Demon Sword Dance - Part 4 - Priestess Mai - Chapter 3

Demon Sword Dance

Book 2 of the Dororo Novel Series

Toriumi Jinzō

Part 4 - Priestess Mai

Chapter 3

 

    The Fire Festival was held three nights later at the edge of the marsh where the maimai moths most liked to lay their eggs. To prevent a disastrous famine like the one that had happened sixty-four years before, the villagers had to burn the marsh and all the moths and eggs that they could find. Aside from Mai and her priestesses, all of the villagers participated, from the oldest man to the youngest child.

    Fires were set all over the marsh and the mountain, watched over by villagers so that they wouldn't spread too far. The villagers gathered around the fires and prayed to be saved from starvation. The village leader, Tōshichirō, adorned himself in a white kimono and ceremonial headgear and chanted prayers to dispel curses and keep away evil spirits.

    Hyakkimaru stood a little apart from the villagers, watching the sparks from the flames rise into the sky. Priestess Mai stood in the sparsely wooded area near the marsh, also observing the Fire Festival. It could have been a trick of the light, but her face twisted and became hideous when the fires illuminated it.

    The part of the forest that the villagers burned looked like blackened bones in the moonlight. Mai picked up a charred and withered leaf on the ground tenderly. There were maimai moth eggs on it, but all of them had been destroyed by fire. Mai crushed the leaf in her fist and scattered its pieces. Her expression contained equal parts rage and despair.

    There was a torch-bearer in front of Mai. Three more fires were set in the marsh, large and getting larger. Mai shrank back from the light in terror and revulsion. She wanted to flee, but she couldn't. She felt like she'd been lured here. If she left now, she would only wind up finding her way back. The fire drew her as it did the moths; she could find no escape from it.

    Mai came very close to a fire set in a pit. No one was tending to it at the moment. She got so close that she felt the heat on her face and groaned.

    A peculiar voice echoed in the darkness. "If you like the fire that much, you'll be destroyed by it."

    "Ah!" Mai went still in front of the fire. She felt like she couldn't move.

    The voice spoke again. "Mai, you must obey our will."

    Mai felt herself being dragged away from the fire by some unseen force. By the time she had control over her limbs again, she was standing at the side of a stream. The reflection of the moon shimmered on the surface of the fast-moving water. Mai's reflection did not show her usual beautiful face. Her appearance had completely changed: she was so hideous that she couldn't bear to look at herself.

    Mai tried to look away, but the same mysterious force that had pulled her to the stream held her still.

"You are cruel," Mai said hoarsely.

    "It is the face of your mortal existence. You should not forget it."

    "What do you intend by revealing my true form?" Mai asked. "Who are you?"

    The other voice laughed. "You have not changed from what you were. Humans call us the Hall of Hell demons."

    "Hall of Hell demons?"

    "Do you hate your ugly face? Are you jealous of the people you've killed?" There was no kindness in the voice, only cold anger.

    "I..." Mai didn't know what to say. This Hall of Hell demon clearly knew about her past.

    "You have borrowed a beautiful form, but your true nature is as hideous as you are. Would you like to be reborn as a beautiful woman? Or stay on your estate in this village, living in peace?"

    "I would like to be reborn," Mai said. She couldn't return to the capital now, even in her borrowed body. Returning there as she was, she would have to live as she had as a child, only going out at night and hiding inside during the day, avoiding unkind eyes. And her ugliness wasn't her only concern. Her past followed her wherever she went. She had assumed the guise of a priestess, but everything was an act—a cover for who she really was. Being reborn, and reborn beautiful, would give Mai a fresh start.

    "If you make a vow to us, you will become even more beautiful than Bōjō Shōshi." 

    Bōjō Shōshi was the name of the woman Mai had borrowed her shape from. She'd worn Shōshi's face as her own for many years.

    Mai pressed her palms tightly together. "Then I will make whatever promise you desire."

    "Good. There is a young man in the village named Hyakkimaru. The other villagers do not realize it, but his limbs are false. He moves them using a foul and arcane power. Destroy his limbs, and you will be reborn into a body more beautiful than you can imagine."

    "Destroy his limbs?" There was doubt and confusion in her expression. "Why not kill him? Would that not be easier?"

    "He suffers more in life than he would in death," the Hall of Hell demon said.

    Mai knew a little about fates worse than death. This powerful demon wanted to inflict such a fate on this Hyakkimaru person, whoever he was. In exchange, Mai would get what she'd always wanted.

    "All right," Mai said. "I swear to you that I will destroy Hyakkimaru's limbs. I won't kill him."

    "You must not underestimate him," the Hall of Hell demon said. "He has power of his own, and the protection of Manjushri, a god of wisdom and compassion. Use caution when you approach him."

    The demon laughed. It was a cutting, cruel sound. As the voice of the demon faded away, the fires Mai could see from the riverbank all went out.

    Mai returned to her estate with all haste and entered her shrine. She closed the doors and windows so that light from the village's torches wouldn't disturb her, then collapsed to her knees and prayed. "I beg to be reborn beautiful. All I need to do is steal one more man's heart..."

    Mai returned to the marshy forest, moving in silence. The harsh light of the autumn moon made all the shadows on the mountain appear sharp and angular. Mai saw no more torches. The villagers must have completed the Fire Festival and returned to the village leader's house for feasting and drinking. The villagers would continue their hunt for maimai moth eggs the next day, including all the women and children.

 

***

 

    Hunting for maimai moths began at dawn the next day. The village children would take over the search at noon. In addition to the torch-bearers that burned the eggs, there were many people carrying sticks and staves to shake leaves and eggs loose from the trees.

    The eggs of the maimai moth were very small and difficult to see. One pile of leaves might contain as many as three hundred eggs. It was impossible to reach all the leaves. Many were so high up in the trees that they couldn't be shaken down. Still, the villagers burned as many leaves as would fall.

    All of a sudden, a ball of blue fire appeared above the treetops in the mountain forest. It fell to earth, leaving a long trail like a shooting star or a comet. It was followed by another fireball, and another. They fell one by one and made no sound.

    The villagers watched the fireballs with expressions of awe. All at once, they fled from the forest so they wouldn't be hit by the blue flames. None of them were brave enough to go back to the forest, so they gathered outside of Tōshichirō's house again and consulted with one another over what they should do.

    "It was evil spirits!" one man shouted. "They had to be!"

    An old woman shook her head. "Evil spirits are red, not blue," she said.

    Hyakkimaru called out to a young woman, "Miss? Did you wash your hair?"

    "Huh? No, not recently," the young woman said. "Why?"

    The villagers appeared puzzled. Hyakkimaru was a stranger, and he was asking unusual questions that seemed to have nothing to do with the situation at hand.

    "Village headman, sir," Hyakkimaru said. "Please take a close look at that woman's hair."

    "Her hair?" Tōshichirō asked. He glanced at the young woman, but didn't notice anything unusual about her or her hair. "I see nothing."

    "Look very closely," Hyakkimaru said. "Please. There's something shining in her hair, like thread."

    Tōshichirō brought a candle closer to the woman, then frowned. "I see. You're right. It's the thread that the moth caterpillars use to hang from trees."

    The villagers all looked very closely at the woman, then exchanged uncomfortable glances. There shouldn't be any cocooned maimai moths at the moment.

    "Didn't one of those fireballs fall right over your head?" a young man asked in a strident tone. It seemed that the silky threads had gotten attached to her head during the fireball attack.

    "It's a curse," the young man said. "The maimai moths cursed us."

    "We need to stop searching for eggs," an old man said. "The curse might be deadly, for all we know. We can't afford to lose anyone."

    "Stay off the mountain for now," Tōshichirō said. "We'll visit the priestess tomorrow morning, early. She may be able to explain this curse, if there actually is one."

    "How many fireballs were there?" Hyakkimaru asked. "Did anyone count?"

    "There were seven," a man said. "I saw them. I wanted to run, but I froze."

    The man had seen everyone who'd been attacked. Hyakkimaru heard more about what had happened in the forest from him and the other villagers.

    Hyakkimaru had no special attachment to Hino Village. It was probably better for him not to get involved more than he already was. He could leave the village and find an inn somewhere.

    But Hyakkimaru had no intention of leaving. He felt like he'd stopped here for a reason. There were too many things that didn't make sense. An infestation of moths on the scale he'd seen was unnatural, and there was something very strange about priestess Mai that he couldn't quite identify. She had come to this village six months ago for reasons that she'd never stated. The fireballs in the sky were definitely supernatural and possibly demonic.

    Hyakkimaru was determined to find out what was going on here. He didn't know if there was a connection between Mai, the maimai moths and the fireballs, but he was determined to find out.

 

***

 

    The next morning, the villagers all gathered together behind Tōshichirō to visit Lady Mai again. Hyakkimaru accompanied them. He wanted to know what could be done about the people who'd been marked by the maimai moth cocoon silk.

    When Mai heard the villagers' report, she immediately sank into a deep prayer pose. Mai's shrine maidens looked at her in alarm and began a chant to ward away curses. Hyakkimaru noticed that there were seven shrine maidens.

    The villagers also knelt down in prayer. Hyakkimaru pretended to pray, though he kept observing the villagers out of the corner of his eye. Mai appeared sincerely relieved after the prayers were done. 

    "The village should be safe now," Mai said. "We can look forward to next spring without any fear." 

    The villagers bowed their heads politely. "Thank you so much, priestess!" 

    Mai seemed pleased, but Hyakkimaru caught something suspicious in her expression. He glanced over at the shrine's sacred artifact: a swallowtail butterfly chrysalis. 

    "Isn't it lovely?" Mai said to Hyakkimaru. "The more I look at it, the more beautiful I think it is. Don't you agree?" When Hyakkimaru said nothing, she went on, "Insects are remarkable creatures. They have six legs—six!—and are very tough and strong." Unlike you, whose limbs are false and weak, Mai thought but didn't say. 

    Hyakkimaru gave Mai a slightly cynical smile, as if he understood what she'd left unsaid. "Insects are only strong in comparison to their size. Any ordinary four-limbed person could crush a bug easily, and we often do." 

    The villagers didn't understand the real meaning behind what Hyakkimaru and Mai said to one another, but they could sense the tension between them. 

    "I will continue to pray every day for the village's safety and prosperity," Mai said.  

    Tōshichirō and the other villagers thanked Mai profusely, then withdrew. Hyakkimaru lingered a little behind the other villagers, but he left as well. 

    Mai faced the altar again, surrounded by her seven shrine maidens.  

     I'm glad Hyakkimaru realizes the danger is in. It's always more fun when they know.  

    Mai laughed. 

 

***

 

    "Hyakkimaru, Hyakkimaru… I met him at the Arachi Mountain Pass…" 

    When Hyakkimaru left Mai's shrine, Sabame Nuinosuke was waiting for him, standing near the entrance. Hyakkimaru was surprised to see him there, but he retained his composure and bowed deeply. 

    Nuinosuke smiled. 

    When Hyakkimaru looked up, he remembered that he'd never told this wandering man his name. Hyakkimaru didn't know how he'd learned it, but he was willing to make a few guesses. 

    The man himself was almost unrecognizable. They'd met only half a year ago, but in that time, it was like all the life had been sucked from the man's bones. The villagers scattered in fear when they heard him speak. 

    Hyakkimaru glanced down at Nihil. Hōichi claimed that he'd beaten Nihil with his own sword. 

    I never thought I'd meet this man ever again. Is it chance, or were we meant to meet?  

    "I didn't expect to see you here," Nuinosuke said. "Do you have business in the village?" He looked at the Muramasa sword.

    "I'm staying here for a while due to certain circumstances," Hyakkimaru said.

    Nuinosuke snorted through his nose. "Same as me, then. Did you ever find the man you were looking for?"

    "Not yet, though I expect to find him soon."

    "Hm. Well, do you want to visit the estate while you're here?"

    "No thanks," Hyakkimaru said. "I'm staying in the village. How long have you been staying here?"

    "A while," Nuinosuke said. "I never want to leave. This estate is paradise." He smiled, and it seemed genuine. "I can't imagine the village is very welcoming or pleasant right now, what with everything being in an uproar. You probably shouldn't stay long."

    "Are you giving me advice?" Hyakkimaru asked.

    "Think of it as a warning."

    Hyakkimaru bowed, then excused himself. He felt Nuinosuke's eyes on his back as he left the estate.

    Nuinosuke's shoulders slumped. "I hope that's the end of it." He gripped Nihil's hilt for reassurance.

    That day, Yosaku vanished from Hino Village.