Twelve Lords

by Max Jager

  Pulling his hand back, Kurosai kept one around his mate as he put the other on his hip. "So how did you get that sadistic brother of yours to let you come to the South?"

  Laughing as he shook his head, Soichiro smiled. "He doesn't know that I am here yet. Emiko and I were with Tikae and Toki. But I will explain all that later after we see your grandson."

  "Right."

  All eyes then turned as Kiara raced in the room and right to her sister's side, followed by Kiyoshi and Yokiyo with Katana in her arms. Kiyoshi stopped half way through the room as he looked down at his giggling son he smiled as he sighed. "My son and heir of the South. Katana."

  Anxious to see the pup, Yuriko stepped up with wide eyes. He was a demon as well! Just like his sister! "So it happened again?"

  Laughing Yokiyo nodded. "That's right. It would seem for some reason I am unable to have half demon children and can only have demons."

  Looking to her right as she felt her son climbing up her back, Yuriko laughed at his wide eyes. "Well Isamu what do you think? She is human and gave birth to not only one but two demons. Sill think your uncle is right and she is weak?"

  Stepping up to his mate with a smile as he looked down at the baby, Shone laughed. "Well it seems that the looks of the male demons of the South have changed. Your grandfather had stripes, you and your father have the stripes and moons and now this one has just the one crescent moon on his forehead." He then looked down at Kiara as she stood between them now and winked at her. "Besides I think those markings look much better on a female anyway. Kiara does them more justice."

  With a nod, Kiara smiled. "Thank you."

  As they turned to let Soichiro and his family see him, Shone smiled to Yukani. "And I do believe that congratulations are in order for you and Kamui as well."

  "Thank you Shone. We only just realized it a couple of weeks ago, about a week before he was born. But right now it is about my brother and his family not mine." Yukani then turned her eyes back to the family in question with a smile.

  Stepping up with his mate and cubs, Soichiro was in awe when he saw Kiara and that she was demon. Even more so as he looked down at this little boy in her arms. "This is truly amazing." He then glanced at Kiyoshi then settled on Yokiyo with a warm smile. "Of course I would have to say that it says something about your strength Yokiyo. You are the first woman in history that I know of too birth not only one, but two pure demons."

  Hearing the growl from her mate, Yokiyo laughed. "Why thank you Soichiro." She then looked at Emiko and laughed as she all but shoved her son into her arms. "Here just be careful of his teeth he is biting already. Pass him around."

  With a gracious smile as everyone sort of went to their separate parts of the room, passing her brother around, Imae excused herself and headed to the room where Ayame was. Stopping to knock, she smiled when there was a soft come in from the other side of the door. Walking in she smiled at the bird as she crossed her arms. "You have been in here since you got here Ayame. Why don't you come out already? Come on, everyone else has seen my brother and you still haven't. So come see him. And I do believe that you know Soichiro is here with his mate and cubs you gotta meet too."

  Giving the young miko a sad look before she dropped her head, Ayame let out a small sigh. "I would love to but I think that I better stay right here for the duration of the stay."

  "You are healed already I didn't go that deep Ayame. Get out of bed."

  "It isn't because of that Imae. It is what I have done. To show that I am truly sorry for it I am….." But then she gasped as she was pulled from the bed and drug across the floor with wide eyes Ayame didn't know what to say at first. "Wait Imae!"

  Ignoring her as she pulled her out into the hall Imae laughed. "Just come and see my brother already damnit."

  Once she let go of her hand, Ayame sighed as she nodded and followed her. "Alright."

  Once she was in the room with everyone else, Imae pulled her to where her mother and Emiko were with Katana and pulled him from Emiko's arms and all but shoved him into her arms. She then smiled as she watched the bird soften and smile a true smile as Katana laughed with a big smile for her. No matter who it was, there was always just something about a baby that could soften them nearly instantly. Well most anyway.

  "Thank you for that."

  Stepping back Imae looked up to see Sanzo's gold eyes smiling into her own as she blinked. "Thank you? For what?"

  Looking back toward his sister with a smile, Sanzo crossed his arms. "You have done more in the last few days with my sister than I have been able to do in more than a hundred years. You showed her that you could take her down, that she isn't the strongest because of the position she was born into. And then turned around and in the same right showed her true kindness. Effectively proving me right and that not all humans, or all mikos are like the one that killed our father."

  Blinking still Imae just looked up at him. She hadn't noticed yet, but standing there looking up at him, he was quite handsome to say the least. "You mean you really couldn't convince her of that yourself?"

  "Nope." Sanzo laughed as he looked down at Imae and winked at her causing her to blush as she looked away some. "I couldn't get it through to her but you have. You kicked her ass and showed compassion to her without my asking. I am sure it will still take some time to get the mindset of the Ayame she was back, but you kick started that for me."

  Laughing as she crossed her arms, Imae nodded. "Well Sanzo I am glad that I could help."

  Yokiyo sighed as she moved to stand with her mate and watched. Katana was being passed around to everyone, giggling and smiling the entire time. Kiara was with Nyoko and Isamu talking, and now they seemed to be getting along which was good. But then she sighed as the same feeling that washed through her body daily happened again. She was now thirty years old. At best she may live another twenty to thirty years old.

  Letting her eyes find and settle on Chiren they half closed as she kept her smile. He was just over half grown, and neither one of her pups would be close to that size when she left the world. Her only solace was that they would have their father, grandfather, uncle, and aunts to help them as they grow and through life. But at times that did very little to sooth the fact that she wasn't going to get to watch them grow into adults. Or see their children.

  She knew going into this mating that it was going to happen and that she would go through this. And while she knew it would hurt when she thought about it as she got older, she didn't think it would hurt like this. She didn't think that she would get so heartbroken over it, seeing a she knew she wouldn't be able to change it.

  It was the sound of Katana getting fussy that pulled her from her thoughts. Worry washing over as she looked up into Kiyoshi's worried eyes she smiled. "I am fine. I am." She then went to Yukani and pulled her boy into her arms. "I think he is getting hungry. I am going to go and feed him then retire for the night with him."

  Nodding as she came back to him, Kiyoshi sighed. "I will be there late tonight. Umarus will be with you, Yoite with us and Kiara."

  Smiling at her son then up to her mate as she turned for the door. "Just don't keep her too long. Send her to bed if not before by the time the moon is high." She then looked down at her son and cooed to him a she glided out of the room, Umarus right behind her.

  Looking down at Kiara with an odd look, Sorae blinked her eyes as Kiara took her place at her father's side. "What is it that you are doing tonight?"

  Her father's mask in place, Kiara turned and gave a sharp nod to her grandmother. "I am going to sit Father and the others while they go over the strategy for protecting Katana and the war."

  Her face going pale, Sorae let out a startled gasp as she jerked her eyes up to Kiyoshi. "She doesn't need to know that! She is only ten years old. She doesn't need to know a thing about war yet."

  "She already has read the strategy books mother and…"

  "She need to go to bed."

  With a sigh, Kiara pulled her grandmother's blue eyes to
her own. "But Grandmother why should I not learn as much as I can? When Katana is Lord of the South one day, and Mother and Father go to stay with you and Grandfather at the Southern Shores I will be the one who helps Katana with the South. Just as Aunt Yukani did father. The more I know about this stuff, the better I can help him and keep the South safe."

  Blinking as she stood there looking down at the little girl before her, Sorae didn't know what to say. She wanted to argue with something there, but she couldn't argue with a single word that she said! Dropping her head as her arms went limp she let out a long sigh. "I swear you are too smart for your own good sometimes you know that."

  Laughing as she went to her mother and hugged her. "Oh Mama it is her memory that she has you know that. Come on, we all need sleep, me included." Looking over her shoulder at Emiko and Yuriko, Yukani nodded. "I will show you where you all will sleep Emiko. Yuriko. Let us let the guys handle this as they get shown up by my niece."

  "Shown up by her?"

  Laughing as they left the room, Yukani nodded. "Oh I am sure we will all hear about it tomorrow. You will understand it then."

  Once it was just himself, Yoite, Shone, Sanzo, Kurosai, Kiyoshi and Kiara, Soichiro turned to Kiyoshi with an odd look. "Her memory?"

  Putting his hand on her head with a smile, Kiyoshi nodded. "My daughter has a perfect memory. From the time she was old enough to understand what it was and how to use it she has. She can remember every word ever spoke to her, and everything that she sees and reads as well."

  "That is truly amazing." Soichiro laughed as he crossed his arms. "Though with you and how you were as a pup, I would expect nothing less."

  "Indeed. Let's go to the library and get started shall we." Kiyoshi then turned and headed for the library with his daughter at his side. A smile as he looked down at her he couldn't help but picture the faces of everyone even his father when she showed what she can do.

  X

  Once everyone was in the library around the large table with maps rolled out, Kiyoshi, Kurosai, Shone, Sanzo, Atsana, Soichiro, Chiren and Kamui were all there. Looking down at his daughter as she looked at the maps from the stool she sat on he sighed then turned to Soichiro. "Regarding Kiara, you do not have to hold back on war and tactics. I am sure that she would surprise her mother and mine with what she already knows. Soichiro do you know what way your brother will come to advance?"

  "I do." Chiren reached out and touched a small mountain pass. "It isn't the biggest path, but he thinks that he will be able to reach the bottom and fan out like this and make a large circle around to get on at least three sides of our army."

  Nodding Kiyoshi crossed his arms. "So it would benefit us to confront him as close to that pass as we can. Boxing him in so to speak."

  His eyes still on the map Soichiro nodded as he leaned his hands on the table. "Indeed in more ways than one. The valley there at the bottom of the mountain is large and barren. Next to nothing grows there and there are now villages, demon or human anywhere near there. So they won't get pulled into it."

  Taking in everything that they said, Kiara blinked as she moved and leaned over the table some looking at the maps. Soichiro was right, it would be a perfect place to fight in since no one innocent lived there that would get in the way. But the scrolls she found not too long ago that were left over from the tiger that was there before her great grandfather, it would benefit them more than they realized if they played their cards right. Especially if they got there before he did.

  Looking up at her father she reached out and tugged on his shirt. As his eyes looked down to meet hers she had a pleading look. "Father can I say something please?"

  "What is it Kiara?"

  Turning back down to the maps she nodded as in her head she went over the maps she found. "It would benefit our side better if you got there at least a week before Motoichi did."

  "How do you figure that one pup?"

  Looking straight to her grandfather Kiara blinked then jumped from the stool and rushed to the back of the library and pulled some of the scrolls out of the trunk she found just the other day. Going back and jumping up on the stool she nodded. "Because of these. Scrolls I think the tiger tried to hide."

  "What?"

  Rolling out one scroll across the table, Kiara pointed to a single line in the middle of it. "These were hidden in a trunk in the back. A hidden compartment. Here it talks about how the tiger is planning to take over the North from Lord Kishiro and his Fujiro."

  Blinking as he leaned closer to read it, Soichiro knew that name. "Wait I know that name. According to father, Fujiro would have been my great great great grandfather."

  Blinking at him then going back down she nodded. "The tiger would send out some of the Southern army to set up traps and things in this valley at the end of the mountain pass. Though once he got them set up he never got to use them because Great Grandfather took him out and took over the South."

  Pulling his granddaughter's eyes to him, Kurosai didn't even know that and had never seen these scrolls before. "Wait Kiara how do you know that? That was thousands of years ago."

  Rolling out another scroll that was a map she pointed to one key location. "Because of this scroll. This is where he planned to put the traps in the different locations. But see down here." She then moved them and pointed to where the Southern Shores Palace was indicated on the larger map. "This is the Southern Shores where you and Grandmother live. It isn't here on this map. At the end of this one it says that they would be attacking in just a few days. But I never found anything about how it turned out so in those few days must have been when Great Grandfather took over."

  Leaning closer to the scrolls, Kurosai sighed. Everything on this scroll was the same, but the last one he saw like this was where his father was planning and building the Southern Shores. "Where did you find these Kiara? I went through every scroll we had here when we lost your great grandparents and I have never seen them."

  "They were under the lining of the lid of the little black chest." Kiara then matter of factly rolled out a third scroll. "This one and the rest of the ones that I found detail each trap that he set, locations and how they worked and how he was going to use them. If you get there early and get to the traps you could use them."

  Reaching over and laying his hand on her head, Sanzo shook his head with a laugh. "You know it is really bad when a ten year old pup can help more than the rest of us."

  Giving him a low growl, Kiyoshi sighed as he jerked his hand away from Kiara's head then sighed. "I would wager that even Yokiyo would have been able to do more than you have Sanzo, seeing as you have said nothing."

  With a smile, Shone looked down and went over the different traps. The damned tiger was detailed in them. But then he let his head fall to the side as he moved and got between Soichiro and his cub. "This looks like…I can't be."

  Looking up with narrowed eyes, Kiyoshi crossed his arms. "What is it Shone?"

  Lifting that part of the scroll, Shone growled. "This trap here. It would seem that da…..darn tiger did more than just rule the south with tyranny. This trap is a trap that was designed by my great great grandfather. It was developed to fight him if he tried to invade the West."

  "A spy."

  "It would seem." Shone sighed as he looked at Kiara. "How many more scrolls were hidden in that chest?"

  "Five more I didn't bring. A few days before Sanzo arrived, mother was napping with Katana, Imae was training with Uncle Senri and Master Umarus. Father was in his study so Master Yoite brought me here and I found them as I was trying to find something else to read that I haven't already."

  Kiyoshi pulled attention go him as he sighed with a smile as he laid his hand on his daughter's head. "My daughter has ready every scroll in this library and could detail every single word of it to you." When her eyes turned up to him with a proud smile he let his head fall to the side. "Kiara I know that mind of yours thought of something. What did you come up with, show us on the updated map."

  Tur
ning and taking a deep breath as the scrolls she rolled out were moved aside, Kiara then pointed out as she spoke. "If we line up along here and here, and have men at these traps here and here, it would promise that even if Motoichi has scouts that see us he would come down the pass regardless since that would be the only way of getting to us. But once he reaches this point if we set off these traps, it would force him to stop advancing. And then these traps along here could alternate and keep him at bay. And then these lines of traps here we could set off if they try to transform which would force them back down. That would give our forces the time they needed to advance on them and push them back up the pass and give us a huge advantage."

  Looking at his granddaughter as she smiled up at her father as he smiled at her, even Kurosai was in shock. Everyone even Chiren was wide eyed as they looked at her. Growling as he dropped his head and crossed his arms, Kurosai shook his head. "I swear I don't know what I am going to do with you pup."

  Turning blinking eyes to her grandfather, Kiara let her head fall to the side. "What are you talking about grandfather?"