Chiyo's knuckle stung as they sliced through the air. Her fist, fueled by anger, aimed for Hachiro's jaw. She was the first to attack, but each strike, he evaded it with ease. Hachiro moved like a phantom — swift and fluid. He sidestepped, ducked, and spun, each evasion mocking her. Chiyo's breath came in ragged bursts. She's desperate, but her years of training and honing her reflexes seems nothing compared to his centuries of experience. He was a seasoned fighter and he danced around her blows with maddening precision.
Chiyo tried to attack him, but he used his arms to deflect. "Why so serious, princess?" Hachiro's voice dipped with amusement. He was playing with her — bidding his time. Calculating everything to make sure that she will be too late if she escapes.
"Stop calling me that!" Chiyo gritted her teeth. Her heart pounded in her chest, boiling like a tempest. He had betrayed them. He has conspired to murder her husband for the sake of the throne; to weave fate again — to untangle the strings and put everything in place again. Chiyo was no fool; She knows what he's thinking — she already has her hunch.
And Kaito ruined his plans.
The air hung heavy with tension. Chiyo's mind race. She had no weapon — only her wits and the fire of vengeance burning within her. Kaito's life hung in the balance and she needed to escape quickly. She couldn't afford hesitation for anger is consuming her — slowly spreading like fire, ready to burn her whole... ready to burn the world to ashes if she lost the very person she was trying to protect.
"You fight like a cornered rat," Hachiro taunted, his laugh echoeing off the walls. "You are so predictable."
Chiyo's gray eyes deepened — a storm is brewing, ready to unleash its power. Her attack became faster as she lunged again, each strike matched her arrogance.
"Even rats can kill too." She smirked. Her attack connected, bare fist hitting his jaw. Hachiro staggered. He wiped the blood at the corner of his lips, its sting a reminder of what the woman is capable of. However, he was not afraid at all. He was much older than her. He had lived even before she was born. She can never defeat him.
"You are a fool, princess Yasuki." Hachiro spat. "The crown is there, almost unreachable, yet you chose to live in peace. You forgot about your identity. The sacrifices made by your kingdom are in vain for you never fought for it. You must claim the throne as destined."
Chiyo scoffed, her eyes mocking. "You talk as if you know everything."
"I do." He answered. "And you can never escape your fate. You will not get out of here."
"Try me." Chiyo taunted.
Hachiro lunged, easily aiming for her throat. Chiyo did not evade his attack. He let his hand wrapped around her neck, choking her. Chiyo's face reddened, her veins bulging — the world turning to a tunnel of pain. She gasped but what came out after were laughter. The sound reverberating throughout the warehouse — haunting them.
Her hand reached for his arms, grabbing it hard — her claws digging on the fabric of his kimono. "I already know who you are, Hachiro." She trailed in between her breath. Her voice — cold yet taunting.
"Beast."
The grip on her neck tightened, and the next thing she knew is that her world spun. She crashed into the wooden crates, debris flying around.
"You think you know me?!" Hachiro's voice rumbled, the timbre shifting. Chiyo looked up when she heard bones cracking.
Hachiro's jaw clenched. His eyes held nothing but fury. He'd been many things — a spy, an assassin, a knight — but never had anyone dared to call him a mere beast.
His blood simmered, skins prickling with indignation. It tightened, and bones cracked. The warehouse walls groaned as he transforms. Hachiro became a dragon — a magnificent creature with wings that spanned the room, eyes like emeralds, and scales like molten gold.
"I am no beast!" Hachiro growled, his breath sending a gush of wind.
Chiyo's kimono fluttered in defiance. She stilled herself, not showing any kind of fear in front of the ancient dragon. She knew. The moment he started talking about her fate and everything, she had remember about the story her mother had told her.
The golden dragon who weave destinies. His eyes of emerald, and hair shining like gold. He, an ancient creature, who chose the Kitsune as the royalty of their world.
And dragons are prideful and powerful creatures. They were above yokais and being called a beast... It is what they hate the most. It was blasphemy to call them such name.
"You called me a beast." His tail swept, knocking aside crates. "But I am more: I am fire and sky; I am the weaver of your destiny and I will put everything on track again."
"Even at the cost of killing the innocent?" Chiyo matched his stare. She walked forward, halting inches away from his snout. "I know the cost of your ambition, Hachiro. You are the reason why I wouldn't take the crown. Not Kaito — you! So stop talking about that so-called fate. You put my family's life in danger! You are the one who ruined it all!"
"Stop!" Hachiro's claw descended, pinning her to the ground. Pain radiated from her side, blood oozing from it. "Ungrateful! I was the one who made your family royalties! Prosperity and privileged, your family enjoyed it all because of me!"
"Yet you only see us as your pawn!" Chiyo screamed. Hachiro has opened up old wounds. There are memories that she just wanted to lock up in their deepes, darkest corner.
The throne — bloodshed started because of it. It ruined them all. Her ancestors... Her parents... even her brother... She lost it all just because they were chosen by fate.
Their death — was it also their destiny?
Chiyo clenched her fist, letting her anger take control. "You only want to showcase how powerful you are! You are a spectator and you enjoyed watching everyone dance in your palm like a puppet! You manipulated everything! For what? To brandish your authority towards us? That you hold our destinies in your hand?! To me you are nothing but a selfish, arrogant beast!"
Hachiro growled at her, showing off his sharp and large canines, but Chiyo was not backing down either. Her gaze met his— defiant... unyielding... cold and angry.
She will not leave this place without Hachiro paying for his sins. He, who endangered her whole race, must pay the price.
Heavens be damned for she'll unleashed hell in their realm.
Chiyo did not try to free herself from Hachiro's claws. She relaxed her body, the feeling of falling into a void enveloping her.
"I'll show you." She said, the wound on her side healing fast. "I will choose my own fate."
Gone — she vanished from her spot, leaving nothing but crimson blood under his claws.