"You're a shinchu," Maru stared at Hoshiga as he sat down across from them in the primary meeting hall. 

The Gyoubu chuckled and waved a dismissive hand, "Of course. This place would not nearly be so safe if not for my presence. I fully plan to deal with Namikionna on my own since my initial plans seems to have been, shall we say, less than ideal."

Tsukimatsu snorted, "I'll say! You let the Sayonakidori get a foothold!"

"Not my intention," Hoshiga nodded with a furrow of his brow, "and outside of my view, oddly enough, and that is what troubles me. Which leads me into the reason why I have assembled you all here for this."

"Is it about Hashi?" Hachirou leaned forward with a serious loo on his face. "Can he be cured?"

Hoshiga tapped his folding fan against his hand and let out a long, humming sigh. "Well... Where to begin? There are several items to discuss with all of you that are of the highest importance, but I do believe that Hashi may be a good starting point. As for Hashi," Hoshiga turned his attention to the yokai sitting across from him, "I am afraid that his condition is beyond my capabilities. The Rot is... not as easily devoured like many illnesses. I run the risk of harming myself in the process, and considering my duties, that is not something that I can afford to chance."

"Then..." Sen felt a knot of anxiety coiling in his stomach as his hands flexed on his knees nervously, "Is there anything we can do?"

Hoshiga's eyes crinkled in a smile as he nodded. "Fret not," he nodded, "for there is a light. That light is, however, Heishi no Kohaku in the capital."

"Heiankyo?" Naoyuki blurted out from beside Maru. "We have to go all the way back there?"

"Your best chance for finding answers to both of your problems - the answer to the Rot and to Sen's condition - lie with Kohaku. He is a far more powerful magic user than myself and serves as the authority on all matters, both magical and demonic, to the Emperor and the Shogun," Hoshiga gave another nod, this one for emphasis more so than agreement. "I understand that the journey will be long, but you must take it."

Emi frowned, "I heard of him. The rumors that come from nobles from the capital about Heishi no Kohaku are concerning."

"Moreover," Nobuhiko jumped in with a frown, "how are we going to get in to see him?"

Hoshiga chuckled and leaned forward, his eyes smiling above his face veil, "I have a way for that as well. Seek out Seikogimi of Murakami. Not only can she give you faster transport to Heiankyo, she can also get you in to see Kohaku."

"You said that there was something else," Tsukiyoru pressed and Aoi nodded across from him.

"I believe that Sen here might be the Hachiman no Deishi," Hoshiga turned to direct his full attention to Sen. That made Maru pause. More than that, he saw Hashi pause and look at the other man as well. The thing that struck Maru was that Hashi didn't seem particularly surprised unlike just about everyone else in the party. "It is just a hunch for the time being, but the fact that he was able to sense the magatama and see visions of Watatsumikome leads me to believe that there might be something more going on here."

A silence fell over the group before Naoyuki stood up, "If that's the case, then I need to send a message to Magoichi. This is something that he'll need to know about."

"Why?" Yuzuha snapped her head to him and went to stand, ready for a fight. "You got some problem with Sen now, bird boy?"

Naoyuki blinked at her, "Wha- No! The Saika-ikki and our sister organizations used to run favors with the Deishi. We took on a few members of the Blades of Hachiman after they started getting wiped out. Magoichi wanted updates as soon as we heard anything."

"I would wait on the Deishi announcement until we know more," Hoshiga nodded slowly as he raised his fan to point at Naoyuki, "but Magoichi should be told. If Kondo is still with him, then tell him that I said to "weather spring showers to embrace summer storms". He will know what I mean."

None of it made sense to Sen, who sat by in a sort of confused silence as Naoyuki nodded and strode quickly from the room. "What does that mean for me?" Sen asked as he looked finally to Hoshiga, shifting uneasily where he sat as Hashi looked down at him.

Hoshiga's gaze was sympathetic, if nothing else. "It means that Myugou might have been correct when he saw something in you," the Diviner spoke with a small nod, and it was when he did that Sen saw Aoi's face change slightly. "It explains why your visions only occur with certain objects, and it also explains your... episodes, if we will call them that." At the mention of the strange sensation that overtook him when he accidentally killed Hamu and the incident with the Sayonakidori, Sen felt a pit form in his stomach. Hoshiga continued, "Deishi are unique in that they are all intrinsically connected to one another - a lineage, if you will - and potential Deishi are able to tap into that bond and read memories. They learn onmyodo and other magic they have never seen before, master weapons they have never touched, and can, on rare occasions, tap into the powers of yokai. I believe that this strong bond to yokai that Sen possesses is a byproduct of him being a Deishi candidate."

"Candidate?" Yuzuha asked as she frowned at Hoshiga and finally decided to sit back down. "So, what? He's not officially one or something."

"Deishi must undergo trials to prove themselves worthy and able to wield the power that being a Deishi entails. Multiple people may have the potential to be Deishi, but normally, only one may wield the title. It has been this way since the days of Yayoi no Shika and Yamato no Hiko."

"And if they fail?" Nobuhiko asked as he crossed his arms.

Hoshiga watched him for a brief moment before he turned his attention to Sen again, "Then they die."

Emi frowned at that and glanced at Sen, "Why are they not more... prominent? We have heard stories of them during our travels, and one would think that with their power..."

"Recently, things happened that have caused the Deishi to go into something akin to hiding. Someone has been massacring their Blades in mass, and this fear of their power and influence drove them underground," Hoshiga replied before turning to Aoi, who exhaled deeply through his nose.

 "The previous Deishi, Akechi Mitsukage," Aoi slowly spoke before turning to Sen with a grim look on his face, "was declared an enemy of the Shogunate by Ashikaga Yoshiharu and almost assassinated. He was eventually pardoned by Ashikaga Yoshiteru, but that came almost a decade too late to matter. Someone has been whispering in powerful men's ears and the world is paying the price for it."

Sen recalled what Umemaru had told them about the Deishi, how it was their duty to bring balance between the world of men and yokai and maintain equilibrium, and he remembered what Myugou had once told him as if it was yesterday. 

When the world is out of order, the old monk had said as they sat together by the river one day, that is when wars start. The forces that be feed on the carnage, the chaos, and the fear. They fester and grow like a wound. Sometimes, there are men and women who rise to meet that festering wound head-on.

What happens to them? He remembered asking, watching as Myugou's face had taken on a distant look

Sometimes, they become lauded as heroes. Other times... Well, other times, people fear what they cannot understand, and those in power fear what they cannot control.

Myugou had known Mitsukage. That made sense now. It would make sense that if Myugou saw similar traits in him that he saw in his one time travelling companion that he would start to teach him what he could, help prepare him for whatever trials there were. Something began replacing the cold weight of realization as an anger began to replace it. He had missed out on so much knowledge and so many answers to dead questions because someone wanted to silence Myugou for good. Some person had taken away the one of the only individuals in his life that had tried to help him, who might have been able to help save Hashi, and for what?

"It is hard to understand why," Sen blinked when Hoshiga's voice spoke softly inside of his head, and Sen saw him locking eyes with him from where he sat across from him, "but someday, the answers will be more clear. Seek out Kohaku in the capital. He will be able to tell you more of the answers you seek."

"For now," Hoshiga spoke physically now, "you all should rest. Your trip to Murakami will be long, and I doubt that the journey back to the main island will be easy with these storms. Take the time to rest. You have earned it."

---

Sen barely slept that night, and when he woke up from his few hour nap, he decided to take some time to sit down and watch the gardens. To his surprise, he saw Tsukiyoru, Nobuhiko, and Aoi already walking around outside. The three were all standing shoulder to shoulder laughing about something, and Sen was happy enough that Aoi seemed to have people who he could connect with. He sighed and closed his eyes, relishing in the cool morning air as he sat on the veranda in the morning mist. 

There was the soft sound of footfalls on his left, and Sen looked up to see Hoshiga standing there beside him. The diviner was focused on the group of three men and chuckled with a small shake of his head, "It seems that our bushi have formed a pod."

Sen smiled and nodded, "At least Aoi is having fun."

Hoshiga sat down beside him with a grunt as he reached up and rubbed his shoulders. He chuckled again and shook his head, "I think I spend too much time as a human. Transforming makes my joints ache more than it used to."

"Do you spend most of your time helping the Jitou?" Sen asked as he sat back and folded his arms.

"Of course," Hoshiga gave a small nod of his head and smiled at Sen. "Tsukiyoru is important to me in many ways," he watched his lord talk with Aoi and Nobuhiko across the garden. Though Sen couldn't see his face, he saw Hoshiga's eyes smile. "When I had nothing after I lost my home in Owari, it was his family who took me in. Tsukiyoru became as much my confidant and protector as I was his. How can I not be wholly devoted to his legacy?"

"His legacy," Sen looked from the garden back to Hoshiga, "or to him?"

Hoshiga paused and looked to Sen, "That is a dangerous question, Sen. But..." Hoshiga's eyes immediately went back to Tsukiyoru, "the answer is simple. My efforts as his Gyoubu are wholly dedicated to his legacy, but I am wholly devoted to him and only him. How can I not be?"

"You love him."

Hoshiga hummed before he chuckled, "You've found me out, I fear." The Gyoubu looked back out over the garden as a look of serenity passed over his eyes and he smiled gently. "It happened slowly. We yokai live for a very long time, and we try our best not to get too attached to the humans we meet. This... was different. I only hope that he does not regret what will happen as he ages." He stopped and looked at Sen as a mischievous twinkle came into his eye, "And you yourself seem to have quite the affection for our onna-bugeisha."

Sen sputtered and coughed slightly as Hoshiga kept the knowing smile on his face. "That- I- She-!"

"Don't worry. I won't tell." Hoshiga chuckled as he watched Sen slowly start to blush, "There are worse things than being in love. However, I must ask... if Hashi cannot be cured, have you ever considered what you will do?"

The question caught Sen off-guard. He had never thought about that outcome, if he was being honest with himself. He had always expected that they would make it to Kyushu and that would be that. Now, though, things were starting to look a little more complicated. "What can I do if we can't help him?" Sen shook his head and looked at the diviner. "Hashi is my family. I can't give up on him."

Hoshiga watched him quietly for a long time, and Sen couldn't quite see what was going on inside of his head. his sandalwood fan tapped against his thighs thoughtfully before he turned his brown eyes back to the courtyard, "It would not hurt to consider your options. The Rot is not something that can be easily defeated - if it can be defeated at all."

"What are you saying?"

"All I am saying is that it would be better to be prepared for the worst and hope for the best."

---

Hashi wasn't well when they knew that they needed to disembark later in the day. Sen had one of his arms wrapped over his shoulders as he began to carry him down to join the rest of the group as they attempted to start leaving. his mind was still wrapped up in the conversation he had with Hoshiga early that morning, and Hashi noticed how distracted his friend seemed as Emi waved to them in greeting. "We will be watching your progress," Tsukiyoru nodded at Aoi as they approached, "or I guess Hoshiga will be and filling me in on exactly what is happening. Will you be relaying this all to Rokujo?"

Aoi laughed, "Of course! Nobody knew Mitsukage better than him. I doubt we could ask for a better person to gauge this whole mess- oh! Sen! And Hashi! Good timing."

Tsukiyoru turned and smiled at them with a small incline of his head, "Should you two ever need anything, don't hesitate to call on me. I owe you a debt for finding the magatama."

"Speaking of that..." Sen tried to adjust his pack to grab the jewel before Tsukiyoru held up his hand and shook his head.

"Keep it with you," the Jitou nodded. "It called to you for a reason."

"The magatama will always find its way back to Watatsumikome," Hoshiga nodded, "be it to her successor or to her grave. It always has."

As the group finished their farewells, Sen saw someone come up on Hashi's other side and gently drape his rotted arm over their shoulder. He was a little surprised when he saw that it was Nobuhiko who did, looking over to Sen with a smile. "You don't mind a little help, right?" Both Sen and Hashi shook their heads as they began to leave for the docks.

The walk took its time and the group stayed mostly silent. Naoyuki fell in beside Sen and Yuzuha, which was a surprise enough until Naoyuki dropped his voice as they began to close in on the town, "Have you lot noticed Maru acting... strange?"

Yuzuha snorted and rolled her eyes, "He's always strange."

"Well, yeah," Naoyuki sighed, "I mean more than usual. He's been pretty quiet since Hoshiga's little revelation yesterday." he paused and looked expectantly at Sen and Yuzuha as if he expected them to give him an answer. "Any ideas?"

"Do we look like his friends?" Yuzuha asked again, folding her arms as she pushed past Naoyuki and quickened her pace, seemingly half-expecting Sen to follow her despite him carrying Hashi. Sen just met Naoyuki's gaze and shrugged in his response, prompting Hashi to follow suit.

"I wish Avery could speak our language," Naoyuki sighed as he glanced back over his shoulder with a frown. "Maru just gushes everything to him."

Sure enough, walking some ways behind the rest was Maru and beside him was Avery. Maru was biting his thumb nail as he walked along, his thoughts turning back to what Hoshiga had said both about himself and about Sen. If Kazegumo knew about this whole mess, he knew that he'd kill him for it.

Or Sen, who was proving himself to be more than just some thug with a yokai, if Maru had to be honest.

"What's on your mind?" Avery asked from beside him, judging by his tone.

"I'm worried," Maru admitted quietly when he caught Naoyuki glance over his shoulder at him. "If one of the more zealous sects gets a hold of Hashi's contract or learns about what Hoshiga said, we might be in for some trouble."

Akechi Mitsukage. Maru had overheard Kazegumo talking about him before, and none of it was good.

That damned Mitsukage shattered the sword. We'll be lucky if we ever find it now. That yokai loving deviant is the reason we're in this mess - him and those damned Blades!

Yet it was also a name he had heard Atsumori say before, too.

If they were wiling to do what they did to Mitsukage, then we must keep them at arm's length and no closer.

"You think this will affect what your boss has you doing, then?" Avery's voice broke Maru free from his thoughts.

"I... I should be telling Kazegumo about Sen, but..." He looked up from his hand and saw Nobuhiko and Sen talking away, both supporting Hashi, who was chuffing out laughs at whatever they were discussing, and he felt something knot up in his chest. "I'll... I'll wait. Until Heiankyo. Maybe then we'll know more."

"You just don't want to do it, do you?" Avery scoffed and shook his head. "Full offense, but your boss sounds like a right bastard. What has Sen ever done to warrant you turning him in like a criminal?"

A hand landed on Maru's shoulder and made him jump. He saw Aoi glaring at him as the older samurai seized him by the back of his collar and dragged him in close, "Listen to me closely, nightingale. The second you take that boy to Kazegumo, you will have made an enemy out of a lot of people. Let me give you one piece of advice: Kazegumo is a spider, the same as his name. If you trust that he'll listen to you over his own personal interests, you're in for one hell of a rude awakening." 

"Back off, old man," Avery had moved in closer, glaring down at Aoi, who looked up at him like he wasn't even remotely intimidated.

Aoi chuckled, "Listen here, gaijin. I've fought yokai that make you look like a small fry. Ever fought a yaksha before?" Aoi looked inquiringly between the two of them, and Maru shook his head. "Pray you never have to." He roughly released his collar and walked past them as casually as ever, as if he hadn't just dropped a threat.

It wasn't long before they reached the port, and the sky above them was already growing dark again as another storm threatened to burst the sky apart. The captain from the previous voyage had agreed to take them back, and the group began boarding as the first bright snap of lightning crossed the sky. "We're getting on a ship with a storm like this?" Maru heard Avery mutter something behind him as they walked up the gangplank and onto the ship. "This brings back memories..."

Whatever he said made Naoyuki stop walking and turn to look at him, "That is not promising, Avery."

"I'm not entirely sure that I want to know," Sen muttered as he helped Hashi across the deck and down below to what was, in essence, a cargo hold. He laid his large friend down and walked back up to find Aoi standing by the entrance speaking with Emi. "What's wrong?"

Aoi turned and smiled at him before he put his hands on his hips and sighed, "Listen, Sen. I need to head off on my own for a little while. If you're a Deishi candidate, then I know some people that need to know about it. I might be able to reunite with you in Heiankyo, but..." Aoi paused before he smiled and slapped one of Sen's shoulders, "For now, it's goodbye."

"You just don't want to ride the ship into a storm," Sen smirked before he nodded. "We'll miss you, Aoi."

"Take care of Hashi," Aoi nodded and smiled between him and Emi before he turned and walked off the ship with one final wave over his shoulder before he vanished into a crowd of people.

Sen turned to walk back down to join Hashi for the trip when Maru caught his shoulder, "Hey, uh... When we get on land again, we need to talk about something."

Sen paused and blinked at him, "What?"

"It can wait until this trip is over, but..." Maru hesitated as Sen raised a slightly annoyed eyebrow, "Just wait. It's not that important." That part was a lie. He wanted to be sure that he told Sen about Kazegumo and about Mitsukage's sword. It was important, but it wasn't anything that couldn't wait the day's sail from Kyushu to the main island again. Sen watched him suspiciously before vanishing below deck as the crew pulled up the gangplank and pushed the boat away from the dock, loosing the sails as they did. Maru sighed through his nose before he turned to see Avery scaling the mast to join the lookout up above like an actual monkey. "How does he do that?" he muttered as he turned to see Naoyuki frowning and sitting close to the center of the ship.

"I hate this," he heard the mercenary mutter as his heel drummed endlessly against the deck.

"Quit being such a baby," Yuzuha was leaning casually against the side of the ship as she spoke.

"Have a care, Yuzu," Emi chided with a frown.

The storm gradually began to creep up on them, and despite the good pace, Maru was getting the feeling that outrunning it wasn't in their stars. Avery slid down and dropped onto the deck with a thud, "This is going to be nasty."

The swell picked up rather suddenly, throwing most of the passengers stumbling around as it did. "What in the hell?" Maru heard the captain ask from behind him.

"Oh... Oh that wasn't normal," Avery muttered, his eyes widening slightly as he turned to face the bow of the ship. There looked to be a massive wave starting to form, only it wasn't going the right direction. It also wasn't the right size. Or shape. "That is bad," Avery stepped back closer to Maru, "That's really bad..." Almost as he finished, something began to burst slowly up from the dark churning water around them.

"What in the hell is that?" Avery shouted behind Maru, who had his eyes riveted on the massive, looming shadow rising from the ocean.

It unfurled to its full height, and it was then that Maru realized what he was looking at. It was like a shadow made of water with two burning amber eyes setting on a featureless face and two long, webbed hand tipped with claws the size ship anchors. "Umibozu!" The captain screamed out behind them.

Maru wracked his brain for the procedures on how to deal with them and felt realization settle in his stomach like a ball of ice. The only thing he ever read about umibozu had one method for dealing with them, and that method was simple one word: Run. "We need to get this ship out of here now!" Maru turned and shouted up to the captain, who seemed like he was already trying to figure out what to do.

"You think that I don't know that?" the captain shouted angrily as Maru saw him seemingly fumbling with his ideas, his eyes darting around nervously.

Maru swore quietly and ran to the sides of the ship. He remembered the entry from The Book of Demons that the Sayonakidori used for identifying different yokai. The entry began pouring through his mind in Endo's voice. The Umibozu is a large seafaring yokai which often dwells in large saltwater bodies. Their presence can often be seen from the large amounts of smaller ocean dwelling yokai which will flock to where they rise, eager to consume the flesh of dead sailors unfortunate enough to be caught by them. A huge wave interrupted his thoughts and lightning flashed overhead and the rain began to fall in sharp sheets. They primarily strike during rainstorms when they are harder to see and even less able to be evaded.

"Kojin!" One of the sailors shouted as Maru watched one of the black, tailed creatures reach up over the side of the boat.

There was a small flash as a glowing golden veil descended around the ship, and it took Maru a minute to realize that it was Emi. She was chanting quietly as Hachirou anchored her with a hand on her shoulder, and Maru saw the angry Kojin slam into the barrier and let out high pitched shrieks.

"This is not how I want to fucking die!" Naoyuki screamed, and Maru saw him clinging to Nobuhiko's spear with the samurai, who had stabbed it into the deck and was using it for support as the boat rocked on the wave, who was beside Yuzuha who had followed suit, looking more than a little panicked.

The only one of his group not panicking was Avery, who was running around the ship, climbing rigging, and acting like he had been doing this thing his entire life. It wasn't until he heard the captain scream, "I... I have no idea what to do here!" behind him that he saw Avery stop for the first time in the entire trip.

Maru glanced over to see Avery, who was standing unmoving by the stairs to the wheel looking half conflicted, before he caught a deadly serious look take over his visage, "Not today, you ugly piece of-!" he bolted from where he was standing and whistled sharply to catch everyone's attention. "If you all want to live, you better do exactly what I say!" Avery barked, but the thing that made everyone pause and stare was the fact that when he spoke, it was in perfect Japanese. "Naoyuki, get up the mast and loose the rigging! Now!" He barked again as he started striding across the deck, prompting a stunned Naoyuki to hesitantly nod and spin to begin his ascent.

"Wait," Maru paused and spun to him, "you speak Japanese?"

"Less talking, more helping me pilot the damned ship, Maru!" Avery snapped as he jumped to the helm, shouldering the captain aside. "This won't be the first storm I've piloted through. Going to be my first giant  fucking water demon I've evaded, though!" he cut the wheel hard as the creature began to slam its massive arm down into the water. The boat lurched right, sending everyone tumbling over themselves on deck. "We can chat about my linguistical abilities after I keep this ugly fuck from sinking our damned ship!"

Below deck, the ship lurched, prompting Hashi to groan as it forced him to roll part way onto his Rotted side. Sen tried his best to keep him from rolling, but Hashi's sheer weight and size was keeping him from doing anything but slowing the process down. "What's going on up there?" He asked as he rolled Hashi back when the ship steadied enough. Something began to dimly glow in his periphery, and when he looked over, he saw that the magatama had tumbled from his bag and was sliding across the deck of the ship.

He glanced once more at Hashi, who had turned his head to look at him and then began to sign, Go help. I'll be here.

Sen reached out and rested his hand briefly on Hashi's back before he stood and hurried to grab the magatama before he stumbled his way to the stairs to the upper deck.

Back topside, Emi and Hachirou had thrown up a stronger barrier around the ship. Emi held her hands out with a grunt as Hachirou held her fast, taking over the task of chanting on her behalf to keep the barrier strong. The barrier was keeping the riled kojin from jumping onto the deck and causing more problems, but the sheer number of the black finned creatures slamming their bodies into the barrier was making things difficult. To make matters worse, out of the water came funayurei, the ghosts of drowned victims of the umibozu, and their skeletal hands banged on the barrier from all possible angles as their blue orbs of flame guided their eyeless sight.

"Keep those things off the ship!" Avery shouted as he cut the wheel again to dodge another swipe from the umibozu's massive hand. Maru, Nobuhiko, and Yuzha were all keeping busy pushing the kojin and some of the funayurei that had joined them off of the hull of the boat as best as they could, and it was when he turned to go to the other side that Maru saw Sen stumble up from below, looking about as confused as he could have expected.

Sen walked up on deck as he held the magatama tight in his hand. He made his way between the shouting sailors toward the bow, ignoring the stinging rain and the lashing of wind as the umibozu rose from the water with a terrible bellow. He stepped up just before the bowsprit and looked down at the magatama as it glowed a soft blue in his hand.

"Oh shit," Avery snarled as he looked behind him before turning back to face forward with a long exhale. "Hold on tight! We're riding a wave forward!"

Without thinking, Sen lifted the magatama above his head, and from it burst a magnificent pulsing blue light that sent the kojin attempting to climb past Emi and Hachirou's barriers shrieking back into the water. The funayurei who were also trying to smash through vanished into ash as the light pulsed from the gem, their small flames gliding back from the ship and circling it as if they were attempting to find some space where the light could not reach. Sen silently hoped that there was going to be something else, but the umibozu remained unaffected by the lights pulsing rays. He could feel the boat being lifted by the wave that set them on a direct collision course with the massive black creature, which lifted one webbed hand from the water as it readied itself to smash the boat.

Then, it happened.

The magatama pulsed one more time, its blue light filling the air as a deep groaning noise filled the entire space. As the boat crested the wave, a great fin burst forth, followed by a serpentine, grey, mottled body, and finally, the mighty head of a sea dragon. It leaped out of the water following the wave and let out a mighty roar that shook the entire boat before it bit down on the umibozu's neck as the ship rode the wave straight past them.

"Holy shit!" Naoyuki screamed from somewhere behind Sen.

The dragon's massive body slammed into the water after it, sending enormous waves in its wake the bounced the boat up and down as the crew desperately tried to keep their footing. With every movement of the serpentine body, new waves formed, and it wrapped itself around the umibozu and struck at it like a snake, causing it to shift and send more huge tremors through the water. Sen heard Avery laugh behind him and give hoot as their ship plunged headlong past the dueling beasts. As they passed, another huge wave rocked the boat, and soon, Sen saw why. He turned around at the same time as the rest of the group to see a second dragon leap from the water and slam into the umibozu with a roar that seemed to split their air in half. It plunged its fanged mouth onto the umibozu's arm, making the great black being bellow and try to shake them off.

"This is fucking amazing!" Avery laughed as he spoke in his own language from the helm. "Look at the size of those things!"

"Stop laughing, you madman!" Nobuhiko shouted, trying his best to keep the terror out of his voice as they watched the dragons each latch ahold of the umibozu and begin to drag it struggling into the water.