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"Your plans are far-reaching for one who has just accepted this responsibility," my father tried to keep his voice level as I started to use words the way my mother taught me to. Who are these allies?"

"Friends that I met upon my own adventures, of course," I answered as cooly as I could. "A great death-dealer of the Rabbit Spirits was my constant companion in his lands. I should like to bring him here to train the men in stealth and subtlety- he has a soft spot for mortals, as their type does. Think of how the Dragons would tremble if they saw some of their number drop from the sky from his icy arrows." I widened my eyes slightly and tried to talk as greatly of him as I could.

"Bolro! Of course he should be here," my Father scratched his chin and gave me a small, knowing smile. It worked, he thought that I was smitten with him; now for the next part.

"And there are none here that know of magic but us royalty, that does not bode well for our chances. We should have someone that understands human mantras so that they can teach them, but someone that we can trust."

"I do not know if you remember, but you attended the timeless academy with such a Spirit, Kiera the Ursus- but she does not exactly have the passion for such a position."

"Kiera!" I acted as if it were his idea. "That is a wise judgement, Lord. I will keep her aflame, worry not," I growled.

"I shall ask Hastigor to help, as well, then," he growled back, scratching his head again. My mind searched for who this was, but before I could ask, he explained, "He's a cousin of mine, another Ursus. He will be indispensable to you. You will have to go gather him, however," he said while drumming his claws on his new servant's shoulder.

"Not a problem, Akio-sama," I said, grinning openly at my victory. "I have a plan. I could go to retrieve him, carrying your orders, along with Kiera and Bolro."

He smiled and nodded. "That is a fine plan. You and Bolro should take the short road to the Bear Lands." He evidently thought himself very clever for putting me together with the spirit for a week's journey. His face fell grave after that, however, as if he were afraid his own plan were failing. This was my chance to find out what that plan was.

"My Lord Father, it is a long journey. I was rash, as is my wont- perhaps someone closer could be of assistance."

"No, my Lady Daughter," he said, almost distractedly (of course, to a human all of this would have gone by unnoticed- the tiny bits of spirit echoes that we received from each other were as good as body language to mortals). "I ask only one more thing. Please, no matter what happens, do not try to seek me out. I do not know what will have to happen on my journey."

That was all? What was he so afraid of me seeing, if he was so open about my seeing what happened to my Mother, being trapped in a relic like some sort of Ox spirit in a magical oil-lamp. What more was he afraid of me seeing? What was he willing to do? I shuddered. To get my Mother back... that thought really did manage to break through and scare me!

"As you command, My King and My God," I agreed, a little more weakly than I truly should have in front of my subjects when I was trying to gain their fealty.

"My Daughter, you are your own master," he whispered to me much softer than a mortal ear could hear as we embraced. No hint of a joke or trying to spare my feelings. "I meant it when I said that this was yours to keep." A slight 'no pun intended' echoed in my thoughts. But what was the pun? "You are the only one I trust to hold this fort for me. The only one."

He looked at me seriously. I knew what he meant- don't let your friends tell you what to do. It was the same he told me every time we parted, in one way or another. I prepared for him to say his goodbye, hugging him a little closer in between his huge, heavy arms.

"My Father, thank you for calling me in haste to tell me what happened with My Mother."

"Do not say such things. Thank you for coming in haste to take care of what needs to be done while I am absent. If I were not too proud to ask you before, she-"

"Do not say such things," I bit my lip with guilt for leaving for nearly twelve years. "I am happy to be here for you."

He stared into my eyes- no, he stared into my green eye. I tried to keep my mind clear and shifted uncomfortably as he talked to me, because it almost as if he were talking to me and my mother at the same time.

"If anything harms you, I will visit revenge on them tenfold. I- I love you." He blinked, then repeated softly, "Do not follow me. I love you, Akiko."

I was too shocked to answer back. I don't know if he ever said it so plainly before- I know he never said it so plainly again. He grabbed the disgraced soldier by the ear, making him groan long with pain, evidently out of yelps to yell. The pearly claws dripped a thin, slow trail of red out the door as the two of them exited the room without acknowledging the other humans.

"I love you, Father," I said, taking a small step forward as I called it out, even loud enough for the mortals to hear. Something in me knew that we would not meet like this again. "I look forward to your safe return, my King!" He did not turn back.

***

I spent a sleepless night in my father's old chambers, decorated to his liking with dragon trophies and musky curtains. A long journey was ahead of me, and I gathered the supplies I needed from my subjects and left them behind to tears of farewell. After running alongside the horse that carried my supplies for quite a while, I hopped on and we rode at a more steady pace towards the ram lands.

On passing anyone traveling out, I told them that the order from the Noble General was to withdraw into the fortress. They obliged me silently, many afraid to meet my eyes.

My message reached the towns in front of me by official crier and carrier bird faster than I could hope to spread it; I started to notice commoners lining the road, traveling towards the fortress. Upon the back of my horse, they waved and cheered for me as I passed. The inhabitants of the tiger lands always considered it to be good luck when a Tiger passed through, even if it was a humanoid one such as I. It was especially good luck for them to praise me, I found out when I steadied my horse from its thunderous pace to a light trot.

"Great and wrathful are the tigers! Dark and merciful is her Lady!" A dirty man, traveling with a woman, looked up from his stooped position to see who was riding the horse, and his eyes went wide. Unused to reactions such as this in my travels through other lands, I stopped to see why he would bother me.

"What is your name, subject?"

"Ian, my Lady! Ian the Arrow-maker! And you are Princess Akiko the Mortal-born!" He bowed, looking as though he were about to cry. He dragged the woman down into a bow next to him, much to her confused protest- she looked as if she only had fear for me.

"Many children to you and your kin, fletcher. May you find your way safely to the fortress. Do you require me?"

"Oh thank you, my Lady! No, I did not mean to invoke your ire, my Lady, I shall praise our meeting endlessly as I work for you, my Lady!" He bowed and scraped backwards as I continued to ride on, his companion fainted from fear now that her ordeal was over. I giggled to myself as I heard her fall to the ground with my sensitive ears, and then went off-road to avoid any further meetings with my subjects while I let my horse rest.

It was a long road, even with a horse. My Father could use his mirrors to travel, and I could follow him- but I could not use them myself. It was not a secret, according to him; it was just something that some could do and others could not.

It was not right to, at any rate; I was never supposed to enter the spirit world, according to my Mother, and every time I did seemed like a risk to her. Without her there to greet me, I forgot all about the danger I was in and just thought about her safety.

My thoughts were interuppted by my horse slowing to a crawling walk and whinnying softly. I looked into the sky and saw that the sun had been replaced by the moon. Sighing, I dismounted and walked alongside the powerful mare, unpacking a feed bag and strapping it to her. We found a small clearing that she laid down in and munched the food softly- I smelled deer not too far away, and decided not to disturb them until breakfast time. Drawing up my warm red cloak around me, I tucked myself into the underbelly of my traveling partner so that she would feel the benefits on the cold night, as well. I rested peacefully, more comfortable in the wild than I was in my Father's chambers the night before.

However, I awoke to a less-than-savory scene. While I slept with my face covered, a group of mortals had gathered around me, and now they were deciding what to do.

"Look at that cloak! Look at all that fur she's wearing. She's got to be rich."

"She's got to have a man with her around somewhere, though- look at that axe! What happens when we meet the giant that wields that thing?"

"Don't be ridiculous! It looks like it's made out of gold. I bet she stole it from a statue or a coat of arms."

I didn't move, instead perking my ears up and directing them at different groups.

"Maybe if we're quiet, we can just grab it and get out."

A group of three, in front of me, approaching one pace per four seconds.

"What if the horse wakes up?"

"Then shut your mouth!"

"Shh!"

A group of six, on my left, coming up on the horses rump a little slower.

"Yeah, this thing's gold. Useless!"

"What sort of idiot leaves this unguarded?"

A pair of bold men behind me.

"Agni." The black magic spell leapt to life between my hands, glowing like a furnace in the gray dawn.

A chorus of gasps met my ears as I rose, then a chorus of screams as the fire between my hands flew in the directions I pointed. Nearly all the mortals on the scene laid themselves low before me as I used magic, shouting to 'not trifle with witches,' or to 'pray to the Tiger.'

The two men who were still standing did not seem to care if they lived or died, holding their swords before them confidently.

"Hyaa!" They attacked me as one in a practiced series of moves that did not leave me any time to react. As I twirled between them, they compensated for my every move as if they could read each other's thoughts.

I alighted myself in a tree and shouted down, "Even the bandits of my land are the most spectacular! Would you not know what I think of your glory?" I stalled as I fumbled with the glass knives that were part of the cloak's weighted hem. As they chopped down the tree I was in- with a seemingly supernatural display of force- I jumped down and halted their assault on either side with one of the spirit weapons.

"Useless glass to go along with my useless gold axe," I taunted as I dispatched the first one with a series of quick thrusts to the torso. I turned to his partner and asked from the shadows of my cloak, "ready to fight one-on-one?"

He stared at his companion, moaning on the ground, and then dropped his sword and joined the others in their deep bow.

I threw back my hood to reveal who I was as the red sunlight started to crawl over the horizon. The few who were looking let out a deep moan, as if they had accepted their fate already.

"You are found guilty of robbing travelers in my land. The roads are supposed to be kept clear by forest soldiers- what have you done with them?"

One of the younger men stood and faced me fearlessly.

"We are the forest soldiers, God Tiger. Our leader has been ordering us to capture rich travelers as prisoners of war."

I raised my eyebrows and walked over to the young man. He couldn't be even a half-century old. He was very probably less than a quarter century old. "You are foolish to admit to following such a man," I growled earnestly as I stomped towards him. His back straightened and he looked straight ahead, past me, as I approached.

"God Tiger, I am foolish because I follow whatever my superiors tell me. I am foolish because I am a coward." This self-professed coward then looked straight back into my eyes, and refused to crumble even when I turned the evil eye of my father onto him.

I was angrier than I had any right to be. This man had probably robbed mortals that I was responsible for protecting, and yet he didn't feel responsible at all because he was following orders. My rage came to a boil as I remembered that his voice was the one who came at me from behind and called me an idiot. I picked up the two swords that were used against me- by men following orders- and thrust them into the ground near the ones who fought me, intoning a slow mantra. Lengths of chain appeared around the mortals that fought me.

"I order you to regroup at the fortress and take these two men to be executed." I retrieved my horse from the edge of the clearing, where it had fled to, and then rode off without another word. My rage had nearly spilled over.

***

The lands of the Ram opened up below me as I rode out of the cliff passages that guarded the borders of the Tiger territory. The border guards there were not much better off than the travelers that were going to gather at the mountain. The Rams were very intimidated by the fact that the humans in their lands had started to think for themselves and push the spirits away, and the dragons offered to attack troublesome settlements of humans for them. They now used the ram lands as a base to attack us from, and the border guards could do little more than warn of their coming. The news seemed all bad, but the day before had apparently been blessedly quiet. The reason for this became clear when one of the criers approached me with a bow.

"Word from the worshipers of the Ram, my Lady! One of their Lords was killed by a dragon, and they are locked in intrigue! That is why they were silent upon your arrival."

I nodded my head to get him to exit. It seemed suspicious at first, as if they were mounting an attack in response to my arrival. Now it started to come together- the dragons would all lay low and not do anything suspicious while the murder was being settled. Dragons loved to lock themselves away in intrigue, sometimes becoming bored and convincing themselves to change sides in any debate over and over again as they all pretended to care for years.

I could not forsee them hiding for any count of years, or even months; this was something that had a clear end in sight, the conviction of a murderer. As soon as they made up their minds who it was, they would lock them away with their hoard in an underworld dimension until the end of their natural lifespan. Whether they were truly guilty or not was not as important as everyone agreeing that they really looked guilty, because that way the conversation could be over and they could all move on with their lives.

I sighed as I calculated how long it would take to get from the ram lands to the rabbit lands. The main obstacle was the jungle at the center of the continent that was peppered with human settlements. Fine for adventuring in and looting from the strange mortals, but no good for a straight journey- many were hostile.

I reviewed my maps and decided not to delay any longer, setting out on horseback. I rode as fast as my fresh horse could carry me, then abandoned it at a small settlement that I did not dare show my face in. I gave a single gold coin of foreign currency to them for another fine stallion, and rode on straight past the dragon-infested land by the time night fell.

As the sun set on my journey, I threw my hood back and rode out to the nearest village that was friendly to me. By the time I reached it, my horse was ran out and useless.

***

"Akiko!" the village guard raised his spear in salute to me. They were simple people, fighting with spears and bows when they chose to put aside their peaceful ways. I looked him up and down in the light of the pine torch he held, trying to remember if I had seen him before or if he knew me by tell from others. He saw this and chuckled. "No use trying to recognize me, spirit. I have grown twenty years since you last saw me." He started to walk me to the center of the village as he talked. "I see your horse is of no use to you anymore, so we shall nurse it back to health. If you have need of a horse again, we shall keep it for you if you wish."

I scratched my head at this, and asked, "How long do you think it will live?"

"It is not mortally wounded, my Lady."

"I know that. How much longer do you think it will live?"

"Sorry, Akiko." He chuckled to himself again. I smiled at the familiar way he said my name and he scratched his short beard as he looked at the horse's teeth. "Perhaps ten more good years, more or less."

"Keep it for me for five and it belongs to the village after that as payment," I said as I walked up the plank steps of the village loghouse that stood in the center of town. "Is that fair?" The guardsman scratched his beard and tried to consider their laws of hospitality before shrugging and nodding in agreement.

They would have refused the horse as payment for a night, but now I had made it their property that I was just keeping from them. In their mortal minds, of course, it was my property that they were keeping for me- but that would only be for five short years, and then my gift would be accepted. It was a trick that my father taught me, to take advantage of a mortal sense of time to bestow gifts on them that they would otherwise refuse.

That was my gift for the three male Nightwalkers that led the village from outside; as I brushed aside the thick bead curtains that led into the loghouse, I prepared to face the three females that ruled from the center.

"Hail, Mortal Mothers, as my own Mother," I called as the last bead curtains were passed. I then prostrated myself on my hands and knees and crawled to the center of the room, where they sat in the dark. The ceremony may have been terrifying to them, could they see in the darkness, as a great cat seemed to stalk up on them in the dark.

"Hail, Akiko, from the time of my own Mother," one of the shadowed mortal faces answered.

"Hail, Akiko, friend from long time past," an older voice said sweetly.

"Hail, Akiko, Spirit," another, even older, voice said venomously. That was one that I recognized. She would accept no gift from me, just as the last time that I was there, I was sure. But that meant she also remembered- they owed me something.

"I am glad to be welcomed back," I slipped into casual conversation as quickly as was polite, "because I am only staying for a single night, and would never dream of wearing out any welcome that was offered."

"I did not welcome you, spirit," the oldest voice started to reach into an ugly higher register, "but you are allowed to stay with us for a night. Do not be seen by any but the Nightwalkers, or we will have to explain things."

"You are wise." In their way of speaking, this also meant 'I will follow your orders.' It was strange to me, but they insisted that only six out of their entire clan know anything about spirits at all. I only wished for a place where I could be safe against attack from mortals, so I covered myself with my cloak and stayed in a niche between two roofs, as if I were just a stray piece of cloth that had blown past. When the sun rose, I peeked an eye out from behind my hood to make sure there was no one there and fled into the forest again.