[Satori Effect] Day 6: The Many Burdens on His Shoulder

Shinju pointed her finger at the bleeding and wounded Satori, but Kagutsuchi remained in the way. The naive goddess was frozen by indecision.

"Three, two...one." Shinju said.

At the last moment, with every bit of his remaining strength, Satori pushed Kagu out of the way. Shinju fired from her fingertip, sending forth a small stream of pressurized air that knocked Satori against the wall, cracking his back and the back of his head. His body went limp as he fell face-first to the ground, his white hair stained red with blood. His fingers twitched and his shoulders shuddered, but soon after that, he could move no more.

Yoko stood behind Shinju, stunned at the sight of blood pooling around Satori's body. Never before had she watched someone die so violently, and never did she think that Lucrezia was capable of orchestrating someone's death.

"It's finally done." Lucrezia said. "Well, not yet. Satori and the shikome are taken care of. Now we need Osamu back."

"You...you really killed him..." Yoko stammered.

Kagutsuchi crawled her way to the body, nudging Satori's shoulder. "Hey...Satori...get up....please! Satori!"

"He's dead, Kagu. It was wise of him to push you out of the way at the last minute. I really do hate collateral damage. It's a sin in my books." Shinju scoffed.

Yoko rushed over to the sobbing and screaming Kagutsuchi, pulling her away from the body. She hugged the grieving goddess, stroking her hair as she cried into her shoulder. Shinju stepped forth and flipped Satori's body over. She unbuttoned his golden tuxedo and slipped his limp arms out of the sleeves, draping it over his lifeless body.

"You there." Shinju said, addressing Yoko. "Osamu is still in the Underworld, right?"

"What, are you going to kill them too? Because if you are..." Yoko growled.

Shinju shook her head and waved her hands. "No, no. Please don't jump to conclusions. My target today was Satori. As for Osamu, we're here to rescue him, not kill him."

"Lucrezia...you owe us an explanation for all of this." Yoko said.

Lucrezia closed her eye. "Let's save the story time until after we've rescued Osamu, shall we? Besides, I don't know why you're so upset by this. Satori was a traitor, you know."

"Still, to just end it like this in such a cold and careless fashion..." Yoko cried.

Shinju smiled. "Justice is as cold as the crime itself."

"I know this whole thing appears as civilized as a Greek tragedy, but please know that this was all for a good cause." Lucrezia said. "Satori is dead, his shikome are vanquished, and we've recovered Kagutsuchi. A bit of barbarism is a small price to pay, wouldn't you say?"

The sounds of exhausted panting and shuffling feet alerted the three to the return of Aika and Rei, who came running down the hall to rendezvous with the others.

"Yoko! Are you okay?" Aika asked with labored breath. "Rei and I moved out to Hokkaido. We wanted to surprise you guys, but we realized something was wrong because you weren't home. That's when we ran into Lucrezia and Shinju."

"Where are the others?" Rei asked, looking around.

"I'm all right." Yoko answered. "We need to make sure Osamu is okay. He's in the Underworld right now with Izanami and Tsukiakari. They're trying to find Mizuhame's gourd."

"Who the hell is Mizuhame again?" Rei questioned.

Shinju raised her hand and smiled. "That would be my ancestor. She was the only one capable of controlling Kagutsuchi's otherwise uncontrollable powers, and she did so by dousing her with holy water from her gourd."

"Right, you're a demi-god, for lack of a better term." Rei sighed.

"What? Seriously?" Yoko gasped.

"Oh, it's nothing special, really. There's quite a few exorcists that have divine lineage." Shinju said. "But I digress. Are the Shoku twins done with Isabella's remains? I need them to get me to the Underworld."

"You're not seriously thinking of going down to that literal hellhole are you?!" Yoko shouted.

Shinju smiled. "To meet your husband, I'd do anything."

The frigid air of the Underworld bit at Osamu's skin. Breathing it in burned his nostrils and sapped the moisture from his throat. A surge of pain suddenly shot down his spine and back, all of his nerves crying out all at once. He screamed and dropped to his knees with his hand on his neck. Izanami ran to his side as Tsukiakari tried to keep everyone warm with her fire-lit sword.

(What's going on?! This pain is intense!)

"Osa! What's wrong with your neck?!" Izanami cried.

Osamu said nothing, but Izanami's question was answered when she looked for herself. Osamu's neck and back were blighted by growing blots of pallid skin. Though he was still very much alive, the shikome bite he received in Satori's mansion was making him undergo livor mortis.

"Osamu, were you bitten?!" Izanami recoiled.

(It's not the cold aggravating the bite mark, is it? No, it can't be. This pain, I can feel it all throughout my back too. It's possible...just maybe, that being in the underworld...might be accelerating the rate of the curse's spread.)

"Don't worry about it, Izanami." Osamu moaned. "We need to keep going. If we don't find that gourd..."

"Guys! Might want to take a look around!" Tsukiakari shouted, pointing towards the lake.

A dozen heads of soaked, raven hair slowly emerged from the icy lake, the stench of death and fetid flesh filling the air again. Osamu stood on his feet, his heart racing as he truly realized just how much the Underworld wanted him dead. The Mu-Onna arose from their watery graves with maggots falling out of their rotten mouths and eye sockets. They crawled and plodded their way to the shore, instantly picking up on the scent of Osamu and the others.

"These aren't shikome! They're yuki-onna!" Izanami said.

"There's this many of them?!" Osamu cried.

"No wonder it got so cold all of a sudden." Tsukiakari said. "Listen to me, there are too many of them to stay and fight here!"

"Yeah, I know! Let's just pick a path and get out of here!" Izanami urged.

The three high-tailed it out of there through the middle cave path. The Yuki-onna relentlessly followed them as Tsukiakari covered their rear with a wall of fire, keeping them at bay. Several of the Yuki-onna stopped and sucked in as much air as they could fit in their lungs. They then exhaled a frigid mist of snow and ice, extinguishing the wall of fire. Tsukiakari watched it happen as she ran with the others, realizing her fire abilities were all but worthless.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Tsukiakari cried.

Osamu was the first to make it out the other end of the narrow pathway, only to be tackled to the ground by a Yuki-Onna. They rolled across the ground until they splashed in a small brook filled with icy runoff from the lake. Osamu thrusted his foot into the Yuki-Onna's stomach and pushed against her head with his hands as she blindly clawed at him with her serrated fingernails.

"Hang on!" Izanami screamed.

(So cold! I can't feel my arms!)

Izanami swung her scythe, the blade cleanly slicing through the Yuki-onna's pale skin and rotten flesh. She severed its head and kicked the now limp body off of Osamu before extending her hand to help him out of the brook.

"Osamu! Can you get up?!" Izanami cried.

Osamu tried to stand, only to find his feet iced to the ground. The air was only getting colder, more than it ever was in Antarctica.

" Shit! Gekko! I need some fire over here!" Osamu shouted.

Tsukiakari slayed several Yuki-onna with her blade, holding them off from the rest of the group. Beads of ice formed and sparkled in her hair as the temperature continued to plummet by the second. Tsukiakari pointed her sword at Osamu's feet, shooting out a small spark that melted the ice and set him free.

"We're good! Let's go!" Osamu ordered.

The three ran through the caves at full speed. It was a mad dash to safety, wherever that was. After what seemed like another hour of running, the three realized they weren't being followed anymore and stopped to rest. They were in a new area, a warmer place with torches and puddles of water on the ground. Osamu slouched down against the cave wall, his lungs filled with dull, cold air, and his body aching from the shikome's curse. Izanami dropped down to her knees, and Tsukiakari leaned over on the handle of her sword.

"I think...I think we lost them." Tsukiakari sighed.

"Osamu, how are you holding up?" Izanami asked.

"I'll survive. We just need to keep going." Osamu said.

"Idiot, why didn't you tell me you were cursed?! I would've never let you down here!" Izanami cried.

"That's exactly why! I'm not the kind of guy who can just let his wives go on a death mission for him! Either we perish together or nobody goes."

"I understand, but you also have to trust your wives to be able to take care of you! What would happen to us if we lost you?!" Izanami protested.

Osamu staggered up and continued walking. "Everything is riding on that gourd. Your life, my life, and even Satori's life. Let's stop wasting time and just..."

Osamu suddenly stopped.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Tsukiakari asked.

"You guys don't feel that? My ears are popping. We must be heading downwards." Osamu said.

"Hey, mine were popping too when we were running. I don't really know this path, so it's possible we were descending." Izanami said.

Tsukiakari stood up straight and stretched her arms. "Well, let's just hurry up and-"

The floor beneath them suddenly cracked and gave way, sending the three on a steep free fall to the Underworld's lowest, darkest level. The fall was hundreds if not thousands of feet deep. Izanami acted quickly and teleported to Osamu, then Tsukiakari, and then took them to nearest sight of solid land. Stunned from the sudden fall, Osamu took a moment to sit down and catch his breath. The first thing he felt when he sat down was an immense cold.

"What? Ice? Gekko, give us some light." Osamu said.

Tsukiakari ignited her sword. The three realized their fall took them to an immeasurably large body of water beneath the caverns of the underworld. As far as the eye could see, there was water and chunks of ice with no shoreline in sight. It was as if they had landed right in the middle of the ocean, under a night sky devoid of stars or moonlight.

"Wait a minute, this is it! Mizuhame came down here to rescue me back then! Her gourd might be here somewhere, Osamu!" Izanami excitedly shrieked.

Tsukiakari was less than enthused." ...In this vast ocean of chilled water and ice."

Izanami's smile wilted. "Yeah..."

"You wouldn't happen to know any water-related spells, would you?" Osamu asked.

"Even if I did, we might risk damaging the gourd." Izanami answered.

Osamu sighed. "Good point. I guess we're looking the hard way, then. "

Osamu kicked off his shoes and slowly submerged himself in the water. He sharply inhaled through his mouth as the water came up to his hip and bit at his nerves.

"Hey, be careful!" Tsukiakari urged. "Hypothermia could kick our ass if we dive in recklessly."

"This curse is kicking my ass faster than that. Compared to a curse, hypothermia sounds like mercy." Osamu scoffed.

Osamu felt around for the gourd, slowly marching forward in search of it. He stopped when he felt vibrations coming from something other than him.

"Osa?" Tsukiakari called out.

Osamu pressed his finger against his lip. "Shh!"

Osamu listened carefully to the sound of the rippling water. Just as he suspected, legions of shikome slowly arose from the ocean, their soaked hair covering their pallid faces. Their moans and wails filled the seemingly infinite space of darkness and water, echoing from every direction.

"Osamu! Get out of the water!" Izanami screamed.

(Damn it! I can't move fast enough!)

Osamu tried and tried, but the water combined with the curse hurt his mobility. Dozens of shikome were converging on the large platform of ice the three were near.

"Holy crap! Izanami, got a game plan?!" Tsukiakari asked.

"Cover Osamu! Use long range, encircling attacks!" Izanami ordered.

Back in the mansion, everyone crowded around Kagutsuchi as she sat on her knees, trying and failing to open a portal to the Underworld. Her heart bled for Satori, but she tried her hardest to focus on rescuing Osamu and the others. After failing so many times, Kagutsuchi wailed in vexation and slammed her fists into the marble ground, drawing blood from her knuckles. Yoko stopped her before she could break her own hands.

"I can't! I can't focus!" Kagutsuchi sobbed.

"Kagu, look at me." Yoko said.

Yoko's blue eyes had nothing by sympathy for the young girl. "I know. You've been through a lot, and especially today, you've lost a lot. If I were in your shoes, I'd be doubting my ability too. Your mother is down there, and Osamu is down there, risking their lives for nothing. We have to open a path to the underworld. They might not make it out of there if we don't."

"It's not for nothing." Lucrezia said. "Satori might be dead, but the gourd will still help us cure Kagutsuchi. If we do this right, we can ensure that something like this never happens again. You'd be free to love again."

"I'm so powerless...what can I do if he's not here anymore?" Kagutsuchi asked.

"You can either break or move on. But know this, whatever you choose, you won't be doing it alone." Yoko declared. "Ready? Akatsuki, Omagatoki?"

The twins nodded as they joined hands, fusing their minds and powers. "Ready."

The Shoku Twins gently laid their hands upon Kagutsuchi's back, transferring some of their power over to her. Akatsuki spoke first, with Omagatoki finishing her sentences.

"Together, we may be able-"
"-to open a path to the underworld. We're not allowed-"
"-to go there, but we may be able to at least-"
"-open a portal. It would be best if you-"
"-and Shinju went there."

Kagutsuchi took a deep breath, trying, even if just for a moment, to empty her mind of the loss she suffered. "Okay. We'll do it together."

Kagutsuchi extended her hand and opened up her palm, focusing on maintaining a clear mind. With their combined powers, Kagutsuchi and the Shoku Twins were able to open a small portal to the underworld. A cold wind waded in from the portal, blowing everyone's hair around.

"We did it!" Kagutsuchi cheered.

"Well then, it's time to go." Shinju announced. "Yoko, was it? I'll bring your friends back. I promise. Justice never lies, after all. Lying would be a sin."

Yoko nodded. “All right. I'm counting on you!"

Shinju jumped in first, disappearing into the pitch black portal. Kagutsuchi stood up, wiped her tears from her glittering, purple eyes, and remembered that there were still lives to be saved.

"Thank you, everyone. We'll be back. I won't let them die down there!" Kagutsuchi said.

Kagutsuchi jumped in and the portal was sealed. The wind was snuffed out, and the air in the hall returned to normal.

"Come on, I'm not sensing any optimism here." Rei complained. "This is Osa, Izanami, and Gekko we're talking about. That's a tough trio, right?"

The Shoku twins interjected, Akatsuki speaking first.

"Yes, that is true. However-"
"-the underworld is a very dangerous place-"
"-even for those three. Their lives-"
"-are still very much in danger."

"Even Izanami's?" Aika asked.

The twins paused and exchanged worried expressions. They then returned their gaze to Aika.

"The underworld is like a living-"
"-breathing environment. Or rather-"
"-it naturally acts as an immune system-"
"-and attacks strangers who do not-"
"-belong there. Izanami may be a goddess of death-"
"but ever since she was rescued, she no longer-"
"-had a place there. It is most accurate to conclude-"
"-the underworld will attack her as well."

"I'm not worried about her being attacked. I've seen her take a chest full of bullets before and she was fine. I just don't know if she can actually survive down there." Yoko said.

Lucrezia snickered. "You know, ever since she was rescued from the Underworld by Amaterasu, there's been no record of Izanami ever needing to reincarnate, which means she hasn't died since then. Impressive, considering Tsukiakari died several times during the Warring States era. The Izanami that you know is a gentle and kindhearted girl, but there was a time where she had a lot of enemies both in and out of Japan. She outlived them all, and she never died once in the process. I firmly believe that as long as they have Izanami, the others will make it out alive, even if only barely."

"Now that Kagu is gone...I think I'll take that explanation now, Lucrezia." Yoko said. "You sold out our family to Satori. You deliberately put Osamu in danger. Why?"

Lucrezia sighed. "Good grief. Normally, I wouldn't divulge such information, but I suppose you do deserve to know. First, I must apologize, Yoko. I did indeed sell you out to Satori, and deliberately so. However, this was not as it seemed. Satori and I planned all of this together."

"Hold on, what?! That's not what you told us!" Rei shouted.

"I didn't lie to you. I only told you part of the story." Lucrezia tittered. "The truth is that Satori informed me right away when he found Kagutsuchi in that construction zone. He suspected the girl might've been a goddess. There are only two goddesses that aren't part of the pantheon anymore. It could've only been Inari or Kagutsuchi, and seeing as she didn't have nine tails or fox ears, we thought it might've been Kagu."

"You suspected that all along?" Aika asked.

Lucrezia nodded. "We had to make absolutely sure it was a goddess. Then, we had to make sure it was indeed Kagutsuchi. Satori confided in me so that we could find out before the rest of the exorcists did. Only, things turned sideways once the curse spread throughout this mansion. Satori himself couldn't get anything out of the girl, so that's where Osamu came in. Given his prior adventures, Osamu seemed like the man for the job."

"If that was the case, why not just ask for our help? Why all of this?" Yoko questioned.

"You have to understand, we were working under the exorcists' noses. If the goddess Satori picked up really was Kagutsuchi, we had to conduct all of this in a way that would absolve me of any suspicion and allow me to take custody of Kagu. If Satori had reported the incident according to protocol, some other team would be here right now and Kagu would either be imprisoned or have her body eviscerated again. You can ask the Shoku twins or Gekko what happened the last time Kagu had her body destroyed."

"I don't need to. Gekko told me all about the Phantom Maiden..." Yoko shuddered. "So, you did this to avoid another Phantom Maiden scenario?"

"Partly, yes." Lucrezia nodded. "Like I said, I also needed to take custody of her first. If we could intercept Kagutsuchi before the others could, we could also find a way to cleanse her curse. If we did that and then the exorcists found out about her, there'd be no need for them to incarcerate her or make another foolish attempt to seal her away. Plus...it would reunite Izanami with her daughter. I know she's been searching for Kagutsuchi and Inari all this time."

"And Satori...agreed to all of this?" Aika gasped.

"Yes. He agreed to work with Osamu and to play the part of the rich madman who betrayed his organization. We did all of this to ensure that no one would suspect we were working together. We needed it to look exactly like the scenario it looks like now, that some madman kidnapped a man and his family and held them against their will. Meanwhile, Shinju and I, with the help of Aika and Rei, tracked him down, killed him, cleansed the curse, and freed Kagutsuchi. It's the perfect cover."

"Did Satori agree to be killed, too?" Yoko asked.

"He had already been afflicted by the curse. He knew he was going to die regardless." Lucrezia explained. "I can't imagine how much pain he was in this whole time. He clung onto life by transplanting limbs to slow the spread of the curse. There's no way he would've survived much more of it. We agreed that we wouldn't arrest him. We'd kill him. I know it looked brutal, but Shinju provided him with a coup de grâce and ended his suffering. It's what he wanted."

"So that's why all of this happened..." Yoko said, leaning her hand against the wall. "But why? Why go so far for Izanami? And why would Satori go so far for Kagutsuchi?"

"I'm sure Satori had his own reasons." Lucrezia lamented. "Must've been a good one. He'd never throw away his life and career otherwise. As for me...well, I suppose you can say that no matter what, I'll always be on Izanami's side. This was a good opportunity to put her in a position to reunite with Kagu. I'll have to apologize to her for the way it all happened, but please know that I only thought of her best interests."

Lucrezia took a breath of fresh air and wiggled her shoulders around, cracking a few tense joints in the process. "Feels good to tell the truth. I've had enough lies in my life."

Of course, Yoko noticed that Lucrezia didn't really answer her question. She merely reaffirmed her dedication to Izanami. Yoko let that fact go, as she did tell the truth about everything that had happened up until that very point. All they had to do now was wait for Shinju and Kagutsuchi to return with the others.