Looking down at the place where flames leaped into the sky, Sesshomaru and Lotus stood on high ground in silence. The girl's face was more solemn than it had ever been even when countless monsters surrounded her. Hatred surged into the heavens here, and the crackle of flames devouring houses and the wails of the hateful yet pitiable villagers trapped inside struck at the hearts of those watching.
"They'll soon be beyond saving," Sesshomaru said coldly. He bore the blade of the Two Worlds, and his eyes could see through life and death.
"No." The girl pressed her lips together and shook her head. "There's still a chance."
The girl drew a deep breath and slowly spread her hands. Her innate spiritual power summoned the water of all things, diverting a stream from the brook that flowed down from the upstream waterfall. The tributary became an enormous dragon of water, with long whiskers and a massive body. In a blink, it flew above the village. Water poured down wherever it passed, extinguishing every flame. Faintly scorched gray smoke rose slowly from the ruined houses, and the surviving villagers scrambled over one another to escape the buildings, which were no longer sound.
The girl who had clawed her way out of the earth and wandered through the village like a walking corpse still wore the white robes of a sacrifice. They were soaked in blood-hers and her parents'. She had taken her revenge, yet she had lost everything. The parents who had loved her from beginning to end were dead, and even her childhood companion had betrayed her. The girl sank to her knees before the blazing shrine, her eyes vacant. Like a pale butterfly dying in the flames, she wailed and wept in agony, pouring out all her hatred and