by C. J. Anaya
“To answer your question, I remember when our First Parents explained my role and the importance of maintaining the power of the veil. The Grass Cutter Sword was presented to me during a sacred ceremony that only I and our First Parents attended. I didn’t understand the implications at the time, but I believe they already had misgivings about Amatsu and his desire to take more than what had been promised to him.”
“If every kami understood their purpose in life and the path they needed to take in order to make themselves and this universe a more harmonious one, why would Amatsu fight this? Why grasp for more?”
“Just because we came programmed to understand our purpose doesn’t mean our ability to choose was stripped from us. We all had minds of our own and truths that needed to be discovered in our own way. We were given instructions by our First Parents and then left to govern ourselves. Every single kami knew the difference between right and wrong and the consequences of any right or wrong action, but then this life is all about mastering the art of healthy decision making, and even though I’ve lived centuries, I’m sorry to say I have still been known to make poor ones.”
That awful sadness settled in again, and I wanted to address it, but I feared Katsu would close up and remain awkward around me if he understood the level of my empathic abilities.
“What was this ceremony like?”
Katsu smiled and the sadness momentarily left him. “Exhilarating, really. I was given to understand my purpose, my reason for being, and I learned all that there was to learn about The Grass Cutter Sword. Its powers go far beyond that of strengthening the veil. It also holds the power to give second chances to those lives cut short, those spirits who were unable to fulfill their roles in this life.”
I couldn’t hide my delighted surprise at that.
“I didn’t know you also had the power to grant new life.”
Katsu chuckled. “I’m aware of every soul who enters the veil, and if a soul passes through the veil before it has a chance to play the role it was meant to play, then my sword acts as a separator of sorts. That particular spirit will return to a place where souls await their opportunity for either birth or rebirth.”
“So even humans are assigned specific tasks they must perform in this life?”
“Every living thing on this Earth must fulfill the mission it was created for and experience any and every emotion possible. There is not one soul more important than the other, despite what humans have dubbed as social rank and class. The Grass Cutter Sword is able to weed out the souls who must be reborn from the souls who were able to get it right the first time so to speak.””
“Living life right the first time. Sounds like a daunting task to aspire to.”
“And yet, everyone instinctively wishes to aspire to it. Some souls just take a little longer to understand their purpose and potential than others. In the end, though, I can’t help but believe that we will all experience what we were meant to.””
“And you always know when a particular soul is separated for rebirth.”
“In the beginning I did, but I had to learn to compartmentalize that part of my gift. With so many people in this world and thousands dying every day, it would be too much to know when and where a soul is passing through the veil. It nearly drove me mad until I learned to block it from my mind.”
“You’ve been burdened for some time with this responsibility.”
“I won’t have to shoulder it by myself for much longer. Our First Parents gave me you, and I truly believe you are all I need.”
Guilt hammered me with ferocious intensity. How could I tell him that his First Parents gave him nothing at all? It was all a lie. If some special soul was meant for Katsu, it certainly wasn’t me, and I had never heard of any kami, other than Katsu, allowed a companion for all eternity. I couldn’t bear to consider the enormity of his grief when he discovered I wasn’t meant for him after centuries of waiting.
I shifted uncomfortably in the presence of such hope emanating from his being, and I lost the courage to tell him the truth. I recoiled at the idea of being the one responsible for shattering that hope into a million desolate pieces.
Instead, I remained silent and cursed my fearful heart.
* * *
Convincing Aiko to climb out of my window and lower herself to the ground took some doing. It was only after I enlisted the help of my guards—Yao and Chan—that she agreed to follow me. Not only did she voice reluctance at permanently leaving my side, but her whole countenance felt off in a way I failed to grasp. I didn’t understand her distant manner, and try as I might, I couldn’t pinpoint the source of her somewhat changed aura. She appeared cool and calculating one moment and then frightened and resentful the next. Eventually, I determined that the stress of her predicament must have taken a debilitating toll on her emotional constitution now that she had the opportunity for escape and reflection.
Once my guards lowered her pack down to us, we took off at a stealthy pace through the gardens and out the back as I had been doing ever since warning Musubi of my father’s intention to attack the rebels’ base camp.
Upon leaving the gardens and the palace grounds, Aiko felt comfortable enough to speak.
“Mistress, where exactly are we going now?”
“I need you to trust me for just a little while longer. My friends will be able to help you once we explain your situation, but I must warn you, they are unaware of my ties to the palace. They simply believe me to be a medicine woman from Daiki’s tavern. We cannot allow them to know my true identity or our affiliation with the palace. Is that understood, Aiko?”
“I understand. I will do as you say.”
In the growing darkness I couldn’t see the expression on her face, but I finally grasped hold of her emotions. Her sudden absence of fear was puzzling. She had behaved as if she were terrified, but now that we were off the palace grounds, she lent off an aura of watchful calm. An inappropriate response, considering the necessity of her escape.
Perhaps Aiko was much braver than she had ever let on.
It took a great deal of time to make our way through the forest and arrive at the current base camp location. We were forced to travel slightly deeper into the woods than usual, but Akane and Musubi had marked the trees for me with distinctive carvings only I would recognize.
A few yards outside the camp, I let out a sharp whistle to announce our presence. A figure materialized around a broken structure to our left. A torch was lit, and Akane revealed herself. I let out a noisy sigh of relief, grateful she received my message in time.
I rushed over to embrace her and she gave me a fierce hug in return.
“Are you safe?” she asked. “Has something gone wrong?”
“In a manner of speaking, yes.”
“Who is this young lady?”
“This is Aiko, my lady’s maid, and she is in desperate need of our help.” I turned to Akane and whispered, “Do you think you and I could talk privately for a few moments?”
She nodded and walked over to Aiko, giving her an encouraging pat on the arm. I saw her freeze momentarily as she made contact with my maid, but I couldn’t see her expression in the weak torchlight.
“Aiko, I have some supplies in that tented structure just beyond those trees.” She pointed to a large tent nestled between two smaller banyan trees. “Why don’’t you gather some food for yourself and wait for us in there?”
She acknowledged Akane’s offer with a smile and then looked at me. “You will be fine in my absence, mistress?”
“Of course, Aiko. Please retrieve some food for yourself. I know you didn’t get a chance to eat before we left.”
She gave me a grateful look and walked toward the tent, disappearing inside.
I began walking with Akane in the other direction and quickly related to her what I had uncovered.
Her surprise was soon overrun by her outrage.
“So he forced Aiko to bleed you? It was your blood the soldiers were drinking?”
<
br /> I nodded.
Aiko’s anger spiked to a level I’d never before sensed in her.
“And how do you know your maid can be trusted?”
“I know how this looks, but she has taken care of me for most of my life, and my father threatened her. You know his character well enough to believe he wouldn’t hesitate to kill Aiko if she so much as looked at him the wrong way.””
Akane shook her head. “That’s what troubles me about this entire situation.”
My eyebrows narrowed. “How so?”
She paused for a moment, having some kind of internal debate over an issue I couldn’t begin to fathom.
“Do you remember Cho?”
“Cho?”
“Yes, that young woman I sent to you several months ago. She had a leg wound that soon became infected. I sent her to you to pass along a message, but also because she was a perfect candidate for what your betrothed, Katsu, had in mind.”
“Yes, I remember. I wondered how you knew she was meant to die.”
She drew in a deep breath. “I failed to answer that question, but I think I must do so now in order for you to believe me when I reveal something to you concerning your maid.” She hesitated for a moment, as if the delay might give her more courage. ““I’m gifted with visions, the ability to know when and how a person is going to die. My visions are always accurate unless certain events occur to change them.”
I couldn’t help but feel elated by this information. “Akane, this is incredible. How does it work?”
“All I have to do is touch them and their death is made known to me. Most people die of natural causes, some of starvation and pestilence, but many, such as my soldiers, are killed in battle, unless of course I foresee it and do what I can to prevent it from happening.”
My jaw dropped. “That’s how your forces have always managed to be one step ahead of my father’s.”
Akane gave me a faint smile. “My men know about my gift and allow me to do what I call a routine check before we make a single move. Whether it be raids, battles or simply moving from one base to the next, I am always vigilant. I can predict the future of any decision we make because I can see death before it reaches us. Murder or accidents, those are the only deaths I have any control over, the only outcomes I am allowed to interfere with.”
“Cho’s death was certain. That’s how you knew to send her to me.”
Her shoulders slumped a little at that. “It had to have been one of the hardest moments of my life, sending her away from me, using her death as a means to an end. Cho understood her future and wanted to make her last moments on this Earth count. It ate at me, being helpless to save her. I suspect you’re quite familiar with that particular scenario.”
I nodded, taking in her slight form and fierce, determined stance, gaining new insight and even more respect for a woman I felt honored to call my friend. Though our gifts were not employed in the same way, we both desired the same outcome. We simply wanted to save lives any way we could. I hadn’t thought it possible to love Akane more than I already did, but she was my family, my sister, and I would fight for her safety just as I would fight for Saigo or Kenji...or Musubi.
“What does all of this have to do with Aiko?”
“My gift behaves differently with people who are never meant to die. When I touch you I see nothing but light, like a blank space with nothing set in stone. You will one day become a kami, and kami never die. Now, when I touch your maid, Aiko, I see the same thing, only darker.”
Anxiety slowly curled its way within my gut. “Akane, what exactly are you telling me?”
“Aiko isn’t human, Mikomi, she’s a kami. And as a kami, she had absolutely no reason to go along with the emperor’s despicable plans. He was in no way a threat to her.”
I felt a kind of numbness settle in at this level of betrayal. Betrayal from a woman I had trusted my entire life.
“I can’t believe she would do this to me. It doesn’t make any sense.”
“She is a spy for your father, dear friend. It is as sad and as simple as that.”
I looked at her, feeling lost and bereft inside. “What do we do?”
“I think we should see just exactly what she is up to. I will arrest her, and my men can begin uncovering the details of her involvement with the emperor.”
“That’s too dangerous, Akane. If she is a kami she could kill you all within seconds.”
“Are you forgetting we have some fairly powerful kami fighting on our side? They’re quite adept at torture as well. You needn’t worry about our well-being, dear friend.””
I felt sick inside imagining my maid experiencing any level of torture, but I knew it had to be done. Her treacherous behavior had forced our hand, and there was simply no way I could save her from the consequences of her actions.
“Will you alert Musubi to this now or later?”
“I’m not certain it is wise to discuss this with Musubi. She might reveal your identity, and I would rather only a few specific kami have charge over her. They know who you are either way.”
“Why are you still so insistent upon keeping my identity a secret from Musubi? Surely as your close friend, and someone who practically raised you, you can trust him.”
She shook her head. “There are other factors involved. A history you are unaware of. When there is more time, I will give you a more satisfactory explanation.”
I despised the lies and secrets I had to keep from a man I wished to share a future with, but I trusted her and her judgment. If she held doubts where Musubi was concerned, then I would heed her advice and remain silent on that front. My anxiety for Akane spiked as I considered leaving her with a kami spy.
“It is better this way,” she said, resting a comforting hand on my arm. She called Aiko out from the ramshackle building she was in, and Akane introduced herself as the leader of the rebel army, stating that she hoped Aiko might consider joining with them.
The calculating glint in Aiko’s eyes merely confirmed the truth of Akane’s words. My maid was more than happy to join the rebel forces, creating an opportunity for further infiltration, making her job as a spy that much more effective.
When my maid turned to hug me before they departed it took me everything I had to behave as if all was well. Tears should have been shed for such a final goodbye on behalf of a woman who had loved and cared for me my entire life, but the most I managed was a less than enthusiastic embrace.
As I watched Aiko and Akane depart toward the camp, I tried to bat down all of my worries. Perhaps confronting Aiko now and demand an explanation was a better alternative. An uneasiness settled over me like a heavy blanket, fairly suffocating me with its weight and oppressive texture. I feared for what tomorrow might bring.
Chapter Three
I was so distraught over Aiko’s betrayal that I didn’t hear anyone’s approach until it was too late. My assailant took full advantage of my distracted state by coming from behind, snaking his arm over my shoulder and covering my mouth with his hand while wrapping his other arm around my waist, lifting me from my feet and dragging me kicking and flailing backward toward a denser area of the forest.
We reached the edge of a grouping of trees, but instead of entering, my captor lowered me to the ground and spun me to face him.
I let out a frightened scream before I recognized Musubi wearing the most infuriating smile on his all too handsome face.
“Why you…you…” My fists flew as I began beating against his chest, punishing him for scaring me near to fainting.
He merely chuckled, as if my fists were about as effective as a small swarm of pesky gnats. He grabbed each of my wrists in his hands.
“Calm down, Mikomi.”
“Calm down? Do you have any idea how badly you frightened me? I thought you were one of the emperor’s guards or a thief…or worse.”” He didn’t appear at all contrite, more satisfied than anything else.
“And when you assumed the worst, did you employ any of the basic
defensive techniques you learned over the last few weeks?”
I raised my eyebrows at this. Heat infused my cheeks.
“Your mind became blank and you forgot everything. Correct?”
I nodded, cursing myself for my own stupidity.
“If anyone else had attacked, you would already be dead, Mikomi.” He let go of my wrists, fisting his own at his side. “You would be dead. Am I getting through to you yet? Do you understand the gravity of your current predicament, what you have agreed to be a part of?”
I sighed. “We’ve been over this before. I am aware of the danger I face. I know the risks by heart now.”
“And yet you still have no intention of disassociating yourself with the rebels, do you? Even after I’ve demonstrated to you how fast it can happen, how quickly everything can change? Do you understand how easy it is to lose control of a situation, to lose your life in the process?””
“If anything you’ve done a masterful job of showing me my weaknesses. It is obvious I could use more training in this department.”
Musubi rubbed a hand over his tired face in a frustrated attempt to hold back a few expletives that still managed to come through.
“Mikomi, don’t you understand? Soldiers train from the time they are children, and they continue their training long into adulthood. You will never be an accomplished fighter in time for what is coming.”
“I’m learning much faster than most. You yourself said so.”
“By normal standards, yes. You are fine tuning your technique leaps and bounds ahead of most pupils I’ve trained, but for our timeline and our initial purpose it simply isn’t fast enough. You will never be ready to defend yourself against the emperor’s soldiers. Not in time for what we have planned.”
His words echoed that of Daiki’s and Hatsumi’s. It proved more irritating than discouraging. I wasn’t interested in crying defeat.
“You knew this before you started training me. I train and learn as much as possible, but you will be by my side as my main protector. Nothing has changed.”
“Everything has changed,” he stated. He cupped my face in his hands and leaned his head close to me. “Everything. You aren’’t simply a woman of medicine any longer, nor are you just a pupil, Mikomi. I…you have become family for Akane and myself, though her faith in you exceeds that which is prudent or even logical. I don’t know why she thinks you are our only chance for success in this endeavor, but I cannot bear the worry I experience between our sessions, waiting to see you again, praying you are still breathing, still speaking...still alive enough respond to all of my teasing with your subtle rebelliousness and spirit.” He rubbed a thumb along my jawline while I did my best to process this unexpectedly emotional outburst. ““It is time we put this foolishness behind us. I want you to leave this place, Mikomi. I will take you to a new location, someplace where I know you’ll be safe.”
