by C. J. Anaya
I grimaced. “Who told you, Kirby?”
“Saigo,” he corrected with a grin. “That name sounds much more ninja-style awesome, don’t you think?” He jumped from the bed and launched into me, wrapping his tiny arms around my waist and giving me a bear hug. “I always knew we were family.”
I laughed and hugged him back, once again feeling zero remorse for saving his life despite the methods I’d used to do it.
“I did too, Kirby.”
Tie affectionately fluffed my little brother’s hair, earning a friendly punch to the arm. Soon they were on the floor wrestling with one another while Angie and I explored the rest of the rooms and marveled at how elegantly everything was set up.
Victor poked his head through the door and scowled at Tie and Kirby’s antics.
“Tie, I sent you in here to go over the plan with them. We all need to get some sleep for a few hours before conditioning begins.”
Bishu slapped Victor on the shoulder and walked in. His body rippled and then returned to its original form.
“That is so freakin’ cool,” Kirby said in awe, totally forgetting that Tie had him in a head lock.
Angie shook herself and appeared to be avoiding eye contact with the war god.
“I need to use the ladies room,” she muttered.
Bishu watched her leave, confusion not just evident in his emotions, but in the way his watchful eyes took in her hasty retreat. I was just as confused as he was by her bizarre behavior.
Once she left the room, his gaze fixed on me. “I thought we might consider the idea that your father has experienced a past life as well.”
“Excuse me?” I said. That wasn’t a topic you just inserted into casual conversation.
“It makes sense,” Bishu continued. “On the jet when you mentioned that the key players in your previous life were reborn to aid you in this one, I had to wonder if that also applied to Dr. Fairmont.”
“Well, obviously he isn’t Fukurokuju reincarnated,” Tie said.
“It must be someone she was close to in her previous life. Someone she cared about like she would her own father.”
I could think of two people who fit that description.
Daiki and Kenji.
“I suppose I could introduce the idea to my dad, but I don’t know if he would agree to let me scan his memories. This entire ordeal hasn’t been easy for him, and if he did live during my first life…I don’t know.” I shook my head. “Adjusting to two very different realities and different versions of yourself is difficult. He’s been through a lot, and while I’d like to find out if he used to be a loved one from long ago, I just don’t think I can ask that of him.”
“But, Hope, if he did live during your first life he may know how to fight. He may know how to defend himself. Isn’t that why you gave some of Angie’s memories back and why you plan on doing that with Kirby?” Victor asked. “No matter your objections, I thought their lives…their very safety…should be a priority for us, and if your father knew how to fight in a previous life he deserves to remember now.”
“He may not have fought, though. There are two people he could be, and one of them was a scholar.”
“You’re talking about Kenji,” Tie said.
“Yes.”
“And the other?” Bishu asked.
“Daiki,” I said.
“Well, I think it’s better that we find out rather than leave me to fend for myself once the real fighting begins,” my dad said, startling the hell out of all of us. Bishu and Victor spun around and I glanced past them to see my dad standing in the doorway with a smug look on his face. “In the future, I would appreciate it if you made decisions about me when I’m actually present. It’s damn annoying to hear yourself being talked about in the hallway. I’ve got rights, people.”
“Are you sure you want to open up this can of worms?” I asked him. I still wasn’t sure if giving some of Angie’s memories back had been the best thing for her.
He nodded and walked into the room.
“If I did have a previous life then I want all the details…eventually. Since we don’t have time for me to be in a two-week coma, I’ll take whatever I can get; whatever helps me defend myself and defend you.” He came to me and engulfed me in a bear hug. “I can’t be a liability, Hope. I need to feel like I’m helping and protecting you in some way, and having to sit back and allow others to do what I consider my job has been really tough for me. I’d like to find out if there is anything I can contribute to this quest we’re on, even if I don’t know how to fight. Maybe I’ll know something else.”
I snuggled into his chest and breathed in his earthy scent.
“Okay, Dad. Let’s figure this out then.”
***
He sat on the bed with his hands in his lap, waiting for me to delve into his mind and possibly unearth the fact that this life he led, these earthly experiences he’d had weren’t firsts for him. Everyone decided to gather round the bed and watch the fun. I felt like a circus act even though I knew we were all in this together and I needed their moral support.
Placing my hands on either side of his head, I connected fully with his ki and began the process of opening up his mind and seeing just where and how early his book of memories began. I wasn’t surprised when my father’s birth in this life landed squarely in the middle of his book of memories. His life had been intertwined with mine for centuries now.
What did surprise me were the unfamiliar memories that unfolded as I reviewed his previous life. He was a young father, holding a baby girl in his arms. A woman I didn’t recognize gazed at him lovingly and whispered assurances that he would be the best father their young daughter had ever known. I skipped forward to a moment heightened by raw and powerful emotions as he watched his wife pass away in child birth, leaving him to raise a boy and a girl all on his own. The memories confused me because Kenji had never married or had children, and Daiki, though he may have had another child after I died, hadn’t been married to this particular woman, and his first-born had been a boy, not a girl.
Hatsumi. Daiki had married Hatsumi.
Small thatched roofs in a wooded area registered feelings of warmth, comfort, and security. Obviously an area he had previously lived, but it wasn’t the village I had frequented during my many visits to Daiki and his wife.
I scrolled back, determined to find more answers, more memories of Hatsumi and the baby boy they had together, but I didn’t find anything of the kind. No memories I could recognize that mirrored my own. My dad had no memories of interacting with me when I was a scared little girl, attempting to flee the castle and abandon my title and role as The Healer. There were definitely memories of battle and fighting when he was a young man. My father had been a warrior for many years, but I didn’t recognize Kagami. The landscape was entirely different.
Who was he? Who had my father been, and why was he reborn to be my father now?
Finally, I found a memory that stood out bright and cheery in my father’s book. I zeroed in on it and watched in amazement as Daiki’s face came in to view.
My father, now a fairly older man, and Daiki were sitting together on an old log in the middle of the woods after a grueling battle with several nekomata. Still, I didn’t recognize Kagami.
“Tadashi, my son,” Daiki said, “You were saved for a very special purpose, kept alive by a very special woman even though you were marked for death before you were born. Hachiman believes you to be part of this grand pattern woven from the beginning by our First Parents. Not just as a warrior meant to prevent Amatsu’s minions from breaking out of Kagami, but as an important member of The Healer’s guard.”
Daiki teared up at the mention of my title. For a moment I forgot this wasn’t happening in actual time because I lifted my hand forward in an attempt to touch my old friend’s face.
“With your wife gone and your children raised, it is time for you to decide your next steps. I know your mother and I have discussed this with you for some time, but th
e choice must be your own. We firmly believe that because Mikomi spared you, your life is intrinsically tied to hers, and you must do all you can to aid her in her calling so she can fulfill her destiny. Instead of the life of a soldier, you must live the life of a monk now and tend to her statue until the time she comes forth and is reborn. You will raise her as your own, and love her the way she was never loved by her own father. Love her the way I loved her.”
Tears streamed down my face. I wanted so badly to hold this wonderful man in my arms.
“I understand, father, and I will honor this decision,” my dad said, “but what if her rebirth does not occur in my lifetime? How am I to give aid, protection, and even love if I die before she lives again?”
Daiki patted my father’s shoulder and gave him a broad smile.
“The pattern woven is never quite so straightforward. Time, age, and distance, are never how they seem to mere mortals such as us. I don’t know when the Grass Cutter Sword will see fit to bring Mikomi back through the veil, but I do know it will happen when you are in a position to love, care for, and protect her in the most advantageous way possible.”
My thoughts spun out of control, unable to comprehend that my father had been that boy, that frail spark of life that flickered between two sides of the veil as I fought to save him and Hatsumi during childbirth. I scrolled to the very beginning of his book and took in his fear, his pain, and his struggle to survive. The feelings were heightened since visually there was nothing but darkness to contend with.
Soon a soothing calm crept over my father and his world compressed to a tiny flame of light that slowly unfurled as his body went from cozy warmth to icy cold within an instant. He cried out mightily to show his displeasure at being ripped from the only secure home he’d ever known, but then warm arms encircled round him and a blurry face formed. The details were indistinct, but I knew it had to be me. I was the first person to hold him. The first person to make certain he was breathing, healthy, and whole.
Warmth stole throughout his body again as that first version of me connected with his ki and shared my light. The love my father felt for me at that moment was overwhelming. A child-like innocence full of unconditional trust that only newborns possess, unspoiled as yet by the harshness of the world they’ve been born into.
My eyes landed on Hatsumi, and her beautiful face as she gave the baby boy a tired, watery smile and enfolded him in her arms. My heart lurched in my chest at the sight of her, missing her more than I would ever be able to express and feeling like I had just been given the most amazing gift; to see memories of both Daiki and Hatsumi even though they had been gone for centuries now.
I broke the connection and stepped back, unaware of the people around me until Tie stepped forward and crushed me to him. I sank into his offer of comfort, relieved that he seemed to be thawing toward me just a little.
“What is it, Hope? What did you see?” my father asked.
“Is he Daiki or Kenji?” Angie said.
“Neither,” I choked out. “He’s Daiki and Hatsumi’s son. The baby I delivered the day I met Tie.” I felt everyone’s shock at this new twist to our situation.
“Tadashi?” Tie asked.
I pulled back and looked up at him in surprise.
“You know him?”
Tie stepped around me and looked at my father as if seeing him for the first time.
“He was one of the monks at the temple. One of the many who lived and died within the enchantments circling Kagami, keeping watch over your statue and protecting it from outside influences.” Tie shook his head in wonder. “Before that, he played a major role on the outside, preventing nekomata from breaking through the enchantments placed around the temple, shrine, and Holy Cherry Tree that housed your statue. Amatsu wanted to make you his prisoner long before you were ever reborn, but he failed at every turn due in large part to Tadashi. The attacks on the enchantments eventually ended, but Tadashi remained vigilant, as did I.”
“We knew each other well?” my father asked.
Tie nodded. “We were very good friends. All of us. Ms. Mori, Victor…well…maybe not Victor.” Tie gave the war god a friendly shove in the shoulder, receiving an answering grin in return.
“At the time, we didn’t have to like each other to fight on the same side,” Victor said.
“True. I regret the years we wasted being at odds with one another.” Tie said.
Victor nodded his head, looking a little uncomfortable at the unexpected kiss-and-make-up moment between them. “As do I.”
I cleared my throat to get Tie’s attention. It was about time their feud with each other came to an end, but for heaven’s sake. Timing, people. I was on pins and needles here. I wanted more details about Tadashi. I sensed that all of us did.
“How did Daiki and his son get involved in this? They were supposed to leave Kagami after the emperor threatened them,” I said.
“Hachiman sought him out after your death. We needed as many warriors as we could get,” Tie said.
“We fought together outside the enchanted walls of Kagami, and once Amatsu gave up and his armies fell back, we worked within the shrine to protect Hope,” Victor said, taking up the narrative. “Tie and Tadashi used to sit a few feet away from your statue and talk about anything from philosophy, astronomy, alchemy…everything. I tended to feel a little more comfortable visiting you when no one else was near.”
Victor came to visit me? I had zero recollection of this. Of any of it. Fuzzy memories of Tie’s frequent visits sprang forth in my mind, but even those faded to nothing after a few years. I simply remember sinking deep within myself and never resurfacing until rebirth.
“And you were meticulous when it came to maintaining the enchantments placed around us, Victor” Ms. Mori added. “You and Tadashi circled the perimeter of the shrine every day. You used the Grass Cutter Sword to not only strengthen the veil, but channel several hundred ki from the veil into the enchantments while Tadashi watched over you.” She placed a hand on his shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. “The strain it took to do this made it impossible for you to walk back to the temple on your own. Tadashi always made certain you came back in one piece.”
“And you always made certain to protect us at night, claiming most mothers never slept when watching over their children,” Tie said. “Ms. Mori will never mention it, Hope, but she spent many dark hours sitting in front of your statue, telling you about the events of the day. Not that there was much to tell once Amatsu’s attacks became fewer and further between.”
I marveled at this new information. It certainly explained why Tie, Victor, and Ms. Mori seemed like an unlikely yet inseparable team, working together from the beginning despite the fact that the two gods had been feuding with one another for centuries and Ms. Mori was someone I felt we all wanted little to do with. They had been through a lot together over the centuries. All of them sharing one common goal: to keep me safe, to protect me no matter the sacrifices and obstacles they had to overcome, building an unorthodox bond with one another.
Maybe my perception of Ms. Mori, of our history, of the past we shared, had skewed everything in a dark and twisted way. I held so tightly to everything I believed she didn’t do in order to protect me, I never once considered all of the things she did do. Eye-opening, and humbling all at the same time.
The reckless choices I’d made lately mocked the level of sacrifice on their part, and I felt wholly unworthy of such devotion.
I may have been The Healer, but in my mind that didn’t make me particularly special since anyone could have been given this gift. Anyone could have been assigned the responsibility to heal the veil and stop Amatsu from presiding amongst the living. I sometimes felt like our First Parents got it all wrong. They gave the job to the wrong girl. This enormous responsibility couldn’t possibly be something I was worthy of taking on, especially after the many wrong and reckless ways I’d wielded this gift.
I was just a teenage girl who wanted to keep the pe
ople I loved safe. That’s it. Hardly enough to qualify someone for the role of Healer, yet I had the gift either way.
But I hadn’t accomplished everything on my own. I hadn’t come so far without the help of key players in both my lives. I could never forget that. I may have been The Healer, but in the end I truly believed I couldn’t accomplish my destiny without the amazing people in this very room.
Tie continued to reminisce, sharing stories more for my father’s benefit than anyone else, I think, and my father listened with wide-eyed wonder to everything Tie had to say.
“You were devoted to your duty and to her. More than most. For many monks, it was simply a job to watch over her statue, and as the centuries passed and her story became the stuff of myths and legends, caring for Hope’s statue morphed into more of a tradition than anything else. Only Hachiman and myself remembered the truth behind the legend once you passed away.” He shook his head, eyes glued to my father. “You always talked about your calling in life. Your deeper purpose in caring for Hope. I thought you were referring to your duty as a monk, but maybe your meaning was more significant.”
“I understand his connection to Hope, but why is he here now?” Ms. Mori asked.
“Hachiman and Daiki said it would be his job to raise me once I was born under the right conditions. I guess, they had no idea how long it would take for the right conditions to be realized.” I turned to look at my father. “They had no idea you would have to die and be reborn too, Dad.”
My father rubbed a tired hand over his face. “I’m not sure I’m following much of this. I know who Daiki is…kind of, but how does any of this allow me to help you?”
“Dad, you raised me.” I sat down next to him and hugged him to me. It was a tight fit on the twin bed, but neither one of us minded. “You kept me safe. Kept me protected. You did exactly what you were meant to do, and now you get to protect me on a whole new level since you were a total kick-arse warrior in your first life.”
He grunted. “Well, at least I’ll be somewhat helpful in the next fight we’re in.”