The school lunchroom was crowded as students sat down, eating their food and chatting the time away. All eyes turned to Sanda Yuko when she strolled inside the room. A tall boy walked over to her.

            “Sanda-san,” he said. “Can I get you food?”

            She replied without emotion, “No thanks. I’m good.”

            “Hey, Sanda-san!” a short boy called out. “Why don’t you sit next to me?”

            “No, I like to sit alone.”

            Yuko got her food and found a table in a distant corner. Several students sat down next to her anyway, but she didn’t complain. As long as she kept focus and they didn’t go out of their way to bother her, Yuko could turn their voices into background noise.

            “I just need to concentrate. Studying is key right now,” she looked at her books as she ate.

            Hera smirked at Yuko from a nearby table, thinking, “Enjoy your popularity while you still can. I’ll make you the enemy of every girl in the school with this!”

            She pulled a golden apple from her lunchbox. On it were the words: to the fairest. It was still dripping with golden paint.

            “Sure, I painted this apple gold this morning,” she thought. “But why would I give a real golden apple to a daughter of Zeus?”

            The goddess hid and waited for a moment when no one was looking at her. Then, she got in a baseball pitcher’s stance and hurled the apple at Yuko. It sped at her head, but Oda Hideyoshi stepped in the way by pure accident and the apple slammed into his face instead. Students rushed up as he fell to the ground.

            Hideyoshi grabbed his throbbing head and turned pale.

            “My hair’s wet!” he said. “I’m bleeding!”

            Yuko walked over with no trace of emotion, “You’re not bleeding. It’s paint.”

            “What?” Hideyoshi removed his hand and saw that she was right.

            He then noticed the apple and picked it up, “To the fairest? Is there a Greek mythology fan around here?”

            “What do you mean?” Yuko asked.

            Hideyoshi answered, “In Greek mythology, a golden apple with those words on it was thrown into a feast at Olympus. Three goddesses: Hera, Aphrodite, and Athena, started fighting over it. They asked Zeus to arbitrate, but he was smart enough to get a mortal to do it so he wouldn’t piss two of them off. The mortal was a prince of Troy, he chose Aphrodite, and this caused the Trojan War. I’m surprised you don’t know this story.”

            “W-Well,” she became flustered. “I don’t care about Greek stuff! Why would I want to hear about a bunch of divine perverts and their bitchy wives?”

            Hera’s eye twitched. The goddess clenched her fists so hard they turned white.

            “Then I presume you’re more a fan of Norse mythology?” Hideyoshi wondered.

            Yuko replied, “I don’t like it when siblings fight, and Thor and Loki are archenemies.”

            “Thor and Loki aren’t brothers. They aren’t archenemies either,” he said. “Loki’s nemesis is Heimdall, who isn’t his brother.”

            A blush crept over Yuko’s body that turned her red as a tomato. Embarrassment flowed through her.

            She tried to regain her composure, “I knew that! I was…just…testing you, yes. I’m not a fan of Norse mythology; because, it’s foreign. I really like Shinto gods, like the god of rice, Susanoo.”

            Hideyoshi didn’t say anything. He realized how embarrassed she was, and he didn’t want to cause her further distress. The other students, on the other hand…

            “I can’t believe she thinks Susanoo is the god of rice! He’s the storm god,” the tall boy whispered.

            A girl nodded, “That’s common knowledge. How could she not know that?”

            “Maybe she isn’t as smart as people think she is,” another girl suggested.

            Yuko covered her face and ran out of the room. Hera smirked and turned away. She didn’t see Hideyoshi run out after Yuko; because, a posting of the school grades caught her eye. The goddess walked over and her smile widened.

            She thought, “So, that’s why you humiliated her. It seems we have a mutual enemy, Oda Hideyoshi.”

Hideyoshi found Yuko standing alone in the hallway.

            He said, “Sanda-san, I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean to embarrass you like that.”

            She turned to him. There was a cold look on her face, devoid of feeling. Hideyoshi took a step back. Her icy eyes locked with his.

            “I want to crush you,” Yuko told him. “Do you want to crush me?”

            “No, I don’t, I swear,” he promised.

            “Oh, never mind, then,” she started walking away.

            Hideyoshi blinked, “What was that?”

            Yuko stopped, “I thought you might want revenge on me for taking your spot. That would have made you useful. So, since it was an accident, you’ll remain useless.”

            She started to walk again, but Hideyoshi’s voice stopped her.

            “Hang on. Are you calling me useless just to get me to go after you?”

            “No,” Yuko replied. “I’ve only just now realized that I want a rival to crush, and I called you useless before then. I’m calling you useless because you are useless. Why do you even like mythology? It’s a bunch of useless stories.”

            “It isn’t useless, and I’m not useless. Even if the events aren’t true, there are truths within them, truths about humanity. Mythology has done so much to influence world culture, and Western mythology influences Japan too,” Hideyoshi said.

            “What kind of truths?” she asked.

            He answered, “Heracles once had to clean a stable of horse shit for a king, and the king agreed to pay him for it.”

            Yuko wondered, “Why would you have Heracles clean horse shit? Even I know he’s the strongest demigod.”

            “They were trying to humiliate him, now pay attention,” Hideyoshi continued. “The king refused to pay Heracles when he finished, so he sued the king.”

            “He sued him? Is Heracles actually American?”

            “Suing a king didn’t work since the king just banished him from the city,” he decided to ignore her. “Heracles came back in and killed the king.”

            “Why did he think suing the king would work? Is he stupid?” Yuko wondered.

            Hideyoshi explained, “Heracles isn’t stupid. He was trying to do the right thing. But the king was powerful enough that he thought he could get away with cheating Heracles. That’s the first truth. People with a lot of power can get around the law.”

            “That’s pretty pessimistic. What’s the other truth?”

            “It’s in the king making Heracles mad enough that he killed him,” he told her. “The king thought he could get away with cheating anyone, but Heracles was powerful enough to do something about it. It doesn’t have to be Heracles either. It could be another king or someone who’s ruthless enough to assassinate him. The truth is that no matter how powerful you are, there’s someone who can make you pay for your actions, so you need to be careful who you make mad.”

            Yuko said, “That’s pretty optimistic.”

            “Hang on! Didn’t you say the last one was pessimistic?” Hideyoshi shot at her.

            “I did,” she nodded. “No matter what you said, I’d have criticized it.”

            He groaned, “Then you’re just doing this to provoke me?”

            “Yes, but you’re willing to defend mythology, aren’t you?”

            Hideyoshi replied, “I am.”

            “That’s good. You’re not as useless as I thought you were,” Yuko stated.

            She started walking away, “Even if knowing about mythology is useless.”

            “I’m not surprised an idiot like you doesn’t see the value in it,” Hideyoshi shot back.

            Rather than turn back or retort to that, Yuko gave Hideyoshi a thumbs up.

“Screw this!” a kappa officer said. “Fire!”

            The kappa soldiers pulled up their guns and aimed them at Erik.

Sadako called out, “Are you insane? The humans will hear your gunshots and swarm this place. Besides, guns do fuck all against vampires. Bring in the archers and shoot the onmyoji!”

            They stepped forward and aimed their bows. A flash came through them as the bladed weasel cut their bows to pieces. Several leaves appeared in the air over the kappa gunners. They turned into anvils and fell, splattering the kappa across the ground.

            “And score for Itsuki,” the raccoon dog said. “Guess you can’t keep up, you bitch fox!”

            Hisa scowled at him as she kept hitting the same kappa with her spear, “Just you wait until I get my hands on you! I’ll tear out your massive balls and make you eat them!”

            “Ha! Just you try! I already use them for archery practice,” he stated.

            Beauregard shouted, “You did what?”

            “Yeah, I make my balls grow to massive size and let other tanuki shoot them with arrows,” Itsuki confirmed.

            “When we get back home, I’m asking that witch boy if he can remove my memory of that.”

Haru looked at the canyon below him and cast another spell. Fire lanced one of the watery women. Keiko was amazed.

            She said, “Haru-kun, your magic is incredible. Saburo’s is too. Would even a machine gun do that much damage?”

            “No. Many supernatural creatures have resistance to bullets. It would take a few shots from a machine gun to get through a kappa’s shell, but my fire spells burn right through it. And that’s not even counting undead, which you need a really big gun to be effective against them at all,” he replied.

            “They’re that powerful?” Keiko’s eyes widened. “Why haven’t they taken over the world already?”

            “Numbers, for one thing. There are far more humans than there are supernatural creatures. People like Saburo is another. He’s not as powerful a spellcaster as I am, but he’s doing better against the yokai than me. Never underestimate the power of a specialist,” Haru stated.

            “But how can they be that resistant to bullets?” she wondered.

            “Magic.”

            Keiko asked, “Magic? Is that really it?”

            “Yes,” Haru answered. “I mean, how else can you explain a turtle shell being able to withstand bullets that can cut through modern body armor like nothing?”

            “That’s…a pretty good point,” she nodded. “And all supernatural creatures are like that?”

            He cast a spell at the battle and laughed, “Oh, fuck no. There are plenty of supernatural creatures that die when you shoot them with pretty much any gun. The only thing that makes something a supernatural creature is that they have abilities that come from magic. I mean, you can have someone whose only power is that they can see through grass and they’d still be a supernatural creature.”

            “There you are, spellcaster!” a draugr jumped into the air and shot a massive bow at Haru.

            He jumped to the side, narrowly avoiding it. Keiko felt fear welling up in her. She had never seen a bow that big, neither western nor eastern. Just how much damage could a weapon like that do?

            Runes glowed on the weapon as the draugr landed and took another shot. It slammed into a rock behind them, shattering it to pieces. Haru held out his hand for a fire spell, but the draugr was faster. He lashed out with a powerful kick. There was a loud crack as the bones in Haru’s arm snapped.

            The draugr pulled back his bow for another shot; however, a kanabo slammed into his face, caving it in and breaking his helmet. He fell backwards and stumbled off the cliff. His hand reached out, digging into the side and saving him from crashing into the ground. The draugr pulled himself onto the cliff, shock coming over his face.

            Keiko’s skin had turned blue. Rippling muscles covered her body while she maintained her feminine form. Two horns grew out of her forehead.

            “Bastard draugr!” Keiko shouted. “If you hurt Haru-kun, I’ll kill you!”

            The draugr smirked. Well, he tried to, but he couldn’t move his jaw.

            “Mmphmmmm,” he said.

            Haru fought through the pain, “What did you say?”

            “Phmmphmum,” the draugr mumbled.

            Keiko stepped between it and her boyfriend, “Haru-kun, are you alright?”

            “I’ll make it,” he told her. “I can still use my other hand for spellcasting.”

            “Okay. Let me kill this one.”

            She charged at the draugr. He dropped his bow and pulled out a sword. Keiko swung the kanabo, but he deflected it and pushed it to the side. The draugr lashed out with his weapon, lunging and cutting at Keiko’s shoulder. Her hardened skin reduced the blow; however, blood flowed out of her all the same.

            Anger pulsed through Haru. He jumped to the side and uttered words of power.

            “Pozhar Shimpanze!”

            A tiny beam of fire came out, cutting the draugr’s arm off. He threw his sword at Haru; however, Keiko grabbed it and slammed it into the draugr’s head. His helmet shattered the sword into pieces but caved inward. The draugr roared and swung his fist at Keiko, sending her stumbling back.

            “Dammit! Why is this guy so hard to beat?” she asked.

            Haru answered, “Keiko-chan, you’re good, but this guy was a viking warrior. He has years more experience than you do and has probably fought in battles before. Plus, he’s undead. You need to decapitate him or incinerate his body to kill him.”

            The draugr charged Keiko. He grabbed at her kanabo, but she pulled it out of the way. Haru cast another spell, jumping forward as he did.

            “Led Voda!”

            This time, a gout of flame unleashed. It had less distance than the beam of fire, but it was more powerful. Keiko wasn’t in the flame’s path; however, she still felt heat licking her body.

            “It’s a good thing that Haru-kun has such good aim,” she thought. “I’m so close to it.”

            Haru was struggling to keep the power of the spell suppressed. It was supposed to be hotter than a flamethrower and to incinerate everything in the area other than its caster. This was the fastest way he knew to end the fight; however, keeping the spell suppressed drained away at his energy.

            It did the job all the same. The draugr was incinerated. Haru breathed a deep sigh of relief as he ended the spell, and then he collapsed onto one knee.

            Keiko held him up, “Haru-kun, are you alright?”

            “I’m tired and in pain. I have a broken arm. Keiko-chan, bring me over to the edge.”

            She said, “Are you sure?”

            “Yes, we need to keep going through this battle. Set me down by a rock and jump down. Get Anzu to protect you,” he told her.

            “No way!” Keiko objected. “I can’t abandon you, Haru-kun.”

            “You’re not abandoning me. I’ll cast a defensive spell. The best thing we can do is end the battle as soon as possible. Back up everyone who’s having trouble. With the two of us fighting together, we can finish this fight.”

            “Alright. Hang in there, Haru.”

            Keiko leaned him against a rock that overlooked the canyon. She took a deep breath and jumped down the steep cliffs, kanabo in hand.

A group of female students was in the school’s exercise field. Hera was among them, disguised with a smile on her face.

            “At last,” she thought. “After this long process, I can finally get my revenge!”

            Soon, a muscled man walked out of the school building. He had a thick, red beard and a warm smile on his face. Hera got suspicious right away. This man looked an awful lot like Thor.

            One female student said, “That’s our new teacher. Isn’t he a foreigner?”

            “Yeah,” another replied. “He’s from Iceland.”

            “Iceland? Either that’s a massive coincidence that he’s from Scandinavia or he’s Thor in disguise. What would Thor be doing here?” Hera wondered.

            The man spoke with a deep voice, “Hello, class, my name is Thursday. I’ll be directing your exercises. First, we’ll play with our balls. To be specific, it’s time for dodgeball.”

            He pulled out a ball, “Allow me to demonstrate.”

            Thursday pulled back his arm and launched the ball into the air with incredible speed. The class paled when they realized he aimed at a window; however, he missed the window and hit a metal post instead. This caused the ball to bounce off, fly back, and slam into his face.

            “Okay, that’s what not to do,” he stated. “Mizuki! Come over here.”

            “Mamoru Mizuki.” Hera did so. “Reporting.”

            “I don’t think you’re ready for dodgeball teams yet, so we’re going with single combat, the drengr thing,” Thursday said.

            Yuko raised her hand, “Excuse me, what’s drengr?”

            “It means badass,” he replied. “Now, you’re up against Mizuki.”

            The two of them entered the ball court. Thursday stood off to the side. There were several dodgeballs on the ground. Hera decided to hold back, not wanting to blow her cover; though, she had no intention of losing to a mortal. Then she picked up a ball and realized something.

            “I see what you’re doing, Thor. These balls are far too heavy for a schoolgirl to use. You’re trying to get me to expose myself! Well, I won’t fall for this!”

            She started struggling, “This is really heavy. How am I supposed to use it?”

            “Figure it out yourself,” Thursday scoffed. “Begin!”

            Yuko picked up one of the balls without any effort, shocking both Hera and Thursday. She threw it so fast that Hera didn’t dare react or she’d reveal her true identity. The ball hit her, bounced off her face into a concrete wall, and then flew into Thursday’s groin.

            “Dammit. Why did this happen again?” he groaned as he cringed in pain.

            Hera couldn’t think of any times when Thor was hit in the groin, and she doubted that even Zeus punching him there would do much.

            “Hang on, this all makes sense! Getting hit by balls, getting hit in the balls, his whole non-Thor like attitude,” dread realization flowed through her. “Thor’s pretending to be an idiot to throw me off! Or maybe not an idiot, but the sort of person whose plans constantly backfire on them. Thor’s a lot more clever than I thought.”

            “We’re taking a break while I recover,” Thursday moved aside.

            The goddess’ eyes went right to Yuko. Anger flashed through her at losing to a mortal. Then a smile crossed her face.

            “I have you figured out, daughter of Zeus! Your strength is beyond that of a mortal of your age.”

            Hera walked over to her, “That was a great match! You’re really strong.”

            “Thanks,” the girl’s voice lacked emotion.

            “That’s our Yuko,” a female student said. “She’s the pride of the school.”

            Another nodded, “She can do anything and make it look easy!”

            “That’s amazing!” Hera exclaimed as she plotted all the ways she could ruin Yuko’s life.

Crowds of students rushed out of their classrooms as the final bell rang. Yuko was among them, except she moved with a controlled stride. She stopped when she passed one classroom. Hideyoshi was still inside, working on his laptop.

            Yuko said without emotion, “I thought you’d be one of the first people out of school.”

            “I don’t have anything to do now that I’m out of the clubs,” Hideyoshi replied. “And I don’t need to do any extra studying, so I might as well stay here and play a video game.”

            Yuko asked, “Wouldn’t you rather play games at home?”

            “My parents don’t approve of them,” he answered. “And I still have to live up to their expectations. I can do that by getting good grades, so I don’t have much to worry about as long as I keep my hobbies a secret.”

            “Is playing video games worth staying alone in a classroom after school?” she wondered.

            Hideyoshi said, “It is to me. I want to live my life the way I want to, and not the way other people want me to.”

            “Don’t you care about what other people think?”

            “I do. It’s why I’m grateful to you for coming in. I can do what I want without disappointing anyone. Now, I have a question. Are you doing so good just because other people want you to?”

            “That’s part of it but not all. I want to be excellent, to reach my full potential at everything I do,” Yuko explained. “I don’t even care if I’m the best at what I do, as long as I’m the best I can be.”

            “Then what would you do if someone came along who might be better than you?” Hideyoshi asked.

            She answered, “I would crush them.”

            “I hope I never have to go up against you in anything,” he said. “Given how I’m the second best in the school. Well, I won’t be for long now that I’m free. I don’t have to kill myself studying anymore, and I can settle with just really good grades instead of almost perfect.”

            “You’re useless,” Yuko told him.

            Hideyoshi replied, “Hey! I already told you I’d help you with something if you need it!”

            “I’ll never need it. You don’t want to be excellent, just good enough. I can never accept someone who’s just good enough,” she stated.

            He narrowed his eyes, “Don’t underestimate me. I want to be the best mythological audiobook narrator I can be, and I’ll be more than good enough here. I’m not slacking off, I’m just not wearing myself out.”

            “But you aren’t doing your best,” Yuko’s voice was ice. “You’re giving up second place as well as first. I thought I could get along with you, but I can’t.”

            She turned to leave. As she did, a banana peel materialized under her. Yuko slipped on it and fell backwards. Hideyoshi jumped to grab her and keep her from falling, but she turned midair and Hideyoshi ended up grabbing her breast.

            “I’m so sorry!” he dropped her right away and she fell face first on the floor.

Hideyoshi exclaimed, “I’m even more sorry!”

            Yuko’s muffled voice called out from the ground, “It’s alright. You were trying to help me and I’m the one who turned. It was an accident.”

            She stood up and took a deep breath before walking out of the room.

Hera cursed from behind a set of lockers nearby.

            “Dammit! Why didn’t my master plan of making her fall down and having a guy grab her breasts work? Yuko should have punched him through a ceiling and caused him to be her enemy or something.”

            Then she realized something else, “Why did I think it would work? It’s pretty obvious that it was an accident and that boy didn’t have any bad intentions. Well, just you wait, Yuko! My next attack won’t be based around an easily resolvable accident!”

Saburo’s intense gaze lingered over a pool of water. Hanafuda papers floated in it, and a vexed look came across his face.

            His raccoon dog jumped into the room, “Hey, boss, we’ve found some things.”

            The weasel followed him inside.

            “That’s good,” Saburo kept his eyes on the water. “What is it?”

            “There’s a fox bitch here. Do you want me to kick her ass now or later?” the raccoon dog asked.

            Saburo said, “She isn’t our enemy, Itsuki. Don’t harm her unless she attacks you first.”

            “What? She’s a kitsune!” he narrowed his eyes. “You can’t trust foxes.”

            The onmyoji retorted, “Pursue your interspecies rivalry on your own time. Right now, you’re getting paid to work for me.”

            “What are you doing, anyway?” Itsuki wondered.

            “I’m performing divination, seeing possible futures,” Saburo explained. “I can’t see that many just yet, but all of them involve a battle with the invading yokai and their allies. This also confirms that Haru is on our side. He’s involved in all of them. Tell me what else you found in your infiltration this time.”

            “They haven’t made any progress and they’re pretty disorganized. I don’t see how there could be a battle.”

            “That’s because the battle is a result of a trap. A portion of our enemies are going to be lured there and ambushed. It’s a good plan, but a risky one.”

            “I found something too!” the weasel told him. “There was this enenra, okay? He came from a fire that burned the body of a draugr. Apparently, a vampire killed him.”

            “That confirms more things. My visions are definitely accurate. Then it’s time to move out. I have another job for you two, if you will take it,” Saburo said.

            “As long as I’m getting paid,” Itsuki shrugged.

            The onmyoji stated, “We’re going to help that witch’s group in the upcoming battle.”

Darkness enveloped the ocean. Sadako looked onward as waves battered her.

            An iso onna approached her, “What’s wrong?”

            “One of our own was injured,” she told her. “I can smell her blood.”

            “Then why aren’t we saving them?”

            “Because they’re pretty close to the town. We’d risk exposure, especially if we bring our umi bozu with us,” Sadako sighed.

            “How is that an issue?” Alver strummed his lute. “My draugr and your numbers should be good enough.”

            The female yokai felt their hearts melt as they gazed at him and heard his beautiful melodies.

            Sadako said, “You’re right. We shouldn’t worry. There are more than enough of us to go on this rescue mission, even without our strongest fighters. Everyone, let’s go!”

The yokai force and their allies crept through the darkness avoiding humans. They could kill all the humans in the town, but they didn’t want to risk exposure just yet. Their numbers were increasing. Yet, a large enough force of humans could still crush them. This was especially true if the onmyoji got involved.

            Up ahead was a canyon between two large sets of rocks. Bits of water had fallen in over the years, carving it in on its way to the sea. All that was left of that water was a small stream running through the canyon.

            Light glowed in front of them as they turned a corner. More and more lights appeared as Erik stood in the center of the canyon. He took a bow.

            “Hello, sissy men and women,” Erik smiled. “I see that you’ve finally chosen to show your faces.”

            “Which one of us did you kill?” Sadako glared.

            He replied, “Just a draugr, no one else.”

            “Then you’re the one resp…hang on, what do you mean no one else? What about the blood we’re smelling?”

            “I’m a vampire. I can do all sorts of things with blood,” he said.

            Laughter broke through the canyon. Alver lifted his head and glared at Erik with pure hatred.

            “That explains it, explains how you could defeat me.”

            Sadako blinked, “Then he’s the one from all those years ago.”

            “Yes,” Alver nodded. “He’s the one.”

            “We’ll kick his ass for you!” an iso onna promised.

            A kawahime added, “How dare he mar your handsome face?”

            “Umm, I’m sorry,” Erik tilted his head. “But just who are you?”

            Alver was confused, “Hang on, can’t you see my face?”

            “I can, but I don’t think we’ve ever met.”

            “That can’t be it! You must have forgotten about me!” he swiped his hand. “My nemesis, Egil Erikson!”

            “No, I’m not Egil Erikson, I’m Erik Egilson. Egil Erikson is my father, and he did tell me about facing various monsters,” Erik noted.

            “Egil Erikson…Erik Egilson…what’s with your weird names?” Alver asked.

            He answered, “Well, I was named after my grandfather, Erik Erikson.”

            Sadako said, “Hang on, who’s who again?”

            “That guy’s the son of the guy who humiliated me,” Alver walked forward with a smile on his face. “I may not have been able to wreck his shit, but I can get vengeance on his son! Prepare yourself, Erik. I…”

            Before he could continue, Erik punched him. Alver flew back and slammed into a rock. All that was left of him was a red stain.

            “I’m getting the feeling that I just killed something worthless,” Erik commented.

            “You bastard!” a female yokai called out. “How dare you kill him!”

            The viking replied, “How dare I? I’ve killed uglier.”

            Rage pulsed through both the female yokai and the draugr.

            Sadako shouted, “Kill him! Everyone, kill him!”

            Fire fell out of the sky as they charged. One draugr was caught in it. He screamed in pain as he was burned to death. Beauregard and Hisa charged out of the darkness, the former engaging in a swordfight with a draugr and the latter jabbing her spear at a kappa.

            That kappa ducked under it and swiped at her with rending claws. Hisa used her spear to pole vault back before turning and whacking it in the face. The spear bounced off.

            “What? Were you trying to hurt me?” the kappa asked.

            Hisa answered, “Don’t underestimate me! The asskicking has just begun!”

            She slammed her spear into the kappa over and over, doing no damage.

            Five draugr charged Erik. He tried to use the reach of his longaxe to keep his distance, but their blows hammered him. Every time he went on the offensive, a draugr got within striking distance. One drew a fire rune, forcing Erik to dodge.

            “Dammit,” he thought. “There’s too many of them.”

            An iso onna jumped into the air, only to be blasted into a rock by Haru’s wind. She saw him hiding at the top of the canyon. The yokai blasted him with water. Haru was forced to duck for cover before returning fire.

            Sadako got behind Erik and prepared to attack his back. The viking couldn’t handle that many enemies; however, he was far from alone.

            “Kyuu kyuu nyo ritsu ryo!” Saburo called out.

            Several pieces of hanafuda paper flew out, blasting Sadako with fire. She screamed out in pain and crawled back to her lines.

            Erik ducked under a sword strike and called out, “I don’t know who you are, but I’m grateful for your help.”

            “Don’t mention it,” the onmyoji spoke. “Just focus on the fight.”

            The vampire nodded, shouting, “Keiko, now!”

            After a moment, Anzu appeared midair and charged the kappa line as they advanced towards Erik. The demon blasted fireballs at them as Saburo sent out more hanafuda paper. These wrapped around the kappa, pinning them in place.

            Sadako grimaced in pain; however, that didn’t stop her from observing the battlefield. She realized what needed to be done to win:

            The spellcasters had to die.

A palace stood over and beyond the world, atop a mountain that could see the entire planet without being part of it. Pillars of marble held it up as numerous painted statues decorated the palace’s halls. Countless men, armored in bronze lined with Kevlar, guarded the mountain’s massive slopes.

            There was the sound of thunder as a beat-up pickup truck rolled into the palace’s parking lot. It was riding on its rims with the rubber having been burnt off. A man with a grey beard and cloudy eyes stumbled out of it. Another man with red hair and biceps the size of bull shoulders carrying a hammer rolled out of the other side.

            “Okay,” the first one groaned. “That’s the last time Dionysus is our designated driver.”

            The other said, “My pickup truck…dammit, I got the dwarves to make it for me. What are they going to say now?”

            “I don’t see what the problem is,” Dionysus lolled his head out the window. “I actually parked it this time.”

            A woman with black hair and a crown on her head stormed out of the palace, “Zeus! Did you cheat on me while you were out drinking?”

            “Come on, Hera!” the gray-bearded man jumped up. “I promise that I didn’t cheat on your.”

            “You keep saying that, but that just means you’re getting better at hiding it,” she retorted.

            The guy with the hammer spoke, “I can’t blame you for thinking that with Zeus’ track record; however, I can vouch for him. He didn’t cheat on you.”

            That assuaged her fears.

“Well, you’re not known for lying, Thor. Zeus, you’re telling the truth that you didn’t cheat on me?”

            “Yes, I haven’t cheated on you in 14 years,” he confirmed.

            Thor slapped his forehead as Hera’s face turned red.

            “Aha!” she said. “That means you cheated on me 15 years ago!”

            “Hera, it’s alright,” Zeus assured her.

            “How is you cheating on me alright?”

            “I didn’t turn into an animal to do it that time.”

            Thor groaned, “How did you Olympians ever get anyone to worship you?”

            “I’m going to find whatever spawn you produced and make them pay,” Hera told her husband.

            Zeus said, “Good luck. You’ll never be able to find my son.”

            “A son?” Dionysus was confused. “I thought you said you had a daughter.”

            Hera nodded, “And where is this daughter?”

            “She’s…”

            Zeus slammed his hands over Dionysus’ mouth before he could continue.

            “Now, now,” Zeus said. “Let’s not be hasty. Hera, what can I do to…”

            Ares popped his head out of the back of the truck, “She’s in Karuizawa, Japan.”

            “The fuck, Ares?” Zeus asked.

            “That’s for not letting me go to any wars since WW2,” he answered.

            “Why you little…”

            Dionysus poked his father’s shoulder and pointed. Zeus looked. Hera was gone.

            Thor said, “Well, guess you’ve got to save your daughter now.”

            “Nah, I don’t think so,” he shook his head. “I don’t want to argue with Hera. Besides, I can sleep around while she’s distracted.”

            “This sort of thing is why your children always end up in these messes. Well, if you won’t do something, I will.”

            Not wanting to get in his wrecked pickup truck, Thor raised his hammer and summoned a small cart pulled by two goats. He put on a pointed hat and sat down in it. The goats pulled the cart at a snail’s pace.

            “Huh,” Thor said. “My goats must have not gotten any exercise lately. This is going to take a while.”

Oda Hideyoshi had a very unfortunate name. His surname came from his ancestor, Oda Nobunaga, one of the most brutal warlords in Japan. Being big fans of history, his parents chose his forename after Nobunaga’s successor, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, another of the most brutal warlords.

            Still, he was a very talented youth. Throughout his middle school career, Hideyoshi excelled at grades, sports, and all else. The entire school had its eye on him. This continued into high school. One day, that changed.

            A girl named Sanda Yuko transferred into the school. She got perfect marks, was so good at sports that even the boys had trouble against her, and eclipsed Hideyoshi in every way. Even more than that, Yuko made it look easy. The school’s eyes turned from him to her.

Hideyoshi had to say something. He found Yuko walking home from school alone and stepped out in front of her. Yuko’s face was a blank slate, not showing any emotion.

            “You’re Sanda Yuko,” he said.

            She replied, “I am. Are you here to ask me out?”

            “No. My name is Oda Hideyoshi. Until you came along, I was the best student in the school.”

            “I’ve heard of you.” Although she didn’t express it, worry filled Yuko.

            “There’s something I have to tell you.” Hideyoshi grabbed her hands with tears in his eyes. “Thank you so much! No one expects me to be the best anymore! All that pressure’s gone!”

            Her sole reaction was to tilt her head and say, “What?”

            He released her hands, “I can’t thank you enough for this! Now that no one looks up to me, I can spend my time watching anime and pursuing my passion.”

            “What’s your passion?” Yuko asked.

            “I’m going to learn all I can about mythology! My dream is to narrate mythical story audiobooks.”

            “So, this is what freedom looks like,” she said without emotion. “I’m not impressed.”

            “You don’t have to be impressed. Live your life the way you like, and I’ll live mine the way I like,” Hideyoshi replied.

            A slight smile creased Yuko’s face; though, there was still no emotion in her voice, “Thank you for disagreeing civilly with me.”

            “No problem, and I really am grateful. If there’s anything you need me to do, just ask,” he said.

            “I won’t need anything, so live the life you want to live. Just be realistic.”

            “Hey, I’m not the sort of guy who’d do something without a fallback plan,” Hideyoshi told her. “In case my audiobook career doesn’t go well, I’ll study something else too. I should get going now.”

            He waved with vigor while Yuko waved very little.

            A chill went down her spine. She got the feeling that something was wrong, but couldn’t point to what.

Hera looked down at the high school from a cloud. A sadistic smile grew on her face.

            She said, “So, this is the school she goes to? The first thing I need to do is figure out which child this girl is.”

            The goddess moved down from the cloud and transformed. Where there was once a statuesque adult woman, there was now a teenage girl. Hera opened a purse she didn’t have on her before and looked through various identification cards.

            “There we go. Now, I can infiltrate this school and make that girl pay for being born of my husband’s adultery!”

            Hera stepped forward, opening the door and finding that no one was inside.

            “What the…hang on, what time is it?” she looked at the sun. “Dammit! School’s already over! I forgot that Olympus is in a different time zone than Japan! Well, just you wait, girl, when school starts tomorrow, I’ll talk to the principal and sign up for classes. The next day, I’ll do what I need to to mix myself in with the student populace. But the day after that, I’ll make you pay!”

Keiko woke up to the sound of Hisa glaring out the window. The kitsune’s face was plastered in anger.

            “What’s going on, Hisa?” Keiko asked.

            She answered, “I think I saw an asshole out there, sis.”

            “An asshole?” That confused her. “Is it someone you know?”

            “I don’t need to know them to know that they’re an asshole,” Hisa said.

            Keiko sighed, “Could you please explain?”

            “There might be a tanuki here.”

            “A tanuki? Oh, right, I heard that kitsune and tanuki don’t get alone.”

             “We hate those assholes. They’re always cheating people out of their money and fighting with us,” Hisa stated.

            “The tanuki might be working with our enemies,” Keiko said.

            “We should kill it even if it isn’t,” the kitsune replied. “Never trust a tanuki, ever.”

            “Even if we can’t trust it, that’s no reason to kill it if it isn’t an enemy.”

            “But if we killed it, there’d be one less tanuki in the world,” Hisa stated.

            “We’re not killing it if it isn’t an enemy!” Keiko stomped her foot on the floor, the sound of the impact echoing through the room. “Erik and his vampires are bloodthirsty enough already! Don’t get like that too!”

            “Okay, okay, I won’t,” the kitsune assured her as worry overtook her face. “Do you need to talk to Haru, sis?”

            “I talked to him last night, and…I’m just stressed out from everything. Honestly, I really, really, really want to let out all my stress.”

            Hisa smirked, “Oh, I got it, sis. You want to have sex with Haru.”

            Keiko threw a pillow into her face. Hisa recoiled from the impact before throwing the pillow to the floor.

            “Hey, what was that for?” she asked.

            “You shouldn’t just say something like that. I shouldn’t have reacted that way, but you need to learn more about human culture.”

            “Alright, fine, I won’t talk about sex,” Hisa said. “Then you must want to punch something, right? That gets rid of stress.”

            “Yes. I want to beat the crap out of something, but I’m not sure if that’s me or if I’m changing because I’m part non-human. What if Haru-kun and Erik were wrong?” Keiko questioned.

            The kitsune replied, “Haru knows more about any of us, and Erik has more experience. I mean, I’m a hundred, but he’s over a thousand. You can trust them, sis.”

            She nodded, “I hope you’re right, Hisa.”

In another part of the house, Haru was standing at a window, looking out over the streets. People were walking around, having conversations, going to lunch, and doing various other things. This made Haru’s eye twitch. Anger swelled inside of him.

            Haru stepped away from the window and went to get breakfast. He opened the refrigerator and found that there was nothing there.

            “What the hell? There was plenty of food last night.”

            “There was,” Beauregard rested his head on a table. “But then that there kitsune got hungry. That girl ain’t right, I say. She ate everything there and didn’t gain a single pound from it.”

            “Supernatural creatures can be like that,” Haru walked to the door, not looking forward to what was about to happen. “I’m going to get food. I won’t go too far away.”

            He stepped outside, a wave of heat washing over him. Sunlight blasted into Haru’s eyes as he walked to the nearest Fat Franny’s Fabulous Fun Fruitful Fast Food. It was commonly known as the restaurant chain with a far too long name.

            Relieving coolness flowed across Haru as he walked through the doors. The employee working the register glared at him. Haru gulped, realizing that he probably should have asked Keiko to get food.

            “I’ve come too far,” he thought. “There’s no turning back now.”

            Haru stepped forward before realizing something.

            “What the hell was I thinking? I can literally just turn back.”

            He did exactly that, leaving the restaurant.

Outside, Haru saw a street vendor who was selling handheld fans to tourists. Haru paused to look.

            “My curse will affect this, but Keiko-chan might like a fan. She wants to be more feminine. One of those fans could make her look like a court lady. I should get her one.”

            He walked over to the vendor, earning a glare from him.

            “What the hell do you want?” the vendor asked.

            Haru answered, “I just want to buy a fan.”

            “I’m not selling one to you.”

            “It’s not for me,” he said. “It’s for my girlfriend.”

            A contemplative look crossed the vendor’s face. He nodded.

            “I think I have one for you. Girls love this fan.”

            “Thanks. I’ll buy it,” Haru was suspicious, so he quickly prodded it with his magical senses.

            Nothing was wrong, so he bought the fan and went back.

In their base, Keiko glared at Hisa.

            “Do you have anything to say for yourself?” she asked.

            The kitsune answered, “Sorry that I ate everything.”

            “You should be fine,” Beauregard stated. “That boy went out to get food.”

            “Haru-kun went out? But he has that curse on him,” Keiko pointed out.

            Haru stepped inside, “I know, Keiko-chan, that’s why I went back. I didn’t get food, but I got something for you.”

            He handed her the fan, and she examined it.

            Keiko smiled, “Thanks, Haru-kun. This is a nice war fan. It doesn’t have a blade, but it’s still in the style of one.”

            “You’re welcome, Keiko-chan,” Haru smiled while thinking. “It was sabotage after all! I’ll curse that bastard!”

            “Do you like war fans?” Hisa looked at it over Keiko’s shoulder.

            “I do,” she replied. “Nothing says grace and strength like a war fan. I like kanabos the best for their power and naginatas for their femininity, but war fans have an aspect to them neither of those do.”

            Relief flowed through Haru. He was glad that Keiko ended up liking his gift.

            “I’m still mad at the guy who sold me this, but I won’t curse him. We have more important things to focus on anyway.”

            “If you’re done talking about weapons,” Erik walked in. “Not that you should ever be done talking about weapons, I have plans for tonight that we’ll need to discuss.”

            “Can we wait until we get something to eat?” Haru asked.

            The vampire said, “Don’t we have plenty of food?”

            “Don’t ask,” Beauregard sighed.

            Erik shrugged, “These plans won’t take long to explain. They’re pretty simple.”

            “What are they?” Hisa asked. “I want to get to some hella awesome fighting.”

            “Let’s start out with the facts. We’re up against an unknown number of enemies, a mixture of yokai and other beings, and we’re outnumbered. We have the advantage that they know nothing about us, but they’re probably more cautious after losing one of their own. We could pick them off one by one; however, that’d give them the opportunity to try something. Our best option is to lure them into a trap.”

            Keiko wondered, “How are we going to do that?”

            “I’m glad you asked,” Erik smiled. “You are a key part of it.”

            She blinked in shock, “I am?”

            “Yes. Even if it isn’t active at the moment, you have yokai blood in you. With a bit of your own blood, I can create a full bit of yokai blood and leave it in a trail to make them think one of their own was injured.”

            “You can do that?” Beauregard jumped so high that he banged is head against the ceiling.

            Lenora was shocked too, “I had no idea. Why didn’t you tell us?”

            “You mean aside from you having two brain cells combined?” Erik shrugged. “I didn’t feel like it.”

Keiko felt a cool breeze flow through her hair as she gazed at the abyssal night sky. She stood on the deck on top of Erik’s beach house. Haru opened the door and stepped next to her.

            She asked, “What were you busy with, Haru-kun?”

            He answered, “I was putting up wards. They’re a type of magical defense. Mine are pretty weak compared to grandmother’s, but they should at least keep out some creatures.”

            “It’s a good thing you’re making them,” Keiko said.

            “Something’s bothering you?” Haru spoke.

            “Yes,” she replied. “That thing…that draugr…I didn’t know how horrifying it was until I saw it up close. And Erik was willing to torture it. He is a viking, so I should have expected that, but he killed it so easily.”

            “I understand how that can be distressing. Honestly, if I wasn’t raised by grandmother, I’d be in the same state you are.”

            Keiko nodded, “A part of me is regretting coming here, but it’s too late to turn back now.”

            “What are you talking about?” Haru said. “You could literally just turn back and go home. We’d all understand.”

            “Dammit, Haru!” she snapped.

            He took a step back, “Keiko-chan, are you alright?”

            “I am. I’m sorry that I jumped at you like that, Haru-kun.”

            “It’s alright, just tell me what’s wrong.”

            “The reason why I said it’s too late to turn back is because I wanted to avoid having to admit this,” Keiko explained. “I had fun last night.”

            “You had fun?” Haru’s eyes widened in surprise.

            She stated, “It was the fight. I had to learn kenjutsu and kanabo-jutsu for my family, but I never really enjoyed it. There was too much pressure put on me to be the best. Now that the pressure’s gone, I think I actually like fighting.”

            “Then you want to stay because you’ll enjoy yourself,” he understood.

            Keiko said, “Yes. It’s hard to admit, but I’ve been having fun here. I don’t think that’s a good sign. Are there any therapists who deal with the supernatural?”

            “None that I know of,” Haru replied.

            “Hisa might know someone,” she told him. “Or at least find one through the government organization that got her a job.”

            He asked, “But are you sure it’s a supernatural thing? Some people are just warriors, and you might be one of them.”

            “I don’t know, and I don’t have any way of finding out right now,” Keiko answered.

            Haru nodded. He looked at the night sky, gazing into the darkness. She joined him. There was absolute silence on the roof. No people talked, no animals made noises, not even the wind blew.

            “It’s dead quiet,” Keiko’s eyes widened as she broke the silence. “Is something magical happening? Are we under attack?”

            “We’re not, Keiko-chan, calm down. I think you’re still stressed out from today’s events, especially the interrogation,” Haru said.

            She replied, “I think you’re right, Haru-kun. What do you think of all this? How are you feeling?”

            He stated, “I’m terrified of what might happen to you.”

            “You’re terrified? You look the same as normal,” Keiko pointed out.

            “That’s because I need to keep calm,” Haru explained. “If I don’t, it’ll only make things worse and I won’t be able to protect you.”

            “I…want to protect you too,” she spoke.

            “Thank you, Keiko-chan. We’ll be able to protect each other when your supernatural powers finally come out.”

            Keiko nodded, “I do have one question, Haru-kun.”

            He asked, “What’s that?”

            “It’s the quiet,” she answered. “What’s causing it?”

            “My magic. I got worried that they’d use some sort of sound spell, so I made it so that my wards blocked it off. There are wards further out that’ll warn us if anything supernatural is approaching, but it’s good that you noticed it,” Haru said.

            “It is?” she wondered.

            “Yes,” he stated. “A lack of sound is a sign that a powerful supernatural predator is around. Animals notice it and stay as quiet and hidden as possible. Sometimes, even the wind is afraid of them.”

            Keiko spoke, “What? How can the wind be afraid of anything? It isn’t alive.”

            Haru replied, “I could explain, but you wouldn’t understand it.”

            “I wouldn’t understand it?” she said. “Why not?”

            “It’s the magical equivalent of taking someone who just learned how to count and trying to teach them algebra.”

            “Try me,” Keiko replied.

            One explanation later…

            “You’re right,” she admitted. “I didn’t understand any of that.”

            “Let’s get inside. It’s pretty late,” Haru noted.

            Keiko spoke, “Yes. We both need our rest.”

Elsewhere, Sadako was with a group of her allies. One of them looked a lot like Saburo wearing a set of fake glasses, nose, and a mustache. She slid back and forth in front of them with nervousness in her eyes.

            “One of our draugr is gone,” she said. “If he deserted, it’s bad enough. But if he’s dead, that could mean someone’s on to us.”

            A tall kappa stated, “We must find out the reason why.”

            “He probably just got lost,” the one that looked like Saburo shrugged. “We’re in Japan, and he’s from Norway or something.”

            Alver strummed his violin, “He was actually from Iceland, and I doubt he got lost. The beach is easy to find. It’s most likely that someone killed him.”

            “No way. He’s too powerful.”

            “Is he now, or do we have a spy amongst us?” Sadako moved over to the yokai that looked like Saburo.

            “What are you saying?”

            “The jig is up,” Alver smirked. “We know you’re an onmyoji.”

            “I’m not an onmyoji!”

            Sadako whipped out her tail and snapped his neck, “No use hiding it. We saw your picture and everything.”

            The body collapsed and only the glasses, nose, and mustache remained.

            “What?” the nure onna was shocked.

            A different kappa walked over, “Let me see.”

            After a moment of examination, he spoke.

            “I know this guy! He’s an animated Groucho Marx disguise that takes the form of the last human he saw.”

            “W-What?” Alver said. “Wait, then that means he’s alive, right?”

            “No,” the kappa shook his head. “He’s definitely dead.”

            “Find that onmyoji and kill him!” Sadako ordered.

            Her yokai as well as the draugr scattered, searching all over the beach. The tall kappa called out.

            “I’ll search the sewers! He might be hiding there.”

            The kappa ran into them, going far away from the yokai. He went out of them and into the city. His disguise fell off, revealing Saburo under it.

            “So, they’re onto me,” the onmyoji said. “Still, I’m glad my illusion worked. I can infiltrate them again, but that might be a bad idea since they’ll be more on guard now.”

Saburo entered a building and pulled out two sheets of hanafuda paper. Both had pentagrams on them.

            He uttered an incantation, “Kyu kyu nyo ritsu ryu!”

            The onmyoji threw the papers onto the ground. Two yokai materialized. One was a weasel with sickles for legs, and the other was a raccoon dog with a massive loin cloth covering his crotch.

            “I have a dangerous mission for you two,” Saburo stated.

            “You can count on us,” the raccoon dog spoke. “That is, as long as I get paid for it.”

            “Yes, I’ll pay you. You’re going to infiltrate a dangerous group of yokai,” he said before turning to the weasel. “And as for you, you’re going to scout out and find any information you can. In particular, information related to the disappearance of a form of Western monster. Is that clear?”

            They both nodded.

            Saburo said, “Good. Now, I’ll give you the specifics.”

The draugr’s massive form charged, its blade swinging like a hurricane. Erik swung his longaxe to intercept it. He was so fast that Keiko only saw a blur. Even Beauregard and Lenora had trouble keeping up.

            Erik parried a blow with the haft of his axe, bits of wood flying off from the draugr’s strength. The vampire struck back. His attack returned with blinding speed. The impact cut into the draugr’s shield. For a normal person, this blow would have trapped the axe in the shield; however, Erik yanked it out, bringing a large chunk of wood with it.

            As Erik swung for his legs, the draugr jumped over the axe and slammed his sword down on his opponent. Erik leapt back from the attack, the reach of his polearm saving him from taking a sword to the face.

            Haru extended his arm and uttered words of power, “Veter Dut!”

            Wind blasted the draugr, pushing it towards a rock. It dug its legs deep into the sand and withstood the attack. Erik moved in a blur and swung his longaxe twice in succession. The draugr’s shield turned into splinters, and shards of wood stuck into his body.

            Hisa proclaimed, “My turn! Spear dropkick!”

            She used her spear to pole vault into the air, and then she lashed out with her legs. The draugr’s sword was tied up defending from Erik’s axe, and Hisa’s feet slammed into its face. He barely felt it as Hisa bounced off.

            “What?” the draugr said.

            “Time to die!” Hisa punched and kicked her opponent.

            It was confused, “Is this supposed to hurt me?”

            Erik stated, “She’s not very strong and has no training.”

            “Then it’s useless,” the draugr chuckled. “Still, I acknowledge your courage as a warrior, even if it is from stupidity.”

            Keiko sighed and pulled her kanabo out from its box.

            “Are you ready, Haru-kun?” she asked.

            He answered, “I am.”

            “Hisa, duck!” Keiko shouted.

            Pulling the kanabo back, she threw it with all her strength at the draugr. Haru cast a spell.

            “Veter dut!”

            His wind pushed the club forward. It combined with Keiko’s strength, driving the weapon at the draugr. The monster pulled its legs out of the ground, sending sand flying up; however, he wasn’t fast enough.

            The kanabo collided with his chest. He flew backwards, snapping its spine and colliding with the sand as the kanabo landed on the ground. Then the draugr lunged at it with a grasping hand; however, Haru was ready.

            He said, “Veter Vozvrashcheniye!”

            Just as the draugr grabbed it, wind pulled on the kanabo. The draugr found himself in a tug of war with the air. Erik used this opportunity to swing his axe at the draugr’s legs. One of them caved inward from the force of the blow, the mail stopping it from being cut off. Another axe-strike and the draugr’s other leg was disabled.

            He drew a rune in the air with his finger, “Face my power of my magic!”

            Keiko felt power flow into her, and then…nothing.

            “Hah! You have measles now,” the draugr laughed.

            “Measles?” she said. “I was vaccinated for that.”

            “What’s vaccinated?” it asked.

            Erik answered, “It means she’s immune to it.”

            The draugr drew another rune, “Then face this disease! You have polio now!”

            “I was vaccinated for that too,” Keiko stated.

            “Cholera? Dyptheria?”

            “Are all your disease curses for things that have been vaccinated?” she wondered.

            It said, “Hey, give me a break! I died a thousand years ago and haven’t left my crypt until recently!”

            “Honestly,” Haru sighed. “You should have done some research and learned some curses for other diseases.”

            “Damn you!” the draugr drew another rune and smiled. “Face this powerful spell.”

            “A primitive dream curse. How quaint,” he shrugged and waved his hand.

            “What?” its smile faded.

            Haru explained, “I learned a similar spell when I was a child, and if the diseases you sent after Keiko-chan weren’t vaccinated, I’d have easily dispelled them.”

            The draugr’s eyes widened, “How…how did you learn such powerful magic?”

            “Because it isn’t powerful by today’s standards. You’ve been hiding in a crypt for a thousand years. Magic evolved since then. You trying to beat me with magic is like a guy with a spear trying to take out a nuclear submarine.”

            “Then why don’t you come here and fist fight me like a real man?” it challenged him.

            “Wait just a moment,” Erik slammed his axe into the draugr’s unarmed hands, cutting them off. “Alright, Haru, punch the shit out of this guy.”

            “Damn you…I’m lucky that I don’t feel pain,” the draugr groaned.

            “Let’s bring him back now,” the vampire chuckled. “We don’t want his friends to find us here, after all.”

Later, in the beach house, they had the draugr on a chair. He was tied up just in case he had another trick up his sleeve.

            The draugr said, “I’m not talking. There’s nothing you can do to make me.”

            “Hey, boy, I don’t suppose that you have any mind control spells or anything?” Beauregard asked.

            Haru answered, “I don’t.”

            “That’s a gosh-darn shame, it is. That thing doesn’t feel pain.”

            “He was lying when it said it didn’t feel pain,” Erik spoke. “That was a bluff.”

            “Hah! If I didn’t feel pain, I’d be crying right now, wouldn’t I?” the draugr smirked.

            The vampire stated, “You don’t feel pain from most things; however, there are some things that will make you cry in agony.”

            He pulled out a lighter and flicked it on. The draugr flinched.

Another smile came over its face, “You’re bluffing. The morals of your allies wouldn’t allow you to torture me.”

“Ummm…are you?” Keiko got worried.

One look at her face told everyone that she was against it. Haru was uncomfortable as well.

“Hahahaha!” the draugr burst out laughing. “See? Your comrades won’t allow it!”

“Alright,” Erik said. “Then I’ll just kill you.”

He replied, “If you kill me, you won’t get any information.”

“There are other draugr out there. I’m sure one of them will give me what I want.”

“My comrades will never give in. We’re Norse, after all!” the draugr spoke.

Erik smirked, “I’m Norse too. I went viking with many parties and fought in many wars. Let me tell you, you’re overestimating our courage in the face of death.”

He placed a sword at the draugr’s neck.

“Fine! I’ll tell you,” the draugr nodded. “What do you want to know?”

“Who are you working with? How many of them are there? Where are they located?”

“We don’t have any one location, just the sea in general. I’m part of an alliance of yokai and Norse monsters. Our leaders are a snake woman and a nokken. I don’t know our exact numbers, but there are a lot of us.”

“What supernatural creatures are among your rank?” Erik asked.

He answered, “I don’t know the names of the Japanese ones, but there are turtle things, a giant sea human, some wet woman, and a bunch of other water monsters I didn’t get a good look at. We have a kraken on our end.”

“I see. No further questions.”

“Then you’ll let me live, right?” the draugr spoke.

Erik said, “How many people that you attacked begged for mercy?”

“A lot of them,” he replied

“Did you grant it?” the vampire asked.

His prisoner answered, “Why would I grant anyone mercy?”

“And my conscience is assuaged!” Erik cut the draugr’s head off in a single strike. “Those without mercy deserve none.”

Erik stood in front of everyone in a crowded room. A wall of weapons was at his back as he looked down at a map. He pulled out a pen and started drawing.

            “We are here and most of the draugr sightings are in this area,” Erik drew a circle around their place and a line to where the sightings were. “What we need to do is find an isolated one and attack it. Our goal is to capture, not to kill.”

            “Capturing a powerful undead…that can’t be easy,” Keiko said.

            He replied, “You’re right. That’s why we need make sure it’s alone. With our numbers, we could easily kill a draugr; however, we need to keep a captured one from running and have to stop it from using its magic. They can have shape shifting, curses, fire breath, and even weather control.”

            Haru asked, “How do people normally deal with them?”

            “They don’t. Draugr don’t leave their crypts often, so they’re usually not a problem,” Erik answered.

            “Still, they’re undead. They should be weak to fire.”

            Keiko wondered, “Do you have fire magic?”

            “I do,” Haru nodded.

            “Fire might be too effective,” Erik pointed out. “We need to interrogate the draugr. If its body is turned to ash, we can’t do that.”

            “I can call in my demon servant if I have to,” Keiko stated.

            Hisa said, “Then what can I do?”

            “You can use your fox fire and fight with a weapon. Pick one from the wall behind me,” Erik replied. “Us vampires will fight with weapons ourselves.”

            The kitsune ran over and grabbed a massive two-handed sword. Hisa’s arm strained, struggling to even lift it up.

            “Maybe you should try this instead?” the vampire grabbed a spear and handed it to her.

            “No way!” Hisa scoffed. “Cutting weapons are better against undead than thrusting weapons, right?”

            Erik said, “They are, so why not this?”

            He pulled out a two-handed axe and handed it to her. Hisa took it and gave it a practice swing. She went spinning like a top. Erik jumped down to the floor.

            “Get down!”

            Everyone dropped as Hisa spun the axe over their heads.

            “Someone help me! I can’t stop!” she shouted.

            “Let go of the axe,” Keiko said.

            Hisa did. The weapon went flying into a wall, crashing through it. Debris and rubble fell down as the axe embedded itself in a tv in the next room. Erik jumped up, grabbed a spear, and forced it into her hands.

            He ordered, “You. Are. Using. This. No. Arguing.”

Night fell, and a blanket of darkness covered the world. The group crept through the city. Any noise could give them away, not just to their enemies but to normal people as well. Erik and Hisa both had polearms, with Erik having a two-handed axe. That alone could easily draw others’ attention, much less the swords Beauregard and Lenora were carrying.

            “Hold on a cotton picking minute!” fear blasted through Beauregard.

            Haru asked, “What is it? Did you see something?”

            “He didn’t see anything,” Erik answered. “He’s interrupted us for something stupid.”

            Beauregard objected, “It ain’t stupid, master Erik. Are there any female draugr?”

            “Most draugr are undead warriors, and most warriors are men,” the older vampire told him. “But shieldmaidens did exist. They were rare but I met a few myself, so there are some female draugr.”

            “This could be bad. I can’t hit a woman,” Beauregard said.

Erik replied, “Then use your sword.”

“But master Erik…”

Before he could say another word, Erik’s fist slammed into him. Beauregard crashed into a stone wall on the other side of the road.

“You damn idiot!” Erik spoke. “You’re fighting undead! If it’s a woman, throw your bastardized chivalry in the toilet where it belongs.”

“Umm, master Erik,” Lenora was worried. “Will I have to fight too?”

“I wouldn’t bring you along if you didn’t.”

“But I can’t fight. I’m a proper lady,” she stated.

Erik went behind her, wrapped his arms around her waist, and suplexed her into the concrete sidewalk.

“You’re a fucking vampire! Do lionesses worry about fighting because they’re proper ladies?”

He stood up and groaned, “I swear to fucking Odin. If I have to have this conversation with you idiots one more time…”

“Erik,” Keiko said. “We should probably get out of here.”

“What do you mean?”

She pointed. Lights were turning on in houses. Erik slapped his forehead.

            “Dammit! My shouting woke people up! I swear, if it weren’t for me, those idiots would be dead and I’d have a lot less trouble…never mind, let’s get out of here before anyone comes outside.”

The ocean was a black abyss with the moon shining over it. Waves battered the shore, spraying water onto the group. A chill wind ran through the air and over them.

            “This place is creepy at night,” Keiko stated.

            Haru said, “I can sense it, the presence of magic.”

            “You can sense magic?” Hisa smiled. “That’s awesome!”

            “Not tonight. It’s suffocating,” he told them. “I’m not even trying to sense it, and I can feel it crushing me.”

            Erik grit his teeth, “A lot of spells must have been cast here, possibly ones with long-term effects on the area. Even if we win, this city might be permanently damaged.”

            Keiko spoke, “Hang on, Haru, why couldn’t you sense it earlier today?”

            “Some spells are stronger at night, or they might be casting powerful spells right now,” Haru explained.

            Water parted and a man walked out of the sea. He was the size of an ox with wet hair and blue skin. His face was decayed. The foul smell of rot permeated the air. There was a suit of mail on his body. A helmet hung across his head while his long-nailed hands grasped a rusty sword and a rotting shield.

            “You’ve arrived sooner than I expected, draugr,” Erik said.

            The walking corpse took another step forward and stopped, still in the water.

            “Don’t think I couldn’t smell you, vampire. Your kind reeks of blood,” it stated.

            Erik replied, “Then you came in response to me?”

            “Yes,” the draugr smiled. “You must be here to join me, vampire, to make humanity submit to us.”

            “I have no interest in that. Submission of humanity means submission of my homeland.”

            It cringed, “And you’re still loyal to a place ruled by humans?”

            “My friend’s legacy is there,” Erik said. “Besides, I helped it quite a bit. It’s not something I’m willing to see destroyed.”

            “Then leave now. You have no business here,” the draugr spat.

            “But I do have business. You’re coming with us.”

            “And why should I do that?” it asked.

            Erik answered, “Because if you don’t, we’ll make you.”

            “Go ahead and try,” the draugr laughed. “I’m here in the water! I can just go deeper, and I have an advantage in the sea.”

            “You will come over to us,” the vampire replied.

            It said, “You can’t make me. Nothing you say or do will get me to come onto land to face you.”

            Erik reached inside his mind and pulled out the worst insult he could possibly think of, “I bet a troll used you as a woman.”

            “You absolute fucking cunt!” the draugr charged. “I’m gonna kick your ass!”

Haru, Keiko, and Hisa felt sand beneath their feet as they walked down the beach and towards the ocean. A cool breeze flowed across them, partially offset the sun’s glaring heat. They stopped in their tracks.

            Haru said, “There’s no one here.”

            “At this time of the year,” Keiko spoke. “The beach should be crowded.”

            “Something’s going on. We might be under attack,” he stated.

            She nodded and reached into the box, pulling out her kanabo.

A figure walked down the beach towards them. It was a boy wearing layers of black onmyoji robes. He halted in front of the group.

            “The beach is vacant because I arranged it,” the boy told them. “I don’t want anyone to try to stop your destruction, bakemono.”

            “Hey! I didn’t do anything!” Hisa objected.

            “Not you, him,” he pointed at Haru.

            “There’s a misunderstanding,” the witch held up his hands. “I’m not a bakemono or yokai.”

            “You are the most harmful type of bakemono! And to think, that you have those other two yokai under your mind control,” the boy declared, reaching for his hanafuda paper. “Prepare to face the wrath of my shikigami! Kyu kyu nyo…”

            “Dropkick!” a voice broke in.

            “…dropkick ritsu, what?”

            Hisa jumped into the air, forcefully thrusting her legs at him. They slammed into the boy’s face. He fell backwards into the sand.

            “Score one for the kitsune!” she declared.

            The boy stood up, brushing himself off, “You’re faster than I thought.”

            “How did you withstand that?” Hisa was shocked. “That was hella my most powerful attack!”

            “You’re not very strong,” he shrugged.

            Haru whispered to Keiko, “Do you know who this guy is?”

            “Yes, Kamo Saburo. He’s in our class. I guess he was busy with his own things and didn’t pay attention to you.”

            Hisa shouted, “I’m not weak, and I’ll prove it! See that rock over there?”

            It was the size of a basketball.

            “I see it,” Saburo stated.

            “Check this out. I’ll totally lift this rock and kick your ass with it!” the kitsune declared.

            She ran over to the rock and tried to pick it up. Her arms strained, and her face scrunched up. It didn’t budge.

            “Dammit!” Hisa groaned. “This rock is totally bogus.”

            Saburo raised his hanafuda paper, “An opening! My shikigami will destroy that man and free you. Kyu kyu…”

            Before he could speak further, Saburo collapsed onto the ground.

            “Yes! My attack worked!” Hisa pumped her fist.

            Haru walked over to him and examined his head, “It didn’t. He’s covered in sweat. I think he’s suffering from the heat.”

            “Of course I am,” Saburo said. “It’s hot out here.”

            Nodding, Haru poured some water on his face and gave him a drink of it.

            “Why…are you helping me?” the onmyoji was confused.

            “Because I’m not what you think I am,” Haru stated. “I’ll explain things, but I have a question for you first.”

            “What is that?”

            “Why did you think going to a beach where it’s incredibly hot out in the middle of day wearing black robes was a good idea?”

            Saburo winced, “I thought it would look cool.”

The group moved into the shade of a nearby tree. Saburo was soaking wet from the buckets of water he had dumped on his head. He pondered their explanation.

            Saburo said, “I’m not sure if I trust you just yet, but that sounds like a pretty terrible curse. It explains a lot of my reaction too.”

            “So, what’s an onmyoji like you doing out here?” Keiko asked, thinking she knew what the answer would be.

            “There’s been a surge in yokai attacks here,” Saburo told them. “I was sent to investigate.”

            Hisa grinned, “That’s totally awesome! We’re here to investigate it too.”

            “I see. You’re allies of humanity, if you’re telling the truth,” he nodded.

            “Allies of humanity?” Haru burst out laughing. “Humanity can go fuck itself for all I care. I’m here as a favor to a friend.”

            “Then I can trust you even less,” Saburo glared.

            “I don’t give a shit if you trust me or not. You’ll figure things out eventually, so I have no reason to try to kiss your ass.”

            “Haru-kun,” Keiko grabbed his shoulder. “Please, there’s no reason to make him angry.”

            He took a deep breath, “You’re right, Keiko-chan. Sorry that I blew up like that, Saburo.”

            “Don’t worry about that,” the boy replied. “I know where you stand now. You are not my ally, but we might have a common enemy.”

            “Well, the onmyoji sent you here, so you must be one of the best,” Hisa smiled.

            Saburo’s face reddened, “Umm, I’m not actually one of the best.”

            “Ooh,” she nodded. “Then you’re totally one of the second best.”

            “No.”

            “Then you’re mediocre, right?”

            “I’m even below that,” he admitted. “I’m actually still in training.”

            Hisa asked, “Then what the hell did they send you and not someone better?”

            “All the trained onmyoji were busy, and they thought the yokai activity wouldn’t be hard, so they sent me,” Saburo stated.

            Haru said, “I wouldn’t be so sure about that. There are draugr in this area, too.”

            “Draugr? I’ve never heard of those.”

            “What? Why not?” Keiko wondered.

            “Because he’s a yokai specialist,” Haru spoke. “No spellcaster is better against yokai than onmyoji; however, specialists have their downsides too. They may have difficulty outside of their chosen field.”

            Saburo sighed, “Could you stop giving her exposition about onmyoji and give me exposition about draugr?”

            “They’re a type of undead from Scandinavia,” Keiko explained.

            “From Scandinavia? What are they doing in Japan?”

            “That’s what we’re trying to find out,” she said.

            “This is very troublesome. I was sent here to deal with kappa attacks,” Saburo pulled out his phone. “I’ll call my superiors to get their advice.”

            He held the phone to his ear. Saburo was about to speak when a voice blasted out of it.

            “YOU SUCK!”

Saburo dropped the phone and grabbed his ear.

            He redialed, “Goro! I know that’s you! Don’t make me kick your ass when I get back.”

            The sound of a toiled flushing came from the phone before it hung up.

            “Who was that?” Hisa asked.

            “My dreaded rival, Shang Goro. Well, he thinks he’s my rival, but he’s pretty stupid and just has innate talent as an onmyoji. Without intelligence to continue his training, there’s only so far he can go and I will easily surpass him. I have no clue how he got on the phone line,” Saburo explained. “It’s for emergencies only.”

            Haru said, “Well, we’ll leave you to your investigation. You can probably handle yokai better than I can, so we’ll do our own thing.”

            “That is for the best,” he nodded. “I still don’t trust you.”

Erik picked up his cell phone.

            “Hello?”

            Keiko spoke, “Erik…umm, Kenji, right?”

            “Yes,” he replied. “That is my cover name.”

            “There’s an onmyoji here. Yokai have been attacking people,” she explained.

            “Yokai…” Erik pondered. “That adds to the mystery. Do you think he mistook the draugr for yokai?”

            “No. They found some kappa here, not any undead.”

            The viking vampire said, “An attack of yokai could be very dangerous if they’re connected to the draugr. Get back here at once. I don’t want any of us to be separate.”

            “Right, I’ll tell the others.”

            As he hung up, Erik looked at the weapons he had gathered: swords, spears, axes, and even armor and shields. If there were yokai and draugr, they may need many of them.

            A smile crept across his face, “A true battle may be brewing. It has been too long.”