by Rick Scott
Amikazu regained his composure quickly, redirecting his Qi and using his Qinggong once more, sprinting up the side of the wall before leaping over the top and landing on the parapet above. Several of the sentries turned about to regard him, but then quickly diverted their eyes once Amikazu gave them a stare.
What in the nine hells was that…?
He sensed another pulse of resonance that seemed to come from the box around his neck. Amikazu opened it and the resonance within his doma grew stronger. He had not anticipated this. Another anomaly? he thought.
For some reason, the mind stone had begun to glow.
* * *
Kenji awoke on the blackened beach and immediately his heart raced.
A shrill cry filled the air and he picked himself off the sand and ran to the water as one of the towering demons lumbered across the shoreline towards him. Although it was not necessarily towards him exactly, but more towards the lost souls corralled on the beach. They were trapped, it seemed, the boats from the celestial palace already having departed from the shore.
They cried out helplessly, waving for the boats to return as the giant demon lumbered across the beach, shaking the earth. Its giant maw opened, revealing rows of spear-like teeth amidst its throat made of fire. It swooped down with one of its gangly arms towards the trapped people and then abruptly it stopped and looked towards the city as if sensing something.
Kenji looked as well and spotted a human-sized figure, swirling with gold luminescence, flying across the dark water. It moved so fast that he could barely make out what it was at all.
Then the figure stopped in an instant and whipped a thick blade through the air. A shockwave flew outwards in a crescent, with the same speed and momentum the figure had been flying. The shockwave struck the demon’s arm just below the shoulder and it exploded like thunder. The beast wailed as its arm fell off like a hillside collapsing under heavy rains.
The figure then spun in midair, slashing with its massive sword. Powerful shouts echoed across the distance as the massive pulses of energy carved the giant demon from afar, bombarding it with shockwaves.
By the heavens…
Kenji’s heart thundered at the sight.
The giant demon finally collapsed into black shale as its head was severed and the fire within its throat went out. As it crumbled to the ground, the golden figure, who Kenji could now see was a woman in glowing armor, came to a stop.
“You are safe for now,” she cried down with the thundering voice of a god. “More boats shall return soon.”
She then slung her massive blade to her back, affixing it between two pairs of golden wings. She waved her hand in front of her and a spectrum of glowing symbols appeared. She studied them for a moment as if determining something, tapping at the symbols and they moved as if she were writing upon a scroll. Then, with another swipe of her hand, the symbols disappeared and she flew off into the darkness, perhaps seeking another demon to slay.
Kenji’s heart was still pounding in his chest, his knees weak with adrenaline. He’d never seen such power before.
“A 1st-level Sen,” a familiar voice came from behind him.
Kenji turned to see his former self, the Bloody Duke standing atop the water just a few paces from him.
His heart pounded again, but with fright instead of awe.
“I was nearly there, you know?” the Duke said casually, still gazing up at the blackened sky where the glowing woman had flown. “20 more Dans and I would have reached the first level of celestial ascension.”
Kenji still didn’t know what to say to him, but at least he wasn’t being openly aggressive.
“Fear not,” the Duke said, raising his hand. “I will not slay you so quickly this time. You perhaps know who I am, but I’m yet to fully discern you…what is your name, boy?”
“Kenji,” he said, swallowing the lump in his throat.
The Duke grinned and with a flash of motion, suddenly drew his sword. Kenji flinched but was comically slow as he realized the tip was already pointed at his doma.
“You have something of mine,” the Duke said. “I can sense it now. Tell me, how was this dark sorcery done?”
The power exuding from the duke was terrifying. Perhaps his body was no longer an 80th Dan, but in this realm, wherever it was, he seemed to still be fully intact. Would it make sense lying to him? Probably not. After all, Kenji perhaps wanted answers more than he did.
“I am not certain,” Kenji said truthfully. “But what I do know, is that I am you rebirthed. Done so through the sacred Han techniques.”
The Duke scoffed. “I see now. They’ve sundered my soul. And you are my body.” The warrior then sheathed his blade and lowered himself into a crouch. “Damn imperials.”
Kenji was surprised he was able to determine all that from what he had said, but then, as an 80th-Dan mystic warrior, perhaps his knowledge of things far superseded anything he might be aware of.
“This was not of my choosing,” Kenji said. “I only recently learned about you. And that I might be you…”
“Be me?” he said agitatedly. And then his brows lowered into a scowl. “Don’t flatter yourself, boy. You are not me…!”
His last words came out in a shout, the force of it blowing back Kenji’s hair like the wind.
“You’re nothing but a glorified caretaker, understand?” The Duke stood and stalked towards him. “Until I find a way to return to the material realm, I suggest you take good care of my body.” His eyes then filled with contempt as he fixed a glare on Kenji. “And when I do, I will be taking back what is mine.”
Kenji’s stomach dropped through the ground as Dark Qi exuded from the Duke in a wave of palpable fear.
“See you again…” he said, turning his back to him. “…when you reach first Dan.”
What…?
Kenji was about to open his mouth to ask what he meant, but the Bloody Duke spun about and with a flash of steel, the world went dark again.
Chapter 31 – Broken Sheath
Kenji awoke with a start, his stomach on fire.
Mei Ling was hovering over him with concern marring her face.
“Thank the heavens,” she said.
He groaned as he struggled to sit up. “What happened? Did it work?”
He prayed it did. Something must have happened for him to have traveled to that vision again.
“Not exactly,” Mei Ling said. “I’m afraid you nearly died, Kenji. I’m so very sorry.”
Curse the fates… Not the response he was hoping for.
The memory of his vision was still fresh in his mind. 1st Dan? What had the Bloody Duke meant by that then? Did he sense that he could cultivate now?
Kenji felt for his doma. Amidst the pain he could certainly feel something different there. Closing his eyes, he channeled his Qi, forcing it into his center, filling the river behind the dam. Sharp pain shot through him like a knife to the gut and he nearly passed out again.
“Ugh!”
“Please stop!” Mei Ling said. “Don’t try to channel again.”
“What’s happened?” he said. “What’s wrong with me now?”
“Here,” she said, reaching for the thin crystal pane. “I’ll show you.”
* * *
Kenji studied the new image of the blue sapphire lodged within his stomach. It looked much the same, save for a black crack running across its bottom, a golden energy seeping from it.
“The onyx shard, when expelled through the gem hammer, was supposed to disintegrate the stone sheath completely. But it was much harder than I had gauged,” Mei Ling said. “It has damaged it but no more. And that onyx was unfortunately the strongest gemstone I had.”
“What does this mean then?” he asked.
“I’m afraid I have put you in a much worse condition than before, Kenji. The doma works like a bladder. While strong in retaining pressure, it can become quickly compromised if cut. Right now, your doma is punctured and partially exposed, leaking Qi into your body
through the crack in the gem. Expanding your doma by channeling could cause the stone to shatter…and kill you.”
Kill me? Kenji swallowed. “So… I can’t use my Qi at all now? If Qi is leaking out then I could make use of it, couldn’t I?”
Perhaps he could not cultivate, but he still needed to be able to imbue.
“The fissure is too small to properly direct Qi through your meridians. It will be unstable at best and could cause the stone to shatter inside you as well. It may work, yes, but I would not attempt it.”
Curse the fates…
“What’s more,” she added, “your Qi is extremely dense. It’s like nothing I’ve ever seen before. I’d be very fearful for you to even try to use it. The results could be catastrophic.”
“But I could try, couldn’t I?”
“I would not want to see you put yourself in any more harm than you already are,” she said. She then took his hand and squeezed it. “I’m very sorry to have done this to you, Kenji. I should have known better. My curiosity and exuberance caused me to act in haste and I nearly killed you in the process. Please forgive me.”
She bowed her head.
No…this couldn’t be. It felt all wrong. “Doctor, please… I blame you for nothing. It was I who came to you for help and I thank you for trying… But please, there must be something more you can do? Can you fix it?”
She bit her lip as she looked at him and then shook her head. “I’m sorry.”
His stomach churned as hopelessness filled him.
What was he going to do now?
His whole plan to free Olja depended on him being able to channel, to imbue a rope of his own. But now he was in a worse-off state than before. He could try anyway, he supposed, but what would that mean?
Kenji felt for his doma and the sore spot it now created in the pit of his stomach. Would the gem shatter on his first try? What if he were stuck like this forever? A true dullard now. With a doma he still couldn’t touch, not because he couldn’t, but because it could kill him.
Anger fueled his insolence towards the heavens. Every step he took was paid for in hardship. Where was the balance of karma here? Or was karma a lie and the fates, as cruel as they were, the only deciding factor here?
To the hells with this, he thought bitterly. All of it.
He swung his legs to get down off the pedestal, but Mei Ling caught him by the forearm.
“Wait a moment...” she said. “I may not be able to help you, but I am also not one to leave my messes un-cleaned.”
He regarded her quizzically.
“The stone inside you is stronger than I am capable of shattering, but a more skilled practitioner with the right tools may still be able to.”
“Really?”
“I know a gem smith in Kurogane who may be able to help.”
His hopes began to rise. But Kurogane was farther south, the opposite direction of where Olja said they should go. Although, he still wasn’t certain of her purpose for wanting to take him there yet. Hells, she could be taking me to the Bloody Duke for all I know…
But that was something to consider at another time. Now he needed a cure for his doma.
“Here,” Mei Ling said and spun from him to kneel down at a low desk and with a piece of parchment and brush in hand. “I will write you a letter of introduction. The man’s name is Wen Lou and he resides in the jeweler’s district.”
“District?”
“Kurogane is a much larger city. If you ask for directions you should find it.” She finished writing the letter and then sealed it with a glyph stone. “I’ve explained all my findings within. I’ve asked him to give you discretion as well. I have known Master Wen Lou for a long time. You can trust him. He is a man of honor.”
Kenji’s heart stirred as she held the sealed envelope towards him.
Perhaps karma and fate were connected after all. For as much as he had suffered, this woman was willing to extend herself far beyond what was reasonable in aiding him. This was true karma indeed.
Kenji dropped to his knees before her as he grasped the letter. “Thank you so very much, Doctor Mei Ling. I swear to you, that I will not let this great kindness go unpaid.”
“Please do not thank me yet,” she said. “I’ve caused you another infirmity. One perhaps greater than the one you had before. The Qi seeping out of the stone is dense and un-channeled by your meridians.”
“Is that bad?” he asked.
“It is like bleeding internally. A concentration of stagnant Qi in the body can lead to a sickness.”
Sickness? Another troubling thought. “What will it do?”
“It will onset slowly, but damage your body over time. You should travel to Kurogane as soon as you can.”
“How soon?”
Mei Ling frowned. “Normally such a condition is not a large concern. It could take years for abnormalities to develop from Qi sickness. But with the density of your Qi… it could be weeks… or even days.”
His stomach fluttered. “Days?”
“I’m sorry once again, Kenji, for my recklessness.” She bowed to him. “Rest assured, I will still help you in any way I can.”
* * *
Kenji ascended the stairs back towards the mystic school, both hopes and worries playing on his mind. It was progressing towards afternoon now, and the time for the funeral would be soon, but he no longer could afford to waste time.
His doma was not only still useless…but it was slowly killing him now.
His thoughts drifted as he bounded up the steps, nearly two at a time. He still had an opportunity to try and fix his ailment, but that would take him further south. It was not a journey he could make alone, not with the demon and those Tsu warriors still out there hunting him in the wild. Not to mention the Bloody Duke himself—wherever he might be in that pitch-black dream.
Stop and think rationally, Kenji told himself.
Things were bad yes, perhaps even worse in some ways, but they had progressed. The plan could still be the same. Create a rope to free Olja from her cage and then escape with her. From there, depending on what she knew, they could travel to Kurogane first and fix his ailment before travelling north. She seemed strong enough, and once he fixed his doma for good, he could certainly be able to defend himself as well.
That thought lifted his spirits a bit.
But he would still need some way to imbue the glyphs. He could trick Hu Dong into doing it perhaps. He wouldn’t know the use of the rope he was creating, after all. But then applying it would be a problem. Perhaps Shinoto, but then how could he ask her to risk her future here by helping him, especially if he might not be a part of it.
Kenji suddenly realized he had reached the top of the steps. That was fast.
He didn’t feel winded either. Had his thoughts distracted him that much? Kenji felt a strong sense of rejuvenation like he never had before. Looking down the steps, he felt as if he could climb them again.
What was this?
And then it hit. Was this the effect of his Qi? He felt for the subtle pain in his doma. It was leaking energy so concentrated that a climb that exhausted him and took over an hour before now took barely a few minutes with no effort at all.
His mind suddenly opened up with a new rush of possibilities. So this was what it was finally like to be a cultivator. To do things far beyond his normal capabilities with ease. The thought sparked something else. Mei Ling said she advised against using his Qi, but not that it wasn’t possible. Perhaps she was merely being cautious.
But he’d just done the impossible.
What was stopping him from trying again? He pressed on towards the school with a renewed sense of resolve. He might not have a perfect doma at the moment, but he at least had one.
And it wouldn’t take much to imbue a glyph script.
Chapter 32 – Forced Sacrifice
Kenji rushed past the students still training in the courtyard. Chet Fai and Shinoto were still among them, practicing forms for what seemed to be a
spear art now, each of them wielding long Bo staffs. He made eye contact with Shinoto and this time the young girl broke from her form to give him a healthy wave and smile.
The 3rd Dan in charge of the session barked at her. “Concentrate!”
“Sorry, sempai!” Shinoto said in apology, but still gave Kenji a playful wink.
He chucked inwardly, but at the same time his heart ached. He could be leaving her forever tonight. And all the while, she thought they would perhaps still advance together within the mystic school. She deserved a better life than what he could offer her, though. He still had no idea what lay in store him, but if history was any guess, it would not be easy, nor pleasant.
Shinoto had just lost everything, her parents and her home. She was lucky to have found another within the mystic schools. But if it was going to stay that way, then he needed to leave as soon as possible. He was the true target. And if he didn’t want the same atrocity that befell Han repeating itself here, he needed to free Olja and flee Amatsu as soon as possible.
He entered the main hall in search of Master Hu Dong and passed by the rock garden again. He took in the various weapons on the wall. There were spears and halberds, as well as a large assortment of swords, both curved and straight. A set of gauntlets, the weapons of the fist arts, also hung on display, next to bangles and rune staffs used for the Soul Master Arts. What truly caught his eye, however, were several pieces of chest armor mounted on the wall towards the rear of the hall. Some were plain and made of leather and furs, while others were decoratively ornate and constructed of bronze and steel. The artisan in him yearned to examine them more closely. It was said that weapons and armor could be imbued just like his ropes and he wondered just what additional properties the armor on display could bestow.
He left the hall and was about to head towards Hu Dong’s office but as the place seemed deserted, he decided to venture towards the upper dojo instead. He still hadn’t thought through in detail his plan for freeing Olja and another quick check of the layout would be helpful.