Nightblade (25 page)

But then Ryuu stepped into the tent. After the immediate shock had passed she had ordered him out. The boy was innocent and kind, and it was generous and brave that he had come for her, but she knew he would die in the attempt. Then she learned a truth about Ryuu that was harder to bear. He had been the one innocent thing in her life she had held on to. But he too was a murderer. He wasn’t the boy she had held in her mind. She didn’t understand how it had happened. Over the course of her trip she had seen many of the soldiers practicing sword fighting. Akio’s father required practice every day, even while on march. But Takako had never seen anyone as quick as Ryuu. She couldn’t even see his motions. Everyone at the camp knew Akio was skilled, but Ryuu had killed him without difficulty.

Their escape was a dream that could never come true. She thought they would be stopped, questioned by a guard. The fear in her heart raged, making walking in straight lines a difficult task. Every guard seemed taller, stronger, more aware of their presence than possible. Ryuu was her guide. She kept her eyes on him, allowing the rest of the world to blur into imagination.

Her tension didn’t dissipate as they left the ring of guards. Ryuu offered no break. He let them stop for a couple of moments at a time, but he never let her sit, never let her think and plan out her next move. He kept them going, pushing them ever forward. She couldn’t believe how calm he seemed. You would never know he had just killed one of the most important people in the Kingdom. He walked with such steadiness. Perhaps it was because of her focus on her own feet, but for the first time she noticed his step was always light and quick. He didn’t shuffle around or move from side to side. Each step was precise, targeted. Takako found it so fascinating she almost lost her own balance watching him.

They walked through the night and through the early dawn. Finally Ryuu found the spot he must have been looking for. He closed his eyes quickly and reopened them. Takako couldn’t tell if he was trying to think or if he was just tired. It didn’t seem to be either. He didn’t seem to be tired. In fact, he looked like he could be doing this all day. He spoke in a voice just above a whisper, some of the first words he’d said since the rescue.

“You can rest here for a while. I’ll keep watch, but we’ll need to be moving again soon. I want us to meet up with Shigeru by tonight. I’m sorry I can’t let you sleep for more than a little while. They’re going to send search parties by horseback, and I’d like to put as much distance as possible between us and them.”

It seemed like an opening to ask questions, to untie some of these mysteries which suddenly surrounded her. But she couldn’t find the courage to ask. She settled for the least controversial question she could ask.

“Aren’t you tired?”

Ryuu gave her a funny grin, like he had a secret she was close to guessing. He shook his head.

“No, I’m not tired yet. I’ll need to sleep tonight for a little while, but should be fine until then. Thanks though.”

Takako meant to push the question further, but her level of exhaustion overwhelmed her. She laid her head down in the tall grass and was asleep instantly.

When she awoke Ryuu was still next to her sitting motionless in the grass. She looked around. The sun wasn’t too much higher than when she had fallen asleep. Ryuu seemed to read her mind.

“No, you haven’t been asleep long, but I was going to wake you soon anyway.”

Ryuu startled her. His eyes had been closed, and he had been so still that Takako had assumed he was asleep.

Takako started to get up, but Ryuu laid a hand on her shoulder. It was gentle, a touch she hadn’t felt in some time. “There are soldiers coming. They won’t see us if we stay still.”

Takako strained all of her senses, but she couldn’t hear anything, and in the tall grass she was unable to see anything. It seemed like an eternity passed a moment at a time before she heard the rumble of horses. In the meantime, Ryuu had slithered down on to his belly. Takako followed suit. The horses didn’t even slow down. They passed dozens of paces away and kept going.

Some more time passed before Ryuu sat up again.

“They responded faster than I thought they would. I bet they found the guards I attacked earlier first. It will change our travel, but I expect we can still reach Shigeru by tonight. He’s not far now.” He looked over at Takako. “How are you feeling? We will need to walk quite a ways today.”

Takako was sore all over, but didn’t want to let Ryuu know. She didn’t want to appear weak in front of him. “I’m good.”

Ryuu seemed to see right through the lie, but he didn’t say anything. He handed out clothing which made them look more like peasants and hid his sword. After putting the clothes on they were up and on their way in no time, keeping the rising sun on their right.

Throughout the walk they would sometimes stop and hide, always due to Ryuu’s remarkable senses. Every time it happened Takako couldn’t see or hear anyone. Soldiers on horseback crisscrossed the country, but Ryuu always seemed to know they were coming. The tall grass of the prairie was wonderful cover, and they had no fear of discovery.

There was only one conclusion, but the sheer absurdity of it meant Takako didn’t come to it until a full day of playing hide and seek with the largest army in the land.

“You’re a nightblade, aren’t you?”

Ryuu didn’t even turn around to answer the question. “Yes.”

The matter-of-fact way he answered the question was the only reason Takako believed him. Her history books had taught her that nightblades were long extinct. All individuals who could use the sense were in the monasteries, descended from the dayblades, and Takako knew Ryuu wasn’t a monk.

“I thought you were all dead.”

“I don’t know about that, but to the best of my knowledge, I’m not dead yet.”

Takako almost laughed at the sarcasm, but she couldn’t believe she was awake. To be in the company of a nightblade. Her life couldn’t get any stranger today.

Despite the routine patrols the sun set without incident. Takako was too tired to think about speaking and Ryuu was too focused on everything happening around them for anything meaningful to be said. Takako found she didn’t mind the silence. It gave her shattered mind a little peace to process what had happened. The silence felt companionable, peaceful, not awkward.

As dusk fell they met up with Shigeru in a place Takako could only describe as the middle of nowhere. There didn’t seem to be any defining marks, any grove of trees or natural features that would have served as landmarks. Takako didn’t even know Shigeru was in the tall grass until they were on top of him. The two of them must have sensed each other. Now that she was aware of their secret little details started to make more sense.

Shigeru greeted them both.

“I’m glad to see both of you.”

Ryuu bowed to Shigeru. “It’s good to see you too.” Takako realized his voice was full of relief. He hadn’t known whether or not he would succeed. She held on to the information. “Takako needs rest as do I.”

Shigeru nodded his assent. “I had figured as much. I’m well rested and can give you the full night. Tomorrow we can split it. Were you discovered?”

“I had to kill Akio. He stepped into the tent just as I reached Takako.” Ryuu dropped the news like a rock from a tree.

Shigeru greeted the news with silence. “That’s going to complicate things.”

Takako thought that seemed liked a bit of an understatement.

“Yes. The patrols are already further afield than I expected. I suspect the guards were found earlier than I had hoped. However, we haven’t been seen yet, nor have we gone anywhere near the villages where they might betray us for coin.”

“Good. For now at least, luck seems to be on our side. We’ll discuss our plan tomorrow. For now, rest.”

Ryuu didn’t argue. Perhaps he was more tired than he was letting on. Whatever the case, he laid his head on the ground and was asleep right away. Takako thought about trying to ask Shigeru some of the questions swirling in her mind, but she too was tired and the grass made a comfortable bed.

When Takako awoke the two were awake and conversing in hushed tones. She rubbed her eyes and joined them, although there wasn’t much to be said. They wanted to visit New Haven. The rumor mill would be in full motion and could provide them information. It was also large enough they wouldn’t be recognized. Takako was afraid they were taking her back to Madame’s, but Ryuu assured her that wasn’t true.

Their journey was slow. Takako felt like a weight dragging the two men down. They seemed immune to weariness, but assented to her repeated requests for breaks without complaint. She had done plenty of chores in the house, but nothing had given her the endurance the two nightblades possessed.

One unintended side effect was that Ryuu began to open up more. Takako could tell he was more comfortable with Shigeru around. Takako had dozens of questions for Ryuu about his life. He answered them all even if his answers were brief. He wasn’t used to speaking about himself. The only questions he wouldn’t answer were about being a nightblade. In time Takako became frustrated. When one was a nightblade, it seemed like a big deal.

“I’m sorry,” Ryuu replied, “but it’s like trying to describe different world to you. Everything in our language revolves around the five senses you are used to. There’s no language, no frame of reference for me to describe my world. It’s everything your world is plus this extra dimension. I simply
know
the way a blade is going to cut, or that there is a wild horse running in circles over this ridge. This entire planet pulses with life, and I drink it in with every breath. I live in a different world than you.”

That night, as all three of them lay in tall grass underneath the stars, Takako asked Shigeru the question that had been bugging her the most.

“Why did you send Ryuu after me?”

Shigeru laughed gruffly. Takako had never heard him laugh before, but decided she liked it. It was a man’s laugh, a sound she hadn’t heard since she was young.

“I didn’t tell him too. Idea was all his.”

Takako was taken aback. The entire time she had a picture of Shigeru as a stern master, the one in charge of sending Ryuu wherever he went. It never occurred to her Ryuu might have come of his own accord.

She turned the question on Ryuu.

It took him so long to reply she began to suspect he had forgotten the question, or had fallen asleep. “I needed to use my strength for something, and I enjoyed spending time with you. It didn’t seem right, what happened to you.”

Takako didn’t know what to say to that.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

Takako was still a wreck of emotions inside, but she understood Ryuu’s simple generosity. She slept peacefully that night.

They reached New Haven without incident. It was easy for them to approach the outskirts of town without being seen. Ryuu could sense individuals long before they could see the fugitives. Within New Haven they blended in with the sea of peasants in town for spring celebrations. Ryuu and Shigeru assumed anyone looking for them would be looking for two young travelers. The three of them were less likely to attract attention.

They didn’t need to go far into town before their reconnaissance was complete. The word was all over the streets. Madame’s had burned to the ground with all the women inside. Rumors flew on the streets, but the facts seemed simple enough. The army had come and surrounded the building. A handful of men had gone in and a short battle had ensued. It wasn’t long before the bodies of Madame’s bodyguards were thrown out of the building. In time, the screams of the women were heard.

As the sun set, the men came out of the house covered in blood. Torches were lit. It was only a matter of time before the roar of the flames drowned out the screams of the women inside.

Takako’s mind reeled. Even though she was sitting she felt like there was nothing solid to support her. There was no love lost for Madame or her women, but they had never been cruel to her. They had done only what they were supposed to, no more or no less. They weren’t saints, but they didn’t deserve this.

For a long time Takako wasn’t able to cry. Her mind kept running in circles, trying to find some exit, some logical way forward. She was searching for hope and reason but couldn’t find any. Finally she broke down in tears. Tears for a new world she didn’t understand and felt powerless within. She was caught up in something much larger than herself.

Ryuu and Shigeru watched, unable to connect with the feelings Takako was experiencing. Ryuu knew the pain of losing his family, but it had been so long ago he couldn’t touch the emotions that lay dormant.

By the time she had finished crying, Takako only had one thought on her mind.

“I need to return to my family, or at least warn them. If Akio’s father got to Madame, it is only one step further to my family. They don’t deserve what is coming if Nori believes I am heading there for safety.”

Ryuu and Shigeru said nothing. They had no plan, no destination. Hers was as good as any other. They picked their gear back up and left the city without comment, Takako in tow.

Takako’s mind kept repeating one thought. She had to get to her family. She couldn’t sleep or eat and found the energy to keep the fastest pace Ryuu and Shigeru would set. There was one thing left she cared about and she didn’t dare to imagine what would happen if she lost them too.

Fueled by Takako’s fear, the journey took just two days. Takako had no trouble finding the path to her house, but Ryuu and Shigeru had to stop her. Their senses knew the truth. The land was dead, confirming their worst fears. They tried to hold Takako back, but she charged forward.

Both Ryuu and Shigeru were shocked by the level of devastation. The house had been burned like Madame’s, but the bodies had not been inside. Parents and siblings had all been left outside, hung to trees, their corpses already food for the birds. The villagers walked by every day but took no action to cut them down. Ryuu was disgusted.