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The Fontainian countryside was always as vibrant as the paintings would depict it. Merchant and fishing ships lazily floated around in the bay, whilst in the distance mechanical cranes in the ports worked to lift cargo up and down from the docks to the ships and back. The sun, reaching its zenith, only highlighted and brought out the most beautiful shades of blue, green and yellow that almost oversaturated the eyes with their beauty.
Akiri sat quietly with her knees against the ground, eyes shut as she drew in long, heavy breaths to herself. The silence at the cliff's edge was well worth the long walk; it was far off the established path so no human would find her here, and the natural wildlife here rarely tended to disturb humans unless disturbed first. Absolute solitude.
That friendly lady who visited the Boutique the other day had suggested meditation to her out of the blue. "I find it always works whenever it feels like there's so many thoughts in my head, like it's gonna burst!" It was strange, but not unsolicited. Akiri had tried, multiple times across the many years, but with minimal effect. That said, she wasn't averse to trying it one more time. If nothing else, she could live with the quiet of not needing to be busy.
Being alone with her thoughts... What a scary prospect. Even now as the wind whistled and caressed her face whilst the distant squawks of the seabirds around the coast faded in, the ambient whispers in the back of her mind were ever-present, calling out to her for attention.
But the nothingness, the oblivion, of keeping her eyes shut and only seeing darkness, was a special kind of peace. A peace that she didn't get to savour for very long from the sound of shoes rustling through the underbrush behind her.
Her eyes gently opened to the bright morning sun, squinting slightly as her vision faded back in from bright white to its normal hues and shades. She inclined her head, ever so slightly to the newcomer. "Who is it?"
"Good morning." A young, cocky-sounding voice replied with an Inazuman greeting.
The hairs on her back stood up. Akiri slowly got to her feet, stretching her back as she turned to see a man standing at ease with one hand on his hips. He was adorned in rugged clothing that did confirm his Inazuman origin. At his side, a katana lay sheathed with his free hand on the pommel. A makeshift straw hat shielded his angular face from the sun, and within that shade, Akiri met his strangely intense gaze.
"Good morning to you too." Akiri replied in Teyvatian Commonspeak. "Do you need something?"
"I hope you'll forgive me for intruding, but I've been meaning to speak to a... Miss Akiri?"
All doubts that this man was a danger to her cleared in Akiri's mind as she scrutinized the man standing in front of her. "Who's asking?"
"You may call me Nagumo-san."
"I want your given name." Akiri's voice hardened. "This isn't Inazuma."
"It's not good manners to greet strangers with such aggression, sister."
"I know an Inazuman money hound when I see one. The Kairagi."
The man who called himself Nagumo shrugged, making a smug grin as he took off his hat, revealing spiky black hair as he placed it gently on a rock. "Then you know it's not personal."
Akiri's hand drifted towards her bow hanging at her waist. "Who sent you?"
"Pfft. Sent me?" Nagumo raised a bushy eyebrow. "I wanted to see the famous Kagehime myself."
The Kagehime. Akiri's heart began to race as a picture began to piece itself together in her head of what the end of this interaction would look like. "That's a myth."
He shrugged. "Yeah, well... I'm a myth-hunter. I've fought Vishaps, Lawachurls, Ruin Machines... All kinds of monsters. What's one more?"
"What you're looking for isn't here." Akiri stood her ground.
He began walking up to where she stood, giving her a wide berth as he approached. "Ah, come on, don't give me that."
"And even if the Kagehime's real, you would hunt down an innocent person?"
"Innocent? Hardly." Akiri realized he was circling her, like a vulture waiting for its moment to strike. "Haven't you heard the legend? The Kagehime ravaged an entire village of people when she came into being. If anything, she's one of the worst monsters of them all. You don't see Hilichurls targeting villages anymore, do you?"
Her blood began to boil. "That's not- She wouldn't have meant it-."
Nagumo made a face. "And how would you know? If I didn't know better, I'd have thought that you were there yourself... Princess."
Out of the corner of her eyes, Akiri spotted movement around the bushes and quickly glanced around to see more samurai emerging from the bushes, quietly drawing their blades as she backed up. As she turned to retreat to the cliff face, her heart sank as she saw another mercenary take the high ground behind her. She was surrounded.
Nagumo scoffed heartily as he held up his hands. "Surely you knew the Kairagi don't roll alone?"
Akiri reached for her bow and entered a lowered battle stance. "You all still have time to back out of this." She said to them all warningly. "Turn back now."
Hungry...
They were sensing her apprehension. Akiri sucked in her teeth and focused on her breathing, feeling the many voices of the Iri churn and stir within her consciousness. It'd be disastorous if they came out now... Not when she'd worked so hard to keep them at bay...
Raucous laughter erupted from the whole group as they circled her like sharks, weapons all levelled towards her while Nagumo hung back, his own sword still sheathed with his hands on his hips. "My men have fought and hunted down monsters far greater than a mere vessel for evil spirits. We live and die for the hunt!"
"I haven't hurt anybody in a long time. You don't have to do this."
Nagumo shook his head and mimicked slicing his neck with his thumb to his men.
They began closing in on her, their curved blades glinting in the sunlight like they were made of light. Akiri's Vision began to emanate a hum as she locked her mind into a narrow focus on the targets in front of her. "I gave you your chances..."
With brutal accuracy, Akiri nocked an arrow and fired away at the nearest mercenary squarely in the stomach all in the span of a second. The armour plating would have caught some of the momentum as the samurai went tumbling back into the bushes, yelling out in pain.
Light but quick footfalls to her left flank told her that she was being attacked from behind. As she whirled around to counter, the samurai was already right on top of her, katana raised high over his head as he brought the blade down on her.
In a bolt of lightning, Akiri flashed behind her assailant, her dagger drawn as she plunged it into his shoulder and kicked out his feet from under him. The other two's heads weren't even facing her before she disappeared once again in another deadly flash of Electro.
The remaining two mercenaries put their backs up against one another as they scanned their surroundings for signs of Akiri. Lightning erupted from the shrubbery as she emerged and vanished in quick succession in a series of Electro bursts that disoriented her targets. Each jump a loud and thunderous explosion that left them guessing where she'd appear next. Between her jumps, Akiri fired arrow after arrow at their feet, until a rough circle of them surrounded the two samurai.
In a final flash, Akiri reappeared at the edge of the cliff and flourished her bow, holding her hands out like a flower petal falling to earth as the fletchings of the arrows she'd dispensed began to spark with Electro. Before the last two warriors could react, arcs of the violet light began to chain between the feathered ends, creating a ring around them. The Electro energy latched onto their legs and travelled up their bodies, electrocuting them.
As the last two collapsed to the ground, Nagumo stood at the foot of the cliff unimpressed as he reached into a pouch on his belt and withdrew a paper slip.
"I've not fought a Vision user since the Vision Hunt." Nagumo made a shrewd expression as he held up the paper slip between his index and middle finger. Akiri's eyes narrowed as she spotted ancient Inazuman text written messily all over the slip. Some kind of Kamuna art?
"I think you're really going to give me a run for my money..." Sparks began to flash around the corners of the rectangular slip as it began to burn in his hands, before he flicked his hand. The paper seemed to transform into pure embers, the sparks flying all over the ground in front of him as his hand now reached for his sword handle.
Akiri nocked another arrow, watching intently as Nagumo drew his weapon, the katana screeching as it slid out of his sheath. As he lowered his stance into a battle-ready position and closed his eyes, his sword blade began to glow orange, embers flickering in and out of view around his heated blade. Akiri's ears picked up at the howling of spirits around him, and her facial muscles tightened as she readied herself for a fight. "What have you done?"
"It's gonna take a little more than good swordsmanship to kill a demon." Nagumo opened his eyes to reveal orange, almost glowing eyes that were almost the same shade as his glowing hot blade. "Maybe it takes one to kill one."
Kill...
She'd seen enough. The arrow nocked on her bow sparked with Electro as she drew it back and fired with the speed of a snake striking. With equally dramatic speed, Nagumo dashed to the side, narrowly dodging the projectile as his sabatons left a trail of fire in the grass. A fiery grin lit up his face as literal flames began to float out from inbetween his pearly white teeth.
Akiri began rapid-firing her arrows in his path, the Electro arcs chaining between each arrow. They deterred the mercenary temporarily, the samurai hesitating at the edge as he ran around the Electro tripwires to get to her but gaining his footing and momentum. He jumped between where the arrows landed, keeping her guessing as Akiri fired off arrow after arrow until suddenly he was within range of her.
She lunged back and narrowly avoided Nagumo's downward swing, firing off multiple arrows at his feet to catch him but the mercenary sliced the fletchings off the arrows just as fast, running her down. Her Vision began to gleam with violet light in response to her channeling more of its power, and Akiri teleported out of the way just in time as he stabbed at the air where she was moments ago.
There was a rush of cold air like she was moving a million miles a second before she reappeared further downhill in an explosion of thunder. Using the distance, she began peppering the ground with arrows as they all began to charge up with Electro.
Now fuelled by a newfound confidence, Nagumo laughed with glee as he tore down the hill at breakneck speed, slashing with his katana and leaving trails of Pyro in his wake as he zeroed in on Akiri. Readying her dagger, Akiri warped again, just out of range of his slashes behind him, but Nagumo turned almost instantly and lunged. Akiri reappeared to his side, further out from him as she fired another volley but the samurai moved like a snake, quickly correcting his course as he chased her down with his katana.
She could hear the laughter of the Iri within watching her. Dance for us, princess, dance!
He was closing the distance too fast everytime she teleported out of danger. Hissing in frustration, Akiri had no choice as she discarded her bow and reached for her dagger.
His blade clanged against hers as the two of them fought to control their weapons, holding their position as they locked eyes. Akiri disengaged, knowing she had the weight disadvantage, before trying again and rearhanding her dagger and going for his eyes.
Nagumo weaved out of her range before countering with his blade in a thrust that Akira parried out off the way narrowly, using the strength of her Vision. He may very well have had his own from the way he recovered faster than she thought he could. He attempted to slash her arm but she caught his katana in her own dagger, gritting her teeth as he grinded his blade against hers, trying to brute force his way out of the deadlock. Akiri shut her eyes, tensions running high as her own heart was fighting to jump out of her chest.
Let us out.
No, not yet. This wasn't something that needed their intervention.
Give in... Let us out...
"Leave me alone..." Akiri hissed.
Nagumo suddenly released both their blades by changing his stance in the whim of the moment and slashing upwards. There was a mighty clang as Akiri's blade went flying behind her. In shock, Akiri channeled her Vision and zapped behind him with her bow fully drawn.
Even as she fired an arrow straight for his neck, the samurai whirled around in a storm of iron as he sliced the arrow midair and lunged for her with his sword extended.
Release us!
"I said leave me ALONE!" Akiri found her voice and yelled out, thrusting her hand out as a searing hot, aching feeling shot to her palm and out of her body in the form of black lightning. As the bolt stabbed into Nagumo with its jagged edges, they seemed to turn into liquid and engulfed his body in black tendrils, taking the samurai by surprise as he screamed.
It was as though a dam had shattered within her, now unable to hold the oncoming tide of emotion coursing through her body as a cold, creeping feeling rushed all over her. For a brief moment, Akiri did not know what was in front of her, what was happening, or even who she was.
When her vision returned, Nagumo was on the ground in front of her, scrambling backwards and holding his hand up in fear. "NO, PLEASE!"
Akiri's heart sank into a deep, dark place it hadn't gone to in years. Her hand was outstretched like she'd been casting a spell... Or releasing the...
Without wasting another word, she looked down at her hands, looking for signs. Her veins would always turn purplish-black whenever they took control... But only faint traces remained in her system. Her bow and dagger were scattered on the floor in front of her
"What did you d-" Akiri took a shaky breath as she tried to speak to the Iri. "What did I do?"
Nothing much... We're rather disappointed, actually.
A hot, unbearable sensation began to pour into Akiri's chest as she glared around at the groaning and whimpering mercenaries on the floor. So much had almost just happened. All over some stupid manhunt?
"All of you, leave. NOW." Akiri growled as she turned away from the defeated Kairagi gang, letting them stumble up and limp away in fear as they picked up their gear and scurried away like rats. After a moment's breath, she walked back up to the cliff edge, taking in the view again. The ships had barely moved since she started. Akiri took a deep breath again as a sob almost overcame her.
The world was moving without her. But she could catch up fast enough. That was all she needed.
A splitting headache was burrowing into her mind like an invasive worm, making her flinch and squint as she rubbed her temples, then her eyes. "Ugh... So much for some inner peace..."