by Julie Kagawa
Kitsune-bi flared to life in my palms. I glared up at the evil chains, which flickered and spat and curled tighter around Tatsumi, as if knowing I had come to destroy them. I hesitated a moment longer, watching the ominous pulse and flicker, then reached up and wrapped my fingers around the throbbing links.
Pain seared my hand. I gasped, but set my jaw and hung on, as blue-white foxfire flared and sputtered against the angry glow of the chains. They hissed, sending strands of red-black lightning arcing down the links, making everything pulse wildly. Overhead, Tatsumi cried out, clenching his fists and arching his head back, making my heart twist. Beneath my fingers, I could feel the chain writhing and squirming, as if it was alive. My palm was on fire, burning, bringing tears to my eyes. I wanted, so badly, to let go. I suddenly felt that if I hung on too long, I, too, would become trapped, tangled in Hakaimono’s will with no hope of freeing myself or the soul I’d come to save.
With a growl, I flattened my ears and pictured the foxfire in my hands, imagining a white-hot inferno that could melt steel and burn away all the evil in the world. You can’t have him, I snarled at the web of chains, at Hakaimono himself, wherever he was. I will fight to the death if I have to. Let him go!
The kitsune-bi surged up with a roar, stronger than I’d ever felt, swallowing the glowing links in my hand and racing up the length of chain. Beneath my fingers, the chain shook wildly…and then dissolved as the foxfire consumed it, turning to black smoke that coiled away into nothingness. Kitsune-bi raced up the links, engulfing the entire web as, for a moment, the blaze of blue-white foxfire was almost too bright to look at.
With a shriek that sounded almost human, the tangle of chains vanished into the surge of kitsune-bi, becoming dark wisps that curled away into the void. With nothing left to consume, the foxfire flared once more and flickered out, plunging the room into darkness.
Tatsumi, freed at last from the soul-sucking chains, dropped to the ground.
For a moment, he knelt there, head bowed, shoulders heaving with deep, ragged breaths. Heart pounding, I dropped in front of him and peered into his face. His eyes were closed, his skin ashen, but the subtle light that had been emanating from within was growing brighter.
“Tatsumi?” Very softly, I touched his shoulder. “Are you all right?”
The demonslayer took another deep breath and slowly straightened, gazing down at his hands, as if still expecting to see chains stabbing beneath his flesh. “They’re gone,” he panted, and clenched both fists. “I’m…free. I never thought…” Brilliant indigo eyes finally rose to mine, slowly focusing as all the pain, despair and hopelessness began falling away. “Yumeko,” he whispered, still sounding uncertain that what he saw was real. Carefully, one hand rose, the fingertips brushing my cheek, and then his rough, calloused palm was against my skin.
“You’re here,” Tatsumi breathed, and in that open, soulful gaze, everything I was going to say seemed inadequate. I lunged forward and threw my arms around him, pressing my face to his neck as I hugged him close.
I could feel his shock; for a moment he went rigid, frozen in the sudden embrace. Very gradually, his muscles uncoiled, his shoulders relaxed and his arms came up to wrap around me. Tentative at first, as if he was unsure of what to do. But then, he let out a breath, and it seemed to release all the fear, uncertainty, horror and doubt of the past nightmare. He crushed me to his chest, clinging to me like a lifeline, like I was his sanity and he was afraid I would abandon him.
“Arigatou,” he murmured in my ear, and his voice came out choked. I closed my eyes and savored the feel of him in my arms, his heartbeat against mine. “Yumeko…thank you. I won’t forget this.”
A deep chuckle, low and ominous, vibrated the air around us. “Well,” came the cold, amused voice of the First Oni, echoing through the dark and making the ground quake. “Wasn’t that entertaining. Congratulations, fox, you found Tatsumi, but there’s nowhere left to run. Now, he can watch as I tear your soul into little pieces and scatter it to the winds.”
I felt Tatsumi shudder as we pulled apart, his hands curling into fists. My insides twisted with fear, but I rose with the demonslayer and glared into the void, feeling the oni’s presence all around us.
A soul cannot be killed, the white fox had said. A soul cannot be permanently destroyed, but it can be weakened, sickened, injured. And, sometimes, it can be broken. If you want to drive Hakaimono back into the sword, you must weaken the First Oni enough for Kage Tatsumi to force him out by strength of will. But beware; souls are fragile things. If Hakaimono is too strong, if he breaks your spirit, it will flee back into its body, and from then on, you will not be the same.
“I’m not running anymore,” I called, my voice echoing through the emptiness. “On my life, I’m not leaving this place until Tatsumi is truly free and you are sealed back into the sword for good!”
Tatsumi moved beside me. He was glowing brightly now, the halo around him throwing back the darkness, though the look in his eyes made my skin prickle. “Come then, Hakaimono,” he said, his voice hard with determination. “There isn’t room in here for the both of us, and you’ve been using my body for far too long.” He raised a hand, and light swelled between his fingers, extending into a beam of luminance, before it flared into a sword. “I will not allow you to commit any more atrocities in my name. Show yourself, unless you’re afraid to face the true owner of what you’ve stolen.”
Hakaimono chuckled again, and it turned into a deep, terrible laugh that boomed through the void and caused the ice at our feet to crack and shake apart. “Very well, Tatsumi,” he rumbled, as I pressed close to the demonslayer, staring into the darkness to discern our enemy. “If you’re so eager to watch me shred your fox girl and beat you back into submission, I’ll be happy to comply. This time, your spirit will be so broken, you won’t even know who you are when I’m done with you. Are you ready for me, little mortals? Here I come.”
I felt his approach before I saw it; from the void above, something dropped toward us like a boulder, huge and dark, with eyes like glowing embers in the night. It hit the ground like the tetsubo of a god striking the earth, and the shock wave radiating out from the crater shattered the ice into millions of shards that swirled around us like a crystal blizzard. As the tremors faded and the earth stilled, I lowered my arm and stared up…and up…into the face of a demon.
The First Oni, the great demon general of Jigoku, towered over us, his mouth split into a shining grin that chilled the blood in my veins. He was huge, far bigger than Yaburama, the oni that had destroyed the Silent Winds temple and killed everyone there. His skin was as black as ink, with glowing red runes crawling up his arms, words and symbols I didn’t recognize. When I tried to read them, they burned my eyes, making me flinch and turn my gaze away. Ember horns, flickering and pulsing like they were on fire, sprouted from his forehead, shoulders and down his back, and a wild white mane framed his terrible face. One claw-tipped hand clutched not a tetsubo or spiked club, but a curved sword with a blade that shone like obsidian, as dark and evil-looking as its owner.
For a moment, Hakaimono stood there, smiling, letting us gaze up at him in horror. I stared into the face of the greatest oni of Jigoku and felt much like a cricket that had foolishly decided to stand up to a cat.
Hakaimono’s ancient, burning gaze met mine, and the First Oni chuckled. “You look surprised, little fox,” he said in a mocking tone. “Was this not what you were expecting? Did you think my true form looked like Tatsumi with horns and sharp teeth?” He grinned, and at my side, Tatsumi took a step forward, placing himself between me and Hakaimono, his glare never leaving the monster towering over us. Hakaimono glanced at him and chuckled again. “Tatsumi always knew. He could feel me, like a stain in his soul, a shadow over everything. He knew, that if that shadow emerged, he would be consumed.”
He cocked his head, gazing down at us in an almost patronizing manner. “My, but you mortals are tiny and pathetic, aren’t you? I could make this sport
ing, I suppose. Stomping on you like insects seems rather barbaric, something a brute like Yaburama would do. He never understood that the moment of death, when you see the soul fleeing your opponent’s eyes, the moment they understand they’re dead—that is the most beautiful thing in the world.” The eagerness on his face made my skin crawl. “I always wanted to fight you face-to-face, demonslayer,” the oni continued. “Don’t disappoint me, now.”
He raised his arms and vanished in a cloud of flame that seemed to burst out of his skin. The conflagration flared for just a moment, making me wince and turn away. As suddenly as they appeared, however, the flames vanished, and I stared at the figure left behind.
A human-sized Hakaimono grinned at my stunned expression. He was much smaller now, but his size wasn’t all that had changed. He was leaner, not quite as bulky and massive, though the muscles rippling under his inky skin were like cords of steel. His head was still crowned with glowing ember horns, and his mane hung to the center of his back. He looked…almost human now; a supremely dangerous warrior, his obsidian blade held loosely at his side. And strangely, this form was even scarier than the enormous oni lord that had towered over us a few seconds ago.
“There,” Hakaimono said, his voice soft and lethal. He raised his sword and smiled at us across the blade. “Now we will see who is truly worthy to control this body. Because I will never willingly return to that cursed sword. You’re going to have to force my broken, bloodied soul back into that endless torture. So, Tatsumi…” He turned that humorless grin on the demonslayer. “Are you strong enough to defeat me?”
“Maybe not alone,” Tatsumi answered in an equally soft voice. “But it’s not just me now. I don’t have to do this by myself.” His gaze flicked to me, and something in that look made my heart pound. With a tiny smile, Tatsumi turned back to Hakaimono. “The question is—are you strong enough to face us both?”
Hakaimono smirked. “We shall see,” he said, and sank into a low stance, eyes glowing, the terrible black blade held behind him. “Winner takes this body, loser returns to oblivion. Let’s play.”
28
KITSUNE-BI AND DEMONFIRE
Tatsumi
I would not lose this fight.
Alone, I wouldn’t stand a chance. I knew that. I had lived with Hakaimono long enough to know that he was stronger than me. Even here, in the realm of the soul, Hakaimono’s will and sheer power would quickly overwhelm my own. Were I to face the demon myself, I would fall, and he would take over once more.
But, I wasn’t alone. She was here. And just her presence made me stronger, gave me a reason not only to fight, but to win. I could see her beside me, determination outlining every part of her, her golden eyes shining with resolve. Her fox ears stood tall and proud, her white-tipped tail bristling behind her, reminding me of what she was, but instead of being revolting, it filled me with hope. Yumeko wasn’t a warrior or a samurai; she couldn’t wield holy magic or the power of the kami, but she was a kitsune who had outsmarted everything that had stood against her. She had done the impossible: fooled Hakaimono, possessed a demon lord and freed the soul he held captive. Together, we had a chance.
Though this wouldn’t be easy, by any means.
For a moment, Hakaimono was motionless, his blade and inky skin blending into the void around us. His horns and eyes glowed red in the blackness, and I could feel the energy gathering around him, the drawing of terrible power. Raising my sword, I forced my muscles to relax, preparing myself to respond when Hakaimono moved.
I was almost too slow. One second, the oni was frozen against the void, the next he was in front of me, and that obsidian blade was scything toward my face. I leaped back on instinct, bringing up my sword, and felt the jarring screech of the two blades vibrate up my spine. Hakaimono didn’t give me time to recover. He pressed forward with blindingly quick blows that set me scrambling backward, desperately fending them off. The clang and shriek of swords echoed around us, sparks flying between the blades and flashing across the demon’s savage grin.
With a brilliant flare of light, something streaked toward Hakaimono’s back, and the oni spun, ducking his head as a sphere of blue-white flames flashed between his horns, setting a few strands of hair aflame. Spinning back, he blocked my thrust to his heart and responded with a vicious swipe at my head that forced me to retreat a few steps. But then another globe of foxfire streaked through the darkness, and Hakaimono couldn’t dodge quickly enough. As he whirled around, the kitsune-bi struck his sword arm and exploded in a brilliant flash of light.
The oni’s snarl of pain shocked me. Foxfire was nothing but light and illusion; it wasn’t dangerous unless you did something foolish and let it lure you into the unknown. But as Hakaimono lowered his arm, I saw the curls of smoke rising from his skin, and his lips were pulled back in a grimace of pain. Somehow, Yumeko’s kitsune-bi had turned deadly, deadly enough to burn an oni lord.
“Well. Wasn’t that a surprise.” Hakaimono’s voice was soft, dangerous, as he turned his full attention on Yumeko. His arm was already healing, singed flesh becoming full and healthy in a matter of heartbeats. “You’ve picked up a few tricks, little fox. I see I’m going to have to take you a bit more seriously, after all.”
Yumeko, standing defiant with her ears laced back and her hands glowing with foxfire, met the oni’s terrible smile and didn’t back down. “Come on then, Hakaimono,” she challenged, and suddenly, her body split apart, becoming two, six, ten, twelve Yumekos, surrounding us in a circle. Hakaimono’s brows arched, and the ring of kitsune grinned. “Catch me if you can.”
I flew at the oni with a snarl, slashing my blade toward his neck, hoping to catch him off guard. With an almost irritated growl, he blocked my sword and surprised me by lashing out with a long arm, sharp claws reaching for my eyes. I dodged back, but not quickly enough, and curved black talons raked four deep gouges across my cheek.
Pain exploded through my face, and the force of the blow sent me tumbling sideways. There was no blood as I rolled upright, though I certainly felt the throbbing agony slashed across my skin, pieces of my soul that had been ripped away. I swiped a sleeve across my face and looked up, just as the ring of Yumeko gave a unified shout of fury and hurled a dozen spheres of foxfire at the oni between us. Hakaimono hunched his shoulders and shielded his face as they all converged in the center, and the globes of kitsune-bi slammed into him with the roar of an inferno. The First Oni disappeared into the blaze, and for a moment, the blue-white conflagration snapped and flickered like an enraged phoenix in the center of the void.
I took a breath and lowered my arm, as the army of kitsune disappeared with pops of white smoke until only one was left. As the flames of kitsune-bi began to flicker and die, she turned and gave me a triumphant smile, the ghostly light of the foxfire dancing in her eyes.
A low chuckle cut through the darkness, making us freeze, and Hakaimono stepped out of the flames. Kitsune-bi clung to him, blue-white flames snapping around his shoulders and up his arms. He was definitely hurt; ribbons of red smoke rose from his skin, fragments of his spirit coiling away into the darkness. But he was far from defeated, and the grin on his face, lit an eerie blue in the snapping of foxfire, was chilling.
“Is that all you got?” he asked Yumeko, whose ears flattened at the sight of the First Oni, striding out of the inferno seemingly unharmed. “Granted, I’ll give credit where it’s due—that hurt like hell. But you’re forgetting something, fox.” He raised his arms, kitsune-bi dancing up and down his flesh. “The fires of Jigoku flow through the veins of all oni. Our very souls are suffused with its power. You can’t kill a demon with fire, even obnoxiously bright foxfire, any more than you can drown a kappa. But congratulations, I’ll stop toying with you now.”
He flourished his sword and raised it in front of him, and the kitsune-bi dancing along his shoulders flared a sullen black and red. Hakaimono breathed deep, as hellish flames erupted from his skin, swallowing the foxfire and bathing the oni in a red glow.
They flickered down the length of his black sword, turning the weapon into a fiery brand, and the heat radiating from the demon became palpable. Lowering his head, he gave us a smile over the flaming sword.
“I have a few tricks up my sleeve, too,” Hakaimono said, as Yumeko backed toward me, kitsune-bi springing to life in her hands once more. “Shall we see whose fire will burn the hottest? I’m betting it will be mine.”
Grimly, I raised my sword, and Yumeko pressed close, her features dancing with foxfire, as the burning, blazing form of the First Oni sauntered toward us. Hellfire snapped along his shoulders, flickering off his horns, and his eyes were a terrible red in the demonic flames.
He was only a few yards away, close enough to feel the monstrous heat radiating from his skin, when the void overhead erupted with light.
A glowing sphere appeared above us all, floating in the darkness like a tiny moon, casting us all in hazy luminance. As we watched, curious and mesmerized, it drifted closer, trailing a long tail behind it before, in a shimmer of light, it changed. A young woman in simple robes hovered before us, her long hair floating behind her like it weighed nothing at all. She was translucent, pale as rice paper, and glowed softly against the void.
I blinked in shock. A hitodama, a wandering human soul that was unable to pass on after its body died. What was it doing here? I had never seen this girl before.
Hakaimono snorted, throwing up his hand in disgust. “Another one?” he exclaimed. “Are we giving off a signal somehow? It’s getting crowded in here.” Curling a lip, he glanced at me. “Your soul is very popular today, Tatsumi. Maybe you should start charging rent.”
“I know you,” Yumeko whispered, and the yurei turned her gaze toward the girl. “You guided us through Satomi’s castle when we were looking for Master Jiro.” The floating specter ducked her head, casting her gaze to the ground, and Yumeko took a step toward her. “You…are you Suki?”