Both girls froze when they saw the others peering down at them.
Enashoma glared with so much furious disgust that she reminded Turesobei of their mother. "Are you two seriously fighting over clothes?!"
Before they could answer, Enashoma spun around, grabbed Zaiporo and Turesobei, then stormed back to her room with them in tow.
* * *
Later that day, Turesobei sat alone in his room replenishing his spell strips, when a soft knock at the door broke his concentration.
"Come in."
The door slid open. Iniru and Kurine stepped inside hesitantly. Iniru looked like she was facing the hangman's noose, and Kurine refused to meet his eyes at all. She kept nervously twisting the hem of her shirt.
"Um...hey," Turesobei started, not sure what he could say to fix things.
Iniru held up a hand stopping him. "Let us say something first." She paused, steeling herself. "We are both really, really sorry, and it won't happen again. We both understand how important it is—to everyone—that we work together."
Kurine nodded vigorously, tears sparkling on her lashes. "That's right. And our arguing, it wasn't about you. I mean, it was about you, but it wasn't because of you."
"It wasn't your fault," Iniru clarified. "Neither one of us is used to living…or sharing with someone else. It's an adjustment."
"Not an easy one," Kurine muttered.
Iniru bristled.
But Kurine looked at her feet and shrugged. "Well, it's not."
“No,” Iniru sighed. “It's not easy. But we're trying. And we’ll get there."
“Um….” He still wasn't sure what to say. “Thanks."
Iniru gave him an apologetic smile. “We’ll see you later, okay?”
“Bye,” Kurine muttered, refusing to meet his gaze.
She continued to stare despondently at the floor as she shuffled out of the room behind Iniru. He wondered briefly if there was something he should do or say to cheer her up.
But they were gone before he got the chance.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
The Realm of Clouds was not floating in the sky as Turesobei had imagined, but it was easy to see how it had gotten its name. All around them, voluminous clouds of steam vapor rose from countless vents and seeps. There were no trees, fields, or streams in sight; no animals, people, or signs of civilization either. The land as far as they could see was covered by rough, pockmarked terrain.
Judging by the sun overhead, this version of Zangaiden was at some point in the past. Based on the inhospitable terrain, he guessed that it was the distant past.
“It's…a different kind of beautiful,” Kurine said.
“It does almost seem like we’re in the clouds,” Zaiporo said.
“This is Bokaga’s realm,” Hannya said, “and he was exceptionally clever and fond of tricks and deception.”
“We’ll be careful, my lady,” Awasa replied.
They teleported to where the guardians should be, and discovered that there wasn't a highland shelf here. No waterfall or river, and if there was a cave, it would have to be underground. The land was rough but relatively flat as far as they could see, with clouds of steam billowing up everywhere. They were already sweating, and they hadn’t even exerted themselves yet.
Zaiporo pointed. “Hey, there's the cylinder!”
Turesobei evoked the Storm Dragon, and they moved cautiously toward the cylinder on its pedestal, which was sitting out in the open beside a hot spring. It was basically where Turesobei would’ve expected it to be.
“Do you think maybe someone defeated the guardians but couldn’t break through the force field?” Kurine asked.
“Surely, anyone capable of defeating the guardians could penetrate the shield,” Iniru said.
Awasa shrugged. “Not necessarily.”
“We’ll find out,” Turesobei said.
“You know it’s probably a trap, right?” Zaiporo asked.
Turesobei nodded. “The only way to find out is to spring it.”
“Then allow me, master,” Motekeru said.
Motekeru stepped up to the pedestal without hitting the force field. He reached for the cylinder—and his hand passed right through it.
The pedestal and the cylinder both disappeared.
“Well, we knew it was too easy,” Turesobei said.
Breathlessly, they waited for something to happen. But nothing did, and after a few moments, they relaxed somewhat. Kurine started looking for her special stone, even though they hadn’t won the battle yet. Iniru scanned for enemies, and Motekeru stared at the ground where the pedestal had been.
Zaiporo walked about twenty paces away to look at a hot spring.
Awasa was holding a mudra and had her eyes shut tight. “There's something near us. I can feel it closing in.”
Turesobei opened his kenja-sight and saw a dozen man-shaped forms, carrying swords and shields, heading their way. Whatever these guardians were, they couldn’t be seen with normal sight.
They were going to reach Zaiporo first, and he had no idea they were near him.
“Zai, run!” Turesobei shouted.
Zaiporo looked up, realized what Turesobei had said, and moved—but too late. An invisible blade plunged into his back and out through his chest. As he fell, the blade pulled back and stabbed him a second time.
Chapter Thirty
Enashoma knelt in the field of lavender within the Canvas. She took several deep breaths, formed the proper mudras with her hands, and opened her mind to the kavaru.
Once again, she stepped out of her body as a spirit.
Nāa stood across from her.
“Greetings again, Chonda Enashoma.”
She responded with an awkward hello.
He gestured. “Why don’t we sit together?”
Facing one another, they sat crosslegged in the rich-scented lavender.
“So….” Her voice trailed off. Despite days of contemplation, she struggled to figure out what to ask him. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what to say.”
He smiled. “Then maybe I should begin.”
“Please.”
“I know you have lots of questions, but I would prefer to not talk about my past. I cannot yet handle any painful memories.”
“I’m really sorry I upset you last time.”
“It was not your fault,” he said. “And I apologize for complicating your personal life by being…well, basically a parasite.”
“That’s okay,” she said. “Most of the others seem all right with it, and Zaiporo will come around soon.”
“I meant you actually.”
“Me?”
“Enashoma, you have not taken a bath nor hardly looked in a mirror since you found out that I was experiencing the world through you.”
She frowned as she thought about her actions over the last week. “You’re right!” She put her face in her hands and groaned. “Oh, I’ve been so unfair to Zai.”
“I do not think you did so intentionally.”
“No, I didn’t. I had no idea I was being that self-conscious.”
“It is going to take time for you to adjust to this,” Nāa said. “And I want you to know that it is not easy for me, either. Imagine experiencing the world through someone very unlike yourself and having no control over what happens.”
“That would drive me mad.”
He took her hands in his and smiled. “We will both adapt in time. Just behave as you normally would and pretend I am not here.”
“I’ll try, but it’s not easy being myself when I know I’m sharing my body and experiences with a strange man.”
“I do understand. Trust me, you will get used to it.”
“You’ve done this before?”
He withdrew his hands. “Oh, I have experienced far worse than this. Imagine dying one day and being reborn into a new body. The shock is intense, and sometimes it takes years to get over it. And the body you are born into….” He snapped the head of a lavender stem. “It belonged to some
one who gave up their life, willingly, so that you might live on.”
“That’s awful.”
“I hate that I ever did it.”
Enashoma tried not to judge him. For a Kaiaru, he seemed extraordinarily kind and thoughtful.
“Every time you are reborn that way, you change a little, taking on some of the characteristics of the person you are replacing. And, of course, the longer you go before dying, the greater the shock and the harder it is to accept the transformation.”
“Is it easier to be reborn as an inheritant?”
“Much so, because the inheritant will be more like you than any other descendant.”
“Then why be reborn any other way?”
“Because you cannot know when or where the rebirth will take place. An inheritant may not show up for decades, or longer, and even then they must survive long enough to come into contact with the kavaru or the process will begin again. Plus, a Kaiaru with a failing will to continue on into another rebirth might not manifest an inheritant at all.”
“Chonda Lu clearly wasn’t bothered by that risk.”
“Lu was always a bit different,” Nāa said. “And obviously, he engineered the process somehow, which is not surprising. He was studying rebirth and inheritance even when I worked with him.”
“Your will failed, though…?”
He smiled sadly. “I was weary of life. I had seen enough of the world and wanted nothing more to do with it.”
“That’s hard for me to imagine.”
“You are young still. Given enough time, you would understand. After a few lifetimes, you grow jaded. You begin to seek esoteric knowledge or power. You dabble in things you ought not to dabble in. You interfere with the lives of your descendants.”
“Like Chonda Lu with my clan and my brother?”
He nodded. “Lu and I saw eye-to-eye on many things. But ultimately, he was more like the rest of our kind than I was. As far as Kaiaru go, I am an aberration. Power and indulgences never meant much to me. I was always drawn to art and creation. That was why Lu sought me out. He admired my art. And he learned a lot from me.” Nāa scowled. “Unfortunately, after I was gone he twisted much of that knowledge to dark purposes. But then, I suppose certain events did alter the both of us...and not for the better.”
Enashoma wanted to ask more about that, but respected his wishes. She waited, but he said nothing further.
“Were you originally a man or a woman?” she asked.
“I am not certain Kaiaru were originally human at all, but that is merely speculation. Anyway, I believe my first body was a woman. But I am uncertain. Like the rest of my kind, my memories only stretch back a few millennia. In fact, my oldest memory I have is being reborn into a new body and thinking that I never wanted to do that again.” He chuckled. “I was reborn twice more afterward.”
“I can’t even imagine not knowing so much of your past.”
“Would it make you feel better to know that of those years I can recall, I spent most of them as a woman?”
“A little.” Enashoma stared at him a few moments. A thought came to her, out of nowhere. “You know exactly why your kavaru awoke, don’t you?”
Nāa flinched, cocked his head, then frowned. “I cannot believe you broke through my mental barrier.”
“I didn’t,” she replied. “Not intentionally. The thought just came to me.”
“Ah. I suppose that is to be expected from time to time, with our minds linked so closely.”
“So you do know?” she asked.
“Yes.”
She stared at him patiently. Finally, he sighed and answered her unspoken question.
“Lu Bei summoned me.”
“The fetch summoned you…. How?!”
“How does he do anything?”
Enashoma scratched her head. “With tea?” she said jokingly.
But Nāa nodded seriously.
“Wait, how could Lu Bei summon you with tea?!”
“He brewed the perfect bowl. In truth, it would not have worked without the brush being nearby. Though how the fetch knew my stone was here, I have no idea, since none of you were aware of the Blood King’s collection.”
“You are going to have to explain to me how a bowl of tea could summon a kavaru back to life.”
“I made a promise two thousand years ago. I cannot bear to divulge the details. I will say this much. When I was dying, I told everyone it was the end for me. But Lu Bei insisted I return. I could not leave him, he said. Because he would have no other friends, only his master. He kept on and on, badgering me this way.”
“I’m familiar with that tactic of his,” she muttered.
“Finally, over a bowl of tea…” tears welled in his eyes “…a bowl of my favorite brew, I made a promise to him. ‘If ever you desperately need me, little fetch, I will return. No matter what.’ It was the sort of heartfelt promise you do not intend to keep but that you give someone just to make them feel better. At least, that is what I thought it was. But Lu Bei, clever thing he is, trapped me with it. As soon as the words left my lips, I found myself bound by a spell. Imagine that, I had bound my very existence into a spell that little creature controlled!”
“How could he do that?”
“Lu Bei is a magic beyond all others. A magic neither I nor Lu nor even the Blood King could ever fully understand. He is a creature of whimsy and of love, both peaceful and excruciating. And he is somehow more than the sum of all those things.”
“But he didn’t bring you back until now….”
“I scolded him for tricking me. Naturally, he denied having done it intentionally. I made him promise not to summon my kavaru back to life unless it was absolutely necessary. ‘Let me fade as I wish,’ I begged him.”
“He was true to his word. We desperately need help.”
“There is no doubt about that.”
“What I don’t understand is that he seemed so surprised and amazed to see your stone in my hand when we went into the Blood King’s kavaru vault.”
“Surprised, or genuinely happy and disguising his reaction? He knew the energy from the brush and the right bowl of tea could summon me back. And he had to know that yours would be the soul I would call to. Though perhaps he did not know for certain my kavaru was here. Perhaps he had merely hoped or guessed….” Nāa shrugged. “Only Lu Bei could tell you whether his reaction was genuine.”
“Wow…sweet, devious little Lu Bei…I always knew there was more to him, but….” She shook her head.
“Indeed,” Nāa said. “But that is enough about Lu Bei and my awakening. We must begin your training. You have much to learn and little time for doing so.”
Chapter Thirty-One
The others only saw two bloody holes suddenly erupt on Zaiporo’s chest before he dropped down dead. Iniru cried out and started toward him, but Motekeru stopped her.
“Everyone, stay back!” Turesobei shouted. “There are invisible warriors closing in. Storm Dragon, protect us!”
Before the enemy could reach them, the Storm Dragon started circling Turesobei and his companions, blasting the invisible warriors with sparks, wind, and hail. Whether it was working, Turesobei couldn’t tell. It was impossible to see through the storm surrounding them.
He needed to find a way to make these warriors visible to everyone, and quickly, because he was certain that soon there would be a big guardian for the Storm Dragon to deal with.
And they had to win this one fast. The longer it took to return to the Nexus, the greater the risk that the Blood King wouldn't be able to bring Zaiporo back to life.
If necessary, Turesobei wouldn’t hesitate to teleport everyone away without finishing the mission. In fact, that was probably the best thing to do. They could come back prepared to deal with the invisible warriors. Given their energy patterns, he suspected they were naturally invisible, which meant countering the effect was going to be incredibly difficult.
“We don’t have many options here. Storm Dragon, keep circlin
g us as we advance toward Zaiporo. If we can reach him, we can get out of here.”
“Sobei, I’ll be able to see the invisible guardians by using the mudra of revelation,” Awasa said as they eased forward.
“And I can detect them well enough,” Motekeru said, “now that I know they exist. I don't need to see something to kill it.”
Turesobei nodded. “In that case…Kurine and Iniru, I'm going to cast a spell that will grant you kenja-sight. It's going to be overwhelming at first. The world around you will seem to be a mass of swirling colors. Just find the man-shaped patterns and focus on them. Block out everything else.”
Based on how slowly they were advancing toward Zaiporo, Turesobei guessed the guardians were powerful and that the Storm Dragon was having trouble, alarming as it seemed, pushing them back. She fired off several powerful blasts, and he had a feeling, a very bad feeling, that those blasts hadn’t killed any of the warriors.
Turesobei cast the spell of granting kenja-sight. It seemed like a small thing, but it was a demanding spell, and he had never thought to make a strip for it.
“Whoa,” Iniru said, stumbling. “I think…I might be sick.”
“You’ll get used to it in a few moments,” he said.
Kurine fell to her knees and vomited.
“So what’s the plan?” Awasa asked.
“Once we get close enough, the Storm Dragon will attack the warriors full-on, while we rush to Zaiporo,” Turesobei said. “Then, assuming we can all be safe for long enough, I will recall the Storm Dragon and cast the teleport spell.”
For the moment, though, they had stopped moving forward, because Kurine was still bent over, throwing up.
“We need to get moving again,” Motekeru said.
“Everyone ready?” Turesobei asked
Kurine stood and wiped her mouth off. Her eyes were milky white. “Give me just a few more seconds. You've been using kenja-sight all your life. I don't think you have any idea how overwhelming it is.”
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