You struggled to pull yourself out of what remained of a row of pine trees. Your legs shook, and blood dripped down your fingers. The massive tsuchigumo (spider demon) clacked its mandibles, as it crept closer. It had been nearly a month since the Divine Assembly came to an end, and you'd been fighting ever since. You reeked of blood, and your body was constantly in pain. Your body was crisscrossed with wounds, and you'd barely rested in weeks. The only thing that kept you going was your will and pride.
"I told you last time, if I have to fight you again, I won't hold back." You growled at the yokai. Stepping forward, you transformed. Your body didn't change much. The only change was what was inside. Your humanoid form was nearly identical to your target creature, just without their powers. "Now burn." You hissed. With a flick of your wrist, a turquoise mass of flame shot towards the creature. The massive spider writhed in pain, as your foxfire seared every inch of its body.
Pain shot through your body, invisible flames devouring your own flesh. You fell to your knees, and gritted your teeth through the pain. In a matter of moments, what remained of the spider fell to the ground with a thud. It took you a few minutes to catch your breath, before you could push yourself up from the ground. "I'm sorry." You whispered under your breath, guilt tearing at your insides.
"There you are, you abomination!" Came a shout you were all too familiar with.
"I'm surprised you restrained yourself for this long. I thought you'd attack me within the first week, Ikusagami." You looked up at the annoying god, and chuckled.
"Unlike you, I have actual responsibilities." Ikusagami snarled. "I'm here to put an end to you and those yokai you protect!" Without waiting for a response, the god of war shot down towards you.
In the blink of an eye, you both drew your swords. The blades clashed in a shower of sparks, but only stayed connected for a second, before you both leapt back. Your breathing was ragged, and your vision had started to grow blurry. You could feel the stain of the miasma growing. It wouldn't be much longer before you could no longer hide it under your clothes.
Without a doubt, fighting a god in your state was one of your most foolish acts. However, you refused to give up like that. Ikusagami rushed forward again. You raised your sword to intercept his own, but pain shot through your head as a yokai's terror hit you. Your stance wavered, and the god of war took advantage of it. His sword slammed into yours, but you weren't ready to counter his power. The force of his attack threw you backwards. You slammed through several trees, and eventually crashed to a stop on the stairs leading to the shrine.
"Milady!"
"(Y/N)!"
Through your blurry vision, you saw Ryuu and Nanami rushing towards you. Ryuu knelt beside you, and tried to touch you, but you swatted away his hand. "This is my fight, stay out of it." You gasped. You pushed yourself back to your feet, barely keeping your knees from giving out.
"Why don't you use your godly form? Surely then you'd be able to put up more of a fight!" Ikusagami mocked, as he walked down the path you'd cleared with your body. "Oh, that's right, you can't control it when you're weakened, can you?"
You spat out a mouthful of blood, and wiped the blood off your face with your sleeve. "For the god of war, you sure do talk a lot in a fight." You snarled.
"Milady, please let me help. You are in no condition..." Ryuu started.
"Ryuu, take Nanami into the shrine. I told you before, you are to protect her, nothing more." You growled, lacing your words with your divine power.
With a pained look in his eyes, he grabbed Nanami, and hurried up the stairs. Nanami tried to protest, but you didn't hear what she was trying to say before Ikusagami rushed you. You leapt to the side in the nick of time. Ikusagami's sword cleaved a chunk out of the stairs, and you momentarily felt worry seep into your mind.
Brains over brawn, they always say. Let's give it a try. You thought to yourself. Shaking the feeling of worry, you launched forward. When he slashed to counter you, you transformed into a tiny finch. You easily evaded his swing, and got close. In a flash, you transformed back, and brought your sword around. The blade went up under his arms, and slashed across his chest.
"Next time you come back, I'll end you." You hissed, before your foxfire burst from along the edge of the blade. The god of war was blasted away, as though shot out of a canon. With one last defiant huff, you staggered and fell.
"Milady! Please, let me come to you!" You heard Ryuu cry, but you couldn't muster the energy to turn to him.
"Mizuki, help us get her inside." Nanami instructed her own familiar.
Within seconds, your arm was draped around Mizuki's shoulder, and he half carried you up the steps to the shrine. He brought you into your room, and lowered you onto the futon, where Ryuu and Nanami took over with their worry.
"You're hurt all over..." Nanami muttered, her voice quivering.
"Milady, we must tend to your wounds." Ryuu tried to keep his voice steady, but the end of his sentence trembled.
"I understand." You whispered back, each breath sending a wave of nausea through you.
"Are you wearing anything under your kimono?" He asked.
"I am..." You replied, knowing he was worried about opening your kimono and leaving you exposed.
"Lady Nanami, please get the medical supplies, and peach pills. Mizuki, please get me some warm water and a cloth." Ryuu instructed. You weren't sure if they did as instructed, but Ryuu began to open your kimono, so you assumed they had.
"Milady..." Ryuu's voice cracked. "Why didn't you tell me you'd been infected by this darkness?" You felt his hand brush the skin along your left shoulder.
"I got the supplies!" Nanami called, as she presumably reentered the room.
"Lady Nanami, please, I need your help." Ryuu's voice was pleading. "You and your shikigami are the only ones capable of purifying the miasma. Please, help her."
"I'm on it." Nanami's voice held strength behind it. Mamoru chattered, and Nanami placed her hand on the black stain. You felt the miasma begin to disappear, Nanami's purification erasing the cruel mark. After a moment, she pulled her hand away. "I-it didn't work..."
You couldn't help but chuckle lightly. "Don't worry, Nanami. It worked. That's just a bruise."
"Milady, please open your mouth." Ryuu whispered. You did as instructed. He dropped a cold pill into your mouth, and you swallowed it without question. "Hopefully the peach pill will do most of the work. However, I still need to treat your wounds."
"That's alright." You mumbled. Fatigue was pulling on your body, and your mind was beginning to slip. "I'm just going to rest my eyes."
---------------------------------
"What is going on here?" Tomoe shouted the second he opened the door to the shrine.
Nanami came from down the hall, and smiled at him. "Tomoe, you're back!"
"What happened? The stairs to the shrine are destroyed, and the forest is in disarray!"
"W-well... you see..." Nanami stumbled over her words.
"Will you quiet down!" Ryuu snapped in a hushed tone, as he came up from behind Nanami.
"Why would I listen to you?" Tomoe spat.
"Milady is hurt, and needs her rest. If you wish to be loud, I have to ask you to leave." Ryuu stated.
Tomoe's eyes widened. "What happened to her?"
"Did you already forget what happened in Izumo?" Ryuu questioned. "Milady issued a challenge to any who hold a grudge against all of us here, and many have come to accept it."
Tomoe pushed past Nanami and Ryuu, and went to (Y/N)'s room. When he pushed open the door, he froze. Ryuu hadn't yet finished treating all of her wounds, so there was no mistaking it. A ghastly purplish-blue bruise covered her entire left side from her shoulder down to her ankle, gashes crisscrossed much of her already scarred body, and some splotchy burns tainted her flesh here and there.
"What could have possibly done this to her?" Tomoe muttered to nobody in particular.
"The bruise along her left side is from a Reiki, her palms and gash on her ribs are from a fallen boar god, and the wounds on her back are mostly from the tsuchigumo and Ikusagami. Other than the major wounds the cuts are from some kama itachi, a few bake-neko, a swarm of nobusuma, and several fallen gods; the burns are mostly from a kijo, a kirin, and an ayasha; while the bruises are thanks to a ningyo, and several waves of oni." Ryuu answered.
"When did all of those attack?"
"They've been coming since the first day we got back from Izumo. She kept leading them away from the shrine, so that nobody would notice." Ryuu informed Tomoe. He knew he would be reprimanded for being so open, but he knew that most of this was caused by the fox's less than honorable past.
"Surely she shouldn't have ended up in this sorry of a state from those." Tomoe stated.
Ryuu grit his teeth. "If it was an honorable fight, but rarely was it one at a time."
There was a light tap against the door out to the porch. Both Tomoe and Ryuu tensed, their eyes sharp. Ryuu approached the door, and slowly pushed it open. A sparrow hopped into the room.
Ryuu's eyes widened. "Stop that bird!" He hissed to the others.
Before anyone had the chance to react, the sparrow spotted (Y/N). It glided over to her, lighted beside her, and let out a shrill chirp.
"No, get out." Ryuu whispered angrily to the small bird. He tried to shoo it away with his foot. The bird, instead of moving, drove its sharp beak into his foot. Ryuu spat several curses under his breath, but didn't give up. "You have to leave her alone!"
Without warning, Tomoe grabbed the bird from the floor.
"Don't hurt it." Ryuu quietly urged. "If it's hurt it could wake, Milady."
Realizing that it was about to be thrown out without completing the job assigned to it, the sparrow began to let out a terrible screech.
Nanami and Ryuu covered their ears. Tomoe was visibly discomforted by the rather grating sound, and stomped to the door. He was about to toss the sparrow out into the yard, when a voice stopped him.
"Put her down."