I opened my eyes to see a blood red sky and Sosuke’s white orbs peering back at me, worriedly like he could sense my apprehension. What forced him to make that expression? ‘What are you hiding, Hirayama Sosuke?’ I thought.

He must have heard my thoughts because he flinched and inched away to confer with his sires. I’d forgotten all about the telepathic bond, so I didn’t shield my thoughts in time. The mental wall came up shortly after, forcing me to talk with Sun Fang to avoid Sosuke from reaching out to me to justify himself. I didn’t need to hear his excuses, his actions proved he didn’t trust me, and perhaps that was all I needed to be confident in rejecting him and our bond.

“What happened, Sun Fang?” I asked, glancing around to see if our enemies were still nearby.

“You mean you don’t remember? Sathanas infiltrated your mind and Sosuke intervened to cleanse your spirit. Her essence almost corrupted you! If not for Sosuke, you wouldn’t be sitting here talking to me,” Sun Fang replied as he helped me sit up.

He brandished a simple cup from his pack and filled it with water with his immature dragon’s breath. Only water dragons who didn’t successfully cultivate would produce purifying water. However, it also took a disciplined water dragon to be able to make it appear without fully shifting. Perhaps it was something he specialized in and wanted to show he was useful in some way since he wasn’t much of a fighter.

He held it up to me, and I looked at it with disgust. “I appreciate your assistance, Sun Fang. But this is unnecessary. I won’t be drinking any of your dragon’s breath as long as I’m alive.”

“How are you feeling, Zixin?” Jin asked. Tired lines festered around his eyes. He had exhausted sufficient energy to defend us from Sathanas. It wouldn’t have been necessary if I wasn’t so weak. If I was stronger, Sathanas wouldn’t have seen an opportunity in me. She would have feared my wrath and not dare to question my strength like any other being I’d faced.

“I feel fine. A Crown Prince of Wuzhen should be able to handle this much,” I said, trying to put up a strong enough front that they wouldn’t notice my wounded pride. “Will you explain to me what happened? I feel as though I’ve taken a bath in miasma.”

“Being exposed to this degree can create an extreme reaction. The miasma in their essence latched onto your Celestial energy. It will take time for you to recuperate and cleanse your energy,” he explained. I didn’t like the implications his tone imposed, like I was any other person who could be manipulated.

“And why is that?” I tried to keep my voice even, and it seemed to have worked because he didn’t question my reaction.

“The Fallen are not what they seem,” Sosuke replied. “There is an even stronger force at play here.”

“And what is that, exactly?” My dragon never backed down from a challenge. Having interacted with one Vice, I would know how to handle the rest. My defeat today was simply a means to the end–to learning more about our enemy and what tricks they had up their sleeve.

Sosuke proceeded to explain how each sin was connected to a male counterpart, who was also their mate. If their hearts merged with their counterparts, it would summon the holy trumpets needed to bring the Hierophant to life to cast her judgment.

The truth of the matter was, I recalled every moment Sosuke was in my mental landscape. He’d seen the darkest memories I tried to keep locked away and while I would have been angry at the ultimate invasion of my privacy, a part of me was happy I was able to finally be honest with someone and not bear all the burdens alone. It had to have been the bond that made me feel like this. There was no other possible explanation. And yet, I knew I shouldn’t have felt so strongly about someone I couldn’t have. It would only result in heartbreak for both parties.

‘How can you be so sure of your love when there will be many people against our relationship, Sosuke?’ I thought. ‘You were willing to save someone who wanted to reject you. Are you convinced I will change my mind?’ Staring at his white fox form, I found myself longing for more, despite knowing no good would come from pursuing a relationship with him. I wanted to hate him, but I hated how I couldn’t, even with the stupid reasons I came up with. Hatred came easier than love.

As if he could tell I was looking at him, he turned his head to glance in my direction, forcing me to turn away in embarrassment. ‘Why are you ashamed, Zixin? You can look at whoever you like! He can’t even see you.’

“Azusa-sama sent us to you. She had a feeling the prophecy would come to pass,” Asari said, her spear disappearing when she moved it behind her back.

“Thank you for helping us,” Sosuke replied. “I feared the situation would have turned for the worst if you didn’t appear.”

“Who are you?” I asked, wary of the newcomers.

“Mutsushina’s first line defense,” Asari said, brushing a patch of ash off her shoulder, no doubt the remnants of the Fallen.

“And expert demon slayers,” the red-haired nogitsune in the burgundy kimono replied, proudly smirking. He had the design of a phoenix imprinted on his back.

“How ironic,” I said, chuckling to myself about a fox demon hunting other demons. “What’s with those weapons? They seem far more powerful than ordinary blessed weaponry.”

The red-haired nogitsune scoffed in disbelief, like I was stupid. My dragon growled, and he simply laughed in response, completely unphased by my dragon’s aggression. Surely he had enough power to boast and stand up to an irritable dragon. “That’s because they aren’t ordinary blessed weapons. Every person here has formed a contract with our divine beasts.”

I’d never heard of such creatures before. Wuzhen had their deities that took on the forms of divine creatures or had familiars that accompanied them, but never anything like the nogitsune mentioned. “Divine beasts?”

“Divine creatures who pass on Inari’s message,” Sosuke answered. “Each member of the Inari Defensive Forces has a special bond with one, allowing the divine beasts to possess the weapon they wield and grant us their power as long as they are in our possession. Asari shares an affinity for water, so her spear, the Heavenly Water Prince, is possessed by Seiryū, the legendary water dragon of Mutsushina. Aimi wields a bow possessed by Raijū, the thunder wolf, and shares an affinity for lightning. Together, they have the power to channel the strength of ten thousand rainstorms. And as I’m sure you’ve noticed when you initially met them, Asari and Aimi are twins.”

“Can you guess the rest?” the red-haired nogitsune asked with a sneer. His attitude provoked my dragon and elicited a snarl, refusing to back down despite knowing he wielded the powers of the all-powerful phoenix.

“Behave, Yami,” Asari said. “You don’t have to treat everyone like they’re your enemy. Azusa-sama sent us to help them, not disrespect them. We’re problem solvers, not instigators.”

“Fine, fine,” Yami said, raising his hands up in feigned defeat. He extended a hand to me and said, “I’m Hamada Kurayami, but everyone calls me Yami. If it wasn’t already obvious, I’m from the Wicked Fox Clan and my sword, the Demon Slaying Prince, is possessed by Suzaku, a fire-based beast. Don’t get in my way and we’ll get along just fine.”

My gaze traveled to the black-haired woman standing closely behind him with a crazed grin on her face. She wore a black kimono with white spider lilies and the silhouette of a woman with thorny vines wrapped around her on the back of her shirt. Her presence unsettled me as her thistle-colored eyes transfixed on me. Although my dragon identified her as a potential threat, I knew it would be foolish to attack when she had so many allies nearby ready to defend her if I presented as a big enough threat to warrant mediation.

Yami seemed to have noticed my discomfort and said, “This is Hana. She’s another member of the Wicked Fox Clan.”

“Hana? Doesn’t that mean ‘flower’ in your language?” I asked. ‘What a strange name for a fox demon.’

“Every flower has its thorns, doesn’t it? Hana’s whip, The Demon Slaying Princess, is the counterpart to my sword. The only difference is her whip is possessed by a powerful yokai known as Harionna,” he replied. “I expect you to treat her how you would treat any of your draconic comrades. She’s my mate, and I won’t tolerate disrespect, even if it’s in the heat of the moment. I’ll defend her to my dying breath.”

My eyes widened in surprise for a moment before relaxing once again. ‘What an odd couple… I never would have pictured those two together,’ I thought. “It’s as you said: don’t get in my way and we’ll get along just fine.”

“I’m glad we agree with each other.” Turning to Tui, he added, “I have to say, Tui, you made him out to be an insufferable, brainless beast. If he listens this well, we may become best of friends. Just maybe.”

“Wait until you see how he plans to fight all the Fallen,” Tui replied, rolling her eyes at me. “Your opinion will change quickly.”

I snorted and quipped in revenge for Tui’s snarky comment, “And here I thought Jintui couldn’t be defeated by anybody. I guess I was mistaken, seeing how the Inari Defensive Forces had to step in to help.”

Tui put her middle finger in my face, and Jin immediately pulled her away to calm her down.

My attention shifted to the kitsune with a bright grin on her face, as though she didn’t just have a hand in helping kill one of the most powerful fallen angels to ever walk the realm. She had short black hair and bright blue eyes, and carried a brown book in her hands that appeared similar to a grimoire. Next to her was a woman in a sky blue kimono with snowflakes embroidered on the delicate fabric. Her hair was so white, it looked like the color of the first frost.

“And you are?” I asked.

“Shimamoto Sayuri, from the Blossoming Fox Clan,” the woman with the book replied in an annoyingly enthusiastic tone. Her bubbly energy was something I knew I would be unable to tolerate during the early mornings.

“What’s with the book?”

“It’s my weapon.”

“Your weapon? What? Are you going to bore the enemy to death by reciting poetry?” I held my sides as a bout of laughter wracked my body. Tears nearly sprang from eyes from imagining her reading to a crowd of Fallen.

“That’s not a bad idea!” Her response made me internally facepalm myself, but she continued, “It’s a magical grimoire possessed by Byakko that allows me to call upon constellations.”

A magic strong enough to make the heavens rain upon enemies seemed too good to be true. To have such a wild card in our pocket could turn the tides. Of all the members of the Inari Defensive Forces, Shimamoto Sayuri could prove to be the strongest. “You summon the heavens?”

“In a way! Isn’t it cool?”

As much as I didn’t want to admit it, it certainly was interesting. “I suppose it is.”

“I really like it because it allows me to speak with the spirits in the stars, but I envy Yumi’s ability. Her sword, the Heavenly Snow Princess, allows her to call upon the powers of Genbu and summon powerful blizzards. Isn’t that right, Yumi?”

Yumi nodded, turning to look at something else.

“Yumi doesn’t talk much,” Sayuri said. “You get used to it.”

“Do we really need them?” Tui asked.

“Yes. They’re the only people with the means to kill fallen angels and demonic beings with ease. Our foxfire doesn’t affect beings created from the netherworld’s essence.”

“Even if you don’t want us to come with you, we have orders from Azusa-sama to accompany you, whether or not you like it. We intend to follow her orders,” Yami said.

“Then we better get moving.”

“Where to?” I asked.

“Wherever there is an angel, there is its evil counterpart.”

“Aeyaviel? You think they would welcome two dragons and three fox demons? You may have a holy agenda, but at the end of the day, you’re still fox demons. They won’t let us in the front door!”

“That’s why we’re going to talk to a siren. Each trumpet that sounds off brings forth a greater apocalypse. We need Aeyaviel’s help if we’re going to find the Hierophant. Only she can undo what our quest will bring about.”

“The Hierophant is a myth! Our world is on the verge of destruction and you mean to chase down a myth? A siren will not be of any help! I refuse to accept help from a fish, of all things.”

“The trumpets will lead us to her. We have no choice, Zixin. We don’t know if the Fallen Originals will attempt to possess you again. It’s too risky,” Sosuke said.

“It’s either the siren or we watch the realm fade into oblivion. We very much like being alive,” Tui added.

“Fine, but we’ll do this on my terms or not at all,” I demanded.