Miyoko lay on the sand, yawning as she stared out into the rolling waves crashing peacefully on the shore. There wasn’t much to see, not yet. The horizon was buried beneath the night’s cloak, leaving only a gaping abyss broken by the foamy white spray from each wave’s impact.
Khukri sat in the sand too, gently cradling a still sleepy Master in her arms. Their ‘conversation’ was mostly Khukri talking about how Master’s magic was their secret… along with a few veiled threats about what might happen should she tell anyone.
Miyoko’s fingers slipped between Master’s paw pads as she examined his feet. Though she’d already felt his magic firsthand, it was nice to hold physical proof it was real. It was a little reassurance she wasn’t going insane. The foot twitched as Master turned in Khukri’s arms, letting Miyoko examine it from another angle. The fur was still coarse, brown, deer fur, but everything else about it was clearly a female rabbit’s foot — no, not just any female rabbit, hers. When she set them together, the differences were negligible.
“You know…” Miyoko’s words were almost immediately interrupted by a low growl from Khukri, who folded one of Master’s ears over and pressed him deeper into her breasts. “You know,” Miyoko tried again, only softer. “The noble prides of the Tsu Empire all claim to have magic… and that makes sense, right? Rich kids get the best toys… but how does he? I mean, Fleur’s a Lynx, learning magic passed down from generations, and if she could do this...” Miyoko poked a spot on Master’s foot that she found ticklish, making it writhe about and curl up to protect itself. “I would’ve believed her.”
“Master is special,” Khukri said, a slight smile forming as she gently caressed his face. “But until you’re part of the pack, that’s all you need to know.”
Special? Well, Miyoko supposed he’d have to be, given he managed to go into light withdrawal while leading around two sex slaves. When it got to the point where you legitimately weren’t sure if someone would starve to death in a pile of food, they had to be a special breed of idiot.
Master’s foot hit the sand as Miyoko pulled away, leaving a trail as she dragged herself next to Khukri to watch the ocean. A dot of light pierced the horizon, growing in intensity as it lit up the trees and gave the distant water texture. “Here it comes,” Miyoko warned. “You might want to wake him up.”
After a gentle shake, Master grumbled and crawled up Khukri, folding her into a hug as he gazed over the ocean. A smile formed on his face as Khukri gasped, watching first tens, then hundreds, then millions of flowers breach the ocean’s surface, fanning out their bright red petals to catch the sunlight.
“Do you like it?” Master murmured sleepily, eyes sliding shut as he leaned on Khukri’s shoulder. “The Firebloom Ocean?”
“It’s beautiful.” Wide-eyed, the wolf tore her sight away to look at Miyoko. “Have you ever seen it before?”
Absently, Miyoko stared out into the rolling field of lilies as she pulled her knees in with a low sigh. “Yeah… Yeah, I’ve seen it before.”
* * *
Ghost yawned as she leaned against the mountainside, watching the ocean bleed as the first light coaxed flowers from the depths. Bits of wilting carrots and stale bread sat in a cloth on her palm, taunting her as she savoured each morsel. Quarter-rations would only last so long, and the end of winter meant rising temperatures. It wouldn’t be a problem for the native deer, of course, but it’d dramatically limit the time outside her burrow. If this kept up, she’d need to make a night run to steal the natives’ food again. It was a risk, though. One word to the governor's people about a rabbit-girl hiding on their island, and Ghost could expect metsuke to come knocking.
After popping another carrot coin into her mouth, Ghost set the bundle down beside her bag and withdrew a spyglass. From up here, she could see the natives foraging in the fields, gathering various roots and edible grasses that they stored in large wicker baskets. Unlike the more developed farming islands, the natives on Inisheer didn’t have much in the way of private property. Sure, they had their own tents that others weren’t supposed to go in, but then they just... stored everything else in warehouses. It made it really convenient to steal everything in one place.
Her gaze moved to the beaches, where several of the younger deer played in the sand, watched over by men to ensure the girls stayed clear of the tide. Then, Ghost’s breath caught. With shaky hands, she lowered the spyglass and wiped her eyes. Finally, after three months of waiting, a ship boasting the Tsu flag headed toward a dock. She hastily looked through the spyglass again, but found no sign of the occupants.
With a brief sigh, Ghost packed everything into her bag and carefully jumped from perch to perch, descending the mountain. It wasn’t time to celebrate yet; a Tsu ship didn’t necessarily mean it was Fleur. The State had influence everywhere, but there was room to hope. Hope that her nightmarish isolation here was over; that she’d spend tonight in a warm bed with a full belly in Fleur’s arms.
Over the next hour, Ghost hopped from perch to perch down the mountain, picking a trail that avoided any foragers she’d seen. After getting as close as she dared to the small cargo ship, she found a tall patch of grass and climbed inside. Ghost brought out the spyglass again, ignoring the shooting pain in her stomach as she settled in to watch the ship.
As afternoon stretched into evening, Ghost lay in the grass, removing everything but her pants to keep cool in the island heat. A streak of purple cut across the dull wooden ship as the lynx stepped out of her room in a flowing silken dress. Light shimmered off Fleur as she leaned on the prow, bringing a steaming cup to her lips while observing the natives' beach bonfire.
Fleur! Of course she came! It probably just took time to get her pride to stop watching. Ghost staggered to her feet and slipped on her shirt. After a minute of wiping dirt from her face, she bolted from hiding, sending up a spray of sand as she dashed along the beach and launched into the air.
Ghost hit the deck, rolled to a stop, then turned to Fleur. “Hey,” she said with a grin. “Took you long enough.”
The lynx swept forward, setting her tea down and grabbing Ghost with a small frustrated breath. “Tsu guide me, Tess! What were you thinking, running off like that!” Fleur hovered over Tess for a moment, as though afraid she might break from a simple touch, then wrapped the girl in her arms.
A cloud of cloves and vanilla enveloped Ghost as she leaned into the hug, burying her face in Fleur’s soft, tan fur. Right now, Ghost was aware of what a mess she was. Three months of hiding in a cave and scrounging for food on a remote island left her with an unkempt winter coat and a smell like a wild beast… but in Fleur’s arms, it was worth it. Ghost’s eyes squeezed tightly shut as she sniffed. “I told you that’s not my name anymore, stupid…”
“I remember,” Fleur murmured, squeezing her tighter for a moment before pulling away.
Ghost’s heart raced as Fleur moved, and it took everything she had to let go. Once she did, she smiled, looking into Fleur’s eyes.
Those eyes… those eyes didn’t look as happy as Ghost had hoped. Well, that was partially Ghost’s fault. She let out a long, steady breath as she took Fleur’s hands and lowered her head. “I know, I just didn’t want to risk this coming back on you if I failed. I’m sorry.”
“What were you thinking?” Fleur repeated words sounded like reproach, but there was no anger in her voice, just sadness. “Your whole operation fell apart. Hotaru’s got my pride’s emeralds stashed away somewhere, but Azure executives are watching her too closely for us to approach.”
“I’ve got them,” Ghost said, urgently squeezing Fleur’s hands. “I have them… Fleur, we don’t need your pride’s manipulative claws digging into our lives anymore.” The lynx’s mouth twitched to a deeper frown, but Ghost pushed forward urgently. “We can have literally anything… We can take your boat south, past Tythic, past the Sharkfin Coast, all the way to the Dusk Empire.”
“Tess…” Fleur chided. “We can’t just run.”
“Of course we can!” Tess insisted, moving to catch Fleur’s eyes. “Do you have any idea how fucking rich we are? Miyoko always said the last job for girls like us was when we died; that no score would ever be enough to convince us to walk away. She was wrong, Fleur. Your family’s a bunch of racist assholes. You know that! You don’t owe them anything!” Ghost hesitated when Fleur flinched, but knew she needed to be clear for Fleur to understand. “I… I know you can’t like me the way I… I’m not asking you to be my girlfriend here. Fleur, you’re brilliant. With a haul like this and a fresh start down south? You can have anything—”
The slender fingers slipped from between Ghost’s as Fleur retracted, eyes downcast. “You’re one of my attendants, Tess, an easy life was always waiting for you if you wanted it, but you’re making that difficult. You know how my pride felt about you before this incident.”
“Who gives a shit what they think?” Ghost protested. “All the connections you’ve made, any property you own, anything that gives them any leverage over you? It’s nothing compared to those gems! You don’t need their approval, we can do anything you want without their manipulative brass paws pulling our strings!”
Fleur only sighed. “Tess... stop. I’m usually very understanding of your nature, but you’ve gone too far this time. Please don’t resist. I’ll be as gentle as I can, but the only way I can help you is if you trust me and cooperate, and we both know that’s not in your nature.”
“Don’t resist?” Ghost asked, looking up as several metsuke positioned themselves at either end of the boat, katanas resting at their hips and their postures loose. “You’re turning me in? I’m offering you literally everything you could ever want! Would you prefer to hold them first? Maybe they’ll go up in value and change your mind?”
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Like a flash, Fleur crossed the small distance between them, clamping a hand over Ghost’s muzzle and leaning over her threateningly. “I am doing this for you, Tess. If you don’t resist, and don’t say anything to anyone, I’ll get you a sentence in my custody.” she whispered. “Let me help you, Tess, please.”
Ghost shoved her away, taking a few steps as the metsuke took their cue to move in. This was what she got for trusting a lynx. “You’d rather listen to your pride and kill Hotaru’s crew, than walk away with everything anyone could ever offer you? Really?”
Fleur winced, but raised her hands defensively. “Tess...”
“Stop calling me Tess, you manipulative cunt!” Ghost shouted, leg muscles constricting as the metsuke advanced. “You’d better watch your back, lynx. The next time I see you, I’ll finish what Elizabeth started.” After a harsh glare, Ghost pivoted, then vaulted over the bulwark to land in a spray of sand. She took off down the beach, rushing past startled islanders as she sped away. Her heart pounded as metsuke burst through her sand cloud, kicking up more as they closed the gap. These girls were professionals; they could probably keep up with her before she spent three months starving herself… now?
Ghost grabbed an oblong lump of wax from the pouch at her hip, a hidden lockpick and tension wire specifically to evade being searched… a piece of equipment she always carried and hoped to never need. She fell to her knees, curling over and swallowing as she was engulfed in a cloud of sand.
When the dust cleared, she looked to each of the four girls surrounding her in white flowing clothes, clutching the weapons at their hips. Ghost nodded, raising her hands and staring at the fading sunset. The lilies retreated into the depths for the night. It wasn’t all at once or anything, each lilly would sit on the surface for a while before deciding to sink. But there were millions of lilies. Every second, huge swathes disappeared beneath the waves. In the time she’d had before being tackled, Tess must have seen tens of thousands fall, and then, so did she.
* * *
“Just stay here till we get back,” Master told Khukri, leaving a trail as he dragged the little dinghy from the bushes and across the sand.
The wolf whined as she padded after him. The rowboat Miyoko used to access this burrow was made for one… two was already pushing it.
“We won’t be long,” Master insisted plodding through the water to pull the boat in. “You can take a bit of time to swim…” a concerned look flooded his face as he circled the floating boat to approach Khukri. “If you see a giant grey fish, leave it alone. Dolphins save little deer-girls from drowning sometimes, so they’re kinda sacred to islanders… They’ve never hurt anyone, but they’re smart enough to know we need to breathe and fight in groups.”
The wolf turned her head up with an indignant sniff. “I’m a premium hunter. I don’t hunt fishies.”
His fingers laced through her fur, pushing her ears back as he leaned in to give her a kiss. “I know, you’re the best.”
“Ugh…” Miyoko rolled her eyes and shouldered her oar, then leaped from the beach, landing in the boat with a solid thud. “Oh come on! You’ll see each other in an hour! Let’s go! The tide’s already rising!”
After helping Master onto the boat, the two took off, circling the island to a section filled with rocky crags and perilous cliffs. The waves grew dangerous here, crashing into the cliff face and obscuring rows of sinister rocks that would ruin larger vessels… or even this one, had the tide been a touch lower.
The burrow’s entrance was a jagged hole in the cliff face, barely tall enough for Miyoko and Master to duck through on their dinghy. At low tide, the hole rested too high for a boat to get in, and at high tide, the cavern submerged, trapping everyone inside until the next tidal shift. Miyoko’s eyes slid over the tiny burrow as their boat thunked onto the dry cave inside, grimacing at the long-legged cave crickets covering her dirty bedroll. Sunlight flowed through the opening, illuminating the rising water and sending shimmering ripples of light across the entire cavern.
The uneven stone was cool on her paw pads, providing relief from the ever-encroaching heat that came with spring. Miyoko dejectedly approached her old, tally-mark covered crates and motioned to the far wall with her head. “The emeralds are in the only nice box, Master.”
Separate from her living space sat a box of polished, lacquered wood and a coat of glossy black paint, broken by a depiction of a silver cherry tree. Silver petals scattered across the front stack of drawers as though caught in a breeze. It rose to her waist, propped up on four curved legs. Like a little shrine to her delusions that any lynx would choose her.
“Woah! Pretty,” Master hurried over to the box. “There’s like, ten different drawers in this thing! We could store cutlery in it, or—”
“Or two hundred million worth of emeralds?” Miyoko muttered, raising an irritated eyebrow.
Master’s smile turned sheepish as he reached for the box. “Right, right.” The top drawer slid out, revealing five rows of emeralds on pink velvet, each shining with a perfect rectangular cut. “Ah, yes, emeralds,” the deer gave a satisfied nod as he picked one up, turned it over, then set it back in its row. “They’re exactly what I was hoping for. Very shiny.” After that, he closed the top drawer, sliding the second open to continue his inspection.
“What’s this?” Master asked, glancing her way as he raised a worn leather book. The thing was a relic, a tome so old its pages were made of parchment rather than proper paper, with a chain=wrapped heart on its front.
Instantly, Miyoko’s heart froze. Despite herself, the truth came unbidden to her tongue once more. “That’s a book about the Demon King of Hearts… it was the holy book of the orphanage I grew up in, but the State restricted it for being blasphemous.” Stupid book… she’d tucked it away the day she went into hiding and hadn’t thought about it since.
“What’s the Demon King of Hearts?” Master flipped through the ancient pages, chuckling at himself. “Oh… I don’t know why I expected anything other than the Tsu alphabet.”
“It’s an unholy monster that corrupts its victims hearts and twists them into thralls that do his bidding…” Miyoko’s mouth ran dry as she stared in horror, listening to him wring Elizabeth’s doctrine from her throat. “It’s destined to return, destroy the world as we know it, and we’re called to resist the corruption.”
A concerned look filled Master’s face as he closed the book and took a step toward her. “This is your faith?”
Miyoko’s lip quivered. For her entire life, she’d assumed everyone’s supernatural claims were nothing more than that, claims. One more tool for those with power to control people too dumb to ask questions… and likely there was still some truth to that. She hadn’t so much found religion as had it thrust upon her. Magic was real, and this man… this idiot demon had her in his clutches.
But the demon had failed, at least somewhat. Clearly she wasn’t his total thrall. Maybe his magic wasn’t as powerful as the legends told, or maybe this manifestation hadn’t the time to practice. That didn’t change the fact that the demon’s nature was to twist, corrupt, and control. “Yes,” Miyoko mumbled, lowering her head.
“I’m sorry,” he said, handing her the book. “I never meant to disrespect your faith. Here.”
“Thank you... Master.” Miyoko’s numb fingers grasped the old book, and the demon turned away, leaving her lost in thought as he pilfered her gems. Elizabeth was right all along. The demon was real, he’d returned, and every second she let it live the closer the world came to annihilation.
The demon made a mistake enslaving her. If he’d picked up some desperate slave girl as he’d intended, he’d have already won… but inside Miyoko’s head wasn’t some wilting flower to pluck, there was Ghost. Despite her sins, Ghost had one conviction even a demon king couldn’t control: being told what to do just really, really pissed her off.
It was too late to escape; too late to find some clever way to part from Khukri and escape with her gems. It wasn’t too late to resist the corruption.
Ghost set her book down and cracked open the familiar chest. Inside, the small crossbow and tanto stared back. Without hesitation, she pulled the bowstring back and fitted a bolt. Then she turned, leveling the weapon between his shoulder blades.
Master cares about you, you shouldn’t hurt him.
Miyoko’s eyes widened in horror as she realized she was about to hurt Master. There was a chance to make it out of here with millions, and she wanted to throw that away on some nonsense from the cult that turned her into a child soldier?
Miyoko lowered the weapon, then grit her teeth in annoyance. He wasn’t just a demon, damn it! He was the Demon! Not only had his magic forcibly enslaved her mind, he was literally prophesied to bring about the end of days! If anyone counted as her enemy, it was him! In fact, the more she didn’t want to kill him, the more proof that’s what he was. Ghost raised the weapon again.
Master isn’t trying to hurt anyone yet. You can just talk to him.
She already understood how much control he had over her, and was willing to live with it. Maybe using revelations from people incentivised to brainwash her to justify a murder-suicide pact via wolf was worth more than a trigger’s pull worth of thought. Her fingers trembled as she tossed the weapon aside, where it clattered along the cave floor and plopped into the water.
Master whipped around, abandoning the gems as he rushed to the water’s edge. “Deianira, no! Did you drop your book?”
Damn it! Ghost ground her teeth in frustration. Every time she got up the nerve to cut the demon down his will slithered into the hesitation between thoughts. He’d already seized her with thoughts to protect him, ones that gripped her so firmly in the moment she second guessed herself each time. “No, I dropped my crossbow.” It was too late to turn back now; if the demon questioned her he’d know she was still dangerous. If she wanted to live as anything other than a slave she couldn’t dare hesitate. She grabbed the knife and turned towards him.
You’re a bad girl for trying to hurt Master, and you deserve to bleed.
Miyoko set the blade on her wrist and swiped down. Pain instantly seized her, making every muscle tense and drawing a small whimper to her lips. The fur on her arm turned a bright red and drops spilled onto the uneven stone, echoing in the cavern as they landed. When Master turned, Miyoko quickly discarded the bloody blade behind the chest.
“Oh crap! Miyoko, sit down!” Master ordered as he rushed to his pack.
Miyoko gasped in surprise as her legs gave out, dropping her onto the chest and clicking the lid shut. Blood pooled in her lap, soaking through her pants and collecting in the fur along her thighs.
A moment later Master pulled her arm away, tightly wrapping the limb with a clean bandage. “I’ve got you,” he said softly, as though she was a beast with a wounded paw he could tame. “Looks like you’ll be okay. We’ll need to see how deep the cut is, but I’ve got enough silk to stitch you up if it’s really bad. What happened?”
“I cut myself,” she admitted, desperately trying to stop the words. “I…” It hit her then, if she couldn’t fight the impulse to answer truthfully, perhaps she could take a lesson from Fleur. “There might have been a sharp edge on my crossbow, I dropped it into the water and cut myself really bad. I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine,” he assured, tightening the reddening bandage with a small smile. “I’m going to get the gems and book secure. Then we’ll get you back to the Ambition for a closer look at it and a clean bandage, okay?”
Miyoko closed her eyes and leaned against the wall, cradling the stinging wound. It seemed the demon’s chains had already burrowed deep, and a direct attack was off the table. That only meant Ghost needed to be smart about this. The demon king was powerful on his terms, but emotion was his weapon. A soft smile touched her lips. What she needed was a plan of attack, one where he couldn’t yank her string back at the last minute. A last job where her heart wasn’t a factor and she’d burn her name into the demon’s memory forever.