Due East, Beasts & Campfire Feasts

by Erin Johnson

  Kai blew out a heavy breath. “Reo came to me, distraught, right after it happened.” He licked his lips. “He—he said he’d tried to pull a prank on Misaki. He thought he was tucking stink weed into her pack.”

  I frowned. “It wasn’t her pack, though.”

  Kai shook his head. “Apparently, Reo saw Misaki digging around in Hank’s pack and assumed it was hers.”

  Misaki shook her head. “But stink weed looks nothing like attrahunt.”

  Kai shrugged. “He’s not the brightest, what can I say?” He scoffed. “Look, the kid came to me horrified. He said he’d done it to be one of us. He thought pranking Misaki would impress his big brother. Instead, it got Sora killed. The poor idiot was so upset, I tried to tell him it wasn’t his fault but….” Kai trailed off and shook his head.

  Jun stepped forward. “How do you explain this?” He held up Captain Kenta’s jade fish necklace.

  Kai eyes blazed and his face turned white. “You went through my pack?” His voice was deadly quiet.

  Misaki stepped between beefy Kai and tall Jun. “He needed the spices and you’d wandered off. Explain this.” Even though he towered above her, she puffed up her chest and stared Kai down. I had to admire her bravery.

  Kai took a couple of heaving breaths and looked down. “Look. You got me.” His voice came out flat. “I’ve been working security for Ryuu Tanaka’s estate.”

  Misaki staggered a step back. “That’s completely against guard rules. We can’t be objective and just if we’re being paid by private parties.”

  Kai shrugged, his eyes still on the ground at his feet. “I know. But my family’s dirt poor and he pays well… really well.”

  Misaki lowered her brows. “Honjo sword well?”

  “Yeah, whatever.” Kai sighed. “Anyway, I don’t know how, but Kenta figured it out and confronted me a couple nights ago when I was on my night shift.” He rubbed the back of his buzzed head with one thick hand. “Things got heated and we, uh—we got into it a little. I think I gave him a black eye.”

  Misaki dug her nails into her palms, her face dark.

  “Anyway, he said he was disappointed in me. That’d we talk later, and he stalked off. Said something about checking the traps.” Kai’s eyes flicked to Misaki’s face, then back down again. “After he left, I saw his necklace on the ground. It must’ve come off during our scuffle. I knew how important it was to him and I started feeling bad about the whole thing, so I grabbed it to give it to him when I saw him next. But that’s the last time I saw him. He disappeared that night.”

  Misaki’s eyes blazed. “I’m not sure I believe you.”

  Kai shrugged and stared her in the eyes. “Well, it’s the truth.”

  Their chests heaved.

  “My money’s on Misaki for the stare-off,” Iggy whispered.

  Kai stalked forward towards Jun and thrust out his palm. “Give it back.” A muscle jumped in his jaw and he lowered his eyes. “Please. I want to be the one to give it to Captain Kenta when we find him.”

  Jun’s eyes flashed to the seething Misaki, then to Kai, who stood with his head hung. He sighed, then handed the necklace over to Kai. “We can sort this later, but where is Reo?”

  Kai’s throat bobbed. “I took off after her.” He jerked his shaved head in my direction. “He said he’d be right behind me.”

  Misaki and Jun exchanged looks.

  Misaki bounced on her toes. “Reo’s alone in the woods?”

  Kai nodded.

  “Let’s go find him.” She sprinted off, and the rest of us rushed off behind her.

  18

  A Confession

  We crashed through the wet, soggy forest. Rain tumbled down on our heads and hoods. I pushed a branch aside to pass and it sprang back, pelting me with water up the backs of my legs. We hadn’t even paused to leave someone behind and tend the camp, just all rushed off to check on Reo. What would it be like for him when he realized we all knew? I frowned as I ran on, my booted feet squishing down into the mud and matted leaves below. He’d seemed tortured, so maybe it would be a relief?

  Misaki, Kai and Jun stopped up ahead and froze. I shot a quizzical look at Maple and urged my aching legs forward. I hadn’t slept in ages, but the transformation to a bird and the flight back had given me a rush of adrenaline.

  I stepped to Jun’s side, and Maple and Wiley, with Cat on his shoulders, skidded to a stop beside me. I gasped at the sight and turned to warn Maple, but too late. She covered her mouth and hid her face against Wiley’s wet chest. He hugged her tight and used one hand to shield Cat’s pug eyes. I, almost against my will, turned to get a second look.

  Reo sat propped against the trunk of a tree, his head slumped to his chest and a sword through his stomach. I pressed a trembling hand to my mouth. Jun stepped forward, slowly, cautiously. A quill lay on the ground next to Reo’s right hand, which gripped a rolled-up piece of parchment. Jun carefully slid the paper from his hand, then retreated to join the rest of us. He unrolled the parchment and Misaki read over his shoulder.

  Kai spoke in a flat, heavy voice. “He said he couldn’t take the guilt of accidentally killing Sora…he must’ve killed himself.”

  My stomach turned. How horrible.

  Misaki dipped her head. “His poor mother—losing two sons the same day?”

  Kai dragged a hand across his mouth. “I shouldn’t have left him alone.”

  So that was that, then. Reo had never meant to target Hank. He’d been pranking Misaki to fit in with Kai and Sora, but had accidentally lured the giga deer that killed his brother. And he couldn’t take the guilt. I looked down at the dark muddy ground. My heart felt heavy with sadness for the poor kid.

  Misaki let out a shaky breath. The branches of the trees whipped and bowed in the strong winds. She glanced up. “The storm’s gathering. We only have until the end of day tomorrow, at most, to get the herb and get back to town.”

  Well, moving right along then. I raised my brows. I knew she was tough, but I couldn’t tell if she was stamping down on her feelings to keep the group going, or if she truly could handle this kind of tragedy so easily.

  She stared at the ground, deep bags below her eyes. “I’ll spell his body hidden. Ben, you send up a marker like Sora’s so we can collect him later.”

  Ben swiped a tear from his cheek and nodded, unable to look at his deceased friend.

  Misaki turned to Jun, Kai, and the other two guards. “Get everyone fed. We’ll rest for a few hours and see if we can get the herb before night falls.”

  Jun lifted a brow. “That’s risky, climbing to the mountaintop. What if we don’t get down before it’s dark?”

  Misaki sighed and glanced up at the shaking treetops. “I’m afraid if we wait till tomorrow, the winds will be too strong to be in the open.”

  Jun nodded. “True.”

  “So no oversleeping.” Misaki cleared her throat. “Let’s go.”

  She and Ben lingered beside Reo’s body as the rest of us turned back towards camp. I walked along behind Jun and frowned as I noticed him rubbing his fingers together. Red liquid stained the border of his fingernails and he rubbed it off onto his black pants. I squinted in the dim, misty light. Had it been paint? My stomach twisted. Or maybe blood? This whole situation had me on edge.

  19

  The Peak

  I awoke to Jun packing up the pots and pans. He moved carefully, but a little clank and bang here and there startled me awake. I blinked and scrubbed at my blurry eyes. I stretched and winced. Every muscle in my body felt stiff and achy—even muscles I didn’t know I had hurt. I rolled to my right side and poked Maple. She frowned and peeled one eye open.

  “What?” Her voice came out hoarse.

  I wanted to sleep for about three more days, and my face felt cold outside my warm and snuggly down sleeping bag. I would’ve stayed put, nice and cozy, but nature called.

  “I have to pee. Do you?”

  She grunted. “No. I’m asleep.” Her lips barely moved.<
br />
  I snaked my hand out of my sleeping bag again and poked her. She winced and moaned. “Come on. Please? I don’t want to go by myself.”

  By gigantic effort, Maple dragged herself out of her bedroll and tugged on her boots and jacket. Jun and Misaki moved about, breaking down camp, their swords already strapped to their hips. Lumpy blankets and sleeping rolls littered the ground, where everyone else still slept. I pulled Maple’s hood up over her head and lifted Iggy’s lantern. “Ready?”

  She stifled an enormous yawn with the back of her hand and nodded, her eyes half-closed. I threw an arm around her shoulders and hugged her. “Have I told you lately what a good friend you are?”

  She sniffed.

  We wandered not too far from camp, took care of business, and then headed back. We’d nearly reached the border of camp, coming in from a slightly different angle, when Maple gasped. She pointed a pale finger through the misty rain at the bare foot that protruded from a tangle of roots.

  I jumped and covered my mouth, stifling a little squeal. “What is it? Who is it?” I held Iggy’s lantern higher and we edged closer, Maple hanging on to my arm.

  “Oh my goddess, it’s Sam.” I let out a squeaky whimper and Maple and I climbed over the roots. “I’d know those overgrown toenails anywhere.”

  She sniffed as she combed through the roots, trying to find a way to get to our friend. “He always says snakes don’t have nails.” Her voice rose with her panic. “So he forgets to cut them.”

  Iggy snorted. “What’s Imogen’s excuse then?”

  A muffled cry came from inside the tangle of wet, gnarled roots. “Help!”

  “Sam!” I peered down through a gap in the roots. Sam’s milky blue eyes blinked up at me. “Sam, what’s happening?”

  “I fell asssleep and now—now I’m trapped!” The whites shone all around his eyes.

  “We’ll get help!” Maple turned to me wide-eyed. “They’ll hear if we call out.” She cupped her hands to her mouth and called towards camp. “Help!”

  The roots moved below my hands and closed the opening over Sam’s eyes.

  “No!” I banged at them. Misaki had earlier forced me to drink the potion that took my powers away, leaving me helpless—again! The roots writhed and wrapped Sam up in a cocoon.

  I leapt back and scanned all around. The opening at his feet looked just big enough to allow him to get out—if he acted fast.

  “Sam! Change! There’s an opening at your feet.” My heart thundered in my chest and Maple bit her nails.

  “Hold me up!” Iggy pointed at Sam’s disappearing foot.

  It took me a moment to process, but then I got his meaning. I opened the glass lantern door wider and crouched beside the writhing roots. Iggy crawled to the opening and stretched out, touching the roots. Steam rose from the wet plant and then a high-pitched whine sounded and the roots lurched away from my flame, widening the hole at Sam’s feet.

  “Now, Sam!” Maple shouted.

  I hoped for a small green snake to slither out. If Rhonda had received a vision, despite losing her powers, maybe Sam could still transform, since his nature was shifter. Instead, a wet, naked Sam slid through the opening and landed in the mud at our feet. I looked from him to the cocoon the roots had formed. The pale, translucent shape of Sam’s body showed through the gaps—he’d shed his skin. The roots tightened and with a sickening crunch, smashed Sam’s shed skin to bits, including the shell of the foot that’d been sticking out.

  I gagged.

  Misaki jogged up. “What’s wrong? I heard a cry?”

  Sam scrambled to his feet and hid behind Maple and me, who stood shoulder to shoulder. Misaki frowned at the wet, naked Sam, then at Maple and me. She then glanced at the tree. Her lips quirked to the side. “Listen, I don’t want to know what kind of weird stuff you guys are into.”

  I lifted a palm. “It’s not what you—”

  She cut me off. “Don’t want to know. At all. But that—” She jerked her chin at the tree. “That’s a monster tree. You can tell by the teeth.”

  Oh yeah. It did have sharp teeth in the hollows of the trunk. Horrifying.

  “So I suggest, whatever freaky stuff you’re doing—do it far away from that. It’s carnivorous.”

  I gulped.

  She turned to go and Maple and I lingered a moment. I gave Sam my jacket and we made our way back to camp.

  “What happened?”

  Sam shrugged. “I lay down to take a nap, and when I woke up—there I wasss. The rootsss must have dragged me off.” He blinked his milky eyes from Maple to me as rain soaked my bun into a heavy mess and blurred my vision. “Thank you for sssaving me.” He looked down. “You too, Iggy.”

  My flame nodded. “I’m glad you didn’t turn into tree food.”

  We stepped into the warm, dry magical bubble. The others moved about, getting dressed for our afternoon expedition to retrieve the herb and rolling up their beds. Hank frowned when he spotted me, his face drawn with concern. He pressed his lips tight and dipped his chin, back to work packing his bag.

  Rhonda sauntered over and looked the pantsless Sam up and down. Luckily, the jacket was long enough to cover all the important parts—barely.

  “I like the new look, Sam.” She winked. “Rawr!”

  Iggy scoffed. “Pervert.”

  Rhonda leaned closer and looked at Sam’s face. “And your skin looks amazing.”

  “Thanksss,” Sam said from under the hood.

  Maple and I leaned closer to look. Sam’s skin glowed dewy and smooth.

  “Snakes. It does.” I nodded.

  “It’s like you got a facial, Sam.” Maple smiled.

  “I kind of wish I could shed now.” I grinned, but Sam paled.

  “Ssshh.” He held a finger to his lips, but with the pad of it touching his mouth.

  So close, Sam.

  “I don’t want them to know I’m a ssshifter, remember?”

  I nodded. “Got it. We won’t breath another word of it.”

  Sam blinked his pale eyes at me.

  “But we should probably get you into some pants.”

  We broke down camp, strapped on our boots, and suited up in a fresh change of our black ninja outfits. We marched through the gloomy gray afternoon toward the mountain that loomed up ahead. I blinked up at it, wincing when rain fell in my eye. Wooly gray clouds obscured the peak. I glanced behind us. Barely visible through the treetops, a glowing white orb hovered midair, marking the spot where Reo’s body lay. I gulped and faced the narrow, muddy trail ahead. We were on a dangerous trek, and no one was guaranteed to survive it, but I was determined to get my friends and myself back safely.

  We marched on to the base of the mountain, then climbed the slippery, narrow path that wound steeply up its rocky slope.

  I groaned as I staggered upward. I had to lean way forward and my thighs and calves burned.

  “You think this is bad?” Wiley said from behind me, a smile in his voice. His breath came out in short pants. “We still have to get back down.”

  I moaned. “I think I’ll just slide.” I struggled to take a breath, the air thin.

  “It’s not so bad.” Rhonda cruised past me, her arms pumping and feet stepping quickly. All she needed was a pink tracksuit to join a morning power walking group. I frowned as she passed me. Then again, the little old ladies probably didn’t have a vampire hovering over them. Francis’s feet were tucked under Rhonda’s armpits and he flapped his gigantic wings as she hiked so that her feet barely touched the ground.

  “Cheater,” I grumbled.

  Finally the path leveled off as we reached the summit. As we’d climbed, the trees had thinned, and now only thick green ground cover blanketed the ground, broken up by gray boulders. The mountaintop lay out before us, craggy and narrow. White, misty clouds drifted across the beautiful, rugged landscape and as they blew to the side, they revealed towering monoliths in the near distance.

  Misaki turned to face us. Stray strands of hair whipped acro
ss her face. She pointed to the monoliths and shouted to be heard over the wind. “That’s where the kusuri grows. Once we’re out in the middle, we’ll be open to attack from air monsters and anything else. There’s no cover.”

  “And we have no magic. This is filling me with confidence.” Wiley plastered on a giant grin and Misaki rolled her eyes.

  “We’re here to protect you. Just be alert.”

  Wiley saluted her, then hugged an arm around Maple. “We got this. It’s almost over.”

  Blonde hair blew across Maple’s face. She pulled it back under her hood and nodded. “I hope so.” She lifted the flap to Wiley’s pack and Cat popped his always disturbing little face out. She scratched behind his bat ears and he let out a high-pitched groan. His bulging pug eyes closed tight with happiness.

  “Hang in there, little sweetie. Just a little further.” Maple tucked the flap over him again and we set off across the mountaintop.

  The narrow trail only allowed us to walk single file, and was marked by wide, flat stepping stones. The grasses and herbs around us grew to thigh height and thrashed as the wind picked up. The rain came down in buckets, sideways. I glanced back at Wiley and hiked my brows up.

  “This is crazy!”

  “What?”

  I shook my head. “Never mind!” I’d shouted, and he stood only a few paces behind me, but the wind blew so strongly we could barely hear each other. I marched on, Iggy in hand. My foot hit the next wet, muddy rock and slid to the side. My stomach lurched and I threw my arms up to catch myself. I found my footing and let out a shaky breath. To my right, the slope dropped steeply away. Another wrong step like that one and I could find myself falling off the mountainside. I gulped and continued on carefully.

  We’d reached about halfway to the monoliths, I guessed, when a thick cloud blew over us. I could barely see my own hands stretched out in front of me. Iggy’s flames formed a little bubble of light around us, bouncing off the mist. Goose bumps prickled my arms and legs as the temperature dropped. I glanced back. I couldn’t see Wiley, who’d been right behind me, much less the rest of my friends and Hank back there.