Jason Rohan - The Stone of Kuromori

At this, the grass parted at Kiyomi’s side and two more creatures sprang up. One flung a length of rope with a stone tied at each end, while the other leapt into the air.

Kenny watched in horror as the cord spiralled round Kiyomi’s legs, ensnaring her long enough for the second creature to land a drop kick, launching her head first over the side of the cliff and down towards the rocks far below.

With no time to think, Kiyomi’s training kicked in. Her reflexes, honed by years of practice, made her tuck her knees into her chest and close her hand on the dagger in her boot as she fell. With a single upward stroke, she slashed the binding around her legs, grabbed the loose rope in her left hand and straightened her body.

Blue sky swam far below her feet and the rocky shore was a hundred metres overhead. The lapping waves were too far away for a splash landing – but she caught sight of a stubby, thick-trunked pine clinging to the face of the cliff.

Kiyomi slung out the weighted end of the rope. The stone glanced off the trunk, rebounded and snagged on a branch, looping over it. She braced herself for the sudden, wrenching stop. The rope snapped tight, a shooting pain lanced through her arms from wrist to elbow to shoulder, and her body jerked upright, whipping towards the craggy surface of the cliff. Twisting round to face it, Kiyomi drew her legs up, slamming both soles hard against the rock. She grimaced in pain before yelling, ‘Kenny! I’m OK. Don’t do anything stupid!’

‘What? Are ye deaf ?’ squeaked the kijimunaa , squirming under Kenny’s trainer. Its eyes were crossed from staring at the sword Kenny had pressed against its throat. At the top of the cliff, the other kijimunaa stood like statues, no one daring to move.

‘See? Girly’s fine,’ said one of the spear-holders. ‘Heh-heh. No harm done.’

‘We’s just playing,’ added one of the archers.

‘Then help her back up,’ Kenny ordered. ‘And no tricks. This sword’s getting very heavy.’

The two creatures that had originally ambushed Kiyomi scurried away and returned seconds later, tugging at the sleeves of her jacket as she crested the brow of the cliff.

‘Friends now?’ the lead kijimunaa said, motioning for the others to lower their weapons.

‘Ken- chan , I’m fine,’ Kiyomi said, tipping her head from side to side and rotating her shoulder joints. ‘Arms are going to kill me in the morning, but I’ll live.’

Kenny took his foot off the little man’s chest and squatted for a better look, leaning on the sword for support. ‘Has anyone ever told you you look just like a troll doll?’

The kijimunaa clambered to his feet and bowed to Kenny. ‘Me Tomba,’ he said, smacking his chest and gesturing for the others to bow too, which they did, their long hair fanning out on the ground.

‘You guys can stop that now,’ Kenny said. ‘I get it. You’re sorry. It’s all a big misunderstanding, right?’

‘Oh, yes. Big mistake,’ Tomba agreed. He pointed at the blade in Kenny’s hand. ‘Me know this sword. Who are ye, big fella?’

‘Kenny. Uh, Kuromori.’

‘Ahhhhh,’ the kijimunaa all said together, bobbing their heads as if this explained everything.

‘Ye’re the one bring back the sun, yes?’ Tomba said.

‘Something like that,’ Kenny said. He shrugged and the sword shimmered in his hand, melting away to nothing.

‘So, why ye bring oni -girly to island?’

‘Will you stop calling me that?’ Kiyomi said, hands on hips.

‘We’re here to find a missing object,’ Kenny said. ‘Maybe you can help.’

The kijimunaa drew closer, their long ears twitching. ‘Ye seek treasure?’

‘Yes. Well, no. Maybe. I don’t know,’ Kenny replied.

‘Ye should stay well clear of the drowned city,’ Tomba said.

‘So, it’s true? There really is a city out there, under the water?’

‘Very bad place,’ Tomba said, shaking his head in warning. ‘Great danger. Kuromori not go there.’

‘Sorry, I have to,’ Kenny said. ‘Otherwise, oni -girl’s going to –’

‘Hey!’ Kiyomi interrupted. ‘I said don’t call me that.’

‘Sorry,’ everyone else said.

‘Going to what?’ Tomba prompted, his nose twitching with curiosity.

‘Slowly go insane as this oni spirit inside of me takes control and turns me into a mindless killing machine,’ Kiyomi said, her voice flat.

‘Which, you’ll probably agree, is a bit of a bummer,’ Kenny said.

‘Ah, me know,’ Tomba said, brightening. ‘We’s kill ye now and fix problem. Yes?’

‘Actually, we’re hoping to find a cure,’ Kenny said. ‘Down in that underwater city.’

‘Ohhh,’ Tomba said, stroking his chin. ‘Me know who ye’s looking for.’

‘You do? Who?’

Tomba’s wide eyes searched the tall grass all around, as if fearful of someone watching. ‘Will not say, but me’ll warn ye. Don’t trust him one bit. He will trick ye if he can.’

PHEEEP! One of the spear-carrying kijimunaa let out a short sharp whistle and the group scattered like rabbits, vanishing into the long grass. Kenny cast an uneasy look around, wondering what had startled them, only to see his father approaching.

‘There you are,’ Charles said. ‘I thought you’d be further up the hill by now. Come on, slowcoaches, we can still make it to the monument in time for the sunset. You might even see Taiwan.’ He stopped to examine something silvery by his foot. ‘What’s a fish doing up here?’

At 05:30 the next morning, Charles, Kiyomi and Kenny crept out of the minshuku and trotted downhill, following the coastal road north towards the harbour. Overhead, the starry veil of the Milky Way laced the glittering sky.

Whispering waves washed the beach and the full moon dusted the horizon with silver while it slipped into the sea. Beautiful as it was, Kenny was secretly glad the moon was setting. After recent events, he was grateful for moonless nights.

Leading the way, Charles scrambled down a bank, across a small car park and on to a concrete jetty.

‘Here we are,’ he said, approaching a small diving boat with a covered cabin. A stocky Japanese man with a leathery tan and closely cropped salt-and-pepper hair was strapping a dozen steel air tanks into position.

‘Kids, this is Captain Mike,’ Charles said, climbing aboard.

‘Yo, dude! Wait up!’ barked a voice from the quay.

‘Oh, great,’ Kenny grumbled, seeing Matt and Dwayne sprinting towards the boat. ‘I thought we’d ditched these guys.’

‘They must have been sleeping outside,’ Charles said, ‘to make sure they caught us.’

‘You guys heading out?’ Dwayne asked, his breathing normal despite sprinting a hundred metres with a heavy backpack.

‘Yes, we are,’ Charles answered.

‘Mind if we hitch a ride? It’d sure be nice to get a last couple of dives in before we head back to base.’

Charles removed his glasses for a quick wipe. ‘Well, we’re on a very relaxed schedule here. It might not work out if you chaps need to catch a flight back.’

‘No problem,’ Matt said. ‘If that’s the case, we’ll just swim back to shore.’

‘With all your gear?’ Charles looked doubtful.

‘Sure. Besides, your boy’s never been scuba-diving before. Strictly speaking, he shouldn’t be anywhere near open water.’

‘I’ll manage,’ Kenny said, his jaw jutting.

Matt grinned. ‘I’m sure you will, kid, but that’s not what the rules say. It’d be a shame if someone blabbed and the captain here lost his licence over something as silly as that. What say Dwayne and I come along? That way, you’ve got two expert buddy divers in case anything goes wrong.’