Bantering Background

Eien Akagawa

We left the old man's place and took the path that led us straight into Edo. The scrapyard was just outside of the city so it wasn't that far before we crossed over into the city proper. Traffic slowly increased from the odd traveler to a steady stream of people and the odd rickshaw.

“How much do you know about city life?" I asked Kizuna who I had forced to put on a wide circular straw hat. That horn nub on her forehead was a dead giveaway to her identity. Her blonde hair was less so due to the amount of westerners in Edo but even so, I had her put it in a braid around her head. Her hooves I couldn’t do anything about but thankfully the hakama were long enough that they slightly dragged on the ground.

“Not much if I am to be honest.” She looked around while she touched a hand to her hat. “The only times I left the mansion was to go to dinner parties and conferences with the other two clans in Edo. I am a princess, you know.”

I hummed in thought while I shrugged my shoulders, shifting the weight on them to make it more comfortable. Iroha rode piggyback and absolutely enjoyed the view. She said that it was a proper way to show deference.

The three current clans that ruled Edo had been subdued by the shogunate in the past and had pledged loyalty while it had been in power. After it had fallen and the would-be Emperor Meiji died in an assassination only a year afterward the three clans regained their power. But not without a brutal time of transition. Japan had nearly been torn apart by all the different clans vying for power.

It wasn’t until a devastating battle in the Chūbu region that the gods of the earth had enough. In an unseen before event they punished the whole of Japan by erecting a massive barrier around it. With access to the outside world stunted, the many clans made an uneasy peace and retreated back to their lands. They still fought but in predetermined battlefields like earlier today.

Kizuna was from the Kirin clan and her clan laid claim to a part of Edo. They valued peace above all else and were willing to avoid bloodshed whenever possible. In fact, they managed to convince many clans to leave Edo alone from their conquests. Due to the fact that they disliked fighting, they often hired mercenaries and took in talented people to do their fighting for them.

Due to their inclusive nature they helped many who had been trapped in Japan after the Great Barrier surrounded us. As it was expensive to leave the Great Barrier they helped create homes for the westerners trapped here. They gave them a part of the dock area to make their homes. Many jobs had been opened to the westerners due to the Kirin clan's influence.

The Ryu were a clan of dragons that had a vast amount of land all across Japan. They were the most forward thinking of the three who occupied Edo. They had pioneered the airship a century ago and were still making great strides forward. They threw off the weight of tradition and consistently threw around the Traditionalists in Edo.

The Traditionalists were made up of nobles and warriors who had supported the Shogonate and the Meiji. The two opposing sides had gotten together in an ill-fated alliance after both their respective governments collapsed. They didn’t retain much power but held just enough to be minor annoyances.

The Kitsune clan were by far the least trustworthy. If you made any deals with them, you wanted to check to make sure you didn’t lose any fingers. Every deal was binding and upheld with extreme prejudice. Which of course meant that they managed to bring lucrative contracts to Edo from overseas.

But the most important thing the Kitsune did by far was that they kept the spiritual aspect of Edo alive. They owned most of the Onmyōji by their purse strings. The onmyōji were a group who were blessed by the gods of heaven to be able to wield magics and delve deeper into the spiritual realm than normal humans. And they were the only ones who could breach the Great Barrier. Which led to the first obstacle that we would have to pass.

“Kizuna, I'll need you to keep something of a low profile while out and about."

“Of course." She looked over at me with a sly grin. “How would I know how to relate and chat with commoners?"

Iroha giggled and I sighed. "Point taken. I know this doesn't need to be said but I'd like to try and stress this. Try not to show your budding godhood to others as much as you can. The last thing we need are rumors about where you are. Technically I think this is a kidnapping and I rather like where my head is right now.”

"And you do have such a lovely neck,” she said while attempting to ogle the nape of my neck. It was blocked by the collar of my haori so I was safe for now.

"Hey! Eyes over here.” I pointed at my face. She put a hand over her mouth and began to laugh loudly. That was admittedly a good sound. “Anyway, back on track here, if we’re to get you to your homeland, then we’re going to need a onmyōji.”

Her laughter died down. “That would be our main problem, yes. However I’m sure you have a solution to that.”

“How sure are you of that seer?” I retorted. “Blindly believing in prophecies isn’t going to get you anywhere.”

“I’m not blindly believing in prophecies.” I looked at her and she was staring straight ahead. “I’m choosing to trust the man that I was pointed to. I’m sure you’ll live up to that trust. Call it what you want but I know that you’ll get me to my homeland.

“Ah, speaking of prophecies,” she said as she looked at me. “I do need to see the seer one last time before we leave.”

“We can add that to the to-do list next to grabbing an airship. While the one that I…” I coughed into my hand. “Liberated from your family is a fine vessel, it wasn’t made to travel across the ocean. The spiritual atmosphere being different and all. We’ll need a new core to go with it.” I looked up at Iroha who was resting her elbows on top of my head. “Iroha can drive airships but they’re not her specialty. I’d want a core that would be able to make the transfer between different spiritual plains seamless. Iroha can’t do that."

“It’s odd that she can fly an airship anyway. Is she not a Zashiki Warashi? A house god that provides good luck?”

“She should provide good luck but all I seem to get is bad luck.”

“Aww, don’t say that,” Iroha said, lightly tapping my head. “We broke some rules so we were sure to lose a few things in the process. We made it so that I am home wherever Eien is.”

“Loopholes are not breaking the rules,” I replied back. “Where I am is home. Well, for me, where you are is home.” I shook my head fondly. “Honestly I’m surprised I haven’t stepped in dung on our walk.”

“Does that happen often?” Kizuna asked.

“So-so.” I looked up at the sky in the direction that the battle had been in. There were still a few airships out but it looked like the battle was over. “My bad luck mostly puts me into unfavorable situations. I think I have some time until it takes effect again.”

“Why’s that?” she asked with a cocked eyebrow.

“I met you, didn’t I?” She huffed and I chuckled. “Our ride is here.”

“What?” she asked, looking forward. Her eyes widened in alarm as a flaming rickshaw came careening our way without anyone pulling it. People darted out of the way, narrowly missing getting hit.

“We need to get to the temple district to obtain the services of an onmyōji and walking there will take too long.”

Flickering red flames were left in its path as it came closer to us. I almost imagined that there were lost souls screaming in pain from the wheels but I knew that was my imagination. Kizuna stepped back as it drew closer without slowing. Then it twisted to the side and skidded to a stop in front of us.

“Great…” she said with apprehension.