With a shimmer of golden light, you shift back into human form, your bare feet pressing into the cold, scorched earth. Kneeling down, you trace a finger along one of the angular patterns burned into the soil. The markings feel wrong beneath your touch - not just unnatural, but actively repelling your spiritual energy. Your hair stands on end as you recognize fragments of forbidden kanji hidden within the larger design. These are binding sigils, meant to trap and corrupt rather than protect.

A sudden gust of wind makes your loose kimono flutter as you hear the faintest whisper of a voice from the tear above. '...the nine-tailed one comes...' Your head snaps up, but the shadow creatures continue their watch, seemingly unaware they've been overheard. The realization dawns - they're expecting you specifically. The desecration wasn't random; it's a trap laid for a kitsune of your power.

As you study the markings more closely, you notice something glinting in the morning light - tiny shards of broken mirror embedded in the soil at each major intersection of the scorched lines. The dark magic here is using reflection magic, likely to amplify its effects. Touching one sends a jolt of cold through your fingertips, and for a fleeting moment, you see a pair of glowing red eyes staring back at you from the fragment before it cracks and turns to dust.

The tanuki from earlier suddenly bursts into the clearing, panting heavily. 'They're coming!' it squeaks in panic. 'The shadow things - more of them! From the western ridge!' Sure enough, the trees beyond the clearing now rustle with unnatural movement. The creatures you saw by the tear have begun multiplying, their forms oozing out from the darkness like ink spreading in water.