Blind Devotion

Chapter Sixteen

Goku was terrified. More then terrified. He was so afraid he couldn't breathe. All day he had listened to the commotion outside his door, attempting to ice himself over for the inevitable. He tried not to be afraid; he tried to have faith that in the end, the good guys would always triumph. Though as soon as the sun began to go down and the commotion outside his door began to dim, he realized that this wasn't a fairy tale. Good guys did lose in real life, and bad things did happen. Luckily, Goku had been able to make sure he didn't cry. He was going to die, but he still had his dignity.

He'd attempted to escape many times during the day and the evening, but it was all fruitless. They had completely sealed in him inside with some sort of magic, and there was no way around it. Goku wondered why they hadn't done this earlier, and decided they probably didn't think he was worth it.

As the evening began to wear on, Goku felt his anxiety building. The tension within his room was a thick presence in the air, though Goku couldn't stop the apprehension that continued to mount within him. By ten o'clock he was almost pulling out his hair, wishing they would simply do it or not so he could get rid of all the damned tension. Unfortunately, it seemed his wish was granted. By ten thirty, the door to his suite was thrown open, and two tall men in robes entered, each one grasping him by the arm and dragging him out the door, where Xing escorted them down the hall.

Goku kicked and bit and screamed and did everything he could to try and keep himself from his date with death. He'd almost managed to wiggle away from his captors, before one of them dealt a powerful blow to his stomach, making his vision blur at the edges and his legs turn to jelly. Then Xing calmly stated that he would have to learn to behave, should something unfortunate happen to Nataku. Goku had given up all resistance.

They entered a large, circular shape room with a glass roof. Through the ceiling, Goku could plainly see the full moon shining down upon them, stars dancing around it, mocking him. In the center of the room was a giant pentagram with odd shaped markings and French words written on the rim. Goku couldn't read them, and a part of him was glad. In the center of the pentagram were a large wooden cross and a stone table set up in front of it. Goku shuddered at the thought of what they would be used for.

Standing outside the pentagram were hundreds of Drifters. They were all dressed in the same navy blue robe with their hoods snapped up. There couldn't be more then five hundred all standing about, their eyes practically glued to him as he entered. Through the crowds of faces Goku could spot Homura, standing in a straight line with seven others. Sanzo was there next to him, and, to Goku's surprise, was the only one not looking at him. His eyes were covered by his hood, and even if it wasn't, Goku could feel his gaze directed elsewhere. Goku found it peculiar that Sanzo's lips were moving, though no sound escaped him. Was he chanting something…?

He was dragged into the center of the pentagram, where he was tied to what looked like a large cross. His arms and feet were bound down with tight ropes that chafed Goku's skin. He struggled only momentarily, before his attention snapped back to Xing and the rest of the Drifters.

Xing carefully pulled out five scrolls from his bag—the heaven and earth scrolls, Goku knew instantly—and began placing them around the circle. They were all placed on the five points of the star. Xing turned and said something in French to someone; the person nodded and bowed, before disappearing out the doors. He returned a moment later with Nataku bound together and slumped over his shoulder. Goku's eyes widened immediately, and he began to struggle with newfound intensity.

"Xing!" he roared, pulling uselessly on the restraints as Nataku was tied down to the stone tablet in front of him. "You swore you'd let Nataku go free!"

Xing turned his attention up towards Goku who hung uselessly on the wooden cross, and grinned a sickly grin. "I did?" he asked with a false surprise as his eyes glinted with bloodlust. "I guess I lied."

As he turned back towards the Drifters, Goku let out another roar, yanking and struggling in a vain attempt to get free and help his unconscious friend. But then Sanzo's words from the previous night came back to him, and Goku forced himself to calm. Losing his temper would prove foolish.

As Xing turned back to face him, his eyes hardened into seriousness, and he produced a long, sharp dagger from his belt. In that moment Goku felt his heart stop. "Let's begin," he stated loudly in the silent room.

Suddenly, all the Drifters in the room brought their hands together, almost in prayer. A low chanting began to rumble throughout the room, though the words were in French and Goku could not understand them. Goku's eyes snapped back to the line of people Xing stood next to. All eight Drifters did not join in the chanting, and instead looked about smug. Save for Sanzo, who was still chanting wordlessly. But by the way his lips moved, Goku knew it wasn't the same chant the rest of the Drifters were muttering. From his angle on the cross, Goku finally spotted when it was Sanzo was staring intently at. He followed the blond's eyesight down towards the Maten scripture, which twitched unnoticeably where it sat. Goku's eyes narrowed. What was Sanzo up to?

He couldn't dwell on it any longer as the pentagram suddenly lit up with magic. Goku couldn't help but gasp at the power that surged all around him. He could feel it in the air, almost see it in the room. The seven members stepped into the pentagram, and Goku could feel the wave in power as they took up their positions about the pentagram. Sanzo had to cease in his chanting as he took up the spot just to Goku's left. Homura was on his right, and Xing was in the center, still holding the glinting dagger. Goku yanked on the restraints once more for good measure.

"For centuries we have waited for this moment!" Xing called out, the sound of his voice overpowering the dull chanting in the room. Despite the fact that everyone in the room was focused on their chants, it was easy to see that they were all listening intently. "And finally, the human race shall fall!"

"We shall offer up the blood of a young man," Xing continued as he took an advancing step towards Nataku; Goku growled and struggled, "To Seiten Taisei. And he shall descend to our vessel. Then he shall rain righteousness and justice down upon the humans who have been blind and dumb for so long! He shall be our angel of retribution, brothers! And then…" his voice dropped a few notches as he let a smile catch his lips. "The world… will be ours for the taking."

As Xing gripped the dagger in his hand, Goku couldn't help but let out a choked sob. Nataku was going to die, and all he could do was lie there and watch as his best friend was stabbed in front of him. He shut his eyes, trying to block out the sight. It was all over; it was the end of everything.

The good guys lost.

But Xing didn't stab Nataku right away. Instead, he turned to Sanzo, and held the dagger out to him. Sanzo let his confused gaze flicker over the dagger, then back up to Xing as the man smiled. "Sanzo," the brunet said slowly. "I want to give you the honors of restoring our race."

Sanzo's eyes radiated guilt and horror, though only to those tuned to see it. He steeled himself over immediately. "But, I…" he started out, before he took in the blade in Xing's hand. Turning to spare a glance at Nataku, Sanzo sighed through his nose. "All right."

Goku watched in horror as Sanzo accepted the dagger, and stepped up in front of Nataku. He held it in both hands, anxiety simmering off of him. Goku grit his teeth, his eyes betraying his silent orders and watering with tears. "Sanzo!" he screamed, his voice hoarse. "You can't do this! Stop! Think about what you're doing! Please!"

Sanzo turned his attention up towards Goku, and for a moment, gold met violet. In only a moment, an eternity of understanding passed between the two people standing adjacent to one another. The anger, bitterness and tension that Goku had been feeling for so long began to dissipate like snow dusting from the rooftops. What was revealed then, Goku found, was nothing but trust and love for the violet eyes he had trapped within his gaze. He let his muscles relax, slumping back down onto the cross. Sanzo stared at him, his emotions completely masked, but Goku knew. He knew what was going through the man's mind as though Sanzo's thoughts were his own.

"I trust you," Goku whispered.

"I know," Sanzo replied, just as softly.

Then, without warning, Sanzo spun on his heel and hurled the dagger into the closest throat. The Drifter he'd hit sputtered as it fell to the floor and bled to death. Most of the other Drifters were caught up in their chanting and didn't even notice, but a few of them snapped out of their daze, realizing something was wrong.

Sanzo had betrayed them.

Before the shock that had seized the audience had worn off, Sanzo had gripped his gun from the air, tearing it from nothing and shooting three more Drifters. Goku watched his lover dance, shooting and dodging and attacking as the men around him began to realize what it was that was going on. Sanzo was amazing and flawless, his golden hair haloing him, giving him the impression of an angel from heaven. But his demonic violet eyes contradicted his heavenly appearance, making him seem like a creature that had crawled up from the depths of hell.

Sanzo spun again, nailing another man in the throat. Goku could only grin, feeling the adrenaline building inside him. It looked like Sanzo could handle the nut jobs all on his own and they'd be out of there by sunrise. But as Goku watched Xing, he realized the man was smiling. He also began to realize that Sanzo was beginning to tire, and there were many more men closing in around him.

Out of nowhere it seemed, Homura sprung forwards. His ungloved hand clamped down on Sanzo's shoulder, and the man let out a horrific scream, dropping to his knees. Goku had seen what Homura's touch could do to his lamp, and could only imagine the pain Sanzo was in. As soon as the blond hit the floor, he was pinned by several dozen men, and his gun was taken from him. Goku's fear began to arise once more as Xing approached the man who had been hit with the dagger. He yanked it out of his throat, showing no concern whatsoever for the man that gurgled and gasped on the floor.

"You've gotten good, Sanzo," Xing muttered as he stepped back up to the stone table. He studied the blade in his hands, as though he could see it. "But not good enough."

And then with one full thrust, Xing shoved the dagger into Nataku's heart.

The young man's eyes snapped open, and he gasped. His eyes widened and he gasped out silently, hands clutching the dagger still imbedded in his chest but not having the strength to pull it out. His body shook with painful tremors as blood began to leek out onto the stone table, dripping down onto the floor. With a painful yank, Xing ripped the dagger from the young man's chest. Nataku squeaked, in far too much pain to scream, and clutched the wound that had pierced his heart.

Then he fell still, his eyes gazing sightlessly up towards the ceiling, out towards the full, bright moon.

The entire room was silent, save for the few Drifters that had managed to keep chanting. Sanzo could feel his own fear and apprehension building, and even the grip on him had loosened slightly. His violet eyes snapped up towards Goku, who was staring at the lifeless form of his dead friend. He didn't appear to be breathing, simply staring with wide, golden eyes that were slowly collecting tears.

Then, as though it hit him all at once, Goku began to scream.

The shift in power at Goku's emotional outburst was dramatic. The swirling, consuming energy began to focus directly in on Goku, and the blond cursed. He knew this was going to happen. Goku's unstable emotions practically opened the door for Seiten Taisei to cross over into his body. The glass roof over them shattered, raining tiny shards of glass down upon them. Everyone moved to cover their heads as the piercing rain passed over them.

Sanzo's attention snapped back up to Goku, who was still screaming. With a sudden creaking, the cross holding Goku snapped, sending the brunet falling to the floor. As soon as he hit the stone ground everything ceased: the wind, the energy, the chanting. It all stopped as silence began to settle over them, wondering if their ritual had worked.

Had they summoned the great Seiten Taisei?

The moment of silence began to drag on for several long minutes, each member holding their breath as they watched and waited. A low, rumbling laughter began to emit from the still brunet on the ground and Sanzo's heart seized as Goku began to stir. He slowly stood up; head bent over and bangs dancing before his eyes. It looked as though Goku was having some trouble keeping his equilibrium, but he managed to steady himself. The closest man to him suddenly found his throat ripped out as Goku reached. Long deadly claws tore the scream right from the man's throat, leaving him to crumple to the ground in a pathetic mass of blood and violence.

A chuckle emitted from the creature as it slowly raised its head. Goku's normally innocent golden orbs were now tainted with bloodlust, circular irises replaced with cat-like slits. A smile caught its lips as his eyes caught Sanzo's.

"C'est le mien," the creature said in a low tone, one that didn't suit Goku at all. And then it struck.

___

French Translations:

"It's mine."

A/N: I apologize to everyone who's been waiting for me to update. I know it's been a long time, and I'm working to get better at that.

I hope you enjoyed! This story is coming to an end, so please leave your comments and criticism.