Chapter 6: Kanna

Kanna watched as Goro jogged away into a full sprint. He ran down the street a while before turning abruptly left and past a few food stands. She frowned and wondered what had gotten into him, but decided not to give chase. Perhaps he just needed to use the restroom and was too shy to say it outloud.

No, no, that’s not it, she thought. Maybe I should have dialed back my festival games skills a bit. I might have embarrassed him. She let that thought stew for a bit before turning back around to the rest of the festival. She shook her head violently to get past her mental block.

“No, stop thinking like it's your fault,” she told herself. But now that she had come to realize that she was all alone, Kanna couldn’t think of anything to do, now that her date had ditched her. As all around her a familiar situation filled her with annoyance and regret. Groups of friends walking the streets as units, families trying their best not to overcrowd the stands, and couples with linked arms, stuffed faces and locked lips, pretending that they weren’t making an uncomfortable scene for everyone around them.

Kanna groaned as she turned back around towards the entrance and where Goro had gone. She had Goro’s marble in her pocket and the stuffed squid hugged close to her chest.

“That’s okay,” Kanna said. “It probably wasn’t going to work out anyway.”

She thought long and hard about her date today. She had felt more stressed in the past two days leading up to the date than she had in a long time. More so than when she found herself trapped in a collapsing building with five people to carry out, while Taka Omo and Okami Omo were attacking her from above and below. She admitted that that particular situation was more taxing physically, but the worry about what she was to do about dating a normal human being had her mentally fatigued.

In fact, I’m kinda happy it ended like this. Kanna thought, but she didn’t mean it, not entirely anyway. Goro’s a nice guy, She admitted. He can also be kinda funny and adorable. But I can find that in any man. Her thoughts wondered. She recalled a time when she had been picked up by her neck and was tossed at a building by Raion Omo. It had hurt pretty bad, but she healed from it and returned the bump on her head by wrapping her scarf around Raion Omo’s neck and pulling his face down into hard cement. What she was thinking was that she’d rather fight a seven foot tall lion monster than go on a date with a regular, normal, and fragile human male.

I just don’t see anything exciting coming from this, she thought. She stopped walking altogether and hugged the stuffed animal even tighter. Great, now I actually feel bad. The guilt from admitting to herself that she didn’t want to date someone “normal” bugged her. She rushed through her memories, trying to think of someone who would fit her specific criteria for dating. A nice, humble guy, who also happened to be supernatural in some way, and who wasn’t an evil criminal. She came back with nothing. Recalling only the Osoroshi Kaidame and all the other supernatural entities that she and her friends had fought over the years. And, who unfortunately were all women.

Kanna had stopped in front of the two stands she saw Goro run between. There was nothing behind them besides the hill and a dense patch of trees. It was shaded in there, but she couldn’t think of any logical reason for Goro going in there.

What if he’s on his way back? She thought, optimistically. If I left now, I’d probably feel way worse. And although she felt guilty, the option to just leave was also tempting. But which was the right choice?

“Damn it!” she said, turning to the trees and marching up the hill. “I’m going to go up there, find Goro, and tell him it's not working out,” she said. “It’s not his fault, it's mine,” she continued. “The girls were saying that I could do better, and well… So can Goro.”

And while she climbed the hill, not the least bit out of breath, she finally started to well up with tears as she began to walk slower, getting closer to the top. But she blinked them away as she stepped over the curve onto the flat grass.

Now where did he go? She asked herself. She looked around big trees and hesitantly over bushes until she thought that she had to start calling his name. But now she was wondering if he was even still up here, and hoped that she hadn’t missed him on the way up. She inhaled and prepared to shout Goro’s name, when suddenly someone else did, in a guttural monster’s voice.

“Goro!” It said, and Kanna instinctually ducked behind the nearest tree. “Goro, you in there?” Kanna peeked behind her tree and saw a wolf in the direction of the voice. “Goro!” She saw the wolf speak his name at the old decaying shrine a few feet ahead of her. She saw the wolf look right and begin to turn left, towards her. She pulled back behind the tree again, hoping that the talking wolf hadn’t seen her.

“Yeah, I’m here,” she heard Goro’s muffled voice come from inside the shrine, and leaned just past the tree to see the shrine doors open and Goro stepping out in a black cloak. The hood was off, so she could clearly see his messy hair and glasses. Only, he looked a lot more emotionless than he did a few minutes ago. He was wearing black gloves, pants and boots she hadn’t seen him in before. And of course, Goro’s manner of dress, body language and tone of voice was far more odd than the fact that she was watching him make conversation with a wolf that spoke perfect japanese.

“So where am I off to?” Goro asked the wolf. He seemed annoyed, and the slight glare he gave the wolf worried Kanna as she kept quiet.

“The problem is actually on its way here,” the wolf told Goro.

“Here? Why?” Goro questioned the wolf, taking a few steps forward.

“They probably sensed you, maybe? It's obvious that they’re looking for people with strong magical powers.”

Magical powers? Kanna thought.

“Did you bring any of the other armaments?” Goro asked. And Kanna almost let a gasp escape her lips before she covered them.

“No, afraid not,” the wolf told him. And Goro sighed, pulling up his hood and brushing his cloak behind him as it glowed a dark blue. The sleeves and coat tails grew longer and thicker as they turned into tentacles and began to bend and contort around Goro as he became the spitting image of Kaiyo Omo. She watched him jump up and fly into the sky as the wolf ran further into the forest. And as soon as she thought it was safe to move, she started sprinting for the festival. She expertly dashed down the hill, ducking under branches and over rocks and vines until she found herself again at the bottom. Now she was out of breath but tried to act normal, clutching the stuffed squid and pretending like she was waiting for Goro. When all she wanted to do was hide somewhere quick to transform. She periodically looked up at the skys for Kaiyo Omo, and froze when she felt a set of eyes on her. The feeling was all too familiar and she could feel her heart sinking in her chest she expected to be attack at any moment.

“Kanna!” Trimy’s voice sounded within her mind. Kanna jumped and turned around to see her golden retriever friend walking up to her.

Trimy! She thought back, ready to tell it what she had learned, but Trimy’s own thoughts had flooded her more loudly and quickly.

“I sensed some powerful entities coming this way, what are you doing already here?” It asked, and Kanna failed to find the words for it.

Taking a day off? She said, and Trimy frowned at Kanna forcing a smile.

“Are you okay?” Trimy asked, but all Kanna could do was nod in an affirmative. “Well, I feel bad about cutting your personal time short, but I need your help. A goddess has escaped the underworld and…”

Kanna listened to Trimy explain the crisis further, but noticed an uncanny similarity to what the talking wolf in the forest told Goro, Kaiyo Omo. Kanna couldn’t help but find it coincidental and wondered if the Osoroshi Kaidame had a spirit animal aid like Trimy.

“The wolf said something similar,” Kanna whispered aloud, and watched as Trimy’s eyes grew wide and its ears twitched.

“What did you say?” Trimy asked. But Kanna hit Trimy with the stuffed animal as it accidentally spoke, and changed the subject.

Is this the Osoroshi Kaidame’s doing? She asked, but Trimy only shook its head, still watching Kanna.

“This is something else, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Kaiyo Omo showed up here too.”

“I’ll go get ready,” she said before spotting a cluster of stands positioned in a corner, perfect for transforming behind. Leaving Trimy in the streets, Kanna set the stuffed squid down and put the marble in its tuxedo pocket. She was alone back here, she took this moment to breathe. Away from the crowds, away from Trimy, and away from Kaiyo Omo.

I was on a date with Kaiyo Omo. Did he know who I was? Her mind was racing as she stepped back and unwrapped her scarf. She concentrated on the spark inside her, it flickered and she felt her form wavering until she forced Goro’s true identity out of her mind. Her kimono took the place of her casual wear, the short violet, black, and silver kimono. Her hair, now magically in a ponytail, matched the silver of the lightning strikes around the dragon pattern, as did her eyes and the blossoms, both violet. She raised her scarf above to teleport into the air, but stopped.

“I’ve known Goro for a long time now, haven’t I?” She asked herself. She sat on her heels and gave a long sigh, laughing a little as she tried to imagine Kaiyo Omo with Goro underneath the hood and cloak. “This is too much…” She mumbled into her arms, only to stand up at the sound of cries coming from the festival around her. Kanna twirled her scarf around her once before whipping it on the ground. There was a pink flash in her eyes and she was once again above the Sumida River as Hanabi Ryu.

“You always arrive at the first sign of trouble, don’t you, Magical Girl?”

Kanna knew the voice, and now that she knew who he really was, she could easily notice the smallest hint of Goro’s voice from under the tentacled face of Kaiyo Omo. His eyes were glowing red, and the air about him rippled with unstable magical power that he somehow kept in check. Before today, she always thought he was the silliest looking of the villains she’s fought, but now she could feel the fear building within her.

“A- and what are you doing here?” She asked, her face feeling red from the stutter.

“What’s the matter, finally got cold feet, Hanabi Ryu?” Goro, Kaiyo Omo asked. “Perhaps this is my lucky day,” he continued, flying closer to her. “Maybe I’ll finally be rid of the one of the biggest eyesores of my life!” Kanna inched back, unsure if he knew who she was too before they both felt the presence of the goddess approaching from the city.

“Well, just keep the festival safe,” Kaiyo Omo said. Kanna felt the hostility in his voice leave him as he turned his back on her. “There’s something I want to protect here.”

What? Kanna thought. Huh? What? What does he mean by that? Is he talking about an armament? That creepy looking wolf? Kanna was looking all over the festival as people were either taking pictures of her and Kaiyo Omo, or running out of the area as police showed up at either entrance, evacuating the whole festival. Her brain was working a mile a minute to process what he meant by “protect”, until she remembered that he was Goro under that hood.

Me? She thought. Oh gosh, he doesn’t know I’m Momo Kanna. Suddenly, she started to see this life long villain of her’s in a different light. She took a thinking pose as she looked over this side of Goro.

“I don’t know how you knew about the escaped goddess, but this is my problem,” Kaiyo Omo warned her.

“Uh-huh, sure…” She answered, barely paying attention to the four figures approaching them at high speeds.

So let's see, Kanna thought. Minus the destructive monster side of him, he’s actually not that bad looking. He’s kind to a fault when he’s human, he’s awkward, cute in a funny way…

“Magical girl?”

He’s considerate, Kanna started numbering his good points on her fingers in front of him. He has a decent job, he treats others nicely as a result of that job. His fashion sense is a bit bland, she uncounted a finger for that one. He seems hard working and thoughtful. His friends are… Kanna blinked as she realized. Oh god, his friends! Kanna had to turn away from him to hide her smile. Those guys in the corner of the cafe were the other members of the Osoroshi Kaidame! They must all be hiding within society as humans too! She started shaking, trying to hold in the laughter.

“Hey!” Kaiyo Omo shouted.

Oh no… Kanna remembered. I gave Squid Lord a stuffed squid! She blew up in a fit of giggles. Her face hurt from smiling and her sides began to cramp from all of the realizations she was drawing. And for some reason, she felt more happy as a result. Goodness… She calmed a bit. He’s perfect, in a pathetic and amazing kind of way.

“Hanabi Ryu!” She heard him yell directly in her ear.

“Geez! I’m listening, what’s-” Kanna turned towards Goro, he wasn’t trying to play up a tough villain act anymore, and besides them, stood four other unearthly beings, flying in the air. Three of them were tengu masked men with large black wings, and giant scaled talons protruding from each of their feet. The old traditional clothes looked tattered and rotten, and from where their arms should have been, darkened stains colored the areas of their shoulders. Kanna felt horrified and looked to Goro, who flew next to her, wordless.

“Not with you?” She asked Goro.

“No,” He answered, as they both turned to the lone woman in the center of the demons.

“My, my…” She cued. “You two seem just as out of place as we do.” Her voice was smooth and pretty, and she looked just as beautiful. Her pale white skin and ankle long black hair, flowed freely in the wind, giving her subtle grace that was as magnificent as it was haunting. Her eyes and clothes, however, were telling of her true character. The eyes were black as night with yellow iris glowing in the center of them, and her tattered yukata was more rotten and torn than the tengu’s grabs. She had all her limbs, but the brownish and black colors of the yukata looked rough, uncleaned, and old.

“Who are you? Kanna asked. And the woman giggled a little.

“Young folk,” she shrugged and slimed at the tengu as if it were a joke. “How about you introduce yourselves first. Or has time muddled the generations so that manners no longer apply to you?”

The way she spoke definitely set her back a few hundred years at least to Kanna, but if an introduction was all she needed to know who this was, Kanna was more than willing to oblige.

“I am Hanabi Ryu, the last magical girl, and defender of Earth.”

“Last?” The woman said, unconvinced. “And you are?” She asked, turning to the only other monster in the sky.

“Kaiyo Omo, the Ocean Lord, and the true terror of this world.”

The true terror of this world works at a cafe and can’t win a carnival game to save his life. Kanna thought, upturning an eyebrow from behind him.

“Well, well, well…” The woman started. “Then we are allies, no?” She outstretched her hand to him. “You are on my side of causality, the side that has been labeled as villains so that the ones in charge can live comfy happy lives.”

Kanna froze. Causality? Allies? She thought. Do they know each other? The idea scared her a bit, and that idea grew into a fear that she now realized that she had overlooked something. She didn’t know Goro for sure. She only really knew him as Kaiyo Omo, her arch enemy, and the leader of the most powerful monsters this world had ever seen. Kanna gripped her sword scarf tighter as she prepared for the fight, her guard up, even to Goro.

“Unless, you sided with “heroes” that is.” The woman said, looking at Kanna, as both she and Goro sensed her hostility. Goro glanced back at her, glaring. Kanna waited for him to make the first move, only to watch him turn back to the woman, his tentacles aimed for her.

“I don’t know who you are, and I don’t really care,” Goro said. “But if you came from the Underworld, there must’ve been a good reason for that. And there’s only room for one ultimate evil in this world.”

“Oh, did I not say?” The woman started, bowing with a smile. “I am she who invites, Izanami-no-Mikoto. Oh, and my dear boy, you don’t know what true evil is.” She stood up and put her hands behind her back. “Kill the lord of squids,” she ordered the tengu.

“For the last time, I’m the Ocean L-” Goro was tackled by all three tengu, and pulled from the sky to the abandoned festival below, crashing into an explosion of broken stands and concret.

“Go-” Kanna began, but covered her mouth, as she noticed Izanami still with her.

“Ah, so you know his true name too?” Izanami said. “I didn’t want to make a fuss about it earlier when you gave me your fake names, Momo-chan. But I do find it interesting that you knew his name.” Izanami flew closer, and Kanna readied a kendo stance with her sword scarf.

“What, are you two in love or something?” Izanami asked. But Kanna did not answer. Izanami frowned at her. “Ugh, I hate love stories…”