"You used the Shoku Twins' Stopwatch?" Shinju barked. "Damn it, Cyanide...."

Cyanide fixed his posture, sitting upright in his chair. "I ran into him a few times more on my way back into town. He's definitely hunting me. It won't be long before he and Himushi press the attack. We're going to need Lucrezia for this one."

"That's not going to work. Lucrezia is still banged up from rescuing Amatsuki." Osamu said.

"She's what?" Cyanide groaned. "So now we're at a disadvantage because of her guilty conscience. Well, at the very least, I was able to nab Bishamon's war fan. That should make our job a little easier."

Shinju went ahead and stuffed the war fan into Osamu's coat pocket, much to his confusion. "Osamu, you hold onto it until Cyanide heals completely from his injuries. Take good care of it."

"Uh..sure, I can do that." Osamu said.

"As long as it's not destroyed, I'm all right with it." Cyanide said.

"Isn't it better to get Cyanide out of here?" Osamu asked. "He shouldn't stay in one place for too long."

"Yeah, but where to hide him is the question." Shinju mumbled.

"A five-star hotel with beautiful maids would be lovely." Cyanide chimed.

"Piss off." Shinju hissed.

Cyanide stood from his seat, resting his hands on the table. "Relax, you two. I'm going to stay here. Besides, once Lucrezia heals up a bit, the three of us are going to need a new hideout, aren't we? What better place than this old book shop?"

Just as those words came out of his mouth, the gentle steps of wingtip shoes against the dilapidated, wooden floors of the library alerted Cyanide and the others to the sudden and unexpected arrival of none other than Theodora. She stepped into the office wearing a white shirt with long, loose sleeves underneath her heavy, leather trench coat that reached down to the heels of her wingtip shoes. A neat, black tie dangled down the center of her shirt, matching wth her black bowler hat. She came with two hulking, male bodyguards walking just behind her on her left and right sides wearing the same attire as her.

"For once, I actually agree with our dear Cyanide." Theodora said. "No one would think to find one of such extravagant tastes in this dusty little rat's nest."

Theodora's mere presence was like a black hole that absorbed all light and life in the room. Her silver hair gleamed like strands of moonlight as her golden irises pierced the darkness like two rising suns. Cyanide and Shinju were petrified in place as the hairs on their arms stood up and chills shot up their spines.

"Oh shit, it's you..." Shinju gasped.

"Golden Eyes..." Cyanide muttered, his eyes wide with surprise.

"Don't look so scared, everyone." Theodora tittered, her black lips curving upward in a smile. "I'm not Magatori."

"No, you're worse." Cyanide grumbled. "How the hell did you know I was here? Did you follow Shinju?"

Theodora scoffed. "Oh, please. Don't insult me, Cyanide. I knew you'd come here before you ever did."

Theodora turned her head and smiled upon seeing Osamu. Unlike Shinju and Cyanide, Osamu had zero experience with the silver-haired woman before him. He had no idea why Theodora's presence earned the reaction that it did, but for some reason, even he got the chills just from meeting eyes with her. Theodora walked up to him, taking his hands into her own as he golden eyes shimmered and shined like jewels.

"Osamu Ashikaga..." Theodora gasped. "My my, what a pleasure to meet you."

"You...know who I am?" Osamu asked, his face riddled with both surprise and confusion.

Theodora giggled. "One day, Osamu, the whole world will know your name. You're quite famous amongst gods and exorcists alike."

Of course, how else would his name come with such widespread infamy but through his siege of Heaven alongside Tsukiakari, her banished father, and the Shoku Twins? He carried out the siege before being introduced to the world of exorcists, but now that he was nice and settled in his friendships with Lucrezia and Shinju, he was quickly learning just how far-reaching the consequences of his actions back then truly were.

Cyanide sighed as he stuffed his hands into his pockets. "Right, well I guess introductions are in order. Osamu, this is Theodora, former commander of the Tokyo Exorcist Division. She now serves as Captain of the Kyoto Division under Lucrezia."

"Yeah, a strange position to have, given your insane powers." Shinju remarked as she crossed her arms and glared daggers at Theodora.

Theodora laughed softly as she closed her eyes and painted an innocent smile across her pale face. "Please don't say such things, Shinju. You make it sound like you don't appreciate my help. It was Lucrezia who requested my help before all of this started, you know. Any loyal friend would've given up their position to transfer here."

"You don't...um...hate me?" Osamu questioned.

"For Bishamon?" Theodora asked. "I think it's fair to say he had it coming. He was a relic of the past, one the older gods still clung to even after Amaterasu sniffed him out for the traitor he was. Believe me, no one that matters will miss him."

"Right!" Cyanide hollered. "Why don't you tell us why you're here?"

"To deliver a warning." Theodora answered, fidgeting with her hands behind her back. "December 12th, just a few days from now, Himushi and Magatori will act on their plans to assault the Kyoto Exorcist Program, Their objective is simple; they wish to kill me, Shinju, Lucrezia, and Tsukiakari Senkumo."

Theodora made the harrowing announcement without an ounce of concern on her face, a stark contrast to the horrified and intimidated expressions worn by Shinju, Cyanide, and Osamu.

"What? Why Gekko?" Osamu questioned.

"Well, I think that one should be obvious." Theodora said. "Your wife killed their master and set their plans back considerably. Why wouldn't they want her dead?"

"If they're planning an attack, we need to alert Lucrezia and put out a city-wide warning." Shinju instructed.

"No, we will do no such thing." Theodora responded with a sly smile on her face.

"What did you say? Why not?" Shinju questioned. "You know how dangerous those two are! Anyone in their path would be at risk! And it goes without saying that we need to warn Lucrezia since she's their prime target! You can't seriously be asking us to leave our commander in the dark!

"If we evacuate civilians and scramble our forces to meet them now, Himushi and Magatori might back away entirely." Theodora explained. "Our goal is to lure them into a decisive battle where we can take them in dead or alive. I do believe it is also Lucrezia's wish to handle this matter with the same foresight and discretion as she handled Satori and Amatsuki Sentani. Giving everyone a head start would be counterproductive."

"And we know for sure that this attack is happening?" Cyanide asked.

"My intel is always good." Theodora asserted. "We don't know exactly what it is she'll do or how she intends to carry out such an attack, but be on your guard, everyone. It's either us...or them."

With her warning delivered, Theodora tipped the brim of her bowling hat and turned heel towards the exit. She suddenly stopped and turned her head back towards Osamu with a giddy grin spread across her face. "Osamu, since you're involved in this too, please feel free to call or text me should you need anything, okay?"

"What?" Osamu recoiled. "Wait, but I don't have your number. What is it?"

"What are you talking about, silly? You already have it." Theodora replied.

Puzzled, Osamu quickly whipped out his cell phone and tapped the screen with his thumb. His eyes widened in shock as he tapped the screen with his thumb and saw a notification that a new contact had been added, despite him never even getting Theodora's number. The phone shook in his trembling hands as gaze slowly returned to meet Theodora's. She gave him a sly wink, tipped her hat, and waved goodbye to the group. She and her two hulking bodyguards left the abandoned library as quietly as they came in, hopping into a black sedan with tinted windows and driving off down the road.

"How..." Osamu muttered, still shivering.

Cyanide groaned as he swept his hair back with his hand. "That's Tokyo's most powerful exorcist for you. I've known some powerful exorcists in my time, but I've never seen anyone do half the shit the she does. Now you understand why she gives me the chills.. Regardless, as much as I hate to admit it, she's right that we shouldn't issue the city-wide alert. Himushi and Magatori will undoubtedly have intel on what we're looking for. Can't risk them falling into government custody."

"That's a good point, but it's kind of dangerous, isn't it?" Shinju questioned.

It's a gamble, exactly the kind our commander would make." Cyanide said. "You're positive you can do this, Shinju?"

"I could ask you the same thing. Himushi is dead to the both of us. Even if I did have my doubts, she's a threat to Lucrezia. She has to be stopped."

Cyanide smiled and sat back down in his chair. "At any rate, there's no harm staying here a little longer. Looks like we need to wait for the enemy to make their movee. So please, make yourselves at home. There's tons to read here, you know."

"Osamu, I'm going to step out and make a few calls." Shinju sighed. "We're going to need a little help so we don't get caught off guard."

"Hey, don't just leave me with a stranger!" Osamu urged.

Shinju dismissively waved her hand as she exited through the office door. "It's fine, he's not into men."

Left alone with Cyanide, Osamu plopped himself down on a pile of old, dusty books next to Cyanide's desk. Cyanide pressed his cigarette into the ashtray and immediately cast his gaze upon Osamu.

"I can't believe a young man like yourself is tagging along with Lucrezia and Shinju. They seem to have a lot of trust in you." Cyanide said.

"As they should." Osamu said, crossing his arms. "We didn't exactly have the best start, but those two have definitely grown on me."

"Hmm, I see. Interesting, interesting. You're like a mirror image of me when I was a kid."

The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

"I'm twenty-two, can you stop belittling me?"

Cyanide scoffed. "Twenty-two is the exact age one should be belittled. So many of us grow past that eighteen-year benchmark and think we can just storm right into the world, but that's not really the case. You ask me, I think that kind of arrogance should be snuffed out right from the very beginning. It kills people. You've probably gotten into one too many adventures and had to lose someone or something you loved, haven't you?"

(Isabella wasn't the fault of my adventures, but...Aika...)

"You aren't the first human to get so heavily involved with the supernatural. Many followed before you for hundreds of years. Wanna know what they all shared in common? They all died before they turned thirty." Cyanide explained.

"You don't think I'll live very long?"

"None of them ever do. We're like the mayflies of this world. Someday, it'll happen to you, just how I know it will happen to me, and Shinju probably knows it will happen to her. It's foolish to believe you can live this kind of life and live very long, Osamu."

Osamu smiled. "If having a short life means I can be around people like Shinju, I'll take the life of a mayfly over the life of a regular human any day. Mayflies, when they hatch and fly out into the world, don't they usually spend the one day they have in this life resting and dancing around each other in flurried swarms? I don't mind an early death if it's with people like that. I'll dance with them and rest with them until I finally die out."

Cyanide awarded Osamu's speech with an impressed chuckle. "You really are a curious kid. I can see why you and Shinju get along so well. I just hope Shinju isn't the Dolania americana species of mayfly."

"Hmm? Why's that?"

"Once they hatch, they only live for about five minutes, and then they die. They have some of the shortest lifespans on earth. And as for you, Osamu, I hope you retire from this life while you still can. Maybe you can actually live past thirty and die at eighty or something."

(He's been around. I wonder if he's right about it...)

Shinju rushed back into the office. "Let's get going, guys."

"Where to?" Cyanide asked.

"To go see Amaterasu." Shinju answered.

"Whoa, the Good Lady herself is stepping in?" Cyanide chuckled.

"You've met Amaterasu before, right Osamu?" Shinju asked.

"Yeah, she's my mother-in-law. I haven't seen her since Isabella passed."

"Well then, she should be glad to see us all. Let's go." Shinju said.

Shinju led the way out of the bookstore and continued walking through the neighborhood and past the cemetery in the woods. Osamu had never ventured much farther than the cemetery. Downtown Kyoto was in the opposite direction, and that's where he would go if he really needed anything.

To Osamu's surprise, Shinju led them to a small stream in the snow-covered woods, and a dirt path next to it that was lined with dozens of stone lanterns. The wind tugged at the twisting canopy of naked branches above their heads as they followed the river's purl, which led them to the bright, red torii gate of a small, well-kept shrine. Two masked shrine maidens greeted them at the entrance, bowing to their expected guests.

"Welcome to our shrine." chimed one of the shrine maidens. "Amaterasu is waiting for you."

"Now this is a sweet deal!" Cyanide hollered, his wish for cute girls coming true. "Who did you call to make this happen?!"

"Actually, I called your wife, Osamu. Tsukiakari then called Amaterasu to prepare the shrine." Shinju said.

"Please tell me you left out the part where you handcuffed me to your bed shirtless." Osamu said.

"I may have mistakenly, accidentally, coincidentally mentioned it, maybe."

"I hate you so much right now." Osamu groaned.

The three passed through the torii gate and walked into the pagoda, but only found a regular visitor sitting in the sanctuary. The visitor took off her white, frock coat and black, cotton gloves, leaving them to the side as she prayed in silence. Amaterasu, however, was nowhere to be found.

"Ah, I'm glad you made it, everyone." the visitor said, grabbing their attention.

The woman pulled the golden scrunchy out of her ponytail, letting her raven hair drop to her shoulders. Everyone's jaws dropped to the floor as they realized this normal, casually-dressed woman was actually Amaterasu. Her fierce, golden eyes were a dead giveaway.

Shinju immediately bowed to her queen. "Lady Amaterasu! I'm so sorry, I didn't notice you! You looked..."

Amaterasu snickered. "Human? Yes, I suppose you've only ever seen me in my traditional robes. I would've worn them, but I was afraid I'd stick out too much and be noticed. I borrowed some clothes from Gekko and made myself look as inconspicuous as possible. I'd say I managed to do a pretty good job if I was able to fool you."

Osamu stepped forward, his face alight with joy upon seeing Amaterasu again. "It's been a while, Amaterasu!"

"Osamu! Come here!" Amaterasu sang as she hugged her son-in-law. "I've missed you! Have you been well?"

"Well enough." Osamu replied. "I've had Shinju and Lucrezia looking after me."

"Good to hear. Gekko told me that Yoko and Izanami are pregnant. Is that right? Congratulations, Osamu." Amaterasu said.

"Thanks you very much! I'm really nervous about the whole thing. I was kinda hoping to get some parenthood tips from you at some point, actually."

Amaterasu laughed. "Honestly, I don't think I'm a good enough role model to answer those questions. Ah, I'll have to prepare a gift for you and the whole family, and maybe a special one for Izanami. I know this must mean quite a lot to her. As you may know, Osamu, almost all of Izanami's children have passed away. It's just me and Tsukuyomi left, and, well, that's not much. She's looked after Gekko as if she were her daughter, but I'm sure she's over the moon now that she's going to become a mother again. Thank you for giving her that blessing, Osamu."

Osamu smiled as he thought of his beloved Izanami, his pale-skinned queen. "She's the one who blesses me everyday. I hope you'll come over soon, Amaterasu. We usually do a big gathering during the winter and we'd love to have you over."

Amaterasu nodded. "I will set aside a day to make that happen, don't you worry! Now then, I suppose we should get down to business, yes? I heard everything from Gekko. Magatori and Himushi are planning to strike. Please sit, everyone."

The shrine maidens sealed the pagoda doors as everyone took their seats upon the tatami mats in the candle-lit sanctuary, their flickering, orange glow radiating against a bronze statue of the emaciated Buddha.

"It would seem that after all this time, we're still fighting Bishamon." Amaterasu said. "Himushi and Magatori are the last remnants of his traitorous legacy. The exorcists under my command have been tracking them both for a while."

Osamu noticed that Shinju slightly winced upon hearing those words. He turned his gaze over to her, watching her right hand slightly ball up.

"I would like to see this resolved quickly. I'm more than willing to provide you with backup, should you need it. I don't want to take any risks here." Amaterasu said.

"No." Shinju interjected. "We need to keep this operation small. The battle between us could get messy if there's too many people involved. Ideally, your people would keep tracking their movements so that Cyanide and I can prepare to confront them."

"You want to fight them by yourselves? Isn't Lucrezia coming with you?" Amaterasu asked.

Shinju shook her head. "She's not combat ready at the moment. Can't risk it."

Amaterasu sighed. "I don't feel comfortable about that. The thing is, we believe that Himushi has vital intel that could help us in the search for Inari Okami."

(Inari? She was a friend of Gekko and Izanami back in the Warring States era. Is Amaterasu looking for her to help her, or to order the exorcists to kill her?)

"I know you want to be careful, but sending in too much force will only result in failure. Cyanide and I can take down Himushi and Magatori, and I'll find a way to get Himushi to talk about Inari."

Osamu's hands tingled as the hairs on his arm stood up. Everyone's voiced faded in the background, superseded by the thunderous beat of his own heart.

(Why...am I getting such a bad feeling about all of this? Something doesn't feel right...)

"...I wasn't aware you were still taking the search for Inari seriously, Lady Amaterasu." Shinju said.

Amaterasu turned her head and smiled. "For a while, we didn't. It wasn't until Himushi reached out to Amatsuki's organization that we took it seriously again."

"Why's that?" Cyanide asked.

"Himushi tracked down the forensic anthropologist in charge of identifying the remains they stole. I had my men watch them the whole time. Of course, he was a hardened Yakuza. Nothing they did to him was enough to make him talk. It was then that Himushi accidentally awakened to a dormant power within herself. Blood magic or Bloodcraft, we call it."

"That sounds pleasant..." Osamu shivered.

"Think of it like this." Amaterasu began. "Imagine, Osamu, if I pointed my index finger at you and issued a command. Let's say I told you to wrap your hands around your neck and strangle yourself. Of course, I can't actually make you do that. With blood magic, however, your body would be enthralled to my command. Your flesh and sinew would obey my every word, and you would be dead right now."

"Seriously? It's like some kind of mind control? Or rather, body control?" Osamu asked.

Amaterasu nodded. "Exactly. The only other person to awaken to such a power was Inari Okami herself. I witnessed it first hand, many years ago."

Shinju gasped and leaned forward, her voice raised in awe and alarm. "So you're saying that Himushi..."

"Yes." Amaterasu said. "Himushi is the descendant of Inari Okami. That's why we need her alive. She may have information that will lead us to Inari herself, and this four-hundred year long search can finally come to an end. Surely you understand now why sending you two in alone makes me so nervous. Inari is on a completely different level than Bishamon because of that power. Now that you know all of this, are you sure it's best to leave it to you two?"

Shinju nodded. "Yes. If she really does have blood magic, throwing more bodies at her will only work to her advantage. Amaterasu, please, you must leave this to us. Your men are more than welcome to provide support, but under no circumstances can they engage with either Magatori or Himushi."

Amaterasu sighed. "Okay, Shinju. You've never let me down, so I'll trust you with this one. And...I know this is a very personal mission for you. I'm sorry that it's come to this."

"I've already made my peace with it." Shinju said, closing her downcast eyes.

"I have as well." Cyanide said.

"Very well then." Amaterasu said, pulling out a rolled up scroll from her frock coat pocket. "Here, Cyanide. Take this. Whenever you're ready, simply write Magatori's name on this scroll. The ink will morph and reveal his location in real time. We were only able to tag Magatori, but it's likely he won't split up with Himushi. I'll entrust this mission to you two."

Cyanide accepted the scroll into his gloved hands, bowing his head in respect. "Thank you, Lady Amaterasu. We won't let you down."

Amaterasu stood and picked up her coat off the floor. "I'll leave you to it. Osamu, dear, give my congratulations to Izanami and Yoko. I promise I'll set aside a day to celebrate with you all."

"Thanks, Amaterasu. I'll be sure to tell them." Osamu said.

Amaterasu's gaze drifted towards the ceiling. "I'd really prefer it if you called me Mom..."

"Tell you what, if you come over and cook a good meal, I'll start calling you Mom!" Osamu cheered.

"Is that a challenge? I accept! I've already got tons of great ideas for holiday dinners!" Amaterasu said. "Be careful, my love. Stay safe, okay? We can't have our celebration if you get hurt."

"I know. I'll be careful." Osamu said.

Amaterasu bowed and took her leave, exiting through the sliding door behind Shinju and Cyanide. A deafening quietude settled in the sanctuary. Neither Shinju nor Cyanide said a word. It was as if they were waiting for something to happen.

"Uhh...guys?" Osamu said.

Shinju suddenly slammed her fist into the tatami mat. "Damn it! This wasn't what happened! How did she find out about Himushi?"

"Whoa, what's wrong? What do you mean this wasn't what happened?" Osamu questioned, alarmed by Shinju's sudden burst of rage.

"We need to beat them to it. Cyanide, go ahead and write Magatori's name in the scroll." Shinju said, ignoring Osamu. "I'll call Lucrezia and let her know we messed up."

Cyanide unrolled the scroll onto the tatami mat and pulled out a small calligraphy brush from his back pocket. Meanwhile, Shinju whipped out her cell phone and called Lucrezia immediately as she paced back and forth, chewing on the nail of her thumb.

Osamu dragged himself closer to Cyanide, watching as the ink from his brush flowed and swirled on the paper on its own, forming a topographic map of the neighborhood. A single, black dot formed in the area where Lucrezia fought with Amatsuki just a few months ago.

"Holy shit, already?!" Cyanide recoiled.

"He's in the neighborhood?" Osamu panicked. "I thought Theodora said they wouldn't make a move until the 12th! We have to move!"

Completely unaware of the danger homing in on her, Lucrezia stood alongside Tsukiakari, watching Yoko, Kagutsuchi, and Amatsuki adorn their seven foot Christmas tree with red and silver baubles and colorful lights. Heartwarming laughter filled the house, and not a single face went without a smile.

This joy was made possible because of Lucrezia's efforts, because she navigated her way through seemingly impossible situations and went against insurmountable odds to bring everyone together. She almost hated herself for it, but Lucrezia was proud of herself. Now that she had a chance to sit back and take it all in, she truly was glad she went through so much trouble for Osamu's family.

Lucrezia put down her spiked eggnog as her phone rang in her pocket. She excused herself and stepped out into the backyard as everyone carried on putting up the tree.

"Shinju? How's it going?"

"We have a big problem here." Shinju replied. "I think we messed up. Amaterasu knows about Himushi."

A chill shot down Lucrezia's spine as she swallowed a lump the size of a golf ball in her throat. "You're sure?"

"She told us herself. Himushi awakened to her power and Amaterasu's men saw it happen. It was when she killed that anthropologist. What do we do, Lucrezia?"

Lucrezia turned her head, looking back at the joyous family inside Osamu's home. She saw firsthand how Izanami's presence brought Yoko peace, how Tsukiakari's existence brought Izanami joy, and how Kagutsuchi's freedom from her curse allowed Izanami to reconnect with her long lost daughter. On top of all of that, two new members of the family were on their way. It was a precious scene, a precious group of people that was only missing one person. Inari Okami.

"We have to find Inari before Amaterasu does. To do that, we'll have to confront Himushi as soon as possible." Lucrezia explained.

"Shinju, bad news! This scroll says that Magatori is already in the neighborhood!" Cyanide shouted, his voice overhead by Lucrezia.

Before Lucrezia could utter a word, she noticed a shadow looming over her. She turned her head towards upwards, spotting Lucrezia nonchalantly sitting upon the branch of a tree towering over the backyard fence. Cyanide warned her far too late.

Himushi removed her demonic noh mask, staring daggers at Lucrezia. "I think it's time you and I have a little talk, Lucrezia.”