“I miss my tiger spirit,” she whispered. “I miss it so much.”
“I am so sorry for that, but your tiger spirit sacrificed itself to save you,” Kyoung said. “It is important that you not betray its memory. It is important that you do all in your power to prove to your tiger spirit that its sacrifice was worth it.”
These words, more than any others, hit her hard. Her tiger spirit had sacrificed itself for Kira. She would not let its death be in vain. She might not be the Dragon Musado, but she was still her father’s daughter. And she would have her vengeance.
There would be no stopping her.
20
She was standing in an empty throne room. Her body was completely rigid. She felt the invasive presence of the daimyo in her mind. She held a dagger in her left hand and her sword in the other. The dagger was long with a black, jagged blade and whispering demon voices. From the entranceway, Taejo raced in with Jindo, Major Pak, and a retinue of soldiers.
“Quick! Lock the doors and barricade them! We must protect the prince!” Major Pak said. Kira heard the howling and banging against the doors of a demon force eager to capture the prince.
Jindo began to bark and growl, warning them all of Kira’s presence.
“Noona,” Taejo called to her. “What are you doing standing there?”
When he tried to walk to her, Jindo ran in front of him, pushing him away. He continued to bark and growl.
Kira had not moved. Her body was rigid, but her arms rose up.
Taejo’s eyes grew round with fright. Major Pak and his soldiers charged her. Kira dispatched them in short order. Cutting each soldier with the tip of the dagger, she watched as their bodies fell like blackened statues until only Major Pak and Jindo were left. The demons at the door had gone curiously quiet.
“Noona, you promised to protect me,” Taejo shouted. “You must fight it!”
There was the slightest hesitation in her step as she tried valiantly to fight off the intruder. But the daimyo’s viselike control tightened, causing her to fall down on one knee. Her head felt like it would explode in pain.
“Noona! You are fighting him! I can see that! Don’t let him win! Noona, can you hear me? Please listen to me!”
The pain increased as blood vessels exploded in her eyes and her nose. But the daimyo forced her slowly up to her feet, her arms raised again. Major Pak attacked immediately, his double sword form pushing her back. Her body reacted in perfect defense, parrying his blows with ease. Her controlled mind took over as she swiftly stabbed him in the gut with her cursed dagger.
As his dying body turned a blackish gray, Jindo rushed forward and bit down hard on her left arm. The surprise of the bite caused the control to slip. She welcomed the ache and throbbing that brought her back to herself for a moment. Again she tested the control of the daimyo, looking to break the hold. But too soon, the daimyo paralyzed her mind. He controlled her sword arm, sending it thrusting down into the white dog’s body. Taejo screamed and rushed forward, kneeling by his faithful companion’s body. He looked up at her with eyes swimming with tears. He lifted his chin proudly and waited.
With a tremendous effort Kira wrestled with the vise inside her head. Her nose started to bleed but she forced herself to form two words.
“Run, please!”
Taejo shook his head sadly.
Her mind was screaming at him. Begging him to get away.
Kira could not stop the forward movement of her left arm. Tears wet her cheeks as she thrust the dagger through his abdomen and then caught his falling body. His eyes were still on hers as they dulled with pain.
“Noona,” he whispered, and then he was gone.
It was the middle of the night when Kira woke from the nightmare, her whole body shivering in fright. Covering her head, she rocked back and forth, trying to shake off the vision.
Throwing off her covers, she got up on shaky legs and fled the room. Outside the house, she sat on the porch and let the cool night air clear her mind. The dark sky was cloudless and filled with stars. Kira stared up at the large full moon, and for a brief moment she wished she could fly far away to a place where she could never cause harm to those she loved.
Nothing had ever frightened her as much as these visions. They couldn’t be true. She wouldn’t let them come true. But how could she stop the daimyo from controlling her mind? It was inevitable that she would see him again. Kira knew this. The only way she would survive their encounter was if she could break his control. She analyzed the vision, remembering what she’d felt, those small countermovements that she was able to make against the daimyo’s will.