Komayō

Love Beneath the Cherry Trees

Synopsis

A mystical nymph and a young idealist meet in a garden. He thinks he is seeking her; she has already chosen him. She wants to capture his soul; he longs to win her heart. He offers her a game of ōgi; she invites him into the beyond. In this game where the eternal and the ephemeral intertwine, destiny and design dance the final figure.

Preamble

There are places where the borders between our world and the world of dreams fade, mystic sanctuaries where time itself hesitates to flow. It is in one of these realms that Komayō reigns, a goddess whose beauty is equalled only by the age-old solitude that dwells within her.

Her domain is an artificial paradise where perfection hides a darker truth. The souls who stray into it find an enchanting refuge, unaware of the price they will have to pay for this eternal bliss. For Komayō does not seek their suffering but their absolute devotion, feeding on their adoration as on a precious nectar that sustains her immortality.

In her garden where the cherry trees blossom eternally, she waits, patient as only immortals know how to be. Each new soul that crosses the threshold of her realm is a promise, a hope of filling the void that has been growing in her for centuries.

On this particular day, as the veil between the worlds grows thin, Komayō senses the approach of a different soul. A presence that might, for the first time in thousands of years, shake the very foundations of her existence. She prepares to welcome this unexpected visitor, not yet knowing that this encounter could transform for ever the very nature of her realm of dreams.

This is the story of a goddess who has forgotten what true love was, and of a mortal whose dreams transcend reality itself. It is a tale in which desire and sacrifice mingle, in which eternity itself may well come at too high a price.

Selected Excerpts

Jun's Unfinished Dreams

In the vice of everyday reality, Jun carries within him an inner world as vast as it is mysterious, a parallel universe that comes to life each night in the echo chamber of his dreams. This dreamlike dimension, more tangible to him than the waking world, calls to him with growing insistence.

The Ethereal Pact

There might be a way, she begins, her hand gliding delicately over the ōgi board. If you win this game, I might perhaps find a path to join you in your world. But if you lose... Her voice dies away, her intense gaze fixing on Jun's. Then you will have to follow me, to a place where time and space dissolve into the infinite.

Contents

Details

Original Title
Publication Date
Author
Format
Online edition
Collection
The Dark Chronicles of Komayō, episode 3
Genre
  • Fantasy fiction
  • Japanese folklore
  • Supernatural romance
Cover of the book 'Love Beneath the Cherry Trees' - A mysterious female figure beneath cherry trees in blossom