by Phil Gabriel
Although my ghostly guest seemed to appreciate the tea and sweets, which had been unavailable to him until now, he maintained a reserved expression. After hundreds of years without food or drink, I would have gone crazy.
However, when I pulled the bottle of sake from my satchel, he did perk up. As Akiko prepared the sake by first duplicating the bottle using Schrödinger’s spell, then carefully heating it over the hibachi grill, my guest looked on avidly. The odor of warm sake filled my nostrils as I sipped along with our guest.
As our guest consumed the sake, he became more voluble, discussing his history with Akiko. He spent a lot of time describing his battles with other samurai. I consumed many cups of sake, matching him one for one, depending on my fast metabolism to dispel the effects of the rice wine.
Unfortunately, his story did not paint a rosy picture. He had been betrayed and beheaded, which had led him to become a vengeful spirit. Although neither Akiko nor I used the term onryō, it was obvious he had a one-track mind and was only interested in vengeance. I put on a calm face while internally vowing never to let this madman loose.
Akiko went on to explain that we were only interested in using the delightful onsen, as it was a famous source of spiritual energy. Takeda-san rebuffed her request gruffly, stating that the onsen and surrounding area was his and he had no intention of sharing with anyone. Even the promise of further food and drink would not sway him.
We continued our picnic, and Akiko continued to pursue finding what the ghost samurai wanted. After a long discussion, Arashi’s desires became clear.
“Scott-sensei,” said Akiko. “Takeda-sama states that he if very interested in getting his original armor returned to him. He says he cannot move on to his just reward until he and the armor are reunited.”
While his story was one of betrayal and he portrayed himself as the victim, it was obvious to me he had been stripped of honor and armor, then beheaded because he was a monster. All of his protestations that an evil wizard (is there any other kind?) had imprisoned him in the onsen did not ring true.
Still, Akiko and I maintained pleasant expressions throughout his recounting. Through another bottle of sake, we discussed ways that we might help him with his endeavor to regain the armor and rejoin it with the rest of his body and what recompense we might receive for our justifiably difficult work.
Takeda-san finally said that he might allow us to make use of “his” onsen for a small period of one day per year. Akiko said that his offer was much too generous for us, but unfortunately, we had many other, more important, tasks that awaited us.
Takeda-san countered with an offer that we might get access to the onsen for up to two days a year, barring his needs.
Another bottle of sake was consumed as Akiko whittled away at his objections. I was only half listening, depending on Akiko to hammer out the details and get the best deal we could. Akiko also continued to supply us with tasty treats grilled on the tiny charcoal grill.
Finally, we wound up the discussion. Akiko pointedly explained to me in English the demands of the onryō. “He wants his armor returned to join his remains here so that he can find peace. He offers us access to the onsen ten full days each month in exchange for this service.”
“I think we have a Deal,” I said. “Please tell him we will do our best to recover his missing armor.”
I could tell Akiko had reservations, but she could not voice her suspicions in front of the samurai.
The samurai reached inside his ghostly armor and pulled out a woven lock of hair. He set the hair down at the edge of the blanket. Akiko started translating. “He says that this is a lock of his original hair. It can be used to track and locate his missing armor.”
I examined the hair. It was real, not ectoplasm, but there was something about it. It was surrounded by a haze of magic, of a type I had not encountered.
I reached towards the item, to pick it up and examine. My hand was stopped short by an invisible force. As I watched, small bite marks appeared on my hand. Like being bitten by a tiny invisible cat. Or an invisible fox.
I pulled my hands back quickly, covering the bite with my other hand. A much closer examination showed the trap in the object. Sure, the hair could be linked to his armor but it also provided a link to him. He could use the link to possess an unsuspecting person. Or a magician stupid enough to grab it without checking. The son of a bitch wanted to possess me. Sure, he was trapped by the wards, but I wasn’t. If he could possess me, he could walk out with no problems.
Inwardly seething, I smiled and said through Akiko, “Please tell Takeda-san that I appreciate the great trust he has shown in me by giving me this item.” I concentrated furiously. Air, earth, spirit for energy...
In a few seconds, sand particles flowed towards the object, heat transforming the sand into glass before it reached the item. Air lifted the lock of hair, suspending it in a cooling globe, and the glass flowed around the air pocket. The hair was now captured in a steel-strong globe of glass. I reached out and pulled the globe from midair.
“An item so valuable,” I continued, “that I insist on using a protective globe to ensure it will come to no harm while we use it to find his armor.”
A quick look of anger flashed across his face as I put the globe inside my pocket.
The sun was setting by the time negotiations were completed. We bade our farewells and watched as our host faded into the approaching night. He looked much more substantial than he had earlier, a result of partaking of our food and sake. I’d possibly regret strengthening him up, but we really needed him to cooperate.
I raised my hands, preparing to drop our wards, but a look from Akiko stayed my hand. Her ghostly senses, much more sensitive than my own, indicated that our host had not retreated. Instead, I assisted Akiko in gathering up our supplies, leaving only the ghostly remnants of our grill and a bottle of sake.
After another half hour, Akiko finally gave the sign that we could drop the ward. We quickly moved to the edge of the clearing and crossed the ward that imprisoned our samurai. A small fox shape moved along behind us, wagging her tails as we headed back to the main road.
At the edge of the road, I waited for a taxi to hail. The red-haired fox I had chased away from my hiding place peeked out of the grass and moved closer, growing slowly into the semi-human shape of Kitty-Sue. I reached into my satchel and handed her a yukata, pants, and a pair of slippers. As she slipped into the clothing, we saw a taxi come our way with the illuminated red sign in the windshield that indicated it was free.
Rubbing my still sore hand, I said, “Kitty-Sue, thank you for your help with the samurai. You kept me from making a grave mistake.”
As we headed to Koji-san’s hotel, I enjoyed the brief period of silence. Akiko doesn’t normally talk much, but Kitty-Sue makes up for it with incessant chatter. However, when she morphed from her animal shape back to human, it took her a while to reacquire the habit of speech. Was I a bad person for enjoying the quiet?
As we neared the hotel, the peaceful period ended with Kitty-Sue stating, “You know that samurai will betray you, right? All that talk about letting you use the onsen was just to distract you until you return the armor.” She went on to point out the many reasons not to trust onryō in general and this particular spirit in this case.
“Of course, he will betray us,” I said. “I’m counting on it.”
5
Meeting the Dragon of Lake Ashi
The next morning, we had just finished breakfast in the hotel dining room when a call came. Just as had happened in New York with the Spirit of Liberty, a powerful entity focused attention on our group. Akiko and I turned our heads to the north as we felt the focus of the entity’s attention. I could tell that Kitty-Sue was also included in the calling, as her head twisted in synchronization with ours.
“You feel it, too?” I asked Kitty-Sue.
“Yes,” she said. “The dragon wants to meet us.”
I was about to object to the “us,” then
realized that if the kitsune queen’s best assassin was nosing around my home, I would want to have a talk, also.
We called a cab to the hotel and rode to the Hakone Shrine, the origin of the calling.
As we exited the cab and joined the crowds. Kitty-Sue examined the crowds for enemies. Her persistent paranoia was a comfort to me.
As we walked towards the shrine, passing the nine-headed dragon fountain, the crowd thinned. No, not like there were fewer people. The people themselves thinned out like fog on a hot morning, fading away until only Akiko, Kitty-Sue, and I were solid. The dragon’s way of inviting us into his home. I pulled Princess out of my satchel and held her in my left hand, ready for attack.
Our host appeared, and at her first words, I had to correct my thought. Into her home.
“Welcome to my shrine,” said the dragon. Its voice was sweet and ethereal, and very female.
She was a monster, but a magnificent monster with a sinewy body more than seven meters in length, coated with scales I knew to be almost indestructible. Her color was a dark bronze with hints of gold. Unlike her cousins, the Chinese dragons, she had three toes on each foot. Her reptilian slit-pupil eyes watched us with interest.
I took a quick look at Akiko and Kitty-Sue, surprised to see that they were also fading away. The damn dragon was separating me from my backup. Akiko held on to reality for a longer time, probably due to her facility in crossing planes. But she too faded away.
Or I faded away. The dragon and I were now in a subterranean cavern, riddled with volcanic vents. It wasn’t an illusion, we had really been transported. The ambient level of magic was very high, something that only happened in volcanic areas or high population areas. I allowed the magic to seep in, filling my reservoirs to the brim. If I had been transported here, where had Kitty-Sue and Akiko been sent?
But I had seen no panic on their faces, no surprise at the translocation. They had sensed no danger. I held back for the moment, needing a better reason before attacking the dragon.
“Where are my friends?” I said, casually placing my right hand on my satchel, putting a variety of potent weapons within reach. Between Princess and the items in my pouch, I had a small chance against a dragon.
“I’ve invited them to tea,” replied the dragon. Then she focused on my satchel and continued, “I have no dispute with them.”
“So, we’re going to have tea?” I asked. “And what should I call you?” At the same time, I was thinking, I thought the dragon was male and had nine heads?
“I’m the dragon of Lake Ashi,” she stated.
“Sooo, I should call you Ashley?” I prompted.
She snorted smoke from her nostrils, but didn’t offer another name.
“You can call me Scott,” I said. “Very pleased to meet you, Ashley.”
Her Japanese manners came through. “Hajimemashita, Scott-san.”
“The legends say you should be male and have nine heads,” I said. “I’m glad you’re a pretty female dragon.”
“That was my grandfather,” she said. “The one the statue at the shrine is based on. The nine heads thing is how humans perceive someone who can be in more than one place at the same time.
“Maintaining Lake Ashi is sort of the family business now.”
“You’re doing a great job,” I said. “Your lake is beautiful.”
She smiled, which would have been nice on a human, but on a dragon, only served to display more teeth. I suppressed a shiver.
“Thank you,” she said, stepping closer. Then her mood changed.
“You stink of dragon’s blood!” she hissed. Her tail lashed back and forth, causing bullwhip cracks as loud as thunder.
“And you carry a bag made of dragonskin,” she accused. “Did you think you could come here like St. George and slay another dragon?”
Making a decision that would save both of us, I put the furious Princess away. If the stories were true, Princess had been forged in dragon flame. I’m sure dragons had ways to counter her attacks.
I calmly said, “I’ve slain no dragons. These items were freely given as part of a bargain, I assure you. The blood donated, the dragonskin from a shedding. No dragon was harmed to obtain them. You’re not the first dragon I’ve encountered.”
The motion of her head at the end of that long supple neck was hypnotic, like the dance of a cobra, only much deadlier. The way her eyes focused on and through me reminded me of something, a wisp of memory.
Then it hit me, that gaze that went far beyond mortal realms. It was the same look that Elvis and Jackie had given me before they pronounced their prophecies. Ancient powers could discern the future, even influence the future through careful dissemination of their prophecies. I was instantly on my guard.
I backed up a step and said, “I’m a magician. All we do is make Deals. I have no interest in chasing dragons.”
Once again that gaze that penetrated time and space. She was checking the veracity of my claims. I waited calmly. Only an idiot would lie to someone of her level.
“Humph,” she said. “You’re not lying.” Her tail stopped swishing around, and she sat down and curled her tail around her feet, looking like the world’s largest cat. Her neck bent down to bring her head to my level.
“But,” she continued, “your encounters with other great powers makes it hard to read your past. That other dragon has placed a veil over your time together. Your future is a different story. In your future, I see—”
“Stop right there, sweetheart,” I said, holding up a hand. “I have no interest in hearing your fucking prophecy.”
The dragon tilted her head and looked at me quizzically. She blinked slowly, and when her eyes opened, I saw a flash of images in the corneas of those bowling-ball-sized orbs. It took all my willpower, but I turned my head away. “And that goes double for seeing my future. Keep your damned prophecies to yourself.”
“Few mortals, human or mage, would deny the chance to see the future,” she said, puffs of smoke coming from her mouth with each word.
“Bullshit,” I replied. “Those like you use prophecy to move us around the world like pawns on a chessboard. I heard it from Jackie, and it almost killed me. I had the kitsune queen try to manipulate me using her niece. I even heard it from my old friend Elvis. Now you want to put a bug in my ear and send me out to do what you want.”
I put my hand on my satchel, ready to draw my .45 and test my god-killer round on this dragon. Her gaze went to my hand; if she blinked, I would draw and fire.
She stretched her long neck up, rising twenty feet into the air. I held my breath. The moment stretched out, and I felt tension along my spine.
She laughed, spurting flames that came dangerously close to incinerating me. When her pyroclastic guffaws finally ended, she took a deep breath. She looked down on me and I sensed a decision.
Her form shrank down until she was a human-sized dragon. Then she looked down and spat flame. The flames hit the rock floor and formed a line around her form before leaping up to conceal her. I caught a glimpse of her changing form shimmering through the wall of flames, a hint of breast and juncture of thigh arousing dirty thoughts.
I was disappointed when, instead of burning out and revealing her naked form, the flames closed in on her body, wreathing her in a flame-red dress. The dress clung to her with an occasional flame sprouting out and flickering seductively. Her hair was obsidian black with hints of red, the red of banked coals, deep and ruddy. Where her skin was visible, the scales had gone from saucer sized to tiny flakes that moved hypnotically as she swayed. Her eyes retained their reptilian color and shape, ruddy gold with a slit pupil. She licked her plump lips with a forked tongue and looked at me like I was a tasty treat.
I remembered the feel of dragonskin, the pleasure of touching and caressing that silky-smooth covering. Stroking with the scales produced the sensation of stroking warm oil on steel; stroking sideways was like caressing mink. Stroking against the grain raised all of those razor-sharp scales and sh
redded skin like grabbing a running chainsaw. It was a bad idea to rub dragons the wrong way.
She was hot as hell and she knew it. My lascivious thoughts stopped abruptly when she stepped closer and I noticed her bare feet caused the rock to melt, leaving her footprints behind. Although her delicate feet looked human to my eyes, the melted footprints she left had only three toes, a sure sign of a Japanese dragon.
I flashed back to my battle with Jorōgumo, how she had transformed into a beautiful woman to tempt me. Why do all the females I meet know my weakness for hot women?
As she stepped closer, her body making mesmerizing motions under her flame dress, I felt a surge of heat. It was like opening the door to a blast furnace. I stepped back quickly, my hand still in the satchel.
“Just because you’re hot,” I said, “doesn’t mean I won’t protect myself from you.”
She tilted her head down and looked at the floor, then gazed at me from under her brows. She smiled shyly and said, “So you think I’m hot?” From a distance of two yards, her breath smelled of childhood campfires and made me think of cooking marshmallows under starry nights.
“Hot, manipulative, deadly,” I replied, “all of the above.” I suddenly felt the wall of the cave at my back and realized that I had been backing away from the danger she represented. Thanks, subconscious.
“If I promise not to burn you?” she asked. “And not to predict your fate?”
“We have a truce?” I prompted.
“Dragon’s honor,” she said. “We can have a truce. For today, at least.”
Now that the thought of imminent death was no longer in the front of my brain, I remembered the courtesies required when visiting a dragon.
“OK,” I said, pulling my hand from the satchel and raising my palms up, “we have a truce. You won’t harm me or my companions and we will offer no harm to you.”
“Agreed, for today,” she whispered, and I was surprised to find her standing toe to toe with me, her breasts almost touching my upraised palms. The flames of her dress licked at my hands, but I felt no pain. “See,” she said with a smile, “we can get as close as possible, and you will not be harmed.”