Soul of the Sword (Shadow of the Fox #2) - Julie Kagawa Page 0,15

Kiba Mountains on the edge of Sky Clan territory. The temple itself was ancient and falling apart; the roofs were full of holes and at least an inch of dust had coated the creaky wood floors. A statue of the humans’ revered Jade Prophet sat unhappily alone in the main hall, topped with a few white streaks from the sparrow nest atop her head. I had found this hilarious, and had chuckled at the foot of the statue for a good minute before moving on. From what I could discern, either through disease or attack or because the monks had simply grown old and died, as humans were wont to do, the temple had been abandoned long ago, which was the reason I’d chosen to stop here. I’d been stuck in Kamigoroshi for a long time; the world had changed since I’d seen it last, and I needed time to reacclimate before I started laying waste to cities and soaking the land in blood. Slaughtering a temple full of pious bald men would have been fun, but such massacres had a way of drawing attention, something I was trying to avoid right now.

Unfortunately, it seemed my arrival had already been noticed. Barely three days out, and the Kage were already hounding my footsteps. Persistent bastards. I’d known I would see them sooner or later. They had a whole team of shinobi and majutsushi who monitored the bearer of Kamigoroshi—which at this time had been Kage Tatsumi—making sure the demonslayer stayed sane and in control. As soon as I had escaped, one of them probably scampered home to let the Shadow Clan know I was free again. This little visit wasn’t unexpected, but it did mean the Kage were already moving against me.

Then again, a bloodbath was just what I needed to relieve some stress and pent-up frustration. That it was the Kage, the line I had vowed to wipe from existence for their insolence of keeping me trapped in Kamigoroshi, made it that much better.

“Congratulations, Kage,” I said, smiling from the top of the steps to the main hall. “You found me.” My grin grew wider, showing fangs, and several of them flinched. They had likely never seen an oni before, even one who was human-sized. This was, technically, Kage Tatsumi’s body I was using, though now that I was free, some of my demonic features had seeped through. I wasn’t as large as my true self, but the horns, claws and ink-black skin were a dead giveaway. I still looked like an oni, which could make even the bravest humans blanch in fear. “Now, what do you propose we do about it?”

Deep inside, a flicker of a subconscious not my own stirred. Kage Tatsumi, the original owner of this body, desperately trying to drive me out, to stop what he knew was about to happen. I felt his presence struggling within, like a fish tangled in a net, and laughed at his feeble attempts to halt the inevitable.

Keep watching, demonslayer. Watch, as I shred your clansmen into little bloody strips and scatter them to the wind, and know there is absolutely nothing you can do to stop me. But keep trying. Struggle and fight as long as you can. I love the way your despair feels. There was a pulse of rage, directed at me, and I snickered. Just remember, the last time I was trapped in Kamigoroshi for nearly four hundred years. You’ve been in there three days. It already feels like forever, doesn’t it?

The majutsushi stepped forward. “Hakaimono,” he said again, and I had to give him credit; his voice didn’t shake, though the cuffs of his sleeves were trembling, very slightly. “By order of Lady Hanshou, you will release the demonslayer, Kage Tatsumi, and return to Kamigoroshi.”

I laughed at him. The sound echoed off the courtyard walls and rose into the night, and the samurai clustered together, raising their swords. “Oh, this is new,” I mocked, still chuckling as I gazed down at them. “Release the demonslayer, you say? Let him go and willingly return to Kamigoroshi for another few centuries?” I tilted my head in a mock quizzical manner. “And out of curiosity, what do I get if I agree to these demands? Another four hundred years of boredom, despair and slowly going insane?” I shook my head. “Not a great deal, Kage. Your negotiation skills could use some work.”

All pretense of civility faded as the majutsushi pointed a thin finger up the steps, his