Page 6 of Son of Shadows

After a few tense heartbeats, he lowered his arm, then spoke through clenched teeth. “Whoever wins that war will control the entire spirit realm. All the creatures of the nether world.”

“Yes, that is normally what happens. The victor makes the rules.” Koichi was every bit as flustered with Masaru as Masaru was with him.

Keiko rubbed her hands together, a sure sign of panic. “The Ryukage didn’t want to harm Ryuichi. He wanted to control the boy. For better or worse, Ryuichi is his heir. If someone else takes over, they won’t feel that kinship or restraint.”

Masaru gestured toward Haruki. “It would be in our best interest to find out who the warring factions are and where the Ryukage has gone. And most importantly, what he is up to.”

“Why point at me when you say that, traitor?” Haruki asked. “I’m not the one who changed sides.” She tucked her hands into the long sleeves of her kimono, her expression turning crestfallen. “I’ve always been loyal to the Ryukage.”

Ryuichi felt a pang of sadness for Haruki. She had been helplessly in love with his father for so long, but he would never adore anyone but his mother. Ryukage’s rejection had turned her heart to ice, and there was no telling if it would ever melt, no matter how much kindness she was shown.

Masaru snorted at her. “I’ve never once changed sides.”

“True,” Keiko agreed. “He has only looked after himself from the beginning.”

“Enough.” Ryuichi held his hand up to stop their bickering. While it was disrespectful and he felt terrible for doing so, he needed the adults to focus on what was most important.

“So did you serve my father?” he asked the tengu.

Nodding, the tengu bowed to him again. “In a sense. The Ryukage’s last command was to my lord. He was told to defend the gate and keep the spirits restricted to this realm until his return. He said that no one should be allowed to go in or out. But with the gate cracked open, there’s no real way to keep that from happening, and it won’t be long before the human world is overrun by your father’s enemies. My lord sent me to find and bring back the Ryukage’s heir so that we can rally the forces still loyal to your father and carry out his orders. You are his blood. The yōkai will follow you.”

Haruki removed her hand from her sleeve and raised it hopefully. “I, for one, think we should definitely go back to the nether realm.”

“That’s because you’re evil and tried to kill us all. You just want to get home and be among your own kind,” Koichi said.

Haruki scoffed at Koichi. “Go back to your sake and drown in it, you old fool.”

Koichi mocked her words silently before he spoke again. “As if anyone cares what you think, you murder-happy witch.”

“Says the man who has more body hair than brains! Are we sure you’re even human and not some rare breed of small kaiju?”

“Stop it, both of you.” Ryuichi-kage separated the two before approaching Ryuichi. Not with an aura of malice though. In fact, he appeared determined to help, not hurt. “What are we thinking, human half?”

Ryuichi couldn’t get over how strange it was to be able to talk to his duplicate. While they were technically the same, he and his shadow self held two vastly different perspectives on most things.

He saw light and Ryuichi-kage always saw the dark. Ryuichi tried to remain calm and respectful. Typically, his shadow was filled with venom and wrath.

But in this moment, Ryuichi could sense they were united, even if he doubted that would last.

Actually, his mind was cluttered with doubts. Especially that his intuition would steer him in the wrong direction. His judgment in the past hadn’t been good. Under his father’s influence, he made bad choices. When it counted the most, would he be able to get it right? Given how often he’d been betrayed, he didn’t trust anyone, including himself.

But then he remembered the cursed urn and how he stood his ground. He made a good choice. Even Masaru said so, though not in words.

His instincts weren’t based on fear. At least, not all the time.

So Ryuichi decided to listen to his inner voice and put his faith in it.

“I think we should go, together,” he said to his shadow self. “We need to find our father. Monster or not, we need his help to keep our world safe.”

Ryuichi-kage nodded. “Agreed.”

“Count me in too,” said Masaru.

“I wouldn’t miss this for all the sake in Japan,” Koichi said.

“Someone has to make sure everyone doesn’t die,” Keiko added. “So, I guess I’ll be coming along.”

Haruki sighed heavily, drawing Ryuichi’s attention back to her. “I, for one, will be glad to be rid of this world and its meager human accommodations. Imagine a real meal of fresh yōkai guts, seasoned with honey. Eyes of an osaki with red bean paste and rice. A hot, scented bath . . .” She threw a meaningful glare toward Koichi. “Which some of us need far more than others.”