Riposte

Chapter 4

I had frightened Susanoo, my skills could undoubtedly match him if I was prepared. But the only thing that frightening people would do is push back the date of an inevitable fight. Cooperation makes fighting unnecessary, but Susanoo wasn’t one for cooperating. I left my apartment in the afternoon as usual, getting ready to go for band practice. I slung my sword over my back and tied the sheath in place. Little did I know that later that day, I would have to use it.

Arriving in the studio, I pulled my sword off my back. I saw that Mami and Rina were already there, but Tomomi wasn’t.

“Where’s Tomomi? She’s usually earlier than me…”

“No idea. Maybe she fell asleep or found some food and lost track of time.” Mami sighed.

Thinking no more of it, we began our practice. But as time passed, we began to fret. Tomomi should have arrived by then. We tried calling her cell phone but she wasn’t picking up.

Just then, an Inugami appeared outside the glass door of the studio. To the normal eyes, it was wearing a disguise that made it look like a member of the yakuza, but to my magical sight, I could see that it was a dog. I panicked, knowing that Rina would be unable to defend herself against any yokai. The vile thing opened the door and stepped inside.

“We have captured your friend. If you want to see her alive again, meet us at Ama-no-Iwato at midnight. Bring the sword.” And he left.

“Haruna? What was that about?” Rina asked.

“It’s nothing. I think I might have offended the yakuza. They’ve kidnapped Tomomi and they want this sword back.”

“Be careful! They’re really dangerous.”

“I will. I have to go get Tomo back.”

As soon as Rina left, Mami spoke up.
“What was that dog thing?”

“Inugami. They’re Susanoo’s servants.”

“I’m coming with you.”

“What? No. It’s dangerous.”

“Precisely why you would need my help. I’m every bit as powerful as you as long as there’s earth below my feet. I can magically boost my strength and my speed. Plus this scrap is gonna happen at night, so you can’t draw power from the sun. You’ll be weaker than me. There’s no argument. I’m going.”

“But…”

“There’s no dispute here. I’ll meet you at the train station at ten. We’ll catch the train out to Takachiho.”

I knew she was right and she would be more help than burden. She was truly a friend I could count on. That night, I met her at the train station. I had called on Yumi, the witch, to help me out on this mission also. Susanoo had done enough. It was time for me to begin my riposte.

We arrived in Takachiho and thus began our trek out into the wilderness to find the cave. It was the mere thought of battle that kept us on our feet. We wanted to charge into the cave and take them by surprise, but I was afraid of an ambush. And so far, I had not noticed any sentries to see if I was alone. Although it might just have been the complacency of Susanoo, my paranoia flared. Nearing the entrance, I noticed Mami removing her shoes, so that she could be in contact with the earth. I flicked on my magical sight, and saw that she was drawing much energy and storing it in her charm on her necklace. Much like me, she was wearing an amulet of cold iron to deflect magic.

Suddenly we saw sentries surrounding the cave. Tomomi was secured to the large stone at the entrance. She was knocked out, but I could see her chest heaving slightly, so I knew that she was alive. Susanoo was sitting cross-legged just outside the cave, and seemed to be doing a ritual of some sort. He was drawing huge amounts of energy and the moon seemed to be fading. I knew I had to stop him immediately, lest he caused massive damage somehow.

I drew my sword and asked Yumi to remove the magical cloak. As soon as the cloak sloughed off, Susanoo sensed it and flicked his eyes in my direction. And then I heard him roar: “She’s here.”

Tomomi spied me immediately as I charged into the light.

“Haruna!” She cried her relief and anxiety.

“Shh. Be silent. I need to concentrate.” She fell silent.

What I heard instead was an unholy screech as Susanoo waved at the fire pit and caused it to erupt with demons.