The Sword of Kaigen

by M.L. Wang

“We here on the Sword of Kaigen are blessed to have some of the best and purest jijaka bloodlines in the world.

“Since the dawn of Kaigen, this peninsula has held its enemies back without fail. This is why we are called the Sword of Kaigen.

“How else would we settle our differences?” “I don’t know. Talking?”

Kotetsu, which means ‘steel’

“In a single stroke, Matsuda Takeru’s jiya sliced through the Kotetsu-forged blade and Yukino’s body. The usurper was dead before he hit the ground, the first victim of the Whispering Blade.”

The moon and ocean fear no change.’

How could anyone be so sure of a decision that determined the fate of thousands? How?

Mamoru had no way of knowing that he had lived his whole life within an arm’s reach of a Zilazen glass sword. The black blade had been bundled away under the floorboards of the Matsudas’ kitchen shortly before he was born and had stayed there, untouched, ever since.

His mother, after all, did not talk about her past.

this Hadean-born girl had a different kind of stiffness about her. She had come to Carytha at a young age, as a refugee, as Robin had. She didn’t talk much about what she had seen in her homeland before that, only to say that it made the streets of Livingston look like a paradise. Whatever

She had decided that if Elleen was related to any animal, it was something dignified and dangerous, like a leopard or a falcon.

homeland back in Hades.

“Ell—Whitewing, is everything all right?” They were all supposed to use their crime-fighter names when they were out in disguise—just in case a fonyaka or sondatigi was listening in—but

fourteen-year-old

Carytha, where there was an entire race of people who were truly more fragile than any theonite. Elleen had abilities most white people could never dream of possessing, yet she was still at a disadvantage.

We can’t claim to be crime-fighters if we disrespect life just as much as the criminals we fight.”

“Neutral ground,” Robin said. “A safe haven recognized by all of the major gangs. You don’t attack a person sheltering in a waysis; it’s against street code.”

It seemed that not everyone in the world considered a strong bloodline to be a good trade for their autonomy.

It’s easy to judge when you inherit property, and an important name, and amazing powers from your parents.” Robin’s voice had grown heated. “How easy do you think it is to build a life out of nothing?”

It was a question of whether he would die quickly, with all his spirit intact, or slowly, after the evils of the world had ripped and beaten every shred of optimism out of him.

“If I think your life is in danger, I will kill for you.” “What? I don’t want you to do that.” “Well, it’s not up to you.”

“Only you could turn an offer for help into a threat.”

Other girls at Daybreak tended to react with revulsion to the idea of growing up to become a housewife. A deep, restless part of Misaki was relieved to be in a place where her viciousness was an expectation, not a surprise. Another, equally deep part of her felt a need to defend her culture from these outsiders who clearly didn’t understand it.

“A lot of fighters thrill in the challenge of trying to land a hit on Kinoro. Others enjoy getting a rise out of him, but every moment of that was grueling for you. For someone so proficient at fighting, you certainly seem to loathe it.” “I prefer to win.”

“If you had stepped into that ring to sate your ego, your attitude would be uglier right now,”

“There are few things uglier than a wounded ego. You honestly wanted to see how you measured up, and you honestly wanted to do better.”

“The sword for its own sake is a beautiful thing, but I like a sense of purpose in a student.”

“A-are you offering to train me?” “Not offering, Tsusano. Insisting.”

“If you want to be a great swordswoman, you’ll need to put purpose and joy into your fighting at the same time.

“Most strong things are rigid. If you are water, you can shift to fit any mold and freeze yourself strong. You can be strong in any shape. You can be anything.”

“Why don’t you try taking responsibility for the things you can control instead of the things you can’t?”

You learn over time that the world isn’t broken. It’s just… got more pieces to it than you thought. They all fit together, just maybe not the way you pictured when you were young.”

“A child doesn’t have to take responsibility for his decisions. A child can trust in his parents to tell him what to do. A man trusts himself.”

listening never made any man dumber, but it’s made a lot of people smarter.”

And she was over the edge, striding across the dojo floor, light with an idiot’s elation.

Then again, it was very possible that the sexism inherent to their upbringing had created a blind spot so opaque that they weren’t capable of recognizing those abilities in a woman.

“You, on the other hand, are an idiot.

“Who’s Robin?” Mamoru asked. “He’s…” Warmth. Hope. The sun burning through the fog. “A

You just lectured Mamoru about not being strong enough to fight through his doubt. You’ll beat your son into the ground, but you can’t be bothered to fight for yourself?

If he wanted to make himself miserable, so be it. It wasn’t her place to argue.

Takeru couldn’t lead his way out of a paper bag, she very nearly said aloud. You need a spine to lead.

We are the Sword of Kaigen. If we’ve let it rust, then we deserve to die on it, along with our enemies.”

You should, bitch.

“A competent god would never make a housewife with your skill and hunger. You might look like a decorative flower, but you’re more sword than anything else.”

A decade later, a fifteen-year-old Hiroshi would become known as the youngest swordsman ever to master the Whispering Blade. What the world would never know, was that he was the second youngest.

Alone on the mountainside, a Whispering Blade caught the last rays of a dying sun. It gleamed once, pointed skyward, as its first and only victim hit the snow. Then, its work done, the sword fell to mist. The sun sank to the sea.

A voice for the silenced, a shelter for the defenseless, a pair of fists for the powerless.

Why had she expected him to read her and react like a man? The answer lurked, unwelcome: because you’re too afraid to do it yourself. You are a coward, Misaki.

How could she expect him to save her when she wasn’t willing to lift a finger to save herself?

They may have grown up in a culture of denial, but when the bloody truth stared them full in the face, they were more than capable of comprehending it. They were more than capable of anger.

“Now, be a good boy and help lug this old bag of gods’ blood up the mountain.”