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The Prophecy of Genbu	By : Ree Category: +. to F > Fushigi Yuugi Views: 1223 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Fushigi Yuugi, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

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Title: The Prophecy of Genbu

Series: Fushigi Yuugi

Rating: MA

Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN
THIS SERIES. The Fushigi Yuugi universe belongs to Watase Yuu-san and I do not
claim this universe whatsoever. I am only writing a story for fun, not profit.
For other notes, please refer to chapter one.

Chapter Three

A New Ally

Cassandra wept and shook with fear as small mewls and
whimpers escaped her throat. The wolves
were closing in around on her from the trees.
It seemed her screams had gone unheard and she closed her eyes
tightly. I guess I�m not so strong
after all. Iname, I�m sorry I let you
down. If only I was stronger, like you,
this wouldn�t be happening. The
thought of her friend�s gentle smile and strong heart made Cassandra sob
bitterly. She was no priestess�and she
had been stupid in wanting to try and be one.
Suddenly, the howls of wolves in pain and the swooshing of arrows filled
the air and the young girl covered her head and curled up in a ball as she
heard bodies falling into the snow.
When everything was silent once more, she cracked open her eyes and
gasped. The wolves had been slain. Arrows pierced their thick hides and blood
stained the snow red. A shadowy figure
moved through the trees, plucking arrows from the carcasses as he went and Cassandra
immediately felt wary, trying to press herself against the trunk of the tree so
as to appear smaller and stay hidden.
After waiting a few moments, she peered beyond the tree and sighed.

�No one there�� a sudden hand on her shoulder made her
shriek and she found herself meeting a face with silver eyes. �J-Jia?�

The man�s lip curled disdainfully. �You�re a stupid, foolish girl.
Half frozen and sniveling, I should have left you for the beasts to feed
upon. Little idiot. What were you thinking?�

�H-hey! D-don�t talk
t-t-to m-me l-l-like th-that!� she stammered, her teeth chattering with every
word. �But th-thank y-you for s-saving
me.�

He merely scoffed and headed for the cabin. �Get in here already. Otherwise that punk protector of yours will have
my head.� When he didn�t hear Cassandra
following, Jia turned and glared.
�Well? Get up already!�

�I can�t! My feet
are so c-c-cold, I ca-can�t f-feel them!�

Sighing and grumbling, Jia headed back over to Cassandra and
scooped her into his arms. It was true,
she was rather cold and he frowned a little.
Stupid girl must have been out here longer than I thought. With ease that told of his strength, Jia
carried Cassandra through the snow and up the porch steps to his front
door. But once he was there, he paused.

�What�s wrong?�

�Open the door, I can�t exactly reach it unless you want me
to drop you.�

�Stop ordering me around,� but she reached out and undid the
latch, pushing the door open for them.

Ignoring her, Jia stepped over the threshold and kicked the
door closed behind them. There was a
fire roaring in the hearth and everything was sparsely, but comfortably,
furnished. Stalking towards the fire,
Jia set Cassandra down on a plush rug and went to check that nothing had been
disturbed in his absence. Gratefully,
she removed her boots and set them by the fire to dry. Wriggling her red toes, Cassandra began to
rub a bit of warmth back into them. Jia
watched from the kitchen, his silver eyes giving away nothing of what he
felt. After a few moments of silent
observation, Jia walked over in his bare feet and settled down next to
her. He placed his heavy coat on the
floor, revealing the thin shirt and tunic he wore underneath. They look hand-embroidered, Cassandra
noted. Glancing up, she studied his
profile reflected in the firelight. The
man had a strong nose and chin, with defined cheekbones and chiseled features
hardened by weather and roughened with age.
His hands were broad and the palms dry and roughened from years of hard
work. Is the weather so harsh here
in Hokkan? She could see the gleam
in his eyes and it was intelligent and cunning but beneath that was a
soul-shattering sadness that seemed to engulf him.

�What are you looking at?� he snapped, startling her out of
her daze. �Don�t look at me with those
sorrowful eyes. I do not need nor want
your pity.�

�I�m just wondering�� she paused and looked at her
hands. �Why are you so sad?�

�What makes you think I�m sad?�

She twisted her fingers nervously. �Your eyes.�

�So?�

�Well�� Cassandra looked into the fire, still twisting her
fingers in her lap. �I know I don�t
know anything about you except your name and while I can�t be sure if I�m right
or not, you just seem so sad. Whenever
I look into your eyes, it makes me want to cry. It�s as though your heart isn�t there anymore.�

Jia studied her for a few moments, then scoffed,
smirking. �All right, say you are
correct in your assumption. Why did you
come out here then?�

�Because�I�well, I wanted to talk to you. I wanted to find out why you were sad. I wanted to help.�

�Help?� his voice was a bark and his laughter dripped with
sarcasm. �What makes you think that
you, a stranger from another world, could help a man you only just met? Let alone a man like me.�

Cassandra gazed at her lap, her bangs shadowing her
eyes. �Because I know what it�s like to
be so sad. Imagine if you will, a young
girl who�s been torn away from her home and thrust into a new world where she�s
expected to become a priestess and save an entire country from war and strife
and to know that she could possibly die doing it. Although my family has forgotten me, I��

Her hanging statement brought a shadow to Jia�s eyes and he
faced her. �What do you mean by that?�

�Well, my father�s a man who is married to his business. He was working the day they brought me
home. My mother was never really my
mother. She was always gone, always
handing my brother and I off to the care of nannies and other minders. I�ve never known two more selfish people in
my life. They were so caught up in
their own petty lives that they barely knew they had children. My brother, Matthew, on the other hand,� and
she smiled softly.

�What about your brother?�

�My brother was my everything. He went to all of my school functions, he taught me so many
things that our parents neglected, and he was my best friend as well as my
brother. Matthew loves me and he always
will, just as I love him, but he�s living his own life now and has moved on. He doesn�t need me anymore. And my parents never wanted me, but�� she
trailed off and then turned to him with a shaky smile. �Matthew believes in me, so I�ll be just
fine.�

For a while, Jia just sat there, looking at nothing. Cassandra didn�t know what she said, but it
obviously had an effect on him. Because
there was something else reflected in those silver orbs that darkened them
considerably. Is that�? Before she could look closer, Jia rose to
his feet and walked into the kitchen.

�Jia?�

�What?�

�Where�s your wife?
Your father gave me the impression you were married,� Cassandra looked
around. �Is she asleep?�

There was a long pause as Jia�s hand tightened around the
container he was holding. �Yes. She�s asleep�in the ground. Along with my little girl and my little
boy. They�re all asleep under the willow
tree.�

Cassandra�s
eyes widened and her hands flew to her mouth.
�Oh. I�m so sorry. I didn�t mean�I�m sorry. I�ll go now. Thank you.�

She
reached for her boots, but stopped when Jia spoke. �You�re searching for the Genbu Seishi, aren�t you? You are the Genbu no Miko after all.�

�I�I
don�t know if I can be.�

�What
are you talking about?� her words made Jia whirl around to face her, eyes
flashing. �Of course you are, you have
to be!�

�If I
can�t save myself from a pack of wolves and hypothermia, how am I going to save
this country? I want to, believe me
when I say that I want to. If there
were a way for me to save this place, the people in it�to somehow become that strong
then I�d do it. I�d do it in a
heartbeat. Iname�s counting on me and I
don�t want to let him down. But most of
all, I don�t want to let myself down.�

Jia
said nothing as he gazed at her. He
wasn�t sure if it was because she looked like his little girl or because he
felt sorry for her, but�Jia wanted her to be strong. He wanted Cassandra to become strong enough to save Hokkan,
summon Genbu, and live to tell the tale.
Absently, he rubbed his left hip, tucked a stray strand of hair behind
his ear, sighed, and placed a hand on her shoulder. I want you to succeed, Cassandra. Genbu help me, but I do.

�Cassandra�that
is your name, correct?� at her nod he continued. �I do believe I can help you.
There is a man in this village that goes by the name Urumiya. He is one of the Genbu Seishi.�

�Really? He�s here?
Where is he? Do you know where I
can find him?�

�Yes I
do. However, I must warn you Cassandra,
he is a very cold and callous man. No
one dares to approach him because they fear his powers as a Seishi. He is a very powerful man.�

�His
powers?�

�Yes. Urumiya�s powers lie in memories. He is able to erase, manipulate, and even
change them. Or he could implant a
false memory, complete with the details that would make it utterly believable
to the victim. Many fear him getting
inside their heads. Do you still wish
to meet him?�

�I
do. I�d be lying if I said I wasn�t
scared, but there�s nothing else I can do.
I�ve got to find Urumiya, no matter what.�

Jia was
about to say more when he heard the pounding of hoof beats outside. Frowning, he rose stiffly and grabbed his
bow and a quiver of arrows before heading for the door. Swinging the quiver on his back, he blew the
flame out in a lantern. Cassandra rose
as well, but Jia pointed again to the floor, indicating that she should sit
still and be quiet. Green eyes darted
about with curiosity and a bit of unease as she settled on the rug again. The sound of horses and men grew louder and
the blue-haired man waited. Finally,
they slowed and Cassandra�s heart raced as she realized they were close. Lanterns swung like fireflies in the night
and Jia opened the door.

�Well,
well, the famous general Nakago. I�m
surprised. What brings you to my humble
home?� Jia�s voice was mocking as he closed the door behind him. �And so late at night.�

�Dong
Jia, you should be glad it was I who came, rather than being struck down by an
assassin of Kutou.�

�You
came here once before when I was away and robbed me of the most precious things
in my life. Why have you returned? I have nothing left of value for you to
take. You made sure to that.�

�I have
been hearing some rumors. Not thinking
of rising up against Kutou are you, Dong Jia?�

Cassandra
frowned as she opened the door just a crack and peered through. Jia stiffened, but didn�t move, hoping that
she wasn�t revealed. Stupid girl,
why didn�t she stay inside like I said?
The leader was a man with long blonde hair and cold, narrow blue
eyes. Like ice. That�s what they remind me of. Jia�s eyes may have made her sad, but
this man�s eyes made her tremble to the depths of her soul. He was bedecked and blue and green armor
that resembled dragon scales, a cloak covering half of his outfit, but it was
clear that he was a man of great power and Cassandra shivered. The man�s aura was so cold. Looking between him and Jia, she wondered
why he was here and how Jia knew him. Stay
hidden Cassandra. He knew that if
Nakago found out about the new Genbu no Miko, it would be disastrous.

�What�s
the matter, Dong Jia? You�re awfully
quiet for someone who is surrounded on all sides by Kutou�s soldiers. Have you nothing to say in your defense?� he
smirked, confidence and cunning written all over his features. That�s when Nakago noticed the door move and
a flash of green. �Well, it seems to me
that you have found a replacement for your dead wife.�

�What?�

In the
blink of an eye, Nakago had raised his hand and fired a pale blue life force
blast that shot through the air straight toward Cassandra�s hiding place. Damn it, he spotted her! Jia dove for the door and tackled the
young girl to the floor as the blast grazed his hip and tore a hole in the
opposite wall. The cabin shook around
them and Cassandra whimpered. Wincing
as he realized his clothing and a bit of his skin had been singed by the blast,
Jia covered Cassandra so debris wouldn�t fall on her as best he could. Once the shaking had settled, Jia rose and
growled, dust and debris falling from him.

�Cassandra,
are you all right?�

�Um,
yeah, I, I think I�m okay,� she stammered, shaking all over as she sat up and
shook dust from her hair. �Jia! Your hip!�

Glowing
black was the sigil for �roof top� on Jia�s left hip. Nakago�s features hardened as he watched Jia rise to his
feet. So, he�s one of the Genbu
Seishi. Then that means the girl�? He glanced at Cassandra. She must be the Genbu no Miko. The prophecy has come to pass after 200
years. How interesting. Glancing back at Jia, Nakago noted the
hardness in the man�s eyes. They were
like hammered silver as he stood protectively in front of Cassandra.

�Jia,
you mean you�re-?� Cassandra glanced from his hip and back up to Jia�s eyes.

�That�s
right. I�m Urumiya, a proud member of
the Genbu Shichi Seishi,� and he glanced beyond Nakago, a smirk coming to his
features. �And it appears that we have
company.�

Nakago
turned and a flash of silver took down three of his soldiers. Blood splattered through the air and cries
of anguish broke the stillness of the night as the figure leapt over the dead
bodies and landed beside Urumiya. Green
eyes were amused as they gazed into disbelieving silver orbs.

�Yo,�
Iname smirked and wiped his bloody weapon against the snow.

�So you
finally made it, eh kid?�

�How
many times-?�

�Never
mind. This bum,� he gestured to
Nakago. �Just tried to kill
Cassandra. Are you going to stand for
that?�

�Not a
chance in hell,� Iname�s smile was feral as he turned to face Nakago, his
glaive at the ready. �What about you,
old man? Don�t you have a bone to pick
with this guy?�

�Of
course. In fact, I have several.�

He
raised his bow, quiver resting against his back, as Iname charged into the
fray. The glaive�s blade flashed in the
moonlight, cutting down one soldier after another. Aided by the barrage of arrows fired from Urumiya�s bow, the
soldiers were no match for the two skilled men. One by one the men collapsed, gutted and with arrows peppering
their corpses. Finally, only Nakago
remained. Both were poised to continue
their attack and while Nakago would have enjoyed the exercise, he knew he was
at a bit of a disadvantage. His powers
were not as well developed as he would have liked and it was two against one.

�I will
withdraw for now. But make no mistake I
shall not forget this. Nor will I
forget your miko�s face.�

With
that, he turned his horse and headed into the trees, intent on getting back to
Kutou and informing the Emperor that the prophecy had come to pass and a new
Genbu no Miko had been chosen. And
before our Seiryu no Miko arrived. This
could prove troublesome. Iname
watched the blonde man leave before spitting on the blood-soaked ground. Urumiya lowered his bow and turned to
Cassandra, who was still crouched behind the cracked door. She had a pot in her hands and he recognized
it as the one that held a salve for burn wounds. Opening the door, Cassandra stepped out and began to apply the
salve to his hip.

�I can
do that myself.�

�Never
mind that. You�re coming with us,
aren�t you Urumiya? After all, we need
you and it would be wonderful to have you.
Right, Iname?�

Iname
rubbed the back of his head as he came up the steps of the porch, his glaive in
resting position at his side. �Well
sure, I mean�he is one of us after all and he did do a decent job of protecting
you. By the way Cassandra, why did you
leave the inn? I told you to stay
there!�

�I
wanted to see Urumiya,� she wiped her hands on her jeans and rose. �There you go that should help.�

�Still,
you could have been hurt.�

Shaking
his head, Iname was about to read her the riot act when Cassandra sank to her
knees, mumbling to herself and holding her head. Urumiya caught her as she slumped forward and yawned. Iname immediately began to panic, thinking
that she�d been hurt and even started to yell at Urumiya, when the man glared
at him and scooped her into his arms.

�She
just fell asleep you idiot. Calm down
or you�ll wake her up.�

�Sorry. Wait, you mean she�s sleeping? Oh good��

�What,
did you think she was injured?� Urumiya scoffed as the two of them headed back
to town. �Gather my arrows, would
you? And give me a little more credit
than that, kid, I did protect her after all.�

�Don�t
call me kid! Yes, I thought she was
hurt. It�s understandable, considering
the circumstances. I didn�t think you
would care so much either way,� he paused as they continued walking. �Do you care now? Knowing what you know?�

Urumiya
didn�t answer. He merely kept walking
until they reached the inn. Once they
were inside, Urumiya lay Cassandra onto her pallet and covered her with a
blanket. Iname watched from the door,
still full of questions he wanted to ask the other man. He watched as Urumiya threaded his fingers
through her hair and looked at her with an expression Iname couldn�t
place. It looks familiar. Where have I seen that expression
before? As he was pondering that,
Urumiya rose and walked right past him.
Quickly, Iname chased after him.

�You never
answered my question,� he said as soon as they were out in the hall. �Do you actually care about her now? Knowing that she�s our miko?�

There
was a long silence where Urumiya just stared at the opposite wall. Since his back was to Iname, the young man
couldn�t tell what he was thinking. He
couldn�t see Urumiya�s expression tighten under that question. Midnight blue hair, worked loose from the
slicked back hold, fell around his face and brushed his cheeks and he tucked it
back absently.

�Let me
ask you this kid. Do you protect and
are about her because she�s Cassandra or because she�s the Genbu no Miko?�

�It�s
because she�s Cassandra of course. When
I found her, I saw a frightened girl, all alone, and it obviously looked like
she was far from home. We both know
what can happen to young, frightened girls in these times,� Iname absently
scratched the back of his neck. �I
wanted to protect her, help her find her way home, no matter what it took. She reminded me so much of my little sister,
I couldn�t just leave her like that.
Now that I know she�s the Genbu no Miko, I�m still going to look after
and protect her but now I�ll do so a hundredfold. People will be after her just because she�s the Genbu no Miko and
she�ll need us to protect her. She deserves
to have warriors who will also be her friends, don�t you think?�

�So�it�s
because she�s Cassandra. Now, can you
expect me to echo your sentiments, Iname?�

�I
don�t know what you�re talking about.
Are you saying you�re not coming with us, Urumiya? You met Cassandra, you obviously protected
her from Nakago, so what�s stopping you from deciding?�

�What
if I told you I wasn�t going with you and the priestess? How would you react, I wonder?�

�I�d be
pissed off.�

Urumiya
chuckled bitterly. �So simple an
answer. Don�t you want to elaborate?�

�Well
certainly my good man. You see, I�d be
angry because one: you�re shirking your duties as a Seishi. Two: you�d make Cassandra cry and that I
just can�t allow. Three: we wouldn�t be
able to summon Genbu without you.
Four-�

�Are
you quite finished?�

�Yes. Four and lastly: you�re a great fighter and
a good man, Urumiya. I�d be honored to
learn all I can from someone like you.�

There
was a pause and Urumiya began to chuckle.

�Ah,
flattery gets you everywhere. To tell
you the truth, Iname, I was planning on going with you in the morning. Believe it or not�I do believe that
Cassandra has what it takes to be the miko all of Hokkan has been hoping
for. Someone who won�t be like
Takiko-sama and share her fate. She has
a good heart and a strong head on her shoulders when she�s not scared out of
her mind.�

Iname grinned. �Well, we�re glad to have you with us,
Urumiya.�

~~~~~~~~~~~

Well, what do y�all think? ^^ I�ll
try to update as often as possible, but I�m hand-writing the chapters first and
then transferring them to my computer.
Look forward to more!

~Ree~
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The Prophecy of Genbu