On her back, instead of axes, there was a massive two-handed sword and a shield like the one I used, but smaller. Two smaller straight swords graced her belt, one at each hip.
With a laugh of delight, she reached for the big sword and it flew into her hand. She spun, whirling the huge blade in a two-handed grip, then flung it back onto her back and grabbed the two smaller swords. She dual-wielded them through a series of lightning swift cuts, diving across the courtyard and back as she lunged, slashed, and parried.
“It feels amazing!” she said as she came back to me, sheathing the swords. “Shall we swap? I’d like to try the Kitsune Persona.”
“All right, let’s try swapping.” I extended my awareness to the Ironside Persona, and felt her reaching for the Kitsune Persona at the same time. The swap happened instantaneously, with the familiar rush of warmth that came with the donning of the Persona of Ironside. As the Persona took hold of me, I chose the civilian outfit aspect and was pleased to find myself clad in the dark woolen tunic and trousers again. The Kitsune’s civilian robes had been comfortable, but the Ironside outfit was more like what I was used to wearing during my time off back in Saxe, and it felt somehow more comfortable.
Cara’s transformation was remarkable. Where the Shinobi outfit of the Kitsune Persona had manifested on me as a heavy, rather shapeless costume of dark cloth, on Cara it became a skin-tight suit of midnight black. Red runes in a script I did not recognize were woven into it, and slashes of dark crimson cloth outlined Cara’s hips and chest to great effect. The headgear was more shapely, too, showing more of her cheeks.
And then there were the weapons.
For me, the Kitsune Persona’s shinobi aspect had come with the shuriken stars and the tanto blade, but when Cara wore it the weapon roster was different. On her back was a recurve bow and quiver, both of black wood. The bow had bands of deep red at the spots on the top and bottom where the bowstring was fixed in place. The color matched the sleek red bands on her costume.
The shuriken star belt was still in place, slung over her left shoulder. At her left hip, there was a long straight sword in a sheath of gleaming black wood, and on her right, the belt broadened into a potion-holder with many small spaces filled with vials and bottles.
She drew the sword with a lightning quick motion, and the blade whispered death in the still morning air. To both of our surprise, the metal of the blade was as black as the rest of her costume.
“What do you think?” she asked me. She sheathed the sword again, then held her arms out and gave a twirl.
“I think it fits you as if it was made for you,” I said sincerely. “Try removing the headgear. Switching individual elements of the Personas is an important part of their use.”
She concentrated for a moment, and then the tightly-wrapped headgear was gone. The fabric flashed and flickered for a moment, then was gone. Cara’s wealth of fair hair tumbled down, unbound across her shoulders.
“I want to try the ice shuriken stars with a fire arrow,” she said, glancing about. “Where can we go where we won’t endanger the house?”
“You may practice here,” said the voice of Toshiro from behind us. We looked up to see his yellow-clad figure advancing down the steps toward us. He was smiling, and looking refreshed and renewed.
“You’re sure? But the magic, the explosions, it might damage your home.”
He shook his head. “My house is under an ancient enchantment that goes with the land. The furnishings, the contents, even the people inside may be damaged, but the fabric of the building—wood, stones, and slates—all will withstand magical and physical attacks. You need have no fear of causing injury to my home. I am eager to see you display your powers.”
He sat on a step and settled himself to watch our experimentation.
Cara said, “I’m going to try withholding the ice damage first, and just throwing a normal shuriken.” She lifted her hand to the sash.
Toshiro leaped to his feet. “Wait a moment!” he said, sounding excited, then hurried into the house, calling for the servants. A couple minutes later, five servants came out of the house carrying straw-filled practice dummies and a broad wooden board with a target painted on in black and white rings. At Toshiro’s instruction, they were set up at the far end of the yard.
“I’d almost forgotten them,” he said, sounding pleased with himself. “This used to be a weapons practice court, back when I kept my skills in better condition.”
“You were a warrior, then?”
“I was one of the Shogun’s personal bodyguard. But enough of that. Let me see you demonstrate your skills. Don’t worry about destroying the dummies, we can make more.”
Cara slid three stars into her hand. Then she launched them at the board. They multiplied, then thudded into the target rings with beautiful accuracy. Toshiro clapped his hands. “Well done!” he cried. “Try again!”
Grinning at our host’s enthusiasm, Cara took another three stars. “I’m going to try something different, this time.”
She concentrated, then spun her whole body around and flung the deadly shuriken stars. This time, they did not multiply. She flung three, and three hit the board. I leapt to my feet in surprise. How had she done that? But before I could speak, she’d whipped another three stars from the belt and flung them. Again, they didn’t multiply, but that was not all. I smiled in amazement. Two stars were normal, but one trailed a freezing tail of ice behind it and froze the
