Bao and Liang returned to the grove at the break of dawn. The previous events that entailed their mission had expended much of their energy to the brink of collapse. Perhaps it was sheer fervor that preserved what little strength they had left. Their ultimate goal in retrieving Makaskas served as the source from which they drew strength to move forward but upon achieving a different end than what was expected, they finally succumbed to fatigue.
Liang was barely able to keep her balance on the horse. Bao had to occasionally check behind him for the nine tailed fox who was still unconscious since being rescued from the castle.
When they arrived at the grove, Yachi was patiently waiting for them. The old man was sitting outside of Bao's tent, a short smoking pipe long extinguished between his lips. After seeing Bao and Liang, Yachi intercepted them immediately.
"I mean no trouble, Yachi, but I would owe you a great favor if you tether this horse for me," Liang said as soon as the old man arrived to greet them. She dismounted. Her knees almost betrayed her fall and she would have been coiled on the mud had it not been for her taut grip on the reins which she passed to Yachi after regaining her balance.
"Leave this to me." Yachi took the reins. "Just go and rest."
"I am most grateful," Liang said, heaving a yawn.
"Before you sleep, write me two binding seals. There's parchment and ink on my table," Bao requested.
Liang merely lifted her arm up and waved her hand for approval as she marched toward the tent lethargically.
Bao dismounted from his horse afterwards and walked with Yachi toward the stables.
"How is Nami?" Bao asked.
"She is resting in her tent," Yachi answered as he pulled the horse with great effort, mostly just trying to keep the horse from whickering every few steps. It proved difficult with the horse that was not familiar with him. He sighed. "I gave her ointments for her abrasions and an herbal potion to help her sleep. She could just fully heal herself once she regains her strength."
Bao nodded absentmindedly. The previous events lingered inside his mind. Deep inside he kept on thinking about the spontaneity of his current situation—how he least expected to return to the grove with a fox spirit and a missing ally. Not everything turned out bad despite the circumstances because now he had come across an exorcist albeit a curious one.
"Bao…" Yachi pulled the snow leopard from his thoughts. He held his thoughts until they arrived at the stables where he could finally subtract his attention from the horse. "Where is Makaskas?" he asked.
"I don't know," Bao answered plaintively. He took the unconscious nine tailed fox in his arms and seated her on a low stack of square bales. Her nine tails dangled loosely and entangled with Bao's arms as he straightened it like disheveled threads. "But we will soon find out as soon as she wakes up," he said after he finished.
"I was curious about how you set out to retrieve Nami but instead arrived with this fox spirit. Before Nami passed out in her quarter, she asked me to bury someone. We didn't know her name." Yachi enclosed himself with the horse inside the stable and began taking off its saddles and pouches. "I don't recognize this horse," he said.
Bao shot a glance at the white horse, remembering Liang merely picking it for the dried pork it had in its possession. Then he leaded his own horse to its confine before taking off its accessories.
"It's the exorcist's spoil. We caught fire with Shinsou's wolves."
Yachi was surprised for a moment. "Was the exorcist seen displaying her power?"
"There are no survivors." Bao turned and leaned against the wooden railing, arms folded. There was much inside his head, displayed by the irked look on his face.
Yachi opened the enclosure to exit and bolted the wooden door behind him. "That cannot be good. We could all be at risk getting found."
"The villagers know our whereabouts. If they were going to betray us for gold, they would have done it long ago," Bao said confidently. He pushed back to stand up and stretched his limbs, yawning. He vaulted over the stable door and grabbed an empty bucket which he used to refill the horses' water.
"Perhaps things would be different now that they have seen an exorcist…" Yachi's voice was low. He was unsure about his own statement but he lived long enough to see the many faces of men. Treachery was a common sight and after knowing the truth about the fall of the temples, Yachi feared that betrayal would come from no other than their kind. As it happened once, it will happen again, he thought.
"If anything, it should give them hope," Bao said straightforwardly. "The exorcist knows rites from the knowledge of old. That alone makes her very powerful and extremely lethal to the Guren. Once the world is made known of her existence, she would become a beacon of hope for mankind. We could rally the clans in hiding. Here in Fukamori alone there are hundreds of bands and rogues."
Yachi was quiet and in the silence that ensued, Bao noticed something bothering the old farmer.
"I assumed you would be delighted by the possibilities brought by the mere existence of that exorcist," Bao said.
"Yes, well…" Yachi sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. Then he looked at Bao curiously, eyes narrowing to slits. "Bao…did you know how the temples fell?" he asked.
Bao frowned. He did not expect Yachi to ask him that question so randomly. There were too many bitter memories concerning the five great tragedies.
"Yes," he answered with a sigh.
"Liang told me and I could not stop thinking about it." Yachi sat on a stack of hay beside the unconscious fox spirit. He could bear to stand no longer, not with his frail knees that were growing weaker by the months. "Perhaps if we want to convince her to join our side, we should approach her differently—appeal to her correctly. I don't believe she would risk her life for the valor of defeating the tiger or reclaiming the stolen kingdoms, no."
"I don't suppose she would. She harbors great hatred for the previous sovereigns." Bao recalled the moment involving Emperor Dai's tombstone.
"Or the entirety of mankind," Yachi corrected. "Don't you think perhaps twenty years ago she would have rallied with the moving order of exorcists for the battle of Long Zhou? She is from the north."
Bao opened his mouth to speak but did not get the chance as Yachi continuously delivered his statement. There was a building ire in his voice as he finally had an epiphany of why mankind was in ruins.
"She told me, Bao, she did." Yachi constrained the bitter feelings that poked at his throat. "That the five kingdoms long abandoned them. It wasn't enough that the sovereigns neglected their duty to protect them. It was men who stormed their temples and slew their elders."
"I know," Bao said no more after that.
Yachi took a moment to breathe and let the anger dissipate. Once he was calm, he spoke again. "I remember the first raid in Akako. There was no word about the four temples under siege yet. Five horsemen…" Yachi opened his palm to emphasize the number. "Only five horsemen came riding inside Akako. Emperor Dai had them killed and took great pride in it. I took great pride in it as well but what is there to be proud of when those horsemen had already slain Akako's oracle and acolytes? They were our direct connection with the village deity and the temples."
"Yachi, we all share the same tragedies—"
"Yes," Yachi interjected, "Yet we experienced it differently. You were bare to the truth while we were fooled by our emperor."
"What does it matter how it truly happened? It has happened and now it is in our hands if we want to undo the terrors Zhaohu brought."
Yachi sighed, letting go of the pointless anger. "Yes. You're right. How foolish of me."
Bao stepped out of the stables, pausing for a moment. He understood what Yachi was feeling. It was all too familiar to him but he did not let that corrupt his purpose. It was true enough that this was the fault of mankind but they don't have to suffer the consequences if there's still a chance for redemption.
"I'll retrieve the seals," Bao said, "Watch the fox spirit for me."
Yachi nodded but did not look at Bao.
When Bao arrived at his tent, Liang was fast asleep slumped on the table. Her hand still held the brush wet with ink and underneath her head was the written binding seal. Although it seemed like she had fallen asleep right after finishing the charm, she still had time to empty a bottle of wine which was shamelessly gripped by her left hand.
Bao walked over to Liang and lifted her head up to get the seals. The ink was still wet when Liang had fallen asleep on top of it which slightly smudged the characters and stuck on her cheek. The snow leopard took a heavy breath in before peeling the seal off Liang's face. She did not even flinch.
After retrieving the seals, he took a coil of rope from one of the crates and went back to the stables where Yachi was still deep in thought. He could not blame the old man for suddenly feeling ill-tempered. Years not knowing the full truth would irk Bao all the same.
"Help me bind this nine-tailed fox." Bao invited Yachi in an attempt to distract the old man from his bitter feelings.
Yachi got up immediately. "I'll hold the seals for you."
Bao passed the seals and he uncoiled the rope.
"I've seen one of these before. Our oracle's shrine had tens of these, woven on rope and dangled like tassels."
"That one's different," Bao said without taking his eyes off the fox spirit. He began wrapping her in rope from the waist to torso. "The seals you see in shrines and doors are warding seals. That, you hold, is binding. It suppresses magic and petrifies shadows."
Yachi was curious. "What if this was used on an exorcist, will that affect them in any way?" he asked.
"Yachi, why weren't you sent to the eastern temple to practice exorcism?" Bao answered with a question.
Yachi kept his eyes on the rectangular parchment, tracing the smudged brush strokes with his finger. He smiled at the thought of himself being an exorcist—writing seals, weaving flags and performing magic. "Like any family, I held the burden of inheriting the lands and continuing the bloodline."
"You're the second-born son, then," Bao deduced.
"Unfortunately," Yachi said. "Our family treated the exorcists with highest honor. At every harvest, a portion would always go to the eastern temple. My parents were so proud of their firstborn son whose path was paved into becoming an exorcist. I grew up being fascinated by the idea of becoming an exorcist myself and when the oracle revealed I was godkissed, I immediately wanted to follow my brother's footsteps but I was not allowed."
"You were given the life of a deity," Bao chuckled. He tightened the rope and secured it with a knot then he took the binding seals from Yachi and placed it on the rope and forehead of the fox spirit. He recited a simple prayer and the marks of the seal lit red before returning to its black color.
"I'm not aware of a deity's life," Yachi said.
"Think of us as heaven's pawns. We are sent to villages to bless and watch over them while heaven and its gods lavish in endless celebrations. The lifestyle of the Guren is not so different from the gods in heaven." Bao scoffed after remembering the mandate of heaven declaring to close its gates instead of aiding the war. "Each and every one of the gods hiding in heaven is a spineless weakling." Bao growled.
"It was never clear to me why the gods left us," Yachi said.
"They're terrified of Zhaohu," Bao said. "When the exorcists were wiped out, heaven knew they could not win against Zhaohu and his shadows. The tiger had allies much more ancient than any of us. So they acted like any coward would—hide."
"But they're gods, are they not?"
Bao sneered, nodding his head reproachfully. "They—" he cut himself immediately and corrected, "—we are merely the counterpart of shadows, Yachi. We're nothing but spirits that feed on Yang energy and use our power positively. Exorcists still hold dominion over us but because we are born of Yang, we are their natural allies."
"Reality becomes ever stranger to an ignorant fool like myself." Yachi chortled gleefully.
"It is not your burden to know these things unless you want to become an exorcist," Bao said, "But questions are never ending. Only the primordial gods know the answer to everything."
"I see."
"Which is why the first principle of becoming an exorcist is to devote your duty to this world and this world only."
Yachi looked to Bao's tent where Liang was passed out peacefully. Then he looked to Bao who was trying his best to stay awake.
"You go ahead and rest, Bao," Yachi said. "I'll watch the fox spirit. The seal will prevent her from doing anything cunning, no?"
"It should keep her from using magic," Bao said. "Thank you, Yachi." He walked back to his tent.
Yachi occupied the bale in front of the nine tailed fox. He was fixing the ruffles of his tunic when his eyes caught the fiery glow of the fox spirit's eyes. She was awake.
~
There was an old man in front of Asagiri. She could sense his godkissed essence, atrophied to dormancy. When Asagiri first moved, she felt the ache of her body—her overexerted joints, her burning muscles and the sear of cuts on her skin. Then she felt the constriction of the rope against her body.
She was seated on a bale of hay awkwardly, her neck stiff for remaining in the wrong position for too long. She lifted herself up lethargically and rested her back against the stack of hay. The old man flinched at Asagiri's sudden movement, cautious or afraid of what she might do next.
A rectangular paper was stuck on Asagiri's forehead, dangling irritably in front of her face. She attempted to blow it away but the piece of parchment merely flailed but never loosened.
She looked at the old man again. He seemed to be relaxed until Asagiri shuffled from her seat, attempting to break free from the ropes. She conjured foxfire to burn her binding but realized that something was blocking her spirit from using magic. Then she realized that the paper stuck on her head was a binding talisman.
"Impossible…" Asagiri whispered.
The old man paid her no mind but his thin, silver brow lifted up in curiosity.
"There are no more exorcists," Asagiri said and jutted forward, sniffing wildly in the air. "This place reeks of godkissed essences…" then she looked at Yachi with eyes of luminous fire. "And yours is faint."
"I trust you know why you're here?" the old man asked.
Asagiri struggled, testing the rigidity of the rope. She was bound once and sealed twice. Escaping by force was impossible.
"I don't know," she shrugged. "Why am I here?"
The old man got up and walked at the edge of the stable. "In that we are matched so if you want answers as much as I do, then I suggest you behave yourself until your captors awaken." He unknotted a rope secured on a wooden mast and began tugging on it. A bell resonated discordantly.
From the tents, came children of varying ages. Some could not have been more than five years old and some were young men and women. They assembled in front of the stables where the bell jangled loudly. It was jarring to hear especially with Asagiri heightened sense of sound.
A murmur came from the children as their eyes were all focused on Asagiri. A young boy even attempted to approach her but was stopped by the old man before he could come close enough.
"There will be a few reassignments for today's chores, children," the old man announced. "The stables is strictly prohibited. There shall be no one to approach this area, understood?"
The children agreed.
"The group assigned to clean the stables and feed the horses will be divided to kitchen duty and weaving. That is all."
After relaying his message, the old man went back to Asagiri and sat in front of her. His face was perpetually calm, eyes like slits and mouth curved to a subtle smile.
"I wish to speak with my captors immediately," Asagiri said and stretched her arms forcing the rope to loosen all in vain.
"They have just gone to bed and shall awaken later in the day." The old man opened his eyes, peering into the cuts and bruises of Asagiri's skin. "Our healer shall awaken at the same time. She could tend to your wounds. For now, since you are already awake, I suggest you eat breakfast once the children have done preparing it."
Asagiri paused her struggle. "Spare me your pity. I do not want your food."
"It is not a matter of sympathy," the old man sighed. "Even prisoners are fed. If it hurts your pride accepting it as a guest, then feel free to accept it as a prisoner. Either way, you will be served breakfast whether you choose to eat it or not. And afterwards, we will wait."
Asagiri scoffed and lied back on the stack of hay, recuperating. If she was going to plan her escape, she will need her strength at full potential. She withdrew interaction from the old man, preparing her mind for bargaining later. She forged lies and reserved it inside her head. She observed the grove and the possible point of exits and imagined the worst case scenarios.
She waited until breakfast was delivered to them but refused to eat when she could not serve herself. She waited until her rice porridge had gone cold and stale. She waited until it was time for the midday meal she did not consume. She waited with nothing but the unchanging face of the old man keeping watch of her. Until finally, her captors exited the tent.
The first to come out was the scruffy woman with the peculiar garments. Then she was followed by the snow leopard. Both of them immediately headed toward the stables where the old man surrendered his space for the twosome to occupy.
When they arrived, the first thing the woman noticed was the bowl of untouched porridge on a bale of hay beside Asagiri. The woman took it without second thought, brushing over Asagiri and that's when she sensed the woman's spiritual presence. It was overwhelmingly apparent like the exorcists' when they still roamed the lands.
Asagiri watched wide eyed as the woman took the bowl of porridge and began slurping it directly from the bowl.
"That's already stale, Liang," the old man scolded. "Go to the kitchen tent. There's vegetable soup and roasted fish."
"This is still better than tavern food back at the crossroads of Yu Liang," the woman named Liang said. She finished the porridge in no time and when she was about to place the bowl back on the bale, she noticed the untouched tray of Asagiri's food.
She did not hesitate to take it. Then she seated beside the leopard in front of Asagiri, tray placed on the lap and began eating.
"Slow down, child," the old man said, placing a hand on Liang's back. A gentle smile masked his face. "Or you'll choke on the food. I'll go get you some water before you drink on the horses' trough," he joked.
"Thank you, Yachi."
The man named Yachi excused himself.
Now it was only the three of them.
"I still haven't expressed my gratitude for saving me from that dragon." Asagiri smiled. "I'm truly thankful."
Liang did not stop eating, barely hearing the words at all and the leopard was silent as ever.
Asagiri adjusted her sitting position, giving room for her tails to sway then straightened her posture. She crossed one leg on top of the other, making sure her motion was elegant as it was apparent.
The snow leopard did not flinch and the exorcist remarked something about the abrasions on Asagiri's skin.
"You can't use your charm," the exorcist said while biting on a fishbone. "Your magic is restricted."
"So I've noticed," Asagiri said gently. "But there's no need for these seals. I will cause no trouble."
The snow leopard sighed and the sound came out as a low growl from his chest. Asagiri's tails bristled. She did not like the snow leopard and she wished that it was the exorcist instead facing her directly. She took a deep breath and let it out.
"I acknowledge the mistake I had done," Asagiri said and bowed her head.
"Do not dishonor the gesture with your insincere apology," the leopard said coldly. He folded his arms and straightened his back, looking at Asagiri with challenging eyes.
Asagiri lifted her head up and matched the leopard's glower but averted her gaze after a second. She sighed in defeat. "I least expected this scenario to happen. State your grievance and let's get this over with."
"For a fox spirit, you're not very cunning," Liang interjected.
The leopard shoved her with an elbow.
"And for an exorcist, you're awfully graceless," Asagiri retorted.
"What good would it do me being graceful?"
"That's enough." The leopard raised his voice. He cocked his head to Asagiri and asked. "Where are the children you stole?"
"Long gone, by now." Asagiri smiled.
"Our ally is still missing. Have you anything to do with his disappearance?"
"Likely," Asagiri said. "I do not know where your ally is but I know how to find him. First, I must confess that the two children I stole have long been consumed and if my fate depended on their survival, then you may slay me now and bid your ally farewell wherever he may be." A wicked smile formed on Asagiri's face.
Then a surge of pain coursed through her body like lightning.
"Consumed, huh?" the exorcist joined in. Her voice was flat and her face, static. "Your choice of words offends me." She was completely different than the person before. She shocked Asagiri again. "Consumed like a piece of meat?" she took a piece of dried pork from a drawstring pouch that dangled on her harness and threw it on Asagiri's face.
"You need me to find your ally!" Asagiri exclaimed. The exorcist's erratic behavior annoyed her.
"Do we, really?" Liang got up and bent down to level the fox spirit. The exorcist nullified the seals and it turned to ashes in the air.
Now Asagiri was free to use magic yet somehow she could not urge herself to act in front of the exorcist.
"I could kill you," Liang whispered. Her voice reminded Asagiri of the winter chill despite the ice kept at bay far on the borders of Masu's grove. "Say it," she said.
"Say what?" Asagiri swallowed.
"You know what you want to say. Don't make me repeat myself."
Asagiri breathed heavily. "Y-you need me to find your ally..."
"Ah, but you see, it's not just our ally that you want to find. By your own word—consumed—could it have been that you were with someone?"
��Younglings," the leopard interrupted casually. "Nami was with two children when this fox charmed her. If both were consumed, then expect at least two manifested fox spirits."
"Please…" Asagiri was cautious. She was now wary of the exorcist's mercurial temperament. There was nothing more terrifying than impulsive actions which could cause her death. "I'll do as you say…the fox spirits are mere children."
"And the ones you consumed are not?" Liang exploded.
A heavy weight pressed against Asagiri, surrounding her as though she was submerged underwater.
"Why should I give you the pleasure of reincarnation? I should revert you back to the pitiful shadow you once were." Liang cursed.
"Wait, please, let me speak," Asagiri pleaded. She got up from the bale only to grovel on the dirt, muttering apologies again and again, hoping to ease the rage of the exorcist.
"Liang…" Bao placed a hand on Liang's back. "She is our only lead to Makaskas. Control yourself for now."
"I'll find a way," Liang declared. "Just let me vanquish this demoness."
"We would not have brought her here if you knew of a way to find Makaskas," Bao said calmly.
"I'll find a way…" Liang said again but relented shortly thereafter.
"I know in your eyes, what I have done is unacceptable," Asagiri said. She kept her face coiled on the dirt, afraid to meet Liang eye to eye. "But I hope you would give me and my children the same pardon you have given your lover when he crossed to mortality."
"Lover?" Liang repeated. "Bao?"
"If you saw it fit to pardon his consumption of godkissed essence to be with you, surely you could pardon ours for we are in grave danger in the spiritual realm," Asagiri said.
"Spare us your unorthodox presumptions," the leopard named Bao said. "She did not permit me to cross."
"Nor was I," Asagiri said, "And yet here we are. Honorable exorcist, I ask your pardon."
"This is tiresome," Liang said. She reverted back to her regular demeanor and Asagiri found the courage get back up. "I'm going to meditate by the pond. Cause no trouble. I broke the seal so there's nothing stopping you if you misbehave but myself and by now I know you do not want that." She walked out of the stables just as Yachi had returned with a tray of steaming tea.
He placed the tray on a bale and handed one cup to Bao. "Earth dragon's sprout tea. And for the fox spirit?"
"Asagiri," she said. "I am Asagiri."
"What tea do you prefer, Asagiri?" Yachi asked.
"If you have Nakihara, I'll take that," she answered.
"I figured you'd want that." Yachi smiled at the small accomplishment. "You are from Yofuchi. Bao, shall I unbind her?"
"Might as well. She's no longer sealed. What good will rope do?" he inhaled the aroma of his tea before sipping.
Once Asagiri was unbound, she took her tea and thanked Yachi. The old man then took the tray and went to the pond to the exorcist.
"Now," Bao said, "Let's discuss matters properly this time."
Asagiri took a sip from the tea, feeling the warmth and the essence calm her body. It was the first good thing that happened to her since fleeing Yofuchi. She nodded her head to Bao.
"I'll listen."