The Fractured Soul

by Nicolette Andrews

  “She has been struggling to control her power without the staff,” Souta said with a sigh. “Her emotions are still too tangled up in her power, and it is preventing her from performing as well as she could.”

  “How do I know you’re not behind this?” Kaito stalked closer to him, and jabbed a finger into Souta’s chest.

  “Strange that she lost control for the first time in a long time while I happened to be away.” Kaito bared his teeth in warning.

  Souta stared back at him, his expression serene. “Would I have subdued her if I was plotting against you? I could have just left her to burn the entire palace to the ground if I wished.”

  Kaito deflated; he was right, of course. His nerves were rattled; first the yokai had rebelled against his plan to marry Suzume, then Akira and Tsuki and the kijo. There was a dagger aimed at his back, he just couldn’t tell where it was coming from, not yet.

  “Forgive me, I wasn’t thinking clearly,” Kaito said with a shake of his head.

  Souta waved away his apology. “You’ve suffered much treachery, it is to be expected.”

  There was a knowing look in his eyes, and perhaps a hint of guilt. Souta might appear to be an old man, but a part of his soul was entwined with Kazue’s, and even he shared her memories.

  Kaito turned away, not wanting to chase that thought further. There were still repairs and recovery to see too, and the question that remained unanswered. If he had been drawn away not to distract from an attack, then what?

  Kaito massaged his temples as he surveyed the map on the table. Shin and Akane had returned, and much to his frustration had uncovered no new information from the kijo or who they served. Scouts had been dispatched and had searched for miles surrounding the seaside palace, but there was no hint of an oncoming attack.

  Kaito drummed his fingers on the edge of the table. “What am I not seeing? Apart from Suzume’s fire, everything has been quiet.”

  Shin leaned against the edge of the table, arms crossed over his chest. “Maybe it was simply a distraction, so Akira and Tsuki could escape.”

  It was too simple; there was something more, something he was missing if he could just grasp what it was.

  Akane stalked around the map table and stopped at the bottom of the map, beside where the seaside palace was depicted. She ran a clawed finger along the shoreline, then into the forest and foothills where they had run into the kijo.

  “What if the two incidents were unrelated?” she said, her golden eyes flickering from Kaito to Shin.

  “Even if that were true, that doesn’t explain what they were attempting to distract us from.” Kaito glowered down at the map, as if it were the painted woods’ fault for not revealing its secrets to him.

  “When we found the kijo, they weren’t far from their home mountain.” She tapped a mountain range just northwest of the seaside palace. “What if they were sent when an opportunity presented itself,” she said.

  “Like a chance to kill, Suzume.” Shin cupped his chin as he nodded.

  “Who would dare?” Kaito snarled.

  Shin and Akane shared a look between them.

  “What do you know?” Kaito snapped.

  Shin sighed and ran a hand through his bushy brown hair. “You can’t be so blind as to not see how opposed your subjects are to you marrying the priestess, can you?”

  No. He wasn’t blind to it. Before she had lost control and killed dozens of yokai, he assumed given time and patience they would come around and see her charms, as he saw them, and they would accept her as their future empress. Now things were more precarious.

  “Are you saying someone plotted to kill Suzume while I was away?” Kaito asked, he couldn’t keep the growl from his tone. Whoever they were, he would find them and tear their guts out.

  “It would appear so, and judging from the carnage, they didn’t make it out alive. So there’s no need to go on a murderous rampage,” Shin said with a slight smirk.

  Kaito’s claws extended, and he clenched his hand into a fist. The hitotsume had been bitter, and he’d paid the price for it. But this went further than a singular incident. There wouldn’t be enough time for him to travel to the kijo and then back before Kaito could fly there. Which meant he had allies he was working with, allies who yet might live. He would see them pay for their crimes. And be an example to all his subjects; any who dared to raise a hand to Suzume would pay the price in the end.

  “I want you to find out who all was involved in this plot to assassinate Suzume,” Kaito said to Shin.

  “I thought you would say something like that. But even if you catch one, it doesn’t change what she’s done,” Shin replied.

  “What are you suggesting?” Kaito narrowed his eyes at Shin.

  Shin put his hands up, “Don’t glare at me that way. She’s the one who lost control and killed your subjects.”

  “Because she was provoked!”

  “We know that, but the yokai?” Shin shrugged.

  “He’s right,” Akane said, “They are already slow to accept her, but now that she’s killed their own, it will be next to impossible to make her your empress.”

  “Enough,” Kaito roared as he slammed his hands down on the tabletop.

  The two okami flinched at his rage. He wouldn’t hear any more objections against Suzume. He was the ruler of Akatsuki, and it was his decision who he married. And as he had claimed his crown in blood, he would do whatever it took to keep Suzume.

  12

  Ryuu descended the mountain pass into the valley shrouded in mist. The neko’s report of the spells guarding the valley had been woefully inadequate. Not surprising knowing the neko’s tendency to aggravate him for his amusement. Strings of ofuda twirled in his mind, marking the first barrier. As Ryuu stepped over it, a tingle raced up his spine. This would keep out lesser yokai who might be drawn in by the faint power that this valley emanated.

  The valley floor was filled with tightly packed trees. The fog created a wall of white, and it was nearly impossible to see through, as he kept moving forward. As he moved through the fog, his hand clutched Tetsuyama’s hilt. A shadowy figure loomed ahead, and he removed Tetsuyama from its sheath by a few inches. As he got closer, the fog rolled back, revealing a fallen tree, which he had mistaken for a person. He sheathed Tetsuyama once more with a sigh.

  For hours he trudged through the forest, the valley did not seem particularly wide from the pass, but despite following the faintest traces of spiritual energy, he had yet to discover it. The entire valley seemed to be nothing but trees, rocks, and shrubs. Had the neko gotten his revenge at last and sent him to a lost valley where he would wander forever? Even the trees were starting to all look the same to him. In fact, he jabbed his sword at a familiar shadow. It was the dead tree he had seen hours before. He had been wandering in a circle, for likely hours?

  Which meant the faint trail of spiritual energy was meant to deceive him from the start. Ryuu closed his eyes and spread out his senses. A typical forest would have been teaming with the spiritual energy of flora and fauna, but it was as if this entire place were silent. As he reached out beyond the fog, he found it, a singular pathway in the mist, like a glimmering shaft of sunlight in the dark. He made his way toward it, arriving there in mere minutes.

  The fog had made a sort of labyrinth, and those who did not know the pathway might become lost in it for an eternity. Intriguing. This had to be the place where the remaining piece of Kazue’s soul was hidden. A bright torii arc flanked by torches marked the pathway. Ryuu approached it cautiously, this must have been where the neko had gotten and could pass no further. He raised up a hand, testing the invisible barrier that separated the fog-covered forest from the temple grounds. Sparks of spiritual energy erupted along his hand as he shoved it through, it stung but not so much so that he could not pass.

  On the other side of the arch, was a basin of crystal clear water. Ryuu approached it, dipping his hand into the cold water. It was customary to wash your hands and mouth before en
tering the temple. He scooped up some of it and drank from the source. It was rather refreshing but lacked the presence of divine energy. Even when a lesser kami dwelled in a temple, their holy energy seeped into everything. Considering how many layers of protection this place had, he thought a powerful Kami would have dwelled here. But despite all its defenses, this place was devoid of holy energy. But as he spread out his spiritual energy searching for the presence of a kami, he felt something, like a lingering perfume after the wearer left the room. Something powerful had been, here but it was gone now.

  There was a clatter, as if someone had dropped something. Ryuu turned to see a miko red and white stared at him wide-eyed. The broom she’d been presumably carrying lay on the ground at her feet.

  He bowed his head in greeting. “I apologize I did not mean to frighten you.”

  She twirled and ran from him.

  Seeing as he had passed through their defenses, he imagined they would be scared, he doubted they had many visitors. A pathway of flat stones passed through a stone wall, and onto a cluster of shrine buildings. It was a small temple composed of three buildings made of pine and stone. The roofs were freshly painted red, and the stones white. The shrine was set in front of a large boulder, tied with a string of ofuda and one flat stone where offerings and incense had been left. The style of the place was centuries old, and yet it was well maintained. Who donated to the upkeep of the shrine? A temple could not survive without the patronage of its worshipers.

  The young priestess returned with an elderly woman with an austere expression and snowy white hair, who he presumed was their head priestess.

  Ryuu kept his stance easy and non-threatening. These priestesses had something to hide, and he had found them on his own. They would be on their guard, and he did not plan on giving them a reason to suspect him.

  “Welcome traveler, “ said the head priestess, as she drew nearer, her eyes widened, just for a moment. She must have sensed what he was. He had wondered if she were a true priestess, and had not disguised his spiritual energy to see how she reacted.

  “I am glad I found this place, I seemed to have gotten lost while crossing the valley.” He smiled.

  “It is fortunate you found us, hidden as we are.” She watched him warily now.

  “Yes, indeed, if I might impose on your hospitality for one night, I am weary from my travels.”

  Her eyes narrowed as she studied him, and the young priestess behind her wrung her hands together. Would she turn him away or try to seal him. Half yokai, like himself, were rare, and more than once, priests and priestesses had tried to exorcise him like a yokai. Not that it was possible, one of the few benefits of his half nature was his ability to use both his human spiritual power and the yokai abilities, without being weak against either.

  She inclined her head. “It would be our pleasure, please you must be hungry.” She turned and led him into the temple proper, a group of priestesses ranging in age from young maidens, to late-middle-aged gathered together watching him as he passed. In particular, a pair of young women watched him with hungry gazes.

  Many girls came to serve the temples around Akatsuki not because they were particularly adapted for the life, but rather because their parents had no other choice. Girls like them hungered for the lives they’d been deprived, and seeing as they likely saw so few outsiders, he was like honey to a bee. He bowed his head in their direction, flashing them a smile, that in his youth he had used to devastating effect. They blushed, turning away as they whispered and giggled together.

  Beyond the main buildings was a small walled garden, and a pen that housed a few chickens and a couple fat pigs. The modest accommodations reminded him of his own youth, raised at a shrine, running barefoot in the mountains without a care in the world. It had been so long since he had thought of those days.

  Ryuu was brought to a room with a view of the forest. It had snowed here recently, and dirty drifts of snow remained in the shade of the pine branches. As he drank his tea, wild birds called to one another in the branches of the trees. From his mind’s eye, he surveyed the energy of the shrine. Even at their center, he still found no sign of the missing fragment, or any hint of a kami. But that elusive trace remained. What was it that this shrine was hiding.

  Priestesses came to clear away his meal, and moments later, the silhouette of the head priestess appeared outside his door. Just as he had hoped.

  “You master, might I enter?” she called.

  “Please.” He leaned back on the cushion.

  She slid open the door and entered with all the grace and dignity of an empress. This was no ordinary priestess, that much was certain. Now that they were closer together, there was something familiar about her wrinkled features.

  “How may I help you…”

  “Hozumi Sayashi, young master,” she said as she surveyed him with those dark eyes.

  Ah. Now that was how he knew her. If he remembered correctly, Hozumi Sayashi was a promising miko of exceptional talent and spiritual power who, without explanation, had disappeared nearly twenty years ago.

  “We met before at the Sun Shrine,” Ryuu said.

  “I wasn’t sure it was you. Though I have aged, you have stayed exactly the same... but I suppose you were hiding your true nature, weren’t you.” She quirked a snowy brow.

  “What a fate for us to meet here again.”

  “You call it fate, but I do not believe you found our shrine by accident.”

  Ryuu smiled. She was direct, he could admire that.

  “Then perhaps we can dispatch with the formalities, as we are old friends. What is it, this shrine?”

  She threaded her fingers together and cleared her throat. “This shrine? We are simply servants of the kami, like any other.”

  “You cannot trick me, there is no kami that dwells here, and you know it. And even if there were, what need would there be for all the protections? What are you hiding?”

  She bowed her head. “There is nothing to hide. The valley is treacherous and our shrine remote, few find their way here on their own, unless they are guided here...”

  He should have known he would get no honest answers from the head priestess. Someone was paying for the upkeep of the shrine, and likely buying her silence as well.

  “I suppose anything can be found if one looks hard enough for it,” Ryuu replied.

  She studied him for a moment before shaking her head slightly. “I hope you find your night’s stay enjoyable, master Ryuu.”

  She rose up and left. They would not tolerate him here for long, and though he had nothing to fear from the head priestess, he would rather not fight innocents. But there would be no time to delay, the soul fragment might have been here, but if they were, they were here no longer. What he needed to find out was where they had gone.

  Ryuu waited for nightfall and after the temple’s evening prayers before leaving his room. The temple was still; the moon cast silver moonlight upon the buildings and the boulder that served as its shrine. He approached it, expecting to find the source of the faint spiritual energy stronger here. But it was just as weak here as anywhere else. Curious, then if it weren’t the missing kami, what had left this trace? Creeping along the buildings, he searched for a hint of its source. And as he got closer to the sleeping quarters of the priestesses, the remnants of strong spiritual energy got stronger.

  Ryuu rested his hand on the stone of the walls and reached through the memory of that rock. It was faint, but the spiritual energy was familiar. The missing fragment had been here, but it was gone now. Where had it been taken?

  “You shouldn’t be here late at night,” said a young woman.

  Ryuu opened his eyes and spotted the two priestesses he had spotted when he first arrived.

  “The head priestess will throw a fit if she catches your creeping outside our bedroom,” said the second girl, fluttering her lashes.

  Ryuu smiled at them. “My apologies, I suppose I couldn’t sleep and lost my way in the dark.”
/>   The girl on the right linked arms with her friend and buried her face in her shoulder as she giggled.

  “I’m sorry to have disturbed your sleep.” He bowed and made a show of retreating.

  “Don’t go. Why not have a drink of sake with us?”

  “I know where the head priestess keeps the ceremonial sake,” said the second girl, her face lighting up.

  They almost made it too easy, he almost felt guilty. These young women were perhaps a few years older than Suzume, hungry, and blinded by their youth. It was fortunate it was him they had encountered and not a more devious intruder.

  “I suppose I could have a glass.”

  Their faces lit up.

  “We’ll meet you at your room shortly,” the first girl instructed before they both scurried away on their errand.

  Ryuu returned to his own chamber, but rather than bring them into his room, he sat on the veranda just outside. The priestesses returned, and each took seats on either side of them. One clutching the jug of sake, the other holding three glasses.

  He took the jug from the priestess and then filled glasses for each of them.

  “Cheers,” he said.

  The girls drank it down quickly, pulling a face. Had they never had sake in their life. Ryuu smirked into his cup. Despite their initial distaste, the girls made sure to keep their cups and his full. Though he drank much slower than them. And before long, both of them had a rosy glow to their cheeks, and their laughter was as free-flowing as the sake.

  “Do you often drink with men who visit this shrine,” Ryuu asked as he nursed his glass.

  One of the girls giggled. “No one ever comes to this place, other than that hideous farmer who leers at us.”

  Her friend laughed uproariously. “How many times has he asked to drink with us.” She laughed so hard she fell backward.