Possession!

That's MY Shinzahou!

Episode 30

Things wren't quite going as planned, but then again, things usually never went according to plans. Lina had found Tamahome safe and sound and in the company of two Byakko no Shichi Seishi, who were nice enough to give them the Byakko no Shinzahou. However, said Shinzahou was in the company of a third Byakko no Shichi Seishi by the name of Tatara, and all was apparently not well with him. Subaru and Tokaki frantically searched around themselves both physically and by using their ki.

"His ki," gasped Tokaki. "It's getting fainter! What's going on? If he leaves the temple, then..."

Lina could feel a massive headache coming on. She ran her hands through her hair, trying to calm down. "That must mean Nakago and his gang have gotten their grimy hands on the Shinzahou first. They're ruthless - they'll do anything to get it."

"Up there!" Subaru pointed to the strange tower on the hill. "There have been reports of strange sightings of monsters and strange people there recently."

"We've got to hurry!" gasped Tokaki. "Outside of the temple, Tatara is very weak!"

"What about the rest of the Suzaku no Shichi Seishi?" asked Lina. "We need to wait for them. No offense, but we can't fight the Seiryuu no Shichi Seishi alone."

"There's no time!" protested Tokaki. "Tatara will -"

Tamahome clocked him over the head. "She's right. You've never dealt with Nakago before. He's incredibly strong."

"DON'T HIT YOUR MASTER OVER THE HEAD, OBAKE-CHAN!"

Before they could fight, Lina and Subaru imposed their bodies between the men. "You're fighting the wrong people," said the young sorceress, a vein popping on her forehead. "Let me send up the signal flare and they'll be here faster than you can recite the incantation for the dragon slave."

"Enslave Seiryuu?" wondered Tokaki before being clocked over the head again.

"Flare Arrow!" A thin line of fire shot into the air and burst into a bright fireball before evaporating into the sky. A hapless bee flew off before it could get fried.

Less than fifteen seconds had passed when...

"Here we are, no da! Sorry for the wait, na no da!"

Lina resisted the urge to throttle Chichiri. It was a very strong urge but she was successful in not haranguing the monk. After all, he had managed to gather up the rest of the Suzaku no Shichi Seishi and deposit them in a large (albeit untidy) heap before him.

"Minna!" gasped Tamahome.

"Good to see you in one piece, Obake-chan," grinned Tasuki as he extricated himself from the pile. "But who are those two old people?"

"Who's a monster?!" demanded Tamahome.

"Who's old?!" demanded Tokaki in the same instant.

"Doesn't this look familiar," Lina groaned. "Come on, let's go to the tower to retrieve the Byakko no Shinzahou! These two are Byakko no Shichi Seishi but their other friend, another Shichi Seishi, seems to have been captured by Nakago or something because his ki is getting fainter and it's all having something to do with strange monsters and folks in yon tower, so let's go let's go let's go and stop wasting time!"

Chiriko looked stunned that Lina could have said so much so fast and without one pause for sentence structure or air.

Always a girl of action, Lina stomped off towards the tower. The others followed closely behind. "Okay, so here's my plan," she said. "Tokaki, Subaru, and I are going to sneak in and find Tatara and get the Shinzahou. The rest of you guys will fight the guards and make a big commotion to cover us."

"Are you sure?" asked Tamahome nervously.

"Yes I'm sure!" Lina hissed. "Tokaki and Subaru can find this Tatara by his ki, you can't."

"She has a point, no da."

For once, Lina didn't feel like throttling Chichiri. "Right," she agreed. "So are we all in agreement?"

Everyone nodded.

"Good, 'cause we're almost there."

Lina and the two Byakko no Shichi Seishi flattened themselves against the wall as they heard the echo of footsteps again.

"That's the fifth time," muttered Tokaki angrily. "Tatara is close, I can feel it, but this is getting so frustrating!"

"Sssh!" warned Lina, listening closely. The long, twisting corridors had the annoying effect of amplifying almost any sound, and also served to confuse the wanderer. They were lost, not that Lina cared at this point, since Tokaki and Subaru were searching for Tatara by ki. However, she was sure the footsteps were getting louder...

They were getting louder. And judging by their frequency, there were more than one person and they were walking quickly.

"Split up!" Lina decided instantly, ducking down another passageway. Subaru and Tokaki looked startled but darted into two separate passages as well.

Heartbeats later, several bodies went hurtling down the hall at high speed. Lina caught a quick glance; they looked like monks. None of them looked down any of the side passages, probably because it took all their concentration to stay on the right path. Once they had passed, Lina let out a great sigh of relief. She paused a few seconds more, and when no more footsteps were heard, started looking for the Byakko no Shichi Seishi.

Except they weren't there. Then she realized she was standing in a different passage. She didn't recall there being a tapestry before. This meant only one thing. For the umpteenth time, Lina was lost. She didn't dare call out for the others, knowing someone else could easily hear her. With a quiet sigh, she started sneaking down the corridor.

More footsteps pounded nearby, and she reflexively flattened herself against the wall - only to find no wall behind her. Apparently, the tapestry was the door for the classic hidden passageway, something she should have realized earlier. She fell over backwards in a most embarrassing manner, landing in a large chamber.

"And what have we here?" wondered a highly amused voice.

Lina was on her feet in an instant, facing off the smirking Nakago. Beside him, floating several feet into the air as if the laws of gravity had taken a vacation, was a strange young boy who looked monkish. He held a prayer wheel in his hand.

"So this is Suzaku no Miko?" wondered the boy.

"Indeed it is, Miboshi."

Miboshi chuckled darkly, spinning the prayer wheel. "Yes, very amusing indeed."

Lina felt a sudden chill. She sprang into action, throwing her hands in front of her and yelling, "Flare Arrow!"

Or rather, she tried to. When she opened her mouth, nothing came out.

"Miboshi...?"

"I heard that Suzaku no Miko talks altogether way too much, so I decided to do something about it." Miboshi chuckled again, confirming Lina's suspicions that, somehow, the kid had done something about her voice.

"An interesting approach," remarked Nakago coolly. "Especially seeing as how Naga-sama mentioned wanting to talk with this young girl." He strode over and grabbed her arm tightly. "No matter. It's time we got the Byakko no Shinzahou anyways."

Lina struggled in the man's iron grasp, but to no avail. As he started dragging her down another hallway, she wanted to scream. She tried to scream, to somehow warn the others, but nothing came out. Her mind screamed instead.

Let Go Of Me You Stupid Excuse For A Mazoku! Tamahome! Chichiri! Tasuki! Mitsukake, Chiriko, Subaru, Tokaki!! Minna! TASUKETE!!

Tamahome stopped dead in his tracks. He could have sworn he had just heard Lina's voice...

"Abunai, Obake-chan!"

Angrily, he turned to yell at Tasuki, only to be engulfed in a swath of flame.

"Sorry, Tama-chan, but that monster would have made you into a real obake-chan," said Tasuki without a hint of apology in his voice.

"You just HAD to do that, DIDN'T you?!" snarled the singed Shichi Seishi, grabbing the hot-headed bandit by his collar.

Tasuki grinned, showing his fangs. "It was either that or see you become monster-fodder."

"Stop it, both of you!" cried Chiriko. "It's bad enough with all those scary monsters without you guys fighting, too!" He looked to be close to tears.

"Ch...Chiriko-chan... what's wrong?" blinked Tasuki.

"Just now, I ... I..." He looked up at them. "Guys, I'm not a strong as you, and this whole thing is really starting to scare me a lot. When you fight, it only makes it worse..."

Mitsukake hugged the younger Shichi Seishi protectively. "It's okay, Chiriko. We're all here, together, and we'll see this thing through to the end. I promise you."

"A...arigatou," said Chiriko softly. "I know I'm not good at fighting or anything like that, but... I promise, I'll help you in any way I can."

"Yosh!" said Tasuki. "Then let's go kick some #$&^%@* and get that Shinzahou!"

Lina was propelled forcefully into the small room and the door was slammed shut behind her. Angrily, she banged her fists on the unyielding wood, veins popping all over her head and fume marks puffing out in all directions.

What the hell are you doing?! Lina punched, pummeled, even kicked the door, but it refused to open.

"Ano..." said a soft voice from behind her.

She spun around. She hadn't realized she wasn't alone. Chained, in the corner, sat a handsome young man with long, straight black hair. He had obviously seen better days; bruises made random patterns on his skin.

"Who are you?" Lina attempted to say before remembering that Miboshi had somehow taken her voice away.

"You are..." the man said. "Yes... you must be Suzaku no Miko, aren't you? You match the description Seiryuu no Miko mentioned... I'm Tatara. A Byakko no Shichi Seishi."

Byakko no Shichi Seishi? But he looks so young! Lina's mouth opened and closed but words refused to come out. She pointed to him, then to herself, then at her hair and at his, hoping he'd get the hint.

He chuckled. "Yes... I am nearly as old as Subaru and Tokaki. A friend made my body stop aging so I could protect the Byakko no Shinzahou... but its effects do not work very well outside of the temple." He coughed a few times, and a few drops of blood splattered on the ground.

Byakko no Shinzahou? That means... Before Lina could finish the thought, the door creaked open to reveal the unique visage of Naga, the White Serpent.

"Lina? Nakago-sama said you had something to say to me."

Like Philbrizo's Hell I did! Why do you have to keep listening to that slime anyways?

"Well?"

Lina slumped down, defeated. Dammit, her mind cursed. Why did you turn so cold? What happened to you that you'd rather listen to that idiot Nakago instead of me? What happened to those days where we'd fight and make up in five minutes, then go blow up some bandits? A few tears trickled down her face.

"Lina? Are... are you okay?" Naga bent down next to her, looking unusually concerned. "Did... What happened?"

Lina shook her head slowly.

"St...stop crying! Tell me what's wrong!" Naga demanded shakily. When Lina looked up, she saw tears in the black-haired woman's eyes.

"She cannot use her voice," said Tatara softly, startling them both.

"Lina... then... I bet it was that Miboshi, wasn't it? He's a nasty one; he could give a Mazoku tips on being evil. I suppose what you want to say can wait... I'm... I'm sorry, Lina."

Lina stared. Was this really the Naga she knew?

"This... this whole mess with the book and everything... And now this..." She stood up, wiping off her tears. "Tatara-san... I'm sorry, I haven't been myself lately." She took out a key and unlocked his chains. "A lot of things have been happening."

"It's alright," sighed the Byakko no Shichi Seishi. "In this turbulent time, many loose their sense of direction."

"Please... if you can give Lina the Shinzahou... then I'll go get the other one from Nakago... Lina, summon Suzaku. You deserve to more than I... Fix everything. Everything wrong in this world. Okay?"

Lina nodded, still stunned. This wasn't typical of Naga at all. Was she up to something? But at least Tatara would give her the Byakko no Shinzahou. If Naga was trying to double-cross her, she'd at least have that.

Tatara took off his earring and held it in his hands. A vine grew out of the seed, blossoming into a gorgeous white flower. In the center lay a circular mirror, polished brightly and etched with designs. "Take it, Suzaku no Miko."

Lina delicately plucked the Shinzahou from the bloom, holding it reverently. She looked at Tatara and smiled in thanks.

"It's beautiful," gasped Naga quietly. "Could I... see it for just a second?"

Still entranced, Lina held it up for Naga to look at.

Naga picked it out of Lina's hands and inspected it. "It's so beautiful," she repeated, chuckling. "And it's mine, too. You're such a gullible little fool, Lina. You really think I'd forgive you so easily? Ohohohohoooo!" Her patented laughter was what finally broke Lina out of her spell.

She lunged at Naga, but the taller sorceress dodged easily. "Ohohohohohoo! Seiryuu, here I come!" And she dashed out of the room and slammed the door shut before Lina could stop her.

Lina pounded on the door again, hitting, banging, kicking, and cursing. She cried out, Naga! That's my Shinzahou! What are you doing?!

Continue: Episode 31: Promise! In Order to Do My Duty!