As it turned out, Kaiko was correct about the time they had left. Barely a minute after they had finished their tea a knock on the paper door disturbed the silence. It was a female servant whom they had not seen before. She wordlessly asked them to follow her.
They were led down a different corridor, and this time they were definitely being led downwards. Though it seemed to be taking forever, at the end of a long set of stairs they walked into a large open chamber that seemed filled with vehicles. The servant wordlessly pointed them ahead, where a man stood by a sled, before bowing and swiftly disappearing.
"To the Tohsang Willow, was it?" The man next to the sled shouted.
They both nodded wordlessly before walking over to him. Unlike the sled they had purchased, this one seemed to have been built for comfort. It had proper seating for multiple passengers as well as a designated area for luggage. Feng and Kaiko immediately dumped they things into the sled.
"Yes," Feng eventually stated, now facing the young man, "We are indeed intent on going to the Tohsang Willow. And you are?"
"You may call me Ger," He answered politely, "I have been explicitly asked to be your personal guide on this mission."
"Greetings Ger," Feng responded with a small bow, "And what exactly is your role with us?"
Ger put two fingers and his mouth and whistled that echoed across the chamber.
"Well," Ger began, "I will be your all access pass to all areas under Sendoh's control. My presence confirms you are working for the Syndicate."
From behind them the sound of heavy thudding approached. Ger turned around as a big dog came running up to him. With very little effort the dog reached his face while on its hind legs. Despite seeming large and heavy, the dog moved surprisingly lightly. The sheer size of its white fur gave the dog a far heavier and fiercer look. It licked Ger's face ferociously until he managed to calm the dog down. He attempted, mostly unsuccessfully, to calm the dog and lead it towards the harness at the front of the sled. After a few attempts at ordering the dog around it finally obeyed.
""This is Choncho," Ger eventually said as he playfully tried to manoeuvre the dog between the reins, "Though he is very playful, he is a very loyal friend."
Once Choncho had settled down, Ger could do the necessary to attach the different parts of the harness. This only took a minutes with the dog actively helping, they both had clearly done this before.
"He sure did that faster than you," Kaiko whispered to Feng, "And I even needed less prompting and handling."
"I bet the dog will pull the sled faster than you, too." Feng responded with a smile.
Ger performed meticulous final checks on all parts of the sled before confirming with Feng and Kaiko that they were comfortable and ready to go. He planted himself firmly at the back of the sled and gave Choncho the signal to head out. A quick and sudden jerk on the sled put Feng and Kaiko firmly in their seats before it accelerated down the hall into a long dark tunnel. Several minutes of total darkness went by as the sled sped up through the tunnel, it rocked slightly back and forth, but Choncho seemed to know the way by heart.
At the end of the tunnel there was light now closing in fast. It led the sled down to a smooth wide path clearly made for sleds to make a quick exit from Sendoh. As they made their way, Feng and Kaiko looked backwards to see that this tunnel had bypassed the shanty town entirely.
As they raced down the smooth path they decided to ask Ger about it.
"So, you noticed, huh?" He began while he tried his best to address them, swaying his body side to side at the back of the sled, "This road was made specifically for sleds, and to facilitate getting out of Sendoh quickly."
"This particular road," He added between controlled shifting of his weight, "Makes use of the natural steam coming up from the ground to give a smooth ride."
He called out to Choncho to slow down slightly.
"That is, at least," He said as he lowered himself and gripped onto the bar tightly, "Until we reach the end, where things get a little bumpy. You might want to grip onto the sled tightly."
They were now approaching the wall of steam that marked the edge of Sendoh's domain. The sled sped up towards it and the road made a small but sudden incline, before the ground disappeared from under them and they became entirely engulfed in the steam.
A few moments of everyone holding on for dear life later, they landed with a firm thud. Choncho let out a delighted howl before speeding up once more, this time at a faster pace that he had so far.
"From here it will take a few hours to reach the Tohsang Willow," Ger shouted over the brushing wind, as he settled in a relaxed position, "Mind if I ask something?"
"Sure," Feng responded when she noticed Kaiko was looking off in the distance, "Ask away."
"Why are we making a stop at the Willow?" He inquired, "Wouldn't it make more sense to go straight to Tohsang?"
"That is a good question," Feng said with a smile Ger couldn't see, "We believe some valuable information might be a available there, if we ask the right people that is."
"Considering how little we know," Ger nodded to himself, "Im on board with getting more information."
"We'll decide our approach once we've spoken to our contact," Kaiko interjected, "We don't want to head into danger unprepared. Believe us."
Ger was taken somewhat by surprise. Partly because he didn't think Kaiko was paying attention, and partially that something in Kaiko's voice sounded heavy. He decided not to pry further.
For a solid hour their trip was uneventful. Ger focused on guiding the sled, while Feng and Kaiko took the time to relax and take in the sights. The snow was ever present and made the landscape somewhat hard to distinguish. Clusters of trees looked largely the same to them, leaving the shadow of Sendoh behind them as the only reference point they could use to orient themselves. Even from this distance it stood like an unmissable beacon in the middle of an otherwise monochrome pallet of snow. It was then that it occurred to them that despite being still early in the day, relatively speaking, the sun was already starting to dwindle near the periphery of the mountains that trapped them in a dark valley.
Eventually they reached a landmark that varied up the landscape, a fork in the road up ahead.
"Once we make our way past this for in the road," Ger started suddenly, "I'll be taking us off-route until we reach the Tohsang Willow."
"Any particular reason for this?" Kaiko was quick to ask, while he was already formulating his own reasoning in his mind.
"Well," Ger said with a long awkward pause, "If you must know, I want to take us away from a roadblock we set up."
"We're working for the Syndicate, are we not?" Feng was quick to ask.
"That we are," Ger responded with a sigh, looking away from them, "Unfortunately, not everyone was on board with the idea of getting external help with our issue. I feel it would serve us best to work in secrecy."
Feng and Kaiko looked at each other with a look of acknowledgment. This was a sentiment they could wholeheartedly get behind.
The sled approached the fork in the road, and without any hesitation Ger ordered Choncho to take neither path and head right in the middle of both, towards a cluster of sparsely populated forest. As they approached the edge of the forest Choncho slowed to a brisk walk, slowly dragging the sled between the trees.
Ger told Feng and Kaiko to hold on tightly once more, this part of the journey would be tediously slow and particularly rocky. Choncho was forced to slalom between the trees, finding a part that was wide enough for the sled. Though only an hour actually passed on their slow trek, to them it felt like an eternity; they had no way to tell the passage of time through the entire journey. The sun was already barely illuminating their surroundings, and though the forest was not particularly dense, they were deep enough within the forest for there to be nothing else of note as far as they could see.
As Choncho began tugging harder on the sled they were beginning to see an end to the forest. As soon as their path forward stopped being obstructed the sled sped up again, though this time the dog was unable to keep up the high pace it had before.
It was beginning to become properly dark now. It didn't take long for a small bit of light to become visible ahead. Without any incident they approached the light that would eventually look like a tavern; the Tohsang Willow.
When they got near enough to distinguish the building properly, the sled fell into a well trodden slow-covered road which led all the way up to the tavern. Once they made it alongside it, Ger ordered Choncho to stop, which he was eager to do. He immediately lay down and began panting with his tongue sticking out as far as it could, filling the air with small puffs of his hot breath. Ger quickly went over to disconnect Choncho, then took him to a small stall where a covered spot was available for him to rest and drink.
When Feng and Kaiko stepped out of the sled, stiff from the long travel, they noticed a few other sleds were also present.
"Look familiar?" Kaiko said as he pointed to one particular sled.
"It certainly does." Feng said as she looked over.
She spotted that one of the sleds had one ski that was different from the other, as well as a rather curious roughness across the entire left side. Rather suspiciously like the one that was stolen from them.
"Whomever stole our sled is here," Feng whispered, "And I want to find out who."
"We'll see you inside, Ger," Kaiko shouted, "We'll find our contact and a seat."
"That's a good idea," Ger responded without looking their way, "I'll come in to join you as soon as I've settled Choncho in the dog house."
Without any further delay the pair made their way inside, desperate for the warmth.
Inside the tavern was quite dark and most definitely warm. There were several small round tables distributed across the large hall. Each table had a small grill in the middle. At the occupied tables they housed a small cone furnace that both illuminated and heated the patrons while they ate. No neither's surprise there were very few customers in, two groups sitting at opposite sides. There was only one staff member present, which was currently approaching Feng and Kaiko. A quick exchange followed where they requested a table and something warm to eat. They were shown to a table near the wall in the middle of the room, equidistant to the other two parties. Feng and Kaiko sat down, their backs facing the wall so they could keep an eye on the other customers.
"Here are your furnace and kettle," The young lady interrupted only moments after they sat down, "I'll be around momentarily to take your orders."
She set the furnace nearly in the middle of the table, and placed the kettle on top. As she set it down it made a very think thump indicating it was filled to the brim. She then set two cup for tea then followed it up by a small goblet which she poured a small amount of liquid into.
"Complementary," She bowed, "Willow's specialty. Potent at warming the hear, stomach, and most certainly the spirit."
"Sounds perfect," Kaiko smiled at the waitress, "Would it be possible to get a third set, we have another member in our party, he is just tending to our driver."
She bowed politely before walking away, intending on returning. While awaiting her return, Feng and Kaiko took the opportunity to inspect the other parties. On one side of them they saw four similarly dressed men grumbling away to themselves, while on the side there were two travellers entirely hooded up. The only thing they could say for certain by looking at them was that one was taller and broader, while the other was smaller.
Feng and Kaiko looked at each other with a sense of having seen this setup before, feeling rather strongly that these two concealing their identities must be the ones who took their sled.
"So," Ger began as he nonchalantly plopped himself down at the table, catching them somewhat off guard, "What's the news?"
Feng was just opening her mouth to speak, but was immediately interrupted by the waitress coming over with a cup and goblet.
"Master Dhala," She bowed apologetically, almost dropping her tray, "Had I known you were the awaited guest I would have done more…"
"Not to worry, Celia," Ger said with an uneasy smile, "I am here only to assist out two guests here."
Ger gestured to Feng and Kaiko, who reflexively waved at her with a soft smile. Celia finished setting the cup and goblet in front of Ger and ran off quickly into the back room. Before Ger looked over to Feng and Kaiko again he could feel their piercing looks. He turned to face his exorcist guests slowly.
"So, Master Dhala, was it?" Feng began with an indecisive look on her face, "As in, 'Suh Man Dhala', Dhala?"
Ger tried to smile gently, but the mix of emotions on Feng and Kaiko's face did not vanish. He sighed and eventually put up his hands.
"Yes," He began plainly, "I suppose you deserve an explanation.
"I am, in fact, the son of Suh Man Dhala. However, my father never married. He was otherwise good to my mother and always tried to do right by me, too. When she died, he promised he'd find a place for me in Sendoh, which he did. He kept me close to him, and frankly, at a much higher level within Sendoh than anyone of my standing would ever reach on their own. He even managed to grant me his last name in an official capacity. From that day onwards I became Ger Hol Dhala, right hand man to the Master On All Matters."
"Why keep it from us?" Kaiko demanded, slightly more harshly than intended.
"It wasn't intentional," Ger protested, "I had considered what to say, stopping shy of saying: 'Hi, I'm Ger, bastard child of Suh, nice to meet you.' But I don't feel the opportunity to say anything came up naturally.
Feng picked up the now hot kettle off the furnace and poured all three of them tea. Starting with Ger, then Kaiko and finally herself.
"I'll grant you that aside from stating it outright, there hasn't really been an opportunity to mention it," She said very calmly, "This still leaves us with the question of who we can trust."
Feng let those words hang while she put the kettle back in its place.
"So we would ask you the following," She continued, "Why are you here with us now?"
Ger seemed hesitant.
"Because my father asked me." He eventually said.
"That much was obvious, Ger," Kaiko chimed in, "We mean: why do you do what he asks? Why are you doing any of this for yourself?"
Ger looked down, refusing to meet their eyes. He fidgeted incessantly while he procrastinated answering the question. He eventually picked up the little goblet and gulped it down in one go. His expression turned sour and bitter all at the same time, after which he exhaled deeply. Eventually he smacked his lips with a soft smile.
"I had forgotten what a weird drink this was." Ger finally said as he put the goblet down.
Feng and Kaiko became curious. They both drunk it as he had, and very quickly had a series of expressions just like his. Feng began coughing as the heat in her throat burned, while Kaiko began chuckling a little to hide the burn.
Ger finally took a sip of the tea.
"I trust my dad," Ger finally began as he stared into his cup, "Despite what everyone says about the Syndicate, despite some of the rumours going around; I believe my father is a good person and genuinely cares about the people."
He paused to take another sip. Feng and Kaiko did the same this time, fully aware that they needed to give Ger the time he needed.
"When he told me that helping the two of you was likely the most important thing he was ever going to ask of me," Ger said in a hushed voice, "I genuinely felt that he said this without regard to the Syndicate watching over his shoulders, that his only consideration was Tohsang and its people."
Feng and Kaiko glanced at each other with a look of understanding. They wanted to speak, but once again they were interrupted from doing so by a loud voice coming from the back room.
"Ger, my boy!" The voice echoed across the hall, "You don't tell your auntie when you come to visit anymore?"
The Willow was overwhelmingly silent.
"Auntie 'Darin," Ger hushed with flailing arms, "Please keep your voice down, I'm on a mission from dad. I'm meant to be incognito."
He pointed over to Feng and Kaiko, who waved and smiled once more.
"Hi there," Kaiko began, "You wouldn't happen to be Lady Chandarin?"
"That I am," She responded proudly, "What's it to you?"
"Denkoh begged us to visit," Feng added, "We couldn't promise him anything, of course, but it turns out we were coming this way regardless."
Chandarin inspected Feng and Kaiko thoroughly, from top to bottom, before turning her gaze back to Ger.
"Dad finally convinced the Syndicate," He nodded, "These are spiritualists from Shoi Ni. We asked them to come deal with Tohsang on our behalf."
"Then you will need to come into the back room," Chandarin said in a hushed voice, leaning in closer, "I'll just make sure the other customers are taken care of first."
Chandarin looked around for only a moment before turning back to Ger, Feng and Kaiko.
"Have you seen where the couple int he corner went?" She asked while pointing over to the now empty table.
Shit! Feng and Kaiko thought simultaneously.
Feng ran over to the table while Kaiko ran outside to the sleds.
"They at least paid for their meal." Feng reassured Chandarin.
"Our alleged sled is the only one that's missing," Kaiko shouted while still outside, "The tracks lead eastward."
Ger, uncertain how best to help, looked around the room at the remaining patrons and instantly recognised their uniforms. He walked over to get their attention.
"Patrolmen!" He began in a deep shout, "Your assistance is required in your capacity as Sendoh officers."
One of the men scuffed and sighed before putting his cup down, while another kicked him in the shins before standing to salute.
"Ma- Master Dhala!" The officer said hesitantly after noticing, "How unexpected to see you so close to the quarantine zone. We were not informed of your pending arrival."
"Never mind that," Ger waved with authority, "I need one of you to head over to base camp and tell them that I am arriving along with two expert exorcists and we will be heading into Tohsang immediately upon arrival. Supplied will need to be ready by the time we arrive. I need the rest of you to go around the perimeter and tell everyone we have two travellers attempting to breach the quarantine; they are to be apprehended and I am to be informed of this as soon as possible. Now, finish your food and drinks and be on your way, the expenses will be mine to sort."
"Yes, sir!" They all shouted in unison.
Without further delay they returned to their plates to finish everything they had ordered.
"Oh," Ger said as he realised he had forgotten something, "There is little known about those attempting to breach quarantine except that they are two, they are travelling by sled, are entirely cloaked as to hide their identity and that one is tall and one is small. That is all."
Between bites and gulps were muffled sounds of affirmation from all men before they hurried out of the tavern. As soon as they had all vacated the premises Kaiko returned.
Chandarin invited everyone behind the curtain that led to the backroom where a table had already been set up with a tea pot and four cups. As Feng, Kaiko and Ger sat themselves down, Chandarin poured all their teas with a graceful effortlessness that astounded them. Their cups were filled within seconds with the tea settling immediately without as much as a single ripple.
"Let's reintroduce ourselves, shall we?" Chandarin said as she let her full weight drop onto the chair, "Who exactly are you?"
Kaiko leant back into the chair and gestured Feng as if to say, 'this is your area of expertise.'
"I am Feng," She began, "And this is my partner Kaiko. We are exorcists sent here by Shoi Ni in the east, in a particularly odd bout of cooperation between our organisation and the Syndicate. We suspect that the issue of Tohsang involves a Yohkai and we are here to deal with it."
Chandarin looked over at Ger who all but confirmed what Feng had said with a quick nod.
"Alright then," Chandarin sighed, "My name is Chandarin, and while I am most definitely the owner of this establishment, I am also part of a family who trades in information."
She took a moment to look at Feng and Kaiko with an exaggerated look of discontent.
"I have not heard of either of you," She then continued without breaking eye contact, "Which frankly doesn't bode well for Tohsang.
"Impress me," She demanded, "Who exactly are Feng and Kaiko?"
They both looked at each other and whispered quickly amongst themselves, though just loud enough for Chandarin and Ger to hear.
"Should we?" Kaiko asked.
"We probably should," Feng responded, "I think we need to hurry this along."
"Well," Feng began, "Though my title as an exorcist is well established, I am not surprised you have not heard of 'Feng the Exorcist.' It is no secret that the barrier to become one isn't incredibly high, but Kaiko and myself don't usually get sent into situations with many spectators, nor survivors for that matter. Having said that, you may have heard of my other title, though: Saizo Taisen."
Chandarin looked Feng straight in the eyes. The disbelief of someone so young holding such a prestigious title had taken her somewhat by surprise. The look in Feng's eyes didn't lie, however. It was clear to Chandarin that the fierce sparkle at the back of Feng's eyes was genuine. She then turned her gaze over to Kaiko.
"If you thought that was good," He began with a cocky smile, "I'm technically almost a thousand years old."
This Chandarin had a very hard time believing, and made it known with the grumpy expression on her face.
"Granted, I was asleep for most of it," Kaiko then continued in a clearly rehearsed manner, "And I don't really remember my past, I am a descendant of a fox Kami. This appearance is useful but mostly for your sakes."
Ger and Chandarin both had disbelief written all over. Ger's mouth had even dropped a little at the absurdity.
"I can prove it if you like." Kaiko added.
A small glow emanated from within Feng's breast while Kaiko pointed both of his index fingers up at his head. Bright red fox ears popped up from his hair and whiskers grew around his nose and cheeks.
"See?" He then added with exceptional showmanship.
Kaiko then rubbed his face with both his hands, and the fox features disappeared, as well as the glow of the medallion that Feng kept close to her heart.
A momentary silence hung around the room.
"You think I went too far?" Kaiko whispered to Feng.
"No," She whispered back, "I think you hit the mark perfectly."
They both took a satisfied sip of their tea, giving Ger and Chandarin time to take it all in. Within seconds Chandarin stood up with no hesitation. She walked over to the drinks counter and grabbed the half empty glass bottle of Gora, the alcohol they serve to guests upon arrival. She almost finished the remainder of the bottle in one go. She then sad back down and offered the rest of the bottle to Ger.
"I must apologise," She then began with a deep exhale that burned the air in the room, "While I may not entirely believe, or even comprehend, what you have just told me, I realise that… Never mind."
She went quiet for just a moment. Her expression turned stern and determined.
"All cards on the table for the sake of Tohsang, right?" She then added
Feng and Kaiko nodded in simultaneously.
Ger was still somewhat in shock but managed to gather the strength to drink the last gulp of Gora.
"Shoi Ni really sent in the real deal?" Ger muttered to himself loud enough for everyone to hear.
"I'm not sure what you imagine 'the real deal' to be," Feng posited, "But I can assure you that we are capable, and have dealt with some pretty strong Yohkai."
"That is good to hear," Chandarin interrupted, "Because I have two older brothers in Tohsang whom I want to see again. One of my brothers was the chief's aid, while the other one went to investigate when we realised that Tohsang had gone dark."
She got up and searched for something amidst a pile of papers and scrolls on a desk at the far end of the room.
"This was the last message that we received via our family's emergency communication," Chandarin said, scroll in hand, "It is short and cryptic, and I pray it will prove helpful."
She lay the scroll on the table and opened it up. The actual text on the scroll seemed like gibberish to everyone but Chandarin.
"I have done my best to decipher it," She continued as she slid a small piece of paper over to Feng and Kaiko, "But my brothers were always much better at this."
The paper contained three distinct phrases:
Safe for now. Beware Calligraphy. Yohkai.
"The only one I am uncertain about is the middle one," Chandarin continued, "Our emergency communication is extremely limited, so our father taught us to condense and encrypt our messages. The middle one could also mean 'ink,' 'writer' or 'poet' as well."
Everyone looked intently at the paper.
"Whatever my brother may have done to consider himself safe," Chandarin eventually broke the silence, "I doubt we can rely on that at this point. With the blockage set up by the Syndicate, no one has been able to go in and confirm."
"What about the rest of the message," Feng added as she pointed to the middle phrase, "Do you know of stories or legends that may incorporate these elements?"
Chandarin thought about it for a moment.
"There are a couple, sure," Chandarin began as she tried hard to recall tales of her childhood, "North Fuuhzan has a long history of writing and has produced a lot of very fine ink."
"What about fantastical tales?" Kaiko added while pointing to the final word on the paper, "In our line of work the bizarre stories tend to be the useful ones."
"I suppose," Chandarin pondered, "One particular tale comes to mind. It isn't set in Tohsang, but the main character was born there."
"Perfect," Feng announced, "You need to tell us this tale."
"Very well," Chandarin says as she adjusts her sitting position, "I will do my best to recount the legend of Shin the Poet."
Even in the early days of the new era, North Fuuhzan was a land obsessed with the written word. Writing, calligraphy, poetry. All were prevalent.
One of the most famous was a poet called Shin, who was born in Tohsang. His poetry was excellent, beautiful, pungent and most importantly, depressing.
He was known for drawing out the sadness within the monotone of our winter landscapes, but in his later life that wasn't good enough anymore.
They say that on the precipice of his most intricate poem, the one he believed would be the pinnacle of his art form, he became disillusioned with the tools of his craft. He felt no ink could capture the essence of the darkness he saw, and he journeyed across Fuuhzan on search of an ink that could contain the very essence of the depression he envisioned.
"While that is the generally accepted story," Chandarin said as she eased back into the chair, "Accounts of what happened next vary from region to region. Some versions of the story say he died still searching for his damned ink, while others state that he found his ink in the depth of the underworld."
Chandarin chuckled to herself for only a moment.
"As a child, I remember now," she then continued, "My favourite version was that he not only wrote his poem, but that the essence of darkness he put onto the page cursed him for his efforts."
Feng and Kaiko take a moment to pull apart the information in their heads.
"It certainly has the trappings of a Yohkai story," Feng eventually said, "Olden texts of Shoi Ni say Yohkai often return to their birthplace to nest. I think it's safe to assume that this situation will be connected somehow."
"What exactly do you mean?" Chandarin asked, "What is nesting?"
"Nesting takes many forms," She responded, "So it's hard to say exactly what happens, but generally speaking, a Yohkai sort of poisons the area they stay in, slowly enthralling people and warping the very essence of a place."
"This does generally speaking take a long time, though," Kaiko added, "But the longer you wait, the less likely you will find human survivors."
"You best make haste, then," Chandarin sighed, "I wish to see my brothers safe and sound."
Chandarin stood up and left the table quickly to rummage through the kitchen.
"I will provide you some small resources for the journey," She shouted without facing them, "I will only be a moment."
Ger looked over his shoulder at the kitchen to make sure Chandarin was still busy, then turned to Feng and Kaiko.
"Do you think the old legend holds true?" Ger whispered, "That some old ghost from the past is holding Tohsang hostage?"
Feng sighed before turning her head over to the kitchen, without answering Ger's question.
"I get that it's exciting to find out about these things," Kaiko jumped in, seeing the disappointment on Feng's face, "But try to have a bit of tact here. That woman may soon find herself two brothers short."
Ger's excitement faded from his face immediately, he was realising how inappropriate he must have sounded. He quietly sat back in his chair and looked down at his feet.
"We'll answer any question you might have," Feng stated as she nodded approvingly to Kaiko, "Just wait until were on the way."
Ger nodded softly and raised his gaze from his feet over to the kitchen where Chandarin was. He felt caught between his excitement for the mission and the empathy for his auntie, he was having a hard time keeping those emotions to himself.
"These are the best I can do," Chandarin announced as she appeared from the kitchen with a satchel, "Ive packed some food for the trip as well as a fresh bottle of our famous Gora drink. It should keep you warm through the cold night ahead."
She handed the satchel over to Ger then gestured them to leave quickly. All three thanked her and headed for the door immediately.
"I hope you won't need it." Chandarin said in prayer, quiet enough for no one to hear.
Once the door shut behind them, Feng and Kaiko immediately dove into their own little world discussing the steps ahead. The rather tight time constraint meant they had to make many decisions very quickly. Ger had run over to Choncho in the dog pen, and could hear them muttering to each other.
Kaiko went over to place where the sled had been and noted how the ski was still clearly broken while it was parked. They both followed the tracks out of the stalls and found that a second ski materialised suddenly, and a two ski track headed out eastward.
Kaiko then called Feng over when he noticed something odd.
"It's the same black goo as before." He said as he leant down.
He looked at the few small intensely black drops that dotted area where a second ski made its appearance. Kaiko dipped his finger into one of the droplets and picked it up. He brought it close to his nose to smell it and recoiled before he even got close.
"It's foul," He said in shock, "I smell something familiar, too, but that really stinks."
Feng got closer to smell the goo for herself. She had to admit that she couldn't smell the foul odour that had gotten Kaiko so worked up, but there was indeed something familiar in the scent.
Ger had come around with Choncho beside him and saw this as the first opportunity to join the conversation, and took it.
"What are we looking at?" He interrupted, "Anything I can help with?"
Kaiko rubbed his thumb and finger over each other and turned around to show Ger the goo that stuck to his fingers.
"Oh!" Ger said immediately, "That's a rare find."
"You know what it is?" Feng asked in surprise.
Ger got closer to smell it for himself.
"Absolutely," He said with a smile of self-satisfaction, "The underlying smell is rather unique. Only one substance I know has this smell."
"Well spit it out," Kaiko began with a clear sound of agitation in his voice, "Don't leave us in suspense here, we don't have the time for that."
"It's ink," Ger stated, "A rather rare ink at that. It's native to a small and very remote village in the north. It used to be considered the best ink in the region for many centuries. Sadly, the village that produced it doesn't exist anymore, but some of the highest officials in Sendoh still use it to this day."
"I don't like this, Feng muttered to herself, "I don't like any of this."
"What are you thinking?" Kaiko asked as he turned around, forgetting Ger was even there.
"I want to test something," Feng said, "We need to know what we're dealing with before we head out."
Feng gave Kaiko a quick nod without saying a word, and Ger could see the two of them jump into a well rehearsed routine. Kaiko took some of the snow and wiped all the ink off his fingers which he then threw back into the the snow along with the remaining droplets. Then, while Feng went over to the sled Kaiko transformed fully into his foxes form. He used his tail and paws to clear the snow around the droplets of ink so that the frozen dirt was visible. He dug four small holes around the snowy island with ink after which he exhaled a glowing white breath into it through his nose before covering the holes back up with dirt.
Feng then came over with her staff and a small pouch. She carefully put the pouch down beside her before using her staff to make a small circular groove that passed through each of the holes Kaiko had made. She stuck her staff into the ground upright so that she could pick up the pouch before carefully sprinkling some of it's content into the groove she had just made. Once she had done that she signalled to Kaiko and sat down cross-legged against her staff. Kaiko closed his eyes and summoned his familiars out of the holes he had made. Each of them only stuck out their heads, each one facing the cardinal direction that corresponded with the hole he had dug.
Feng began to meditate and chant while Kaiko sad upright with his eyes closed across from her, with the circle and the ink between them. Before long the circle and the familiars began to glow. Quickly the glow became so intense that it fired upwards into a solid wall of golden light. As she continued to chant she presented her cupped hands before her, and Ger could see as a small ball of light slowly formed above them, hovering on nothing. The ball of light grew as it seemed to draw droplets from all around them, a small breeze circling around her and into the light. It shimmered and pulsed quickly before solidifying with a small flash. Without opening her eyes Feng stood up with grace and elegance, still cupping the small ball, carefully carrying it forward into the wall of gold. Her hands passed through the golden wall of light effortlessly and she placed her hands directly above the ink. She opened the gap between her hands and the ball fell through like a singular droplet directly onto the ink before withdrawing her hands quickly.
As soon as the droplet came into contact with the ink there was a violent explosion of air that knocked both Feng and Kaiko back several meters. At the centre of the explosion the sounds of an animal in agony could be heard while fragments of the black ink were flung up against the golden wall.
Ger rushed over to Feng to make sure she was alright, before rushing over to Kaiko somewhat reluctantly. Both of them confirmed they were uninjured, though somewhat shaken. All three of them approached the golden containment once more. Through the light they could see swirling of dirt and ink, the cries of agony still howling clearly. The dust being flung around inside would not settle.
"I'm glad we took the extra precaution," Feng said as she removed some of the snow from her clothing, "That was beyond anything I was expecting."
She put her hand on Ger's shoulder to make sure he, too, was alright. He seemed a little shocked himself, though that was starting to feel like a recurring trend now.
The whirlwind within the golden cage eventually died down, and all three could see that at the centre of it hovered a blackened bead from which a quiet scream of anguish could still be heard. With an abundance of caution Feng got close enough to poke her finger inside the field, prodding for safety. After several attempts it was clear that there was no longer and danger and she could put her hand in completely, with the intention of grabbing the dark bead at the centre. As soon as she took hold of it the displacement of wind inside the field stopped, and the dust settled immediately. The bead was surprisingly heavy, and it took significant effort for her to pull it out of the field without dropping it. She nodded over to Kaiko who made exhaled deeply, causing the familiars to disappear and the wall of light to drop.
There she stood, Kaiko and Ger in front of her, with this heavy black bead in the palm of her hand. It was not only heavy and still screaming, but the continuous cry of pain coming from within was vibrating the bead from the inside out. Feng could feel the vibration travelling up her arm. She held the bead up to her heart and caressed it as if she was calming down a panicked animal. The blackened orb slowly stopped vibrating and the screaming faded until a faint sigh of relief emanated from inside. She held the orb in the palm of her hand again for Kaiko and Ger to see, and the bead had become shiny and slightly luminous. Much of the weight seemed to have evaporated and Feng could easily and effortlessly carry it.
"So," Ger eventually inquired, "What is it?"
"As per usual in our line of work," Feng responded as she held the bead up to her eye, "We have only educated guesses. This one is complicated, though."
"Complicated, how exactly?" Ger followed up.
"The ritual we just performed," She replied, fully engrossed by the now warm touch of the bead, "Purifies both elements of Yohkai and human spiritualism."
"I don't understand." Ger admitted.
"You can't mean?" Kaiko interjected without letting Feng explain.
"I'm afraid so," Feng started, "Inside this bead remains a touch of the Divine; the essence of a Kami."
"How does that even happen?" Kaiko snapped.
"I don't know," Feng admitted, "But however it was done, this essence is still corrupted."
"Surely you jest," Ger added, slightly bewildered, "The Divine is myth, tales we tell our children about an age long passed. Kami are the things of stories. Right?"
Kaiko gave Ger an exhausted look.
"Do I look like a myth?" He said as he towered over Ger.
"No. No, of course not," Ger hesitated, "But Kami haven't been seen for hundreds of years, they only exist as stories, as far as I know."
"Be that as it may," Feng interrupted, "If you remove the human and the Yohkai, whatever remains…"
She gently handed over to bead to Ger.
He felt it's warm touch and subtle vibration in his hand. He opened his mouth to try to speak, but quickly stopped himself. He was mesmerised by this black orb that by all measures of his senses seemed alive.
"We better head towards Tohsang, now," Kaiko threw into the silence, "Those two sled thieves are heading towards a Yohkai lair with an ink touched by Divinity. I can't imagine what will happen when they get there."
"You can still turn back and leave us to our occupation." Feng added as she took the shiny ball from Ger's hands and put it in an inside pocket of her robe.
Ger looked to be considering his options. He looked over at Choncho then looked in the distance towards Tohsang. He considered it, but eventually shook his head.
"No," He said with renewed vigour, "I cannot allow myself. If face danger I must, for the sake of Tohsang and Sendoh, then so be it."
With a clear sense of purpose Ger saddled Choncho. Only moments later were they ready to follow the tracks left by the thieves, heading towards Tohsang.
Meanwhile further up ahead the sled thieves were making good progress towards the lockdown perimeter.
"We got lucky," Yah said to the Huijin, "That's all."
"I knew what I was doing," Huijin responded, "And what are you complaining about, huh? Not only did we get out of there without a fight, without having our identities revealed, but we got to keep the sled."
"As per usual I am complaining about your recklessness," Yah responded while shaking his head, "We got lucky the owner was so rowdy."
"All part of the plan." Huijin responded with pride in her voice.
"I swear your solutions are going to send us to an early grave." He added.
"You can quit your whining now," She snapped back, "It all worked out and were almost at Tohsang."
Yah sighed.
"What is it now?" The shorter one inquired with irritation in her voice.
"Did you notice the robed of the two whose sled we stole while we were at the tavern?" He stated with seriousness.
She shook her head.
"They aren't Northern," He added, "The Syndicate must have hired outside help."
"And you waited till now to mention it?!" She shouted, "Stop the sled!"
Quickly and abruptly they came to a halt. Huijin jumped off.
"We're leaving this junk behind," She decided as she gestured him to move away from the sled, "Summon us a winged beast, we're doing the last stretch by sky."