Shadow of the Fox

by Julie Kagawa

  “But, Okame-san,” Yumeko began, “I’m not—”

  “Besides,” the ronin continued loudly, “is this really the time to keep fighting? You fell into the river, and Kage-san looks spent. If this is truly the duel you’ve been waiting for your whole life, do you really want to proceed now, when neither of you are at your best?”

  “Hmm.” The Demon Prince crossed his arms. “You make an excellent point,” he admitted, his tone begrudging. “If we fight now, how will I know if it was skill that won the battle, and not blind luck or misfortune? If we are to duel, we must both be prepared and leave nothing to chance. Very well.” He gave a decisive nod and turned to Yumeko. “My lady,” he said, “please allow me to accompany you and your escorts to the capital and wherever your travels take you afterward.”

  Startled, I narrowed my eyes, as Yumeko straightened. Apparently she had not expected this, either. “Why?” she asked.

  “I know my way around Kin Heigen Toshi,” Oni no Mikoto continued. “I have lived there for many years, and my name carries much weight. I would be happy to offer assistance while you are conducting your business in the capital.”

  “We don’t need assistance,” I told him. “Thank you, but we can get by on our own.”

  “Forgive me, Kage-san.” Oni no Mikoto sounded amused as he glanced at me. “But we were just attacked by a giant centipede monster. I may not know much about demons, but I have to assume that was not a random assault.

  “The life of a demonslayer must be a dangerous one,” Oni no Mikoto went on, as unease flickered within me. Here was yet another who knew entirely too much about the Shadow Clan and Kamigoroshi. Another I might have to kill, should the clan order it. “Especially if he is acting as a bodyguard to an onmyoji. The road ahead could be full of peril and evil creatures—protecting both your charge and yourself will prove challenging if demons continue to target you.”

  He glanced at the tree and the giant centipede still coiled around the branches. “I cannot have you dying before we complete our duel,” Oni no Mikoto went on. “That would be a dishonor to us both. Therefore, I will come with you and offer whatever assistance I can. Once your task is complete and Yumeko-san has no further need of your protection, we can continue what we started.”

  The ronin threw back his head and laughed. “I love the way samurai think,” he announced, grinning. “So, you’re coming with us, to make sure Kage-san stays alive, so you can kill him later.” He snickered and shook his head. “Man, I can’t wait to see where this goes.”

  “I didn’t know Oni-sama was so well-known in the capital,” Yumeko said, as the Demon Prince politely and deliberately ignored the ronin. “Do people find the mask frightening?”

  “Ah. Of course,” Oni no Mikoto said. “Forgive my rudeness, I haven’t even properly introduced myself.” He reached up and pulled the oni mask away, revealing a smooth, beardless face only a few years older than me. Small details instantly stood out: high cheekbones, a slightly pointed chin and the pale, elegant look that marked him as a noble of the court. He had narrow, almost effeminate features, and had underlined his already sharp eyes in black. Not the most makeup I’d seen on a noble, even a male one, but it was impossible to mistake him for anything else.

  “I am Taiyo Daisuke,” the former Oni no Mikoto announced with a formal bow to Yumeko. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Yumeko-san. Thank you again for the honor of accompanying you on your mission. As a traveling onmyoji, you must see a lot.”

  “Taiyo,” echoed the ronin, sounding incredulous. “You’re part of the imperial family?”

  “The fourth son of one of the emperor’s many cousins,” Taiyo Daisuke replied with a rather wry smile. “Thankfully, two of my brothers married well and hold important positions within the court, and the third is an imperial magistrate, so I don’t have to worry about meeting my family’s expectations.”

  The ronin smirked. “That’s a very unsamurai-like attitude, Taiyo-san. Won’t you have to commit seppuku for having such a dishonorable thought?”

  “My clan knows I will do whatever is required to uphold the honor of the Taiyo,” the former Demon Prince said easily. “At the moment, nothing is required of me. So I am free to pursue my own agendas.”

  “Which is lurking on bridges and challenging strong warriors to duels,” the ronin said.

  “Which will now include escorting Lady Yumeko and her companions to the capital,” the noble corrected. “Yumeko-san?” He smiled at the girl and gestured to the distant lights over the river. “I would suggest spending the night in Sagimura. The inn there is simple but agreeable, and the staff are very attentive. I have always found it a pleasant stay when I leave the capital to go on my pilgrimages.”

  “Pilgrimages,” the ronin snorted. “Is that what you call them, then?”

  No reply from the noble. Even I had to admit, the former Demon Prince had excellent selective hearing. “Shall we go then, Lady Yumeko?” he asked the girl. “If we hurry, we may yet reach the inn before dinner is served.”

  Yumeko returned his smile and, for just a moment, something inside me bristled. “That sounds wonderful,” she said, instantly perking at the mention of food. “Thank you, Taiyo-sama.”

  “Please, Yumeko-san.” The samurai held up a hand. “Taiyo-sama is my father. The four of us just fought and killed a giant centipede together. I believe we’ve earned the right to call each other by our first names. Just Daisuke, if you would.”

  “Daisuke-san,” Yumeko repeated, still smiling. “Thank you.”

  “Well.” Taiyo Daisuke stepped back, gazing across the river. “I believe this is the very first time someone met Oni no Mikoto on a bridge and crossed to the other side.” His gaze fell to the oni mask, still held loosely in one hand, and he smiled a bit sadly. “I suppose I won’t need this anymore,” he murmured. “Whatever the outcome, whether it ends in victory or defeat, I have a feeling that Oni no Mikoto’s next duel will be his final one. So...”

  Drawing his arm back, he hurled the mask into the air. It arched up, spinning red and white, before dropping lazily into the river. For a moment, it floated on the surface of the water, a small pale oval against the black. Then, the snarling oni face disappeared as the current pulled it under, and it was lost from view.

  26

  The Capital

  My eyes hurt from staring.

  Kin Heigen Toshi, the City of the Golden Plain, could be seen long before we even reached its impressive gates. Built on the juncture where two rivers—the Hotaru and the Kin no Kawa, the River of Gold—met, it spread for miles in every direction. The tightly packed inner city was surrounded by river and protected by steep stone walls, but the urban sprawl had crossed the natural moats and continued to creep across the plains. I had never seen so many buildings in my life; from afar, it looked like a ragged blanket of roofs, walls, bridges and roads had been spread over the entire valley.

  Near the very center, rising from a vertical hill and surrounded by sheer stone ramparts, a magnificent castle soared into the air, towering over the city. Though its bottom walls were white and trimmed in dark wood, its roofs and top floors had been covered in what seemed to be pure gold, for they gleamed brilliantly against the cloudless sky, almost too bright to look at.

  “Behold, the Palace of the Sun,” Daisuke told me, sounding almost as proud as if he’d designed the castle himself. “Home of the emperor, and the heart of Iwagoto.”

  “I’ve never seen anything like it,” I admitted, shading my eyes against the glare. “Is it really made of gold?”

  “Gold leaf, my lady,” Daisuke replied. “The walls and roof are gilded with it. Sadly, we’ve yet to figure out a feasible way to build a castle of pure gold. Though Emperor Taiyo no Ryosei did try, until the peasants revolted.”

  “It seemed they weren’t satisfied with starving to death while their emperor built himself a palace made of gold,�
�� Okame added behind us. “Ungrateful wretches.”

  Daisuke ignored him. He had changed outfits since the night at the bridge and was now wearing a pair of dove-gray hakama trousers and a sky blue haori jacket with silver clouds curled along the hems and billowy sleeves. The crest of the Taiyo, a blazing sun within a circle, was etched onto each shoulder. In the light of day, with his double swords thrust through his obi and his long white hair tied behind him, he looked every inch the noble warrior.

  Very unlike Okame, leaning against a tree at our backs, the end of a reed poking from between his lips. Or Tatsumi, standing to the side, a shadow that nearly blended into the shade cast from the branches. I could feel both of them watching us, one cold and alert, one mockingly amused, and wondered if either of them had felt anything close to amazement before.

  “When it was built,” Daisuke went on, unaware of the intense scrutiny at our backs, “the emperor at the time, Taiyo no Kintaro, demanded a castle that would shine brighter than sun itself, so that everyone would see our family’s influence for miles around. Since its construction, it’s been burned to ashes no less than four times but has always been restored to its former glory. A Taiyo has ruled from that palace for over seven hundred years.”

  “It’s beautiful,” I said, squinting as one of the roof tiles caught the sun and flashed a searing white against my eyelids. “Though, I am curious—does everyone living around the castle go blind on very bright days?”

  He chuckled. “You learn not to look directly at it in the summer.”

  We followed the road, which soon merged onto a wide thoroughfare, with crowds of people traveling to and from the capital. As we crossed the bridge and walked beneath the wide, sweeping gates, my heart beat faster in excitement. Everything here was so grand! So large, and noisy and fast paced. I felt very small as we walked past dozens of shops and market stalls, unable to stop myself from looking at everything.

  There was a sharp tug on my sleeve, and Tatsumi pulled me to the side of the road, just as a man jogged by pulling a two-wheeled cart. He shouted something that might’ve been an apology or a curse and continued down the street without breaking stride.

  “Oi, was that really necessary?” I called after him, then turned to Tatsumi, who raised a brow. “Gomen,” I apologized. “I suppose I should pay attention to what’s going on around me.”

  “That is probably prudent.”

  “Oh, lighten up, Kage-san,” Okame broke in, striding up beside us. “She’s never been to the capital—of course she’s going to be distracted. So, Yumeko-chan...” He grinned at me. “We have officially arrived in the capital. Is there any place you want to see? Anywhere you’d like to go? I can point out the more interesting spots, if you want to play tourist for a bit. Or, we could always wait until the sun goes down. Kin Heigen Toshi really gets interesting after dark.”

  “Does it? How so?”

  “We’re not here to sightsee.” Tatsumi’s voice was flat. “We can’t wander the city without a plan—we have a mission to complete. Besides,” he said, turning to the ronin, “you said you had business in the capital. Shouldn’t you be leaving?”

  Okame shrugged. “I have nothing important to do,” he said casually, waving it off. “I can be boring and responsible and start looking for a job anytime. It’s not like there aren’t always merchants that need guards or gambling halls that need bouncers. And it’s been so interesting traveling with the two of you, I think I’ll hang around a little longer. Why, Kage-san?” His grin turned wolfish, even as Tatsumi’s eyes narrowed. “You’re not trying to get rid of me, are you?”

  “Yumeko-san.” Fortunately, Daisuke stepped in before Tatsumi could make good on the I’m going to kill you look on his face. “This mission of yours—where must we go to complete it? I’ve lived in this city my whole life. I know where almost everything is. If you can trust me with your mission, I can probably show you the way.”

  “I...yes. I need to find the Hayate shrine,” I told him, remembering Master Isao’s final instructions. “It is urgent that I speak to the high priest there. He has information that will point me in the direction I must go.”

  “The Hayate shrine,” Daisuke repeated slowly, and nodded. “Yes. I know where it’s located, but it’s clear across the city, in the Wind district. It will take us the rest of the evening to walk there. Kin Heigen Toshi is quite large, after all.”

  “That’s all right,” I said. “I need to find it—it’s important Tatsumi and I get there as soon as possible. Would you show us the way, Daisuke-san?”

  He smiled. “Of course.”

  Kin Heigen Toshi continued to be amazing as we followed Taiyo-san through the sometimes straight, sometimes winding roads. Buildings rose around us; teahouses and temples, bathhouses and shrines, inns that were elegant in their simplicity and lavish estates of the wealthy and affluent. Shops and merchant stalls lined the streets, selling everything from straw sandals and parasols to exotic spices and trinkets from across the Scorched Sea. Daisuke commented on the places and buildings we passed, pointing out special features, explaining a bit of the history if it was a temple, shrine, or other place of importance. He was indeed quite knowledgeable about his city, and I found myself listening to the noble in rapt fascination. Once, Okame remarked that we could probably take a shortcut through a place called the red light district, and then he could tell me all about the area. But before I could ask what he meant, Daisuke turned and gave him such a withering look, that offer was quickly rescinded.

  Tatsumi, as usual, stayed farther back, as soundless as a trailing shadow, making no attempt at conversation. As we turned down a narrow street with a canal on one side and a wall on the other, I dropped back to walk alongside him.

  He eyed me, not entirely suspicious, but expectant. “Isn’t this incredible, Tatsumi?” I murmured, watching a kingfisher dart up from the canal in a streak of bright blue. “I never knew there were places like this in the world.”

  “Hn.”

  “Master Isao didn’t talk much about the lands outside the temple,” I went on. “I think he and the others were afraid the outside world would lure me away. If I’d known there were places like this, just beyond the temple walls, he might’ve been right.”

  Tatsumi didn’t answer, and I frowned at him. “You’re being very quiet, Tatsumi-san.”

  “I’m always quiet.”

  “Yes, but you’ve been even broodier than normal lately,” I persisted. “Is something wrong? Did you step on something sharp?”

  “We should be concentrating on the mission,” he replied, a bit shortly. “Not playing tourist with nobles, or visiting gambling halls and red light districts with ronin. This isn’t a pleasure trip.”

  “I know that.” Glancing at the noble, walking a little ahead and talking with Okame, I lowered my voice. “But Daisuke-san is taking us to the Hayate shrine—it would be rude to go off without him.”

  He looked away. “We don’t need them. They’ll only get in the way and slow us down. Once we figure out where the temple is, we should leave them behind.”

  “He’s helping us, Tatsumi. Okame helped us, too, in the gaki village. We can’t just leave them. Besides, what about your duel with Daisuke-san?”

  He eyed me. “Are you saying you want to see one of us die?” he asked in a strangely brittle voice. “Or do you not want me around at all? Perhaps you would prefer the ronin and noble to escort you to the temple.”

  “Of course not.” I frowned at his strange, sudden hostility. “That’s not what I’m saying, Tatsumi-san.”

  “No?” His voice dropped, becoming nearly inaudible. “Maybe it should be.”

  “Oi, you two,” Okame called from up ahead. “Whatever you’re whispering about back there, can it wait? Our guide says the shrine is across the road.”

  I hurried past a pair of boys with fishing rods to join Daisuke and the ronin at the edge
of the street. Directly across the road, a red torii gate stood before a stone staircase that went straight up the forested hill.

  “This is the entrance to the Hayate shrine,” Daisuke said, gazing up the steep staircase, looking undaunted by the thought of climbing it. “Though it is rather late to be calling on the priest,” he added, glancing at the sky through the branches. The sun had set a few minutes ago, and the first of the stars were coming out. “Is he expecting you, Yumeko-san?”

  “Not that I know of,” I replied, feeling Tatsumi stop beside me. “But I need to talk to him soon. Tonight, if I can.”

  “All right.” Okame sighed, giving the staircase a resigned look. “Priest first then, gambling hall later. And maybe some red light district fun afterward. It’s going to be a busy night, I hope you two can keep up.” He specifically looked at Daisuke as he said this, as if gauging the other’s response. The noble, for his part, ignored him and raised a hand toward the steps.

  “This is your mission, Yumeko-san. We follow you.”

  I took a deep breath, relieved and nervous all at once. I was almost there. Just a few more steps until I completed the first part of my mission. Finding Master Jiro, who could tell me where to find the Steel Feather temple. My journey wasn’t over; we still had to get to the temple and I had no idea where it was, but I imagined we would have to cross several unfamiliar territories and search the harshest, most unforgiving terrain, all the while being pursued by blood mages and demons. I would still have to keep the scroll safe, from demons and my own companions. From a dangerous, single-minded demonslayer who might kill me if he realized I had tricked him, that I’d possessed the scroll all along. This wasn’t the end, far from it. This was another beginning, and for a moment, my head spun at what I still had to do.

  One step at a time, little fox. I remembered Master Isao’s voice, his words whenever I faced a mountain of chores or an especially daunting task. The spider does not spin its web in a heartbeat, nor does the albatross fly across oceans with a few flaps of its wings. Many would consider what they do impossible, and yet, they still complete their tasks without fail, because they simply...start.