The Master's Shadow

Lily stormed out of the house without looking back and weakly collapsed in the snow, her body sinking into it. Her hand went to her chest, a desperate attempt to hold her wildly beating heart. Her breath dissolved into a ragged gasp, a sound starved of air that was painful to hear. The atmosphere around her was filled with a deafening silence and unasked stares.

Ren's mind screamed at him to do something, anything. In the few memories he had recovered, he knew what to do, since Miki, his girlfriend, had them often. He approached the girl with experienced steps and knelt beside her. With a practiced motion, he stroked her back with one hand, and with the other, he held up her hair. He whispered sweet nothings into her ear to calm her down and reassure her of her safety. A single tear escaped Lily's eye as she curled into a ball, pressing her hot forehead to the cold, pristine snow. Ren felt his own chest tighten, as if in solidarity with the pale girl's desperate struggle.

And then, as if a switch had been flipped, Lily's body went limp. Her head slumped to the side, eyes closed. Ren continued to stroke her back, still in shock, to let her know she wasn't alone.

The Chief shuffled out after them and held a strong potion under Lily's nose, causing her breathing to slow down and become more even.

"She's asleep," the short woman stated. "You can leave now while she's unconscious. We'll take care of her."

A powerful rage began to swell within Ren. He stood up and snapped at the woman. He fumed at her nervously.

"How can you think we'd leave her here? How could I leave her in this cold place?" By "cold place," he wasn't talking about the weather.

The short woman stood her ground well, even though the boy's body was so close to hers that he could push her over. She narrowed her eyes, as if disgusted by his sight, as if his very existence irritated her.

"And who's going to protect her? You?" She spat the words as if the very idea was scandalous. "Or Hakuka, who might be the very person who poisoned her?"

"How would Haku do such a thing? Tell them!" Ren turned to the girl, who was staring at the ground with bulging eyes and muttering something, as if she were in a trance. "Haku? Are you okay?"

Haku looked up with tearful eyes, shaking her head. There wasn't a single spark of comprehension in them. Her body began to tremble, and a low, pained whine escaped her lips. She clutched her head as if in agony, and with a guttural sob, she put her hands over her ears and ran away.

"Haku!" he shouted after her, but she was already gone. He glanced at Lily, who was sleeping peacefully in the snow. He took her into his arms, carefully pressing her head close to his chest. He was lost in her angelic face, memorizing the perfect curve of her cheek and the long sweep of her eyelashes as a wave of relief washed over him, like a mother looking at her child. He took a step closer to the Chief. He pointed his finger at her like a gun, a gesture only she could see. He leaned closer and whispered.

"Take one more step, and I'll level this entire place, killing everyone, starting with you."

The woman's expression didn't change, as if she didn't believe a word he was saying. She answered confidently in a hushed voice, and a faint smile seemed to hide on her lips. "Oh, really? And do you think you could control it? I know this is just a stolen power from the Ivory Concord prince."

Ren grinned ominously. The situation was almost amusing him now. "You're not the only one who knows things. Did you think I wouldn't notice that there wasn't a spark of magic in my climbing gear?" The woman's face froze; fear ignited in her eyes. "I know you wanted to kill me. But thanks to you, I've learned to control my power. The slightest sign of you making a move, and it's over.  For you and for everyone else."

He stepped away from the woman and began to follow the oni's footprints in the snow. The snow began to fall thickly, covering the tracks and making it harder to follow. Most of the time, he just guessed the directions, but the tiny girl's red hair was easy to spot against the infinite whiteness around them.

She was on her knees. Her body was visibly trembling. The horns at the top of her head looked like two big icicles.

"You were right. It's the Master. He's the only one from the other world," she said in a robotic voice, as if her tear ducts had already dried up. "What if your pain gets worse when something happens over there? What if someone dies? What if the Master is killing people to come back to me?"

These questions had never occurred to Ren. Haku's Master didn't concern him in the slightest. And it annoyed him a tiny bit that Haku was so focused on him when Lily and he were right there. He didn't want to be rude, but he knew if he opened his mouth, nothing else would come out. But the anger was seething inside him, and he couldn't hold back.

"Have you ever thought about anyone but yourself?" Ren’s voice was a low growl, and his hands clenched into fists at his sides. Haku looked at him like a corpse, like she couldn't believe her ears. "Lily was poisoned, and she's gone fucking blind! My life has also been turned upside down! And the only thing you can think about is what your Master is doing and why?" He nervously squeezed the girl he was holding in his arms. "What if you're right? What if your Master is really killing innocents to get back to you? Is that okay because it's him?" He gritted his teeth, waiting for an answer, but he didn't get one. Haku grabbed her horns like a form of emotional support as she slowly turned her back on him. It made him even more furious, and he left without looking back, rushing back to the tunnel.

His chest suddenly tightened, and his heart began to pound with a familiar rhythm. For days, he had dared to hope the pain had finally gone away, but the sharp ache in his chest told him that it had just been waiting for the worst time. Haku's words echoed in his head. What if it really hurts when someone dies? What if someone he knows is killed?

He continued to trudge through the ankle-deep snow, chewing on that thought. His hands were hurting so much they almost fell off. The entrance to the tunnel was completely covered. It looked as if the mountain was spotless, and no explosion had damaged it. He didn't know where the magical illusion began, or where he could get through it, but he guessed it was where all those people were standing, obviously waiting for them.

He took a step toward the group of Snow-dusted. Their heads turned in unison to face him, their expressions cold and unreadable. A tall man at the front, his gaze fixed on Ren, sinisterly took a slow step forward.

Ren's heart hammered against his ribs. He knew he had to get through the illusion to get to the clearing, but he couldn't risk a fight with Lily in his arms.

"Hey Lily, if you happen to want to wake up sometime, now would be the best time," Ren whispered to the girl.