Guardian of the Darkness

by Nahoko Uehashi

  “Are you sure that he was only sixteen? He must have been much younger than Jiguro.”

  “Yes, I’m certain.” Yuka sighed. “The land you grew up in is probably much more prosperous than Kanbal. Here a woman may have ten children and be lucky if four survive. It’s not strange for children to be that far apart in age.

  “Kaguro, Jiguro’s older brother, should have been the first person sent to hunt him down. But he had been badly mauled by a wolf, and his arm was amputated. Yuguro would have been the logical choice after him, but at sixteen he was no match for Jiguro. In the end, Taguru was sent from our clan.”

  “Then only one person could have given the gold rings to Yuguro.”

  Yuka nodded, her face grim. “Yes. King Rogsam.”

  Balsa stared rigidly at her clenched fist. “What a clever way to bury Jiguro forever. And to make Yuguro his ally …”

  “Well, I suppose we can guess all we want. But we don’t have enough facts to judge what really happened.” She stood up. “It’s been hours since the midnight horn blew. We should go to bed soon.”

  Balsa nodded and stood up as well, but then she suddenly looked at her aunt. “Do you have rooms for patients to sleep here?” she asked.

  Her aunt looked puzzled. “Yes, but why? We already prepared your bed in the guest room, remember?”

  Balsa picked up her spear. “If there’s a bed free in the house of healing, let me sleep there. You can tell people I’m the daughter of an old acquaintance and I need treatment for a chronic ailment. I may be overcautious, but I’d rather not get you into any trouble. You should tell the gardener I met this morning to keep quiet too.”

  “What are you saying?”

  Balsa smiled at her. “It’s nothing. I’ve just found that it’s always safer to assume the worst. I don’t want the goddess of fate sticking her tongue out at me.”

  Yuka complied without further protest. The moment Balsa had picked up her spear, she radiated the deadly aura of a warrior, and this, more forcefully than any words, had impressed upon Yuka the life her niece had been forced to lead.

  Balsa stayed with her aunt for four days. Yuka was just as Jiguro had described her: an intelligent woman with more pluck than most men. She gave Balsa a room by herself, telling the other patients that she had to be isolated in case her condition was contagious, but Balsa spent most of her waking hours at her aunt’s house.

  The gardener was very loyal to Yuka, and it was clear that he would tell no one who Balsa was. Looking at the two of them, however, he scratched his neck and said in an undertone, “I’m surprised you haven’t noticed it, Mistress Yuka, but she looks just like you. I wouldn’t go out together in public if I were you.”

  His words surprised them. Neither one was the type to spend much time in front of a mirror, so they had not realized the resemblance until he mentioned it. Balsa thanked him and promised to stay out of sight. But it warmed her heart to think that there was someone living in this world whom she resembled.

  Over those four peaceful days, Yuka spoke often of Balsa’s parents and Jiguro, while Balsa shared stories of her life in New Yogo. Every day, they talked late into the night, chasing after the past, remembering those who had left this world. For Balsa, the time was like a dream that brought great joy.

  But it did not last long. Just before noon on the fifth day, Balsa heard the sound of hooves on the wind. She paused in midstride as she was bringing goat’s cheese up from her aunt’s storage cellar. It sounded like a large company of men was approaching on horseback.

  She looked out the window and saw ten riders cantering down from the village. Seven wore the badge of the Yonsa clan — the left ear of the thunder god — on the left side of their chests. Two others wore the badge of the Musa clan — the god’s right ear — on the right side. And with them rode a man who was clearly a merchant, not a warrior.

  Of course, Balsa thought. The clothes merchant from Sula Lassal.

  “Balsa!” Her aunt came running up. “The guards are here. Hurry! The back door!”

  Balsa shook her head. “It’s impossible to escape them now. We’re at the bottom of the valley. They’d see me at once. And besides, I don’t know what story they’ve made up about me, but whatever it is, if I run away, it will seem like I’ve done something wrong.”

  Her aunt frowned. “But if you get caught … who knows what they might do to you?”

  “The fact that they’ve come means that Yuguro guessed who I am, and thinks I’m in his way. Aunt Yuka, I want to know what he’s planning. I want to know what was behind all this. I’m going to follow wherever this leads me. If I can’t manage to find a way out in the end, I’ll just have to accept it.” She put her hand on her aunt’s shoulder. “These last four days were wonderful. Thank you. From here on, we must become strangers again.”

  “What are you talking about?” her aunt retorted hotly. “If you think I’m going to stand by and see my only niece —”

  Balsa gently squeezed her shoulder. “By myself, I can handle this. Please don’t make me worry about you too.” Yuka looked at her in surprise. Balsa gazed back steadily. “It will be better for me if we are strangers. Please understand.”

  Yuka hesitated a moment, then slowly nodded.

  Outside, the guards dismounted from their horses. Spears in hand, they split into two groups to block the front and back entrances. Four men passed through the main gate: an imposing, heavily bearded guard from the Yonsa clan, the tall leathery merchant, and the two Musa warriors, one a towering giant and the other a young man wearing the green head scarf of the chieftain’s line.

  Yuka opened the door, her face hard and stern. “Captain Soosa, what on earth do you mean by making such a commotion?”

  The bearded Yonsa warrior put his fist to his chest and bowed respectfully. “Mistress Yuka, I apologize for disturbing you. This is Captain Dom, leader of the Musa clan guard, and this is Master Kahm, eldest son of Chief Kaguro. They’re pursuing a criminal who has fled into Yonsa territory and appears to have taken refuge in your house of healing.”

  Aunt Yuka looked at him sharply. “Criminal? And just what crime is this person accused of?”

  “They’re after a woman who entered the caves in Musa territory to steal lyokuhaku. She’s hiding here.”

  “That’s ridiculous! There’s no such woman here.”

  The huge warrior named Dom took a step forward and looked down at her. “She has probably deceived you. We’ll take a look around. If she’s not here, then there’s no harm done. But if she is, she could be dangerous and harm the patients if she’s not handled properly. So please, stay calm and cooperate.”

  “Mistress Yuka, please,” the captain said. “For the honor of our clan, we must cooperate with the Musa.”

  Yuka looked the three men squarely in the face. The younger man, Kahm, looked tense, but Dom and Soosa showed no sign of relenting as they returned her gaze. The merchant’s eyes kept darting from her to the other men.

  “I understand,” she said finally. “You may do as you wish. But please go quietly. Some of my patients are very ill.”

  They moved quickly and carefully in their search of the building, but to Yuka it seemed forever before they arrived at Balsa’s room. There was nothing she could do. She must leave it in her niece’s hands.

  “What about this room?”

  “The daughter of an old friend is staying here. She suffers from terrible headaches, and her mother told her to come to me.”

  Yuka wondered if Balsa would leap out, spear in hand, to attack the men. But when the thick wooden door opened, the room was quiet. Balsa sat up slowly on the bed, as if she had only just been roused. The expression on her face gave no hint whatsoever that she was waiting to be captured. Yuka was astonished by her calm.

  “What is it?” Balsa looked at them with a puzzled frown. The warriors entered the room, blocking the window and the door, and then glanced at the merchant. His eyes met Balsa’s and he froze.

  “Th —
that’s her. She’s the one.”

  Before he had even finished, the men had drawn their daggers. The giant Dom thundered, “Woman! You have committed a terrible crime! We know for a fact that you unlawfully entered the caves in Musa territory to steal precious gems. Come quietly.”

  Balsa continued to stare at them in confusion. “What did you say? I’m not sure I understand…. It’s true that I know this man. He’s the clothes merchant from Sula Lassal, right? But how does that prove me a criminal?”

  Dom laughed. “Nice try, woman. But we have two children who testified that they saw you deep in the caves.”

  Balsa gave a mental sigh. Well, they certainly didn’t lose any time before talking.

  “Yes, I entered the caves,” she said out loud. “But I wasn’t looking for jewels. I had a good reason to come from New Yogo to Musa territory. All I did was pass through the tunnels.”

  As he listened to her calm responses, a puzzled frown creased Soosa’s brow and he glanced uncertainly at the two men from the Musa clan. Dom and Kahm ignored him and continued to glare at Balsa.

  She stood up slowly, keeping both hands in plain view. Then she cast a sharp look at Dom and Kahm. “I see,” she said boldly, testing them. “So that’s the kind of man who sent you. Rather than suggesting we talk it over, he plays a trick like this…. But I don’t suppose you want me to explain why I came in front of someone from the Yonsa clan. Let me speak with your chief instead.”

  Dom and Kahm flushed. “If you’re willing to come peacefully and be judged before the chief, then come,” Kahm said quietly. “If you have something you wish to say, then you can say it at your trial. But be warned: My father is a stern man. He won’t be fooled by your excuses.”

  Balsa let them bind her hands behind her back and lead her from the room. Dom grasped the rope and led her away while Kahm retrieved her spear and bag from under the bed. The captain of the Yonsa guard looked dissatisfied, but he also seemed relieved that Balsa had been taken without a fight.

  Patients lined both sides of the hallway, staring at Balsa with frightened faces as she walked past. She bowed slightly to Yuka, who was waiting at the front door. “Mistress Yuka, I’m sorry to have caused you trouble. These men are mistaken. I’ll return when I’ve cleared my name and pay for my treatment then.”

  Yuka looked into her eyes, wondering what words of encouragement she could offer, only to be startled by what she saw there. Although her hands were bound and she was held captive, Balsa’s eyes were filled with a fierce light, like a fighter ready to enter the ring.

  The cloaks of Balsa’s captors flapped noisily in the wind. Dom and Kahm placed her astride a small horse and mounted horses on either side of her. Each held one end of the rope that bound her. Balsa did not look around, although she could feel her aunt’s gaze boring into her back. Narrowing her eyes against the glare and the sand whipped up by the wind, she considered her situation. From Dom and Kahm’s reaction to her challenge, it was clear that Yuguro had told them something about her, and that they had concealed whatever it was from the Yonsa guards, convincing them that she was a thief who had broken clan law.

  No one spoke during the hour-long journey to the border between the two territories. When they reached the forts at the border post, Captain Soosa looked about uneasily. “There are no reinforcements to meet you. Would you like me to lend you two of my riders?”

  Dom laughed and waved off the offer. “No, no. Thanks, but we wouldn’t want people to think Musa warriors need more than two men to escort a mere woman! Really, there’s no need to bother.”

  “Captain Soosa,” Kahm added, “your assistance was very helpful. We won’t forget what you did for us.”

  The captain looked somewhat mollified by his sincerity. “Don’t mention it. Farewell, then.”

  When the Yonsa guards had ridden away, Dom beckoned to the merchant, who was hanging back. Avoiding Balsa’s eyes, the man brought his mount closer, and Dom dropped several jingling silver coins into his hand. “Thanks for your help catching this criminal. You can follow the valley road from here to Sula Lassal. We’re going back by the mountain road.”

  The merchant looked at him beseechingly and whispered, “You don’t think she’ll come looking for me, do you?”

  Dom grinned. “No. I guarantee it.”

  The merchant bowed his head, kicked his horse into a gallop, and sped away as fast as he could.

  “So, shall we be off?” Dom thumped Balsa roughly on the back with his huge hand. If the movement of his arm had not warned her, she would have tumbled off her horse. As it was, she barely managed to cushion the blow by leaning forward just before he struck, and the force of it still knocked the breath out of her. “Good reflexes, I see,” Dom sneered. “Jiguro must have beaten you often.”

  His words hurt far more than the actual blow, but she remained expressionless. She knew instinctively that she must not show any anger.

  Behind her, Kahm gritted his teeth. Even though they were following his uncle’s orders, it seemed unfair to goad their prisoner into fighting just so they could kill her. Dom, however, seemed to be enjoying it. As they rode along the mountain path, through the shade of scattered clumps of trees, he kept up his criticism of Jiguro. He also kept bumping into Balsa’s horse, which was already struggling to navigate the stony track. If he succeeded in unhorsing her, she would be badly injured or, worse, killed when she smashed her head on the rocks.

  By now, Balsa was sure that was exactly what Dom wanted.

  As the sun began to sink in the sky and the shadows of the shrubs lengthened, they came to a clear stream surrounded by grass and a grove of trees. Balsa was drenched in sweat and gasping from the effort of keeping her seat. Her throat burned from the strong, dry wind.

  “Master Kahm, let’s rest here a little. Our prisoner seems a bit tired,” Dom said, dismounting. He pulled Balsa from her horse and tied her to a tree, but bound the rope carelessly, so she could feel how loose it was. Kahm brought over her spear, and Dom placed it beside her at the foot of the tree. Then the two men went over to the stream, washed their faces, and drank thirstily. When he had finished, Kahm dipped a water skin into the stream. Dom looked at him suspiciously.

  “We’re only thirty lon away from the village. What do you need water for?”

  “I thought I’d give her a drink,” Kahm answered.

  Dom snatched the skin from his hands and threw it on the ground. “What do you think you’re doing? That’s no woman over there. She’s nothing but trash come to destroy our dream!”

  The blood rose hotly in Kahm’s face. “She’s not trash! Even if we have to kill her, I can’t stand to do it like this. It’s so dirty, underhanded …”

  Balsa brought her ragged breathing under control, listening carefully to the two men. She no longer felt dizzy and her vision had cleared. She slipped the rope off her hands and rubbed them. Wiping the sweat from her brow, she watched the men argue. Kahm’s profile suddenly reminded her of Jiguro, and she remembered with shock that the young man was his nephew. It seemed ironic that she should end up fighting Jiguro’s own kin, but she certainly couldn’t stand by and let them kill her.

  Let’s get on with it, then, she thought. She rolled her neck once and then clapped her hands loudly to attract their attention. They started and glanced around as she stood up, laughing. “You certainly like to complicate things. So basically you’re just looking for a good excuse to kill me, right? Like me attacking you. So what if I just stand here and do nothing — if I don’t fight or run? What will you do then?”

  Dom slapped his spear against the palm of his hand. “Well, I suppose the result would be the same now, wouldn’t it? All we’d have to do was say that you had attacked us…. There’re no other witnesses, are there? Believe me, I would’ve got this over with a lot sooner if I didn’t have to consider the feelings of the chieftain’s son here.”

  Kahm looked at him in surprise. “You had to consider my feelings?”

  “Yes. Mas
ter Yuguro knows you very well, you see. I know you can’t help it because you’re still young, but if you’ll forgive my lecturing you, Master Kahm, when you have an important job to do, you shouldn’t worry about bloodying your hands.”

  Kahm ground his teeth. “I’m not worried about getting my hands dirty!” he spat. “I’m saying that if we have to kill her, then we should give her back her spear and kill her in a fair fight. We should let her die with honor.”

  Balsa ran her hand through her hair. “Master Kahm,” she said. “You appear to be a much better man than that hulk over there, but I’m afraid you’re still wrong.” She looked at him steadily. “Whether it’s a fair fight or not, honor makes no difference to the one who dies. Honor is nothing but an empty word to comfort the killer. Your uncle Jiguro knew that well.”

  She looked up at Dom. “So, Master Giant, I took your taunts in the hope of meeting Yuguro, but I see no reason to put up with this any longer if you intend to kill me anyway.”

  Dom’s mouth twisted into a scornful smile. “Oh? You intend to fight? How kind of you. Master Kahm, you must rejoice. It seems you’ll get your chance for what you call a ‘fair fight.’ ”

  Balsa laughed. “Who said anything about fighting?” She swept up her spear and disappeared into the forest.

  Dom’s face turned red with rage. “You!” He raced after her, but just when he reached the grove, something whipped through the air and smacked him in the eye. He jumped back with a cry. The end of the rope that had bound Balsa had hit him.

  Kahm saw Balsa leap out from the trees. Dom reacted instantly, swinging his spear toward her, but Balsa was faster by far. Blocking his spear with her own, she swept it aside in a wide arc, then punched the butt end of her spear straight into his nose. It broke audibly, and Dom pitched over backward.

  But strength was his pride and, as he fell, he whipped his spear out sideways. Balsa leapt over it and drove the point of her own spear deep into his shoulder with all her weight behind it. He screamed. Without batting an eyelash, she stepped on his arm and yanked out her spear.