“Remind me again why I have to do this?” I muttered as I fell backwards onto the grass.

The warm summer air had a sweet smell to it, blades of grass tickling at my skin as I closed my eyes.

“Because,” A woman’s voice pierced into my consciousness. “You’re the heir of the Tsuchimikados whether or not you like it, young master Ren.”

“Young master this, young master that.” I groaned, and raised an arm to lay it across my eyes. “I just don’t get it, Kia-san, why am I being forced to do so much when it’s obvious nothing’s going to happen?”

“Nobody’s sure nothing will happen.” The woman named Kia spoke again after a while. “Your mother said that your stars were unclear, and not that she couldn’t see the future for you.”

I turned on the grass so my back faced the direction she was speaking from.

“Besides, if you truly weren’t meant to become an Onmyoji, you wouldn’t have been born with spiritual reserves.” There was some amusement in her voice. “But… you have the largest reserves in the entire Tsuchimikado family. That has to count for something.”

I sat up, annoyed. “You say that like it does, but it’s useless if I can’t use it, isn’t it?”

Kia spread her arms, a smile on her face. “And that’s why we’re doing this, young master Ren.”

I scratched my scalp, unsure of how to bite back.

“C’mon. One more time. Then we’ll take a break.”

A smirk stretched across my own lips. “You said it, not me.”

With a grunt, I brought myself up to stand facing the woman, who was dressed in the garbs of a miko, a shrine maiden, with a white kimono and red hakama pants. She was my mentor in the spiritual arts of Onmyodo, the way of Yin and Yang.

I reached into a pouch at my side, which hung from a harness around my waist that I wore under my jacket. Pulling out a rectangular slip of paper with kanji scrawled across it in black and red ink, I held it out in front of me and focused on it, bringing my other hand to my chest with only the index and middle fingers pointing upwards.

“Take deep breaths. Let it flow. Visualize the spiritual energy within you, and let it move to the ofuda, activating it.” Kia spoke slowly, even though those words of hers were words I’d heard nearly every day.

My eyes bore holes into the paper talisman, my core clenching as I tried to focus on the energy within it. I could feel it, swirling and bubbling inside me. Though it gave no tangible report, if I were to describe it, spiritual energy felt like something that would raise hairs and give you goosebumps, akin to sparks of electricity.

C’mon. Flow. Flow. Up to the shoulder. Down into the arm, to the elbow, to the wrist, to the fingers and the ofuda. I implored the energy within me as I strained, feeling my veins bulging at my temples.

“-that’s enough.” Kia sounded disappointed.

I slumped and fell back onto the ground, exhausted. There was a twinge of guilt in my chest. “Sorry, Kia-san. You’ve been mentoring me since I was five, and I still can’t do anything.”

My mentor settled into a seiza beside me, a warm smile on her face. She was a woman in her early thirties, and had been mentoring me in the ways of Onmyodo for thirteen years. She wasn’t part of the Tsuchimikado family, but was a Tsunawara, a sub-family that served the Tsuchimikado as warrior servants, often close enough to their masters that they were seen almost as Shikigami, familiars.

“Don’t say that, Ren.” She dropped the honorifics, I noted. “While you’re hopeless at practical Onmyodo, you pick things up fast.”

I couldn’t hold back the bitter laugh that escaped my lips. “What am I going to do the next time I face a kegare? Purify the evil and cleanse it by screaming about the history of the Tsuchimikado family?”

“What I’m saying is, there’s more ways to exorcise spirits and cleanse the world than using Universal-class magic.” Kia’s expression softened. “The world is a large place, Ren.”

I sighed. “If that’s so, then why am I still training in Universal-class and not trying out the other ones?”

“Because Universal-class is the easiest to hone and train.” My mentor replied matter-of-factly. “And, more than a few of the other types I have in mind have been barred as forbidden magic by your father, my master.”

So my dad’s the reason why I can’t try learning something that may actually be better for me?

“I guess I know what’s the first thing I’ll do when I succeed him, then.” I muttered half-heartedly. “I’ll release the bars on those techniques.”

Kia gasped. “Young master-”

“I know. I’m kidding.” I sat up. “Loosen up, Kia-san.”

“Tsunawara-sama! Tsuchimikado-dono’s looking for you!” A new voice called out from behind us, and I turned to see a teenage boy standing at an open shoji screen, waving his hand.

He had light silver hair in a mess on his head, but two triangular mounds stuck up in the air above it, and as he turned, a long, thick wisp of silver could be seen behind him.

“Ah, Kin-kun’s calling me.” Kia rose to her feet elegantly. “Please excuse me, young master.”

I leaned back on my arms. “That means I’m dismissed, right?”

Kia sighed before shaking her head and leaving.

I raised a hand to the kitsune, standing at the door. “Thanks, Kin! You’ve saved me. I’ll buy you a drink some day!”

The fox spirit grinned before bowing at me and disappearing behind the shoji screen with Kia.

I dug my phone out of my pocket. It’s three now. I hit a series of numbers into the keypad.

The ringtone was a repeating melody that quickly bored me. Finally, with a slight distortion, the call was picked up.

“Oi, Kei, you free now?” I asked, already standing.

“Yeah, I am. And, Ren. Stop calling me Kei. My name’s Keiichi.”

I smirked. “You’re just afraid of sounding like a girl.”

The boy on the other end sighed. “Whatever.”

“Meet me at the corner in twenty minutes?”

“Alright.”

I hung up and slid the phone back in my pocket before turning to walk towards another of the four shoji screens placed around the garden. Leaving the courtyard, I entered the building of the Tsuchimikado household and made my way to the tea room, where a man with a braided ponytail down his left shoulder sat cross-legged, deep in conversation with a woman who had long hair tied in a low ponytail. She was in the same miko garments as Kia was, while the man was in a grey three-piece suit. Isn’t it uncomfortable to be sitting like that while wearing that? He had a harness similar to mine laid on the ground beside him, the pouches and tools on it clearly showing signs of use. Spiritual energy was dangerously flickering around it.

“Uncle Joman, mom.” I bowed my head slightly as I stood at the entrance of the tea room.

“Ah, Ren. How was mentoring today?” My uncle spoke first, his voice humoured.

“Same as usual.” I answered. “And by that I mean I’m still as useless as always.”

“Ren!” My mother chided, a look of disapproval flashing across her face as I offered an apologetic smile. “Don’t talk yourself down.

“Tsuchimikados carry themselves with pride and confidence regardless of their abilities.” She continued. “You should know that by now.”

“Yeah, yeah… I’m working on that.” I muttered. “Anyway, I’ll be heading out with Keiichi, so I won’t be having dinner tonight.”

My mom nodded, but my uncle frowned for a second.

“Keiichi… Is this friend you speak of, by any chance, Matamura Keiichi?” His eyes drilled into mine, spurring a discomfort in my chest.

Why is it so weird? He’s my uncle, I shouldn’t be feeling uncomfortable.

“Yeah, it is.” I scratched my cheek. “How’d you know?”

My uncle shook his head. “It’s nothing. Have fun, Ren.”

“Osu…” I quietly replied, then shut the screen door. “That… was weird.”

Shrugging to nobody, I walked out of the house and down a path into the shrine proper.

The path was surrounded on both sides by well-trimmed shrubbery and had trees with their branches arching over it, casting a lattice of shadows over the cobblestone, and providing cool shade in the summer.

Emerging in the shrine proper, I stuck my hands in the pockets of my jacket and took a deep breath, a smile tugging at my lips. The faint fragrance of incense wafted through the air, along with the smell of cedar and flowers. Insects buzzed around me, and distant sounds of clapping could be heard as visitors and priests prayed, along with the occasional chime of the bell closer to the shrine’s entrance.

Yeah. This is home. Passing by the sessha, a row of small auxiliary shrines, I crossed the sando towards the shamusho, the office where my dad was likely to be.

Two men in dark blue hakama walked past, inclining their heads as they went.

“Young master Ren, good afternoon.”

I returned the bow. “Tsunawara-san, Hanno-san, good afternoon.”

The men were priests in the shrine, the Hanno being another one of the subfamilies under the Tsuchimikado. While the Tsunawara were the protectors and warriors of the Tsuchimikado, the Hanno were more skilled in the divining arts of Onmyodo, and provided the most talent for the Bureau of Onmyo’s intelligence department.

Finally at the office, I slid off my shoes and padded through the reception area straight to the door at the back, knocking on it and swinging it open.

“Onmyoryo-no-kami-sama,” I called out lightheartedly.

My father looked up from the documents on his table. There were two nameplates on his desk, one with his name, ‘Tsuchimikado Mado’ inscribed on it, and the other with his title, ‘Head priest, Tsuchimikado shrine, President, Onmyoryo - Bureau of Onmyo’.

He had had a weary expression on his face, wrinkles around his eyes, but they lightened when they fell upon me.

“Ren.” He breathed. “What brings you here? You don’t normally participate in shrine activities.”

“And I’m not,” I replied, leaning against the wall. “I still don’t understand why so many of us are Shinto believers when our ways of Onmyodo now are universal. It’s literally in the name - Universal-class magic.”

My father laughed. “We’ve talked about this, Ren. We as Onmyoji cannot forget our roots. Before Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism made its way into our practices, we interacted most with Shinto. In fact-”

“Our family’s strongest techniques are Shinto. Yeah, I know. Kia-san’s been drilling that in my head for thirteen years.” I smiled, then the expression faded just as quickly as it came as I looked at my fingers. “I still can’t do any of it, though.”

“That’s not a problem. You have to know, Ren. What makes a good Onmyoji isn’t the skill they have with Onmyodo. It’s what they can do with what they do have. Onmyoji have a variety of different tools and powers under our belt.”

“Then, father…” I started walking forward, and placed my palms on his desk. “Why did you ban those techniques?”

My father sighed. “Why do I have a bad feeling about this…?”

“Because you should be, probably.” I muttered. “C’mon, father. Just once, let me try those forbidden techniques. Who knows, maybe I’ll suddenly unlock my abilities to use my spiritual energy! Besides, Kia-san will be there with me. We’ll do it within shrine premises too. It’ll be completely safe, I swear!”

My father eyed me wearily. “I banned those techniques for a reason, Ren. I find it difficult to lift the ban just because my own son asked me to.”

“Okay, look, I understand some things like the Taizen Fukan Ritual are things we shouldn’t attempt, but it’s not like I’m trying to resurrect the dead. All I need is a low tier technique to try and explore, to use my powers.” I implored my father.

I knew that, while he covered it up and always doted on me, the fact that I couldn’t use my immense spiritual reserves was a sore spot for him as a father, and especially as the head of the Onmyo Bureau. I was his successor, after all, and what good of a successor could I be if I couldn’t even become an Onmyoji, a shaman capable of using Onmyodo techniques?

Part of me felt bad for digging on his weakness, but at the same time I was getting tired of being useless, and really wanted to try doing everything I could to manifest my powers. When you grow up for eighteen years with everybody in awe of how much reserves you have, the disappointment hits twice as hard when they find out you can’t use them. If there’s any chance for me to use an Onmyodo technique, I’m taking it, no questions asked.

“Fine.” My father closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair. “I’ll allow you to try some low tier forbidden techniques. No mentioning of this to anybody; you know what kind of repercussions this could bring. I’ll have Kia bring you over to where the scrolls are stored tonight, after the family meeting.”

There was a rush in my chest, and my mouth widened into a grin. “Thanks, dad.”

“I better not regret this.” He sighed,

I jabbed a thumbs-up at him. “You won’t. I promise. I’ll be off now.”

There was practically a hop in my steps as I walked to meet with Keiichi. Finally. Finally, I may be able to use magic. I’ve waited thirteen years for this.

“What’s up with you?” The boy sitting across me propped his elbows on the table, leaning closer as he narrowed his eyes. He had shoulder-length hair dyed a fiery red, that he kept back with a black hairband. He was the only friend I had in school, since we were both Onmyoji-in-training, and everybody else in class was civilian. Since he could use magic, though, he could glamour himself while in school and could look however he wanted while I had to strictly adhere to the school’s rules.

“Huh? What’d you mean?”

He shrugged. “You’re giving off a slightly different energy today.”

Raising a hand to my forehead, he ignited a pale blue flame on his fingertips. “Let me exorcise you.”

I slapped his hand away. “Watch the ice cream, idiot.”

He laughed, then released his spiritual energy. “I take it today’s mentoring was a failure again?”

Nodding, I dug my spoon into the already melting ball of white in my cup. “Same old, same old.”

There was a smirk on Keiichi’s face. “It’s fine, useless. I’ll be here to protect you.”

“I’d rather die.”

His smirk faltered.

After tonight, I might be able to stand on the same platform as you, Keiichi. Then we’ll talk about who’s protecting who.

“Oh, yeah, Ren.”

I nodded.

“I’ve been meaning to ask… why’re you wearing a jacket?”

I blinked and looked down at myself, then at Keiichi. He was wearing just a white t-shirt.

“Oh yeah, it’s summer.” I muttered.

“What the hell do you mean by that?” He cocked his head to the side, his voice raising. “How do you forget-”

“Calm down, man. It’s enchanted. It’s fine. It’s like I’m not wearing any extra layers at all.”

“That may be so, but,” Keiichi leaned closer. “You look like an idiot. People have been looking our way ever since we sat.”

I shrugged. “Doesn’t matter.”

We sat in the cafe for a while longer before Keiichi glanced out of the window and paled.

“Oi, oi. Ren. Look towards the hardware store there.” His voice was soft.

Raising an eyebrow, I turned, and froze. Perched on the signboard in front of the store was a massive bird, with feathers blacker than night. It could’ve passed for just an abnormally large raven or crow, but it had a face. A human face, grotesquely stretched out over its birdlike skull. Its eyes were a bright yellow that seemed to glow, and it turned its head slowly to stare back at Keiichi and I. A yokai. A supernatural spirit.

“No way. That’s an Onmoraki.” I started mumbling, my fingers travelling to my belt’s pouches by reflex even though I couldn’t do anything. “Those things appear near recently dead bodies. Can you handle that?”

Keiichi looked at me, his eyes slightly unfocused, his expression uneasy, but he covered it up with a half-smile. “Of course. I’m not a Matamura for nothing. We’re warriors.”

While only shamans-in-training, we were still duty-bound to keep an eye out for spiritual disturbances in our vicinity, and often, trainees like us were allowed to take care of low risk yokai and kegare as means of gaining battle experience. This was both Keiichi’s and my first time dealing with one ourselves, though.

We paid for our food and ducked out of the cafe, approaching the Onmoraki cautiously.

“Oi, Ren.” Keiichi whispered urgently.

I had my arms raised, trying to show the yokai that we weren’t a threat as it looked at us approach, its eyes flashing dangerously. “What?”

“I didn’t bring out any tools.”

I paused. “What?”

“How was I supposed to know we were going to run into a yokai?”

I shook my head. “While I have this bird’s attention, get into my left side pouch and use my ofuda.”

Keiichi reached around me and slowly pulled out a few of the rectangular talismans while I continued distracting the bird.

“Anytime you’re ready, Keiichi.”

I was getting painfully aware of the pedestrians around us giving us a wide berth; and not because they knew we were Onmyoji taking care of a yokai, but because normal people couldn’t see said yokai, and we probably looked like two kids out of their minds, creeping slowly towards a wall.

“Wait, Ren.” Keiichi’s tone was starting to get panicked. “These are general talismans.”

“Yeah, no shit, we use Universal-class magic. These are catalysts.” I answered.

“I’ve only ever trained with specialised ofuda.”

I tore my eyes off the Onmoraki to glare at keiichi. “What kind of idiot-”

Forcing myself to not complete the sentence, I sighed. “Right pouch. I have specialised ofuda. I think the first one is Acala.”

Keiichi immediately drew a talisman from the pouch at my right side. “Nice. I can use this.”

The two of us split up, me taking small steps to the left with my arms spread out to continue drawing the yokai’s attention while Keiichi stepped to the right, readying for his spell.

“Oi, birdy. Over here. Look here.” I stuck a tongue out, and the yokai glared at me with its beady yellow pupils, but it didn’t make a move.

Behind it, Keiichi had gotten into position, and the ofuda hovered in the air in front of him. His arms were outstretched, his hands clasped together with fingers interlocked in the ‘kai’ hand seal, invoking the magic of the deity Acala.

“On nomaku sanmanda basaradan kan,” He chanted as spiritual energy shimmered around him, and the ofuda started glowing.

The yokai squawked, noticing the disruption, and its wings spread open, but I opened my mouth, screaming.

The yokai looked back at me, and that moment of distraction was all it took for the bolt of flame from Keiichi’s ofuda to pierce through the yokai’s body, and it screamed, its sound distorting into two, one a bird’s squawk, and the other, a human cry of agony that sent a wave of nausea into my stomach. I lowered my arms, my knees suddenly weak. That sound…

The Onmoraki disintegrated into ash along with the spent Acala ofuda, Keiichi looking at me with his palms on his knees.

“Ren…” He breathed, then his eyes widened. “I did it, Ren I did it I did it- I just exorcised a yokai! Ho-ly shit-”

“That’s good and all, Kei,” I raised an arm, frowning as I recalled Kia’s teachings. “But you know why Onmoraki come about, don’t you?”

The pedestrians around us had given us an even larger berth, and I gave them apologetic smiles as Keiichi walked closer to me.

“If I’m not wrong, they’re evil spirits formed when recently deceased corpses haven’t received the proper rites and prayers?”

I nodded. “This kind of negative life energy… it’s not uncommon for Onmoraki to form in cases of murder.”

Keiichi bit his lip.

“In any case, we should look for its source. There could be more. We can’t have yokai attacking humans.” I started walking towards the alley beside us.

“Do you even know where to go?” Keiichi asked, following.

I shrugged. “We’re in a shopping district, man. Not many places you can murder someone other than alleyways.”

I was right.

After a mere twenty minutes of walking through deserted back-alleys and behind buildings, Keiichi spotted bloodstains on the ground, leading a somewhat recognisable trail to a door that had been closed.

The unease in my heart had grown, and I could feel it palpitating in my chest, blood rushing in my ears. My feet were numb. Unable to properly feel even the sensation on my fingertips, I tried the door knob.

“It’s locked.” I muttered, then fished a Universal ofuda out of my pouch and passed it to Keiichi. “Try a divine command.”

Keiichi glanced at me.

I sighed. “You don’t know how? Dude, how’ve you been training? I can’t even use my spiritual energy and I still know how. Just slap the talisman onto the knob, give a simple command, and follow with ‘kyu-kyu nyo ritsu ryo’ while channeling spiritual energy through it.”

Keiichi looked down at the paper in his hand, then stuck it on the knob and raised his hand with his index finger and thumb pointed upwards. “Unlock this door, kyu-kyu nyo ritsu ryo.”

I couldn’t hold back the spurt of laughter, a little comfort seeping through my unease.

“What?” Keiichi snapped as the talisman burnt into ash and the door clicked.

“Dude, you have no idea how stupid you sounded saying that.” I snickered.

“It worked didn’t it?” He mumbled. “Besides, you were the one who told me to do it-...”

His voice trailed off after he opened the door, and my smile dropped as I saw what he was looking at.

Something rushed up inside me, my legs weak again, and I fell to the side, supporting myself with my arms as I heaved my stomach’s contents out onto the concrete.

My vision was blurry, my heart beating faster than it ever had. Keiichi had stumbled backwards and fallen onto his backside.

“No… no… what the hell? What the hell is this?”

My digestive tract empty, I turned around and collapsed beside Keiichi, my breathing shallow. The back of my throat burned with my stomach acids, my nose smelling like vomit.

“Ren… look.”

I averted my gaze even more.

“Ren.” Keiichi’s voice was harsh, and I felt my gaze travel onto what was behind the door.

Inside was a pile of black and white clothing, with limbs sticking out of sleeves at awkward angles. Corpses.

Blood had pooled underneath them, and their flesh had started to rot, the air starting to fill with the putrid stench.

Then, I noticed what Keiichi was trying to draw my attention to.

Underneath several layers of clothes, some distinctive items could be seen.

“That’s an…” I looked down at my own harness. “Ofuda pouch...”

Not only did the corpses have the beige coloured rectangular containers used to contain talismans, their clothes had been imprinted with the insignia of a yin-yang symbol.

“They’re Onmyoji…” I realised.