Sickness (EDDE)

[FavoredFox]

They couldn't stop. No matter how much Hakkai objected, they all knew that they couldn't stop. The rain had started as a blessing in the arid valley, but the relieving shower that quenched their thirst quickly evolved into biting gales and heavy sheets of water that the dry ground just couldn't handle. When the wind started to push Hakuryuu side to side to the point he was near constantly driving on two wheels, Hakkai had tried to make them stop, but there was no place to hole up. The water rushing down the cliff sides surrounding them would wash them out of any place they found. There was no choice.

Hakkai, Sanzo, Goku, and Gojyo were all packed into the bed of the jeep holding a thick tarp over themselves to protect them from the worst of mother nature's rampage, but Hakuryuu couldn't do that. Hakuryuu was the jeep. He was their mode of transportation, and the four of them wouldn't make it on foot. He revved the engine, shifted gears, and peeled out over the muddy terrain.

It was midday, but the heavy clouds and blurring rain fall made it impossible to see. He had to make it to the next town with only the help of his memory of the map and the few inches in front of him that he could just make out. He skid across mud, hydro planed, bounced off of unseen brush, and withstood the assault of kicked up sticks and rocks. He spun his wheels furiously to get traction, picking up twigs into his axles and snapping under him, scratching up his underside.

Beneath the make shift tent, Gojyo fought to keep his edge of it down. "Where the hell did this come from?!" He bitched, raising his voice to be heard over the deafening storm. "And why the hell do I have to sit so close to this damn monkey? He stinks!"

Goku, the 'monkey' nearly lost his grip and fumbled to keep the tarp down. "Screw you water sprite! You're the one stinking up this place." A particularly harsh turn had them tumbling to the side and scrambling to stay under cover. "Ouch! What the hell Hakuryuu!"

Hakuryuu could tell his passengers were talking, but he couldn't make out a single word, and he didn't have the time to spare on trying to figure it out. His left front tire hit a large rock hidden by the quickly rising water, sending them flying several yards before splashing back down. A sharp pain ran through his metallic frame and he cried out when the rear axle nearly gave out; but he wouldn't stop. If he did, the water would reach up into his under carriage before they could reach the high ground of the village that was just a few more miles away. He could make it, he had to. His friends wouldn't survive out here.

With a determined cry, Hakuryuu pressed down the gas pedal and gunned it forward, crashing through obstacles rather than wasting the time to avoid them.

 

[EDDE]

This entire leg of their journey had been absolutely miserable. First it had been so absolutely hot and dry that the blonde had actually been having some trouble breathing in the heated air, his lungs protesting so strongly against the slight trauma that he'd actually had to focus on it to make himself continue. They'd had more relief in some of the deserts they'd driven through than this valley. Goku and Gojyo's fighting had even shut down during that part of the day. None of them were comfortable enough to even attempt to talk. So when the rain had come it had been so refreshing that even their idiotic start hadn't even been enough to put him a bad mood at first. Everyone had been relieved.

Now though; now his fingertips had long since gone numb, his hands were following, and it was starting to spread up his forearms from the amount of force the whipping wind and rains were exerting against the tarp they were all trying to hold. It wasn't just Gojyo and Goku that were having trouble keeping their grip. The problem was that he could tell it wouldn't be long before he wouldn't be able to catch his side anymore despite how heavily he was concentrating on keeping it. Sanzo could easily hold his own amoungst the fighters of the group; this was well known, however that didn't change the fact that he was still very much human, and his body simply didn't have the stability to it that the others' did.

"Dammit!" The complaint came in a growl as he was forced to hunker down against the side of the jeep while he pressed his back again the back of the seat he usually took up front once again, in attempt not to be tossed around in it right along with everyone else as they fishtailed through the rising water once again in Hakuryuu's attempts to avoid shit in his frantic attempt to escape the valley with them.

Droopy violet eyes landed sharply on Hakkai his thoughts turned abruptly to their current hopeful savior. He already knew where the man's attention would be settled. At least, he thought he did. He was surprised to find that Hakkai was actually looking at the lot of them. Then again, he realised that he was probably checking on their condition due to the jostle. Another harsh gale accosted them and Sanzo came way too close to losing the tarp, keeping his grip on it far too painful against the pins and needles in his hands to hide this time as he flinched against it and growled out and angry, "Fuck!"

Hakkai was paying close attention to everything, doing his best to keep a running tab open in his mind and constantly calculating the ever-changing circumstances. Should Hakuryuu grow too tired or, God forbid, hurt himself badly enough that he couldn't continue on his own, Hakkai would be forced to jump back up front. That would mean taking control... That would mean forcing Hakuryuu to keep going in whatever that condition happened to be that stopped him from being able to keep going on his own. Because without Hakuryuu as a jeep driving them through this horrible flash flood, the five of them would be swept away in this storm like they were nothing. They might not all die, but Hakuryuu in his dragon form most likely would. Hakkai and Sanzo didn't stand that much of a chance either, though Hakkai's was slightly better than Sanzo's. Gojyo and Goku certainly stood a better one, but not by all that much. If anything, the best-case scenario judging by how severe this storm had gotten so suddenly, was that Goku might survive it alone, if any of them would at all if they couldn't get out of here.

The main focus of Hakkai's attention, of course, was on Hakuryuu and his condition. They were being thrown all over the bed of the truck when they couldn't brace themselves against the erratic movements however, and he was beginning to notice a theme amoung his three companions. They were having trouble holding their ends of the tarps. "Goku, Gojyo, Sanzo," he called loudly to make sure they heard him.

When he was sure they were all looking, he lifted the arm he had supporting his corner of the tarp, showing them the lack of difficulty he was having due to the way he'd secured it. He'd taken the corner and securely wrapped it twice down his forearm before taking the actual corner into a tight hold. Making sure to hunker himself down in the same position Sanzo was currently sitting in to better hold himself in place against the swerving, he removed the grip he had on the side bar of their jeep friend and pantomimed the process for them, allowing them to quickly follow along as he did so. They did. In less than a second all of their faces went from pained exertion to near relief as they each leaned against their tarped arm and grabbed onto that bar through for more stability and safety in the back seat.

And by the Gods, it couldn't have come at a better moment.

Suddenly they were in the air and all the air in their lungs joined them there as various screams a curses flew from their mouths. Every one of their asses left the safety of solid flooring and each one of them did their damndest to get as close to that bar as possible so they would be landing back in that bed when they hit the ground. Thankfully, they did. Hakkai couldn't check on their condition when they landed again, though. His own landing knocked the back of his head hard into the bar and he pressed the front of it against the driver seat sharply in reaction to it. He couldn't cry out because he knew it would distract Hakuryuu, but more importantly he was just trying to get over it quickly because of the other thing that happened when they landed. The only thing he could focus on.

He'd felt it just as clearly as he'd heard it. Hakkai was right over top of the rear right wheel well. When they had hit the ground Hakuryuu's shocks had absorbed as much of the blow as they could, but it was a lot harsher than that. He felt them hit the limit of the springs, which would have been worrying on its own, but what Hakkai heard and felt after that had him absolutely petrified for his sweet, heroic little friend. From somewhere slightly deeper he heard a very distinct metalic 'crack', and he felt the slight shift in their momentum that told him it had to do with his wheel.

"Hakuryuu," he whimpered quietly. A deeply worried frown crossed over Hakkai's features as he hunkered himself down further and leaned himself past the driver seat as much as he could without compromising their tarp, placing himself between the two front seats the best he could while lifting his tarp holding hand over the driver seat so that it was being held up higher for the guys in the back.

He held onto the seat for support and began petting with his free hand over the middle console behind the stick shift gently. He couldn't see Hakuryuu since they were completely covered by the tarp and vice versa, but he hoped that Hakuryuu could at least hear that he was coaxing him with gently encouraging words even if he couldn't hear the words themselves. He hoped that being this much closer, and with the windshield and seats actually shielding some of the horrible gusts of wind with him having bent himself as low as he had, he might at least catch snippets and the comfort of his voice here and there. And it was full of warmth and comfort, because he was doing everything he could to keep his absolute fear of having to do something absolutely atrocious to his doting love out of it.

Those violet eyes were staring at Hakkai again, harder this time. Sanzo saw the look on Hakkai's face; the way his demeanor changed. He knew it meant something, and knew it was likely something he wasn't going to like. He also already understood what Hakkai would have to do if Hakuryuu couldn't hack it. The thing was, he wasn't sure Hakkai could. If he couldn't, Sanzo was more than ready to step in.

 

[FavoredFox]

Hakuryuu crashed through drowning bushes and floating debris. The leaves and branches stuck into his grill or bounced over his hood, cutting at the paint and denting the metal. Logs and rocks were kicked up and clattered against his undercarriage, but he gave up on trying to avoid them. Even if they had the time to spare, there was no use in trying to dodge, because any direction he turned would result in the same thing.

He held back his cries at first, but each chip of paint lost was another scale torn from his body, and every dent was a blunt blow that radiated through his entire frame. He chirped out his pain, hoping that the storm would cover it. He could feel Hakkai's worry. He could feel the gentle hand comforting and encouraging him. Hakuryuu could tell Hakkai was talking. He could catch a few sounds, but still couldn't make out words; but his yelps became quiet grunts as he barreled through the raising water.

This continued for a few minutes more before Hakuryuu released the gas pedal, slammed on the breaks, and even pulled the emergency breaks. The sudden stop dug his wheels front wheels into the mud and lifted the back wheels straight out of the water before they crashed back down.

His muffler popped and blew out billows of black smoke as Hakuryuu desperately tried to catch his breath. His headlights flickered and his high beams flashed at the steep incline before him, and the glow of the village up at the very top. Water raged down the narrow ramp, crashing against his grill and dragging with it more merciless debris. He had driven them straight into the mouth of the run off system for the town. There was sure to be a proper entrance, but the precious little time they had was out.

Hakuryuu released the emergency break and revved his engine. "Hold on! We're almost there," He squawked. "Hakuryuu can see the village!" He started moving forward carefully, pushing himself up onto the steep incline with painful effort until all four wheels were on the ramp. "Just a little longer! Hakuryuu will get everyone-" He cut off as a wave of water crashed over him, pouring over the windshield and the tarp keeping his friends safe.

His wheels spun hard and his gears started to audibly grind as he forced himself up inch by agonizing inch. Rocks, mud, and sticks dug into the wells of his wheels, scraping and cutting at the metal while sharp stones threatened to pop them. Broken trees now tried to crash through him, bouncing off of his hood and into the windshield.

It was impossible to see. All he could do was follow the blurry light and hope that there wasn't a sudden drop. So it was only at the very last moment that he saw the broken trunk of a tree cascading towards him. He yowled and slid back down several feet as it speared straight through his windshield, crashed into the passenger seat, snapped in half, and bounced off of the tarp; but he didn't stop. He regained those few inches and continued on with his painfully slow progress. "Hakuryuu... will get everyone... up... there!"

 

[EDDE]

Hakkai continued to comfort his best friend the best he could in their circumstances as they moved along while holding himself in place the best he could in the new position with the wild charge of water tossing the lot of them around and crashing debris into the poor creature. He was far too focused on each and every hit he could hear over the thundering rain, doing his best not to flinch with each one with little success. The battered electric lantern that sat in the bed had taken a good beating and wasn't as bright as when they'd started, but he could still see their other companions clearly underneath the tarp.

He'd been looking back to check on them once again when the air was stolen from his lungs at their sudden jolting stop, barely managing not to face plant the dash with the force of it. "Hakuryuu...?" The questioning word was mumbled and lost in the wind. He couldn't see what Hakuryuu could in his position, but it wasn't a moment longer before they started moving again. And then they were at an angle. It seemed their little dragon friend had found a way up judging by the change. Relief washed over him even as he had to brace his feet against the metal holding up the back seat in order to stay in his position.


Even over the confused and surprised complaints in the back that he could only barely hear as they also adjusted themselves as well, he hollared out his support to their current savior. He could only assume. "Go Hakuryuu! We're almost the--" but he was cut off by the sudden shock of devistation as they all felt the latest blow and the shattering of glass ran ice through his veins. "Hakuryuu!"

Time slowed for him as he heard the heavier taps of dislodged glass shower the tarp over them. Then he felt something else. While he was between the two front seats and the tarp was protecting him some, that didn't stop the heavy piece of wood from crashing down on them as well. He heard it split and turned his head back to warn the others to get down. He wasn't fast enough. And even though he was already down the wood was heavy.

The part that broke on his side came down harsh on his right leg and bounced away. He cringed at the pain sent rippling through his nerves, but wouldn't allow himself to ccry out. It would only distract Hakuryuu. But besides that he had no time to fully react to his own pain as he caught Gojyo's head flying back violently as the blow of the second piece nearly knocked him into an upright sit. And then he was slumping.

"Gojyo!" It came out in a frantic yelp as their other teammate went down. "Goku! Grab a hold of him!"

Goku did quickly and pulled Gojyo down further to the base of the seat and covered him as best his own small body could. But that brought about a new issue. It was all so fast. He wasn't sure when time had started flowing normally again, and felt absolutely helpless as he watched the new scene change. Gojyo lost his grip on his corner of the tarp as he lost consciousness and it was ripped away from his hold, while Goku simply let his go in order to reach in and grab the redhead, either absent mindedly or because getting a grip on Gojyo was simply more important in that moment.

Hakkai's attention shot to Sanzo but he was too late to warn him all over again. The monk cried out sharply as the tarp caught the wind instantly and tore away from his grasp. And then it was his turn. The rage with which the tarp tore into the air was strong enough to rip his arm into a sudden awkward position above and behind him. This time he couldn't stop himself from crying out as it first thightened around his wrist and then tore itself violently from his grasp and disappeared into the dark sky. He pulled his arm back down and cradled it for the moment it took for the downpour above them to abolutely soak them all through. Though the wetness he felt on his right wrist mingled with warmth. He wasn't foolish enough to look it over just yet. They didn't have time for that. He had to do something to get them through this faster. With the other three huddled down, Sanzo tending to his own arm in his hunkered position, he was the only one in the right position to help Hakuryuu.

"Everyone stay down!" The hollar was a clear order and none of the other three moved from their positions, both conscious parties taking him seriously. Hakkai was quick to turn his attention back to the front and put his attention on his sweet, sacrificing dragon. "Hakuryuu," he yelled so the beast could hear him properly this time. "Brace yourself and get ready! I'm going to help!"

With that he sat up with his back against the dash, climbing his way into position until he was properly braced on the back of each front seat with his knees pressing into the backs. He could only take a quick breath to ready himself as he threw his right hand forward and aimed out the back of the jeep down at the flat ground behind them. "Wait, Hakkai!" He couldn't tell which one of the back seat companions objected because he was focusing on his own power as he drew his left arm up and braced his right with the left hand. He ignored the pain of grabbing his wrist to support it.

He was going to need two shots. One to find the ground properly for the angle, and the second to blast them forward to give Hakuryuu the boost in moving forward. To his surprise though, Sanzo leaned forward, grabbed the lantern, and threw it with all his might in the direction Hakkai was aiming. Unfortunately the dim light was lost in the darkness as it went. It wasn't too much of a surprise, as even Hakuryuu's brights couldn't penetrate the darkness, and the lantern had dimmed through the abuse it had taken in the back of the jeep. Sanzo ducked his head back down again with a curse and grabbed at the railing and seat in order to brace himself for what was to come. Goku was still down on the seat shielding Gojyo. So he took his chance.

With a short breath Hakkai let loose his first shot, a bright ki blast that he focused on heavily as it shot away from them flew from his hand and ignited a beam of light that stayed fully connected as he poured the least amount of energy needed to find his place. He had to go by feeling, so he didn't put nearly as much energy into this blast as the one he was planning to once he found his grounding. And it only took a moment. He felt his attack connect with the ground below them and adjusted himself instantly so that the next round of energy he poured into the attack would help propel them forward.

That was when he yelled to Hakuryuu again. "Gun it, Hakuryuu!" It was the only warning he could give before fully loosing his energy and concentrating it into the biggest blast he could muster and maintain.

 

[FavoredFox]

There was nothing he could do. He heard as well as felt the splitting log crash into his companions, but there was nothing he could do! There wasn't enough space to try and swerve even if he did have the time. He heard his master cry out, and felt the tarp that had been keeping his friends safe from smaller bits of debris rip from their arms. The corners slapped against his frame before it was stolen completely by the gales.

In a desperate attempt to get them to safety faster, Hakuryuu rapidly shifted his steering wheel from side to side, digging his front tires in and using the newfound traction to give him just a little more speed; but it wasn't enough. He knew it wasn't enough, but it was the best he had. Until he heard Hakkai call out to him. "Right!" He called back, centering his steering wheel again.

Hakuryuu figured out what his master was doing the moment he felt the demon's energy start to grow. The first blast gave him an awkwardly aimed push, but the second gave him the acceleration he needed. With one more loud cry of determination, blue flames burst from his exhaust pipe, mixing with Hakkai's energy. He lifted slightly off of the ground, and suddenly there was significantly less weight on his wheels, and their crawling pace exploded forward.

The new speed caused the drops of rain to hit harder, each one feeling like sharp stones. Debris continued to whip across his frame, scratching and denting him more and more; but it also had his wheels gliding over the cascading water. He was forced to bounce like a motorized boat on waves as they rocketed their way up the flooded run off line; and in what felt like seconds they reached the top. Hakuryuu was shot up into the air when the steep slope suddenly flattened out.

The flames from the exhaust pipe abruptly stopped, and they flew several yards before crashing back down into the mud with a loud CRACK. And they made it... Almost. Even in the darkness of the storm, the lights from the town radiated from the grey. All Hakuryuu had to do, was get them across the bridge, but that crack was followed by a bursting pop. His rear right tire had blown. Pain and exhaustion blurred his vision, and when he pressed back down on the gas pedal his body began to grind and creak, and he just couldn't hold his form any longer.

Hakuryuu's passengers were unceremoniously dropped to the ground when the truck holding them was suddenly gone. Goku held tightly to the knocked out water sprite, but frantically looked for Sanzo. Instead, his sight shot to the dragon desperately flailing in the air. Hakuryuu was back to his normal form. He was beaten and bloody and his wings kept catching cruel winds that threatened to sweep him away. Goku reached for his staff and aimed it upwards towards Hakuryuu. "Nyoi Bo!" The weapon elongated, shooting out towards the flailing dragon.

Blood and rain made it near impossible for him to see, but he clawed at the air; kicking his back legs, his split talons trying to dig in to give him traction. His weak wings pounded against gusts of wind, but his struggles were for naught. He started to spiral, squealing out chirps for help as the sky threatened to swallow him up; and he almost missed his life line. He fluttered desperately, snapping his jaws at the staff until he finally managed to sink his teeth into the wood.

Goku called out an "Alright! Hakkai! Catch!" before retracting his weapon and swinging it to the side. Effectively throwing the battered creature into Hakkai's arms.

 

[EDDE]

They felt themselves lifting and their speed increase. Relief washed over him in a warm wave even as he concentrated. And he could feel the same energy radiating from the back seat. They were making, but they weren't out of the woods yet, so to speak. Thankfully the ascent became much faster, and it wasn't long at all before the loss of anything remotely solid was felt through them again. Hakuryuu's speed and Hakkai's push had them in the air for what felt like a much longer than it actually was before gravity took hold of them again and they were falling as they both ran out of steam in the same moment. Hakkai took hold of the steering wheel for the littlest bit of support he could muster in the moment it took for them to crash down, but completely lost his grip and was jostled into an awkward position, falling partially in the space between the front driver seat and the pedals and just barely missing the steering wheel with his face as they landed.

The horrible noise that came from Hakuryuu's body as they hit the ground had his full attention however, a panicked "Shit," escaping him just as their savior revved to move and his tire blew on top of everything. The dragon was beaten and battered before that and Hakkai's attempt to help had been a purely panicked response to the shape he was likely in already, having wanted to get him out of the treacherous situation he was facing in saving them. But before he could do anything about the new development he was falling again. This was a much shorter fall, but the ground came fast and he instinctively attempted to catch himself with his hands. The ground was much closer than he could anticipate though and he ended up misjudging, his arm buckliing under him and forcing him to land on his left side in the thick mud.

He realised instantly what the small force of that fall meant and threw himself to his own feet so quickly to get a read on Hakuryuu's position that he nearly made himself dizzy with it. Thankfully, Goku's reaction was faster than his own and just as he managed to catch sight of the tiny creature Goku was already capturing the struggling creature up. A moment later he was told to catch, and catch he did. He sunk back to his knees quickly and huddled down over the small being to shield him as best he could from the raging storm with his own body, leaning down close over him to take in what he could in the dim atmosphere with his weak vision as he pressed his wings closed against his body as not to allow the wind to take him up again.

Hakuryuu was covered with scratches and cuts and even with the little vision he had he could see where scales had been ripped from his body in the impacts he'd embraced during their escape. His claws were in horrible shape and Hakkai could see the damage to the claws on his right foot looked much more severe. More than that, what little shielding he was doing from the rain for his poor love allowed him to see the wound to his forehead seemed to be absolutely gushing, many scales ripped away from the area of the impact to his windshield.

The man's breath picked up all over again as a new wave of panic rushed through his system as he looked over his mangled little friend, though he scooled his face to be as calm as he could as he lowered his face close enough for his gentle tone to be heard and raised his right hand to hover over what looked to be the worst wound in his face first. "Thank you, Hakuryuu. You saved us."

It was difficult, but he allowed the calm tone to pulse through his own body in order to draw himself to the level needed to muster up the warm healing energy he needed to fix his little friend. Just as he began to exert that energy however a sharp pain pulled him from his concentration as an iron grip was wrapped around his wounded wrist. Hakkai's eyes shot open from having closed in the need to concentrate, staring down at the hand wrapped around his wrist that squeezed even tighter. His energy receeded without his permission and his arm became an odd kind of numb as he lost full control of it. Emerald eyes followed the other bloody arm up to land on Sanzo's face as the priest crouched over him through his reach, losing a bit of focus as they landed on droopy purple hues glaring sharply down on him.

"Don't you even think about it," the man growled down on him as the numbness in his arm began spreading futher and began making him dizzy all over again. Sanzo was exerting his power over him and the drain he'd just gone through along with that wasn't mixing too terribly well as he was paralyzed in place. But almost as soon as he began to feel like he was losing a battle he wasn't planning on facing, Sanzo released his arm and quickly turned his attention over to Goku.

"Grab that moron and let's go. We're not done yet." He heard the order as he was forced to catch himself from a fall with the hand that had just been captured as not to lose himself completely to the fall and crush the poor creature he had supported in his other arm.

It took him a moment, but his head cleared and he looked down on the poor thing once again, a comforting smile spreading across his lips as he did so. "You've done enough Hakuryuu," he mentioned carefully. "You've saved us, so now allow me to return the favor. Do your best to rest while we finish what you started."

With that he stood, noticing Sanzo was also already on his feet. They didn't have the moment they needed to recover just yet. In an instant Sanzo was off and he found himself following behind the man who'd taken the new lead blindly in the quickest pace his own pained body could follow, ignoring the heaviness it felt and willing himself onward so that they could get to a spot where they were in that position.

He could heal Hakuryuu once they found cover from the storm and things had calmed down some. He wasn't sure, but Gojyo might need his attention too.

 

[FavoredFox]

He collided with Hakkai's chest with a muted grunt and coiled in on himself and against the man as tightly as his little body allowed. His tail curled up between his legs and trapped itself between their bodies. He tucked his head in and found a small spot that kept his face and eyes safe-ish from the rain, then peeked open his right eye to see his doting lover looking down on him with that same warm, soothing smile that always put him at ease. Even now, with his left eye gradually swelling, his claws split and bleeding, and several scales having been torn from his body, that smile relaxed him, and he slumped completely in Hakkai's hold.

Hakuryuu weakly chirped at the praise. "Hakuryuu's friend's are safe now." Hakkai's energy began to rise again, and he tilted his head towards the healing palm, touching his nose to it, only jolt his head back when Sanzo grabbed Hakkai's wrist and pulled it away. It was just out of reach of Hakuryuu's pitiful attempts to nip away Sanzo's grip, but the priest didn't keep the hold long. He squirmed a bit when Hakkai tumbled over. "Master Hakkai is hurt!" He argued, but he didn't have the energy to fight it. He'd done his part, and now it was theirs. Hakkai said so.

He didn't like it, but Hakuryuu simply ducked his head down and pressed himself as tightly to his master as he could muster. He shivered and quivered against the chill and the oddly numb thrumming in his limbs. He clenched his eyes shut and forced his nose and face into the fabric of Hakkai's sash and gradually started crawling his way into it, swaddling himself against his lover.

At the mention of his name, Goku perked up and looked around. Usually, he'd argue about having to carry Gojyo, be even he could tell that this wasn't the time for that. Hakuryuu was definitely hurt and so was Gojyo, but in the short seconds it took for him to look between Sanzo and Hakkai, he realized that they were both injured too. He didn't argue, but he DID complain. "You're gonna pay me back for this. Dumb water sprite!" He said while hauling the red head up onto his back. He hooked his arms under Gojyo's knees, but his feet still dragged along the ground as Goku ran off after Sanzo.

"Sanzo. Hey Sanzo!" He yelled out, catching up to the priest. "You're arm, it's-"

"Nothing. You stupid Monkey, keep going!"

"Sanzo..." A frown pulled hard on Goku's face, but he forced it away and replaced it with a look of determination. One moment, he was running a foot or two behind Sanzo, the next he was racing across the stone bridge with enough speed to kick up waves of water on either side of him; yelling "Hurry up!"

He sped right through the entrance to the town. The sooner he found an inn, then the sooner everyone's injuries could be teneded to. Including Sanzo. "Inn, Inn, where's an Inn? This one!?" Goku skidded to a near stop in front of a large building. He didn't know what kind of place it was, but it was big, so there had to be space, right? Not to mention he could smell food! Without another thought, and not even noticing the swinging sign reading 'Rhyolite Inn,' he barreled head first through the front doors.

Gojyo opened his eyes just in time to see the door before his head went through it, and he went right back to sleep once his hit the floor with a muddy thwap, sending filth all over the freshly cleaned floor as well as a few near by patrons.

 

[EDDE]

Hakuryuu retreated into his sash and Hakkai was a bit glad for it. He was having trouble holding his arm in place as tightly as he was. Still, it didn't lower even as the little dragon secured himself and he began to run. "Oh my," he mentioned as Goku took off ahead of them. "Looks like you've motivated him, Master Sanzo," he teased as he hurried behind the blonde man. He swayed and stumbled a bit a moment later but caught himself and managed to keep his pace as a realisation struck him. The wind was beginning to die down and the rain wasn't pouring as hard as it had been just before they'dhit the bridge. He was thankful for it, as it made it that much easier to keep himself in his upright fight against his heavy body as they went.

"Shut the Hell up," Sanzo shot back as they both almost naturally sped up their pace in an ill fated attempt to keep up with Goku. "Pay attention to yourself. Don't expect me to take up your slack, you idiot."

"I wouldn't dream of it," he shot back just as jeeringly cheery as before. "You've already mentioned your shoulders aren't for leaning on, haven't you?"

"Ch." Sanzo's attention turned forward again and he caught sight of Goku skidding to a hault. He was about to call out to him to cool his ass off, but was a little too slow on the uptake as the small man barreled his way through the door without so much as a second thought. "YOU IDIOT!" The growling anger in his tone seemed to speed the man up even more as he moved from chasing after to chasing down his stupid little monkey.

By the time Hakkai caught up to them Sanzo was already berating and beating their rowdiest member over the head with that fan of his, hollaring about who would pay for the door amoung other insults. Emerald eyes scanned over the shocked faces of the patrons as he leaned himself against the broken door frame in order to catch his breath. The warmth permeating from this place filed with well dressed, somewhat horrified looking individuals was a relief that nearly had him sinking to the floor. He was getting dizzy again and couldn't help but think that perhaps the sudden safe feeling of the lovely atmosphere they'd crashed through was taking its tole on him. He was running out of adrenaline, which was likely what he'd been purely fueled by for the entire run to this place.

"Pardon the intrusion," he huffed a few more breaths before being able to continue. "We've only just escaped the storm from the valley and probably look an absolute mess. Is there any chance that there's availability here."

He only barely heard the sudden murmurs of concern that broke out through the room as someone from the crowd broke loose and hurried over to their fallen teammate on the ground claiming to be a doctor. That was because of the voice that rang from behind him rather suddenly that had him turning in that irection quickly in surprise. "Hey." It wasn't good; that he hadn't sensed or even heard the small group of men hurrying up and coming to stop so close behind him, especially since the rain had dwindled so much now. "You said you came from the valley," one man stepped forward and was staring hard at the lot of them, his eyes locking with Hakkai's. "Did you see that light just then?"

"Light?" The curious question that came from him wasn't a ruse in the moment. He was having trouble even seeing straight at the moment, and his cognitive faculties were beginning to escape him.

"Yeah!" A younger person stepped out from the crowd with an excited grin on his face. "It was this really bright light we could se through the storm; like a comet or something."

"You idiot," he was chided from within the group. "Comets shoot into the ground from the sky, not the other way around."

"I know, but that's still what it looked like!... Only bakwards, I guess."

"Oh that light," Hakkai managed as he realised what they were likely talking about. "Well--"

Any excuse he might have been about to pull out of his ass was cut off by the youngest member of their group as Goku piped up in his place. "That was us," he offered proudly, forcing a sigh from Hakkai's lips as Sanzo instantly went back to smacking him over the head and telling him to keep his moronic mouth shut.

He was having trouble hearing the berating this time as the wall behind him grew more solid against his back and his knees suddenly came up to meet him while his ass found ground hard. "Please," he managed to mutter. "We'd really just like a room if you have one..."

If there was an answer he wasn't able to hear it, as his vision swam and then went dark, Hakkai slumping against the wall fully and his body falling lax. Although, he was almost sure in that last moment that he heard a sour tone turn from Goku toward himself. "Damn you, Hakkai! What did I just say?"