Laughter is the Worst Medicine, Part 18

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part 16, Part 17

Taru waited to see what the last man standing, the one who'd been stabbed by his fellow criminal, did next.

He raised his hands in surrender. Taru lowered his bow. “I accept your surrender, be gone from this place.”

The man whimpered as he walked past Taru down the road out of town and on to a new life. He can have one of his friends patch him up. Maybe he'll learn who to trust in the future.

Then laughter rolled over Taru and destroyed his calm.

He screamed and grabbed his head in pain. Suddenly he was standing on the ocean floor looking up at a great wave that crashed over him and into his lungs. He couldn't breathe. He coughed out water but he was still drowning. No air, no air! He sank to his knees.

Then all was silent. Taru finally coughed water out of his lungs and drew a gasping breath. After a few more gasping breaths, he looked around him carefully. It was the same way he looked at his paper to see how its kami was acting.

Pink tinged kami surrounded his head and gobbled up dark, malevolent looking kami as they approached him. He saw the bandit on the ground coughing. Each time he coughed, these kami rushed back into his mouth and nose. Taru took a tentative step in his direction. The pink kami followed him. He rushed to the dying man's side, but it was too late. The bandit's final journey was over before Taru got there.

Gin heard the laughter. It won't make me sick...I'm at the granary with Ichiro and he's coughing...Mama holds me as she burns...it's day, no night, no both at the same time...don't let Taru hear! Don't let him hear! A coherent thought directed at a breeze kami surfaced and it flew to Taru. She couldn't save the other man without losing control over the kami protecting her brother. That weighed on her in the weeks and months to come.

Gin concentrated on both kami's tugs at the back of her mind. She closed her eyes so she wouldn't see the other man die and clenched her jaw so hard it was sore for days afterward. Ichiro must live, he won't die in fire, no they all die in water. This is water. Don't let them hear! She staggered towards the stronger of the two pulls and felt warm hands pick her up.

Silence. “Shh, shh, little one. You're ok. You saved me.” She was close enough to Taru that her own kami protected her. He stroked her fur like her father did when she awoke from a nightmare and carried her away from the dead man.

Gin shook with the effort it took to control her kami. The tug at the back of her mind was fraying, like a rope slipping through her fingers. No, no, don't let them hear! Not yet, don't go yet, she called to her kami.

“It's over. Let go, Gin. I have to save Lord Taira now like you saved me.” Taru gave her fur one last stroke and set her gently on the ground.

---

Reizo saw the men choking on water and looked with his kami sight. Violent, dark, deadly kami swarmed into their mouths. His tornado kami shredded any that got close to him. I can't control the tornado kami well enough to protect these men, and after what they did to the guard, maybe I wouldn't. He would ponder that in the weeks and months to come, but for now, survival was his only thought.

Reizo walked out of the town hall and saw three ugly beast men laughing. They looked like short, squat humans covered in matted fur. Their faces were bald, and had nasty expressions. They each held spears in sharp clawed hands. The dark kami poured from their mouths as they laughed.

Reizo charged them, hoping his Ofuda would hold the tornado kami a little longer. Maybe if I get lucky, the tornado will kill them. This can't reach Suki or The Capital.

The three beastmen split up and Reizo chased one into the field. Too late he realized he'd run into a trap when they surrounded him. Reizo ran back towards the safety of the buildings. If they can't surround me, I stand a better chance.

One threw a spear at him. The tornado kami batted it out of the way. Reizo realized there were fewer wind kami and they were losing focus on destruction. Oh no, I'm going to die in a field far away from home.

Sharp, stinging dirt and rocks slammed Reizo in the eyes and on his face and hands. Over and over again the few remaining kami raged and buffeted the soil into him. The kami were angry. Reizo was blind and something warm ran down his face and hands. I'm bleeding. I'm bleeding. My own kami attacked me. I'm an onmyoji, that doesn't happen. My eyes won't open, I can't see!

He stumbled and fell. It knocked the wind out of him and the pain of so many little cuts surfaced through his adrenaline. Reizo heard vicious chuckling and tried to scramble away, but got tangled up in his own clothes.

“He's down now!” The beastman's voice was raspy and promised Reizo a painful death. He reached for another one of his Ofuda, but his sleeve wrapped around his hand and couldn't reach it. Reizo's fear bloomed into panic.

---

Taru fired a shot at the beastman closest to Reizo. He stopped and pulled the arrow out and tossed it on the ground. Their fur acts like armor, Taru realized and stepped closer.

Twang. Taru shot him in his throwing shoulder and he dropped his spear.

The monster howled, but kept advancing.

“Taira, stay down!” If he stands up, all three of them can hit him with their spears. If he's down, the close one blocks the other two for now.

Gin saw the vile creatures responsible for so much suffering and rage filled her heart and mind. She saw was ugly red furred creatures. The red fur. Same as Ichiro and Mama. They let their fur get nasty. They destroyed everything, I will kill them! Kill them!

“Gin, get out of the way!” Taru yelled. But Gin only heard her heartbeat in her ears. She only saw ugly matted red fur. She leaped over Reizo to rip the monster's throat out only to have him grab her out of the air. Gin bit down on his hand hard. In his shock he threw her in a high arc so she landed without hurting herself.

“Gin, stay back!” Taru screamed. Taru saw how strong the monster was. He'd have killed Gin if he'd thrown her straight down.

Gin landed and retched. As bad as they smelled, they tasted even worse.

Taru shot again. He was in spear range if the beast looming over Reizo chose to throw it at him. His shot missed. The ugly monster sniggered and picked up his spear.

Black as moonless night, blind him! Gin thought at a breeze kami. But it was like trying to grab water in her fist instead of her cupped hand. The kami sailed off, then forgot what it was told. Too soon! I can't help Mr. Yellow and he's going to die.

She started circling around behind the vile thing attacking Reizo. He can't throw me if he can't see me.

Reizo screamed a pure scream of panic. I'm going to die, I can't see, help, Taru, help! Suki, I'm sorry. Blood, so much blood. Get away from me. I don't want to die on the ground. He grabbed an Ofuda through his sleeve, and released the kami.

The kami heard him and followed his instructions as best as it could.

The ground vanished under Reizo.

Picture by Daphne Zaras - http://www.nssl.noaa.gov/headlines/dszpics.htmlOriginally uploaded at en.wikipedia; description page is/was here., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2130165