Chapter 13
Shin was quiet as he followed her lead down the dark and winding hallways and out of what she now thought of as the heart of Izanami's empire. Rei couldn't stop her brain from spinning as she followed the thin thread of energy that connected them all to Usagi, concentrating on the tiny bit of aura that seemed to spin around her princess, and holding it in focus.
Usagi was close by. She could feel it.
The task helped, eating up most of her capacity for free thought, which was a blessing at the moment. The rest of her mind refused to stop mulling over the information the Goddess had revealed to them. Once the initial hostility had been worked out, the conversation had been refreshingly straightforward and transparent – as far as a conversation with a deity meant. There was no long-winded metaphors or strange symbolism that she needed to puzzle out to understand what was important.
Rei wanted to be surprised at the revelations but didn't have it in her. Suzano-o was the one invading Izanami's realm, not the other way around. And as far as Suzano-o's reputation went, that wasn't a big shocker. The guy hadn't ever been the poster boy for good behavior, and Rei figured he wasn't about to start now.
Izanami hadn't mentioned anything about the silver crystal, but Rei filled in the blanks well enough herself. One of three possibilities was happening right now:
One. He was after the Silver Crystal.
Two. He'd actually stolen the Troopers' armor for his own use. Shin had gone into a bit of detail about the armor history, and it fit that someone else might try to seize the mystical gear for himself. But the fact that Shin was still connected to his armor was either very troubling or a sign that this was the wrong tac. She couldn't figure out which.
Three. He was after both. A scenario that sadly probably fit best. Why not take everything? If he was already going after one type of power, she doubted he'd leave any other type neglected.
According to Izanami, Suzano-o had corrupted the realm of the dead with knock-off zombies that weren't actually dead- the monsters coming after them were very much alive and absolutely didn't belong here, hence the Goddess' irritated invitation to tea and parlance. And, of course, an actual mission that Rei wasn't very happy about: get Suzano-o and his forces out of Izanami's realm, thereby restoring balance to the Underworld.
Of course, Izanami could do this with a wave of her hand probably, but the Goddess had assured them that there were too many other things at play that stayed her hand. In other words: Politics. Divine politics, which was even worse than the regular sort. Suzano-o was hunting them in Izanami's lands, sure. But the Senshi and the Troopers weren't her subjects, and didn't fall under her rule or protection.
Unless Suzano-o directly attacked Izanami's realm or her subjects, a direct assault against him by the Goddess was out of the question. In other words, Politics.
Rei hated politics.
She slowed her pace when a few shadows manifested in the hall ahead of her. She felt more than saw Shin draw up beside her protectively, body tense, fists clenched. But as they passed, the shadows merely drifted aside, pale blue-grey and listless, glowing with their own light.
It was weird seeing the actual creepy denizens of the Goddess' realm merely moving aside to let them pass or pointing them in the right direction. Everything felt wrong. It was difficult to tell enemy from neutrality, and Rei felt her sense of urgency propel her on harder, faster.
She was thankful the Goddess had been able to cleanse some of the poison in her blood, but Izanami had warned them that the longer they remained in the realm of the dead, the worse the poison would become, and the closer they were to the heart of her shrine, the faster it would act.
It wasn't something Izanami had control over. In fact, it was the very thing that had kept her here in the first place, when she had first died and Izanagi had tried to come for her. To the living, the air of the realm of the dead was toxic.
And their inability to transform? A combination of the Underworld not being hospitable to certain sorts of magic and something Suzano-o had done. She didn't know how they'd defeat Suzano-o without their powers. If they didn't defeat Suzano-o, they likely wouldn't get access to their full power. It was a problem that chased its tail.
Rei was practically running when she hit the next corner, anxiety and frustration fueling her as her hair streamed out from behind while she pivoted sharply. The connection to Usagi glowed brighter as they got closer. The priestess comforted herself with the knowledge that she was going to wipe the floor with Suzano-o when they met up again. She was absolutely going to clean his clock. He was going to beg her for mercy.
"Rei, are you all right?"
The tentative call from somewhere behind her slowed her steps, and she realized she'd been grumbling to herself under her breath. Yes, she was in a foul mood, but Shin had been nothing but kind, supportive, and attentive, so she forced herself to pause, take a deep breath, and give him her best smile.
"Yeah. Yes. I'm ok. I'm just…I need to find Usagi, that's all. We need to get to the others so they know what's going on." She was proud of how steady her voice sounded. Beneath her rage, she was frightened.
Clearly, Usagi was in danger. Again. This time, they'd garnered attention from an entire other dimension. It wasn't necessarily the first time they'd gone up against something at a deity level of power, but they hadn't exactly wiped the floor with Chaos either. That win had come at a steep cost that Rei vowed Usagi would never have to pay again.
Now they were in a place that was possibly more dangerous to them than the actual enemy, and things were…off on top of it.
Suzano-o clearly had plans for them but beyond that, everything was a vague guess.
Clearly, the Silver Crystal was at the center of it all, so Rei needed to find Usagi as soon as possible. Because she just…had a bad, bad feeling. She turned, and something of her thoughts must have shown on her face, because Shin put a hand on her shoulder and gave it a squeeze, his face breaking into a sweet smile.
"We'll find her. And your friends Hino," he reassured her. She nodded, and they took off again at a brisk, but more sedate pace. Even as she moved, Rei acknowledged that exhaustion pulled at her. She could feel all the disadvantages working against them.
The Troopers couldn't call on their armor. The Senshi couldn't transform. They were all battered and exhausted, and she couldn't help but feel that they were exactly where the enemy wanted them. She bit her lip as she directed them around another corner, the link with Usagi visibly stronger with each step she took.
Rei set her thoughts aside once again and turned her full focus on simply getting them reunited with their friends. As a group, they'd be stronger. Ami would make logical, intelligent deductions that Rei simply couldn't put together. They'd have a plan. They'd have strength in numbers. They'd have Makoto and Minako. And…she supposed the Troopers as well.
Rei rounded another corner. And crashed face first into something menacing. Icy claws dug into her arms and she cried out in surprised pain as she tried to get her bearings and work herself loose. That only seemed to cause the claws to dig in deeper and she gasped.
Stupid. She knew better than to let herself get distracted.
"Let her go!"
Rei blinked. She'd never once heard Shin raise his voice like that. In the next instant, whatever was holding her shrieked and she dropped like a stone, landing on her rear. Rei scrambled to put space between herself and her attacker, but a pair of legs now bearing the light blue plating of underarmor blocked her view.
Shin had managed to get his undergear up.
He leapt forward and tackled the monster around the middle, taking them both to the ground with an angry yell. Rei jumped to her feet, pulling ofuda from her sleeve and fanning them out as she waited for an opportunity to strike.
Shin and the…whatever it was rolled around on the floor, tussling, making it difficult for her to get a clear shot or a full glimpse of what they were up against. It looked like it might actually be made of ice. She pursed her lips as she eyed their surroundings, praying nothing else tried to sneak up on them. Shin's fists flew, and the monster shrieked. Something cracked, and then shattered with an almost musical tinkle. There was another roar, and then more cracking and shattering. The normally calm warrior had landed himself on top of the monster now and pummeled it mercilessly.
After a few moments, it stopped moving and simply lay on the floor, limp. Panting, Shin jumped up, and then ran over to her.
"Are you alright?! That thing came out of nowhere!" He put his hands gently on her shoulders and looked her arms over carefully, wincing. "There's a lot of blood, but I think the wounds don't need stitching."
He was staring at her with such concerned sincerity that Rei couldn't help but melt. She gave him the sweetest smile she could muster, gently stilled his grip on her arm by placing her hand on his, and did her best to reassure him.
"I'm totally fine. Just a few scratches, I promise."
He flushed a bit, even as he looked skeptical, but instead reached down, taking her hand, and pulling them along the hall again. "Let's keep together. I know we want to find everyone, but we should be more cautious."
And now he was shouldering the blame for her stupid screw up with her. Rei felt herself flush, but then forced herself to put it aside. She'd been stupid, but beating herself up over it now wasn't going to help her keep vigilant.
She let him hold her hand as they made their way down the hall, telling herself that it was all right to reassure him with a little hand holding. He seemed so anxious. She definitely didn't need anything like that. Not at all.
Rei forced herself to be patient as she followed the thread to Usagi. They were very close now. So close. Shin stilled them both at the sound of voices and a commotion ahead. He signaled her with his hands and crept first, slinking around a corner.
Rei followed his lead, ofuda at the ready again as she moved in behind him. Shin snarled, leaping out with a growl.
And a feminine shriek pierced the air.
Followed by a familiar male voice.
"SHIN?! What the hell are you doing sneaking around like that?! You nearly gave Mizuno a heart attack!" Rei snapped the ofuda away and hustled around the corner to set things straight. Shin had pulled up short, his hands up, palms out in front of him while poor Ami clutched her chest, panting, her eyes still wide.
"S-Sorry Mizuno! We were ambushed before – thought we'd get the drop on the monsters instead this time." Rei let out a huff of air as Shin rushed to reassure everyone, unable to stop her smile. He was kind of a dork. But more than that?
He was kind of adorable.
