The Dragon Saga Box Set

by Nicolette Andrews

  "Is that why you sealed him away?" Suzume asked.

  Kazue turned to look at Suzume and her expression was pained. "In part, yes. I am ashamed to admit this, but I needed his power to perform the ceremony."

  "And it wasn't enough." It was obvious because Kazue was dead, or at least Suzume thought her current state qualified as dead.

  "No. Kaito was powerful, but he did not have the energy I needed. So I went in search of more power. I fought many immortals. I sealed them away and gathered power from them, but still it was not enough. When my pregnancy was well advanced, I stayed at a shrine, where I learned as much as I could about immortals until my son was born. Once he was born, I gave him to a priest to watch over him. My quest was not finished and I dared not risk his life during my fight. When I left, I also left the stone that had Kaito trapped inside. I felt his hate for me swirling inside it and I could not bear to keep it with me any longer. I swore to come back for both of them when the time was right.

  "I traveled for many years and met many people, both mortal and immortal, and still the answer eluded me. Until finally I met one of the eight gods by chance. She was beautiful and dangerous. Our battle lasted for days. By this time I had fought and sealed hundreds of Yokai, my power had grown beyond imagining. I tricked her into a sealing circle and trapped her inside a stone, like I had done Kaito."

  Kazue looked at her hands, turning them over. "Finally, finally, I had the power to do what I wanted. However, along the way I lost a part of my self. I forgot about my child and I forgot about Kaito, who I had sealed away. Drunk on power, all I could think about was getting more. I told myself that if I could defeat the rest of the Eight, then I would be prepared, then I would be ready to be immortal. So I went on a quest to seal them all. The Eight fell to me one by one. By then I did not just want to be immortal, I wanted to be a god."

  Kazue looked up Suzume, and her eyes were haunted. Suzume could see images playing in Kazue's eyes, her opponents falling one by one. Kazue still remembered them all, Suzume could see that. "I was too greedy, and the gods would punish me for my avarice. I went to the top of this mountain, brought with me all the elements that represented the soul: fire, water, earth, air and the void. I mixed them together and—"

  Kazue paused. Suzume could see it now, the images playing before her like in her earlier vision. There were on the mountaintop, in the courtyard where they had battled the guardian. The bleak and desolate wind howled as it pulled at Kazue's hair and clothes. Kazue knelt down; a circle had been drawn on the ground in white chalk. This place where Kazue performed the ceremony was a holy place, where the eight gods had gathered before Kazue had sealed them. How Suzume knew that, she was not certain, she just did.

  Kazue arranged the eight stones in a circle around an inner circle of five stones each a different color: red, blue, green, gold, and black. Kazue lifted the staff above her head and sang the incantation. Her voice deeper than before, it resonated through Suzume as it echoed off the surrounding mountains. The ground shifted and shook. Kazue sang the final notes, which faded away into the mountains.

  As the last notes escaped, Kazue fell to her knees and she cried out. Suzume felt it too. Her body was being ripped apart thread by thread. Everything burned, like fire, like ice, like she was a stone being ground to powder and then tossed out the window. The spell broke Kazue down to her most basic elements, fracturing her soul to the point of shattering.

  Then one piece broke out from the rest. A lumped bulged in Kazue's stomach. She pressed her hands to it, groaning in pain. She rolled over onto her side as the mass grew. It pushed outward and a black blob burst from Kazue's stomach and plopped on the ground. It twitched and coalesced as it grew. Kazue watched in horror as the mass transformed and became a man. He uncurled like a butterfly. He spread out his long pale arms and then got to his feet. His naked body stood out against the gray sky overhead. Kazue knelt in front of him, panting and shaking.

  "Hello, Mother," Hisato said.

  Kazue looked up at him. "What are you?" she gasped.

  He laughed. "I am your child, a piece of your soul born of the darkness within you."

  "You are not my son!" she shouted. She had hardly the strength to kneel and she swayed back and forth.

  Hisato stepped over to Kazue. He grabbed her chin and tilted her head back. "Oh yes, I am. Did you think that there would not be a price for immortality? I am that price. You blackened your heart to gain immortality. An immortal can have no darkness, they are not like humans, so you had to cast out the darkness in you, but the universe must maintain balance. I am that balance, Mother. I am the darkness in you. Human incarnate."

  "No. This is not what I wanted. Go back! I did not want this!" Kazue panted. There was blood at the corner of her mouth as if she had been bleeding internally.

  "It's too late. You are immortal now; it cannot be undone."

  Weak and trembling, Kazue reached for her staff. Suzume despaired for Kazue. She had gone to such lengths to become immortal. Now when it was too late she learned the cost. She had lost the man she loved, her child, and now she had unleashed darkness unto the world.

  "I may not be able to change what I have done, but I can stop you. I will seal you away. I will not unleash you on the world." She raised her staff and sang a song that was high pitched and desperate. Hisato looked about, his eyes wide, but the music rippled over him. He shrank down as he cried out. When Kazue's song ended, nothing remained but a black stone, which clanked as it fell to the ground. It fell into the center of the eight stones.

  "I need to seal him," Kazue said. Suzume did not know who she was talking to until she saw the guardian approach. "I have ripped my soul apart; it is the only way to stop this evil from being unleashed upon the world."

  She turned to the guardian, leaning heavily on her staff. "I leave you in charge of my protection. I am sorry, I promised to release you and your family, but this is for the greater good. She raised her staff and brought it down with a crash. The spheres rose up into the air and shot out in all directions in bright-colored streaks of light. All that remained was a round red stone. The guardian picked it up and looked to a cave nearby.

  The vision cleared and Suzume stood once more in the cave with the apparition of Kazue. "I broke my soul to seal away my mistake. But someone has broken that seal. And the darkness of my soul has been unleashed. I believe whoever put my piece of soul in you has done so with others. You must retrieve the others and bring back the pieces of my soul together, only then can the darkness be destroyed for good."

  Suzume trembled. It was almost too much to take in. "What am I supposed to do? I never wanted any of this. I'm not brave, I'm selfish, and honestly, I would rather be curled up in a ball when the fighting comes."

  Kazue smiled. "I know, but he will not leave you be. He wants your portion of my soul, and he will do whatever it takes to get you. He needs you to complete his transformation."

  "What transformation is that?" Suzume's mouth felt dry.

  "He is the evil that was in my soul and now he wants to become a god. He is searching for the eight Kami that I hid when I sealed him. Once he has them and all the fragments of my soul, he will be able to transcend. He will be unstoppable."

  Suzume chewed her lip. She did not want to be a hero. She kept trying to convince herself that she wanted the life she had before. But was that really the case after everything that had happened? She had fought Yokai, been under the spell of a spider, and lived more in a couple of weeks than she had in her entire life up until now. She had even passed up a chance to return to the palace when Daiki offered it. What do I really want? Hisato wants my piece of Kazue's soul, which means I will be in danger no matter what. It was something she had gotten used to. I knew deep down he was no good. What if I could be a hero for once?

  "Fine. I'll stop him. Where do I go from here?"

  "First you'll need to find the remaining pieces of my soul. Once you do that, you'll need the eight trapped gods."

&n
bsp; "Great. Nothing too hard, then," Suzume said sarcastically.

  "Well, they're all hidden. Even I do not know where they are."

  Suzume resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Apparently Kazue did not understand sarcasm. "And they're probably warded and guarded by horrible beasts, huh?"

  Kazue grinned. "Most definitely." Okay, maybe she does get sarcasm.

  Suzume sighed. "I suppose I should get to work."

  "I will help you as much as I can, but my power grows faint." Kazue's image flickered and disappeared. The stone was warm in Suzume's hand. The light continued to flicker as if Kazue watched her from inside. She turned to leave and continued the twisted trek out of the tunnels. At the top, the thick clouds blocked the entrance and everything was eerily quiet. She had expected the guardian and Kaito to be waiting for her, but there was no one there. I don't like the looks of this. The hairs on the back of Suzume's neck began to prickle.

  Something's wrong. Kazue's voice spoke in Suzume's head. She was so surprised she nearly dropped the stone. "I didn't know you could talk in my head," Suzume said aloud.

  I forgot to mention that. Well, I can. There is something dangerous nearby; proceed with caution.

  "How do I get out of here? The guardian said this place is full of traps."

  I will guide you, just listen to my instructions.

  And so Kazue navigated Suzume through the maze in the clouds. As they neared the end of the maze, the sound of fighting met her ears. Suzume hurried her pace and grabbed for her staff, which was strapped to her back.

  When she broke through the cloud cover, she saw Kaito fighting off a dark humanoid creature without a face. The thing swung two blades in circles as it crept towards him. The guardian, Tsuki and Rin fought similar figures.

  This is the darkness' work. I can tell, Kazue said.

  Suzume only needed a signal to enter the fray.

  "Why, Suzume, how nice of you to join the party," Hisato said as he reached around Suzume and grabbed a hold of her waist.

  49

  Follow my lead, Kazue whispered in Suzume's ear. Or at least that's how she imagined it since it was all in her head.

  Okay, Suzume replied, though she was not certain Kazue could hear her thoughts.

  Hisato is a part of me, so he can anticipate your moves before you make them. You have to think outside your normal patterns. I want you to go along with whatever he says.

  You make it sound so easy, Suzume said, trying to infuse sarcasm into her mind's voice, but she was not certain the point came across.

  "Did you get what you were searching for?" Hisato asked. He pulled her close, and she could feel all the planes of his muscles tensing as he tightened his grip. His breath, hot against her neck, sent ripples of goose bumps along her skin. He pressed his hand flat against her stomach. She tried to keep her muscles relaxed so as not to give away her discomfort.

  "I did," she replied. Her voice shook somewhat. "I see you haven't been idle." Suzume's gaze swept across the courtyard. In total there were a dozen of the faceless figures. Empty sockets and smooth skin replaced what should have been their faces.

  Rin had transformed into her fox form and she loomed above the creatures and swiped at them with a massive red paw. She knocked over three with one swipe and they burst apart into black clouds. Black sludge rained down and six more emerged from the pools of goop, this time with weapons in hand. They rushed Rin with spears. She bared her teeth at the creatures as they jabbed at her.

  Shards of ice rained down from the gray clouds overhead, impaling several of the creatures. Suzume looked up to see Kaito in dragon form, flying overhead. But the impaled creatures only split into thirds, creating three new creatures, these ones with swords.

  "No, I have not. Do you like my pets? I brought them for you," Hisato purred into Suzume's ear.

  Suzume closed her eyes, just thinking that she had almost made a deal with this creep made her want to punch him. Her hand itched to reach for her staff, but Kazue's warning still rang through her head. That's what Hisato was expecting, he knew she would try to fight him, and if she did—she would lose.

  Hisato spun Suzume around in his arms so they were standing face to face. He tilted her head back by grabbing her chin between his thumb and forefinger. She had wondered why when they touched he did not set off her defensive mechanisms, and now she knew it was because they came from the same source. At one point they had both been part of Kazue. Or at least the fragment of Kazue's soul attached to Suzume had.

  "You're very kind, but I did not need you to kill them. I am planning on returning to the palace now. I should be going, actually…" She tried to unlock herself from his embrace, but he jerked her head back. Suzume gasped and bit down on an expletive. There were a few choice words she wanted to say, but she held them back.

  "I'm not ready to let you go, Suzume. I told you before we are meant for one another—destined as you and the Dragon never could be."

  A shiver of premonition rippled down her spine. "You knew the whole time. Why have me go into that cave if you knew…"

  He smiled. "As I said, everything must maintain its balance. I cannot tell you a story that is not mine to tell. Just as I cannot force you to choose me."

  "If you're not forcing me, then let me go." She wrenched her arm, but his grip only tightened. The fighting continued on around them, but it felt muted and distant, as all her attention was focused on Hisato.

  "I cannot force you, but I can persuade." He leaned in close enough that his lips hovered over hers, but they did not touch. Her stomach tightened and she yanked her head back. Just the idea of kissing him made her feel like she would be kissing a sibling—never an enticing prospect.

  "You're going to try to persuade me just like you tried to convince me to kill Kaito. Maybe the reason you cannot kill Kaito is because you are a part of Kazue and you love him too."

  He threw his head back as he laughed. "No, I have no love for the Dragon. His power will help me grow, but I have no desire for male flesh. Yours, however…" He trailed a hand up her side and brushed against the side of her breast. It was the last straw. The power came with little effort; it was burning hot and fast. She imagined it in her hands, focusing on the palms. She placed her hands on Hisato's chest and forced the power into him.

  He yelped and dropped Suzume. Two scorch marks in the shape of Suzume's hands were burned onto his chest. Suzume's chest burned as well. She touched her robe and the skin beneath was inflamed.

  Hisato grinned. "Haven't you figured it out yet? We are of one flesh, Suzume. Anything that harms me will harm you."

  Would it have killed you to mention that detail? Suzume thought to Kazue.

  I told you to play along with him, Kazue replied. I didn't think you would try to attack him.

  "But you attacked me back at the shrine, why weren't you hurt then?"

  Hisato smiled in a disjointed way. "I never said it didn't hurt me."

  "Just because we cannot harm one another does not mean I'm going to play along," Suzume said to Hisato.

  "Would you change fate, Suzume? Would you give up your life for the Dragon's?"

  "What are you talking about now?" Suzume said. She reached for the staff, she may not be able to attack, but it gave her some comfort.

  Just wait a moment longer, Kazue said.

  I hope you have an idea because I'm running short of patience.

  Kazue did not answer.

  Nearby Kaito growled as he was pulled to the ground by the strange black creatures. There were hundreds of them now. They pinned Kaito to the ground and one straddled his back and pulled on his whiskers. Rin lay still on the ground, her tails flopped over. The guardian and Tsuki fought back to back as more and more of the creatures circled around them.

  "You see," Hisato said, "there is no use fighting. Join me, Suzume, and together we will rule. Apart we will fall. Our birth created an imbalance in the world, one that the Dragon will seek to correct. It is not you he wants but Kazue. If it me
ans killing you to save her soul, he will not hesitate to do it. "

  She knew he expected her to consider his offer, at least, but it was difficult to even pretend. A part of her wanted to agree with what he was saying. She knew Kaito loved Kazue, and once he learned she was not really Kazue but a fragment of her soul was attached to hers, his feelings would change. Would he kill me, really? She had been deceived by Hisato before. The others needed her help. Whatever their faults, they had fought alongside her and come to her aid when she needed it. I betrayed them once; I won't do it again. I have to save them.

  Before Suzume could be proud of her own growth, Hisato yanked on her arm and brought her over to Kaito. The black creatures had chained him to the ground. Whatever had bound him was searing his flesh, and the air smelled of burning skin and hair. Hisato forced Suzume onto her knees in front of Kaito.

  "The time has come, Suzume. Prove to me how much you want to be free of him. Seal him away and use the power to return your life to the way it was."

  She looked down at Kaito. Still in dragon form, he looked up at her with large blue eyes covered by bushy brows. He looked sad, damaged, betrayed. She could not look away. He had looked the same way when Kazue sealed him away, and it broke something inside her. I can't do this. How much longer can I pretend?

  A few feet away the guardian roared for his son. Everything moved too fast. The creatures became a black undulating mass around her. Hisato faded away; all her attention focused on Kaito. Suzume reached for the staff, drew it, and pointed it at Kaito. She could feel Hisato's triumphant smile. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and then a song came to her from somewhere deep and primal. Perhaps it was Kazue that provided the words, Suzume could not be certain, but the power coursed through her veins, the dams broke and were shattered. She was living, breathing power. Energy rippled over her skin and lifted her hair off of her head.