as the ancient Elder commanded and lay Miyu on top of the stone platform, carefully folding her arms beneath her breasts. Her already pale face was flushed and sweat matted her dark hair to her forehead, but when her head came to rest on the scaffold she relaxed and lay still. She may have been dead if one did not notice her breathing, which seemed to come easier now. Looking down at her with golden eyes gone unexpectedly gentle, Mori closed them slowly and uttered one word that the Chinese Shinma did not understand and a dome of soft blue light was raised around the platform that Miyu was now laying upon.
THERE. THAT WILL HELP KEEP HER ALIVE UNTIL WE CAN HEAL THAT WOUND OF HERS. SO DO NOT TOUCH THE DOME. IT WILL SUCK THE LIFE FROM YOUR FINGERTIPS AND DESTROY YOUR BODY BEFORE YOU HAVE A CHANCE TO SCREAM. Mori commanded sharply as Kia was reaching forward to touch the blue shield. She pulled back quickly, flexing her fingers as if to make sure they were still all there.
"Why?" She asked, then remembered her manners towards Elders. "Elder, why may I ask that she required so much protection? I mean, I love Miyu like a younger sister and I am forever grateful that you saved her and are keeping her safe, but I doubt the Western Shinma will come here, to the Fifth Layer."
NOR HAVE I EXPECTED THEM TO COME TO THE JAPANESE SHINMA REALM AT ALL, MUCH LESS DESTORY THE WESTERN GATE, KILL OSA AND TURN OUR SENTINAL'S OWN SHIMOBE AGAINST HER. IN THESE TIMES, WE CANNOT TAKE CHANCES.
I COULD HAVE GUESSED AS MUCH. Somoku snorted. HER SHIMOBE WAS A WESTERN SHINMA, MORI. IT WAS JUST A MATTER OF TIME BEFORE HE TURNED ON HER. HE PROBABLY ONLY GOT CLOSE TO THE GIRL TO ALLOW SOMETHING LIKE THIS TO HAPPEN.WE DID NOT TAKE HEED WHEN WE LEARNED THAT SHE HAD BONDED TO HIM. WHILST MY BLOOD BOILED IN RAGE YOU AND MUKASHI BARELY TOOK ANY NOTICE. AND NOW OUR SENTINAL IS DYING. WE SHOULD HAVE KILLED HIM TO MOMENT WE LEARNED OF THE BLOOD BOND AND KILLED HIM AND SAVE OURSELVES A LOT OF TROUBLE.
Mukashi glared at Somoku, or at least tried to. He was glaring, but not at the Elder of the Third Layer. YOU WERE STILL YOUNG, SOMOKU, JUST AS SHE WAS, AND LIKE YOU, SHE HAD MADE MISTAKES HERSELF. WE ALL MAKE MISTAKES WHEN WE ARE YOUNG AND INNOCENT. SHE HAD ONLY JUSY AWOKEN WHEN SHE TOOK HIS BLOOD BY ACCIDENT.
I ADMIT TO MYSELF THAT I NOW REGRET NOT SOLVING THIS PROBLEM AS SOON AS IT HAD REACHED MY EARS, BUT WHAT WERE WE TO DO? Mori inquired to the other two Elders. It seemed as if she had forgotten the Chinese Shinma completely, who still stood looking over Miyu with troubled looks on their faces. RIP OUT HIS THROAT IN FRONT OF A YOUNG SHINMA WHO HAD BEEN RAISED A HUMAN, RAISED ON HUMAN EMOTIONS? WE HAVE FOUGHT IN BATTLES, TAKEN WOUNDS AND KILLED OUR ENEMIES IN WAYS THAT HUMANS HAVE NOT EVEN SEEN IN THEIR NIGHTMARES. IT WOULD HAVE BEEN CRUEL TO KILL HIM IN FRONT OF HER YOUNG EYES. THOUGH SHE WAS AN ADOLENSENT IN HUMAN TERMS WHEN SHE WAS JUST THIRTEEN, HAD SHE BEEN BORN AND RAISED AS SHINMA, IN THIRTEEN YEARS SHE WOULD HAVE STILL BEEN IN HER SWADDLING CLOTHES.
"What will we do now?" Tacha asked.
THE WESTERN SHINMA WHO POSED AS HER SHIMOBE WILL DIE. IF OUR LAST VAMPIRE DIES, THEN SO DO ALL OF THEM. BUT, BECAUSE OF CIRCUMSTANCES, WE CANNOT DO THIS WITHOUT RISKING DAMAGING OUR WORLDS. THEY WILL NOT DIE, NOT YET, ANYWAY. BUT IF THAT ONE FEELS THAT HE SHOULD TAKE VENEGNCE ON MIYU… WHAT IS HE CALLED BY?
"Larva," Ryuko said. It sounded like he had to bite his tongue to get the word out. "His name is Larva."
Mori only snorted, a sign that she would not say his name now even that she knew IF HE HARMS HER AGAIN, HE SHALL BE THE FIRST TO GO.
"I have to admit, I never really liked to guy." Kia said. "But if you kill him, then I think it will put Miyu in an even worse position than she is already in. She loved him, Elder, probably in just about every way there is. She will not let him go easily, and will probably go to great distances to get him back. We believe that the Western Shinma have done something to him when they took him back to their ship after our first major battle."
Yoto said, "He was killed in that battle, or so we thought. That was less than a half a day ago."
YOU MEAN IF MIYU AWAKES. Mori said as if she did not want to hear excuses to why the enemy should live. The Chinese Shinma knew how she was. They remembered how she fought during the Shinma Wars when they came to the shores of the Japanese Shinma Realm. HER OWN BLOOD COULD HEAL HER WOUNDS, BUT SHE HAS LOST TOO MUCH TO HEAL THE WORST OF THEM. TO SAVE HER, WE NEED TO BLOOD OF ANOTHER VAMPIRE.
"Another vampire?" The Chinese Shinma echoed. "But you said yourself that she was the last."
HAVE YOU HEARD OF YUI, OF THE SHI CLAN? SHE RECEIVED BLOOD WHILST SHE WAS STILL IN HER MOTHER'S WOMB AND WAS THEREFORE BORN A VAMPIRE. ACTUALLY, SINCE SHE IS THE DAUGHTER OF A HUMAN MOTHER AND A SHI FATHER AND ONLY RECEIVED THE BLOOD WHEN MIYU GRANTED HER MOTHER THE GIFT OF ETERNAL HAPPINESS, SHE IS REALLY ONLY HALF A VAMPIRE. BUT SHE IS VAMPIRE ENOUGH TO SAVE MIYU. I NEED YOU FIVE TO FIND YUI AND BRING HER BACK HERE, SAFE AND UNHARMED. I AM SURE THAT THE WESTERN SHINMA KNOW OF HER AS WELL AND WILL TRY TO KILL HER. BE WARNED THAT THE SHI CLAN IS A VERY SHY RACE AND RARELY HELP PEOPLE OUTSIDE THEIR CLAN. BUT YUI WILL UNDERSTAND. NOW GO. TIME IS SHORT.
"What about Miyu?" Ryuko asked.
I WILL STAY HERE WITH HER WHILST MUKASHI AND SOMOKU RETURN TO WATCH OVER THEIR LAYERS. THE WESTERN SHINMA WILL MOVE SOON TO CONQUER AGAIN, SO BE WARY. To her silent delight, the Chinese Shinma merely nodded and left. Mori looked back over at Miyu and came to rest on the ground next to the platform where the vampire lay, feeling her old bones creek.
* * *
Miyu ran through the forest at break-neck speed but hardly cared. She could still taste it, the hot blood in her throat even though it burnt from the cold air and anguish. She wanted to die, it hurt so much. Everything hurt- her whole body, her raw throat, the back of her eyes throbbing with stabbing pain... Most of all her soul. It felt as if her heart and soul were being ripped to shreds. So this was suffering; sure there had been times when she was in pain before, like when she fell out of that tree in front of her window when she was five and when she fell on the ice of a frozen lake the same winter, but it never hurt more than a few hours. And she never cried. But this... this was real pain. The sort that made her want to end her life right then and there. The type that made her stop caring about everything.
Mother... why?
Why had her mother done it? Why had her mother not done it? The knife was in her hand, positioned, read to pierce Miyu's young heart... but it merely thudded to the ground when her mother's hand fell limply to her side. Limp with death. Death from when Miyu drank her blood. Miyu killed her own mother, and instead of being released of the pain, like she should have been, she was still living, and now was running through the forest, not wanting to live.
Then he was there, standing before her, making her halt in her tracks. Her feet were burning as badly as her throat but she never even noticed them. The pale moonlight that filtered in through the tree branches seemed to highlight the features of his beautiful face, full of worry for her. The wind that Miyu had heard roaring in her ears as she ran did not even move his light blue hair. For several long moments they only stared at each other. Miyu unconsciously worked on controlling her breathing until she was able to speak. Each word tore at her throat like a white-hot razor. "You came here to kill me, right?" she demanded at him. "Please, just get it over with..." With a choking sob Miyu ran again, this time into his arms that folded around her body as she shook from the tears she shed against his black cloak. "I don't need anything, anymore. Erase...erase everything. Make the pain go away..." He never said a word while he held her there in the nighttime forest, soothing her tousled hair and slowly rocked her back and forth.
But for the time being, that was all she needed.
* * *
Mori watched Miyu as she twisted her head from side to side under the magical dome that surrounded the stone platform. Her lips parted just slightly as if she was going to say something, but was only about to make a deep groan in the back of her throat that could not be heard by human ears. Tears trickled from the corners of her eyes and into her dark hair that lay fanned out under her. Mori did not need the skills of mind reading to know what she was dreaming about.
SAY THAT YOU DON'T FEEL THIS PAIN ALL THE TIME, CHILD. Mori thought as she watched the young vampire. YOU ARE UNLIKE ANY VAMPIRE THAT I HAVE MET IN MY ENTIRE LIFE. YOU ARE LIKE ME. YOU ARE LIKE KINAMI…
SOMETHING TROUBLES YOU, MOTHER? Mori turned her head slowly to meet the a pair of the golden eyes of her sons, Mioshi and Okkoto. Their gazes also fell on Miyu, whose nightmares still continued to torture her mind. YOU ARE WORRIED ABOUT THIS GIRL?
I WAS MERELY THINKING OF HOW SHE REMINDED ME OF MYSELF, AND EVEN MORE OF KINAMI. HER STRONG WILL AND BRAVE SPIRIT, AND HER WILL TO PUT HERSELF IN SITUATIONS WHERE SHE DID NOT CARE IF SHE DIED OR NOT, JUST AS LONG AND THOSE SHE LOVED SURVIVED. TO GO EVEN TO AN EXTENT AS TO DISOBEY MY ORDERS…
Mioshi and Okkoto immediately lowered their heads when they heard their Mother speak that name, their ears falling back limply against their hackles and their tails tucked beneath their legs. KINAMI… YES, THAT'S HOW SHE WAS, WASN'T IT?
I CAN ALMOST SEE HER INSIDE THIS GIRL.
MOTHER… Okkoto began. SHE WILL NEVER TAKE KINAMI'S PLACE.
I AM NOT SAYING THAT SHE WILL TAKE KINAMI'S PLACE. NO ONE CAN EVER DO THAT, AND YOU TWO KNOW IT. Mori said, smiling at her children. Or smiling to a wolf's capabilities. SHE JUST HAS HER SPIRIT, THAT'S ALL. THERE IS SOMETHING VERY SPECIAL ABOUT THIS GIRL, AND I AM NOT LOOSING HER TO ANYBODY. NOT ANYBODY