Chasing The Sun - Act 23
Disclaimer: Mature Content and Graphic Violence
"And in the master's chambers, they gathered for the feast.
They stab it with their steely knives, but they just can't kill the beast.
- The Eagles, "Hotel California"
Lanzhou, May 12-13
"Hey! Gojyo! You can't get shotgun!" Goku complained from Hakuryu's backseat. "Your stupid smoke keeps blowin' in my face!"
"Oh, I'm sorry. I forgot we had a kid in the back," Gojyo drawled nonchalantly. Gojyo fiddled with the radio then leaned back on the front seat with his hands cradling the back of his head.- acting like he did not have a care in the world.
"Gah! I wish we could pick up some decent music out here," I muttered. I missed my music collection and wished I had a portable mp3 player with my thousands of music files saved on it.
"What did you call me?!" Goku squawked. Goku and Gojyo reminded me of a pair of banty roosters with their constant bickering.
Genjyo squeezed my waist with his left hand. Genjyo always sat on my right in the backseat because a.) I was deaf in my left ear, b.) I would be easier to defend if I was in the middle, and c.) he could keep Gojyo away from me. Genjyo's other excuse was he wanted to keep Goku and Gojyo apart, although they still bickered constantly in spite of the space between them. The seating arrangement worked fine for me because I could cuddle with Genjyo and talk to Goku - when Goku was not arguing with Gojyo that is. Genjyo propped his right elbow on the metal bar beside the backseat and covered the side of his face with his hand. "Gods dammit! Will you two give it a rest? Or do I need to make you get out and run to India?" he snapped tiredly.
"Ah ha ha. Now now. I'm sure we'll reach Lanzhou soon," Hakkai chuckled. "It'll be nice to sleep under a real roof again."
We had reached the east end of the Gansu Corridor. Mountain ranges rose on both sides of the road. Ahead of us, I could see the ocher muddied waters of the Yellow River flowing northeast. Juniper, pinyon, and other desert plants struggled to survive among the jutting granite rocks along the road. I wished we could stop and gather pinyon nuts and Mormon tea.
We smelled Lanzhou before we saw it. Smoke from the town's many factories choked the air. A thick layer of dust from the Gobi Desert covered everything.
"Welcome to paradise," I remarked as we pulled into the middle of town and stopped in the commercial district. Genjyo grunted in agreement. Gojyo and Goku jumped out and went to check out the ruckus from a nearby gang of rowdies.
"You little bitch! I told you to apologize!" one of the punks growled.
"No! You're the one who bumped into me! You did it one purpose!" a girl cried. I could not see her through the crowd of punks surrounding her. Grimmy snarled and flattened his ears. I grabbed the dog's collar and ordered him to stay put. We hoped to stay the night here, and we did not need the hassle of dealing with my dog biting someone even if they deserved it.
"Such attitude. Why don't you just leave the bag, and we'll let this one slide," Another punk drawled. "You don't want us to scar your pretty face, do you?"
"Leave me alone before I..." the girl shouted. Gojyo kicked one of the punks in the back and stood with his booted foot on the back of the dude's head - smashing his face into the concrete sidewalk.
"Tch. Damn. Just a kid." Gojyo snorted. "Yo! Is there an inn around here? An inn." I could see the girl sitting on the sidewalk now as the punks shuffled away from Gojyo. It was like watching black pepper scatter over water when you drop a little lemon juice in it.
"Why, you son of a bitch!" one of the bolder punks said and drew a knife. "You picked the wrong neighborhood, pal!" Goku slugged this guy and broke his nose.
"What the hell?!" one of that punk's cronies bawled.
"Bingo!" Goku crowed. Genjyo climbed into the front of the jeep and stood up with his right hand clutching the top of Hakuryu's windshield and his other hand balled into fist. The sunlight flashed off his crown.
"Hey, Goku, Gojyo! I thought I told you to keep a low profile!" Genjyo shouted.
"We stand out fairly well ourselves, Sanzo," Hakkai remarked.
"Yeah. You're eight and a half times more conspicuous," Goku taunted Genjyo. "Driving through town in that thing."
Goku picked up an apple that must have rolled out of the girl's bag and handed it to her. "Ya dropped this," he said. She looked at him dumbstruck. "Can you help us out? We've been on the road for ages, and we could really use an inn with good food," Goku told her.
"And a parking lot, if possible," Hakkai added.
"Um...I, uh...sure. My family runs an inn," the girl stammered.
Hakkai asked the girl for directions to her family's inn, then we went shopping. Genjyo found an ATM machine where he used the gold credit card the Sanbutsushin had given him to withdraw enough RMB in cash for Hakkai to pay for our purchases with. Genjyo and I dropped my formal dress and his soiled set of robes and priestly undergarments off at a dry cleaner's shop, while Hakkai and the others went to a laundrymat to wash everyone's other dirty clothes. Genjyo took me to a clothing shop where I bought an azure blue one-piece swimsuit, a filmy t-shirt, a beach robe, and some tank tops, skirts, and shorts to replace the ones that were too damaged or bloodstained to keep. We met up with Hakkai and the others at a grocery store. Hakkai and Gojyo went in to buy dog food; people food; beer; wine; several cartons of Marlboro Reds, Camel Turkish Jades, and High Lites cigarettes; and replaced supplies that were running low. When they returned, I suggested we get sleeping bags at a camping supply store. I was tired of sleeping on the cold hard ground even if I did get to use Genjyo as my personal pillow. My hip was still a little sore from being poked by a buried rock at the last site we had camped at. So Hakkai took Goku with him to obtain camping gear. They returned with five sleeping bags - two of which could be zipped together to form a single sleeping bag big enough for two adults, a forty foot by forty foot tarp, bungee cords, rope, tent stakes, three fishing poles, and two ten-foot flexible plastic poles. I pursuaded Genjyo to take me to a pet supply store to buy a doggy "saddle bag" and a harness for Grimmy. I figured the big dog would be useful for hauling things in terrain that Hakuryu could not drive through. When all of the shopping was done we drove to the inn. Hakkai told Hakuryu to stay parked outside. Hakuryu beep-cheeped.
A little while later, we sat around a table in the dining room of the girl's father's inn.
"Hey! That's my pork! Give it back!" Goku bawled.
"Chew with your mouth closed, you disgusting little monkey! This ain't a zoo," Gojyo complained.
"Look who's talking, you C-class perverted kappa!" Goku squawked.
"Maybe baby monkey will understand the ladies better when he reaches puberty," Gojyo sneered.
That was too much for Genjyo. He thwacked them both with the harisen and shouted, "Eat quietly, dammit! Quietly!"
"Excuse me! We need more tea," Hakkai called politely.
I struggled to use the chopsticks we had been given instead of silverwear. It was a futile effort. I just could not get the hang of the damned things. I pushed my plate away and muttered, "Bah. I need to lose more weight anyway."
Genjyo sat back down beside me and said,"Nonsense! Here, let me show you how to use these." He took my hand, positioned my fingers around the chopsticks correctly, and showed me how to use them to pick up my food. "There, that's better," he said as he watched me try again.
The girl giggled and said, "What odd people."
"You have no idea, kiddo," I murmured.
"Honored guests!! As my thanks for saving Houmei, please eat all you like," the innkeeper said.
"Daddy!" Homei exclaimed.
"We appreciate this, sir," Hakkai replied.
"Oh, it's nothing," Houmei told him. "You are traveler's from the east, are you not?"
"Yeah...that's right," Genjyo said.
"Really? That's most unusual. The eastern desert is quite dangerous. Not many humans cross it," Homei told him. "It's a wonder you made it in one piece. You must be very strong."
"Something like that," I muttered and watched Goku gobble his dinner. I slipped some pork under the table for Grimmy.
"Especially recently, with that blood thirsty band of youkai on the loose," Houmei continued. "They say the four monsters leave mountains of youkai corpses in their wake. It's as if there's a war going on, youkai against youkai."
I almost laughed. "Since when does thirty-seven youkai qualify as a mountain of corpses?" I thought. We had only been attacked twice since leaving Chang 'An.
"That's weird. Hey, guys...you don't suppose they're talking about..." Goku started to say when Gojyo shoved his face into his plate to shut him up.
"Oh. Sorry. Fly on your head. Think I got 'em. Oh, darn. It got away," Gojyo lied.
"Please don't pay them any mind. They're harmless," Hakkai told Houmei.
"Psht. They're as harmless as fleas," I whispered to Genjyo. He glanced at me and smirked in agreement.
"As long as we're on the topic, have you noticed any unusual behavior among the youkai in this area?" Genjyo asked the innkeeper.
"Unusual? That's one way to put it. Until just a little while ago, they lived peacefully among us as part of the community," The innkeeper told him. "But one day, they all disappeared without notice...leaving only the remains of the ten humans they had eaten! We have no idea what caused them to go berserk, or where they went."
"Here too, huh?" Genjyo pondered aloud.
I prodded him in the side, "Of course. West to east. Remember?" I murmured. Genjyo glanced at me and nodded.
"I hate youkai!" Houmei shrieked.
"Houmei, please," her father said placatingly.
"They eat humans! They're nothing but monsters!" Homei continued to cry. "It's impossible for humans and youkai to live together. Everyone in town says so!"
"I'm sorry. The wound is close to her," the innkeeper told us. "One of her close friends was among the people killed."
Hakkai laid his chopsticks on his empty plate and said, "Well now. That was delicious. You made all of this yourself, Miss Houmei?"
"Uh...yes." Houmei stammered.
"No way! Really? You're amazing. I haven't eaten food this good in ages!" Goku exclaimed. "Thanks! You're awesome!" Goku was right. The food was excellent, but a week of camping out would make any decent food seem wonderful, in my opinion.
"Oh...thank you," Houmei said shyly.
Hakkai sweet talked Houmei into letting him have a doggy bag of scraps which he took out to Hakuryu. Goku offered to help Houmei do chores and went with her to the kitchen.
Later, we gathered in Genjyo's and my room. Goku, Gojyo, and Hakkai sat on the bed playing cards. As usual, Hakkai won hand after hand. Genjyo sat at the table. Grimmy lay under the table with his head on Genjyo's feet. I stood behind Genjyo massaging his shoulders. Genjyo propped his elbow on the table with his chin resting on his fist. I wondered what he was thinking about.
"Has it already been ten days since we left Chang 'An?" Genjyo said aloud.
"Mmm hmm. Today is May 12," I told him.
What is it doing in the west?" he murmured.
"He must be wondering about the Seiten Sutra," I mused.
"Sanzo. Sanzo? Are you all right," Hakkai asked him. "Here. Have some coffee."
"Yeah. Thanks," Genjyo said and took the cup Hakkai offered him.
"Our chat with the innkeeper really made me realize something," Hakkai said. "Humans are quite distrusting of youkai, aren't they? Deep down I mean.
"So it would seem." Genjyo replied. "The average human doesn't know the reason for this disaster. They assume that the youkai are just showing their true colors."
"So telling them to get a clue won't work?" Gojyo asked sarcastically.
"People have always feared what they don't understand or can't control," I remarked.
"Right," Genjyo said.
"You can't quit now just 'cuz you won a hand, you little snot!" Gojyo barked.
"Hey! You're the one who said only one hand, you big oaf!" Goku squawked. Goku glanced out the window beside the bed. "Eh? Oh yeah, Houmei said there was a big group staying here tonight. A group of gypsies or something. Look at 'em." Goku and Gojyo gawked out the window.
"Oh yeah. Believe me I'm looking! Those dancing girls are hot," Gojyo leered. "Wonder if I could get 'em to dance on my bed!"
Through the window I could see a group of scantily clad women with a gaudily dressed guy. The guy stopped and looked at us with a bloodthirsty gleam in his eyes.
"Fuckin' A," I muttered. "It'll be a hot time in the old town tonight." Genjyo looked out the window too. He sat up straight, and his muscles tensed under my hands.
"Hey Sanzo. We have a problem. Houmei said that caravan had reserved all of their larger rooms. They only have singles left," Goku told Genjyo.
"Yeah," Genjyo said. "You never know when we might be attacked by youkai. It would be a good idea to stay as close together as possible, but on the other hand, I'm sick of looking at your sorry faces. So screw it! Get out!"
"My, my! Everyone's so honest tonight. Good night," Hakkai said and herded the others out of our room.
At last, Genjyo, Grimmy, and I were left alone in our room.
"I want you to to sleep next to the wall," Genjyo told me as he folded the top of his robes over his waist instead of stripping down to his jeans. "I can protect you better that way."
I understood that he was expecting trouble - probably from the caravan that currently crowded the inn. I ordered Grimmy to stay in the shadows near the door where he could be on guard if anyone tried to attack us. The dog did as he was told. I put on a flannel night gown that buttoned in front and slipped my switchblade into my nightgown's pocket. Genjyo combed and braided my hair, then I climbed into bed close to the wall under the window. I lay with my back to Genjyo. He climbed in behind me and pulled the blanket over us both. Genjyo unfastened the top three buttons of my nightgown and held me with his hand cupping my breast. I was scared, but I was too tired to fight off sleep. I had to trust that whatever dangers appeared that night that the guys and the dog would handle it.
I had just fallen into a restless doze when I heard Grimmy's low growl. Genjyo squeezed my breast gently and tensed. There was someone in our room. I froze so as not to let our uninvited guest know we were awake. I heard the intruder's quiet footsteps come closer to the bed and fought the urger to scream. I felt a change in the air as the intruder stood over the bed.
Suddenly, Genjyo rolled over and grabbed the intruder's wrist. Genjyo sat up and pulled the intruder off balance. I heard a clatter as something metal hit the wall near the door and the scrabble of Grimmy's claws as the dog leaped to his feet. I guessed the dog was ducking the intruder's flying dagger.
"Shit!" the intruder shrieked.
"Bastard," Genjyo snarled. Genjyo leaped out of the bed and threw the intruder down - slamming the back of intruder's head onto the hardwood floor. I sat up so I could see. It was the guy I had seen with the caravan girls earlier. He had taken off his youkai power limiters, and I could see his pointed ears poking out from under the turban that covered his head. The youkai tried to throw Genjyo off, and Genjyo kicked him on the side of his head. The youkai collapsed on his stomach.
"Pansy," Genjyo sneered.
"Why you...I'll kill you!" the youkai whined as he sat up. Genjyo pulled out his banishing gun and shoved it under the youkai's chin.
"Who's killing who?" Genjyo asked him sarcastically. The youkai squirmed. "That's what I thought. You look a little nervouse, buddy," Genjyo said as he switched off the gun's safety and began pulling the firing pin back slowly. "Pointy ears, intricate birthmark...I'm betting your blood runs a little darker than mine. Who sent you? Your boss's rule-breaking has created quite a mess for me to clean up.Start talking. You have ten seconds."
"Shit, man...I...I don't don't know who's behind everything," the youkai stammered. "We're only following Lord Kougaiji's orders!"
"Too late!" Genjyo barked and fired the gun. The bullet whizzed past the youkai's ear by less than an inch and buried itself in the floor. I was glad we were on the ground floor because it would suck if some innocent guest got shot by accident. "Everyone who has clean underwear raise your hand," I mused silently. "I hope the gods have property insurance for all of the collateral damage we're going to cause."
Grimmy shuffled to stand beside Genjyo, but made no move to attack the youkai. It was if the dog understood that Genjyo needed information from him.
"What?!" the youkai squealed with terror. "That was only two seconds."
"I suck at math," Genjyo informed him.
"Don't get so smug, priest," the youkai panted. Grimmy growled but stood his ground.
"What?" Genjyo snapped.
"There are assassins in every room," the youkai told him. "Right about now, your friends..."
"What about them?" Genjyo interrupted him. "I hate to tell you, but I'm not the type to worry about..." Right then, Grimmy cocked his ears and stared toward the door. I heard a crash, a woman's scream, and Gojyo's voice. Around us, the air got thick as another presence appeared in our room. I smelled dust, cobwebs, and a dankness like that of a damp dark cellar.
"Genjyo, look out!" I shrieked.
"Huh?!" Genjyo asked - startled. Something like piano wires or hair whizzed through the air and entangled Genjyo and Grimmy. The flying cords knocked Genjyo's gun into the shadows near the door. Grimmy fought to bite through the cords, but more wrapped around his muzzle - trapping him.
"Sticky thread?" Genjyo gasped.
"That's right, boy." A woman said from somewhere in the shadows of our room. "After all, you have plenty to worry about right here."
I looked around for her. It was one of the women from the caravan. She had taken off her power limiters and stood in the middle of a massive spider web on the floor. She had pointed ears and a red mark shaped like a rose between her bare breasts. She held Houmei in one of her arms. Homei appeared to be unconscious. I assumed the youkai woman was the queen of her clan. Outside the room, I heard another crash then Gojyo and Hakkai talking.
"A spider youkai?" Genjyo squawked.
"A spider youkai with a hostage. Even better. No one escapes the Dark Spider Clan," the spider queen informed him. "Not even the great priest Genjyo Sanzo."
"Uh...no...Houmei..." Genjyo groaned. Genjyo struggled to free himself, but the sticky cords just entangled him further. I was reminded of a horse trapped in a barbed wire fence - the more it struggles, the worse the wire cuts it. There was loud bang and Goku babbling something about a weird dream. It sounded like Gojyo, Hakkai, and Goku were coming to our room the find out what all the fuss was about. The spider queen did not appear to notice the ruckus outside. She also did not seem to notice I was still crouched on the bed. No spider thread had reached me, and I waited for a chance to help Genjyo and Grimmy. I slipped my switchblade out of my nightgown pocket and silently popped the blade out with trembling fingers. "Get a grip, gal. Right now, you're the only one who can free them," I told myself.
"The precious little girl wandered into my web. quite a catch. Heh, heh," the spider queen informed Genjyo. "There's no point in struggling. Or do you want me to eat this girl?"
"Watch it, lady." Genjyo snapped. "I will kill you."
"It looks like your journey west ends here. The only place you're going is hell," the spider queen crowed. "Don't worry. Your friends will be joining you shortly."
The youkai who had attempted to stab Genjyo earlier picked that moment to get up and grab Genjyo by the hair. "That's enough," the youkai snarled and slugged Genjyo - knocking him down. Genjyo lay on his side wrapped in a cocoon of sticky cords - glaring up at the spider queen. His amethyst eyes gleamed with helpless rage, and blood trickled down his chin from the cut on the corner of his mouth.
"You have good eyes. Too good for a human," the spider queen remarked. She had palmed Houmei off on one of the youkai women who had now joined her. She stood with one arm across her waist. She supported her other elbow with this hand and held two fingers on either side of her mouth in a Y. "You know...they say that eating the flesh of a virtuous priest can lengthen one's life," the spider queen postulated. "It's just a legend among youkai. Maybe nothing more."
"Ha! Shows what you know, bitch!" I thought. I crawled off the bed as quietly as I could and crouched beside it in the shadows.
"But I wonder. Devouring the highest of the high priests, the one they call sanzo...would that make me immortal?" the spider queen continued. She clutched Genjyo's chin with her clawed fingers and pushed her face close enough to his to kiss him. I saw red. I was livid, but I knew there were too many youkai around for me to do much damage to her. I had to wait for the other guys to get here and help us. "Still, I think you might prove delicious, boy. Up close your face is quite pretty," the spider queen leered at him. I clutched my switchblade's handle furiously and fought to stay put.
"Up close, you look like a shriveled old hag," Genjyo sneered. She shrieked and shoved him forcefully onto the floor. Genjyo groaned with pain. That was more than I could tolerate. "Nobody hurts my man and gets away with it," I hissed silently. I winced for him and prepared to spring at her.
"I've decided how I'm going to eat you. I'll mince you!" the spider queen ranted. "I'll tear you into pieces so small no one will know what you were.
Then there was a loud buzzing sound as the chain of Gojyo's jakujou whizzed the crescent blade between the spider queen and Genjyo - narrowly missing them both. The spider queen leaped back and Genjyo scooted backwards toward me. That was my chance. I rushed to him and cut the spider threads with my stilletto's razor sharp blade.
"Good girl!" Genjyo whispered in my ear. I kissed him on the cheek then scooted over to Grimmy and freed the dog. There was a snick as the chain of Gojyo's jakujou pulled the crescent blade back into place on its shaft.
"Trust me, lady. You don't want to eat him," Gojyo drawled.
"He's too tough to chew," Goku snorted.
"No matter how you cook him, there's no helping it," Hakkai explained.
"I don't need your help," Genjyo snapped as he got up and pulled the top of his robes back on. "Don't expect any thanks from me."
"I wouldn't want them anyway," Gojyo shrugged. "But you do repay your debts, right?"
"Off course," Genjyo replied.
The guys stood around nonchalantly. Hakkai whistled a tune, and Goku yawned. I stood behind Genjyo - clutching Grimmy's collar.
"Quit the tough guy act!" one of the other youkai women ranted. "As long as we have this hostage. You can't touch us!"
"Then I suppose I should remedy that," Hakkai informed her. He had glided up behind her, and she was too busy being cocky to notice his quick move.
"Wha...?!" she squawked as she turned toward him. Hakkai punched her on the jaw and grabbed Houmei. Hakkai shoved the youkai woman onto the floor and pinned her arms behind her back with his free hand.
"There," Hakkai said smoothly. "Hostage safely recovered!" Hakkai stood up and rejoined us with Houmei cradled in his arms. "A game's no fun if the board isn't even," Hakkai explained.
"Damn!" the spider queen shrieked. "Kill them! I want them all dead!" Her cronies jumped to obey her.
"Endangering an innocent person is bad enough, but taking our cook hostage...!" Goku complained.
"Always thinking with your stomach...," Genjyo groaned.
"Nyoi-san-sekkon!" Goku shouted and summoned his staff which was now segmented like a triple shafted nunchuck. Goku whirled around and bashed several youkai with his segmented staff.
"Looks like fun," Gojyo drawled. "Mind if I cut in?" Gojyo flung the chain of his jakujou, and the crescent blade chopped more of the youkai into thousands of bloody pieces. "Heads up," Gojyo warned belatedly.
A youkai tried to attack Hakkai with a broken metal pipe. Hakkai deftly blocked him.
"They're persistant little buggers, aren't they?" Hakkai asked ironically. Hakkai chanted a summoning spell then shouted,"Death blow!" and threw a whirlwind of chi at the youkai still gathered around us - knocking most of them flat with flying debris.
"Useless fools," the spider queen ranted. "You can't do anything right!" While she was bitching at her cronies, Genjyo right hooked her on the jaw - sending her reeling to the floor.
"Payback from earlier," Genjyo informed her. "Interest's a bitch."
"Don't underestimate me, baggy-eyed priest." the spider queen sneered and began transforming herself. Her skin turned grey and a fine layer of short fur began covering her body.
"Shit! She's changing," Genjyo shouted.
"Impossible...a metamorphosis!" Hakkai gasped.
"What the fuck?" Gojyo squawked.
In moments the spider queen turned herself into a gigantic hairy spider.
"That there has got to be the biggest tarantula ever," I remarked. "Too bad we don't have a big enough rock to drop on her." I found I was too pissed off to be scared anymore. I wanted vengeance for the abuse of Genjyo and Grimmy.
"Ew! I bet that thing tastes gross!" Goku said with disgust.
"It must be nice thinking the way you do," Gojyo taunted him.
The spider queen spit more sticky webbing out.
"Hit the deck!," I shouted and threw myself flat onto the floor. The threads sailed over me. "Whew!" I gasped, "Grimmy fetch my bow and arrows!" The dog dived under the webbing clinging to the walls and grabbed my bow and quiver. Grimmy dragged them to me. "Good boy!" I said and hugged the big dog. "Now stay low until we can get a good opportunity to make a pincushion out of her." Grimmy and I crouched and waited for the right moment to make our move.
Genjyo and the others weren't so lucky. Sticky cords wrapped them in cocoons all over again.The guys struggled to free themselves, but only managed to tangle themselves up worse.
"The transformation's made her much stronger," Genjyo cried.
"Agh! Hey! I can't cut the web this time!" Goku whined. "Ergh! Getitoffgetitoffgetitoff..."
Houmei groaned. "Wha....? Ah!" she squeaked.
"Oh, did we wake you up?" Hakkai asked her. "I apologize for getting you involved in this."
"Eeeeeeeeeeeeeek! What...what is that?!" Houmei screamed as she saw the spider queen. "What...what's going on? What are they all fighting against? Why am I in this man's arms? Wait...wait! I remember now. Someone came into the kitchen earlier. He hit Daddy and then me...he was...a youkai!"
"Skreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" the spider queen chittered as she spit more webbing out.
"Get down, you idiots!" I shouted, but, of course, nobody listened to me but Grimmy.
"Not again!" Goku ranted as more threads entangled him. Several threads wrapped around Hakkai's throat like a garrotte - strangling him. Hakkai gasped.
"Oh no! Hakkai!," Houmei screamed.
There was a crack of gunfire, then putrid green ichor poured from of the spider queen's eyes. I jumped up behind Hakkai and looped two of my fingers under the threads wrapped around his throat. "Hold still, I don't want to cut you," I hissed in his ear. Hakkai froze while I inserted the blade of my stilletto under the threads and slashed them. Hakkai fell to his knees and gasped for air. Then, I hurried to cut the others free.
"Are you all right, Houmei?!" Houmei's dad shouted. He must have been running because he was panting hard. He held Genjyo's fallen gun in one hand. Smoke still curled from the gun's barrel.
"Daddy?! You!" Houmei cried. Houmei glomped her father. "Daddy!"
"Houmei!" her father gasped.
"Isn't that your gun, Sanzo?" Gojyo asked.
"I guess he gets a cut," Genjyo replied nonchalantly.
"Feh. We'd better get a big reward for all this crap," I muttered. "A cool million American dollars or two would be satisfactory."
"How dare you!" the spider queen screamed. "Acting like humans!" She turned toward her injured cronies and began devouring them. The youkai squealed and whined like pigs in an abbatoir.
"Don't look, Houmei!" Genjyo shouted as he stood in front of her with his arms outstretched to block her view of the horrific scene. He was too late. She stood staring at the spider's feasting in dumb terror.
"She ate her own guys?" Goku asked - horrified.
"She's using their youkai energy to heal her wounds," Hakkai explained.
"A man eater, huh? She's a Black Widow Spider in every way," Gojyo remarked.
"Noooooooooooooooooooooooo!" Houmei screamed and covered her ears. "I hate them! I hate them all! Youkai are evil! I wish they'd all just die!"
Goku stared at Houmei with a hurt expression in his big, round, gold eyes. The spider queen swung one of her hairy legs and smashed him in the back - throwing him across the room.
"Goku!" Hakkai cried.
The spider queen swung at Gojyo, but he ducked just in time to avoid getting hit too.
"Shit!" Gojyo gasped.
The spider queen scuttled toward Houmei and her father who were hugging each other. Goku leaped in front of them and tore off one of the spider queen's legs with his nyoi-bo.
"Goku!" Houmei shouted.
"Ow," Goku muttered as he wiped blood from his nose. "Cut it out, spider lady! These people have nothing to do with our fight!"
"Why do you care? Why do you risk your life to protect those filthy humans?!" The spider queen asked him. "After all, you and your companions are no different from us."
"Hey! I bathe frequently," I snapped. "And why pretend to be comrades with these guys now when you pure youkai treated them like pariah dogs up until now?"
"You are youkai!" the spider queen shrieked - ignoring me.
"What?" Houmei asked - aghast. "It can't be true! No!"
"Get off it, lady." Goku barked. "Human or youkai, it makes no difference. We live by our own rules, not by what others of our kind say we should do. I like this girl's cooking. That's reason enough!"
"And so it once more comes back to eating in the end," Hakkai remarked.
"Animal instincts. They're all he's got," Genjyo muttered.
"You disgusting traitors! I'll devour you all!" the spider queen raved.
That was enough for me. I raised my bow and nocked an arrow. "Ullr, if you're listening, a little help would be good here," I whispered as I aimed for for the spider queen's huge open maw. "All right, who do I have to skewer to get a decent night's sleep around here?!" I roared and let the arrow fly. It shot straight into the spider queen's mouth - lodging itself in the back of her throat. The spider queen choked on the arrow and coughed up more ichor. She flayed her legs wildly, and we all had to duck to avoid getting hit.
Genjyo's jaw dropped. "I can't believe you did that," he said to me.
"Law of averages. Something has to work out right sometime. And she's a bigger target than a potting shed wall," I replied and shrugged.
"Huh," Genjyo said and shook his head. Then, he turned to the others. "Hakkai, take care of Houmei and her father. Grimmy, you guard my wife. Keep her out of trouble. Goku, Gojyo, buy me some time," he ordered. "I'm going to seal this bitch's movement."
"All right!" Goku hooted and leaped at the spider queen.
"Yo! Spider lady! Over here!" Gojyo crowed as he dove under the spider queen's swinging legs. "What do they say? Have women, but don't let them have you. Or is it wine?"
"Kanjizai bosatsu gyou jin han nya ha sho ken on kai ku do issai soku setsu shu watsu gya tei gya tei ha ra gya tei ha ra so gya tei bodhi so wa ka hannya shingyo...," Genjyo chanted as he summoned the Maten Sutra's power. The Maten Sutra glowed and began to grow longer.
"Who on earth are you people?" Houmei's father asked Hakkai.
"It's a long story. Just know that there's a reason the youkai are on the rampage," Hakkai told him. "Please don't forget. Human or youkai. Inside we are no different. You should never blame race."
"Be wary of blanket judgements," I agreed.
"...Om mani padme hum!," Genjyo continued chanting. The Maten Sutra whizzed through the air. It swirled around Genjyo like a tornado. The sutra zinged like a tuning fork as it grew longer. The air vibrated and there was an ozone smell. "Makai Tenjyo!" Genjyo roared and released the sutra's power.
There was a loud ripping sound. The Maten Sutra sang like ear piercing wind chimes as it filled the room and wrapped itself around the spider queen's legs. The sutra's song was heartbreakingly beautiful, and I suspected that if you heard it too long you would go insane. I wondered what the other four sutras' songs were like. The spider queen whimpered as the Maten Sutra trapped her.
"Think you can finish the job, Goku?" Gojyo drawled.
"Can I?" Goku squealed with delight. Goku leaped up onto the spider queen's enormous back. "Nyoi-bo, Go!" Goku shouted as he drove the staff deep into the spider queen's body - impailing her. The spider queen wailed and then exploded. Spider body parts and ichor sprayed everywhere.
"I am so not cleaning that up," I muttered. There was a flash of blinding light as the spider queen's carcass disappeared in a choking cloud of acrid smoke.
The next morning we gathered our stuff and piled into the jeep. Goku moped in the backseat beside me. Not even Grimmy's silliness could cheer him up.
"Houmei's not coming to say goodbye, is she?" Goku asked sadly.
"I don't think so. Not after what happened yesterday," Genjyo told him. Houmei's father came out to see us off.
"You're leaving already?" Houmei's father asked.
"I'm afraid so. We're on a rather tight schedule," Genjyo told him.
"Sorry for the trouble, old man," Gojyo apologized.
"It's all right. I can rebuild," Houmei's father replied. "What's important is that we're safe."
"May I ask you something?" Hakkai asked politely. "You didn't seem upset when you learned that we're youkai. Did you know all along?"
"I suppose I did," Houmei's father admitted. "Your chi gave you away. An old friend of mine is a youkai. Well, he was an old friend. If anyone can fix what's wrong with this world, it's you folks. That's what my heart tells me. Am I wrong?"
"Don't worry. I believe in repaying my debts," Genjyo told him.
"Goku! Wait!" Houmei called. She had a box wrapped in brightly colored cloth in her arms. Goku's face brightened the moment he saw her.
"Houmei! You came!" he shouted ecstatically and waved.
"I made this for you," Houmei said shyly. "It's only lunch, but please take it. It's for all of you. If you want."
"Gee thanks, Houmei. You're the awesomest!" Goku exclaimed with joy.
"Oh!" Houmei said - embarrassed.
"We must be off," Goku said a little crestfallen.
"Take it easy, 'kay?" Houmei bade him.
"I will," Goku told her.
On the way out of Lanzhou, we picked up our laundry. As we reentered the arid canyons of the Gansu Corridor, Genjyo remarked,"So they're sendng assassins after us. Great.
"First Gyumaoh's resurrection. And now Kougaiji. The mystery deepens," Hakkai replied. "It seems we bit off more than we can chew."
"So it would seem," Genjyo said tiredly. "But before we try to solve it...can you please do something to shut up those two idiots?"
Gojyo was leaning over the front seat to get at the package of food Houmei had given to Goku.
"That's my rolled cabbage! Mine!," Gojyo barked. "You punk. Gimme that meat!"
"You're the one who...," Goku bawled.
"Monkey! Monkey! Monkey!" Gojyo taunted him
"Nympho kappa! Nympho kappa! Nympho kappa!" Goku chanted back at him.
"I know how you feel," Hakkai admitted. I sat with my head on Genjyo's chest and squeezed his waist. That didn't quite placate him although he did hug me back.
"Confiscation! Hand it over," Genjyo ordered. He reached over and grabbed the package from Goku. Genjyo divided what was left among himself, Hakkai, and me.
"Wah! My Neopolitan!" Goku shrieked.
"Damn, Sanzo! Don't hog all the dessert!" Gojyo complained.
"This food really is quite good," Genjyo said smugly as we roared west through the canyon toward Wuwei.
Notes and Comments Section
Act 22
(Saiyuki Smut Group Locked)
Table of Contents
Act 24
"And in the master's chambers, they gathered for the feast.
They stab it with their steely knives, but they just can't kill the beast.
- The Eagles, "Hotel California"
Lanzhou, May 12-13
"Hey! Gojyo! You can't get shotgun!" Goku complained from Hakuryu's backseat. "Your stupid smoke keeps blowin' in my face!"
"Oh, I'm sorry. I forgot we had a kid in the back," Gojyo drawled nonchalantly. Gojyo fiddled with the radio then leaned back on the front seat with his hands cradling the back of his head.- acting like he did not have a care in the world.
"Gah! I wish we could pick up some decent music out here," I muttered. I missed my music collection and wished I had a portable mp3 player with my thousands of music files saved on it.
"What did you call me?!" Goku squawked. Goku and Gojyo reminded me of a pair of banty roosters with their constant bickering.
Genjyo squeezed my waist with his left hand. Genjyo always sat on my right in the backseat because a.) I was deaf in my left ear, b.) I would be easier to defend if I was in the middle, and c.) he could keep Gojyo away from me. Genjyo's other excuse was he wanted to keep Goku and Gojyo apart, although they still bickered constantly in spite of the space between them. The seating arrangement worked fine for me because I could cuddle with Genjyo and talk to Goku - when Goku was not arguing with Gojyo that is. Genjyo propped his right elbow on the metal bar beside the backseat and covered the side of his face with his hand. "Gods dammit! Will you two give it a rest? Or do I need to make you get out and run to India?" he snapped tiredly.
"Ah ha ha. Now now. I'm sure we'll reach Lanzhou soon," Hakkai chuckled. "It'll be nice to sleep under a real roof again."
We had reached the east end of the Gansu Corridor. Mountain ranges rose on both sides of the road. Ahead of us, I could see the ocher muddied waters of the Yellow River flowing northeast. Juniper, pinyon, and other desert plants struggled to survive among the jutting granite rocks along the road. I wished we could stop and gather pinyon nuts and Mormon tea.
We smelled Lanzhou before we saw it. Smoke from the town's many factories choked the air. A thick layer of dust from the Gobi Desert covered everything.
"Welcome to paradise," I remarked as we pulled into the middle of town and stopped in the commercial district. Genjyo grunted in agreement. Gojyo and Goku jumped out and went to check out the ruckus from a nearby gang of rowdies.
"You little bitch! I told you to apologize!" one of the punks growled.
"No! You're the one who bumped into me! You did it one purpose!" a girl cried. I could not see her through the crowd of punks surrounding her. Grimmy snarled and flattened his ears. I grabbed the dog's collar and ordered him to stay put. We hoped to stay the night here, and we did not need the hassle of dealing with my dog biting someone even if they deserved it.
"Such attitude. Why don't you just leave the bag, and we'll let this one slide," Another punk drawled. "You don't want us to scar your pretty face, do you?"
"Leave me alone before I..." the girl shouted. Gojyo kicked one of the punks in the back and stood with his booted foot on the back of the dude's head - smashing his face into the concrete sidewalk.
"Tch. Damn. Just a kid." Gojyo snorted. "Yo! Is there an inn around here? An inn." I could see the girl sitting on the sidewalk now as the punks shuffled away from Gojyo. It was like watching black pepper scatter over water when you drop a little lemon juice in it.
"Why, you son of a bitch!" one of the bolder punks said and drew a knife. "You picked the wrong neighborhood, pal!" Goku slugged this guy and broke his nose.
"What the hell?!" one of that punk's cronies bawled.
"Bingo!" Goku crowed. Genjyo climbed into the front of the jeep and stood up with his right hand clutching the top of Hakuryu's windshield and his other hand balled into fist. The sunlight flashed off his crown.
"Hey, Goku, Gojyo! I thought I told you to keep a low profile!" Genjyo shouted.
"We stand out fairly well ourselves, Sanzo," Hakkai remarked.
"Yeah. You're eight and a half times more conspicuous," Goku taunted Genjyo. "Driving through town in that thing."
Goku picked up an apple that must have rolled out of the girl's bag and handed it to her. "Ya dropped this," he said. She looked at him dumbstruck. "Can you help us out? We've been on the road for ages, and we could really use an inn with good food," Goku told her.
"And a parking lot, if possible," Hakkai added.
"Um...I, uh...sure. My family runs an inn," the girl stammered.
Hakkai asked the girl for directions to her family's inn, then we went shopping. Genjyo found an ATM machine where he used the gold credit card the Sanbutsushin had given him to withdraw enough RMB in cash for Hakkai to pay for our purchases with. Genjyo and I dropped my formal dress and his soiled set of robes and priestly undergarments off at a dry cleaner's shop, while Hakkai and the others went to a laundrymat to wash everyone's other dirty clothes. Genjyo took me to a clothing shop where I bought an azure blue one-piece swimsuit, a filmy t-shirt, a beach robe, and some tank tops, skirts, and shorts to replace the ones that were too damaged or bloodstained to keep. We met up with Hakkai and the others at a grocery store. Hakkai and Gojyo went in to buy dog food; people food; beer; wine; several cartons of Marlboro Reds, Camel Turkish Jades, and High Lites cigarettes; and replaced supplies that were running low. When they returned, I suggested we get sleeping bags at a camping supply store. I was tired of sleeping on the cold hard ground even if I did get to use Genjyo as my personal pillow. My hip was still a little sore from being poked by a buried rock at the last site we had camped at. So Hakkai took Goku with him to obtain camping gear. They returned with five sleeping bags - two of which could be zipped together to form a single sleeping bag big enough for two adults, a forty foot by forty foot tarp, bungee cords, rope, tent stakes, three fishing poles, and two ten-foot flexible plastic poles. I pursuaded Genjyo to take me to a pet supply store to buy a doggy "saddle bag" and a harness for Grimmy. I figured the big dog would be useful for hauling things in terrain that Hakuryu could not drive through. When all of the shopping was done we drove to the inn. Hakkai told Hakuryu to stay parked outside. Hakuryu beep-cheeped.
A little while later, we sat around a table in the dining room of the girl's father's inn.
"Hey! That's my pork! Give it back!" Goku bawled.
"Chew with your mouth closed, you disgusting little monkey! This ain't a zoo," Gojyo complained.
"Look who's talking, you C-class perverted kappa!" Goku squawked.
"Maybe baby monkey will understand the ladies better when he reaches puberty," Gojyo sneered.
That was too much for Genjyo. He thwacked them both with the harisen and shouted, "Eat quietly, dammit! Quietly!"
"Excuse me! We need more tea," Hakkai called politely.
I struggled to use the chopsticks we had been given instead of silverwear. It was a futile effort. I just could not get the hang of the damned things. I pushed my plate away and muttered, "Bah. I need to lose more weight anyway."
Genjyo sat back down beside me and said,"Nonsense! Here, let me show you how to use these." He took my hand, positioned my fingers around the chopsticks correctly, and showed me how to use them to pick up my food. "There, that's better," he said as he watched me try again.
The girl giggled and said, "What odd people."
"You have no idea, kiddo," I murmured.
"Honored guests!! As my thanks for saving Houmei, please eat all you like," the innkeeper said.
"Daddy!" Homei exclaimed.
"We appreciate this, sir," Hakkai replied.
"Oh, it's nothing," Houmei told him. "You are traveler's from the east, are you not?"
"Yeah...that's right," Genjyo said.
"Really? That's most unusual. The eastern desert is quite dangerous. Not many humans cross it," Homei told him. "It's a wonder you made it in one piece. You must be very strong."
"Something like that," I muttered and watched Goku gobble his dinner. I slipped some pork under the table for Grimmy.
"Especially recently, with that blood thirsty band of youkai on the loose," Houmei continued. "They say the four monsters leave mountains of youkai corpses in their wake. It's as if there's a war going on, youkai against youkai."
I almost laughed. "Since when does thirty-seven youkai qualify as a mountain of corpses?" I thought. We had only been attacked twice since leaving Chang 'An.
"That's weird. Hey, guys...you don't suppose they're talking about..." Goku started to say when Gojyo shoved his face into his plate to shut him up.
"Oh. Sorry. Fly on your head. Think I got 'em. Oh, darn. It got away," Gojyo lied.
"Please don't pay them any mind. They're harmless," Hakkai told Houmei.
"Psht. They're as harmless as fleas," I whispered to Genjyo. He glanced at me and smirked in agreement.
"As long as we're on the topic, have you noticed any unusual behavior among the youkai in this area?" Genjyo asked the innkeeper.
"Unusual? That's one way to put it. Until just a little while ago, they lived peacefully among us as part of the community," The innkeeper told him. "But one day, they all disappeared without notice...leaving only the remains of the ten humans they had eaten! We have no idea what caused them to go berserk, or where they went."
"Here too, huh?" Genjyo pondered aloud.
I prodded him in the side, "Of course. West to east. Remember?" I murmured. Genjyo glanced at me and nodded.
"I hate youkai!" Houmei shrieked.
"Houmei, please," her father said placatingly.
"They eat humans! They're nothing but monsters!" Homei continued to cry. "It's impossible for humans and youkai to live together. Everyone in town says so!"
"I'm sorry. The wound is close to her," the innkeeper told us. "One of her close friends was among the people killed."
Hakkai laid his chopsticks on his empty plate and said, "Well now. That was delicious. You made all of this yourself, Miss Houmei?"
"Uh...yes." Houmei stammered.
"No way! Really? You're amazing. I haven't eaten food this good in ages!" Goku exclaimed. "Thanks! You're awesome!" Goku was right. The food was excellent, but a week of camping out would make any decent food seem wonderful, in my opinion.
"Oh...thank you," Houmei said shyly.
Hakkai sweet talked Houmei into letting him have a doggy bag of scraps which he took out to Hakuryu. Goku offered to help Houmei do chores and went with her to the kitchen.
Later, we gathered in Genjyo's and my room. Goku, Gojyo, and Hakkai sat on the bed playing cards. As usual, Hakkai won hand after hand. Genjyo sat at the table. Grimmy lay under the table with his head on Genjyo's feet. I stood behind Genjyo massaging his shoulders. Genjyo propped his elbow on the table with his chin resting on his fist. I wondered what he was thinking about.
"Has it already been ten days since we left Chang 'An?" Genjyo said aloud.
"Mmm hmm. Today is May 12," I told him.
What is it doing in the west?" he murmured.
"He must be wondering about the Seiten Sutra," I mused.
"Sanzo. Sanzo? Are you all right," Hakkai asked him. "Here. Have some coffee."
"Yeah. Thanks," Genjyo said and took the cup Hakkai offered him.
"Our chat with the innkeeper really made me realize something," Hakkai said. "Humans are quite distrusting of youkai, aren't they? Deep down I mean.
"So it would seem." Genjyo replied. "The average human doesn't know the reason for this disaster. They assume that the youkai are just showing their true colors."
"So telling them to get a clue won't work?" Gojyo asked sarcastically.
"People have always feared what they don't understand or can't control," I remarked.
"Right," Genjyo said.
"You can't quit now just 'cuz you won a hand, you little snot!" Gojyo barked.
"Hey! You're the one who said only one hand, you big oaf!" Goku squawked. Goku glanced out the window beside the bed. "Eh? Oh yeah, Houmei said there was a big group staying here tonight. A group of gypsies or something. Look at 'em." Goku and Gojyo gawked out the window.
"Oh yeah. Believe me I'm looking! Those dancing girls are hot," Gojyo leered. "Wonder if I could get 'em to dance on my bed!"
Through the window I could see a group of scantily clad women with a gaudily dressed guy. The guy stopped and looked at us with a bloodthirsty gleam in his eyes.
"Fuckin' A," I muttered. "It'll be a hot time in the old town tonight." Genjyo looked out the window too. He sat up straight, and his muscles tensed under my hands.
"Hey Sanzo. We have a problem. Houmei said that caravan had reserved all of their larger rooms. They only have singles left," Goku told Genjyo.
"Yeah," Genjyo said. "You never know when we might be attacked by youkai. It would be a good idea to stay as close together as possible, but on the other hand, I'm sick of looking at your sorry faces. So screw it! Get out!"
"My, my! Everyone's so honest tonight. Good night," Hakkai said and herded the others out of our room.
At last, Genjyo, Grimmy, and I were left alone in our room.
"I want you to to sleep next to the wall," Genjyo told me as he folded the top of his robes over his waist instead of stripping down to his jeans. "I can protect you better that way."
I understood that he was expecting trouble - probably from the caravan that currently crowded the inn. I ordered Grimmy to stay in the shadows near the door where he could be on guard if anyone tried to attack us. The dog did as he was told. I put on a flannel night gown that buttoned in front and slipped my switchblade into my nightgown's pocket. Genjyo combed and braided my hair, then I climbed into bed close to the wall under the window. I lay with my back to Genjyo. He climbed in behind me and pulled the blanket over us both. Genjyo unfastened the top three buttons of my nightgown and held me with his hand cupping my breast. I was scared, but I was too tired to fight off sleep. I had to trust that whatever dangers appeared that night that the guys and the dog would handle it.
I had just fallen into a restless doze when I heard Grimmy's low growl. Genjyo squeezed my breast gently and tensed. There was someone in our room. I froze so as not to let our uninvited guest know we were awake. I heard the intruder's quiet footsteps come closer to the bed and fought the urger to scream. I felt a change in the air as the intruder stood over the bed.
Suddenly, Genjyo rolled over and grabbed the intruder's wrist. Genjyo sat up and pulled the intruder off balance. I heard a clatter as something metal hit the wall near the door and the scrabble of Grimmy's claws as the dog leaped to his feet. I guessed the dog was ducking the intruder's flying dagger.
"Shit!" the intruder shrieked.
"Bastard," Genjyo snarled. Genjyo leaped out of the bed and threw the intruder down - slamming the back of intruder's head onto the hardwood floor. I sat up so I could see. It was the guy I had seen with the caravan girls earlier. He had taken off his youkai power limiters, and I could see his pointed ears poking out from under the turban that covered his head. The youkai tried to throw Genjyo off, and Genjyo kicked him on the side of his head. The youkai collapsed on his stomach.
"Pansy," Genjyo sneered.
"Why you...I'll kill you!" the youkai whined as he sat up. Genjyo pulled out his banishing gun and shoved it under the youkai's chin.
"Who's killing who?" Genjyo asked him sarcastically. The youkai squirmed. "That's what I thought. You look a little nervouse, buddy," Genjyo said as he switched off the gun's safety and began pulling the firing pin back slowly. "Pointy ears, intricate birthmark...I'm betting your blood runs a little darker than mine. Who sent you? Your boss's rule-breaking has created quite a mess for me to clean up.Start talking. You have ten seconds."
"Shit, man...I...I don't don't know who's behind everything," the youkai stammered. "We're only following Lord Kougaiji's orders!"
"Too late!" Genjyo barked and fired the gun. The bullet whizzed past the youkai's ear by less than an inch and buried itself in the floor. I was glad we were on the ground floor because it would suck if some innocent guest got shot by accident. "Everyone who has clean underwear raise your hand," I mused silently. "I hope the gods have property insurance for all of the collateral damage we're going to cause."
Grimmy shuffled to stand beside Genjyo, but made no move to attack the youkai. It was if the dog understood that Genjyo needed information from him.
"What?!" the youkai squealed with terror. "That was only two seconds."
"I suck at math," Genjyo informed him.
"Don't get so smug, priest," the youkai panted. Grimmy growled but stood his ground.
"What?" Genjyo snapped.
"There are assassins in every room," the youkai told him. "Right about now, your friends..."
"What about them?" Genjyo interrupted him. "I hate to tell you, but I'm not the type to worry about..." Right then, Grimmy cocked his ears and stared toward the door. I heard a crash, a woman's scream, and Gojyo's voice. Around us, the air got thick as another presence appeared in our room. I smelled dust, cobwebs, and a dankness like that of a damp dark cellar.
"Genjyo, look out!" I shrieked.
"Huh?!" Genjyo asked - startled. Something like piano wires or hair whizzed through the air and entangled Genjyo and Grimmy. The flying cords knocked Genjyo's gun into the shadows near the door. Grimmy fought to bite through the cords, but more wrapped around his muzzle - trapping him.
"Sticky thread?" Genjyo gasped.
"That's right, boy." A woman said from somewhere in the shadows of our room. "After all, you have plenty to worry about right here."
I looked around for her. It was one of the women from the caravan. She had taken off her power limiters and stood in the middle of a massive spider web on the floor. She had pointed ears and a red mark shaped like a rose between her bare breasts. She held Houmei in one of her arms. Homei appeared to be unconscious. I assumed the youkai woman was the queen of her clan. Outside the room, I heard another crash then Gojyo and Hakkai talking.
"A spider youkai?" Genjyo squawked.
"A spider youkai with a hostage. Even better. No one escapes the Dark Spider Clan," the spider queen informed him. "Not even the great priest Genjyo Sanzo."
"Uh...no...Houmei..." Genjyo groaned. Genjyo struggled to free himself, but the sticky cords just entangled him further. I was reminded of a horse trapped in a barbed wire fence - the more it struggles, the worse the wire cuts it. There was loud bang and Goku babbling something about a weird dream. It sounded like Gojyo, Hakkai, and Goku were coming to our room the find out what all the fuss was about. The spider queen did not appear to notice the ruckus outside. She also did not seem to notice I was still crouched on the bed. No spider thread had reached me, and I waited for a chance to help Genjyo and Grimmy. I slipped my switchblade out of my nightgown pocket and silently popped the blade out with trembling fingers. "Get a grip, gal. Right now, you're the only one who can free them," I told myself.
"The precious little girl wandered into my web. quite a catch. Heh, heh," the spider queen informed Genjyo. "There's no point in struggling. Or do you want me to eat this girl?"
"Watch it, lady." Genjyo snapped. "I will kill you."
"It looks like your journey west ends here. The only place you're going is hell," the spider queen crowed. "Don't worry. Your friends will be joining you shortly."
The youkai who had attempted to stab Genjyo earlier picked that moment to get up and grab Genjyo by the hair. "That's enough," the youkai snarled and slugged Genjyo - knocking him down. Genjyo lay on his side wrapped in a cocoon of sticky cords - glaring up at the spider queen. His amethyst eyes gleamed with helpless rage, and blood trickled down his chin from the cut on the corner of his mouth.
"You have good eyes. Too good for a human," the spider queen remarked. She had palmed Houmei off on one of the youkai women who had now joined her. She stood with one arm across her waist. She supported her other elbow with this hand and held two fingers on either side of her mouth in a Y. "You know...they say that eating the flesh of a virtuous priest can lengthen one's life," the spider queen postulated. "It's just a legend among youkai. Maybe nothing more."
"Ha! Shows what you know, bitch!" I thought. I crawled off the bed as quietly as I could and crouched beside it in the shadows.
"But I wonder. Devouring the highest of the high priests, the one they call sanzo...would that make me immortal?" the spider queen continued. She clutched Genjyo's chin with her clawed fingers and pushed her face close enough to his to kiss him. I saw red. I was livid, but I knew there were too many youkai around for me to do much damage to her. I had to wait for the other guys to get here and help us. "Still, I think you might prove delicious, boy. Up close your face is quite pretty," the spider queen leered at him. I clutched my switchblade's handle furiously and fought to stay put.
"Up close, you look like a shriveled old hag," Genjyo sneered. She shrieked and shoved him forcefully onto the floor. Genjyo groaned with pain. That was more than I could tolerate. "Nobody hurts my man and gets away with it," I hissed silently. I winced for him and prepared to spring at her.
"I've decided how I'm going to eat you. I'll mince you!" the spider queen ranted. "I'll tear you into pieces so small no one will know what you were.
Then there was a loud buzzing sound as the chain of Gojyo's jakujou whizzed the crescent blade between the spider queen and Genjyo - narrowly missing them both. The spider queen leaped back and Genjyo scooted backwards toward me. That was my chance. I rushed to him and cut the spider threads with my stilletto's razor sharp blade.
"Good girl!" Genjyo whispered in my ear. I kissed him on the cheek then scooted over to Grimmy and freed the dog. There was a snick as the chain of Gojyo's jakujou pulled the crescent blade back into place on its shaft.
"Trust me, lady. You don't want to eat him," Gojyo drawled.
"He's too tough to chew," Goku snorted.
"No matter how you cook him, there's no helping it," Hakkai explained.
"I don't need your help," Genjyo snapped as he got up and pulled the top of his robes back on. "Don't expect any thanks from me."
"I wouldn't want them anyway," Gojyo shrugged. "But you do repay your debts, right?"
"Off course," Genjyo replied.
The guys stood around nonchalantly. Hakkai whistled a tune, and Goku yawned. I stood behind Genjyo - clutching Grimmy's collar.
"Quit the tough guy act!" one of the other youkai women ranted. "As long as we have this hostage. You can't touch us!"
"Then I suppose I should remedy that," Hakkai informed her. He had glided up behind her, and she was too busy being cocky to notice his quick move.
"Wha...?!" she squawked as she turned toward him. Hakkai punched her on the jaw and grabbed Houmei. Hakkai shoved the youkai woman onto the floor and pinned her arms behind her back with his free hand.
"There," Hakkai said smoothly. "Hostage safely recovered!" Hakkai stood up and rejoined us with Houmei cradled in his arms. "A game's no fun if the board isn't even," Hakkai explained.
"Damn!" the spider queen shrieked. "Kill them! I want them all dead!" Her cronies jumped to obey her.
"Endangering an innocent person is bad enough, but taking our cook hostage...!" Goku complained.
"Always thinking with your stomach...," Genjyo groaned.
"Nyoi-san-sekkon!" Goku shouted and summoned his staff which was now segmented like a triple shafted nunchuck. Goku whirled around and bashed several youkai with his segmented staff.
"Looks like fun," Gojyo drawled. "Mind if I cut in?" Gojyo flung the chain of his jakujou, and the crescent blade chopped more of the youkai into thousands of bloody pieces. "Heads up," Gojyo warned belatedly.
A youkai tried to attack Hakkai with a broken metal pipe. Hakkai deftly blocked him.
"They're persistant little buggers, aren't they?" Hakkai asked ironically. Hakkai chanted a summoning spell then shouted,"Death blow!" and threw a whirlwind of chi at the youkai still gathered around us - knocking most of them flat with flying debris.
"Useless fools," the spider queen ranted. "You can't do anything right!" While she was bitching at her cronies, Genjyo right hooked her on the jaw - sending her reeling to the floor.
"Payback from earlier," Genjyo informed her. "Interest's a bitch."
"Don't underestimate me, baggy-eyed priest." the spider queen sneered and began transforming herself. Her skin turned grey and a fine layer of short fur began covering her body.
"Shit! She's changing," Genjyo shouted.
"Impossible...a metamorphosis!" Hakkai gasped.
"What the fuck?" Gojyo squawked.
In moments the spider queen turned herself into a gigantic hairy spider.
"That there has got to be the biggest tarantula ever," I remarked. "Too bad we don't have a big enough rock to drop on her." I found I was too pissed off to be scared anymore. I wanted vengeance for the abuse of Genjyo and Grimmy.
"Ew! I bet that thing tastes gross!" Goku said with disgust.
"It must be nice thinking the way you do," Gojyo taunted him.
The spider queen spit more sticky webbing out.
"Hit the deck!," I shouted and threw myself flat onto the floor. The threads sailed over me. "Whew!" I gasped, "Grimmy fetch my bow and arrows!" The dog dived under the webbing clinging to the walls and grabbed my bow and quiver. Grimmy dragged them to me. "Good boy!" I said and hugged the big dog. "Now stay low until we can get a good opportunity to make a pincushion out of her." Grimmy and I crouched and waited for the right moment to make our move.
Genjyo and the others weren't so lucky. Sticky cords wrapped them in cocoons all over again.The guys struggled to free themselves, but only managed to tangle themselves up worse.
"The transformation's made her much stronger," Genjyo cried.
"Agh! Hey! I can't cut the web this time!" Goku whined. "Ergh! Getitoffgetitoffgetitoff..."
Houmei groaned. "Wha....? Ah!" she squeaked.
"Oh, did we wake you up?" Hakkai asked her. "I apologize for getting you involved in this."
"Eeeeeeeeeeeeeek! What...what is that?!" Houmei screamed as she saw the spider queen. "What...what's going on? What are they all fighting against? Why am I in this man's arms? Wait...wait! I remember now. Someone came into the kitchen earlier. He hit Daddy and then me...he was...a youkai!"
"Skreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" the spider queen chittered as she spit more webbing out.
"Get down, you idiots!" I shouted, but, of course, nobody listened to me but Grimmy.
"Not again!" Goku ranted as more threads entangled him. Several threads wrapped around Hakkai's throat like a garrotte - strangling him. Hakkai gasped.
"Oh no! Hakkai!," Houmei screamed.
There was a crack of gunfire, then putrid green ichor poured from of the spider queen's eyes. I jumped up behind Hakkai and looped two of my fingers under the threads wrapped around his throat. "Hold still, I don't want to cut you," I hissed in his ear. Hakkai froze while I inserted the blade of my stilletto under the threads and slashed them. Hakkai fell to his knees and gasped for air. Then, I hurried to cut the others free.
"Are you all right, Houmei?!" Houmei's dad shouted. He must have been running because he was panting hard. He held Genjyo's fallen gun in one hand. Smoke still curled from the gun's barrel.
"Daddy?! You!" Houmei cried. Houmei glomped her father. "Daddy!"
"Houmei!" her father gasped.
"Isn't that your gun, Sanzo?" Gojyo asked.
"I guess he gets a cut," Genjyo replied nonchalantly.
"Feh. We'd better get a big reward for all this crap," I muttered. "A cool million American dollars or two would be satisfactory."
"How dare you!" the spider queen screamed. "Acting like humans!" She turned toward her injured cronies and began devouring them. The youkai squealed and whined like pigs in an abbatoir.
"Don't look, Houmei!" Genjyo shouted as he stood in front of her with his arms outstretched to block her view of the horrific scene. He was too late. She stood staring at the spider's feasting in dumb terror.
"She ate her own guys?" Goku asked - horrified.
"She's using their youkai energy to heal her wounds," Hakkai explained.
"A man eater, huh? She's a Black Widow Spider in every way," Gojyo remarked.
"Noooooooooooooooooooooooo!" Houmei screamed and covered her ears. "I hate them! I hate them all! Youkai are evil! I wish they'd all just die!"
Goku stared at Houmei with a hurt expression in his big, round, gold eyes. The spider queen swung one of her hairy legs and smashed him in the back - throwing him across the room.
"Goku!" Hakkai cried.
The spider queen swung at Gojyo, but he ducked just in time to avoid getting hit too.
"Shit!" Gojyo gasped.
The spider queen scuttled toward Houmei and her father who were hugging each other. Goku leaped in front of them and tore off one of the spider queen's legs with his nyoi-bo.
"Goku!" Houmei shouted.
"Ow," Goku muttered as he wiped blood from his nose. "Cut it out, spider lady! These people have nothing to do with our fight!"
"Why do you care? Why do you risk your life to protect those filthy humans?!" The spider queen asked him. "After all, you and your companions are no different from us."
"Hey! I bathe frequently," I snapped. "And why pretend to be comrades with these guys now when you pure youkai treated them like pariah dogs up until now?"
"You are youkai!" the spider queen shrieked - ignoring me.
"What?" Houmei asked - aghast. "It can't be true! No!"
"Get off it, lady." Goku barked. "Human or youkai, it makes no difference. We live by our own rules, not by what others of our kind say we should do. I like this girl's cooking. That's reason enough!"
"And so it once more comes back to eating in the end," Hakkai remarked.
"Animal instincts. They're all he's got," Genjyo muttered.
"You disgusting traitors! I'll devour you all!" the spider queen raved.
That was enough for me. I raised my bow and nocked an arrow. "Ullr, if you're listening, a little help would be good here," I whispered as I aimed for for the spider queen's huge open maw. "All right, who do I have to skewer to get a decent night's sleep around here?!" I roared and let the arrow fly. It shot straight into the spider queen's mouth - lodging itself in the back of her throat. The spider queen choked on the arrow and coughed up more ichor. She flayed her legs wildly, and we all had to duck to avoid getting hit.
Genjyo's jaw dropped. "I can't believe you did that," he said to me.
"Law of averages. Something has to work out right sometime. And she's a bigger target than a potting shed wall," I replied and shrugged.
"Huh," Genjyo said and shook his head. Then, he turned to the others. "Hakkai, take care of Houmei and her father. Grimmy, you guard my wife. Keep her out of trouble. Goku, Gojyo, buy me some time," he ordered. "I'm going to seal this bitch's movement."
"All right!" Goku hooted and leaped at the spider queen.
"Yo! Spider lady! Over here!" Gojyo crowed as he dove under the spider queen's swinging legs. "What do they say? Have women, but don't let them have you. Or is it wine?"
"Kanjizai bosatsu gyou jin han nya ha sho ken on kai ku do issai soku setsu shu watsu gya tei gya tei ha ra gya tei ha ra so gya tei bodhi so wa ka hannya shingyo...," Genjyo chanted as he summoned the Maten Sutra's power. The Maten Sutra glowed and began to grow longer.
"Who on earth are you people?" Houmei's father asked Hakkai.
"It's a long story. Just know that there's a reason the youkai are on the rampage," Hakkai told him. "Please don't forget. Human or youkai. Inside we are no different. You should never blame race."
"Be wary of blanket judgements," I agreed.
"...Om mani padme hum!," Genjyo continued chanting. The Maten Sutra whizzed through the air. It swirled around Genjyo like a tornado. The sutra zinged like a tuning fork as it grew longer. The air vibrated and there was an ozone smell. "Makai Tenjyo!" Genjyo roared and released the sutra's power.
There was a loud ripping sound. The Maten Sutra sang like ear piercing wind chimes as it filled the room and wrapped itself around the spider queen's legs. The sutra's song was heartbreakingly beautiful, and I suspected that if you heard it too long you would go insane. I wondered what the other four sutras' songs were like. The spider queen whimpered as the Maten Sutra trapped her.
"Think you can finish the job, Goku?" Gojyo drawled.
"Can I?" Goku squealed with delight. Goku leaped up onto the spider queen's enormous back. "Nyoi-bo, Go!" Goku shouted as he drove the staff deep into the spider queen's body - impailing her. The spider queen wailed and then exploded. Spider body parts and ichor sprayed everywhere.
"I am so not cleaning that up," I muttered. There was a flash of blinding light as the spider queen's carcass disappeared in a choking cloud of acrid smoke.
The next morning we gathered our stuff and piled into the jeep. Goku moped in the backseat beside me. Not even Grimmy's silliness could cheer him up.
"Houmei's not coming to say goodbye, is she?" Goku asked sadly.
"I don't think so. Not after what happened yesterday," Genjyo told him. Houmei's father came out to see us off.
"You're leaving already?" Houmei's father asked.
"I'm afraid so. We're on a rather tight schedule," Genjyo told him.
"Sorry for the trouble, old man," Gojyo apologized.
"It's all right. I can rebuild," Houmei's father replied. "What's important is that we're safe."
"May I ask you something?" Hakkai asked politely. "You didn't seem upset when you learned that we're youkai. Did you know all along?"
"I suppose I did," Houmei's father admitted. "Your chi gave you away. An old friend of mine is a youkai. Well, he was an old friend. If anyone can fix what's wrong with this world, it's you folks. That's what my heart tells me. Am I wrong?"
"Don't worry. I believe in repaying my debts," Genjyo told him.
"Goku! Wait!" Houmei called. She had a box wrapped in brightly colored cloth in her arms. Goku's face brightened the moment he saw her.
"Houmei! You came!" he shouted ecstatically and waved.
"I made this for you," Houmei said shyly. "It's only lunch, but please take it. It's for all of you. If you want."
"Gee thanks, Houmei. You're the awesomest!" Goku exclaimed with joy.
"Oh!" Houmei said - embarrassed.
"We must be off," Goku said a little crestfallen.
"Take it easy, 'kay?" Houmei bade him.
"I will," Goku told her.
On the way out of Lanzhou, we picked up our laundry. As we reentered the arid canyons of the Gansu Corridor, Genjyo remarked,"So they're sendng assassins after us. Great.
"First Gyumaoh's resurrection. And now Kougaiji. The mystery deepens," Hakkai replied. "It seems we bit off more than we can chew."
"So it would seem," Genjyo said tiredly. "But before we try to solve it...can you please do something to shut up those two idiots?"
Gojyo was leaning over the front seat to get at the package of food Houmei had given to Goku.
"That's my rolled cabbage! Mine!," Gojyo barked. "You punk. Gimme that meat!"
"You're the one who...," Goku bawled.
"Monkey! Monkey! Monkey!" Gojyo taunted him
"Nympho kappa! Nympho kappa! Nympho kappa!" Goku chanted back at him.
"I know how you feel," Hakkai admitted. I sat with my head on Genjyo's chest and squeezed his waist. That didn't quite placate him although he did hug me back.
"Confiscation! Hand it over," Genjyo ordered. He reached over and grabbed the package from Goku. Genjyo divided what was left among himself, Hakkai, and me.
"Wah! My Neopolitan!" Goku shrieked.
"Damn, Sanzo! Don't hog all the dessert!" Gojyo complained.
"This food really is quite good," Genjyo said smugly as we roared west through the canyon toward Wuwei.
Notes and Comments Section
Act 22
(Saiyuki Smut Group Locked)
Table of Contents
Act 24