Izanagi (Lord)—also called Izanagi-no-Mikoto, literally “He who Invites,” the Maker God of Shima. He is a benevolent deity who, with his wife Izanami, is responsible for creating the Shima Isles, their pantheon of gods and all the life therein. After the death of his wife in childbirth, Izanagi traveled to Yomi to retrieve her soul, but failed to return her to the land of the living.
Izanami (Lady)—also called the Dark Mother, and the Endsinger, wife to Izanagi, the Maker God. Izanami died giving birth to the Shima Isles, and was consigned to dwell in the Yomi underworld. Izanagi sought to reclaim his wife, but she was corrupted by Yomi’s dark power, becoming a malevolent force and hater of the living. She is mother to the thousand and one oni, a legion of demons who exist to plague the people of Shima.
Raijin—God of Thunder and Lightning, son of Susano-ō. Raijin is seen as a cruel god, fond of chaos and random destruction. He creates thunder by pounding his drums across the sky. He is the creator of arashitora, the thunder tigers.
Susano-ō—the God of Storms. Son of Izanagi, he was born along with Amaterasu, Goddess of the Sun, and Tsukiyomi, God of the Moon, when his father returned from Yomi and washed to purify himself of Yomi’s taint. Susano-ō is generally seen as a benevolent god, but he constantly torments his sister, Amaterasu, Lady of the Sun, causing her to hide her face. He is father to the Thunder God, Raijin, the deity who created arashitora—the thunder tigers. He is patron of the Ryu zaibatsu.
Tsukiyomi—the God of the Moon. Son of Izanagi, he was born along with Amaterasu, Goddess of the Sun, and Susano-ō, God of Storms, when his father returned from Yomi and washed to purify himself of Yomi’s taint. Tsukiyomi angered his sister, Amaterasu, when he slaughtered Uke Mochi, the Goddess of Food. Amaterasu has refused to speak to him since, which is why the Sun and Moon never share the same sky. He is a quiet god, fond of stillness and learning. He is the patron of the Kitsune zaibatsu.
Yomi—the deepest level of the hells, where the evil dead are sent to rot and suffer for all eternity. Home of demons, and the Dark Mother, Lady Izanami.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Jay Kristoff would like to offer Big Scary Hugs to the following outstanding human beings:
Amanda, for just about everything.
Pete Wolverton and Julie Crisp, for giving me permission to kill my babies.
Brunch Bitch, Sharkgrrl, and The KitKat for still being on speaking terms with me after the trauma of crit-reading this screaming murderfest.
Matt Bialer and LT Ribar for breaking the right thumbs and always shooting straight.
As always, a special shout-out to the fantabulous Anne Brewer, Mary Willems, Justin Velella, Melissa Hastings, Paul Hochman, Cassie Galante, Courtney Sanks and the PR/Marketing posse at St. Martin’s Press, Bella Pagan, Louise Buckley and all @ Tor UK, Charlotte “Don’t call me Reetard” Ree, Hayley Crandell and crew @ PanMacMillan Aus, and all the ground crews in all the countries my book has visited before I did.
Scott Westerfeld, Pat Rothfuss, K. W. Jeter, Stephen Hunt, Marissa Meyer and Kevin “Droogie” Hearne for the pimpage.
Lance Hewett, Narita Misaki, Sudayama Aki and Paul Cechner for being my sounding boards and guides in all things Japanese.
Kira “Imperatritsa” Ostrovska for her help with the Rus.
My web-mastah Brad Carpenter, for not punching me in the throat every time I make a change. And to the inimitable Mr. Hart, for the crash space.
Marc, B-Money, Rafe, Weez, Surly Jim, Eli, Beiber, The Dread Pirate Glouftis, Tomas, Steve, Mini, Sam, Patrick, Lucky Phil, Dave, Handsome Tom, Xav, Snack-Daddy and all other splendid members of my nerd posse, past and present, for preventing my slow spiral into Howard Hughes-esque isolation and madness.
Dr. Sam Bowden, for advice on all things doctor-y. Yes that’s a word, shut up.
Eamon Kenny, for his help on the airwaves.
Araki Miho, once again, for her beautiful calligraphy.
Jimmy the Orrsome for our clan logos and company at all things metal, and Sir Christopher Tovo for bringing out my handsome side.
Jason Chan, again, you killed it, dude. So many beers do I owe thee.
The book bloggers—always too many to mention, never too many to remember. Your passion and energy and dedication never ceases to amaze me. You know who you are. I know who you are. Never stop being awesome.
My family for always being there. Sorry I’m not most of the time.
Anyone who made me poetry or music or artwork or helped spread the word, anyone who got a Lotus War tattoo (!!!) or came out to see me at a con or show, or wrote/tweeted/FB’ed me about the series, anyone who has accompanied me on this amazing journey, even if it was simply by visiting these pages. This series changed my life in more ways than I can describe, and for your company on this long and often lonely road, I am forever grateful.
And finally, Yukiko and Buruu, for opening the door to this, the most amazing chapter of my life. I’ll miss you guys.
The rest of you—see you in the next world. It’s a killer.
Jay Kristoff
April 2014