Pilgrim 2, p.41
Pilgrim 2, page 41
“Maybe I’ll find it in one of my books,” said Danzen.
As they neared the lake, Jelmay morphed into a human so as not to arouse the orochi’s suspicion. “When I saw you come out of that water with a tentacle chasing after you…” He shook his head. “I wasn’t about to go in there after you, sorry to say, Pilgrim. I may be brave, but I’m not stupid. And don’t get the wrong idea, I like you, but I don’t like you that much.”
Now it was Kudzu’s turn to laugh. “You? Brave?”
“I didn’t expect you to,” Danzen told him. He ducked to avoid a low-hanging tree branch, vines drooping from some of the limbs, ants spiraling around one of the trunks. There was a misty haze above them, a possibility of rain, but that could change quickly once he saw the sun peeking through some patchwork clouds, a corona of radiant light.
“I’m just glad you’re okay,” said Kudzu. She trotted ahead, not wanting to banter with Jelmay any longer.
The three reached the shoreline of the lake, which was marked by pockets of driftwood and tiny rocks almost as fine as sand. They were immediately greeted by the orochi known as Idzuma, the waves lashing against the shore as the towering yokai approached.
“You have returned,” she said, all eight of her heads tilted in curious ways at the former assassin.
Danzen nodded. “I wanted to see if I could wash off.”
“Where have you gone?” she asked after examining him for a moment longer.
“Abbot Monpo wanted us to gather something from the old shrine not far from here,” he said.
“Ahem,” said Jelmay. “Do you mind if we wash and then go on our way?” he asked in a tone that was clearly trying to tell Danzen not to say too much.
“Are you in a rush?” one of the other heads asked Jelmay. Idzuma’s child peeked around her mother’s body, something playful about the way the child looked at them now. The child used her tail to splash at them and quickly hid again.
“We sure are in a rush, at least I am.” Jelmay offered the orochi one of his cheeky grins. “I’ll be brutally honest with you: I’m hungry. But not for one of your fish, so don’t get the wrong idea there. The quicker we leave here, the quicker I get fed.”
“Do you mind?” Danzen asked as he motioned toward the water.
“By all means, bathe yourself.” Idzuma pressed away from the shoreline, a sparkle beneath the waves once again revealing just how many golden fish there were in the lake. Once the water had calmed, Danzen waded until he was about waist deep.
He turned to look at Kudzu, who was perched near his satchel and the rest of his clothing, as well as his weapons. He also saw Jelmay, who was making a ‘wrap it up’ signal at him.
Danzen thrust his head under the water and shook it out. He came up and swept his hair back, not paying any attention to all sixteen of Idzuma’s eyes, which were peering down at him.
Danzen went back under the water one more time, noticing just how refreshing it was compared to the water in the cave. He came up again, and waded back to the shore.
“Are you going to tell me what you got from the shrine, or am I going to have to guess?” Idzuma asked once she approached the shoreline again, her enormous form blotting out the sun, casting shadows across the faces of her eight heads.
“We got a remnant,” Danzen told her, much to Jelmay’s dismay.
Rather than say anything, the morphed bakeneko grabbed Danzen’s satchel and took off, running about fifty feet away from the shoreline, where the orochi surely couldn’t reach him.
“Does he think I want the remnant?” she asked.
Danzen cleared his throat. “It seems that he does.”
“I don’t. I suspect you are going to take good care of it.”
“It’s not for me, it’s for Abbot Monpo, and the shrine,” Danzen explained. “He sent us there to retrieve it.”
“That’s odd. I wonder why he wants it back,” she said.
“Wants it back?” Kudzu asked, her head tilting a little to the right. “As far as we know, he just sent us here to get it.”
“Yes, he sent you to get it because he wants it back. Abbot Monpo placed it in that shrine himself many moons ago,” she said, “where no one would be able to get it and exploit its power. It worries me that he would want it back. I take this to mean that he has come to a crossroads in some way or another. I guess you will find out soon enough,” she said. All eight of her heads bowed at Danzen. “It was nice to see you once again. Please stop by next time you’re in the area and we can talk for longer. If you would like to camp along my shoreline and have a fish or two, that can also be arranged. Tell your bakeneko not to be afraid of me.”
“You figured it out?” he asked.
Rather than say anything, Idzuma pressed away from him. Once she was fifteen feet or so away from the shoreline she turned, her child doing the same as they headed back toward the center of the lake.
“I have so many questions,” Kudzu said as Jelmay approached again, Danzen’s satchel hanging over his shoulder.
“What did she say there at the end? I couldn’t hear her.”
“She knows you are bakeneko, for one,” Kudzu told Jelmay. “She also claims that Abbot Monpo was the one who hid the remnant in the cave to begin with.”
Jelmay frowned. “Are you serious? So he sent us on a suicide mission? The damn fox! All day I’ve been cursed by foxes.”
“But there appears to be more to the story,” Danzen said. “Give me five or ten minutes to dry off here, and then we will return to the shrine.”
“I did hear her say something about a fish; are we allowed to have some fish? Because I’m hungry…”
Kudzu shook her head. “You can’t have a fish, not right now anyway. But maybe next time.”
“I’m all for another trip out here if it involves fish. If you’ve never had one of these golden fish…” Jelmay licked his lips.
“I’ve had them before,” she said.
“Oh, then you know, but Pilgrim doesn’t. You’ll love them.” Jelmay’s stomach grumbled. “I think that’s my cue to leave. I’m going to get a head start back to the shrine. I’m sure the two of you will catch up with me anyway.”
Kudzu’s eyes narrowed on the satchel hanging from Jelmay’s shoulder.
“Right,” he said as he removed the satchel, “I’ll just leave the remnant here with you two.”
****
It didn’t take long for Danzen and Kudzu to pass Jelmay, the two slowing so the bakeneko could keep up with them. Danzen’s clothing was more or less dry now, and he was glad that he could no longer smell the cave water on his clothing or his skin.
He had started to sweat by the time they reached the start of the Panchen Mountains, the clouds above spreading in horizontal arcs away from Diyu. One of the assassin skills Danzen had learned early on was to utilize the environment to tell time, and the particular cloud formation extending from the top to the mountains told him that it was close to evening, that the sun would set soon.
It was hard to imagine that everything would come to a head tomorrow.
He would see who met him at his monastery, and whoever showed would accompany Danzen and his two yokai companions to the gates of hell. Danzen only wished he had more time to bend his echo, to grow stronger. But he didn’t want the villagers to suffer any more than they already had, and he knew he needed to get there sooner rather than later.
He could almost sense Nomtoi waiting for him on the other side of the mountain range, Danzen wishing that he had a better plan than to just simply survive long enough to save the villagers. His own life mattered little to him in that moment; the lives of those who had been around the main road that day were of the utmost importance to the former assassin, and he knew he was going to need all the help he could get.
Eva Yin said she would be there, but he had no idea if Shedrup would show up or not. If he did, would the cultivator put up a fight? Would there be tension between them throughout the journey?
One thing Danzen had learned at the Brotherhood was how to move past the tension one may feel against someone they have fought. During the actual fight, it was important to be as fierce as possible, to eliminate one’s opponent according to whatever rules governed the battle.
But afterward, grudges only got in the way of future cooperation.
It didn’t happen all the time, but there had been a few instances where Danzen was assigned missions with assassins whom he had trouble with in the past. At that point, both had to put the past behind them and work together to accomplish whatever task was set before them.
This was why Danzen didn’t agree with what Soko had told him, that there was no honor among assassins. He had experienced that honor firsthand, and only a few of them had brought dishonor to the profession.
Thinking of Soko reminded him of the battle at the Floating Lantern Festival.
He still didn’t know how many people had died in the end as a result of his demons; regardless, their deaths were on his hands, yet another sin he would never be able to atone for. He just hoped the news of what happened never reached Genshin Valley.
Ironically, saving the villagers once again had become his reason for existence.
Danzen knew that this desire would need to be what fueled him in his fight against his brother. He couldn’t focus on how much stronger Nomtoi was than him, or worry that his brother had the strength to easily overpower him. Danzen had to focus solely on his reasoning for being there, rather than the limits of his power.
They stopped once they reached the rope bridge that crossed a deep gorge, the white fox glancing to the other side, a couple birds sailing overhead. The bridge creaked as a breeze picked up, and a few small rocks fell into the gorge below.
“Abbot Monpo has a lot of explaining to do,” Jelmay said as he caught his breath. “I don’t know about you two, but I’m nobody’s errand cat. I have people do errands for me, not the other way around. That’s why we’re the same, Pilgrim.”
“How’s that again?”
“Your Demon Speak ability. I mean, that’s practically what you use it for.”
“You really like to provoke people, don’t you?” Kudzu asked him.
“Provoke? I’m simply pointing out the facts. You’re too sensitive, you know that? Don’t get me wrong, fox, I like you, but you are definitely the most sensitive of our little group here. A day will come when they sing songs about us, some bard—probably in Odval because that’s where the most clever bards come from—is going to write your sensitivity into his song.”
“I would be honored to know a bard wrote a song about me,” Kudzu said, holding her head up high. She trotted across the bridge, her fluffy white tail in the air, a response clearly aimed at Jelmay.
“She’s fun to tease, isn’t she?”
When Danzen didn’t say anything, Jelmay decided to head across the bridge himself, the pudgy cat in his little vest waddling as he made his way to the other side, his hands out wide for balance.
By the time Danzen crossed, the two fox monks were already outside of the shrine, greeting Kudzu and Jelmay.
Rather than separate them this time, the foxes led Danzen and the two yokai on the pathway to the right, which opened up into a brief courtyard blotted out by vines above, statues proudly displayed in front of the entrance.
They found Abbot Monpo in his human form, seated in meditation before the vibrant Sunyata remnant.
“We got what you asked for,” Jelmay said, “and by the way, next time you need us to run a little errand for you, why don’t you tell us that to begin with? I don’t mind a ‘you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours’ scenario, but I’d like to know what I’m getting into, and cave diving is not one of my hobbies.”
“Cave diving?” Abbot Monpo slowly stood and placed his hands behind his back, his skin practically glowing.
Always one to check his surroundings, Danzen noticed a staff leaning against the wall, one he hadn’t seen in the room before. It rested near the shrine’s remnant, which was bright as ever.
“The cave was filled with water, and Pilgrim here was able to retrieve the remnant, but not without a fight.”
“A fight?”
“Some kind of underwater cave yokai that I’ve never seen before,” Jelmay said, using his arms to indicate the size. “The thing was bigger than this room.”
“And it was protecting the remnant?”
Jelmay shook his head. “No, the remnant was in its body. Well, I guess you could say it was protecting it, but it seemed more like it had swallowed the remnant.”
“I’ve heard of this happening before,” Abbot Monpo said, “but I’ve never encountered it myself. They say that there are creatures in this world, all yokai, of course, that have consumed remnants and since increased their power, just like humans do.”
“I don’t know if this thing did it intentionally; it didn’t seem very smart, but that’s where we got the stone you want,” the bakeneko told him.
“May I see it?” Abbot Monpo asked.
Jelmay stepped in front of Danzen. “Not so fast. You still haven’t said why you need this remnant. You already have a pretty large one there, yet you send us to fetch another. What’s your game, Abbot? As I was telling these two, I’m nobody’s errand cat. If you’re planning to sell this thing, I want in.”
“Sell it?” Kudzu asked, looking to Jelmay incredulously.
“We have it,” Danzen said. The former assassin retrieved the skull from his satchel. “The remnant is inside.”
“That’s just where I left it.” Abbot Monpo gently took the skull from Danzen. He crouched, and with great care, the Abbot knocked the skull against the ground. It cracked open, and after the pieces settled, he retrieved a remnant about the size of Danzen’s fist.
“I don’t want to ask how you got that remnant in that skull. All I’m saying is this: you still haven’t said why you sent us to get the remnant for you,” Jelmay told him, growing annoyed. “Back me up here, Kudzu. We’re nobody’s errand cats!”
“Speak for yourself,” Kudzu said.
Rather than say anything, Abbot Monpo retrieved the staff leaning against the wall. He placed the remnant on top, Danzen noticing that it screwed into place. He then connected the clasps over it, further securing the piece. “I had you get the remnant because I’m going with you tomorrow, to Diyu,” the Abbot announced.
“You are?” asked Kudzu.
“I am. Tonight, we will have a feast, and in the morning, before we head to your monastery, we will once again bend our echoes together. We will test your ranking, Kudzu, and we will test yours as well, Danzen, although I don’t think yours has changed much. There is one more thing.”
The Abbot placed his staff against the wall again and returned to the skull. He reached his hand inside and took out a shard of remnant, about the size of an arrow tip. “You will wear this in the fight against your brother. Because you haven’t had a chance to bend your echo for long, this will give you some added strength. Finally, you will rest in this room tonight with the remnant and my staff, absorbing as much power as you can. You should do so as well, Kudzu. And you are welcome to join them, Jelmay.”
“A sleepover? I think I’ll skip out on resting near the remnant,” the bakeneko announced. “But whatever you said about the feast beforehand, I’m all for that.”
****
After a large meal that consisted of hearty bowls of stew and roasted goat, Danzen and Kudzu joined Abbot Monpo in the room with the remnant.
“We’ll let our stomachs settle for a moment,” the Abbot said as he took a seat on the ground, his legs crossed beneath him.
He was still in his human form, and as he sat, he strung a silver chain through a hole that had been drilled through the remnant destined for the former assassin. Once it was ready, he handed the remnant necklace to Danzen.
“Put it on, and let me know if you feel stronger. There are lengthy texts on understanding remnants and how they affect your tier and subranking. One thing you should know is that wearing a remnant won’t actually do anything to the clay slab test, and it will invalidate the tier test. If you do plan to travel across the kingdom and absorb power from remnants, be aware of this. Other shrines will likely check to see if you are wearing any jewelry.”
“But consuming it is different, right?” Danzen looked up at the remnant behind Abbot Monpo, which was shining brightly enough to light the room, glowing evidence that Sunyata once existed. The Sunyata talisman that Danzen now held in his hands, given to him by the Abbot, glowed as well, as if it were absorbing power from the larger remnant.
“Consuming it is different,” said the Abbot. “From what I’ve seen, consuming it can sometimes help you move up a tier, but it will only do this from the Adept to Mancer tier, and it can certainly affect your subranking. You won’t be able to become a Wielder, a Reaver, or the final tier, a Divinator, by exploiting remnants. This is why it would be pointless for you to consume more if you’re trying to move up a tier. As I said, if you consumed another remnant, it could possibly affect your subranking. But this is ill-advised.”
“And it’s cheating,” Kudzu said. “You aren’t actually bending your echo if you are abusing a remnant.”
“Some would consider it that, yes. But I’m sure you have witnessed those who have consumed enough to be powered up beyond their wildest dreams. Yet it came at a price. Am I right?”
Danzen couldn’t think of anyone else but Soko, the floating ghoul of a woman. “Yes.”
“There is a natural way to increase your power by bending your echo, and once you get to the higher tiers, like Reaver or Divinator, other powers may naturally present themselves, ones that you can actually have control over.”
“I’ve seen that as well,” Danzen said, thinking of Usagi, Shedrup, and even Nomin. He also thought of Biren Yeshe, how his former instructor had bent his echo at an early age, but also, like Danzen, consumed a remnant. A hybrid model, as it were.
“If one of these people you know who has abused a remnant came here, even if they were able to fly to our shrine on a purple cloud, they would still test poorly because they haven’t actually worked on their echo. It creates quite the conundrum when it comes to convincing others to work on bending their echoes. Why bend when you can grow as powerful as a cultivator by abusing a remnant? Why spend years when you can spend hours? The answer lies in the type of power you want to grow, and the control that you want to have over it. And you want to have control, don’t you?”
