Kyoko had been ready for half an hour by the time Cain arrived. She buzzed in excitement, going through her rune circle and notes over and over again to make sure she'd gotten it right.
"There you are," she said, gesturing at Cain to sit. "I need you to translate these runes for me."
Cain sat as he was told but instead of taking the outstretched paper she held, he leveled a stern expression at her. She balked at his silent reproach, the paper in her hand flapping as she swung it at him.
"I promise, I wasn't doing anything," she said in defense to his accusatory stare. "I was just thinking, and then it came to me! It was while I was dreaming actually so maybe Rosa led me to this answer."
"Sure," said Cain, his tone making it obvious how much he didn't believe her. She saw Hikaru over Cain's shoulder put a hand over his mouth. The man was trying not to laugh!
"Just—can you please look at this?" said Kyoko. "You'll understand when you see it."
Finally, he took the papers, sending her one last reproachful glance. She saw the moment his gaze sharpened as he realized what she was trying to do.
"Why didn't we think of this?" said Cain slowly, awe and frustration coloring his voice. "None of us. It makes so much sense when you lay it out like this."
Kyoko nodded quickly, feeling more confident. If Cain, who wasn't a trained physician, saw the logic in her hypothesis, then maybe, just maybe they had a good chance of it working.
"Of course we didn't think of it," said Kyoko. "Wielding dark magic has been a taboo in the magic society for ages. We can study it all we want, sure, but actually using it for a cure? Logically it shouldn't work since dark magic is notorious for destruction, not healing." She tapped the magic circle she'd drawn on the parchment. "Plus it helps that the arcane syndicate just invented this spell for people like me. Otherwise, this wouldn't work."
On the parchment she had drawn a modified arcane ignition circle, using the conversion rune the syndicate had recently discovered. It was similar to the circle she'd used while she was learning to be a cleric. That spell had allowed her to manipulate the light magic stored inside an item with her arcane magic. The main difference between that spell and the one on the paper was the type of magic it allowed her to manipulate. Instead of light magic, she should be able to manipulate dark magic.
"We know the Shueman's rot is a poison based in dark magic," said Kyoko. "And none of our light or arcane spells, remedies, or drawing tools have been able to cure it. But what if I can draw out the rot like any other poison? But this time—"
"By manipulating the dark magic inside of the victim," finished Cain.
Kyoko nodded. She held out the drawing ring, already prepped and ready with a modified arcane ignition circle. All she needed was the accompanying dark runes that would allow her arcane magic to manipulate dark magic.
"We've had the solution the whole time," she muttered, frustrated. "And we had no idea. Not a single idea."
To be fair, they had only recently realized the rot was a poison, so that had slowed them down considerably. Plus, Kyoko, Cain and her three friends from the syndicate were the only people in the city aware of the conversion rune's existence. As obvious as the solution seemed now, it was only possible because several key pieces of information had come together. And that included their access to dark runes through Cain.
Cain took the ring from Kyoko's hand, double checking the spell inside. He raised a hand to add the necessary dark runes, then stopped.
"You shouldn't be the one to do this," he said slowly. "This won't help your illness."
"But I'm the only one that can test it," she said, impatient. "This was the special circle you and I came up with together, remember? Because my magic was hindered by all the circles installed in each magical tool. But with practice, others with talent using pulse magic will be able to draw out the poison. We just have to prove that it works. Or do you think any physician here not wanting to lose their license is going to try something like this?"
"Maru, or Horiuchi—"
"Have never needed to touch the arcane ignition circle themselves. It was only me that used it."
She examined his expression, searching for a break in his will. She didn't see it.
The man wasn't going to budge.
"Curse you and your stubbornness," she muttered, blinking hard to stop herself from crying. "We have a possible solution to save thousands of lives and you won't try it because it might hurt me."
No, instead Cain was going to continue keeping her locked up for security. Away from anything that might hurt her. What was the point of her anyway if all she was going to do was waste away in this room? Was she worth anything?
He reached for her, but she turned her head away, one traitorous tear managing to slide down her cheek. He wiped it away with a thumb, caressing her cheek for an extra moment.
"I'm sorry," he said after a while, his voice soft and gentle. "I've been neglecting your feelings. You've always been giving me support, and I have taken your strength for granted. That was wrong of me."
She gave a sniff, but kept her head turned away.
"You know why I worry," he said. "But that doesn't excuse my actions. You have the heart of a physician. A drive and passion that would rival any good leader, and I've been stifling you for your own protection."
"I know it wasn't on purpose," muttered Kyoko. "And I didn't realize… I just feel so useless and weak."
She finally allowed him to gently move her face to face him. He leaned forward and placed a kiss on her forehead, then the corners of eyes, then her lips. She smiled into the kiss, the time since the last one increasing its sweetness.
"We'll try it," he said, and Kyoko perked up. "I'll install the runes but just… promise you won't push yourself."
"I won't," she promised.
Cain drew back, finally summoning a sliver of dark magic. He installed the jagged evil runes into the drawing ring and they slid neatly into place along the arcane runes. He hesitated only a moment before handing it back to Kyoko.
"Who are we going to test it on?" said Cain.
"Murasame," said Kyoko. "Hopefully it will give him enough time for others to learn the spell." She was confident it would work. It had to.
Cain gave her his chair, letting Kyoko sit beside the still sleeping Murasame. When she remembered Hikaru was in the room, her cheeks colored from her little display with Cain. She couldn't tell if she was more embarrassed that he had seen her cry and needed Cain's comfort, or that she and Cain had kissed.
Hikaru, to his credit, didn't mention what he'd seen. Instead, he gave her a large smile and a thumbs up.
"If anyone can come up with a solution, it's you Lady Kyoko," he said with confidence, patting his own arm. The marks of Hikaru's rot were visible under an uncovered patch of his biceps. "I'll be waiting for my turn when this is all over."
With a renewed smile, Kyoko focused on Murasame and her task. She first reached for the spell inside the ring, recognizing the strange channels her arcane magic took that allowed her to manipulate other forms of magic. She shivered when she felt her magic touch the dark runes. But she could tell it had worked. She could now manipulate dark magic.
Keeping hold of that feeling, Kyoko placed a finger above Murasame's chest. She took one last steadying breath, then used the dark magic to probe for the poison.
Immediately it felt like thousands of pounds strained against her hand. She nearly cried out, clapping her other hand over the other to steady it. Cain was by her in a second, hands on her shoulders.
"Kyoko, are you alright?" he said.
"Fine," she said, teeth gritted against the strain. "It's just… Ah! There."
The magic inside Murasame loosened. In a flash, she had amassed more than a liter of poison swirling at the point between her raised finger and Murasame's chest. And still more was threatening to come!
"I need a container," said Kyoko, cutting off the drawing spell. "Quickly. I don't want this to disperse into the air."
Hikaru scrambled to get one, thrusting it at Kyoko. She threw the poison inside and slammed the lid on tight. The poison didn't disappear, swirling in some strange form between gas and liquid.
Kyoko let out a breath that turned into a shaky laugh. She had done it. It had worked! She'd found a solution to the rot and hadn't even needed to leave her room to discover it. A large section of Muarsame's chest was now pink and raw, but unblemished from the rot. She was certain that had he not been heavily medication, the man would have woken from the pain of the poison being drawn.
"Amazing," muttered Hikaru in awe. "You did it Lady Kyoko! You found a cure."
She gave him a tired smile, his excitement infections as she turned to share the moment with Cain. He met her eyes, and she could see just how thrilled he was as well. His eyes burned with a brightness of hope that she hadn't seen in ages.
"You're always managing to amaze me," he said. "Always."
She felt her cheeks flush and wanted to kiss him, audience or no. Except… the world was darkening.
"Kuon?" she said, instinctively reaching for him.
But she didn't hear him answer, eyes fluttering shut as she fell back into unconsciousness.
Kanae lowered her spear, though it was more from shock than in answer to the dryad's request. She'd heard rumors of a dryad living near the tree but hadn't believed them for a second. Apparently, she'd been wrong to dismiss them.
Her master had taken care to educate her on all the magical creatures that liven in Ashuron, and a few that lived in tropical areas as well. Dryads were one of those rare creatures of the deserts, the land too dry to find easy sanctuary. But here one was, living and standing before Kanae in this miasma saturated cave hiding paces away from dark creatures.
Suddenly warry, Kanae raised her spear again and poked the thing's arm.
"Ouch!" The dryad slapped Kanae's spear away, rubbing at the spot she'd poked. "What was that for? I'm no dark creature."
Satisfied, she finally retracted her spear, the shaft shortening to allow her room to situate it comfortably on her back. In two long strides, she came almost nose to nose with the dryad, peering at the creature's eyes, the designs on its body, the strange lights shimmering around its crown. Everything about this creature was humming with light magic. Just how had she not spotted it before?
"Umm." The dryad leaned away from Kanae, eyes averted with an odd expression on his face. "Could you not get so close?"
"How did you hide from me so well?" said Kanae. "Spotting your aura should have been easy."
The dryad took his own step away from Kanae rather than waiting for her to comply. He let out a loud huff, as if her question were of the utmost inconvenience for him to answer. Flecks of light magic puffed from his mouth at the action.
"You, a human. Spot me easily?" he said. "How many years do you think I've been living in tandem with the fig tree? Don't have an answer? Yes, that's right, for over two hundred years."
"Uh huh," said Kanae. "And you've obviously been careless as there are rumors about you being here. Is there a time limit on how long you can hide? Or do you get bored playing hide and seek?"
He bristled. "I do not play hide and seek, whatever that is."
"Bored it is then."
Kanae tapped a finger to her lips, studying the creature. If a dryad was here, that meant he knew these tunnels. He would know a way to the center of the tree, and maybe even what was going on. This really was a tremendous find.
He was also saying something about "dignity" and "respect" while waving his skinny arms in anger. It reminded her of a buzzing fly.
"Hey," said Kanae, cutting him off. "You know these caves, right?"
He let out a choking sound, blustering for a moment before finally bursting. "Do I know these caves? Do I know—! What sort of question is that?"
"The only question that matters," said Kanae flatly. "I need to find the center and heart of the tree. If you know a way, I need you to lead me there."
The creature suddenly stopped flapping around, now regarding her with a suspicious gaze.
"Why?" he said. "Are you a follower of the dark ways?"
"I'm out on a scouting mission," said Kanae. "It's what you do. And if, by a 'follower of the dark ways' you mean associated with the Dark Djinn and Accursed, then no. I'm not one of them."
"But you are!" insisted the Dryad. "I saw you with that big group and that Accursed. But then why did you hide from the monsters? I'm guessing its more infighting. Bah. I never wanted to get in the middle of that. But I wanted to know what you were doing."
Kanae blinked, putting together a few pieces of information from what he said. "You saw our group," she said. "When we came down here the first time to investigate. You're talking about Cain." The dryad must have been hiding his aura like before, watching their group silently as they explored the caves and antechamber.
The Dryad pointed a triumphant finger at Kanae. "Ha! See. I knew you were associated with those Accursed. I knew it." The already greenish color in his face drained as mouth and body went slack from horror. "Oh light, you're with them."
The Dyrad's human form suddenly melted into ropes of bark and vines. They twisted and raced away, heading for the tree.
Oh, no you don't.
Magic surged through Kanae as she shot forward. In a blink, she'd caught up, weaving a net of arcane magic to catch him. The vine of bark twisted like a snake, pressing and pushing against Kanae's trap. Magic shimmered as the dryad attempted to use light magic to burst through. It shredded through part of Kanae's arcane spell, but more ropes were there to replace the ones it had broken.
The dryad quivered in apparent frustration and panic. It pressed its body into the ground, the bark splitting through cracks and fissures in the rock. He'd escape if she let him continue.
Honed in on the Dryad's now familiar soul and essence, Kanae easily found the core. She dug her hand into the midst of the roots, pulling with magic to tug the dryad back. The vines struggled in her grip for only a moment, the pulse of magic deep and powerful in her hand. Then magic and vines condensed. They bled back into the human shape from before, Kanae now holding the dryad by his throat.
"D-don't!" cried the dryad. "P-please. Don't."
Kanae had to suppress the urge to roll her eyes. "Then don't flee," said Kanae. "Now that I've seen your aura, I can find you if you try to escape."
He nodded vigorously, promising to be good and not run away. Only then did she let go. He didn't gasp for air like a human would. Instead, he massaged his chest as if that was where she had been holding him. The leaves sprouting from his body quivered in both fear and relief.
"Show me a way to the center of the tree," said Kanae. "One that won't get me killed from the dense miasma."
"B-but if you do that," he stammered. "It's too risky. If you're on bad terms with them… And the evil. It's too powerful."
"I'll take my chances," said Kanae. "Now, how about we get started."
He hesitated for a moment as if considering running again. But his eyes drifted back to Kanae's hand, then focused on something behind her. Probably her spear. They finally ended on Kanae's face, those strange eyes with black instead of white surrounding the green iris.
Whatever he was looking for - perhaps a weakness or opening - he didn't seem to find it. His shoulders slumped as even his hair seemed to wither.
"Fine," he said. "Fine. Go get yourself killed for all I care. I don't even know why I—Bah."
He motioned for her to follow, walking back up the path Kanae had come from. She kept close, noting the silence in his steps and the way the air around him seemed to shimmer. It looked like he was purifying the miasma around him before it could come in contact with his body. This dryad, for all his bluster and cowardice, seemed to be at least powerful enough for that, though it likely had more to do with him being a creature of light than anything.
"Do you have a name, Dryad?" said Kanae.
The dryad scoffed. "As if I'd tell it to a dark follower like you."
Unimpressed, Kanae gave a flat stare. "Then I guess I'll call you whatever I want. How about Twig? or Leaf?"
He bristled "How dare—I am not a measly twig!"
"My name's Kanae," she said, and the dryad stared with another unreadable expression. "You said something about the Accursed earlier, Twig. Is there something going on down here that you know about?"
"I just said—" The Dryad's body was quaking again, leaves making a shhh sound as they shivered. This creature really got riled up too easily.
"I'm waiting, Twig," said Kanae.
Twig kept walking, mouth clamped shut so tightly she could hardly tell he had one. Looked like the idiot was going to be stubborn. She doubted she'd get anymore information out of him anytime soon. It didn't matter. She'd scout around on her own once they made it to the center.
They walked back down the tunnels to enter one she'd passed before, her light hovering over them the whole way. Twig walked along easily, his legs sometimes turning into roots to ease up a pile of boulders or gracefully jumping down a tall drop like a leaf slowly descending from a tree. Kanae had no problem keeping up. Her magic made the trek easier than even the most veteran of climbers could achieve. Once or twice after a particularly difficult spot to cover, she spotted Twig looking back at her, respect obvious, even if it was colored by frustration.
They had moved for such a long time that she was sure he wouldn't speak again, which would be fine for her. She preferred silence over jabbering idiots any day.
"You said you're not one of them," said Twig, breaking the silence. "But you're here, and you can withstand the Miasma. And you were with that one dark Accursed."
"That Accursed, the one you saw with us investigating the tree," she said. "He doesn't want his contract with the Djinn. He's trying to destroy the Accursed and find a way to revive the tree." She shook her head, thinking about his second question. "As for why or even how I can withstand the Miasma, I have no idea."
"You don't? But the only things that can withstand it are creatures of dark magic, or humans that have a contract with the Djinn."
Kanae sent him a sharp glare. "Do I look like an Accursed to you?" she spat.
He cocked a head, looking at her in genuine confusion. "No. You really don't. Which makes no sense."
Twig hesitated, then his form shifted again. Rather than changing into ropes of bark, he shrunk, now as tall as the length of her hand. The little humanoid hovered and floated onto Kanae's shoulder, plopping down like he was meant to be there.
"Oi!" said Kanae. "What do you think you're doing?"
"Maintaining such a large form is tiring in this miasma," he complained. "You want me to talk about the Accursed down here, right?"
The Accursed down here. That confirmed it. Something big was happening. She toyed with the idea of flicking him off before deciding information was worth being a little patient. The things she did for her kingdom.
At her silent ire, Twig gave a hesitant smile. The first one she'd seen on him.
"Even if you are mixed in with another Accursed, if it gets those abominations out of my home then I guess we can work together," he said.
Kanae huffed. "Just start talking, Twig, before I change my mind and kick you off."
Hiroaki woke to someone shaking his shoulder. He jerked back in fear, smacking his head against something hard and causing stars to obstruct his vision.
"You probably shouldn't just sleep anywhere," said a voice. "While the monsters follow Kemo's orders, some are better at it than others. I don't think Hirotaka would be happy if you were eaten by a wurm because it got hungry."
Hiroaki blinked away the white spots from his vision, finally focusing on the person in front of him. It was a tall willowy male with long white-blonde hair that stretched past his shoulders. His tunic was dark, with tight long sleeves that covered his arms down to the back of his hands. It helped to emphasize his height as he regarded Hiroaki with folded arms and a bored expression.
"Who…?" said Hiroaki
"The name's Miroku," said the man. "I was told by your dad to fetch you."
Miroku? The name didn't ring any bells. But if he was talking about Hirotaka…
Hiroaki's eyes suddenly focused on what the man was wearing. Specifically, a dark gold pendant that hung from the man's neck. It held a smooth stone, almost impossibly black in color. Gold wires caged the gem in both an intricate and somehow dangerous style. Hiroaki had seen it before but only in drawings sent over by the king.
"Accursed," breathed Hiroaki. "You... you have Reino's relic."
The man held up the relic by the gold chain, long fingers caressing the gem. "It's mine now," he said. "Reino had no need of it after letting himself be killed, damn fool." The man sounded wistful as he gazed at the stone. Then he shook his head, letting the pendant fall and motioning with his head. "I guess if you're awake, let's go."
Too scared to disobey, Hiroaki scrambled to his feet, nearly tripping in his haste to keep up with the Accursed. He kept twitching, unable to stop at the idea that his dad wanted to see him again.
"Relax," drawled Miroku. "He's not going to kill you. At least as long as you don't annoy him. Then he might try."
Hiroaki gave a whimper. The man's lips twisted into a cruel smile at the sound.
"Not a very brave one, are you?" he said. "And probably a weak stomach."
He paused at a fork in the path. Then he chose the right one, Hiroaki following obediently.
"Might be fun to show you around a bit more," he said. "Plus, I could use the break from making more seeds."
More seeds? Thought Hiroaki. As in the dark seeds? Hiroaki really didn't want to see whatever it was this Accursed wanted to show him. He stopped, unwilling to walk any further. But the Accursed grabbed him by the wrist, tugging him along.
"Come, it will be fun," said Miroku. "Don't you want to learn all of our secrets? Isn't that why your little group came down here in the first place? I'll show you everything we've been doing."
"Let me go." He struggled against the man's hold, but the grip was like iron. He felt his wrist bruising, sweat covering him in panic. Hiroaki was terrified of this man. This Accursed he didn't know. He didn't want to see whatever it was this seemingly indifferent man thought was "fun."
Miroku let go. The suddenness of it caused Hiroaki to fall with a cry.
"I'm kidding," mocked Miroku. "You're an easy one to mess with. Don't see how you're going to be any help."
"I don't want to help," said Hiroaki. He hadn't even bothered to get up from the floor, his legs shaking too badly to hold his weight. "I'm not staying around here. I—" He coughed, mouth too dry from fear to keep speaking. It was hard not to vomit.
Miroku crouched in front of him, chin resting in his palm as he gave Hiroaki a blank stare.
"You want to escape?" said Miroku. "Good luck. All entrances are guarded by powerful spells and monsters. You wouldn't last a minute past the miasma line anyway."
"Then how—how did I get in?"
"Hell if I know. Your dad said something about an amulet."
His amulet!
Hiroaki looked at his wrist, only now noting the absence of the amulet. He must have been wearing it when he was brought in, the tincture still in effect. But if it was now gone, that meant his father had identified it as the reason Hiroaki had survived. If that was what happened, then there were two main possibilities. His father had either taken it off and destroyed it or he had kept it to research its composition.
Knowing his father's obsession with knowledge, Hiroaki was betting on the later. Hirotaka wouldn't destroy it until he knew exactly how the amulet worked. Even then, he'd discover it worked in tandem with another spell to successfully repel the miasma. That sort of mystery would be sure to drive him crazy. He wouldn't destroy the amulet until he figured out the entire puzzle, which meant the amulet was likely still intact.
I can escape. Thought Hiroaki. All I need is the proper ingredients to make the tincture, find the amulet and I can make it through the miasma.
His heart soared only to crash a moment later. All he needed to do was find the amulet? Make the tincture? Like that was going to be easy with the Accursed around. And even if he did manage to do the impossible, how was he going to find his way out of the caves? The tunnels were a labyrinth. He was more likely to die wandering the caves as the tincture ticked away the seconds to his death. The thought alone caused him to whimper in fear.
Then something else occurred to him.
"How am I alive now?" he said. "Why is the miasma being pushed back? Why am I not saturated in it?"
"That would be because of the tree," said Miroku, pointing. The large chamber was visible from their hallway, that enormous length of the fig trees roots visible from here. "Keeps the Miasma back. At least most of it. It's a little complicated but that's where I'm supposed to take you."
Hiroaki got to his feet, still feeling weak but happy that he didn't collapse again. His escape plan, shaky though it was, had given him a smidgen of strength.
"Ah, I guess we'll go now," he said.
Miroku cocked his head. "You're no fun. Bounced back faster than I thought you would."
The Accursed walked toward the large chamber, this time Hiroaki following him without prompting. They took the stairs and switchbacks located on the edges of the chamber, slowly making their way down toward the bottom.
Hiroaki kept his eyes peeled this time, making note of what he saw and where it was. There were boxes of supplies, strange runes, and lots of notes littered around the place. More than once he spotted an undead corpse lurking in a corner. Most importantly, he noted the places that looked like they'd keep medicinal supplies as well as a workstation. He'd find what he needed to make the tincture there. Now, if he could find out where his dad kept his amulet. That was something Hiroaki wouldn't be able to replicate.
As the lamplight gleamed off Miroku's pendant, Hirokai had a thought. They knew so little about the Accursed and their plans. If Hiroaki did manage to escape, then he could supply Cain with valuable information.
I need to learn as much as I can.
He swallowed, steeling his nerves before speaking.
"Your, uh, relic. Was Reino's, yes?"
Miroku gave Hiroaki an unimpressed look. "Did we not address this earlier? Don't make me repeat myself."
"Right, sorry." Hiroaki ducked his head, cheeks burning. Stars, this was harder than he thought. He needed direct information. Something new. What did he know already about the relic?
Something hit him with a jolt.
"You can teleport!" he said. One of Reino's ability with the relic had been to create portals. Hiroaki's mind raced at the implications of this. How were they going to protect themselves from this man if he could literally pop up anywhere behind their defenses? How—
"I can't," said Miroku. "That was Reino's little trick. No, I got the ability to see someone's naked soul and essence from the relic. It'll come in handy when we get a hold of that little concubine. Make sure we got what we're looking for."
It took Hiroaki a second to piece together what he was saying.
"Kyoko?" said Hiroaki. "You're after her? But, why?"
"For the Phoenix, of course."
The sinking in Hiroaki's stomach grew worse. So, their theories about the Accursed had been right. They were after Kyoko because of the phoenix. But it sounded like they weren't sure if it was in her essence or not. Which meant Miroku hadn't so much as laid eyes on Kyoko yet. That was good. Hopefully Cain was keeping the guard on Kyoko as strong as possible.
"What do you plan on doing with Rosa?" said Hiroaki.
"I'll let Hirotaka tell you about that."
They had reached the bottom. The whole floor was unnaturally flat, unmarked with the typical stalagmites or boulders that would rest here. The tree root, while smaller here than at the top of the chamber, was still wider than the city hall building in Mosall. It probably stretched for some miles below even where they were.
The strangest part of all this wasn't the smooth floors. It was the protrusion of rock that surrounded the root, forming a separate room that housed it. A door had been set in the stone, heavy and thick with dark runes running along the edge of it. How odd. Who would waste time and effort fitting a door in these caves, especially one so thick?
Goosebumps erupted on his arms, Hiroaki unsure if it was from cold or something else. He had an uneasy feeling just looking at that door. It felt worse than the unease that had gripped him after finding his dad here. Something wasn't right. The air, the world. It felt tilted.
Hiroaki really hoped they weren't going in there.
Miroku slapped Hiroaki's back, forcing him to stumble forward a few steps.
"Here ya go," said Miroku. "Go on in."
"Y-you can't be serious," stuttered Hiroaki. "I can't—I don't want to go in there."
Miroku smiled in response. It caused dread to seep cold thought Hiroaki's veins.
The Accursed smacked Hiroaki on the back again.
"Why so nervous?" drawled Miroku. "It's just a room. Nothing scary in there." He laughed as if at his own private joke.
"I don't want to," said Hiroaki
"And I didn't want to waste time fetching you. Now, get!"
Hiroaki resisted the entire way, digging in his heels as Miroku shoved and dragged him to the door. With every inch closer, the fear in Hiroaki's heart escalated. When they finally made it, Miroku opened the door with one hand, shoving Hiroaki through with the other.
Hiroaki stumbled, scrambling back to escape before he could properly regain his balance. The door closed behind him before he could make it out. It took most of the light with it, throwing Hiroaki into semi-darkness.
Panic took hold of Hiroaki's heart. He pressed his back against the wood door, praying for the ability to phase through it. Gods, he needed out of this room. He needed out. He needed out!
"Son!"
Hiroaki jerked, heart in his throat as he tried to focus. That… that was his dad. He was coming closer. The man looked pleased, either unaware or ignoring Hiroaki's panicked state.
"I'm so glad you came," said Hirotaka "I can't wait to introduce you."
"Introduce?" wheezed out Hiroaki. To who? What did he mean?
Instead of answering, Hirotaka took hold of Hiroaki's shoulder. Hiroaki didn't have the strength to resist anymore, letting himself be dragged forward again. His eyes had adjusted to the dim light, now able to make out shapes and details of the room.
Numerous stations had been set up around the root. They overflowed with bulky machines and pins sticking out of the root, magic flickered from every corner. Most of the room's light came from an intricate rune circle hovering in the center of the roots. It orbited around a spherical bulb embedded in the tree. The second Hiroaki's eye fell on that bulb, they stuck, unable to even blink.
The bulb… it was alive. It pulsed with something inside of it, the surface smooth and murky, like oil on the surface of water. It swirled slowly, obscuring what resided within.
Then for a moment, the oil-like surface cleared, and Hiroaki caught a glimpse of what was inside.
Shivers racked through his body, shaking him so hard he fell to his knees. He emptied his stomach onto the floor, panting to keep breathing. The feeling of dark magic was so powerful. So strong.
"Yes, that is the proper response," said Hirotaka with satisfaction. "Kneel, for you are in the presence of our great Lord Vaith."
Hiroaki forced himself to look up again, stunned at the incredulity of it. Inside that bulb was Vaith, The Dark Djinn's body. The body that should have been destroyed a thousand years ago when Rosa and the first King Hikaru Hizuri defeated him.
Baby Blushweaver is here guys! And he's so freaking cute. But gosh, it's tough not having more than three-hour snatches of sleep at a time. I commend all you mothers with multiples out there. This is my first and I'm worn out! But anyway, baby is healthy, I am healthy. Thank you all for your well wishes and love!
Updates will continue to be sporadic, obviously, but I'm so excited to be where we are now in the story. Should be much easier to go forward now that the train has started to pick up speed.
Also, I did a pic on insta of the three love me girls from this fic. Because I'm evil. Poor Chiori! D:
Oh, also also, I changed the cover photo. Because I could and I'm just happy I don't have a huge baby bump in the way when I'm drawing.
Hope you all had a wonderful holiday season! And thanks as always for reading and reviewing!
-Blushweaver
I can confirm that BB is here and freaking adorable. Hope you had a merry Christmas, and a happy new year!
-Imouto