Chapter Thirty

Conflict, Turmoil, Passion

 

The "Queen" was a wrong way to call her. She was actually one of the Five Great Lords of his Empire. But now she called herself a "majesty". Same concept; different level of ambition. In any case, she commanded the Skies above Nekohiko's Empire, and thus, she was one of the most powerful people alive however pretentious her current title was.

He'd never met her before this day even though they had been betrothed to one another five years ago. He had never had any interest in her and wondered if she reciprocated. For heaven's sake, she was ten years old when he had died -- so he doubted she had ever cared.

Plus, he was in the body of a cat now. There was no way she'd recognize him.

Yet Nekohiko still wanted to flee when he saw her descending from the skies with the trademark Nagare style of thunder, lightning, and the rising winds accompanying her. A deafening and blinding style she had, truly.

The Shrimp Spirit swung its claws to stop the lightnings from hitting it. The massive legs swept over the ground, bringing terrible gusts of wind in their wake. Even without Kasuga's storms making it worse, being so close to the enraged Spirit would not fare well for them. They'd be smashed even before Kasuga could help them!

"C-come on!" Nekohiko yanked Kataji by his robes away from the Spirit. But what could a measly cat do to a fully-grown young man?

Thankfully, Kataji didn't push him away this time. He knew he had to scramble away but with his legs broken, the only thing he could do was haul himself forward with his arms.

Another claw whooshed above them. Debris and soil crashed all around. Nekohiko pressed down on Kataji's head trying to shield him but the force of the wind following the claw almost dragged him away and into the turbulent air. The two clasped onto each other and Nekohiko only now glimpsed the horrifying state of Kataji's body.

The young man's middle was pierced by some metal scrap raining from above as the Spirit flailed. Kataji's eyes were red, distorted in agony, his mouth trickled blood out of the corner. Each of his breaths caught on the scrap, making him gasp in pain. After only a few desperate heaves, his eyes quivered closed.

He was dying.

Nekohiko jumped out of his arms. He gave his collar jerky tugs toward the baggage compartment as he tried, in vain, to pull him to safety. If they were somewhere quiet, he could Bind Kataji's wounds together. He could still save him!

"Kataji!"

Aomi dropped to her knees beside her brother, panting from having run so fast. She trailed his limp arm over her shoulder and struggled to stand up with his weight added.

Her knees buckled.

Above her, the Shrimp Spirit finally swerved to the side, the spectral essence of its body scattering as it fled, unable to keep up with the Queen of the Skies herself.

"Aomi, put him down!" Nekohiko cried when Aomi once again failed to drag Kataji away. "You'll only make his wounds worse!"

It was impossible to move Kataji from this spot, Nekohiko realized. But now that the Shrimp Spirit was no longer fighting, maybe they still had a chance to take care of his injuries before Kataji's condition worsened further. Nekohiko fell on top of his chest and put his head wearily against Kataji's chin.

He was gathering his Emperor's own deep powers for healing fatal injuries. To hell with being recognized -- nothing but his bloodline's affinity for Binding could help him now.

He registered Aomi's flinching as the Ezo bandits poured out of the baggage compartment nearby with the stolen goods in their arms. No one sane would fight a Great Lord on their own, so of course the bandits wouldn't stay till captured by Queen Kasuga. But one or two of them couldn't keep away from wanting to deal the final death blow to Kataji on the grass. They still believed he was the sole reason the Shrimp Spirit had lost.

Aomi sprang up to put herself in between Kataji and them but the leader of the bandits threw the young girl aside as easily as he would a ragdoll.

"I wonder if you're brave enough to do the same to her!" Aomi yelled at them, snapping her hand toward Kasuga.

The two girls were indeed of the same age but the difference in status was immense. Even Kasuga's name could stop most people from wishing to continue fighting. More so -- her direct proximity.

It was clear that Kasuga came here because Nekohiko had given out a Binder's call. Her attention was naturally drawn here, to the small group of people who struggled so hard in the wake of the monstrous Shrimp Spirit's carnage. Out of the dissipating eye of the storm she'd caused, she alighted to the ground. When the lightning glow faded out of her eyes, the Ezo bandits were already gone without taking their chances with Kataji.

Thank heavens.

Nekohiko managed to stabilize Kataji's pulse and breath so that even though his lung was pierced, he was in no danger of dying. With only a cursory glance at Kasuga who stilled several feet away, Nekohiko clambered off Kataji's chest and hid beside the bags with his log parts.

Kasuga was a twiggy young girl. Her skin was wan, her eyes surrounded by deepening shadows that only highlighted how huge her dark eyes were. Chin-length hair, militaristic cut of clothes -- black with swirls of green and purple along the bird feathers that adorned it. The black bow in her hand, though no more lightning arrows notched on it.

She was a spitting image of her fathers. Both of them. The thoughtful stillness of one, the dark, turbulent menace of the other. Nekohiko felt breathless just from looking at her.

She was studying the wreckage and the Abi siblings amidst it. Her gaze trailed over Kataji's pierced body. Her brow creased in a frown and she stepped toward him with the intent to Bind his wounds together. But Aomi obstructed her way.

"What are you doing?" Aomi asked, suspicious.

Kasuga tilted her head at Aomi's arrogant manner. She was slightly taller than Aomi and clearly much more mature. And yet, Kasuga still drew back in politeness.

"My name is Nagare Kasuga," she said, inclining her head in greeting. "Forgive me for intruding but I believe that man needs a Binder's help."

"Nagare Kasuga." Aomi's tone was even more suspicious. "My brother wouldn't need anyone's help if you would have taken proper care of that giant crab before it hurt him!"

"I am truly sorry for causing so much harm." Kasuga dropped her gaze but it was clear she was only giving in to maintain the pretense of civility. Her voice, though very quiet, glinted of metal underneath. "Your brother is still hurting even after you gave him the initial healing. I believe it is better that I pick up where you left off and heal his lung entirely."

Nekohiko crouched amidst the bags, too scared to make a noise and call anyone's attention to himself. Of course Kasuga could sense that a healing Binding spell had been cast very recently on Kataji -- as well as she could sense that somebody had injured that Shrimp Spirit with a burst of Nagare power earlier. But so far, she assumed it had to be Aomi. The scent of Binding was fresh around this spot, and only Aomi was nearby to "blame" for it.

If Aomi told the truth now--

"Be my guest." Aomi let Kasuga through but still made it sound like a challenge. She followed the other girl with her eyes as Kasuga knelt by Kataji's side and hovered her hand over the scrap of metal sticking out of his wound. Aomi added, "Don't you dare hurt him more!" 

Kasuga's Binding was expertly done even though she could not have finished her studies in Izumo yet. She dissolved the scrap into a thin thread of particles that shimmered dully in the dusk, then drew it out of Kataji in one continuous string. A painless, gentle extraction. She began tucking in the blood that had spilled out and purified it off the dirt that touched it. A slow, intricate job as was the sealing back the organ tissue and the torn muscles and skin.

In the distance, the unlucky passengers of the millipede Line were escaping the toppled compartments while Kasuga's servants and soldiers helped them. Some of her men were also Binders who helped heal and pacify the lost and hysterical passengers. A few of them came to check on Kasuga but left once they saw that she was busy.

Yet it wasn't Kasuga's entourage that transfixed Nekohiko so.

Above, in the darkening skies, loomed a vaguely recognizable shape of a moth with its wings frozen wide-open on its sides. One might think it was an actual moth, no bigger than any insect. But what they didn't know was that this moth was the size of a city -- the size of a mountain, and the fact that it seemed small now was only because of how far it was.

Its name was Suzumegara. Apart from each of the Great Lords' powers that were unique to only them, each of the Lords possessed a legendary weapon at their sides. Nagare -- the black bow Netsuito that shot lightnings as easily as it would any arrow. But on top of a legendary weapon and unchecked power, each Lord also commanded a Spirit that belonged solely to their family.

A Spirit grown so large with centuries and millennia that it became visible to mortals -- could no more count as a mere Spirit. It became a Bizarre Beast ¹^^ That's a literal translation of 怪獣 (Kaiju). Like Godzilla, Rodan, King Ghidora, etc *_*. of colossal strength and size, the destroyer of cities if let loose. The pet monster of its respective Lord.

Nagare's Beast was Suzumegara. A giant Spirit of a hawkmoth²And yes. If you're wondering, this is Kasuga's very own Mothra ^^. The name "Suzumegara" itself also is a literal translation of "Hawkmoth Monster" into Japanese., covered with plates of fused metals, surging with lightnings that fed it like fuel.

There was a reason Nagare family's castle was a small one and their land -- not as densely-populated or rich as the other ones. Nagare family's real castle and real capital were on top of Suzumegara. Most of their cities were airborne, drifting rather than loyal to a particular spot on the ground.

Suzumegara was ancient, and its mind was nearly always dreaming rather than awake. Yet now, Nekohiko felt Suzumegara's interest piquing.

Even though Kasuga couldn't tell who had called her and who had been the source of the Binding powers here, Suzumegara knew.

It felt Nekohiko's presence. It was intrigued.

"Well, at least you found us here," Aomi grumbled under her nose as she watched Kasuga Bind. "It's not like I'm grateful or anything since you were the one who hurt my brother but... thanks. I guess."

Kasuga preferred to keep quiet during her work but politeness dictated otherwise. "It is of no trouble to us. We were flying not so far away from here when your call came."

"Ah. Sorry that I interrupted your leisurely flying in the clouds."

Did she just say... "I interrupted"?

Nekohiko lifted his head at Aomi, nervous. The girl fidgeted, twirling his flaccid snake body in her arms, waiting for Kataji's healing to be over. But she looked very confident in accepting the responsibility for "calling Kasuga" here. If Nekohiko didn't know better, he'd believe her, too.

Damn it. When he would be found out, Kasuga would no doubt piece together who he really was. Yes, most people no longer knew about his existence but not the one who had once been his future wife! She had to know who he was, and she would have to recognize him due to his distinct Emperor's Binding aura still present in this spot!

Aomi agreeing that she was the person responsible for calling her was only a brief distraction. A trained Binder like Kasuga would be able to tell that Aomi wasn't one -- very, very soon.

Oh well. He was nonetheless grateful even for this short delay. Because...

...during the fight, Nekohiko had felt that Abihiko touched his seashell back in Nara. So while he had some time to spare now, he wanted to find out why.

His consciousness transported to his seashell body in an instant.

And once it did... he regretted it. He regretted it deeply.

The surface with his eyes faced the wall but the back of his seashell form was pressed tight against... someone's mouth! He felt it in the softness of the lips and the proximity to someone's breath. The sensation was unmistakable!

How come the moment he had ventured out here, he found himself being treated like this?

What are you kissing me for?! he thought, dumbfounded. I'm a seashell!

But the moment of intense confusion passed soon enough. Because Abihiko was indeed holding him to his mouth -- but not in an attempt to kiss.

He was taking a very slow, careful sniff of the seashell's wooden body.

Which still didn't make it fine, but was at least understandable. With his heart pounding as though insane, Nekohiko forced himself to stay calm and stop shuddering at every little thing Abihiko did to him here.

After all, he was a pendant charm seashell made out of aromatic wood. It was no wonder people would want to smell him.

Abihiko drew in a deep breath, then turned Nekohiko over in his hands, visibly preoccupied. There was a deep frown on his face and a worrisome quirk to the line of his mouth.

He tapped Nekohiko with his fingernails again, then let him down onto the lacquered desk surface so that Nekohiko faced the ceiling and nothing else. Judging by the sound, he then reclined back in his seat, finally letting out a long sigh.

"So it's the same exact tree," he mumbled to himself as though unsure. "Isn't it?"

Nekohiko pricked his ears to listen and hear more from him, but all the noise that Abihiko was making now was that of paper rustling and occasional ink brush squiggling on the paper.

And no more words said however much Nekohiko was willing to wait for them. He needed to hear more! He needed to know what had Abihiko meant just now...

The same tree. The same tree? Which tree was that? How was Abihiko so sure about some tree and where Nekohiko had come from?

Please, tell me more, he pled in his mind.

But of course the bastard was as talkative now as an average wooden log! Where had Abihiko's quietness been all those years ago when Nekohiko had begged him to be silent and not ramble on for hours at a time? Huh?

He would give so much for Abihiko to prattle on now, and yet...

The irony of this all was simply mind-boggling.

"He will awaken in a minute," Kasuga's reserved voice called him back to his other bodies. This time, he chose his snake body to settle in.

In case Kasuga would scan the area with her Binding, his best bet was to stay directly next to Aomi. Hopefully, Kasuga wouldn't prod more if she felt the powerful Binder's aura coming from this girl?

Kataji indeed looked a little better than before but still so visibly hurt. Nekohiko watched him with his unfocused snake eyes yet remained limp, draping Aomi's shoulders so as not to stir any suspicions.

"And your name is?" Kasuga asked, studying Aomi's figure before her. It was hard to tell with how withdrawn she appeared, but Kasuga also sounded a bit... curious.

Shit! No doubt she wanted to find the powerful Binder who had called her here!

"How is this your business, again?" Aomi said, giving Kasuga an up-and-down herself. Like Aomi's dress was made of a swirly-beetle carapaces, Kasuga's was similar in that it was a plated armor, decorated with feathers at the shoulders for a truly dramatic effect. "Nice feathers," Aomi whistled. "Peacock's?"

Kasuga didn't notice the bite. "It's magpie feathers. And thank you for your interest in them. Although they're not nice -- not in the sense of their beauty. They are the honor of the Nagare family." She nodded toward all the Nagare soldiers who shifted in the distance helping the passengers get outside safely. "This dress is the Nagare uniform." She repeated again, "I would still like to know whose lives I saved -- or wrecked -- according to you. I have introduced myself already. I believe now it's your turn."

"Nah, I'm good." Aomi bent down to Kataji who stirred and let out a low groan. "Are you alive, idiot?"

Kataji grunted as he tried to move his legs. But they were still broken -- only his chest area was healed. In a sudden start, he turned around to find his log bags nearby. "Where's Itsuki? Is he safe?"

Kasuga watched Kataji quietly but intensely. Everything she saw and heard was important to her, Nekohiko could tell. Aomi must have felt it, too, so she stuck a finger at the snake hanging off her shoulders.

"He's fine! This illustrious young lady is not, however," she said, poking her thumb at Kasuga outside of Kataji's immediate line of vision. "I suppose she wants you to thank her till the end of time for nearly killing you with her 'rescue attempt.'"

Good job, Aomi.

Nekohiko could see that, even with all her seeming calm demeanor, Kasuga was uncomfortable remaining around for no reason. Maybe she would leave before investigating his Binder's aura? Please let it be so!

"Nagare Kasuga, pleased to meet you," the girl told Kataji and bowed again. "I am truly sorry for endangering you, Master...?"

"Kataji," Kataji said.

Unlike Aomi, being not only in the direct presence of the Queen of the Skies but being rescued by her personally impressed him very much.

"Thank you so much for your help. You didn't have to!" he started sputtering, shy.

"Your sister gave out a Binder's call to whoever was near. I only answered it." Kasuga rose from her bow, impassive. "So she is the real savior here."

Aomi rolled her eyes at the statement, then made a threatening grimace at Kataji when he repeated, "My sister gave a Binder's... call?"

"A very powerful Binder's call," Kasuga went on. "I could swear it had the same hue as only the Emperor's aura can give out. But I am only human. I can be mistaken. The Nagare Spirit Suzumegara, though..."

She slightly turned to indicate Suzumegara's mothlike shape looming on the horizon eerily.

"Suzumegara can not be mistaken. If I am in the presence of such an extremely powerful Binder that his aura can rival that of the Supreme Divine Emperor's himself then I would really wish to know that," she ended, her eyes heavy on Aomi. Behind her, Nagare soldiers who had noticed that their Queen had already finished healing a victim, were coming over to ask for her further orders. Kasuga raised her arm to halt them. She asked Aomi once more. "And your name is--?"

This time, both Aomi and Kataji tensed up.

"Abi Aomi," Aomi said, rising to her feet to be more or less level with Kasuga. Her pointy little chin popped up in defiance. "In case you don't know who Abi family is, let me remind you. Lord Abihiko is the damn Supreme Divine Emperor of this country. So -- no waay, you can recognize his blood siblings by their Binding? Great for you. Now better tell me again how you nearly killed the little brother of His Majesty while we were on his way to see him!"

This was not something Nekohiko had expected but he was all for it. The closest Nagare soldiers gaped speechless, trailing their eyes from Kasuga to Aomi and back again as though afraid that something beyond bombastic would happen.

Kasuga's reactions were minimal.

"His Majesty's own siblings? That is indeed unforgivable yet I have to apologize once more for my failures." Stiffly, she bowed again. "The only thing I can do to redeem my horrible mistake is to heal Lord Kataji's legs and give your shelter for the night. As well as help get you to your Esteemed Eldest Brother as soon as possible."

"Shelter?" Aomi frowned, then exchanged worried glances with Kataji. "We don't need--"

They did. Especially with the state Kataji's legs were in. But Nekohiko fully understood why this suggestion sounded just a little bit suspicious.

Nagare Kingdom was currently at war with some of the other Kingdoms. Taking the Emperor's siblings hostage was not a small advantage in that war, was it? 

"Please be our guests on Suzumegara," Kasuga said. "We will help all the other passengers as well as befits any good host."

"Suzumegara?" Aomi glared to the moth monster in the distance. "We can't fly that high!"

"Well, we can," Kasuga replied. "We will get you all there in no time."

"We don't want to intrude," Kataji said, also getting nervous.

Most of Kasuga's politeness seemed to have melted away to reveal a very conflicted nature hidden inside when she gestured to her soldiers to come and help Kataji to his feet.

"We insist," Kasuga cut, then soared into the sky as though the conversation was over.

Which, come figure, it was. The Nagare soldiers treated it as such when they took hold of Aomi and Kataji.

Nekohiko was in a turmoil all of his own. On one hand, the Nagare family wasn't an inherent threat to him or Abi siblings. On the other... ah. This wasn't the first time he had dealt with the Nagare family and their bizarre and sometimes quite thoughtless, selfish actions.