Work Text:
Rain was pouring down from the dark sky, a thousand pearls of chill which soaked Moroha’s robe. Her gasps formed little clouds as she ran through the puddles which had formed in the muddy forest ground, water splashing up at every step. Pressing her feet against a trunk, she leapt up and pulled herself onto a low branch before she stopped, her senses sharpened to perceive every tiny motion around her. After a moment she noticed something on her left and barely jumped away in time before the black-furred yokai dashed down, his long, barbed arms slicing through the branch on which she had just sat.
The yokai gave out a growl, dug his claws into the soil and flung himself at her. She gritted her teeth, dodged, and with a quick twist she thrust her Kurikaramaru into his side. Then she leapt back and waited if he would get back to his feet. Apparently the wound was too grave though.
She took a deep breath, straightened up and turned to face the gleaming eyes of her other pursuers. There were two right behind her, but after a moment she also noticed one on her right and another one in the tree on her left. Then a fifth one crept out behind a rock on her right.
Her vision grew blurry. Was there no end to this?
“Looks like you got me surrounded”, she muttered and gripped the handle of her Kurikaramaru tighter. “But let me warn you. If you want to kill me, I won’t go easy on you.”
The yokai moved closer, slowly, as if they were unsure whether she really meant what she said.
“Big words, Beniyasha”, a deep voice said and Moroha tensed up as another yokai moulded out of the darkness. His shape was that of a human, but there was no mistaking he was of the same kind as the others. An on top of that he was a lot more dangerous.
“You know, I don’t really want to fight you all”, she began without much hope. “So why don’t we just part ways?”
The yokai’s eyes hardened. “Part ways?” he echoed grimly. “After you’ve extinguished the only light within my life, you want to part ways? Don’t try to mock me. The only bargain I’ll make is one including your death.”
He raised his hand and pointed it at her. At once the other yokai charged at her.
Moroha swore and leapt back, slashing the enemy closest to her. Then she could only dodge and parry the sharp claws of the others. An especially big one managed to tackle her down and she could feel his barbs prick her skin before she thrust her blade into his belly and rolled him off her, ready to dodge the deadly claws of the next two who came after her.
Just in time she noticed one was jumping at her from above and only a finger’s breadth separated her arm from his snapping jaws. She brought up her knee, hitting his chin, and whirled around to force back the yokai who had flung himself at her from behind.
Suddenly her attackers backed away and their leader charged at her. Moroha raised her Kurikaramaru to parry, but the strike nevertheless knocked her back by several feet. That yokai was a lot more powerful than the others and his attacks were so swift she didn’t have any chance to counter. Suddenly her back hit a trunk. Quickly she ducked down and rolled away as the yokai’s claws sliced through the tree as if it was nothing more than a twig.
She jumped back and channelled her yokai energy into her Kurikaramaru. “Take this! Crimson Dragon Wave!” she shouted and thrust it on the ground, releasing a deep red blast which burned a trail of destruction towards the yokai. However, instead of pulverising his body, her attack was simply dispelled by his claws.
Damn it! He was strong. At this rate he might really kill her.
“You have a good sword, Beniyasha”, the yokai said coldly. “However, your own skill is hardly sufficient to wield it.”
Without another warning he dashed forwards and his claws met the steel of her blade once more, forcing her back another three steps. Then he attacked her again and again, leaving her no time to recover until his foot struck her wrist and her sword flew away and landed in the mud.
Shocked, she stared at it, but that turned out to be a mistake as the yokai’s next strike hit her in the gut and sent her crashing into a rock.
For a moment her mind grew dizzy. When she was able to see again, the yokai loomed over her and she realised he was simply too strong.
“Seems I have no other choice”, she muttered and reached into her pocket, taking out the white shell which contained the rouge of her grandmother, the only thing apart from her robe which she had inherited from her parents. When she tried to open it though, her vision grew blurry once more.
Suddenly she heard a high-pitched scream and turned, noticing a human kid who was being surrounded by two of the weaker yokai. The boy’s face was pale with fear and tears were glistening in his eyes.
Moroha gritted her teeth and glanced down at the shell in her hand.
No. She couldn’t use it if there was a human around. Otherwise…
She shook her head, jumped to her feet and charged at the two yokai threatening the boy. “Get your filthy claws off him!” she screamed and knocked them out of the way. Then she grabbed the boy’s wrist and pulled him with her, deeper into the forest. Behind them she could hear their pursuers. Surely it wouldn’t take long until they had caught up.
Damn it! If only she was stronger! Then she could take down even strong foes like that yokai without problems.
“Umm… Who… Who are you?” the kid asked her.
Moroha blinked. She had almost forgotten he was there.
“Save your breath”, she replied grimly. “You can ask questions once we’ve survived this.”
The boy’s eyes widened with fear, but he fell silent. She couldn’t blame him. Unlike her he wasn’t used to being in situations like these.
A motion on the right caught her attention and she smelled the scent of a yokai from there. Then another one appeared on her left. They had almost caught up. Damn it! If only she hadn’t lost her Kurikaramaru! These yokai were too quick to get them with her bow alone.
The slope of the terrain changed. They were running up a hill now. Moroha hoped this wouldn’t be a dead end. The yokai knew this forest better than she did and it was unlikely they were chasing her somewhere favourable.
Suddenly she heard the low crack of a twig and threw herself on the ground to evade the yokai’s claws. The human boy landed on the ground as well and a wince of pain escaped his mouth.
Moroha jumped back to her feet, eyes searching for the yokai who was already dashing at her for another attack. Just before he reached her, she took a step forward, twisted away under his claws and gripped his long arms, using his momentum to haul him at the nearest tree. Quickly she grabbed the boy’s hand and pulled him to his feet. She needed to hurry. Every moment she wasted fighting would give their other pursuers the chance to catch up.
In the scrubs on the left she sensed the presence of the other yokai. It didn’t seem like they were going to attack right away, but probably they were just too wary because of how she had slain their comrades before. At least that would give them some time until the rest of the pack arrived.
As they got higher and higher, the boy began to breathe more and more heavily and his steps became unsteady. Apparently he was running out of stamina. Just when Moroha thought he would collapse any moment, the trees gave way and she saw a formation of rocks, not far ahead.
“Hang on, kid”, she said pleadingly and hurried on. A strong wind was blowing across the hill and the rain pattered down on them, soaking their clothes. They hadn’t come far when Moroha heard the remaining yokai burst out of the woods. There were four of them and fortunately the leader wasn’t among them. However, Moroha’s relief died away as soon as she realised what lay ahead. A deep gorge split the hill in half. And they were running right towards its edge.
She swore, but it was too late to turn back. Grimly she ran towards the edge, even as the kid began to tug at her arm to make her stop. She hoped there would be some ledge or tree they could use to climb down into the gorge.
Unfortunately the cliff turned out to be a vertical two-hundred-feet drop without any ledges. Trying to go down there would mean certain death for them. Gritting her teeth, she turned around to face their pursuers. They had formed a loose circle around them and watched them, without haste, but making sure they could attack them whenever they wanted to.
The boy gripped her hand tighter and Moroha noticed he was shaking with fear. She tried to think of something to say, but there was nothing which could soothe him right now, was there?
She took a deep breath and focused on the options she had left. She could try to fight the yokai, but without her Kurikaramaru or her rouge it was going to be a near impossible fight. The other option would be to jump off the cliff and hope something would catch their fall. Either way it was unlikely they’d survive.
Suddenly an idea struck her and she cast a careful look to the other side of the gorge. There was a similar edge there, a little lower than where they were standing, only the distance was too large. At least for a human.
She turned to the boy and bent down so she looked right into his eyes. “What’s your name, kid?” she asked in a calm voice.
“K-Keishin”, he answered timidly.
“Keishin”, she repeated. “Say, have you ever imagined what it feels like to fly?”
The boy nodded, bewildered.
“Good. I want you to picture that feeling in your mind.” She gave him a confident smile. “Don’t worry. You’re not going to die.”
Then she turned back to the yokai and took out the shell containing her rouge. She couldn’t use it to fight as long as Keishin was here, but she guessed she could control herself for the brief moment she needed. She flipped open the shell, dipped her finger into the rouge and applied it to her lips.
At once she felt the seething of her blood as her yokai powers awoke from their slumber.
“With this rouge I become Beniyasha, Destroyer of lands”, she chanted and with every word her strength surging through her body grew more and more powerful. “Tremble before the bloodthirsty dawn. Bear witness to your end if you so dare.” She gave them a predatory grin. Then she grabbed the boy’s hands, pressed her feet against the rock and hauled him across the gorge.
His face showed surprise and amazement, but no fear as he flew through the rain. Moroha only looked after him until she was sure he’d reach the other side before she whipped around, just in time to dodge the first yokai’s fangs. His claws grazed her arm and she felt a streak of pain running down her shoulder. Angrily she tried to strike back, but suddenly her vision grew blurry and she missed him. Then something pushed against her and she was knocked against the ground. Something wet was weighing down on her and she sensed a hot breath brushing across her face. Taking up her strength, she brought up her knee and heaved the yokai off her and into the gorge.
Something was wrong here, she thought as she staggered back to her feet. This was not how she usually felt. Had one of the yokai poisoned her somehow?
Anyway, she needed to get away from here as quickly as possible. In this condition she could maybe win against the three remaining yokai, but not against the rest of the pack which was probably already on its way here.
With a sidewards somersault she dodged the next attack and increased the distance with a quick leap. Then she looked across the gorge. It was wide, even for her, but she didn’t have much of a choice.
She gritted her teeth, channelled all her yokai energy into her legs and jumped. While she flew, she sensed her strength fade away, leaving her strangely empty. Then she hit something hard, rolled a few times until eventually she came to a stop.
The ground beneath her felt wet and muddy, so she guessed she had made it. However, when she tried to get up, her body refused to move. She felt terribly heavy all of a sudden. As she raised her head, she thought she saw someone standing in front of her, but she couldn’t make out their face through the haze in front of her eyes.
“Who… are…” she began before her voice failed. A moment later her head dropped into the mud and then everything disappeared into the black.
“So you used it again?”
Moroha didn’t respond. She knew her sensei was angry at her, but she hadn’t seen any other way.
“Hey, Moroha! I asked you something.”
“Yeah, I did!” she snapped in annoyance and turned around. “What else do you want to hear? That I’m sorry?”
Her eyes flicked to the scars on her sensei’s cheek, the scars she had inflicted on her while she had used her rouge to fend off a flock of bird yokai, and she quickly looked away.
Her sensei sighed. “You know what will happen if you keep releasing your yokai powers, don’t you?” she said. “You’re going to walk a path of endless violence and bloodshed. Is that what you want?”
“And if I don’t use it, I’m going to die. How much of a choice do I have?”
Her sensei’s eyes grew hard and then she slapped Moroha across the face. “If that’s what you think, then why do I even bother training you, huh?” she asked coldly. “If you want to rely on your rouge to survive, then go. I can’t help anyone who refuses to learn.”
Moroha stared at her. It was the first time she saw her sensei this angry. And it was also the first time she had ever slapped her.
“I’m… I’m sorry”, she mumbled shamefacedly and ducked her head. “I didn’t mean it like that.”
Her sensei turned to her and her expression softened. “Listen, Moroha”, she began and put a hand on Moroha’s shoulder. “You are no yokai. Their path isn’t yours. Never forget that.”
“Yes, Yawaragi-sensei.”
A crackling sound woke her. Moroha stirred and after a moment she managed to open her eyes. Rocks vaulted above her head, glowing in the red light of a fire. Somehow it reminded her of the cave she and Yawaragi-sensei had lived in.
How weird. Why did she think of her old sensei? It’s not like she owed her anything anymore. After all it was her sensei’s fault she was in such high debt now.
“I see you’ve woken up.”
Moroha started at the sound of that foreign voice and attempted to jump up, only her body was moving far too languidly and her legs gave way before she had straightened up. With a groan she fell back on the ground.
“If I was you, I would stay down”, the voice said. “You’re in no condition to move around.”
Yeah. She could tell that. Everything was spinning around her and she felt terribly hot. At first she had thought it was just the heat of the fire, but now she realised it was coming from within her. What… was this?
“Hey”, she muttered and tried to catch a glimpse of the person sitting on the other side of the fire. “Did you do this to me? Answer me.”
There was a moment of silence in which only the crackling whisper of the fire could be heard. When the person spoke up though, Moroha sensed a hint of amusement in their voice.
“You did this to yourself”, they said, calmly. “You have high fever. I’d say you’ve been out in the rain for too long. On top of that you’ve pretty much exhausted yourself entirely. No wonder you’ve gotten sick.”
She glanced up at the ceiling. “Sick, huh?” she mumbled dizzily and gave out a snort. “What an unpractical human trait.”
“So I was right”, the person said after a moment. “You are no human. But… I don’t sense the powers of a yokai either. Say, what are you?”
Moroha made a grimace. She hated that question. “I’m a quarter yokai”, she sighed and closed her eyes. “Moroha, the bounty hunter.”
“A quarter yokai?”
“Yeah. My grandpa was a yokai while the rest of my family was human. Or so I was told.” She opened her eyes again and looked at the person across the fire. “And may I ask who you are? You don’t smell like a yokai either.”
The person got up and finally Moroha was able to see the bald head of a human man. “Oh, I am just a monk who happened to come by. My name is Shinso.”
He came around the fire and squatted down next to her. “Here, drink this”, he said and offered her a small cup. “It’s going to help you.”
She sniffed at the weird yellowish liquid for a moment before she allowed him to raise the cup to her lips. If he wanted to harm her, she wouldn’t be able to stop him right now anyway, so there would be no point in making her drink poison.
The liquid tasted bitter and once she had finished the cup, she had to cough a few times. Then she rested her head back on the ground.
Slowly the events from before her blackout came back to her. The yokai who had attacked her… The chase through the forest… The gorge…
“There was a boy”, she began, coughing again.
“You mean Keishin-kun?” the monk asked. “Don’t worry. He’s asleep.” He nodded towards the wall of the cavern and when Moroha followed his gaze, she saw the boy who had been caught up in her fight.
So he was alive. What a relief.
“That was quite a pinch you were in”, Shinso said as he returned to the fire. “Without you he would’ve died.”
Moroha made another grimace. “It’s not like I meant to help him. I just don’t want others to get hurt because of a fight I’ve started.”
Shinso raised a brow. “A fight you have started? I assumed it was those yokai who attacked you.”
“Well… yeah… Things are kind of complicated.”
Shinso sat down and put a new branch into the fire. It crackled as the flames embraced the soaked wood and a cloud of fumes rose up. “Would you tell me about it?” he asked gingerly.
Moroha hesitated. Usually she didn’t talk to strangers about her work and she didn’t know anything about that monk apart from his name. On the other hand he had helped her. Who knew what would’ve happened if she still lay out there in the rain? Probably she would’ve been mangled by those yokai already.
She sighed. Then she took a long breath.
“Everything began one week ago…”
“Huh? You’re saying you’re a bounty hunter? Don’t make me laugh! You’re just a girl.” The man in front of her made a contemptuous gesture. “Go home and play with your dolls.”
Moroha sighed. She would never understand why the captains of nobles’ guards were always such huge apes who placed more value on their muscles than their brains. That’s why she preferred to take her jobs from Jyubei-san instead of being hired directly. Only the huge bounty had made her agree this time.
“Once again, I am Moroha, the bounty hunter. Your lord called for me, so if you could just go out of the way…? You’re annoying me.”
The man gave her a bewildered look. Then anger flashed across his face. “Little brat! I’m gonna teach you a lesson!” he shouted and raised his fist, but before he had the chance to hit her, she whizzed past him, grabbed his arm and pushed against his shoulder, causing him to lose his balance. With a gasp he landed on the wooden floor.
“If you’re the best warrior here, it’s no wonder your lord needs to hire a bounty hunter to get rid of a yokai”, Moroha said in a bored voice.
“Damn you!” the man growled and got back to his feet. He was about to draw his sword when footsteps behind her caused him to stop.
“That’s enough”, an imperious voice said and at once he bowed his head, just like the three guards who had been watching them.
Moroha turned around and saw a young man in fine garments who was approaching her. Respectfully she bowed her head.
“I apologise for this rude welcome, bounty hunter”, the nobleman said friendly. “I gave Kurotetsu the order to test your strength in order to see whether you are suited for the job I’m going to give you.”
“I guess I passed”, she replied, smiling.
“Indeed”, he said with a hint of amusement. “Now follow me. I will tell you the details of your job.”
She was led into a spacious audience room where she sat down in front of the dais on which the young nobleman settled himself. When he faced her now, there was no trace of his former friendliness, only a stoic, sovereign expression.
“Just to be safe, you are Beniyasha the bounty hunter?” he asked.
Moroha bowed her head ever so slightly. “The name’s Moroha. Only my enemies call me Beniyasha.”
“I see. Moroha then. My name is Omotori. I am the current lord of this land.” The nobleman’s lips curved into a mild smile when he saw her expression. “Does that surprise you?”
“Umm… n-not really”, Moroha lied. She hadn’t met any lord who was this young before.
“Well… my father died four years ago”, Lord Omotori said. “But let me start at the very beginning.”
His gaze turned wistful as it drifted to the picture on the wall. It showed the crooked figures of miners who were walking into a shaft.
“You see, this land was never very fertile. Most of our income depends on the mining and processing of iron. In times of crop failure we suffer especially much.
Moroha made an uncomfortable face. She didn’t like listening to long stories, but she knew it would be rude to interrupt him.
“Ever since the first settlers have begun to dwell here, there has been a tribe of yokai in the western hills. They mostly keep away from humans, but whenever the winter draws near, they come down from the hills and start attacking the cattle. My forefathers have fought the yokai several times to drive them back where they came from. Four years ago things were different though. That year a dreadful drought ruined most of the crop. People were starving and I guess it was no different for the yokai. That was when they started to kill humans.”
Moroha tensed up. Now they were getting to the interesting part.
“Back then my father set out to end the hazard the yokai posed to our people”, the young lord continued. “However, he never returned. Later I heard from one of his soldiers that he had been killed by the new powerful leader of the yokai. Her name is Kawanari.”
“And you want me to slay her?” Moroha asked.
Lord Omotori nodded. “In the past few years things have quieted down, but recently the yokai have started to attack again. I cannot allow them to inhabit these lands any longer. If you bring me Kawanari’s head, I’ll reward you with three-hundred-and-fifty mon coins.”
Moroha’s eyes lit up. Three-hundred-and-fifty mon! That would be a great step to paying off her debt to Jyubei-san.
“Sure”, she said and got to her feet. “Just leave it to me.”
“And… you slew that yokai?” Shinso asked after she had ended.
Moroha nodded. “It took me three days to find her and another two until Kawanari absented herself from her tribe. She was a strong yokai. But… the trouble began when I was on my way back. I guess the other yokai must’ve found Kawanari’s corpse.”
“And that’s why they came after you to take revenge.”
“Right”, Moroha mumbled. Then she groaned. “What should I do? When they attacked me, I dropped her head. Now I won’t get paid for this job.”
Shinso blinked. “That’s what you’re worried about?” he asked.
“Of course!” she replied incensed. “I’m slaying yokai to make a living. If I don’t bring Jyubei-san a head, I’ll have to keep cleaning his house. This sucks!” Her mind grew dizzy again and she rested back her head to calm down.
“I see”, Shinso mumbled in slight amusement.
Moroha made a sulky face. She had never had a very good opinion of monks. To her they had been just some humans who holed themselves up in their shrines and temples and preached to the weak. However this Shinso felt somewhat different. Or maybe it was just because of the pathetic condition she was in. She reached for her forehead and was surprised how cool it felt. She also realised the dizziness was less bad than before. Whatever kind of medicine Shinso had given her, it must be working.
Still, it annoyed her that she had ended up like that in the first place. She had been so focused on killing Kawanari that she hadn’t noticed what it had meant for her body to stay alert for such a long time. And on top of that it had been raining for the past three days. Damn it. At times like these she wished her mother had been a full-fledged yokai instead of a human.
When suddenly she felt a cold hand on her forehead, she started up, causing Shinso to tumble backwards. “I’m sorry”, he apologised quickly. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”
“What did you want then?” Moroha asked warily.
The monk looked at her for a moment and sighed. “I only thought that if you killed the leader of these yokai, they wouldn’t give up that easily. And that means you are still in danger.”
“True”, Moroha agreed. Then a smirk curved her lips. “Could it be you’re worried because you’re with me?”
Shinso hesitated for a moment before he shook his head. “I had to lie if I said I wasn’t worried. But nevertheless it is a monk’s duty to help those who are in need. And currently you are in no condition to fight these yokai.”
She couldn’t help but chuckle at those words. “They’re not gonna make any allowances for that.” She glanced at the boy who was still asleep at the cave wall. She didn’t know who he was or what he had done out in the forest in the middle of the night, but it was definitely her fault he had been dragged into this.
Suddenly a bad smell filled her nose, a mixture of sweat and soaked fur which made the hairs on her body stand up. “Hey, Shinso-san”, she began as she pushed herself to her feet. “Please make sure Keishin-kun survives this.”
The monk gave her a bewildered look. “H-Hey, what are you up to? You shouldn’t get up already.”
Moroha reached for her bow and narrowed her eyes as she turned into the direction of that smell. “They’re here.”
Shinso darted around and almost fell into the fire as he stumbled back from the yokai who was examining them with hungry eyes. A second one joined him. Then a third one.
“N-No way!” Shinso whispered in disbelief. “My barrier should’ve masked our presence.”
“You mean that sloppy piece of paper out there?” a cold voice asked and Moroha immediately recognised it as that of the leader of the yokai. “Don’t make me laugh”, he said as he stepped into the light of the fire. “Who needs to feel your presence if your footprints lead all the way to this cave?” His eyes hardened when they met Moroha’s gaze.
She involuntarily backed away. Those eyes were dangerous. Her instincts warned her not to fight him, that he was too strong. Unfortunately that was an option she didn’t have anymore.
Gritting her teeth, she drew an arrow from her quiver and placed it on the string of her bow. “Thanks for coming. You have something I want back.”
The yokai gave her a mocking look. “You’re not talking about this dagger of yours, are you?”
His expression switched from confidence to surprise as her arrow multiplied in mid-air. The first two yokai wailed in pain and the rest flinched back in confusion. Moroha felt a hint of satisfaction as she saw the faint line of blood which ran across the leader’s face.
He noticed it as well and annoyance flashed in his eyes. “What’s this? Spiritual powers?” He straightened up. “You are really an abominable creature, Beniyasha.”
Moroha’s eyes flicked to Shinso who cowered on the ground in shock and to Keishin who had woken up and now stared at the yokai, terrified. Damn it! If she fought here, they wouldn’t get away unharmed.
She drew another arrow from her quiver and took aim at the leader once more. “Move it”, she said. “Or I’ll kill you as well.”
To her discomfort the yokai didn’t show any reaction to her threat. “Spirit powers, huh?” he mumbled. “Fine. Merely killing you wouldn’t have satisfied me anyway.” He tensed his legs and Moroha picked that moment to shoot the next barrage of sacred arrows. However, while the normal yokai were struck again and turned to flee, their leader somehow managed to dodge them.
No, Moroha realised a moment later and a gasp escaped her throat as she saw the familiar shimmer of steel. He hadn’t dodged her arrows. He had parried them with her Kurikaramaru.
“That sword isn’t yours”, she hissed angrily and her fingers clutched the handle of her bow tightly.
“I don’t see any reason to listen to the words of a murderer”, he replied grimly.
They both charged forward. Moroha fired another arrow which again multiplied, but the yokai smacked two of them out of the way and somehow twisted around the others before he brought the blade down on Moroha’s neck. She had suspected such a move and caught his wrist, using the strength of his attack to fling herself around him and towards the entrance to the cave.
“So you want revenge?” she asked, giving him a challenging look. “Then try and catch me.”
The yokai’s face twisted with anger as he turned towards her. “Oh, I will”, he growled and leapt at her.
Moroha darted around and ran as quickly as she could. All she could think of was that she had to draw him away from Shinso and the boy.
The rain had stopped while she had been unconscious, but the ground outside was still wet and the puddles of rainwater splashed under her feet as she hurried towards the woods which stretched out down the hill. Suddenly she sensed something and threw herself out of the way, missing her Kurikaramaru’s edge by just a hand’s length. When she landed though, her foot slipped and she passed the edge of the path and tumbled down the hillside which loomed beyond. While she fell, she shot another arrow at the yokai, but she couldn’t see if it hit before she landed in a scrub.
Quickly she got back to her knees and began to crawl out of the thicket, making her way towards the nearest tree. She still felt a little dizzy, but it wasn’t as bad as she had thought it would. At least she was able to focus on which move to make next.
“Hey! Beniyasha!” she heard the yokai’s shout. “Is that all you are? A coward who runs away if they realise they’re lacking the strength to win? That’s pathetic!”
Moroha’s lips curved into a wan smirk. He was kind of right. But running away was only the first step of her plan. It was about time to move on to step two.
Once again she flipped open the small shell and dipped her finger into the rouge, before running it over her lips. Immediately she felt the warm sensation from within, as if her inner fire was blazing up at once. Her teeth grew longer, her nails sharper, her blood began to flow faster. The scrubs around her quivered and a brief shower of raindrops clattered down from the branches over her head as she straightened up and directed her eyes on the yokai who had vowed to kill her. “Pathetic, yes?” she repeated quietly.
The yokai’s face hardened. Hatred flashed in his eyes and then he jumped high into the air, performed a somersault and thrust the sword at her.
Moroha jumped back before it could hit her, pressed her feet against the trunk behind her and lunged forward. There was a low clang when her nails met the steel of her blade and both she and the yokai where pushed back by the force of their clash.
Her mind was in a frenzy. Her senses were sharpened to the maximum. She could feel the yokai’s power as clearly as she could hear the rustle of the leaves above and smell the dampness of the forest soil beneath them or the fearful expectation of the other yokai who were watching from a safe distance. She didn’t mind them. Her entire attention was directed at the yokai in front of her. The yokai who wielded her Kurikaramaru.
He straightened up and took a fighting stance. “That’s a little better”, he mumbled. Then he lunged forward again. Moroha backed away in a swift twist to dodge his strikes and when she saw an opening, she twitched forward, slashing him with her nails.
She could feel it. The blood on her hands. She could smell its metallic fragrance and it drew her mad. Again and again she attacked, grew faster and wilder with every strike as she gave into the bloodlust which was coursing through her veins.
The yokai managed to parry her slashes, but it was different from before. Now he was barely keeping up with her and with every swing of her blade he got closer and closer to his limits. Nevertheless Moroha knew that she was running out of time. Even in good shape she wasn’t able to maintain this form for a very long time and right now she was definitely not at her best. She needed to end this before she had used up all of her energy. Putting all her strength into her next blow, she managed to throw her opponent off balance. Before he could regain it, she ducked and aimed at his throat. Then a cold lance of pain flashed through her shoulder.
She gasped and dropped to her knees. Blood was seeping through her robe and this time it wasn’t the yokai’s but her own.
“Looks like you’ve grown careless, Beniyasha”, he growled as he pushed the sword further into her flesh.
Moroha winced in pain and clutched the blade with her hand. Then she gave out a hoarse laugh. “Who of us has grown careless?” she whispered. Before he could answer, she channelled her yokai energy into the blood that was leaking out of her shoulder and threw it at the yokai, transforming it into crimson blades which cut through his arm.
He gasped in shock and for a brief moment his grip around the sword weakened. That was the moment Moroha had waited for. She grabbed Kurikaramaru’s blade and pulled it out of the yokai’s hand. Then she channelled her remaining energy into the sword and slashed at her opponent.
Heat welled up and the hairs on Moroha’s arms stood up as the released energy surged over her hands before it struck the yokai. He was enveloped by a deep red glow which knocked him backwards and crashed him into the trunk behind him, licking over his body like the flames of a giant dragon.
Moroha gasped and struck her Kurikaramaru into the ground, resting herself against its hilt. Then she wiped away the rouge on her lips.
The wound in her shoulder hurt like hell and she felt the exhaustion from the past few days weigh down on her again. She had used up all of her strength in this fight. Nevertheless she mustn’t fall unconscious yet. The other yokai were still nearby. If she fainted here, they would surely come and savage her.
Tiredly she glanced at her Kurikaramaru and smiled when she saw a ray of sunlight shimmering on its blade. It felt good to have it back.
“Beni…yasha…” a low voice growled.
Moroha raised her head and her breath caught when she stared at the yokai. His clothing was scorched and town apart and blood was streaming all over his chest. Nevertheless he had gotten back to his feet and begun to stumble towards her. What was most fearsome about him however was the look in his pitch-black eyes.
“Wh-Why?” she gasped and tried to get back up as well, only her legs didn’t obey her anymore. “Why do you hate me that much? What is it that makes you go so far?”
“Why you ask?” the yokai repeated and his glare pierced her like a thousand needles. “Why, Beniyasha? Because you took away what was most precious to me. You killed my beloved family. You killed Kawanari.”
Moroha felt a stab in her heart and quickly fought it down. “So what?” she asked quietly and used her sword to pull herself up. “We’re living in hard times. Everywhere people die in petty fights. How are you any different from the innocent humans your tribe has killed? What right do you have to get angry about the very same loss you have inflicted on others?”
The yokai stopped and lowered his head. “Innocent humans?” he mumbled after a moment and gave out a snort. “We have never killed innocent ones. My forefathers came to this land because they fled from all the stupid wars among the yokai tribes. They only wanted to be left alone. That’s why, even when we were starving, we only preyed on animals, never on humans.” He raised his gaze and now fiery wrath was burning in his eyes. “It was always the humans who attacked us! They answered our peacefulness with spears and cries of war! What wretched creatures they are. Just like you.”
Moroha bit the bottom of her lips. That story sounded like the complete opposite of what she had heard from Lord Omotori. “You… You have no way to prove that what you’re saying is true”, she forced herself to say. “And in such a case I will trust the ones who hired me.”
The fire in the yokai’s eyes waned and made way for cold bitterness. “And what about our child?” he asked quietly. “Were they as guilty as we are in your eyes?”
Moroha frowned. A kid? But she had only killed Kawanari and the yokai who had attacked her during her escape. There hadn’t been a kid among them.
“What are you talking about? I don’t know your-” Suddenly her voice caught as she realised. “W-Wait… That can’t…” she mumbled, but the sorrowful look in the yokai’s eyes told her that her suspicion was correct.
“Yes”, he hissed. “Kawanari was pregnant. You’ve taken a life that hasn’t even seen the light of the sun or felt the wind on their skin. You’ve robbed them of every chance to run through the woods, to play at the river, to look across the lands in a starry night. All the things they could’ve done in their life. They’re gone now. You have murdered them.”
Moroha tumbled back. She was feeling strangely numb all of a sudden. She couldn’t feel the damp soil under her feet anymore or smell the mouldy air of the forest. The world around her had lost its colours.
She had killed an unborn life. She hadn’t known about that yokai being pregnant, but… that was no excuse. She had… She had murdered them. D-Damn it! This wasn’t what she had wanted. This wasn’t what…
“Beniyasha”, the yokai growled as he dragged himself towards her. She twitched and raised her Kurikaramaru. However, her arms felt so terribly weak all of a sudden. She was shaking. She couldn’t even point her sword at him.
Why? Why did it unsettle her that much? She had fought many yokai before, but none of them had made her feel that way. As if she wasn’t sure if she even wanted to defend herself. Was that… because of what she had done?
The yokai raised his arm and as Moroha looked at it, it seemed to warp into something which didn’t look human at all. Dark grey barbs grew out of the skin and his fingers grew longer, sharper. At the same time his entire arm grew more muscular until it looked like the paw of a black bear.
“Die”, he muttered and it sounded like a command. “Pay up for the lives of my family and die.”
Moroha closed her eyes and waited for the moment his claws would strike her, tear apart her flesh, just like she had torn that of his wife. There was a quiet thud, but she didn’t pay it any attention. Not until a low groan caused her to open her eyes again.
The shaft of an arrow stuck out of the yokai’s chest. As she stared at it, a second one struck him, hitting his shoulder and making him tumble back, Then a whole volley of arrows flew past her. Several missed the yokai, but there were more than enough which struck his arms, legs and torso and sent him falling into the scorched swathe her Crimson Dragon Wave had burned into the ground.
Moroha heard heavy footsteps and then people passer her, clad in plated armours and wielding shimmering swords. After a moment another one followed, wearing a white cloak. She blinked in surprise when she recognised Lord Omotori.
“Humans”, the yokai hissed when the Lord stepped in front of him. “Again… Why can you never… leave us be?”
Lord Omotori gave him a cold glance. “The original meaning becomes unimportant as soon as both sides have drawn blood, doesn’t it?” he said and held out his hand. Immediately one of the soldiers handed him his lance. “You have killed my father”, he continued. “That’s all the reason I need.”
With that he raised the lance and thrust it into the yokai’s neck. Moroha saw his lips moving one last time, but he couldn’t speak anymore. The other soldiers followed their Lord’s example and pierced him with their blades. She didn’t need to look into his empty eyes to know that he was dead.
Finally the Lord turned towards her. His face wasn’t friendly as it had been during their first encounter, nor did it show the deep anger the yokai had displayed. He looked simply cold and hard, as if he wasn’t aware he had just killed someone.
“You have my gratitude, bounty hunter”, he said, although his voice sounded distant and strangely meaningless to her. “You fulfilled all my expectations. Good job. Now get some rest. My soldiers will take on from here.”
She stared at him, unable to comprehend what he was saying. The forest was spinning around her. Then her legs gave way and she slumped to the ground, losing herself to that gentle nothingness once more.
When Moroha awoke, she was lying in a soft, warm bed. When the memories came back, she at first thought everything had been just a bad dream, but… no. She remembered the yokai’s grieving expression way too clearly.
Turning her attention to her shoulder, she noticed someone had treated the wound, though she still couldn’t help but wince when she tried to sit up. Her bow and Kurikaramaru were leaning at the wall of the small room. Somehow seeing them felt reassuring. As if she was able to fight her way through all the storms that lay ahead. Nevertheless their presence didn’t change anything about what had happened.
She had killed an innocent life. Even though it had been the order of that Lord, it had still been her own decision to accept his job. It had been her own decision to kill those yokai, regardless of what kind of people they were, regardless of what dreams they might have had.
After a while the slide door was pushed aside and a man in a long robe entered. “So you’re awake”, he said with mild surprise. “How do you feel?”
Moroha glanced at her shoulder. “Fine. I guess.”
The man stepped closer and began to unwrap the bandages, taking a look at the wound. “Your regenerative power is amazing”, he muttered after a moment. “A human would’ve needed weeks to recover from such an injury.”
Moroha didn’t respond. A human… Right. That was one way to put it. “How long did I sleep?” she asked instead.
“Two and a half days”, the man replied.
Moroha ducked her head. A yokai wouldn’t have needed that long.
The man finished his inspection and applied a new bandage. “Lord Omotori wished to speak you”, he said. “Can you walk?”
She nodded, slipped into her robe and followed him out of the room.
Two guards were standing in front of her door and as soon as Moroha and the man came out, they saluted and began to escort them. It might look like a gesture of respect, but Moroha assumed they weren’t here for the purpose of protecting her. Apparently the Lord didn’t trust her anymore. Or… maybe he hadn’t trusted her from the very beginning.
As they made their way through the corridor, the one walking in front of her turned his head. “I heard you fought the leader of the yokai. Is that really true?”
“Yes”, Moroha said quietly.
“Wow. That’s impressive. But you got yourself quite beaten up. Better be grateful our Lord came in time to save you. Otherwise those cruel yokai would’ve ripped you to pieces.”
Moroha nodded, wanly. She couldn’t think of anything to say until the guards stopped and opened another slide door.
“Ah, Moroha-san”, Lord Omotori said as he looked up. “Come in.”
She sat down in front of the small dais on which he sat, symbol of his superior position. Lining the wall on her left, she saw the unfriendly leader of the guard she had defeated upon her arrival at this castle, along with four other guards, all clad in their armour now.
“Bounty hunter Moroha”, the Lord began in a formal voice. “You were assigned to slay the yokai Kawanari and bring me her head as proof of your success. You have not completed that job, so normally that would mean no bounty for you. However, with respect to the situation, I consider it more than evident that you succeeded in slaying her. Also you have assisted in the slaying of the other leader of that yokai tribe.” He held out his hand and one of the guards rushed to him, handing him a small bag which he offered to Moroha. “As a reward I’m giving you this bag of gold worth about seven-hundred mon. That’s twice the amount we agreed on. Does that sound acceptable to you?”
When Moroha didn’t make any attempt to take the gold, he lowered his hand and put the bag on the floor in front of him. She considered it for a moment, before she looked back at him. “What about the remaining yokai? I killed a few of the ones who chased after me, but there are more. What do you intend to do with them?”
The Lord closed his eyes for a moment and when he opened them again, they contained a touch of coldness. “Without their leaders the tribe will be thrown into chaos. I have already sent out a group of capable hunters. I assume we’ll have them eradicated by the end of the year.”
Moroha took a long breath. Her hands curled and uncurled again. “You knew it, didn’t you? Why did you lie to me? Why did you tell me they had started to attack humans?”
Lord Omotori met her gaze without a trace of shame or regret. Without any reaction at all. “Hesitation is the greatest foe of a warrior”, he replied. “I was afraid you might hesitate to deal the killing blow… and end up getting killed yourself.”
“But why was it necessary to kill them in the first place?” she asked, trying to calm down the anger that was rising inside her.
“Why?” he echoed. “Do we need a reason for that? They kill us and we kill them. That’s the natural flow of things, isn’t it? Just as it is natural for you to kill for money.”
Moroha cast down her eyes. His words had hit the nail on the head. She was a bounty hunter. It didn’t matter who she killed as long as someone paid a high bounty for it.
She reached for the bag of gold and picked it up. Then she got up and turned to leave. Before she passed the doors however, she stopped and looked down at the bag in her hand. It was so small… and yet it felt so heavy. The weight of gold… No. Actually it was the weight of the blood that was sticking to it.
“It’s true. Yokai kill humans”, she mumbled. “Some do it out of hunger or because they can enhance their powers by doing so. Others do it out of simple viciousness. Because of that most humans view yokai as cruel monsters.” Her fingers dug into the leather, tightened around the gold pieces beneath it. “They may be right in some cases. But… the ones who are truly cruel… are you.” With that she spun around and tossed the bag in front of the Lord. “I don’t want your gold”, she spat angrily. “The mere thought of it disgusts me.”
The leader of the guard was the first to regain his composure. “Impertinent brat! How dare you?!” he hissed and was about to draw his sword when his Lord raised a hand, signalling him to stop.
“If that is your decision, fine. I hope you don’t regret it, Bounty Hunter Moroha.”
Moroha straightened up and met his gaze with all the contempt which was burning inside her. “Not Moroha”, she said. “My name is Beniyasha.”
By the time she walked down the staircase leading to the castle gates, the flame of Moroha’s ire had been extinguished by the heavy rain which was pouring down on her. The thick black clouds which hung above her head seemed to be a perfect mirror of how she was feeling inside.
Humans hated yokai because of their inhuman powers. Yokai hated humans because of their human nature. And she who was neither human nor yokai was hated by both sides. The leader of the yokai had called her an abominable creature because she had inherited both the powers of a yokai and the nature of a human. And he was right about it. She was the worst of all.
“Hey, look! There she is!”
Surprised, Moroha looked up as a boy came running towards her. A large straw hat shielded him from the rain and Moroha needed a while before she recognised him as the boy she had saved during her escape.
“Keishin-kun”, she mumbled and tried to put on a smile. Then her eyes flicked to the monk who followed him with slower steps. “So you made it.”
Keishin cracked a broad smirk. “Uh-huh! And that’s all because of you! That’s why…” He straightened up and then formally bowed his head. “Thank you very much, oneesan!”
She felt a brief stab of pain in her heart, but didn’t make a reply. When the boy looked up after a moment, unsettled by her silence, she put a hand on his hat and shook her head. “Don’t thank me, Keishin-kun. Your lives were bought by sacrificing others.”
She stepped past him, unable to meet his confused expression.
“Moroha-chan”, Shinso’s voice called her back and she stopped. For a long moment none of them said a word. Then the monk tilted back his head and gazed up at the sky. “This world is everything but fair”, he said. “Few people can decide how they live and even fewer how they die. That is what it means to live.” He lowered his head and gave her a considerate look. “If you feel sympathy for your targets, I think bounty hunting isn’t the right job for you.”
Raindrops fell down on Moroha, long after Shinso and Keishin had moved on, soaked her robe and dripped from her head, creating a steady splish-splash which drowned out her very thoughts. The puddles on the ground grew bigger and bigger and she wondered if maybe it would go on forever and the whole world would drown in these tears from the sky. It would be the fitting end for this world.