Pilgrim 3, page 42
“Ah, yes, him.”
When she didn’t say anything else, Danzen pressed her for more information. “How long have you been spying on me?”
“Since around the time you came to this valley. I wouldn’t go as far as to say that I’ve been spying on you, just watching. You are my son, and at that time, when I finally found you, I didn’t know if you were ready.”
“We can talk about that in a moment,” Danzen said, assuming that she was referring to her desire for him to take his father’s throne. He wanted to focus on the raven, at least for the time being. “I know the history of the yatagarasu. You can’t expect me to not be alarmed by its sudden appearance.”
“How did you first discover him?” she asked, Shodren still observing the detailed work she’d put in along the door frame, the faint smile on her face holding strong.
“Kudzu, but I saw it as well.”
“Ah, yes, the fox. She’s quite clever, and she clearly doesn’t trust me. I suppose she is right in that regard, and to her, my sudden appearance and the yatagarasu would be something to be alarmed by. What about Jelmay?”
“He only noticed it once, but he doesn’t like the fact that it has appeared.”
“I see…” She finally shifted her smile to Danzen, Shodren letting out a deep breath as she took in her son. “Is that all you would like to discuss with me?”
“Is that all? You haven’t told me anything aside from admitting that you have been keeping tabs on me. How did you come to know the yatagarasu?”
“I told you there were yokai in the north, you may recall me mentioning that. I’m sure you encountered some, in fact, I know you have. Menya has already had a note delivered.”
“She beat us here?”
“The raven…”
“So you know? You know that I’ve started to collect remnants?”
It was a moment before Shodren answered his question. “I know, and I don’t think you’re making the right decision. As important as it is for us to recover remnants, and preserve them once we have done so, the fastest way to bring Sunyata back to life would be through your father’s throne.”
Danzen shook his head. “I don’t know if you understand just how powerful Tengir Gantulga is.”
The smile on his mother’s face withered. “Are you questioning my knowledge of your father?”
“He is the ruler of Diyu. He can kill and bring people back to life. He… brought Nomin back to life. I’ve tried to attack him, and even if I grow stronger, I will not be able to beat him. You may have some faith in my power and if you’ve already spoken to Menya, then you know about Nomin and that I’ve progressed to some degree, but I’ll never be as strong as him. I have human blood.”
“Are you insulting my blood?”
“No, that’s not what I was trying to insinuate. He is the ruler of Diyu,” Danzen said again, trying to get his point across, “and I am half-human. I’m not going to be able to kill him and take his throne. The only way I could get his throne would be to wait until he bequeathed it to me. And there’s no telling when he would do something like that.”
“We can’t wait. A one-sided afterlife has gone on for far too long, and too many good people, too many honest souls, have been sent to a realm created for the depraved.”
“I’ve been to Diyu,” Danzen told her. “It’s not so different from here…”
But even he wasn’t convinced of this statement. While Diyu looked similar to his world, there was something off about it, that wasn’t to mention the demons that made up a percentage of its population. Still, as he had seen, there were towns and villages there, and it clearly was an afterlife in which people existed. It may not have been Sunyata, but it wasn’t exactly the nefarious hellhole that many made it up to be.
Of course, he’d only seen part of Diyu. And he recalled his father saying that there were other areas, where even a demon like Shutendorji or Nomtoi would suffer…
“You don’t know what you’re saying.”
“You have manipulated me,” Danzen told her, “since I was… since I was a child. You didn’t have to leave me on the steps of the Brotherhood, but you did so with the hopes that I would one day kill my father. I no longer want to be groomed.”
Shodren cast her gaze down, and it wasn’t long before he saw a tear rolling down her cheek. But rather than let up, Danzen wanted to bring the point home, to never be manipulated again even though he was certain that would be impossible.
“You abandoned me, and now that I am capable of something, you would like me to be part of your life. And you haven’t been honest with me,” Danzen said, a small spark of anger pulsing within him. “I don’t know who to believe anymore.”
“What do you mean?” she asked softly.
“I heard your story, and I’ve heard his, and… and…”
“What has your father told you?” Shodren asked, her voice growing thin as she looked up at him, her eyes narrowing, a Y-shaped vein appearing on the side of her head. “What did he tell you?”
This was another thing Danzen wanted to speak to his mother about, but now that they moved on to the subject, he found it hard to get out, knowing how sensitive the topic was. He certainly didn’t put it past his father to do something like raping mortal woman, but he couldn’t help but deny that there was, and of all the things his father said, a hint of honesty to what he had told him beneath the petroglyph-ridden alcove in the Panchen Mountains.
“He claimed the two of you were lovers, and that you forbade him from seeing me.”
“And you believe him?”
“I don’t know who to believe,” Danzen said.
“Do you believe him?” she asked, her voice suddenly haggard.
“You tell me,” Danzen said, his eyes locking onto hers.
And for a brief moment, he recognized his pupils in his mother’s eyes, and he could see now where he had gotten them from, how her appearance played into his, from the way her nose was shaped to her eyebrows. Danzen had a mother, a father, and half-brother, but it was in his mother that he saw himself, the human side of him. The only thing of himself that he saw in his father was Tengir Gantulga’s physique.
It took a minute for his mother to finally say something, and when she did, she decided to shut down the conversation. “I believe this discussion is over.”
“It doesn’t have to be.”
“You’ve hurt me, son, but I do understand, at least to some degree, where you are coming from. I think you’re going about this the wrong way in collecting remnants, but if it is how you…” She bit her lip. “If this is what you think will be the best way to use your power and resources, then I support it. As for your home here, I’ve come to enjoy it, but perhaps it is best that I leave sooner rather than later, back to my nunnery. I don’t know if there’s anything else I can do here.”
.Chapter Two.
It was an hour or so later that Yato returned, the female assassin slowly making her way up the hill, where she found Danzen seated with his legs crossed beneath him, his eyes tracing over the Asura Forest. Shodren remained inside the monastery, where it sounded like she had begun to pack her things.
“That bad?” Yato asked.
“That remains to be seen.”
Danzen didn’t know if he wanted his mother to leave or not. He didn’t like the fact that she had taken over his monastery, but he also understood that it was within her nature, especially with the work she had done in Odval and the surrounding areas. While he didn’t particularly trust her, he couldn’t deny that others respected Shodren, and that she had helped a good many people.
But he wanted this monastery to be his home, a refuge, not a gathering place, even if the villagers could always come and go, and times could be arranged for them to visit. He also knew that he was being irrational, that part of what he was going through had to do with the fact that he felt as if he were a rope being pulled at both ends, his father on one side, his mother on the other.
And she still hadn’t been entirely honest with him.
There was also his goal of rebuilding Sunyata, and as Menya had suggested, there were enough old scrolls of the nunnery outside of Odval to warrant some assistance in searching the text for clues, not to mention what Abbot Monpo may know. That was likely how Danzen should have gone about his discussion, focusing on the need for Shodren to return to her nunnery rather than his desire for reclusivity at his.
The night came and Danzen slept outside, Yato taking a cot in the prayer room, one that his mother had made during the time they were gone. She had made other cots as well, all of which folded up and were placed in a cabinet that Khamdo had built.
Danzen didn’t use one of these cots, the former assassin simply resting on his back, his hands behind his head as he stared up at the starry sky, his two lion dogs on either side of him. It wasn’t the most comfortable sleep he’d had, but it could have been worse.
Up before Yato and Shodren the next morning, Danzen quietly went about the routine he had set for himself upon first calling the monastery home, which included bringing water into the kitchen, and dealing with his fire chicken. He felt the urge to bend his echo, and Yato came awake about this time.
“Should we do it here?” she asked as she came out of the monastery to find Danzen standing with his hands behind his back, once again staring at the horizon.
“I want to test my power again,” he said, “but here isn’t a good place. Once Kudzu arrives, we will head toward the fox shrine and find a place in the mountains to summon my demons.” He thought of the alcove his father had shown him, which was not quite the direction that they would be heading, but it wasn’t far off. “Did Jelmay say anything about joining us today?”
“I’m supposed to wake him,” Yato said. “He’s interested in the food that they have at the fox shrine, and was adamant that we don’t leave him behind.”
Shodren was finishing up a porridge for breakfast about the time that Kudzu appeared, the white fox simply slipping around the building and taking her place at Danzen’s side, as if she had been there all along.
“What did she say?” Kudzu asked instead of her typical morning greeting.
“It’s complicated.”
“How so?”
“We’ll talk about it. But…” Danzen looked back to the door of his monastery. He could hear his mother moving around inside. “She may be leaving soon.”
“Perhaps that’s for the better…”
Typical for the bakeneko, he showed up when the food was ready. Shodren stepped out of the monastery with a big pot of porridge, Jelmay smiling at her as he immediately came to assist Danzen’s mother.
“Thank you,” he said as she gave the pot to him.
“Don’t start eating it yet. I have bowls.”
She returned with bowls and a serving spoon. She began dishing out the porridge, Jelmay already going back for a second helping by the time Shodren got to Danzen. Luckily for the bakeneko, the nun had anticipated Jelmay’s appearance, and had made more porridge than necessary. As they ate, she updated the four of them on what had happened since their departure, some of the initiatives she had started in the village, and the improvements around the monastery.
“I was skeptical at first,” Jelmay said once he started on his third bowl of porridge, “but with more people coming out here, there may be an opportunity to produce a little side income, if you know what I mean.”
“No gambling,” Kudzu told him.
“Gambling? I meant a little roadside goods situation, you know, selling some jerky, maybe some ‘rare’ yokai talismans I’ve picked up along the way. That sort of thing.”
“Rare yokai talismans?” Kudzu’s eyes bulged. “You can’t be serious.”
“I’m always serious. And it’s not like anyone out here would know the difference anyway between something that was rare or something that was not. Just think about it: villagers would be coming back from the monastery, there’d be a little food for offer, some snacks, some good luck charms for sale. I’ll have you know that I played the role as a human businessman before. I am a profit-driven bakeneko, if anything.”
“It’s gambling. Or at least… A form of it.”
“What? Business isn’t gambling.” Jelmay considered this for a moment. “On second thought, it may be… but it’s a good idea, right? Say the word and I’ll cut you in now, fox. I’d love to have a partner. If you really want to reap some of the profits, now would be the best time to join. It will only get more expensive once I launch my operation.”
Shodren cleared her throat in a polite way. “If people do continue to come here, please don’t try to exploit them.”
“If I’m not using something like a monastery, or something at least monastery-adjacent to exploit laypeople, then what am I doing with my life?” he asked, a smile forming on his face. “I’m kidding, I’m kidding, Mother Pilgrim, but you drive a hard bargain. How about this? I’ll cut the monastery in, so don’t worry about that part. And just like that, we both prosper. Everyone wins, except for the people that lose.”
The soft debate continued until they were ready to go, Danzen with all of his weapons this time, just in case their usage became necessary. Kudzu knew of the alcove that Danzen had spoken about, and she swiftly led them there, Jelmay quiet for once, and only commenting once they arrived that he had never seen the place before.
As he stared up at the petroglyphs, the bakeneko slowly chewed on his bottom lip. “Imagine all the history that has taken place here. It really is something, isn’t it?” He scratched his belly. “Well, that’s enough out of me. Are you unleashing the demons, or what?”
After Jelmay and Kudzu had backed far enough away that they wouldn’t be within range of Danzen’s hellspawns, he began bending his echo alongside Yato, the two going through the combat dance that they had come up with together.
They did this for twenty minutes or so, and once Danzen was ready, he took a step back and used Nomin’s blade to bring a short incision up the side of his arm.
That familiar feeling. The mist. His red eyes. The portals opening.
Danzen’s demons began to climb out, but they didn’t run wild this time, and he didn’t need to use his Demon Speak ability to command them this time either. He simply stood as if he were his father, shoulders back, two swords drawn now, prepared to execute any of the demons that dared question his authority.
The first one to get to its knees was one of the smaller demons, a hunchback of sorts with a deformed face, teeth jutting out of its cheeks. The others soon followed, and it wasn’t long before all seven of them were bowing at Danzen, awaiting orders.
And just like that, they began to fall, Danzen’s test once again successful.
“I don’t like the visual,” Jelmay said after the last demon hit the ground, where it would slowly evaporate as Danzen had seen before. “But I can see that this is going to be a good thing, a really good thing. Now I just have to figure out how I can use it to my advantage…”
“To your advantage?” Kudzu asked.
“Think about it, fox. Imagine I’m down a couple thousand kip and we need to leave some place in a hurry. Pilgrim produces a couple his demons, some real ugly bastard too, everyone clears out because they’re scared, and we leave with all the money. Something like that. I’m still working on it.”
“You’re incorrigible.”
“Ha!” Jelmay turned in the direction of the fox shrine. “I’ve been called worse.”
****
Having Jelmay guide Yato would normally allow Danzen and Kudzu to rush ahead at their normal pace, but now Yato had a talisman, and she definitely wanted to continue testing its power.
“Fine, fine, go ahead,” Jelmay said. “I’ll meet the three of you there. And while you are at it, tell those fox monks to get a spread ready for my arrival. I’m talking about anything that they have that’s edible. I’ll be hungry by then, especially with all this walking.”
“You don’t mind?” Yato asked.
“See that?” Jelmay said, glancing from Yato to Kudzu. “That’s how you treat a friend. She’s actually concerned about my well-being.”
“He can handle himself,” Kudzu assured Yato.
They started off, Danzen leaping into the air, grabbing onto a ledge and pulling himself up to higher ground as he began traveling along the side of a cliff. He caught a glimpse of Kudzu racing below, Yato moving in behind her, nearly able to keep up with the fox. He recalled how fast Tenan had been back in the Asura Forest, and Danzen wondered if the talisman simply took some getting used to, if the more Yato used it, the faster she would become.
He paused for a brief second, watching as Yato reached Kudzu, the two jumping onto a higher pathway, a flash of white and light gray. Danzen dropped down, landing just a few feet in front of them, startling Kudzu. “You shouldn’t do things like that…”
“Sorry,” Danzen said, not able to hide his cracked smile.
He let Kudzu lead the way now, well aware that she knew the fastest route, which happened to be down into a gully, and from there to a path that almost resembled stair steps, the stone a light-colored beige that looked odd set against the backdrop of Diyu. If Yato thought anything of being this close to hell, she didn’t say anything about it as they continued on, the three eventually making it to the bridge in front of the fox shrine.
The vines that covered the entrance to the fox shrine were covered in flowers, their petals a mixture of white and gold, their fragrant smell powerful enough that Danzen could pick it up from the opposite side of the bridge. To show Yato that the bridge was stable—even though it looked like it could fall apart at any moment—Danzen went across first. Yato soon followed, and Kudzu came last. As the white fox came to the other side, Abbot Monpo and his two fox attendants stepped outside to greet them.
“We should be joined by the bakeneko shortly,” Kudzu informed them after a quick greeting. “Or, it may take a while. He has asked that…”
“…That we have food prepared?” Abbot Monpo asked after she didn’t continue her statement, a glitter about his coat that was similar to Kudzu’s, the biggest difference between the two of them being his size and his seven tails.
