by Rick Scott
Kenji nodded. “You’re probably right.”
He could use the extra time to observe the rotations of the lieutenants and work out a solid plan. “We should meet sometime tomorrow.”
“When?”
“The morning would perhaps be too soon.”
“How about at noon?” she said. “We could meet in the village for lunch.”
“They’ll allow you to leave?”
Shinoto grinned with a shrug. “It could perhaps be my last day. I’ll find a way.”
He chuckled. “All right. I’ll meet you in the square then.”
“Sounds like a date,” Shinoto said, removing the yellow rope. “Too bad this thing couldn’t work all the way or else we could have a real one.”
“Huh?”
“Never mind.” She chuckled, hiding a blush. “See you tomorrow at noon.”
Chapter 35 - Control
Dawn broke over the horizon as Amikazu drifted across the dense forest surrounding the outskirts of Amatsu Village. The pulsing from the stone within the box intensified, again resonating within his doma. His Qi faltered and he barely landed upon a tree branch before falling out of the sky.
Curse the fates, he thought. It was no longer safe to travel this way.
Using the last of his Qinggong, Amikazu descended to the ground.
He opened the steel box about his neck and found the ruby within glowing even more intensely than before. By the hells…
Intricate patterns flowed inside the jewel itself and he stared at it, mesmerized. It had to be resonating with the other stone. The one inside the boy. Perhaps I should consume it now, he thought, the power of it enticing.
But no…that had been the emperor’s folly.
Jin Yu had consumed the spirit stone as barely a tenth Dan and the power of it had overcome him. If Amikazu wanted to avoid the same fate, he would need to extract the power of the Duke’s doma first. Pure Qi stripped of the Duke’s influence. Only by first ascending to at least 40th Dan would he perhaps have the fortitude to consume both.
Still…he was no materia-fed weakling like Jin Yu. Perhaps he was strong enough now.
You are…
He reached for the glowing ruby, touching its surface. So beautiful. A tremendous urge overcame him. He was so close to his goal, what he had sacrificed so much for…
Take it, Amikazu… you are strong enough now…
Take it!
He blinked at the sudden thought entering his mind and slammed the case shut. His heart pounded as if in fright. What was that? Those thoughts were not his own.
Not entirely.
He steeled himself as the pulsing from within the case continued to surge within his doma. He would need to walk the rest of the way. Perhaps that would be better. The less Qi he used, the less chance of the stone affecting him.
He was so close to his aim.
He thought of burying the box to distance himself from it. Perhaps he could return for it later once he had ascended.
No, don’t be a fool…Anyone could find it then.
“That’s true,” Amikazu said.
No, he needed the other stone. That was the solution.
He needed to find that boy as soon as possible.
Chapter 36 – Contemplating Chaos
Kenji awoke, expecting to feel groggy from his late-night activities and lack of sleep. But he felt surprisingly rejuvenated and full of vigor, a strong pulse of energy surging through his doma. It didn’t hurt as it did the night before, but he did feel more of a presence there. Like perhaps the crack had slightly grown and was now allowing more Qi to enter his system. If that were the case then he needed to progress even faster now.
He threw off his blanket within the small storage room at the back of the main hall and set his mind to the task of the day.
He would be leaving this village tonight—him along with Shinoto.
Part of him couldn’t be more excited about it. They would set off and explore the world together, just like they had always planned. But the reality was perhaps far more daunting than that. He was a hunted man, with a compromised doma that was slowly killing him and he was about to lead his best friend into a fate he himself didn’t yet fully understand.
If he wanted any hope of survival, he needed to free Olja first.
And he had only a day to figure that out.
He’d left both ropes secured in Hu Dong’s office. There was no sense in raising suspicion by being caught with them before it was time. He would meet with Shinoto in the village center by noon. But before then he needed to learn the rotation of the lieutenants guarding Olja’s cell and then devise some way to distract them long enough for him to use the rope on her cage and then a way for all three of them to escape.
No easy task perhaps. Even Olja, as strong as she seemed, would be no match for all four of those lieutenants. But he needed to figure this all out soon. The military had already increased their security by placing the lieutenant on guard rather than the upperclassmen and more would be on their way to interrogate her.
Time to get started.
Kenji went about the normal duties of the day, as he had been instructed by Master Hu Dong earlier, cleaning the main hall. Although he was technically a steward and Hu Dong’s secret rebirthing slave, he still had to make good on his promise to keep the school clean. That was just fine with him. It would allow him access to all the areas he needed to develop a plan.
Kenji started first by checking on Olja.
He ventured across the dojo and then as far as halfway down the hallway leading to her cage, pretending to sweep. The lieutenant on duty turned about and looked at him.
It was a different one than the woman he’d met before, a young man this time, which was a blessing perhaps. The woman would have certainly become suspicious of him. Kenji kept his distance and gave the lieutenant a polite smile.
The man didn’t return it.
He looked to Olja next. The giant woman was still within the cage, her eyes closed in some deep meditative state. Just as well. He didn’t want her reacting to him by making eye contact or something in front of the lieutenant.
We’ll be out of here soon, he promised her. He just prayed she would have all the answers he craved: why she’d come for him and why she needed him to go north.
Kenji completed the chores within the hall and then had a small breakfast of rice congee and shredded pork in the main square along with the other students. The meal was prepared by the upperclassmen or sempais as they were called. Kenji joined them, sitting at the back of the group. He spotted Shinoto among the ranks of the lowerclassmen, but kept his distance for Chet Fai’s sake—or perhaps his own.
The last thing he needed was Chet Fai getting suspicious and interfering somehow. But despite Kenji keeping his distance, the adolescent twenty-year-old made his displeasure known by scowling at Kenji from over his bowl of congee. Kenji acknowledged the scowl with a smile.
After the students had eaten they returned to their training within the courtyard and Kenji watched them from afar. Master Hu Dong taught a class on basic defense techniques common to all the mystic art styles. He had to admit, although he had never had an affinity for training in the mystic arts like Shinoto, the idea of spending every day simply training was appealing to him. A productive and structured life and a fair bit easier than tending a field or orchard.
He gave Shinoto a smile as she went through foot techniques, learning to advance and retreat with as few steps as possible, while always keeping her attacker in sight. They then broke into the various basic art styles and Shinoto joined the Soul Master group while Chet Fai joined the Blade Masters.
Although the techniques they practiced were basic, it was still somewhat riveting to watch. The more experienced students sparred against one another while the younger ones observed. Eventually they participated as well, with Shinoto practicing the same basic palm technique that Master Yushiro had taught her back in Han Village.
In between the mat
ches, Kenji took note of the time and finally saw the lieutenant from earlier emerge from the common hall. He was happy to see him exchanging posts with the female lieutenant he had met originally. It was nearly noon and that would mean it would likely not be her on duty when they tried their escape tonight. That woman held an interest in him that was far too keen. Even as she passed by, Kenji noticed the slight stare she gave him.
Now that he had determined the shift timing, he had a clear window of when to enact the plan. The only thing left now was the plan itself. He had first thought of starting some disturbance in the village. But with the other three lieutenants guarding it, that perhaps wouldn’t work. It needed to be something at the school instead. Something urgent and pressing enough for a student to need the help from a soldier rather than an upperclassman or Hu Dong. A small fire perhaps? He contemplated how he could achieve such a thing without burning down the entire school. He certainly didn’t want to endanger everyone’s lives or the school itself.
Perhaps he’d need to get Hu Dong to leave the school first and then create a more mundane disturbance. But that would be far more difficult to accomplish at night. If the fire were more controlled, it could probably work. He eyed the wooden practice dummies in the center of the courtyard and slowly solidified the idea. Night would become an advantage then—a sudden confusion with which to take advantage. And with the soldiers already poised to repel some kind of attack, it would no doubt be easy to bring them running.
It was as good a plan as any, he supposed. Now he just had to share it with Shinoto and then wait until nightfall to put it into action. He’d have to find a way to start the—
“Hey, cripple.”
Kenji emerged from his thoughts to see Chet Fai standing over him.
“Why don’t you stop gawking and earn your breakfast,” the boy said. “This yard could use some sweeping.”
Kenji released a tired sigh. Chet Fai was nothing if not predictable, just as Shinoto had said. Trying to pick a fight in the main square in the midst of the assembly was a great way to perhaps have him kicked out of the sect for fighting.
But he wasn’t rising to the bait.
“A good idea,” Kenji said, taking his broom as he stood. He glanced down at Chet Fai and felt almost sorry for him. His world was about to forever change tonight as well. Would he even care? “Let me ask you something, Chet Fai.”
He smirked mischievously, perhaps thinking himself to have won this elementary game of wits. “Go ahead.”
“When this is all over, what will you do?”
The question seemed to genuinely take him by surprise and he squinted. “What do you mean?”
“Your revenge, once you have it. What then? Will you rebuild Han Village? Or will you make a home here?”
“What does it matter to you what I do?”
“You’re the chief now. Shouldn’t you have a plan?”
He reddened a bit, his eyes shifting. “I do have a plan. And I don’t need you or anyone else’s approval for it.”
Kenji raised his palms in mock surrender. “Fine. I was simply asking. I’ll be sure to stay out of your way.”
“Yes, you do that.”
As Chet Fai turned to leave, the insolence rose up within him again.
Just be sure to stay out of mine, he wanted to say, but words such as that would serve no purpose right now. Kenji held his tongue, but still, there was something else that remained on his mind. And perhaps now was his only chance to seek the truth of it. “What is it you have against me, Chet Fai?”
“What?” The boy stopped and turned about.
“Since I’ve known you, you’ve resented me. Why is that?”
Chet Fai reddened again, looking almost sheepish. Perhaps he didn’t think him bold enough to ask the question outright. “My sister has a soft spot for you, but I don’t. I see you for what you truly are, Kenji.”
Kenji smirked. “And what’s that?”
“A follower.”
It was Kenji’s turn to redden now. That was the last thing he expected him to say.
“You lack ambition,” Chet Fai said. “You think weakness like that is something I want brought into my family? I was hoping after Shinoto’s rebirth you’d get the hint and leave her be. But my sister is as thick-headed as you are. You probably think I resent you for simply being a dullard, but that only adds to the insult of what you already are.”
Kenji’s stomach churned with anger and resentment, but he could find no words to defend against what Chet Fai had said.
“You ask me of my plan,” Chet Fai said. “But what is yours? What do you hope to aspire to besides following my sister around like a lapdog?” He then smirked and nodded at the broom. “Even if it means lowering yourself to a chambermaid, you’ll do it to follow her. Nothing is beneath you, it seems. Grow a spine and be a man, Kenji. Then perhaps you’ll garner some respect.”
His insides sickened with hatred and disgust, but he couldn’t say it was directed entirely at Chet Fai. The boy turned from him and walked away and for once he seemed to be the true age he was. Not much older perhaps, but old enough to see things in a light Kenji never dreamed possible. Chet Fai spoke with an introspection Kenji didn’t think him capable of.
And yet he couldn’t deny that what Chet Fai said had some truth to it.
His thoughts returned to what Waru had said—about choosing his own path.
To have an enemy like Chet Fai point out something so bluntly added an extra degree of truth to it. A truth that now stung like a sharp blade. Perhaps he had indeed lost something when his soul was sundered as the Bloody Duke—the part of him that craved power like Chet Fai, and that resented those without it.
This escape…was it Shinoto’s dream or his own?
Was his life even his own?
He stood there for perhaps a minute, beside himself, contemplating it.
The evil little runt was right, he thought. He was still a follower in many ways.
But that would end today. The insolence rose up in him again, but this time against himself. Never again would he be at the whims of someone else’s dreams or desires. To be ridiculed for no ambition by someone as abhorrent as Chet Fai.
He wouldn’t go blindly north with Olja just because she said. And he wouldn’t grow strong just to protect Shinoto either. He needed his own reason for existing, for being more than a vessel to hold the Bloody Duke’s doma—for strengthening his body and gaining in power only for the Bloody Duke to one day repossess it again.
To the hells with that.
Kenji searched within his soul. He needed to find his own path indeed.
Even if it meant rebelling against the heavens themselves, he would make that his goal.
He huffed out a laugh as a new sense of purpose filled him.
Thank you, Chet Fai. You’ve taught me a valuable lesson.
Or perhaps two: the lesson itself and the lesson that even your greatest enemy could teach you a lesson worth heeding. Kenji nodded to himself as a new set of priorities added themselves to his list of things to accomplish. The ‘what’ was still very much the same; he still needed to free Olja, still needed to heal his doma and discover why Olja had come, but the why had changed significantly.
He would no longer follow a path laid out for him.
He would define his own.
* * *
Chow Meugo swallowed down the fear in his gut as the man, Purple Leaf, entered the camp. He looked sickly and pale and the aura he exuded reeked of Dark Qi.
What in the hells is this? he thought, a growing sense of dread surging within his doma.
He shared nervous glances with his guildmates and could tell they were thinking the same thing. Li Wei regarded the man warily, resting his palms atop the hilts of his Dao blades as he stepped next to Chow Meugo’s side. Zhe Ahn meanwhile had a playful smile on her lips as she studied the Zhou General with great interest. As for what she was thinking, Chow Meugo had no idea, but given her nature it was perhaps for nothing
of good intent.
They were still within the forest outside the village, but had progressed past the warding glyphs to get a better view of the village itself. The man, Purple Leaf, barely acknowledged them as he studied the villagers from afar. They went about their daily business: farmers and fishermen selling within the central market square while the flames of woks ignited for the cooking of midday meals.
“How many military personnel have you seen?” Purple Leaf asked.
“I count four,” Li Wei said. “That’s not including the artists from the mystic school. I’ve seen quite a few students traversing the stairs there.”
Purple Leaf caressed a strange metal box hung about his neck. “This complicates matters. I will need your services again, Master Badger.”
Chow Meugo harrumphed. “If you want us to take on all four of them, we’ll need to renegotiate our price.”
“Price?” Purple Leaf chuckled. “Such will be trivial shortly.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Li Wei said.
“It means you’ll get whatever you want.” Purple Leaf turned to them, facing his back towards the village. “If you do what I ask.”
“Which is what?” Zhe Ahn said.
“Something that you should be very good at, witch.” Purple Leaf then grinned at her. “I’ll call for your services when the time is right.”
Chapter 37 – First Step
“You’re going to start a fire?”
Shinoto’s eyes opened wide when she said it, almost shouting. But then quickly she lowered her voice and leaned across her bowl of noodles to whisper to him. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”
Kenji smiled at her as he twirled his own bowl of thick noodles in the hearty broth. They were off in a corner of the village square, outside a small tea house that served noodles and steamed dumplings. Kenji had ordered Shinoto’s favorite: ground pork and scallion with extra chili oil, just how she liked. It was a little past noon now and the crowds were thinning. He had waited almost an hour for Shinoto to arrive, but slipping away from the school had taken longer than she had figured, it seemed. Still, it was a good chance to talk in relative privacy while they shared a meal together, hatching their plan.
