Deep in the cradle of the Kii Mountains, morning light filtered through layers of cedar boughs… soft and golden, like memory given form. The ground was damp with dew, rich with the scent of moss and pine. Birds called high in the canopy, their cries echoing faintly beneath the thunderous voice of Nachi Falls, which plummeted down a cliff face in the distance… its mist rolling like spirits across the valley floor.
A girl stood alone on a stone outcrop, still as carved jade, facing the falls. She was young, barely more than seventeen, yet her presence commanded the space as if she had trained for lifetimes. Jet-black hair, long and silken, was tied into a loose braid that danced behind her with every gust of wind. Her dark and luminous eyes held a depth that belied her youth: half shadow, half fire. A pale flush graced her cheeks, kissed by the cold mountain air.
