"River boats are much smoother sailing," Noaki said, knowing without words her deep fear of boats.
She gave him a faint smile of thanks.
The boat was much too small to have private conversations with her friends, though she could see there were questions in their eyes. And Rin kept watching Ryuu, who stood at the front of the ship. Probably wondering what he'd done with her husband. She had questions for them too, namely how had they agreed to masquerade as part of the emperor's army. Suzume entertained herself by watching the countryside drift by. They slid by farms and farmers tilling in ankle-deep water as they harvested rice, backs bent.
They stopped to watch them go. Not with suspicion but smiling and waving. The sailors called out to friends, asking after their families. Suzume leaned over the edge of the boat. She'd been all over the countryside now, but she'd never taken the time to appreciate the quiet beauty of it.
Tsuki leaned over the side of the boat but when he spoke in a hushed voice it was Akira. "That man, the one who freed us, he's the same one who sealed us isn't he?" she asked.
She couldn't take over control of the body she shared with her brother, not with so many people around. Suzume glanced over her shoulder toward Ryuu before nodding her head. "He is."
"First chance we get, we should escape," Akira said.
"But what about Hikaru?" Suzume said, voicing the concern before even Rin could.
Akira shrugged.
Rin who was nearby, scowled at Akira. "I am not leaving him behind," she said in a hiss.
Akira did not even bother to glance in Rin's direction. "That man is not human."
"I figured as much," Suzume replied, fighting the urge to look at Ryuu. It would only draw attention to them.
"He's not yokai either."
"What is he?" Suzume asked.
"A hanyou, a half yokai," she said.
Suzume did jerk her head backward to look at him this time. And when she did, Ryuu met her gaze as if he had known they were talking about him. Maybe he'd overheard their conversation.
She turned to the water again.
"We should talk more later," Suzume said.
Akira nodded her head, understanding without words that now was not a safe time to talk.
Someone at the front of the ship shouted and Suzume was knocked to the ground by Noaki, just as a shard of ice pierced through the sail of the ship and impaled onto the ground where Suzume had just been standing. A moment after that, a wave rose up rolling over the ship, drenching them all.
She struggled to lift up her head and see who was attacking. The clouds overhead had turned a dark, stormy gray where it had been a bright, sunny day before. The once calm river was rocking with enormous waves which were spilling over the sides of the ship.
"What was that?" Suzume shouted, but her voice was overpowered by the howl of the wind.
Lightning flashed in the sky, and Suzume caught a brief glimpse of a serpentine body flying through the sky. It couldn't be. Kaito?
"Everyone to your stations," Ryuu shouted, his voice barely a thread over the crash of the storm. Waves continued to wash over the ship’s sides. "We've found the dragon who attacked the village."
22
The priests scattered to do as ordered while Suzume struggled to keep her feet beneath the rocking of the ship. Panic gripped her in that moment, not only as old fears of drowning surfaced, but as the horrible realization struck her. If she couldn't stop this, the priests might kill Kaito. Clinging to the side of the ship, Suzume dragged herself toward the front of the boat where Ryuu was shouting orders.
"You have to stop." She had to shout because the wind was howling so fiercely that she could barely hear herself speak.
"Stand down. We've got this," Ryuu said, not hearing what she had said.
Suzume tilted her head toward the sky, and she saw another flash of the serpentine body, blue scales flashing against the gray sky. How could she get a message to Kaito in time?
The priests were lining up, preparing to shoot holy arrows at Kaito. There was no use trying to convince them to stop. Suzume knew she had only one choice. The fire came hot and quick to her hands. The crackle of energy drew forth her power with ease. She went to the front of the ship, and concentrating all her power in her hands, she created a ball of flame. She took aim and shot the fire toward the dragon. Her aim, never very good, sailed past the dragon and fell in a large arc before it burst apart on the other side of the shore.
The dragon reeled away from her shot, which hadn't come close enough to actually strike him. At least it had gotten his attention. It's me! Run away before it's too late. She waved her arms up and down, trying to catch his attention.
But instead of turning the dragon away, it seemed to narrow in on her. Shards of ice came raining down from the sky, and she was saved from being impaled by Noaki lunging out of nowhere and taking her out of the pathway of the deadly projectiles. The ocean was getting rougher and the two of them tumbled backward as the ship rocked. Without warning something burst out from the river beside her. A second dragon rose up out of the water, spilling water on them as it joined the first in the sky.
"Prepare to fire," Ryuu's voice shouted.
Two dragons? Suzume didn't have time to think about what it meant. She had to stop them from killing Kaito.
The dragon rained ice from the sky, and hundreds of projectiles pierced the ground. One unlucky priest was struck in the head and fell to the floor of the ship bleeding.
"Fire!" Ryuu shouted. The remaining priests did not even have time to take care of their fallen comrade. A barrage of projectiles were shot into the air toward the dragons.
The dragons seemed unafraid, dodging the arrows with ease as they weaved their way around their attacks and came in closer to send another counter-attack. A barrage of ice washed over the ship, crusting everything over in ice.
Suzume shivered at the feeling of the cold and the immense spiritual pressure from the dragons drew closer. She felt the fire inside her grow stronger. Using her flames had only awakened her thirst and knowing there was powerful yokai nearby only made the craving stronger.
Ryuu was guiding his men, pointing and shouting as they scurried to keep the boat on top of the water despite multiple attacks.
Suzume grabbed onto Noaki's arm. "Can I command him?" she shouted.
Noaki shook his head, either she couldn't do it or he couldn't hear what she was saying. She didn't know how the power of control worked, if the words needed to be heard or if her intention would do anything.
A cluster of priests took position in the middle of the ship and they started to sing. Their voices rose together as one. Their song wove together a barrier around their ship just moments before another deadly attack rained down upon them. Suzume could feel it shudder through the entire ship. Once the barrier was in place, everything went very still.
Outside the storm continued to rage, the water rocked their boat slightly, but the rain that had pelted them and even the crack of thunder was kept out by the barrier. The priests continued chanting their song. It was the only thing keeping the barrier in place. For a moment, she got lost in the song. The power reverberating from them drew her to them. She was stopped by Noaki's hand on her shoulder.
"I need everyone to take positions. We're going to have to take them out together," Ryuu roared to his soldiers.
The spell of power broken, Suzume seized her chance, and ran toward Ryuu once more. "You can't attack them. I know that dragon."
Ryuu looked at her as if she'd just sprouted another head. "They're trying to kill us."
"Just give me a chance to talk to him," she pleaded.
"Those monsters slaughtered a village." Ryuu pointed toward the sky. "We're not going to talk to them."
Suzume froze. Kaito wouldn't kill humans. There had to be some mistake.
"Listen, it couldn't have been him. He wouldn't have done that."
But Ryuu turned away from her, ignoring her pleas. He was no different than the others.
She tilted her head up, searching for Kaito in the sky, but he was nowhere to be seen. Perhaps he was escaping, maybe not. But she couldn't risk the priests attacking.
She searched for her friends. She couldn't do this alone.
"We have to stop them," Suzume said.
"The only way we're stopping this is if we fight the priests," Rin said.
"If that's what it takes, that's what we'll have to do."
There was no hesitation in the eyes of her friends. But just then, there was a roar overhead. The dragons had not retreated as she had hoped. The archers drew their bows, they only awaited Ryuu's order.
"Lower the barrier," Ryuu shouted.
The rain pelted down upon them, decreasing visibility. Suzume gave the signal and a moment before the archers could loosen their bows, they launched their retaliation. Rin had transformed into her true kitsune form, her body almost too big for the tiny ship. She ran up to the priests who'd created the barrier and knocked them aside, scattering them.
Noaki and Tsuki attacked the archers, taking out a few of them before they turned and fumbled for swords. Suzume joined them, swinging her staff. The priests fought, not only with weapons, but with their spiritual powers as well. And as the energy flowed around her, try as she might to fight its influence, the fire inside her had been awoken and it pulled from the priests around her. She took their energy into herself, making her stronger until she hummed with power. Suzume's vision faded in and out, even as she fought. She had to struggle to remain conscious to maintain control over her body.
One of the dragons came close to the ship, knocking into the side, perhaps using the temporary chaos to its advantage. The boat tipped almost completely over. Several people were thrown from the ship, including Rin who was unable to keep her footing and she was thrown into the water.
The only thing that kept Suzume from falling was clinging onto the side railing. Her legs kicked in the air, before the ship righted itself once more.
Between the attack from within and the attack that continued from above, the entire ship was chaos. The priests picked their battles, fighting who they could. Suzume kept one ear toward the sky, prepared for the dragon's next attack as she plowed through her opponents, twirling and striking with abandon. Then from the front of the ship, Ryuu came toward her. His eyes were glowing blue, and she felt the power inside him.
He drew his blade. When it was at his side it appeared to be of normal size, but when they faced off it was horrifying and massive.
"Stop this madness," he said.
"I can't," she shouted.
The sparred together, his sword slicing through the air gracefully, and her attacks fumbled. His power wrapped around the pair of them and even her fire was no match for it. He simply outclassed her. He pushed her back, further and further toward the railing until he pinned her in place. Her arms shook as she tried to use her staff to hold him back. There was nowhere to go other than in the water and Suzume couldn't swim. His power was intoxicating and Suzume felt that swirling sensation, the out of body experience that meant she was losing control.
He swung his sword, which glimmered with inhuman light, ready to separate her head from her body and as he did, Kazue awoke inside her. Suzume slipped into darkness.
Kazue awoke in flame. Danger. Fire. The man before her swung his blade, but before he could land the killing blow she raised up her staff and blocked his attack. Their eyes met and his went wide.
She used his surprise to her advantage, pushing him backward and away from her. He stumbled. There was power around her, so many different streams of energy. It was all tugging at her to the point of madness. But her first task was to stop the attack. The man recovered from his initial surprise and rushed her once more. But it took only a few more strikes before he was on the ground again, the end of her staff pressed against his throat.
"Watch out!" he shouted.
Kazue would not have believed his warning had it not been for the intense spiritual energy she sensed behind her. She spun in place, moments before an icy projectile would have pierced her through her spine. She spun, slicing downwards and broke the ice in half. It clattered into pieces on each side of her.
Above her, a pair of dragons circled. The pair was writhing in and around one another, drawing closer every moment. She summoned the fire from within her. She brought forth all the power at her disposal, pulling from the spiritual energy of those around her, and even from the lightning cracking in the sky until she was vibrating with power. And then she unleashed it upon the creatures in front of her.
One of them managed to miss her attack, but the second was not so lucky. The flames caught the end of his tail, but once the fire caught it would continue to burn. It spread across his body, while he writhed to free himself of it. But there was no use fighting. The fire would consume him. He lost altitude after that, coming crashing into the ground on the shore nearby.
She gave only a quick glance in the direction of the burning monster as its pained screams filled the air. The second dragon, seeing its partner’s fate, fled.
When Kazue turned, the man who had been fighting her stared at her with large blue eyes. She knew that gaze, though she could not say from where.
"Suzume?" he said, speaking an unfamiliar name.
"Who is Suzume? I'm Kazue."
The others left on the ship all gathered around, loosely holding their weapons. She held up her staff, prepared to defend herself. They closed in around her and Kazue reached for her spiritual energy, but found only flame which she had depleted to attack the dragon.
She turned to face them, her mouth opened to sing a song meant to drain them all. But as soon as she tried, a counter song was sung, one that bound her limbs to her side and froze her tongue in her mouth.
"Let her go," the man said as he approached her.
Kazue's gaze burned as she stared at him. Those eyes were so familiar and yet so foreign.
I know you, but how?
She fought against his spell, unbinding herself from the inside. He was approaching her, hand outstretched. And those eyes kept boring into her, with sadness. When he got close, she burst from the binding, striking at him, knocking him backward.
The others swarmed forward, trying to attack but with a wave her hand they were all knocked backward by the force of her power.
The pair of them faced off with one another.
"This body is not yours."
She circled him. His power rivaled her own, but how was that possible? No one had the power she had.
"Who are you?"
The man did not answer her question and instead shot something like an icy blast into her chest. Ice froze her from the inside, reaching down to the very core of her spiritual being. The blow sent her falling backward. She clutched her chest and everything she had been faded back into the dark abyss from where she had come from.
23
Ai poured the tea, assuming the role of hostess as if she were his wife already. The very idea put him in a foul mood, but now more than ever he needed to keep his wits about him. Ai had not lied when she said she had powerful allies. The two yokai who sat before him represented the best of their kind, and were true first children like Ai and himself.
The man had been a supplicant of the Lady of the Forest. And it showed, the Lady of the Forest had been known for her great beauty and all those who served her were beautiful as well. The man wore his hair very long; it brushed against the ground even when he was standing. Right now, as he sat across from Kaito, his hair pooled around him, and half of it was tied up. There were flowers woven into his locks, and his hoari was a deep forest green, embroidered with thousands of pink sakura blossoms so lifelike they looked like he had just been walking beneath a sakura tree and the blossoms had come to rest upon him. His face was androgynous. In fact, he was more beautiful than any woman Kaito had ever met.
The lady was the opposite, her face was all hard lines and a stern expression. Her hair was worn in a high ponytail on top o
f her head. Her arms, corded with muscles, were crossed over her chest, which was covered in armor embossed with the sun emblem. Like Noaki, she was one of the legendary warriors created by the Sun Emperor—the deity who ruled over all others. And like all of his warriors, scattered centuries before, she served a different master now. She served this last remnant of the Lady of the Forest's court. Kaito glanced them over, learning all of this without their need for explanation.
Ai finished pouring the tea, and took a seat beside Kaito. The lord sipped his tea, watching Kaito with dark eyes, while the warrior glugged hers down without taking a breath. It was to be expected of someone of her rank. Her eyes continued to scan the room, as if waiting for someone to leap out at any moment and attack them.
These sorts of negotiations had never been something Kaito relished in. When he'd controlled all of Akatsuki, he'd often left it to his trusted advisers. But there were none among the dragons he trusted enough to handle such a delicate situation. And if he left it to Ai, she would not negotiate in his favor.
"I'm glad to see the rumors that you were killed by a human woman were not true," the lord said as he sipped his tea. He gave Kaito a sly smile over the rim of his teacup.
Kaito had his measure right away, cunning and ruthless. He kept the legendary warrior to intimidate, but also to weave into the illusion that he was not powerful himself. If anything, this lord was stronger than the warrior. They were equal in strength he determined, or perhaps Kaito was a bit stronger. Not that it would ever come to blows between them. This creature would rather use his words rather than dirty his hands in a fight. Which would be the real reason he walked around with this muscle.
"Why did you draw us here?" the woman asked. Her hands were balled into fists at her side. Her distrust and rage reminded him painfully of Suzume, but he pushed down those thoughts.
"I thought my intent was clear. I plan to reunite Akatsuki."
"Many have tried, and all have failed. What makes you think you're special?" the man said, setting down his cup.
The Song of the Wind Page 16