Chapter 3: Sanctuary

In Japan, the Kuroiwa clan numbered nearly one-hundred, all of them changed by Okāsan. Those were the days in which the clan felt strong, invincible. Those were the days before the war, and the aftermath. And those were the days before mankind realized his fear and sought to destroy the kyūketsuki. By the time they arrived on American shores—after fleeing hastily from their homeland, desperate to survive—only eleven of the Kuroiwa clan remained.

Now, so many decades later, the clan has grown only twofold, still but a tiny tribe compared to what it once was. Okāsan states that we must remain small, mobile. We must not attract attention to ourselves. We must not face extinction.

Currently, we are hidden in an abandoned part of the city. We only exist in legend and the stories of drunken vagrants. And in the will of the hunters.

But for now, we are safe.

Okāsan expects prompt action. She will be standing alone, high above the streets, her eyes scanning the city, anticipating any danger. She expects to soon know whether our safety has been comprimised. She anxiously awaits Mukade’s return.

But I am now not Mukade. I am Ai Ōnishi, and I am feeling the pain of a lost love.

There are occasions when I separate myself from the other kyūketsuki, when I climb above the streets to sit alone. To reflect. They do not understand my need for isolation, but in many ways, they do not understand me. They attribute it to my being the only one among them not to be turned by Okāsan. In their eyes, I am but a guest of the Kuroiwa clan, and one day, I will overstay my welcome.

When I reach my sanctuary, the small piece of this disintegrating neighborhood I claim as my own, I pause. More than ever before, I yearn to be left with my thoughts. To have the wind and the stars be my only companions. To have the solace of quiet introspection. But my sanctuary has been invaded. I am not alone.

“I think I am beginning to understand why you spend so much time here, Mukade. It is peaceful, isn’t it?”

Tatsu speaks without turning, without regarding me. She continues to stare out at the ruined city that surrounds us.

“You know, Mukade, you would be a much more effective assassin if you did not insist on wearing those boots of yours. They are not made for stealth.”

Tatsu stands and approaches me. She is the favored of Okāsan and the deadliest assassin of the Kuroiwa clan. She fought alongside Okāsan during the genocide in Japan, when man sought to annihilate the kyūketsuki. She watched dozens of our kind dismembered, burned, and tortured. She fled her homeland and all traces of her human past. She helped rebuild the clan in America.

She found me, frightened and newly transformed, and offered me a home.

I bow my head to her. “If such a small impediment prevents me from slaying a lone hunter undetected, then I am unworthy of your training.”

“So you have taken care of the hunter?”

“Yes.”

Tatsu smiles. Occasionally, I read approval—even alliance—in that smile. Other times, I fear it presages my destruction.

“You are aware that Okāsan is waiting for your report.” She smiles again. “But I know you, Mukade, better than you are aware. Take your time alone. Just be careful you do not keep her waiting too long.”

Tatsu’s arm grazes mine as she walks past. Then she is gone, and I kneel on the metal grating and attempt to resume my earlier thoughts.

Above me looms a building with large, dark windows. Behind one of those panes of fogged, cracked glass stands Okāsan. Her eyes are on the city, seeking out danger. My thoughts are on Tomo, and the danger of my continued love for him.

Click “Read more” for credits.

Credits:
Ai Ōnishi/Mukade
Hair: Deviant Kitties Alienor-Red
Skin: Deviant Kitties Runny – China
Eyes: Celestial Studios Mirror Amber
Outift: Bare Rose Tokyo Carmilla
Gloves: Musashi Leather Gloves
Boots: Beckenbauer Productions Revolver Darklord Boots
Sword: Musashi Tek Yakiba

Tatsu
Hair: ETD Loopy – Black
Skin: Whispers of the Night Deathly [Blood Gloom Stalker]
Tattoo: Bare Rose Tokyo Kokuryu Tattoo
Eyes: Celestial Studios Mirror Green
Outift: Bare Rose Tokyo Carmilla
Sword: Hanzo Blades Imperial Fury Katana

All pictures taken in The Back Alley.