Chapter 19: Trial Beneath the Surface

Natsumi gave a happy nod.

“Good,” Alex said. “Now that we are all full, we should start the training.”

He looked to his right, where Celeste sat finishing her last bites of pizza. “So, shall we train her the same way you trained me?”

Celeste replied, “Yes, but first I want to spar with her. I want to see what she is actually capable of. She was human, and now she is an Oni. We need to know how that affects her. Oni are brutal, violent, rage-filled creatures.”

Alex nodded. “All right. We will head into the open garage and start your training, Natsumi.”

Natsumi smiled happily and got to her feet.

She unblocked the door, and all three of them walked toward the center of the massive garage. Alex pulled out Muramasa and handed it to Natsumi. She took it, and Alex stepped back as Celeste and Natsumi faced each other, ready for the lesson to begin.

Celeste said, “Come at me with everything you have got.”

Natsumi ran forward and swung, but Celeste easily blocked it. She frowned slightly. “You need to swing with all your strength. I want to test what you can do.”

Natsumi looked worried. “But I might hurt you.”

“Do not worry about me,” Celeste said with a small smile. “I can handle it. Show me what you have.”

Natsumi stepped back and tightened her grip on Muramasa.

“All right, here I come.” She used all her strength in an overhead strike, slashing down toward Celeste. Celeste crossed her blades, catching Muramasa between them. The impact sent a shockwave through the floor, and the ground beneath Celeste shattered, crumbling away as both she and Natsumi fell to a lower level of the garage.

Alex’s eyes widened. He ran to the hole and shouted, “Celeste! Natsumi! Are you both okay?”

A thick cloud of dust blocked his view.

When the dust finally cleared, all he saw was darkness. He could not see the bottom. Alex stood and waited, but no reply came. He turned and ran toward the stairwell they had used earlier. He rushed down the stairs, but after about three floors, the ground was gone. The stairwell ended in pure darkness.

Alex went back to the hole and muttered, “Should I jump?” He hesitated. “No. If they fell and are injured, and I jump, we will all be in the same situation.” He took a breath. “I need a spell that will let me land safely.”

He closed his eyes, focusing on a spell he could use mid-fall to soften his landing.

He pictured a wind spell that would blow upward and slow him down. “If I cast it just before I hit, it should reduce my momentum.”

With that thought, Alex formed the image in his mind.

Meanwhile, Natsumi and Celeste groaned as they got to their feet.

“That hurt,” Celeste muttered. “You okay, Natsumi?”

“Yeah, I am fine,” Natsumi replied. “I am built strong, so a fall like this will not do much.”

They looked around, surrounded by pitch-black darkness. Celeste raised her hand and whispered, “Light.” A glowing orb appeared in her palm, pushing back the void.

Before them stretched a vast river of bubbling black blood. Natsumi pointed ahead. “This is the same stuff we saw in the cracks in the street. I wonder where this giant river is coming from.”

Something moved in the river. Skeletal, rotting hands rose from the black liquid, one after another, until corpses began crawling out. They looked like hikers. Their heavy jackets were shredded by time and the elements, and they still clutched rusted ice picks in their decayed hands. Half their faces were gone, exposing bone beneath tattered flesh. The black liquid clung to their bodies like tar, still bubbling and oozing over them even after they emerged, as if alive and unwilling to let go.

“Zombies?” Natsumi gasped.

She ran behind Celeste, peeking from her side at the oncoming horde. Celeste stepped aside, moving behind Natsumi, and set her stance so Natsumi would have to ready her weapon.

“Remember,” Celeste said firmly, “if you cannot get through this training, you will not be allowed to come with us.”

Natsumi tightened her grip on Muramasa and charged the first zombie.

It raised its ice pick high, trying to bring it down on her. She ignored the strike and rushed in, slashing with full force and cutting the hiker clean in two. Another lunged from the side, reaching for her. Natsumi stepped back and brought Muramasa down, cleaving the creature from head to groin. Both halves split and fell.

She turned toward the next zombie but was caught off guard when the one she had just split kept moving. Its upper body dragged itself forward and grabbed her ankle, jaws snapping for her leg.

Panic hit. The moment fear overtook her, something inside snapped. Rage took hold, and the Oni within surfaced. She stomped the zombie’s head into the floor. Dropping Muramasa, she charged barehanded. Her hand punched through the next zombie’s chest. Fingers gripped its spine and tore it free through the hole she had made. The body collapsed as she stepped on it, grinding it deeper into the floor.

Another zombie rushed her and swung an ice pick. The weapon struck her shoulder, but Natsumi did not flinch. She gripped its neck and squeezed until the bones shattered. Skin tore and the head fell.

She turned toward the next one, until Celeste’s voice rang out.

“Stop, Natsumi. You have lost control.”

Natsumi snapped out of it and looked around at the fallen zombies. She blinked and said shyly, “Sorry.”

Celeste crossed her arms. “Pick up the katana and try again.”

Natsumi lifted Muramasa and resumed. Celeste watched her movements, studying each step and swing.

It seemed that whenever Natsumi fought, the moment panic took over, her Oni blood kicked in and she became a wild beast. Remembering what Natsumi had said, Celeste understood why. Natsumi had spent decades running and hiding, avoiding danger rather than confronting it. That was why she could not fight with control. When fear rose, the Oni took the wheel. Celeste knew what needed to be done. She had to give Natsumi confidence, teach her proper sword work, and build experience. Over time, Natsumi could stop panicking and learn to master that Oni blood instead of letting it control her.

As the battle continued, Alex’s spell took hold. A gust of wind formed beneath him as he plummeted from above. He fell fast, but the wind softened his landing enough that he touched down unharmed. He glanced at Natsumi and Celeste and exhaled in relief.

“Looks like both of you are okay,” Alex said, catching his breath. “I panicked for a moment when you did not reply.”

Celeste nodded. “We have been busy. We found zombies down here, so it is actually a good training ground for Natsumi. We will stay a bit longer. Once she is comfortable fighting them, we will move on to dodging, blocking, and parrying.”

She paused, watching Natsumi’s footwork. “Though she may not need much in dodging, blocking, and parrying. She has been running and hiding for more than fifty-five years, so she is probably decent already. I only need to give her a few tips.”

Time passed as Alex and Celeste stood together, quietly watching Natsumi’s slow progress. From panicking to losing control, then regaining focus, she began to fight the zombies without constant fear. Each swing of her blade showed steady, determined improvement.