Chapter Three: Premonition
Mirai had no notion when the worship hall vanished, or when time stood still on its axis, but she felt her mind splinter into a thousand glass shards, the impact searing through her body and making her feel as if she had been struck down by lightning. Intense energy shot up her spine and threatened to split the base of her skull wide open. Countless reflections appeared in her mind's eye at that moment, a current of memories that were nonsensical and strange and difficult to comprehend: a stagnant river, a pair of dark eyes at dawn, a cruel smile, wisps of smoke, an eclipse of the sun – a girl's voice.
You're wiling away in a dream. When will you learn that the world's not a fairy tale?
The current pulled Mirai under, drowning her in a stream of consciousness that was not her own. She was falling straight into oblivion, a spiral of utter nothingness, until she found herself in a nightmarish landscape of white dunes and a starless night sky.
Mirai clutched at the sand, gasping and shaking.
Where am I? She thought with terror. What is this place?
She was exposed to the elements, her body naked and burning against a terrible frost.
A haunting song filled her ears.
Solemn cursed one. She is of eternity, of silence, of coldness, of stillness. Of maitri. She who dwells with maitri knows of the void. She who dwells with maitri knows of death. But she who dances with maitri, she is lost, for she who dances with maitri brings to life the world of death. So dance.
The song sent a shudder down her spine.
Solemn blessed one. She is of eternity, of madness, of heat, of movement. Of life. She who dwells in the light and the dark knows too much. She who dwells with maitri knows of creation. But she who dances with maitri, she is lost, for she who dances with maitri cannot leave the dance and will face the fire. So dance.
A figure appeared against the dunes, cloaked in a black shroud. There was a glint of gold at her forehead and wrists, but Mirai could not perceive her face for there was none. It caused her to recoil in fear.
Come to me, the figure beckoned to her. We must speak.
Mirai felt the sand under her body shift into ice. The scales of a large serpent appeared, slithering under the frozen surface like ink in a bowl of milk. The sight brought Mirai instantly to her feet, but she lost her bearing and fell to her knees once more. The ice cut her skin.
Please, she begged, wrapping arms around herself. Please let me go!
Mirai withdrew from the shrouded figure, dragging herself back limply even though the ice split her skin. But the figure drew nearer, holding her hands out. Above each palm, an orb of concentrated power was summoned: one white, the other black.
In a world where flowers rise from the earth, birds fly to the heavens, and ashes crystallize into diamonds, the faceless woman gazed down at her, what can be expected of your soul, I wonder?
The figure clapped her hands together and the great serpent burst from the ice, its bloody maw open and revealing white fangs that were razor-sharp and needle thin. It dove straight for Mirai.
No!
Mirai awoke with a start. In her mind, the snake had her in its jaws, sinking teeth into her flesh as it devoured her, but the strong scent of incense curled under her nose, behaving as a sharp stimulant that brought fresh tears to her eyes. She coughed violently, the sudden exertion producing a sharp pain down the length of her spine. It was enough to dispel the nightmare.
Her mind, still flowing with strange imagery, slowly began to subside into wakefulness.
She blinked.
She had been asleep. For how long, she wasn't sure.
All she knew was that she was very weak and warm and realized she was tucked under a heavy blanket. Underneath the blanket, she discovered she was still dressed in her ceremonial robes. The folds of her blue overcoat were crushed, the fabric light and gossamer to the touch.
Her hands, which had been folded neatly over her chest in sleep, were adorned with twin bangles of twisted gold. They vibrated against her skin, emitting a soft sound akin to ringing medicine bowls.
Mirai peered at them groggily. Are they purring? She wondered, blinking back her sleep.
As the room came into focus, she was surprised to see glowing mandalas hovering in the air above her. They were alchemical in nature, a mixture of symbols and constellations. Some of them she recognized, the ouroboros in particular, but their arrangement was foreign to her. They moved with the same mysterious grace as the glamour created in the worship hall, but the mandalas were much slower and more dreamlike, creating a celestial canopy against the dark ceiling.
Mirai stared at them, confused.
There was something strange about this room. She had no recollection of the formless walls or the plain tatami floor. Stirring from her futon, she was shocked to find Nagisa sitting closely beside her with head bent forward and eyes closed, chanting over her hands which were held in a sacred mudra. The eldest korai was chanting nonstop, barely above a whisper.
"Nagisa?" Mirai's voice trembled. "What are you doing?"
But the korai remained in a trance, her lips moving in a blur. They were surrounded by candles and stalks of burning agarwood. Mirai reached out with the intention of shaking the older girl, but a voice stopped her.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," it said abruptly. "She's holding everything suspended in a moment of time. We will need this chance to prepare you for what is to come."
Mirai jumped to her feet, alive and alert once more.
"Who's there?" she demanded. "Show yourself!"
An overwhelming presence filled the room. It dispelled the candle flames and incense with a powerful gust of salty air. Unnervingly, Mirai watched as a fountain of water erupted from Nagisa. It was vast and luminous and sprouted like the wings of a giant bird from her back, rising high above her. Its colossal shape changed color from sea green to warm turquoise to a cold iron gray. White foam unraveled around a formless face. It was this that spoke with a woman's voice.
"I am Nagisa's spirit bond, Umi," said the water. "The great ocean that resides in her soul. Much like the wildfire that lives in yours."
Mirai pressed hands to her chest. A spirit lived inside of her?
The water rushed into the room, curling in frothy waves that threatened to beach against the walls. It snuffed out all the candles, leaving the glowing mandalas as the only light source in the now darkened room. Its current swirled and buckled, forcing Mirai to back against the wall with arms bracing for impact.
"You're – You're a tsunami!" she said, gasping in shock. "Why would Nagisa have a bond with you?"
The water spirit burst forward, forming a wave that engulfed Mirai, causing her to yelp in alarm. But the moment the water touched her skin, it was warm and gentle. It flowed up her body and snaked around her shoulders, pausing in front of her eyes as though it were regarding her with extreme reverence. Mirai was startled to find it radiating with affection. It was almost sisterly.
"All korai of the shrine have a pact with a spirit. We are what give you your unique gifts," spoke Umi in a soft tone. "The union of a soul and a spirit is what makes you a korai."
Mirai, despite the chaos unfolding in front of her, couldn't shake the memory of the haunting dream. The enigmatic figure, the two orbs of power, the serpent, and the eerie song lingered in her mind, leaving her with a sense of urgency. What did it all mean?
"How would you know?" Mirai bit back, feeling small. "Who gives you the right to speak on Nagisa's behalf?"
The tsunami travelled in a rippling current around the room.
"She is me, and I am her. We are one and the same," said Umi. "You cannot separate us without losing the other."
Despite the spirit's warm voice, Mirai could not reconcile the natural disaster with her friend and mentor whom she'd known for over a millennia. Mirai glanced at the eldest korai, torn. Nagisa was the calm, serene one of the sect who was very much the balm to Mirai's open blisters. Where the others may have gotten lost in a dispute over which dance to perform, which ablutions to give, or which stars to interpret, Nagisa saw things through with a gentle knowingness that cut through all the chatter. She had always been motherly in her affection.
To think that this writhing ocean was a part of her was unthinkable.
Does this mean my power is sentient too? Mirai thought with a sudden shock.
"You seem troubled by this," said the spirit, noticing her discomfort.
"That's a severe understatement," Mirai replied.
Her gaze lingered on Nagisa, who continued to chant in a trance, and for the first time, Mirai questioned the true nature of the bonds that connected them all. Was there more to their power than they ever understood?
"Where am I? What's happened? I…" she licked her lips, "I remember I was in the worship hall and the shimrasen, it–" All memories returned to her at once like a great flood, and she gasped. "It broke!" She remembered the screams of a child and how quickly the dragons had turned into dust, throwing the worship hall into a sudden upheaval. "What's happened to the others? Are they safe?"
"Do not fret. Time has not passed since you lost consciousness," said Umi. "Your companions are safe. But our primary focus is you. We must prepare you for the challenges that lay ahead. You won't have time to brace yourself once the spell unravels."
"Prepare me for what?" Then, more deliberately, Mirai asked again. "Who are you?"
"Nagisa and I – we were the first korai of the shrine. We knew what it is like to stand in the presence of Tanasuya, the first divine blessing. We watched her take up arms against the great threat of misfortune in the earliest days known to man. We have since watched over every divine blessing that has stood up to answer her call, including you."
There was a crushing silence.
"No," said Mirai in desperation, shaking her head. Her mind reeled, grappling with the enormity of the situation. How could she, a mere priestess, be chosen as a divine blessing? That was the role of Tanasuya, the spirit of mercy. The one for whom everything in the shrine was centered around! Mirai had always assumed the deity herself still resided in her place of worship, called upon to materialize in moments of need. To suggest that one of her priestess was responsible for taking charge threw the whole construct into question.
Mirai refused to believe this.
"You have the wrong person."
The water spirit frothed and foamed, churning onto itself like a great tidal wave.
"You bear the mark," said Umi simply. "Her power is now yours."
The spirit extended a tendril of ocean spray much like a finger, pointing at her face. Mirai caught her reflection in the water, seeing a symbol etched between her brows. A hollow diamond with a smaller diamond inside of it. The shape was reminiscent of an all-seeing eye. It was vertical and cat-like with lines down the bridge of her nose. It was also gold and warm to the touch and shined brightly against her skin. It pulsated, giving her a dull headache.
"It is the mark of the divine blessing."
"I don't believe you, spirit. None of this makes sense! If what you're saying is true, then why not Tane or Nagisa?" Mirai blurted in confusion. "They are far more accomplished than I'll ever be. Why have they not been chosen?"
"It is not for us to question. The mark chooses the rightful successor always."
This caught Mirai off guard.
"Just how many divine blessings have there been?"
The water spirit grew silent, spiraling into a mesmerizing pattern through the constellations and sun dials up above. There was a heavy sigh.
"Ages go by in which the reign of the seven korai is sufficient. Their techniques are capable of dispersing darkness and maintaining peace. But there is an old enemy, an ancient curse, that threatens to undo the delicate balance in the world. This curse is our one true foe and the reason Tanasuya came into being in the first place." The water spirit morphed itself, bringing the silhouettes of countless young women to the surface, all shown in varied degrees of armored dress. "One hundred divine blessings have come and gone before you, each chosen the same as you have been. A hundred more may be chosen after you."
Mirai withdrew from the spirit in shock.
"One…one hundred blessings…you mean, there were a hundred other priestesses who answered her summons? All korai? All from this shrine?"
The water spirit seemed to nod in confirmation.
"What happened to them all?"
"That is not within our power to know," said Umi with a deep sadness. "We prepare the divine blessings for their mission. Nothing more, nothing less. Just as it always has been."
Mirai shook her head dazedly, searching for guidance in the elder korai.
"Nagisa…"
"She will not remember this, I'm afraid. The seal prohibits us from retaining memory or the spell will not work. We are allowed these precious few moments to share what we know with the one who bears the mark, that is all." Umi curled around Nagisa. "But we love you dearly. It is no simple task sending our dear ones into the unknown." The ocean changed into a deep gray as if conveying immense grief. "Please know this."
Umi spoke with a genuine tenderness that gave Mirai pause. It sounded so much like the eldest priestess.
Fighting back her feelings of overwhelm, Mirai gathered her composure, willing herself to stay calm.
"You say there is an ancient curse. Is this why the veil is failing?" She asked the spirit. "What does this all mean?"
"The curse has a name, but we dare not utter it here. All we can tell you is that it endangers every living and nonliving thing in existence. It has a voracious hunger and will stop at nothing to consume everything in its path. Its violence knows no equal."
"And…you want me to stop it? How?"
"You have been bestowed all of Tanasuya's gifts. Her true nature will reveal itself to you in time. As her living vessel, you shall have access to her divine power."
The water spirit paused.
"Oh dear. We are nearly out of time." The mandalas were starting to fade, the glamour already dissolving at the edges. "I'm afraid the seal will not hold much longer."
"Please," Mirai begged the water spirit. "I don't have what it takes to do this! I don't know how to fight an enemy with no name!"
"You have and you will. It is in your nature to vanquish darkness. Do not lose heart. The three realms conspire to aid you in this task. To find the answers you seek, you must turn inward. Only then will everything become clear." The water spirit filled the room, foamy white tendrils sweeping into a large vortex. "Things have already been set in motion. This is where we part ways…for now."
As the ocean with its mournful hue began to quickly dissipate, Nagisa stirred from her trance with a sudden gasp. Her eyes, momentarily clear, met Mirai's with a glimmer of recognition. In that fleeting instant, Mirai saw the familiar warmth that had comforted her through countless challenges.
"Mirai?" She croaked.
"Nagisa! We're in danger!" Mirai gushed. "The shrine – the korai – it's not what it seems!"
"Mirai wait!" Nagisa screamed as the ocean roiled to its full height.
She reached out, but before their hands could bridge the gap, Umi surged forward, reclaiming Nagisa in a swift embrace. Mirai's outstretched fingers met an invisible barrier, the force preventing her from reaching the elder korai. Their reunion slipped through her fingers like water, leaving her with a palpable ache.
"No, please!" cried Mirai, begging the other priestess.
Don't leave me!
The child's voice rang loudly inside her ears again, drowning out her own cries for help.
"Beware the shadowed abyss, a ravenous void that devours the essence of all it touches," bellowed the water spirit, its voice booming through the chamber. It echoed in Mirai's ears and in her chest, clear as a brass bell. "Like a silent tempest, it consumes light and life, leaving naught but an echoing emptiness in its wake. Step cautiously, for the black void knows no mercy, swallowing dreams and hopes in its relentless hunt."
The sound of crashing waves filled the room.
"Farewell, dear one. May you be successful!"
The water spirit engulfed the room in a whirlpool of frothing sea spray, taking with it Nagisa, the mandalas, the candles and incense.
Mirai found herself suddenly weightless, dropping from the room and landing harshly on a cold stone floor. The lapping waters of the tsunami quickly vanished, leaving her in utter darkness. All traces of Nagisa and the strange shimrasen were gone. It had a startling finality to it that made Mirai want to claw her fingernails into the stone and go back to the quiet life in the shrine. She would never venture to the gate again if it meant brining her sisters back. Panick threatened to overwhelm her as she wracked her mind over everything she had just learned.
There were others. More korai who were brought to the shrine.
One hundred girls who had been chosen as the living vessel of Tanasuya.
Did this mean there was no Tanasuya? No spirit of mercy that inhabited the shrine? The very thought angered Mirai. Why would the gods' favor be carried out by her sect and not the divine blessing herself?
More importantly, what had happened to all the living vessels before her?
Mirai clutched at her chest which was racing now with adrenaline.
Then there was another disconcerting notion. The possibility and real probability that a spirit shared her body and had a will of its own. If a natural disaster could take over the mind of a korai, then what else had they not known about all this time?
Who is it that shares my soul? Mirai wondered in a growing panic.
"Anzu? Machi? Anybody! Can you hear me?" She shouted in vain. "Shuka!"
Her throat started to constrict, and her eyes were suddenly hot and wet with tears.
"Where am I?" She cried in panic.
Mirai started to hyperventilate. The tiara on her head was suddenly too tight and her robes heavy and stifling. She was unaccustomed to this weak feeling. If she didn't know any better, she'd say it was what it felt to be human. Her body felt denser than it had ever before and vibrated with an electrical buzz at her temples and wrists.
Was this the effect of the mark?
Mirai touched her brow.
"I have to find the others," she decided, collecting her courage. What good would it do to wallow here in the dark? The shimrasen was in threads and the shrine's inhabitants were in danger. She had to warn Tane, the only one capable of making sense of this bizarre predicament and setting things right before they were all exposed to the truth.
Bearing this in mind, Mirai calmed down. Taking a deep breath until her diaphragm expanded, she let it out slowly through the mouth. The breath: the first principle of authentic presence. When all else fails, start with the breath. How many times had Nagisa told her this during training? Mirai did this again, drawing in more air into her lungs than before. It was the first gateway to clarity.
After a moment, the panic subsided enough for Mirai to gather her bearings once more.
Reaching out, she felt around blindly until her palms connected with the smooth wooden surface of a wall. Inching her way against it, she found purchase of an iron torch. Waving her hand over it, the torch burst into flame. It was then that she discovered she was standing in a darkened hallway. She lit several more before she realized with tremendous relief that she was still in the shrine.
But, upon closer inspection, Mirai saw that it had taken on a drastically different appearance. The hallway, decorated in strange murals that adorned the walls, was ancient. Gilded scales flickered under the torchlights, causing Mirai to recount her nightmare with the serpent. Trailing further down the hall, she was disturbed to find a figure in the scene. The woman was shown standing tall with arms open and palms facing the heavens. Long, white fair ran past her shoulders, unbound and windswept in curls. Falcon feathers draped her figure, each painted in black, red, and gold, to form six imposing wings.
She was holding two orbs: one white, the other black.
A flash of the nightmare returned to her and Mirai winced.
Did Tanasuya, perhaps, appear to her in the dream?
No, this isn't her. It couldn't be, Mirai dismissed the notion quickly. Of all the icons painted or carved in the shrine, none of them had portrayed the divine blessing in such a diabolic way. Tanasuya was akin to the sun goddess, Amaterasu. Bright, fair, beautiful, and filled with evident goodness. This figure was raw and obscure with a presence that was more curse than blessing. An angel of death.
Mirai abandoned it hastily.
Where these the quarters of the shrine that had been lost to them since antiquity? The artwork was primal, rudimentary – unlike anything else kept inside the shrine's vast rooms. Mirai ventured gingerly down the hall, noticing there were rooms on either side that were windowless and dark. Each door frame bore an inscription at the top, a slab of ceramic with markings carved into the surface, but in a language that she could not read. The air was dry with a slightly acrid odor of dust and decay.
Drawing a sleeve to her nose, Mirai pressed on.
"Why would this place be sealed?" She wondered aloud. "Who was this for?"
Torchlight flickered against something in the room to her right. Pausing, Mirai drew closer. A shiny reflection caught her eye and, as she approached it, she stumbled upon a wall filled with clothing. Gold brocade had shined against the firelight, revealing decadent robes of the finest silk hanging neatly along the wall. Some were embroidered, some with tassels, others with fur trimmings or precious stones sewn into the collar. They would have been mesmerizing were it not for the dust coating the fibers, or how they reminded Mirai of the missing korai that once wore them.
She vacated the room immediately.
The hallway was long. As Mirai passed by, the torches on either side of her burst into flame at her beckoning, shedding light on the strange corridor. At times it curved to either side or ran perfectly straight, but it was several minutes before she began to wonder if she was trapped inside a maze. Eventually, the air grew damp. The heavy smell of earth filled the hall which was odd. But even more so, the ceiling was covered by a network of tightly woven branches. They were filled with silver-green leaves.
"Taizo."
Mirai made a grand sweep. Every torch in the hall was set to a bright blaze. In a sudden fury, she took off down the passage, feeling her robes whip behind her as she ran. If the shrine belonged to Tanasuya, then by extension, it now belonged to her living vessel. Mirai trusted that her steps would guide her to the reliquary.
"You will take me straight to the kodama," she ordered the shrine.
The hallway creaked and moaned. It felt as if it were on the ocean, tossed in a raging storm. More branches slithered across the ceiling, causing the wooden panes to buckle and squeak in protest. Large roots protruded from the stone floor, forcing her to climb over them until she was nearly out of breath.
Mirai pressed on in the hopes that it was Taizo's way of reaching her and was relieved to see the familiar carved doors to the reliquary come into view.
The worship hall was a haunting reflection of its former self. The once pristine altar now lay crumbled at the feet of the sacred tree. Taizo had morphed into an unrecognizable entity – all gnarled and twisted bark. His trunk had tripled in size, his leafy canopy stretching across the ceiling in an overabundance of leaves. The branches, now wild and overgrown, obscured any view of the open sky.
The sight frightened Mirai.
This was the heart of the shrine. The last place where her sisters had been seen.
Now, it was empty. Lifeless.
Reaching for an iron torch, she freed it from its notch against one of the arched pillars and strode across the dais.
"Taizo, I demand answers!" She called out in anger. She tore the peach blossom tiara from her head and discarded it, inadvertently freeing her hair from its ragged braid. Petals trailed behind her, falling onto the cracked dais, as she approached the sacred altar. "What's the meaning of this? Abandoning your post while a threat looms over the shrine?" She chastised him, her voice hot with emotion. "Do you intend to stay silent while we're under threat? Have you forsaken us?"
The tree had lost its vibrancy. It behaved like a greedy vine, growing and expanding without sense. At this rate, it would take over the whole room with its snake-like roots. They traveled across the ground, reaching for Mirai's ankles. She quickly stepped back.
"What's happened to you? You're taking over the place."
The face carved into the bark remained frozen.
"Taizo, please! Hear me! Why aren't you responding?" Noticing the dark rivulets of sap bleeding from its closed eyes, she gasped. "Oh no! You're hurt. Who has wounded you?"
Shaking now, Mirai forced herself not to lose her nerve.
"Taizo, you answer me right this second or so help me," she raised the torch, holding it dangerously close to his branches which were dry and ripe for tinder, "I will burn you to the ground, you worthless twig!"
Dark laughter broke out in the hall.
Startled by the sound, Mirai felt a sudden shift in the energy around her. It was as if the very air was pulsating with a malevolent force, and overwhelming darkness that eclipsed anything she had encountered before. The worship hall was saturated with a powerful cursed energy, a palpable threat that permeated every inch of space. The atmosphere grew dense, suffused with an ominous dread that clung to the air, making it difficult to breathe. Mirai stood frozen, unable to turn. Shadows, thick and foreboding, seemed to writhe in the corners of the hall. There was a shift in the temperature too, and her torchlight flickered against a sudden burst of wind.
The chilling voice drew near, echoing through the worship hall and causing Mirai's heart to race.
"Ah. So, this is how I find you, Tanasuya."
A/N: Thank you, Apple Bloom! I appreciate you so much. :D