Archive of Our Own ^beta

She's a girl who looks like she's barely sixteen. Her eyes are swirling shades of violet and lavender. Long, voluminous, scarlet curls trail down her back. She is dressed in all the colours of a sunset and a sunrise. She is a goddess of new and a goddess of old.

Her name is Hiryuu and she is the Goddess of the Sun, of Compassion, of Courage.

She's been reborn, they tell her. Won't say what happened to the old her or what happened to her Shinki. She grows and learns, explores and trusts. Soon she has friends with other gods and is looking for a Shinki all her own with Lilli at her side. That's when she finds her first.

A faded blue tuft of fuzzy light floating beside an intersection. There's actually five lights and both goddesses try to ignore the marker with five names etched into it. Lilli instructs Ayura to pull back to the rooftop nearby before asking her two Shinki to revert and sit with her. She smiles softly at the tiger Shinki and dagger Shinki. Tetora waves at her from their perch.

Then she turns to face them and feels her heart melt. So it begins...

"Yoki..." Tae-Yeon.

Flashes of three older boys and an older man in various scenes curl across her mind's eye. A bright eyed, little blond boy with a big smile flickers by before vanishing. She bites her lip, he was only six. He curls around her neck in the form of a soft blue scarf made of the comfiest materials. She smiles as she hears giggles brushing against her mind.

"Teki..." Tae-Woo.

A dark haired boy with a serious expression shimmers into view. His dark eyes shuttered. The blond from before, now named Han-Dae, is shown with his arm over the other's shoulders. An unfamiliar look on their faces. A soccer field, a winning goal, a winning score. He's a sleek, coal black stallion and snorts with confusion.

"Daki..." Han-Dae.

Another blond boy shutters across and she sees a track team, a dark haired boy smiling, and feels the warmth of some unknown-to-her emotion. Golden yellow with darkened spots and a sleek body. A cheetah, he purrs as she smiles. So far so good, she thinks.

"Deki..." Mundeok.

An accident as a teenager, two boys covered in dirt with watery eyes, a baby on his doorstep; memories that aren't hers bring tears to her eyes. An old, white, yet still strong lion materializes before her. His grumbles brush her mind as his form mews. She giggles again before preparing herself for the last one.

"Teki..." Hak.

A black haired boy standing in front of a smaller boy, glittering blue eyes filled with amusement as he practices kendo, standing proud as he attends his brothers' games. She smiles before her eyes widen. He's  smooth in her hand but worn, heavy on her back but she feels the fraying. A bow and quiver, she hums to herself.

"That's a lot of animals," Lilli calls, her blue dress fluttering around her waist and her long ebony hair floating on the playful breeze. Ayura laughs, an excited look on her face. Tetora looks, understandably, cautious. She laughs in joy before calling their names.

"Yeon."

He's small, as he should be. His blond hair is everywhere, reminding her of a dandelion. His eyes are the colour of the sky on a cloudless, summer day and filled with wonder. He smiles when he sees her and she ruffles his hair. His fingers grip her sleeve and she leaves her hand there.

"Dae."

Lanky in all the ways boys are when they're in their teens but confident with his limbs. Equally as blond but more unruly, more wind blown. His eyes are brown like warm chocolate and there are freckles sprinkled across his face. He smiles at her easily and she finds herself smiling back far too quickly. His eyes wander to the others soon enough and she turns her attention back to them.

"Woo."

Short hair as black as his coat and blue eyes as serious as his memories told her they would be. Shorter than Han-Dae but not as lanky; he seems to curl in on himself, a regular wallflower. He meets her eyes briefly and she sees his confusion rather than just feeling it. The nod of his head is small and quick. She takes pity on him and moves on.

"Mun."

He's, by far, the tallest and broadest of her new Shinki. His presence is commanding but his face is gentle and kind. There's a scar across his left eye.  She makes a mental note to get him an eye patch soon, his discomfort travelling to her instantly through their connection. He bows to her before straightening his back with a straight face.

"Haku."

He's tall, but not as tall as Mundeok. He's broad shouldered as well. Dark hair and dark eyes like Tae-Woo, she realizes that they're the brothers she'd seen in those memories. He smirks at her but bows all the same. Things will be interesting with this motley crew, that's for sure.

They all call her 'Himi-sama' but it's Hak who gives her a name that she cherishes. One that none of her follow will call Yona they call her and she smiles like the sun she makes rise every morning.

Lilli is far from the scene, from the city, when disaster strikes. As the goddess of the Moon (of Peace, of Harmony) is busy preparing for her festival. So when Soo-Won (the Two Faced God) reveals his betrayal of her, she is ill prepared for what follows. It's a fight that's not long but has been a long time coming. She goes into battle with only one Shinki.

Her heart shatters when he does. Her voice screams along with him. Then his broken pieces are floating around her. They're glowing, glowing, glowing. Then he's returning to her hand.

Dark, smooth wood with silver and black inlaid designs. He fits in her hand like he always has. Dark, soft leather with silver and blue threaded designs. He rests against her back as light as always. She feels his smirk as it curls across his face.

She readies herself and then-

Fires the ending shot.

(It hits it's mark and the Two Faced God retreats at his Shinki's suggestion.)

She leaves as well at her Blessed one's suggestion.

Lilli's apologies are met with a sunny smile and soft 'I handled it'.

She doesn't like to dwell on their ages. It's not particularly painful of a thought until her eyes catch them doing something so very human. Her heart skips a beat and her stomach fills with unease.

Tae-Yeon was six.

Han-Dae and Tae-Woo were seventeen.

Hak was eighteen.

Mundeok was in his fifties.

They died in a car crash. A head on collision that killed two instantly and three slowly.

Mundeok is reading a story to Tae-Yeon. Han-Dae and Tae-Woo are curled up together in a chair, Tae-Woo's head resting against Han-Dae's shoulder while he reads. Hak has taken over the table, flipping through various books and writing down notes. They all look so human in that moment. She feels a moment of grief at their loss of life.

They're on their way for their meeting with Ik-Soo. The God of Scholars, Family, Neighborly Kindness, and Omens is as busy as usual. His temple is bustling with Near Shore people coming to pray and leave wishes. Ik-Soo has three Shinki that she has seen but isn't concerned with them at the moment. Something else has caught her attention.

Hak had warned her about this. Not paying enough attention to her surroundings was going to get someone hurt. To add insult to injury, this time a Near Shore boy was the victim. Sitting on the sidewalk, in front of Ik-Soo's temple is the boy. His body is lying in the street in front of the car that hit him. He hasn't noticed that he didn't make it across in one piece yet.

She has to break the news to him.

He freaks out like Mundeok had expected (freaks out more about the lion standing behind him, his peach hued tail puffed out and thrashing). He passes out soon enough, returns to his body. She asks Tae-Woo to remind her to check on him later, the horse nods his head. Tae-Yeon mumbles little worries for the boy while Hak and Han-Dae whisper little comforts to the boy.

The rest of the visit at the shrine goes off without a hitch. Ik-Soo and his Shinki invite her back next month. She notices all three Shinki mingling with her own. Smiles with Ik-Soo at them all getting along.

(Guen is sharing fighting styles with Mundeok and Han-Dae. The bear Shinki waves his arms as he speaks and laughs at the things Mundeok points out. Shuten and Hak seem to be speaking conspiratorially. She wonders if they're talking weapons or wine. Then decides weapons due to their shared territory as weapon Shinki. Abi has Tae-Yeon on her lap while she speaks with Tae-Woo.)

The boy who tried to save her is now a half-phantom. His name is Yun and his hair matches his tail while his eyes are the colour of ocean water on a sunny, summer day. He becomes a constant in their lives. She likes to think of him as her best friend, more so than even Lilli or Ik-Soo are and they've known her for centuries. He practically lives at her shrine and mother hens them all at every moment.

She learns he is homeless and sets out to find him a family. She hopes she can find one before winter or else she will have another set of memories to seize her heart.

Yun is not with them this time and she finds herself glad. She didn't want to worry for his safety while running her rounds. Hak's grumbling curls against her mind and she laughs. He's unhappy with her naming another soul, taking another Shinki. She knows he's not really annoyed though. It's all an act to make him look tough.

A patch of white asters curl around the base of a weeping willow. The soul appears to weave it's way through the branches and leaves. Hak makes a comment about a snake to her and she ignores it along with the foreshadowing feeling that comes with it. It's got a soft, white glow that reminds her of a snowflake. She begins the process, calling out to him and writing his name.

"Kiki..." Kija.

A flash of a group of men, a portrait of his father and brothers. A young man with silvery hair bent over a desk, writing away at journal after journal. The father yelling at the boy, throwing his journals all around the room. An accident, three long scars across his back. Her hands are enveloped in light before being covered in soft white gloves. Hak laughs till Kija urges her to try him out, to hit something.

She does and Hak laughs again when a crater is formed in the wall.

"Ja."

He's shorter and thinner than Hak, but no less strong looking. He bows respectfully and murmurs his thanks. Hak greets him and teasingly calls him 'White Snake'. Thus beginning a friendly rivalry between the two. She's happy to see him accepted to quickly, so easily (too easily).

Kija's wild cornflower eyes are wide with awe when they return to her shrine. He seems enamored with it all. The others come to greet him and soon, she is left to her own thoughts. Her heart clenches in that familiar way again.

Kija was twenty.

His father killed him.

He's a member of the family easily enough. A hundred years younger than them but they do not know nor care. Kija finds himself enjoying the art of decorating. He immerses himself in the task and keeps her mansion up to date with current décor. It's brings her joy to see his joy.

She doesn't hit much trouble via other gods for a while. Hak sighs his relief into her ear, across her mind as they patrol their sectors. Ik-Soo's omens give them hints but not many. She'll have to seek out Tae-Jun and his brother, Kyo-Ga, soon. If anyone could tell her where the next storms will be, it'd be the god of disasters. Hak jokes that she should have had that title instead of Kyo-Ga. She tells him to hush.

It's months later when she agrees with him. Tells him that maybe he was right. He tells her to hush and her other Shinki rally around her as well.

Before she even can think of visiting the Kan Brothers, she stumbles upon another one. Tae-Woo asks her if she's going to add him to their family and Tae-Yeon makes a begging noise. She merely nods and ignores Yun asking her what she's doing.

He's a soft green and looks like a leaf on the wind. She smells hyacinth flowers on the wind and smiles sweetly as she writes his name. She sees a man and feels fear, a elderly woman and feels safe. A guitar in a corner, a music class, and sees children gathering around a tree in a school yard. She sees a college and a concert.

"Jeki..." Jae-Ha.

The bright light is familiar to her but the sudden boost is not. Her legs from the knee down around wrapped in white and the slight heel is what is boosting her height. Boots, white in colour with grey designs, adorn her feet. Kija and Tae-Yeon hum, pleased with another Shinki who is like them.

"Ha."

Long green hair falls into orchid eyes and there's a smirk on his face. He bows as well, but with more flourish. He speaks with a flirty lilt to her, Hak's hackles raise along with Kija's. The pair quickly attempt to put him in his place and educate him at the same time. Jae-Ha just laughs, flirts with Kija, and apologizes to her.

Jae-Ha was twenty-five.

He was killed by a mugger on his way home after his college's concert. He had two months left before he graduated.

It's days later when she hears it. Jae-Ha has a nickname via Hak, just like Kija. Droopy Eyes, she hears. She laughs quietly to herself and moves on. There's no ill will among her Shinki, so there is no reason to worry.

She pretends to not notice when her Shinki have developed relationships with one another. Preferring to have them come to her and tell her in their own time, their own ways. So if she turns the corner to see Jae-Ha pecking Kija on the cheek, she pretends to be too engrossed in the papers in her hands. It happens enough that they decide to come to her. She laughs when they look shamed and congratulates them.

Han-Dae asks her for permission to court his fellow Shinki. She gives it readily and sits back to observe. For all his extra attention and efforts, Han-Dae's attempts go unnoticed. Not completely his fault when he who hold his affections is oblivious. Not one to continue to beat around the bush when the bush isn't noticing, Han-Dae goes for the obvious and she just giggles at the reaction.

(There's a wrestling match, a pinning move, and a sudden kiss. Midnight skies widen in surprise and hot chocolate mugs warm with happiness. Later she finds them curled around each other. One asleep while the other reads and there's a smile shared.)

Blond hair the colour of gold and eyes that are as clear blue as Lilli's waters. His smile shines like gold and he embodies sunshine. The fact that he walks into her shrine to ask to be her Shinki is surprising. It also means he's been previously claimed. He tells her that he wishes to protect a goddess as fair and wonderful as herself, nothing more. So she trusts him.

"Zeki..." Zeno.

She gasps at the memories that assault her but says nothing more. Cool metal that shimmers like the sun wraps around her. Armour the colour of gold with a deep red skirt and a blushing pink top. He giggles at her awe and excitement. The others nod their agreement and awe ready to welcome a new one into their fold.

"Zen."

Once again he stands before them with a smile. It's seconds before her youngest has him in a hug and her eldest is patting his back. The other come in and are all speaking in low murmurs.

His thank you is felt against her mind and envelopes her like a warm blanket. She relaxes and watches them welcome him.

Zeno was seventeen when he died but that was two centuries ago.

His first master was her first incarnation and her heart aches for him. She vaguely remembers seeing his death before, feels the déjà vu.

Zeno was an altar boy centuries ago who was sacrificed to Hiryuu.

Yun gripes about Zeno almost constantly. The eldest blond sticks to the half-phantom's side like he was stuck there with glue. She knows he knows something, can feel his unease and the sense of fore bonding. She doesn't confront him about it. Mostly because she doesn't need to.

He tells her what she fears. What she's felt since he sought her out all those months ago.

If Yun stays tied to her, he won't find a family who will take him in. The winter will come in with a force to be reckoned with and take him. It's what she feared and what none of them want.

She begins weighing her options, seeks out advice from someone who could help her.

The answer isn't one she wants to hear.

They decide to focus on battling akayashi and ignoring the painful truth. Well not necessarily decided, more like had to. They're coming out of the wood works and it's all they can do to keep up with them.

She sees him hovering around the top of an Sakura tree. There is no thinking just action and she's claiming him. Her knees give at this one's onslaught of memories.

Abuse ran rampant through them, yet there's so much beauty in what he did. Doodles, drawings, paintings, and they're all so beautiful. No mother to be seen, no siblings to be played with, no father to learn from. Foster family to foster family, abusive to neglected. She's amazed he lived to so long and stayed so pure.

"Hiki..." Shin-ah.

The sudden prick at her ears startles her but it quickly diminishes. A pair of earrings that dangle from her ears. Sleek, thin silver chains hang from the hooks. Three chains per hook, each have two or three heather flowers adorning them. White and lavender, small and filled with meaning.

His voice is soft when he warns her of the akayashi behind them. A quick shot with Teki and it's gone. Another quiet notification from her new Shinki that tells her the area is now cleansed of its darkness.

"Shin."

He's as tall and broad as Hak. They could easily be brothers (if not for obvious differences). His hair is so light and so blue it could blend with the sky, but it's not the feature that catches her attention. Glittering gold coin hued eyes look at her nervously, yet it's still not what causes her breath to catch in her throat. He's covered in scars. Inflictions upon his body that hurt his soul but never tainted it. There's red gash like marks on his cheeks and several other marks that draw her eye to their existence on his exposed skin.

He bows to her but remains quiet. The others, those who are present, welcome him readily and easily. She smiles at him and sees his eyes return the gesture.

Shin-ah was eighteen.

He was beaten to death by his last foster family.

Things go on smoothly for a while after that. Zeno and Yun bicker like always. Han-Dae continues to romance Tae-Woo, despite having already won the affections of the ebony. Kija continues to redecorate with the passing seasons, Jae-Ha throws himself into reinventing her wardrobe with things of beauty. Mundeok teaches Tae-Yeon all the things he'd have learned and needs to learn. Hak and Shin-ah take it upon themselves to ensure everything else is in tiptop shape. (And when they aren't doing that, they're found relaxing in one another's company. Thick as thieves those two.)

That's when it hits her for the first time in this life.

B l i g h t .

It's a sharp pain at her nape and then a dull aching, itchy purple rash. It starts at her nape, the itch. One of her Shinki has committed a sin. She can't tell which, but feels disoriented by the feeling. She's been alive in this life for a few hundred years and doesn't remember this pain except for brief flashes of déjà vu (of blonde hair falling over watery blue eyes while a voice brokenly sobs out apologies that were way too late in reaching her ears).

She says nothing about it. Let's it go and moves on. It'll go away in it's own time.

It's days later, the earliest signs of fall are around them. She's yet to enjoy the colour, her mind is elsewhere. The sting happens again, more than once. Then Tae-Yeon is asking a question she'd never thought would be voiced. He steals her attention as effortlessly as always.

"Himi-sama, what do you consider sins?"

He's breathless in the way children are when they are filled to the brim with endless curiosity and wonder.

"Thinking ill of one's self."

She doesn't think about it so much as blurts it out the moment it comes to mind. It's her only sin that's not particularly like any other god's.

"That one is special to me. There are other sins, basic ones. Like Stealing for no reason or Killing in cold blood."

She speaks easily. Thinks that maybe she should get Hak to sit Tae-Woo down and write up a scroll of what their Goddess considers a sin. (Tae-Woo has the prettiest handwriting, much to his embarrassment.)

Hak discovers it when it's spread across her shoulders to the point where it hurts to use him. The strap of the quiver digs into the tender flesh and it pains her terribly. He confronts her after she goes out for a week without him. She confides in him.

As her Guide Post and Blessed Regalia, Hak takes his job seriously. So he searches all the Shinki for blemishes, privately so as not to embarrass them. When he returns to her study that night, the offender in tow. She feels like she knew it was coming. Her guilt is palpable in the air.

Shin-ah refuses to look up from the rug on the floor. She dismisses Hak with a look and a wave of her hand. (He leaves with a frown. She knows he will be standing guard outside the door.) Her legs bring her to her full height and her feet move her to stand in front of him. Her heart clenches at the sight of him.

Eyes closed tightly against the ocean that's still sliding free of them. Teeth biting harshly at his bottom lip and he's shaking like a leaf in a hurricane. Fingertips on his chin startle him into looking at her with wide, watery eyes. He makes an upset noise, soft spoken as ever.

"I'm not mad at you."

She speaks only the truth whenever possible. Now is no exception.

"I'm not giving up on you either."

He stares at her like she's got two heads. Like what she said was Greek.

"We can fix this together. All you need to do is apologize for your sin."

He says nothing for a moment that's measured in heartbeats instead of minutes. Then...

"I am sorry for thinking ill of myself."

Just like that it's fixed. Except it's not. The confusion is there, in his tone of voice and the inflections of its whispery ways.

So she asks him to sit on the couch, asks Hak to bring them some tea, and explains it all to him.

It's still the beginning of Autumn when she has to head to the Heavens. She must go meet with the Kan Brothers. Kyo-Ga, the God of Disaster, of Poverty, of Accidents needs to tell her where the next vents will be opening. The storms are happening to frequently for Lilli and herself to keep up. The visit is not successful.

Kyo-Ga refuses to tell them anything. Tae-Jun mumbles something about Soo-Won and they know. The eldest brother sides with the Two-Faced one. The younger is neutral for all he tries to be but his adoration for the Sun Goddess is well known and not easily swayed.

They leave the Kan residence unsuccessful but with knowledge of a defection and an ally.

Soo-Won returns with a vengeance that she's never seen before and is ill prepared to face. Lilli and Ik-Soo rally at her side, together with their Shinki they fight him. A miraculous event happens in the middle of battle. Ayura's blade is shattered, but she reassembles as a sword and becomes Lilli's own Blessed Regalia. It pushes the win in their favour.

Ik-Soo's Guen is fighting with all his might alongside Mundeok. Together the white bear and aged lion push back the enemy's python. Guen is injured severely though and is eventually called back so that Han-Dae can assist Mundeok. Shuten takes many a hit to his hilt and the cracks begin to become breaks. Ik-Soo withdraws to direct the battle with Abi coaching him till she's shot from the sky. An enemy arrow straight to the side.

They won the battle, but the casualties are high. Guen is panting hard and Ik-Soo reverts him just in time to say goodbye to the silvery haired man before he fades away. Shuten's revert is more painful for both and the shark toothed, emerald haired man thanks Ik-Soo before he follows Guen into the abyss. Abi is the only survivor, but something in Ik-Soo's expression tells the young goddesses that she won't last much longer.

It's a week later when they find out that Abi's grief is ultimately what causes her to trail after her brethren.

The next time she sees Ik-Soo, he has three new Shinki. They resemble their predecessors in many ways. Ik-Soo merely smiles and introduces them to her.

"This is Ao, Garou, and Hiroki."

It's years later that she sees them. Their reincarnations to be exact. Abi's a successful business woman who coincidentally married Shuten, the local college's English professor. Guen runs a boot camp for troubled youths, but is friends with the two who he used to fight alongside. She smiles at the scene of three friends sharing lunch. Later she tells Ik-Soo about them and he smiles with all the pride of a father.

Autumn turns into winter and she doesn't realise it till they return from the Heavens. Winter is in full affect by then. Her heart fills with dread when she can't find Yun anywhere. Slowly grief takes hold of her with icy talons. She sobs for days over her lack of attention.

That's when Lilli visits her, Ayura and Tetora in tow. Her whole household has been in grieving. The sun hasn't been as bright, the world tries to grieve with her. They drag them all, her and her Shinki, out of the shrine. Road trip, Ayura chirps.

Road trip indeed. They arrive at Ik-Soo's and are greeted with the scolding of a lifetime. Not from Ik-Soo but from Yun. His tail is gone and there's a mark on his arm, but he's there and he's Yun.

Ik-Soo claimed his soul when he died. Named him and has been caring for him.

Yona feels like making the sun shine again.

She is at her shrine, for once, relaxing with her Shinki. Shin-ah, Han-Dae, and Tae-Yeon are up to their elbows in dirt and plant life. Tae-Woo is curled up at her feet, his head against her knees and a sketch book resting against his thighs. She pretends to not peer over his shoulder to see what he’s drawing. Mundeok is napping (or sunning himself like the big cat he is). Hak has a book in his hand, leaning against one of the many trees in this garden. Jae-Ha and Kija are feeding the ducks that have decided to make the pond their home this spring.

Shin-ah freezes and Hak set his book down but that’s all the warning she gets before Kan Kyo-Ga and Kan Tae-Jun are waltzing into her garden. Her frown is mirrored by all her Shinki as well as Kyo-Ga and the two Shinki accompanying them. There’s a mumbled conversation that she barely picks up about Tae-Jun’s rudeness. She elects to ignore it in favor of finding out why they are there.

The Kan Brother’s visit is one of repentance. Kan Kyo-Ga apologizes for siding with the ‘wrong god’ and Kan Tae-Jun apologizes for his arrogant entrance to her shrine. There’s a few choice words shared between herself and her Blessed Regalia. Tae-Jun’s Guide Post, Huek-Chi, speaks with Hak (she presumes it ways to get his god to act the way he’s supposed to). It’s all in all a good day.

Till the Kan Brothers surprise her. By giving her Kyo-Ga’s only Shinki.

She blinks in surprise, shock. Hears the rest of them gasp, mirroring her yet again. The Shinki is released right there, in front of them all. Then they are all looking at her, expecting. So she accepts the gift and by extension, their apology.

She goes through the motions of the chant, the claim. There’s the small stretch of time where she can mentally prepare herself for what comes next. Then it begins. A mother, a father, a brother, and a sister. The father fades away after a flash of a scene of a war. The mother is next and there’s several flashes of her working, working, working. The brother is last. There’s flashes of a hospital and then the girl is there. The word Cancer sticks out like a sore thumb.

“Kaki…” Kaya.

A light is in her hand and suddenly it’s gone. Replaced by a small dagger. The blade is black while the handle is red. There’s a holster made of a smooth, tough brown leather.

“Kay.”

Standing before her is a girl no older than she is and no bigger than she is. Her hair is black and brushes her shoulders. Her eyes are such a deep, dark brown that they seem to be black. She smiles at them all sweetly.

Kaya was sixteen.

She died of cancer and as the last member of her family.

Kaya is the only girl Shinki that Yona has and she adores her. Kaya is sweet and gentle but sassy and brave. All wonderful qualities in her opinion. However, Yona discovers that she is not the only one who admires the new one. Zeno seems quite enamored with her and ironically, she with him.

It is only a matter of time before they hook up and it’s not like they don’t have plenty of that.

(Later Yun yells at her about taking in another Shinki, she just laughs and tells him that he’s cute.)

Soo-Won challenges her again and this time there’s no allowing a retreat. He wasn’t going to change in this lifetime. Thus he would need to be reincarnated. She would be the one to deliver the finishing blow on he who has given her so much grief.

There are no casualties on their side this time. They win the battle and the war. Joo-Doh is not punished for his master’s actions. Merely held till the next reincarnation comes into being and can be told to release him. He will be assigned to a different god. Kye-Sook on the other hand is punished, as his master’s Guide Post he failed. He let him go astray.

Thus when Soo-Won is reincarnated, he releases both his Shinki as he is told to. Ik-Soo takes over in the raising of the God of Chaos, of Peace, of Betrayal, of Trust.

She thinks of none of what is to come, mostly because she doesn’t care. She doesn’t pull her punches or kicks, doesn’t watch the arrow hit its mark before she’s already readying another one, doesn’t cut so much as slash. There’s enough blood on the ground to drown an elephant when he finally breathes his last breath. She watches and feels the weight lift from her shoulders.

The score has been evened.

Things settle down more and more over time. The repairs to her Shrine happen in the blink of an eye. She finds herself growing closer to her own Guide Post and eventually, allows something to begin to spark there. (It grows into a roaring flame, but that’s neither here nor there.) She watches her Shinki grow not only as people but as a family.

She smiles and thinks that things definitely got better.