by Ryan Kirk
Koji stepped into the space behind the attack. The giant had the advantage of reach, and he was plenty quick for a man of his size. But Koji refused to feel intimidated. He gripped more tightly to the hilt of his sword, taking comfort in the cold, unbending steel. He’d taken on every difficult opponent he could find, and this man was no different.
The giant stepped forward and cut down, allowing gravity to do much of the work accelerating the sword. Koji’s first impulse was to deflect the attack, but he remembered the opening he’d allowed the last time their swords had met. Even a glancing blow might give the man the time he needed to finish Koji.
Koji stepped to the side, his sword still in a high guard. Impossibly, the giant seemed to have predicted the move, and managed to halt the blade in the middle of the downstroke, cutting across with impossible quickness.
Koji couldn’t bring his blade down fast enough, so he followed Asa’s example and dove to the side. The ground rushed up to meet him, and he fell hard on his left shoulder. He grimaced in pain as he tore his spear wound open further, but got to his feet before the giant could land the killing cut.
The two of them stood there, judging each other. Koji wondered if he was quick enough to get inside the long blade and deliver a fatal blow. The giant rarely overextended with the blade, displaying his comfort and expertise with the weapon. It was a lot of space to cover, and Koji wasn’t sure he could step forward without getting cut.
He took a deep breath, feeling the tension drop from his muscles. He was here to fight and kill Katashi, to end the terror who’d haunted the blades. Koji felt a warmth flood through his body and down his limbs. The sounds of the battle faded around him, leaving only him and the giant. He felt the giant lower his sword for another horizontal cut.
This time, Koji went deeper into his state of relaxation, following unknown instincts. He felt the enemy’s muscles contracting, could read the intention as the mighty warrior began his cut. The giant was prepared for Koji to either block or dive out of the way, and his counters were already prepared. Either move would only prolong the fight or bring about his death.
Koji saw the answer in his mind before he performed it. He bent forward, and the huge man expected that the nightblade was going to dive again. The enormous sword started cutting downward in a deadly, graceful arc. Then Koji leaped and twisted, bringing his arms in tight to his torso. Thanks to the man’s reaction, the sword was low enough that Koji’s leap took him over the dangerous steel. Koji landed on one foot, continued twisting, and sliced through the gap in the man’s armor at his neck.
There was no time to celebrate. As the large man fell, two more warriors took his place and the battle continued. But now Koji and the blades had regained their momentum. Koji could feel the presence of the blades diminishing behind him. His kind were dying to bring an end to this war.
Koji found himself with a few heartbeats of time, looking up to see where Katashi’s flag was. The flag was close, only ten paces away. Koji could see Katashi, mounted on his horse, pressed in with soldiers on all sides.
Koji felt a surge of energy wash over him like water from a cool stream. He pushed forward, his weapon finding holes in the defenses of his enemies. He had eyes only for Katashi.
The lord’s eyes met his, and Koji saw the abject terror of the man. Katashi had trained in the deadly arts, but he was no warrior. Koji cut through the last of the guards and Katashi tried to run him over with his steed. Before he could get the horse turned around, though, Koji cut through the animal without remorse, bringing it crashing down.
Katashi was either skilled or lucky enough to survive the horse’s collapse, rolling away awkwardly and coming to his feet uninjured. He drew his sword, still polished even though his forces had been at battle all night and all day.
The lord came in with a cut, as perfect as any master swordsman could ask for. But the strike was slow and lacked conviction. Koji sensed it coming and stepped into Katashi’s guard before the man could react. He thrust out, driving his sword with all his strength through the man’s armor, cutting into his stomach. Koji could have hit the lungs, but a slower death seemed better suited to the man.
Katashi dropped his sword as soon as Koji’s entered his body. His eyes went wide with disbelief and Koji thrust his blade all the way in, feeling Katashi’s ragged, surprised breath on his own face. Koji glared at the lord, then stepped back and pulled his blade out, twisting and slicing as he did. He’d leave no chance for Katashi to survive.
A moment later Asa entered behind Koji, cutting down Katashi’s standard-bearer.
One guard, blind with anger and rage, charged at Koji. Koji cut at him dismissively and the man fell.
He heard mad laughter below him, and he looked down to see Katashi with a gleam in his eye. When Katashi saw that Koji was looking, he laughed again. “You’re too late,” he sputtered, blood coming out the corners of his mouth.
Then Katashi, Lord of House Amari, breathed his last.
24
From her perch on the road that led up to Stonekeep, Mari watched the battle unfold with her untrained eyes. She’d already seen more battle in her life than she ever wanted, and even Takahiro had encouraged her to remain behind. But if anyone had to face their responsibility for this war, she had to. She had made the decisions that led to this moment, and she wouldn’t hide behind the walls of her castle. She would watch what she had set in motion.
Doing so was far from easy. Every time the lines moved, she thought of the lives that movement cost. Off to the side, Takahiro conferred with Fumio, adding his suggestions as he saw fit. For the most part, though, the path was silent. Fumio was the best tactician among them, and the battle was his to win or lose.
Although she believed it was important for her to be present, Mari didn’t have anything besides her presence to offer. She didn’t know battle strategies, and she certainly didn’t understand the nuanced clash of armies happening below her.
At times she thought she saw a glimmer of the battle happening underneath the battle. She saw how an infantry unit took a small rise in the land, then guarded it so archers could better strike at their enemies. She saw how cavalry remained mobile, crashing into the parts of the battle that looked to turn against them. Other times she saw actions she couldn’t understand, but she refused to panic. She trusted Fumio and his orders. He’d always been a gifted general.
Mari did see Katashi’s banner fall. Squinting her eyes, she thought she could make out a pool of black among all the red. Had some of the nightblades attacked from the rear? Hajimi had promised no such action. He’d made it clear that once the blades passed through Katashi’s lines, their role in the war was over. Mari had seen the pitifully small remnant depart as the sun had risen, leaving a wide swath of destruction in its wake.
She couldn’t be sure what she saw, but the loss of Katashi’s banner had an immediate impact on his remaining soldiers. The line buckled, and although it would still be some time before the army was defeated, even Mari could see that the greatest single threat to her house lands had been conquered. Yoshinori, probably hiding somewhere up in Stonekeep, would be sorely disappointed to know that his benefactor had died.
Mari contained her pleasure at the knowledge. As tempting as it was, she never wanted to become the person who delighted in the suffering of another. Yoshinori might be a fiend, but he was still a member of her house. She needed to remember that.
She heard Takahiro walk up next to her. He reached down and grabbed her hand as they watched the battle.
“You saw Katashi’s flag fall?”
She nodded.
“I believe it was Koji and Asa. I couldn’t quite see clearly, but I’m fairly certain.”
Mari wished that they had more of the looking glasses. Right now, every one Stonekeep possessed was being used by a commander or military officer. She would have loved to see Katashi’s fall up close. What Takahiro said seemed reasonable, though. If anyone was going to turn around and attack Katash
i from his flank, it would be those two. They had just as much cause to hate Katashi as she did.
The news was good, but she didn’t allow herself hope, not yet. The winds blew from the west, filling her nose with the scent of death. The cost of this battle was already too high, and it wasn’t yet over.
As Katashi’s forces slowly collapsed, Mari turned the bulk of her attention to Satoru’s forces. There, Kita’s soldiers were outnumbered, but the southern soldiers fought poorly. Isamu had never focused much on his military forces, and that mistake was costing his house now. Mari watched their house lines hold easily against haphazard assaults.
Mari looked over at her husband, feeling warm even as she thought the word. “Can we win?”
Takahiro thought for a moment before answering. “We can, but this battle could still turn either way.”
His hand felt solid in hers, something she could hold onto no matter how chaotic the world around her became. Mari clasped it tighter as they watched the battle for the fate of the Kingdom.
Her attention was suddenly attracted to a commotion below her. From their position, Mari, Takahiro, and Fumio could look down on the field from a position of relative safety. If the battle had gone poorly, it left them the option to retreat back to Stonekeep. However, they’d kept a large force of guards below them, and any enemy would have to break through their lines even to get that far.
Near the beginning of the road a battle was ongoing between their warriors and a large contingent of Katashi’s warriors. But the group of soldiers in red was pushing through the blue. The battle was small compared to the larger fight below, but few of the commanders seemed focused on it. Their attention was on the greater battle.
As Mari watched, she saw men in red uniforms cut down her own warriors with ease. She’d seen that type of fighting before. She squeezed Takahiro’s hand and pointed down the road. “Are those nightblades with Katashi’s army?”
Takahiro turned and watched the battle himself, then cursed. “They are.”
The nightblades pushed their way into the ranks of guards, cutting through them like grass. The fight was getting close enough that the commanders were noticing as well.
Suzo was the one who saw reason first. She stood a little below them on the road, between them and the fight. She turned to Lady Mari. “We need to get everyone back to Stonekeep, immediately.”
Takahiro protested. “If we leave, morale is going to take a hit, and we’ll lose communication with our commanders on the ground. We could lose the entire battle.”
Suzo hesitated, caught between her duty to her lord and her duty to keep Lady Mari safe. A glance from Mari was enough for the head of the guards to realize that Mari wasn’t going to leave her husband. She cursed, more colorfully than Mari would have expected. Even Takahiro’s mouth gaped open for a moment before he reasserted his calm.
“Fine,” Suzo said. “But I’m going to have horses ready. If we can’t hold them, I’ll expect you to retreat. You can’t enjoy the victory if you’re dead!”
25
Asa felt the exhaustion deep in her bones, like a weight she carried with every movement. Being near Koji helped, but even his gift, supporting them all, had limits.
She didn’t have the language or the energy to describe what had happened. Something about Koji fed the rest of them. Looking from face to face, she saw the others were thinking it, but they too were shaken by what they’d experienced. Nothing like this existed even in legends.
After a night of fighting and running they should have been too tired to make that charge against Katashi. But Koji changed them, somehow deepened the reserve of strength they could draw on. Even now, Asa could feel it. When he came close, she felt more awake and aware, the weariness sloughing off her like dead skin. But when he turned to another and took a few steps away, she could feel the exhaustion settling over her again.
She didn’t have a good explanation. She could sense the way energy flowed into Koji, lit with purpose again as he was. Some of that energy seemed to be flowing into them as well.
Their small group of nightblades, now less than twenty strong, stood in a strange place in the battlefield. They were almost entirely surrounded by Katashi’s soldiers, but no one fought. A handful of soldiers had attacked immediately after Katashi’s death, driven by grief and rage. They’d been quickly killed, and now the blades were left alone.
Something bothered Asa. Why had Katashi said it was too late? He’d sounded so confident, and it seemed unlikely that his last words were a bluff. So what was he referring to?
Asa struggled to her feet, looking around at the battle. Takahiro’s forces were almost to where she and the blades stood, which meant Katashi’s forces must almost be destroyed. From her position she couldn’t see much of the battle between the other two houses, but that couldn’t have been what Katashi spoke of.
Asa turned and looked to the road up to Stonekeep, where the flag of House Kita snapped proudly in the wind. Below the flag a skirmish raged, some last force of Katashi’s making a final push. But they were outnumbered, so it shouldn’t matter.
As Asa watched, though, she saw the way Katashi’s forces sliced through their enemies. They might be outnumbered, but they were winning. Asa cursed as connections built in her mind. She couldn’t confirm her guess. That particular battle was farther away, and in the mass of people, Asa’s sense couldn’t travel nearly far enough. But she felt confident she was right.
Asa called Koji over and pointed to the road. “Are those Katashi’s nightblades?”
Koji only watched for a moment before reaching the same conclusion. “They must be.”
Around them, Katashi’s men began surrendering. The battle, at least here, was ending.
Asa looked over at Koji. “You want to save her.” It was barely even a question.
He nodded, and although his expression remained calm, Asa could sense even more energy pouring into him. What kind of man was he? She could sense everything happening to him herself, but she could barely believe what her sense was telling her.
Asa looked back to the north, where the other blades had now disappeared. She felt a pang of jealousy for those who had gone on, for those who had already put all of this behind them.
And in that moment, she saw glimpses into the future. The blades were making her mistake, thinking they could leave life behind and strike out on their own. They didn’t see the connections that tied them all together. Eventually, the blades would either have to return or would wither and stagnate on their own.
Asa felt some of Koji’s excess energy seep into her, strengthening her limbs. “One last battle,” she said.
“One last battle,” Koji said.
They ran, Asa’s breath coming in short gasps.
Koji had gathered the remaining nightblades and told them what he planned. Asa didn’t know if they simply followed Koji, or if they agreed that Mari needed to be protected, but every single person followed. Asa suspected it was Koji. He was the type of person others wanted to follow.
They had tried going through House Kita forces but quickly realized their error. Those soldiers didn’t necessarily view them as friendly. They didn’t attack as quickly as Katashi’s forces had, but they also weren’t just going to let nightblades through their ranks. After a few moments of hasty negotiation, Koji had given up and decided to run around the rest of the battlefield.
The confusion from the last remnants of battle helped them. Katashi’s men were surrendering, and little attention was given to the blades as they ran on the outskirts of the field. Occasionally a unit would attempt to follow, but never for very long. They had other responsibilities, and no military unit wanted to take on a collection of nightblades.
Asa knew she shouldn’t be able to keep running, but Koji kept them moving. Asa wondered, once this was all done, what the damage to her body would be.
They made it to the road and started the long climb. Katashi’s forces, combined with the mercenary nightblades, had bro
ken through the infantry units protecting the base of the road and were now engaged with the guard units above. Once the guards fell, nothing stood between Mari and her doom. Why didn’t she leave?
The answer became apparent as Asa crested a small rise in the road. The horses that had been held in reserve for the nobles were riddled with arrows. Katashi’s archers had focused on the beasts, forcing the nobility and command to stand their ground. They didn’t have any hope of defeating the incoming mercenary blades in a footrace.
As they gained elevation, Asa glanced over at the last of the battle. The focus had turned entirely onto Satoru’s forces, which looked to be gradually collapsing. The battle could be won, but Mari needed to be alive to reap the benefits of their costly victory.
Asa turned her attention back to the road as they neared the chaos.
The advance of the nightblades hadn’t gone unnoticed. A rear guard of Katashi’s soldiers turned and drew bows, and Asa cursed.
Arrows leaped from the bows, cutting into their ranks. They still didn’t have shields, and with the narrow road and little time to react, there weren’t many options. The only fact in their favor was that the archers only got off two volleys before the blades got too close.
The remaining nightblades crashed into Katashi’s forces. Asa cut down an archer who hadn’t had enough time to reach for his sword, then sliced into the leg of another warrior, dropping him to the ground.
Then she ran into her first enemy nightblade. Apparently, some of them had turned to meet the threat from below. The blade was a man she didn’t recognize, his red uniform failing to disguise the energy pouring off him. He was strong.
The man stepped forward calmly, cutting down at Asa’s head. Asa deflected the cut with her left sword, allowing his strike to glance off her weapon, then cut across at him with her right sword.
