- Leading the path to the West -

 

Chapter 1 * The possessor of the Lotus Ring *

"I'm hungry! Hakkai are we near the next town yet?" Goku whined in the back seat. It was round mid-day and even though he had just eaten some sandwiches an hour ago, Goku was hungry again.

"Shut up you monkey!" and Goyjo punched Goku on his head.

"That hurt you, kappa!" and Goku turned around watching the forest scenery around, while his hands messaged his head where a bump could already be felt. The trees were all a bright shade of green. Oak, Pine, Rosewood, all types could be found, in this mysterious forest. A light breeze lessened the heat from the scorching sun. The birds melody kept the four travellers company.

"Don't worry Goku, we aren't far. In an hour at most we should be there." Said Hakkai smiling from the driver's seat.

"I got to wait another hour before eating? My stomach is aching. Please Hakkai, do you have some other sandwiches of yours?" asked Son Goku, clutching his stomach which could be heard from miles protesting at it's emptiness.

"I'm sorry but those were the last." Replied Hakkai.

"Uff!!!"…."Ahh! Sanzo what was that for?" A paper fan had just ended it's journey and landed with force on Goku's head. "Why are you people, so keen today to give me hits on my head? I'm no toy of yours, you know!"

"If you don't shut up that grunting of yours until we arrive to town, you'll find a bullet in your head." The priest closed his eyes and folded his hands.

"Pissed off again, eh Sanzo?" asked Goyjo as he searched his pockets for his cigarette lighter. His fingers soon found the small metal box; he unclasped it and lit his cigarette, taking in a relaxing breath.

Sanzo had ignored Goyjo's question and instead, "Pass that on." He demanded waiting for the redhead to give him his lighter.

"Don't they teach you manners up in that temple?" said Goyjo as he handed his lighter to the young Buddhist monk in the front seat. Sanzo took the lighter and lit his Marlboros cigarette, already in his mouth.

Not far away, a few moments ago a band of Youkai had just visited a small village. The villagers were of no match to the Youkai's force. The Youkai on rampage had destroyed all the houses of which most now lay in ruins while others were still smouldering down after they were given fire. Not a single smiling face could be seen. The life, which so much filled this quiet place, situated in the middle of the forest, had ebbed, leaving behind only unmoving corpses. Men were slaughtered, the women were killed after being raped, and the children were unrecognizable. Bits of them remained as the Youkai made a buffet from them. Poor souls.

During the Youkai's attack, Neala wasn't home. Her mother had sent her to fetch some fresh water from the water spring a 30 minutes walk from the village. When she came back, bucket in hand, this shocking sight met her eyes. "Oh no! Please, let this be only a bad dream" Her hands covered her eyes, the dropped bucket was wetting the dry land. Tears fell from her eyes, as she walked slowly, avoiding to step on any of the death bodies. Sadly it wasn't a dream as she was hoping. It was crude, bitter reality, one that a fellow village had met not so long ago.

All the people she had grew accustomed of, lay there, motionless. Their eyes were wide open, and their faces all filled with mingled fear. Neala's heart was beating so fast, she thought it was going to stop sometime soon. Her breath had shortened suddenly as if she had been on a running race. Little by little, she came in front of her house, where her parents should be waiting for her to come with the water. The wooden door was wide-open and slanting forwards as it was still attached to the wall by one hinge. "Mum?...D,…D,…Dad?" the corpses now were bathing in their own blood. The wooden chairs were all broken, the table smashed in half. Glass was all over the place. Her Mother and Father were in the middle of that mess. A knife was visible in her father's back while a rope lay near her mother.

Tears fell uncontrollably from this young girl's blue eyes. She sobbed as she fell to her knees, rocking her self. Her hands reached to touch her mother's dress, only to be tainted by the still fresh blood. Her crying was the only sound in the death village. Some Youkai had not left yet. Hearing the weeping, they searched the houses once more. Neala did not hear them as they cursed around.
"They should have been all death by now."

"That's what I thought."

"We'll soon end the party beautiful," a Youkai said as he arrived in front of Neala's house. A sick smile was plastered on his grey face. His yellow decaying teeth were visible, disgusting Neala. Soon he was joined by his two other friends. Both had wooden sticks in their hands and a knife tucked in a leather pocket round their belts. All three were dressed in ragged clothes, with reptilian like yellow eyes and long sharp fingernails. Neala got up and backed away from the Youkai.

"Where are you going sweet?" the first Youkai said, moving forward will bending down to pick up the rope near her mother. <br>
"You don't think we'll leave such a lovely dessert go so easily, don't you?" said another Youkai, holding his sword clearly visible in his left hand.

"No, no, for sure." Said the third licking his dried lips and erasing the last traces of blood from them.

Neala looked scared around her, searching for something that would defend her from these Youkai. She was not going to give herself to them, with out a fight. She picked up an iron rod that used to form part of her bed and clasped it steadily in her hands.

"What do you think you're doing with that?" asked the first Youkai running towards her.

"This!" she said as she landed the rod with all her force on his head. He dropped instantly to the floor, but this deed infuriated only more the other two. Neala ran away through the backdoor to the forest. The two Youkai left, ran after her. They had inhumanly speed. They soon caught up with her. Neala had nowhere to escape. The Youkai inched forward, she tried hitting them with the metal rod but in vain. They avoided all her trusts until one of they, with a swift move of his claw like fingernails, shoved the rod away from her hands.

The other took the chance, as the girl was surprised, and bit her shoulder, taking a piece of flash. "Ah!!!" Neala screamed as pain ran through her like an electric shock. She was shaking and her right hand went up to her bitten left shoulder. Her white dress was already nearly half red. She bit her lips furiously so as not to let another scream escape and thus making the Youkai happy. Her eyes were full of vengeance. Hatred took over the pain for some brief seconds and Neala stood straight and bold, looking the Youkai straight in the eyes, as her long black hair turned blond-white coloured. Her brass ring on her right hand shone for a second during this transformation. The Youkai were bewildered at the sight of the young woman. She took the metal rod in her hand and landed it over one of the youkai who dropped to the ground unconscious. The other took out his knife and trusted it forward, but Neala avoided it, getting only a scratch on her arm. Their sparing continued, till Neala's hair returned to it's original colour and pain took over. The youkai noticing that her force had decreased once more, hit her in the stomach and she was sent into a tree and bumped her head.

The Youkai came again, but Neala found the strength to pick up the unconscious Youkai's knife and struck it to the other before he had time to hit her again. The youkai bent down as he took out the knife from his midriff as his eyes turned blank and died. Neala was losing a lot blood. She didn't have much energy left but she succeeded in getting up, supporting herself by the tree with her right hand. Slowly she walked through the forest trying to reach the road to the next village. Her vision was blurred. Her legs seemed to walk wherever they liked. The trees in front of her seemed to be thinning out. She came to a clearing, a road finally. But as she was crossing her last energy left her, her legs couldn't support her anymore and she dropped down, in the middle of the road as the driver of a green jeep succeeded just in time to hit the brakes.

"What the hell are you doing Hakkai? Do you call that driving?" Goyjo shouted to Hakkai as he messaged his head after bumping into Sanzo's seat.

"I apologize, but someone just fainted in the middle of the road." Explained Hakkai as he made his way out of the car. Sanzo opened his eyes. The abrupt break had waked him up from his little nap. Goku and Goyjo got out of the jeep too and went with Hakkai to check out who was in the middle of the street.

"She's a girl." Stated Goyjo as soon as he spotted that the figure lying on the ground was wearing a dress.

"And she's hurt." Goku said as he smelled blood.

Hakkai bent down and turned the girl. She was unconscious for sure, but fortunately still breathing. Her pulse rate was very low. "She's badly injured" he said as he placed his hands over her shoulder wound and concentrated his Chi to heal the wound. It was very deep but his chi helped to stop the bleeding. The other cuts weren't so deep, some bandages was all they needed. He picked the girl up and moved back to the jeep, Goku and Goyjo following. As the latter two got in their back seats, Hakkai handed them the girl carefully. "Don't move her, we'll take her to the village were we can tend to her wounds better. For now she is ok. I healed the most dangerous wound."

 

Sanzo didn't bother to look at the girl. He just closed his eyes again and tried to drift back to sleep as Hakkai turned the engine on again.

"Look Goyjo, she has a strange ring on her finger." Said Goku as he pointed to a brass ring on the girl's right-hand middle finger. The ring had an engraving on it, a Lotus flower.