Heretic, Betrayers of Kamigawa

CHAPTER 8

Toshi refused to talk in front of the yamabushi captives, so Hidetsugu led him to the far side of the darkened cavern. They entered yet another alcove, and Hidetsugu lit another torch.

The ochimusha let his eyes readjust to the low light and said, “What are you doing, oath-brother?”

Hidetsugu tilted his head. “You have answered your own question. I am living up to my oath with respect to Kobo. I expect no less from you.”

“The man who killed Kobo is currently hanging from your wall.”

“Indeed, but his is merely the hand that did the deed. I want the head that gave the order.”

“So you murder four of the most dangerous mages in the Sokenzan, further antagonize their tribe by kidnapping their best students, and then brutalize them until they’re conditioned as attack dogs for your kami hunt? This is not smart, Hidetsugu. This is not subtle. This is not good for business.”

The ogre’s eyes glowed like embers. “Our bond may be a formality of ‘business’ for you, ochimusha, but it is far more to me. I have dedicated my life to exploring the mysteries and the power of the oni. It is my chosen destiny. Kobo was to play a great role in that destiny.”

Toshi paused. “Why did the wizard drown him?”

Hidetsugu only grinned. “Now Kobo is gone, but my destiny remains. I will do as I have always intended to do, Toshi Umezawa. In that, we are alike.”

Toshi grimaced in frustration. “Listen to me. There’s a lot more going on here than you know about. For once I have a clearer understanding of things than you do. You have to trust me, and follow my lead. Your way won’t work.”

Hidetsugu laughed. “Are you telling me you have a better one? That you are still pursuing Kobo’s reckoning?”

“Of course not, but I could be. I can help you do this in a way that won’t destroy us all.”

“That’s the difference between us, human. I embrace the inevitable while you seek to run from it.” He leaned forward, his foul carrion breath stinging Toshi’s eyes. “There is no way to avoid destroying us all. Life in the utsushiyo is brutal and short for pauper, daimyo, and o-bakemono alike-now more than ever, with things unraveling as they are. Chaos is coming to consume us all, Toshi. I welcome it. In fact, I will hasten its arrival.

The ogre’s voice had dropped to a low growl. “I will have my reckoning and serve my oni, both at once. This is my choice.”

“And I’m telling you to reconsider your choice.” Toshi swallowed. Hidetsugu was intimidating, but he was still wrong. “You will get what you want, I swear it. Let me get what I want, as well. That is how the hyozan operates: we look out for each other’s interests.”

The o-bakemono snorted. “Now we get to the truth. What is it you want, Toshi? And how do you intend to use me to get it? Perhaps it has something to do with the reek of kami magic that rises from you like cheap perfume.”

Toshi’s eyes narrowed. “Indeed it does. Is that a problem?”

“It could be. I preferred you as you were: incredulous of anything you couldn’t control. If you’ve accepted some higher spirit as your patron, you’re just another human bleating for salvation from the kakuriyo.” Hidetsugu barked out another rough chuckle. “It will never come. The oni will claim us all in this world, and we will never see another.”

Toshi hesitated. “That’s not true, oath-brother. I have seen the other world.”

The ogre’s face lit up. “Aha! Then you have learned something crucial?”

“Perhaps. Have you learned anything crucial from what’s left of the wizard?”

Hidetsugu displayed his horrible teeth. “Perhaps.”

Toshi pulled back his sleeve and rotated his arm to display the hyozan tattoo emblazoned on the back of his hand. “An exchange of information, then. Let’s hear each other out then we’ll argue about whose course is the wisest.”

Hidetsugu twisted at the waist to display his own hyozan mark. “I agree,” he said. “You go first.”

“I know what started the Kami War,” Toshi said instantly. “The daimyo cast a spell. He reached into the spirit world and plucked something out. The kami are hostile because they want it back.”

Hidetsugu placed a finger just under his lower lip. He concentrated, and Toshi almost laughed at the sight of a terrible creature striking such a studious pose.

“I believe you. What is the nature of the thing he stole?”

Toshi shook his head. “Your turn.”

The ogre nodded, his gaze growing vacant. Suddenly he became alert, as if remembering Toshi was there. “The wizard says he murdered Kobo to please his soratami masters and their patron kami. Also, to protect the runaway princess. You didn’t mention that you’d met the daimyo’s daughter, Toshi.” The ogre waggled his finger accusingly.

“I was getting to that,” Toshi said. “How would removing us please the moonfolk?”

“The soratami are up to something grand. They are simultaneously infiltrating the Takenuma underworld and preparing for all-out war with the wild tribes of the Jukai Forest. Their kami wants them to avoid attracting attention until both offensives are in place.

“You, Toshi, stumbled across them in the ruins. Kobo was dressed in his tribal Jukai costume. The wizard panicked once the snakes captured everyone and decided to silence you both.” The ogre smiled unpleasantly. “Also, I think he just didn’t like you.”

“I get that fairly often. You know, our new brother Marrow-Gnawer out there might be able to give us more information. He’s already been recruited by the soratami. Uramon was going to force him to lead us to them.”

“It’s not a bad idea,” Hidetsugu muttered. “Now it’s your turn to share.”

Toshi nodded. “The nature of the thing, yes. Princess Michiko was born on the night her father cast the spell. She’s being kept under house arrest because she’s somehow connected to the thing he stole from the kakuriyo. It’s a powerful kami in the shape of a stone disk. The markings on its face display what looks like a fetal dragon.”

For the first time since he’d met the ogre, Toshi saw shock on Hidetsugu’s face. It was a brief flicker of raw emotion … not quite fear, but neither simply surprise.

Then the emotion was gone, and the shaman resumed his thoughtful pose. “A fetal serpent, perhaps?”

“Could be. There’s a fine line between dragons and serpents, and the statue was rough-hewn.”

“How did you come by this information?”

“Ah. It’s your turn. Who is the kami behind all this? Who’s guiding the moonfolk?”

Hidetsugu stared at Toshi, his finger over his chin. “I predict your question and mine have the same answer.”

“What?”

“The soratami are guided by an aspect of the moon. Moon folk, moon kami. The wizard does not pray to him directly, but he knows its name. It is called the Smiling Kami of the Crescent Moon.”

Toshi’s belly went cold. He tried to gather his thoughts before Hidetsugu noticed his agitation.

But the ogre was too sharp. He seemed to be ready for Toshi’s reaction. “Is this spirit familiar to you?”

Toshi nodded. “He introduced himself,” he said. “Little blue fellow, on the chubby side. He told me to call him Mochi.”

Lady Pearl-Ear’s hopes were raised even farther when the makeshift village came into view. The refugees from Sugi Hayashi had taken to the wild without any apparent interruption in their tranquil lifestyle. As Pearl-Ear and Sharp-Ear approached, she saw kitsune craftsmen constructing shelters, herders driving their flocks, and even a small group of kits playing a chasing game through the massive cedars. Their robes were threadbare and their bodies lean, but the foxfolk seemed more comfortable and at peace than ever.

“She’s back,” called a voice from the top of a nearby tree. “Lady Pearl-Ear has returned!”

Pearl-Ear watched as the agile kitsune sentry leaped down, half-running and half-falling to the ground. He landed in a graceful roll and came up into a bow on the path in front of Pearl-Ear and her brother.

“Welcome, Pearl-Ear.” Dawn-Tail was one of the kitsune warriors who had accompanied Pearl-Ear on her mission to rescue the princess. He and his brothers had been instrumental in keeping the group alive and together throughout the difficult journey.

“Thank you, Dawn-Tail. Are your noble brothers Blade-Tail and Frost-Tail well?”

“They are waiting for you, Lady. As are the elders. Please follow me.”

They fell in behind the nimble warrior as he trotted into the collection of huts and lean-tos. Pearl-Ear craned her head to whisper at Sharp-Ear. “Elders? Our village has only ever had one.”

“And one is all we have, but we are not the only village represented at this historic gathering.”

“Historic? Sharp-Ear, what are you talking about?”

“Shh. We’re almost there.”

“I insist-”

Pearl-Ear’s words died unuttered as she entered the large, circular clearing. She could almost hear Sharp-Ear beaming beside her.

Dawn-Tail trotted into the assembly and took his place at the front, alongside his brothers. Frost-Tail and Blade-Tail both tipped their heads to Pearl-Ear then resumed standing at attention.

There were over fifty kitsune samurai and rangers assembled into one great company. Behind them in a smaller unit were a dozen or more human soldiers. They were all dressed in gleaming white robes and pieces of polished leather armor. Their swords glinted in the sun that filtered through the cedar canopy.

Captain Silver-Foot of the kitsune and Captain Nagao of Towabara both stood on a broad tree stump overlooking the soldiers. Silver-Foot nodded to Pearl-Ear, and Nagao shouted a single command. The soldiers all stood at ease.

On another stump opposite Silver-Foot stood five white-robed kitsune elders. They were bent and wizened, the fur around their muzzles flecked with white. Pearl-Ear recognized Lady Silk-Eyes, the elder from her own village, but the others were strangers to her. She had been an ambassador among humans for so long that she was a stranger to the tribal politics of her own people.

“Hail, Lady Pearl-Ear,” Silk-Eyes said. The elder might have seemed withered by age, but she was smarter and craftier than any ten of her villagers and nearly as nimble. “Welcome home.”

Pearl-Ear blinked tears from her eyes as she approached the stump-dais. She bowed. “Thank you, elder. Though home is not as I recall it.”

“It never is, my child. As pleased as we are to see you again, you must know that all this is not simply for you.”

“I should hope not, elder.”

Silk-Eyes indicated the other elders. “We petitioned the daimyo on your behalf. I believe he would have released you eventually of his own accord, but I flatter myself that our request helped him decide.”

“Of course. You have my thanks, elders, all of you.”

“Understand that we have severed most ties with Konda. This was not done in response to your imprisonment, nor was it done with rancor. We believe that the daimyo can no longer protect us from our common enemies. He agreed to let us protect ourselves as we see fit.

“Privately, I believe he was happy not to have the extra drain on his resources. The Kami War has always been centered on Konda’s domain. True, it has spilled out of his nation and spread across the land until nowhere is safe, but the tower at Eiganjo is the least safe of all. I pray for those who have taken refuge there-it will be a long time yet before their tribulations end.”

A solemn murmur of assent swept through the assembly. Pearl-Ear and many others bowed her heads.

Silk-Eyes continued. “Your trials are far from over too, Lady Pearl-Ear. We have been awaiting your return, but not idly. We are sending an official delegation on behalf of all the great tribes and villages. If you are willing, we would have you sit at the head of that delegation to plead our case.”

Pearl-Ear stood up straight. “I am forbidden to return to Konda’s realm, elder, but I will not-”

Sharp-Ear elbowed her as Silk-Eyes smiled patiently.

“We do not wish to send you back to the daimyo in Eiganjo. We wish you to petition the wizards of Minamo academy for their counsel during this crisis.”

Pearl-Ear was stunned. “I don’t understand,” she said.

“You don’t need to understand,” Sharp-Ear whispered. “Just say yes.”

“But I-”

Silk-Eyes turned and called, “Bring her out.” She faced Pearl-Ear once more and said, “Shortly after you were imprisoned, we received a guest from the academy. She sought my advice. Ah, here she is now.”

A thin figure in pale blue and white robes climbed up onto the stump. She bowed to the elders, then stood beside Silk-Eyes. The newcomer lifted her hands and peeled her hood back from her face.

“Lady Pearl-Ear,” said Riko-ome. “It is good to see you again.”

“Riko?” Pearl-Ear was amazed to see the princess’s closest friend here in the wilds of Jukai. Riko was a top student at the academy and a frequent guest of Michiko’s at the tower. The two were closer than sisters, and Riko had accompanied Michiko on the princess’s ill-advised flight from the tower.

“I am pleased to see you, Riko, but what are you doing here?”

Riko’s lip trembled as she glanced to the elder. “I … learned something when I returned to Minamo. Something important that could help Michiko. But I was prevented from learning enough to actually do anything.

“I have no sway with the masters at the academy. I’m just a student. If the kitsune were to ask my questions, though, even the headmaster himself would be loath to refuse.”

Pearl-Ear nodded, but her voice was full of concern. “I think I understand, Riko, but are you really prepared to plot against your own mentors? Helping us against them will seem very much like a betrayal. Perhaps it is. Are you ready for the consequences?”

Riko straightened her back and tossed her short brown hair away from her face. “I am. For Michiko, I am.”

“We are all prepared to make sacrifices,” Silk-Eyes said. She gestured at Captain Nagao, who offered a stiff half-bow, the wound in his chest preventing anything more. “Some of us have already given too much and yet are willing to give more. This is the position I must place you in, Pearl-Ear. Sharp-Ear is clever, but he is not well schooled in dealing with humans. Our delegation has a much greater chance of success if you are leading it.”

Pearl-Ear glanced around at the assembly. Her heart swelled as her eyes passed over the proud and eager faces of the warriors and the grim but resolute expressions on Silver-Foot and Nagao. The elders all smiled patiently, but Riko’s face was open, pleading. Pearl-Ear turned to Sharp-Ear.

He winked. “Come on, sister. Let’s stop this while we can.”

Pearl-Ear exhaled. She turned back and bowed to Silk-Eyes and the other kitsune elders.

“I am at your service,” she said. “When do we go?”

Silk-Eyes beamed. “Now,” she said. “Right now.”

Hidetsugu laughed aloud at the name. “Mochi?”

“That’s what he said. He looked like a bloated little kappa without its shell, but he was powerful-he proved that. I figured he was playing me for a fool somehow, but I didn’t imagine …” Toshi’s voice trailed off as his thoughts raced.

Hidetsugu crouched down and settled against the cavern wall. “Moon spirits are all tricksters. The soratami believe themselves descended from a moon myojin. They say that’s why they’re so mysterious and clever, and why they look down on the rest of us.”

“It doesn’t fit,” Toshi said. “He was trying to get the princess to safety. There was a soratami present when Konda cast his spell, and a Minamo wizard, I saw it. But Mochi told Michiko not to go near the academy …”

“This all just proves my case,” Hidetsugu said. “Even if you figure out what this Mochi’s angle is, would it matter? His motives are unimportant. What matters is that he caused Kobo’s death, so he and his soratami followers will die.”

Toshi looked up at the ogre. He chose his words very carefully.

“I agree. But I think there is a way where we can both be satisfied and still conclude the hyozan’s business. I just need some time.”

Hidetsugu glared suspiciously. “How much time?”

“A few days. Maybe a week. How long will it take you to reach the academy?”

The ogre snarled savagely. “Not long.”

“Then you must wait a week or so before you go.”

“Must I? Tell me why.”

“Because I need to collect one last item. I’m sort of on a pilgrimage, what with my newfound religion and all.”

Hidetsugu grunted. “That’s why you want me to wait, not why I should.”

Toshi felt he was losing the argument or at least losing Hidetsugu’s interest. He needed to do something drastic to regain the ogre’s attention.

“Your oni,” Toshi said. “It’s the Big Bad Oni of Chaos, right?”

Hidetsugu’s nostrils flared. “Respect, oath-brother. He is called the All-Consuming Oni of Chaos.”

“Chaos,” Toshi echoed. “What if I gave you the means to spread chaos? To drop a huge lump of it into the daimyo’s lap?”

“If you could do that, I would want to hear more. Can you do that?”

Toshi reached into his pack. “I can,” he said. “With this.”

He drew out a plate-shaped object and held it out to Hidetsugu. It looked and felt like polished black stone, with a deep blue vein running across its face. The vein formed a kanji that glittered in the torchlight.

Hidetsugu stared for a moment. “You,” he said at last, “are truly mad, Toshi Umezawa.”

“I get that a lot, too.” He waggled the inscribed plate. “What’s your decision? All you need to do is take this to any one of a dozen spots along the border where the bandits and the daimyo’s troops are testing each other. Break the seal, and stand back.”

Hidetsugu never took his eyes off the object in Toshi’s hand. “If I agree, that still leaves me the better part of a week to sit and wait. I cannot rely on my patience, Toshi, and neither can you.”

“Never crossed my mind.” Toshi lowered the plate, flexing his arm to get the blood flowing again. The temperature in the alcove had begun to drop, and his fingers were tingling.

“You said you had a score to settle with the Jukai Myojin as well. When you’ve placed this seal, gather your yamabushi and head into the forest. Amuse yourself among the orochibito snakefolk and tear a few pieces out of their kami. If it’s the one with the wooden mask of a woman’s face, tell her Toshi sends his regards.”

Toshi did a quick calculation in his head. “Stay away from the academy until the moon begins to wax. It’s waning now and will be completely dark in few days. A few days after that, it’ll start to come back. Give me that much time at least. I’ll meet you on the edge of the waterfall and we can avenge Kobo together.”

Toshi drew close to the ogre and lowered his voice, putting forth all the intensity at his command. “Do it,” he urged. “Do it because it’s good business. Do it because it means a more complete reckoning. Do it so I won’t have to point out that Kobo may have died on my watch, but it was you who insisted on sending him with me. We barely made it into the forest before we were jumped by a bunch of akki and bandits who were summoning their patron kami. Were you trying to test Kobo against their myojin, or was it just a happy coincidence?”

Hidetsugu’s hand flashed out and clamped around Toshi’s chest. The ogre lifted him to his face, his eyes wild.

“What I did was a mistake,” he growled, “but not the mistake that killed him. Nor was it as grave an error as what you just said to me.”

“I am your oath-brother,” Toshi countered. “You won’t hurt me. Put me down.”

Hidetsugu held him firmly, but he was not crushing Toshi. The ochimusha could breathe freely.

The ogre dropped Toshi to the cavern floor as suddenly as he’d scooped him up. “If I take this thing-” he gestured to the plate in Toshi’s pack-“then you must accept something from me. A token similar to yours.”

Toshi climbed back to his feet. “I’ll take all the help I can get. The quicker I finish, the quicker we get to the academy.”

Hidetsugu stood and lumbered off into the dark recesses of the cavern. When he returned, he carried something in his clenched fist. The ogre sat once more against the wall and extended his hand to Toshi.

Toshi cupped his palms, and Hidetsugu opened his fist. A single red mosaic tile dropped into Toshi’s hands.

He peered in the dim light. “I can’t read it.”

Hidetsugu grunted and clapped his hands. All around the alcove, torches sprang to light.

Toshi looked around, the tile in his hands all but forgotten. The alcove was covered from floor to ceiling in a series of black and red tiles depicting an endless sea of razor-toothed mouths. They were disembodied, slavering, countless as they covered the walls like a swarm of bees. At the center of the longest wall, three huge and baleful eyes glared down, flanked on each side by a curved horn.

The All-Consuming Oni of Chaos. Toshi had seen altars to this demonic presence in Hidetsugu’s home, but there was no altar here, just the overwhelming sensation of being surrounded and doomed at the center of this storm of voracious jaws.

“Well?” Hidetsugu said. “Can you read it now?”

Toshi glanced down. The red tile was inscribed with an elegant line drawing of a monstrous dog. It was armored and massive in the chest, thin and wasted at the rear. It had the characteristic three eyes and twin curved horns of an oni.

“I’ve seen this before,” Toshi said. “This monster. Kobo summoned it to fight the akki myojin and its lesser kami.”

“It is a minor oni, one of the dogs of bloodlust. Crack the tile when you need its help. Be sure you are the first thing it sees, for it will kill everything else in its range until the summoning charm wears off.”

“How wide is its range?”

“Farther than any man can run,” Hidetsugu said, “and it is much faster.”

“I will accept your gift,” Toshi said, “if you will accept mine.” He indicated the plate-sized seal in his hand. “And if you will wait until the new moon waxes.”

He held the seal out. Hidetsugu sat nodding for a moment then said, “Done.” He extended his upturned palm.

Toshi dropped the cold black disk and tucked the red tile into his pack. “So we are agreed.”

The ogre shaman nodded. “We are, but the countdown has begun. I advise you to conclude your business as quickly as you can, for there will be no academy to visit once I arrive.”

Toshi glanced up at the walls and the omnipresent specter of Hidetsugu’s oni. He pictured the dead-eyed yamabushi elsewhere in the cavern. He looked up at Hidetsugu, a crouching mass of muscle and rage-fueled cruelty.

He said a silent prayer to his myojin, not on his behalf or even for the academy’s but for a more simple gift. All over the world, it seemed time was running out.