by Ryan Kirk
“Friends, we’ve talked and talked about this. The desire for action burns in each of you. I know. I feel it, too. It feels as though all we do is talk. Our blood is hot and screams for death. I can assure you, the time will come, but it will not be today, and if we are fortunate, it will not be for many cycles.”
Asa was immediately taken by Takashi’s words. He paused between sentences, allowing each one to sink in, confident he wouldn’t be interrupted. He knew he was worth listening to. His words were also interesting and not what she had expected to hear. She could see from a glance around the room that some men didn’t like what he was uttering, but they held their tongues, respecting Takashi’s space.
“I don’t need to repeat my story to anyone here. You each know me personally, and some of you have fought beside me. We will see the Kingdom fall, but it won’t be through the violence you propose. Not yet. Look around you. Think about how many people were beside you at this time last cycle. You are surrounded by soldiers, scholars, wise men in many disciplines. And all of us have found a place to call our home, a place ruled by the consent of the people. Every day we grow stronger, and every day our ability to win our freedom grows one step closer.
“Here we have food and space. It is not convenient, but we are not bothered. We have no fear of the military, and even the blades themselves can’t harm us here.”
Asa smiled slightly.
“But we are not invincible. Not at all. If we draw attention to ourselves, we will fall. There are those among you who think that as soon as word of us gets out, everyone will flock to our cause. How I wish I shared your belief. But I cannot share such naive optimism. Yes, the Kingdom is the weakest it’s ever been. An old man without a successor holds the throne; and petty lords, focused only on their own power, bicker over his remains like feral dogs over scraps of food. It is not enough. Discontent is rife, but still the land is at peace. So long as people are fed and feel safe, they aren’t likely to disobey under the threat of death.”
Takashi looked around the room, judging the mood of the men gathered.
“I know some of you aren’t convinced. But look around this room again, closely. Think of every person here. We grow every day, but every person who joins us has a story, an event, something that pushed them one step over the edge. Mere discontent wasn’t enough, not even for us.”
Asa could feel the shift of attitude in the room. Some had disagreed with Takashi, but his final argument had hit them hard. She realized how close this group was and understood why no outsiders had managed to get in and stay safe.
“For now, we stay our course. Word of us is spreading, and every day more settlers come here. Let us grow slowly, learning more as we grow. When we have grown large enough, we will not be overlooked. But by that time we will be strong enough to stand against the might of the Kingdom, and we will know our system of government works. We will know that a government chosen and led by the people can thrive, no matter how large it gets.”
Asa turned Takashi’s words over in her mind. Takashi was proposing a radical system of running the Kingdom, an idea he had supposedly developed while serving in the military as a blade. He believed people could govern themselves, and this village was the heart of his grand experiment. Conveniently, he had been chosen by the people as their leader.
Asa found his argument . . . interesting, she supposed. The whole idea seemed foolish. Peasants running the land? The concept was laughable. They didn’t have the education, experience, or resources. And they were peasants. But looking around the room, she could see many thought his ideas had merit.
Yet Takashi’s philosophy had an inherent hypocrisy, evident in a single glance around the room. Sharing power, to him, meant sharing it with other men, not everyone. No one here would recognize that simple fact. They were embedded in Takashi’s new system of power and wouldn’t take kindly to anyone questioning their authority. Asa fought the urge to shake her head.
She hadn’t gotten where she was without a sharp and objective mind, and she could see the appeal of Takashi’s idea, especially to the lower classes. He was promising power, power to those who didn’t have it. And people loved having power. The only problem, as Asa saw it, was that very few people could handle such responsibility. Takashi’s dream would collapse on itself eventually, a victim of its own hubris. A part of her wished that he would be able to see it. That his rebellion could last long enough for him to see it collapse, for him to understand how foolish all his planning had been.
She alone in the room was aware that he would never have the chance.
Because she was here to kill him.
Asa waited patiently as the meeting concluded. Even though her mission was clear, she couldn’t help but be interested in this sect of people. As misguided as they were, they believed, and Asa respected them for that. Takashi was right about one thing: the houses that ran the Kingdom were corrupt and increasingly chained to sycophants and power-hungry lords. Asa had spent a little time at court as part of her training, and the number of honest people she had met was less than the number of weapons she carried.
But Asa couldn’t see how Takashi’s idea could work. The government didn’t need to be run by peasants. In her opinion, it needed a strong king, one stronger than the last two, who had reigned for forty cycles. The Kingdom could be strong and unified and serve the people, but only if an appropriate leader rose from the bickering houses.
The moon was high in the sky when the meeting disbanded. Asa could feel the tension growing within her as the time for action came near. Takashi had dismissed the group, and in ones and twos, the people trickled out, leaving only a diminishing number of small conversations in scattered groups throughout the hall. As the people left, some noticed Asa, but they couldn’t see her face under the shadow of her hood. Whatever curiosity they had was sated by the presence of the guard.
Not long after the meeting’s end, Takashi noticed her. He had been going from group to group, presumably winning favors and being the corrupt politician Asa assumed he was.
Asa kept her mind empty. He would be able to sense her intent, and surprise was essential. After Takashi finished his conversation with a pair of men, he made his way toward her. She kept her face hidden, her eyes only able to see his feet. To attack first was her best chance.
He only took seven steps to reach her, but she felt as if those steps took forever. She hated the idea of tracking down another blade, but Takashi had gone too far a long time ago. Again, she felt naked without her sense. She imagined he was studying her, trying to decide who she was and if she was dangerous. His own sense would be playing over her.
Finally, she saw his feet stop in front of her, the feet of his guards a step behind him and to the side. He had stopped outside of her arm’s reach, and Asa had to give the man credit. He knew she didn’t carry a long sword, so he stood back just far enough that she would have to step toward him to attack. That told her a lot about him. She was dealing with someone both smart and cautious.
“Who is this?”
The guard responded. “My lord, she claims to be one of your shadows. She says she comes with important information.”
Everything happened in an instant. Takashi took a step back and motioned for his guards. He didn’t panic, just gave an order. “Kill her.”
There was no hesitation in his voice, and Asa knew she wouldn’t have a chance to convince him with words. She reconnected with her sense, gladly drinking in the new information it provided. She could sense the guards drawing their weapons and the complicated intertwining of four people all using the sense in a small place. Self-preservation demanded she run, but her combat instincts were honed sharper than the edges of her blades. She darted forward, her hand finding the slit in her traveling cloak and drawing her short sword.
Takashi was the one she needed to worry about. He was trained as she was, and he would not fall easily. But she didn’t want to kill him, at least, not yet. For her own reasons, she wanted him alive long enough for her to have
a conversation with him.
Takashi was faster than his guards, his sword clearing its scabbard first, slicing out at her before she could launch her first attack. But Asa was fast. Her short blade was lighter and quicker than Takashi’s longer curved blade, and she deflected his cut with ease, directing it over her head toward the ceiling. Asa was underneath his blade and inside his guard, and Takashi realized his mistake. He had underestimated her.
Asa spun, driving her small, sharp elbow into Takashi’s center. She felt all the breath leave his body, and he involuntarily started to fold in half. Asa completed her spin by stepping forward and bringing up her knee, catching Takashi’s falling chin. She felt the crunch of his jaw and wondered how many teeth she’d broken. Takashi fell backward, unconscious, and Asa could safely ignore him. Her vicious attack had the added benefit of sending the guard who had escorted her in running for the door, frightened as a hare.
His two guards were right behind Takashi, their swords trying to catch her. They were strong young men with rudimentary abilities with the sense. They had probably been trained by Takashi himself after leaving the military. But they were too young to know the information she was seeking.
Asa’s sense let her know where the blades were going to be, and she slid around them, giving herself the slimmest of margins. Then she was behind the warriors, and she took another few steps to put space between them. She turned and faced her assailants, drawing a throwing blade in her left hand to complement the short sword in her right.
“Run now or lose your lives.”
Asa knew there was little chance they would listen. They were on fire, the scream of battle in their blood, and they were too inexperienced to know how to control such passion. But she didn’t want to kill innocent men.
Her prediction was accurate. Though the rest of the hall had emptied in panic as soon as swords were drawn, the two bodyguards were too focused on Asa to join their companions. They came at her together, a perfect example of how the military academies trained soldiers to attack in pairs. Asa had the fleeting thought that these two must have been great students.
But she wasn’t a traditionalist. Asa moved to her right and crouched low. As a smaller woman, crouching brought her below the heights men usually trained at. The guard on her right tried to bring his sword down on top of her, but she had her short sword angled above her head, allowing the cut to slide down the steel and past her shoulder. She sliced the guard’s leg as she swept by, carefully avoiding the major blood vessel. Her cut peeled apart his muscle, and he collapsed onto the ground.
Asa returned to standing as the second guard came at her. Her left hand came up, whipping the throwing knife at him point-blank. The blade caught him in the meaty part of his upper right arm. The guard didn’t seem to realize what had happened. Instinctively, his right arm loosened as it was hit, and the blade spun out of his hands as he tried to raise it to attack her. She sidestepped his charge.
When she turned around, she saw the fight had gone out of the guards, but they were still torn. They were sworn to Takashi, and she saw the battle of honor and self-preservation play across each of their faces.
“Leave now. There is nothing you can do. Save your own lives and fight another day. It is what he would want you to do.”
She watched the duo closely, waiting to see if her words would have the effect she desired. She had no idea what Takashi would order them to do were he awake, but it was a kind lie.
The guard with the throwing knife in his arm shifted his stance, and Asa’s sense gave her a picture of exactly what he was intending. In one smooth motion, she grabbed another throwing knife and sped it toward him. Even if he could have sensed the blade coming, there was too little time to react. He started shifting his weight to avoid the attack, but the knife caught him in the left arm, an almost perfect mirror image of his other arm. Asa’s point was made.
“You know I can kill you. I’ve let you both live with only minor wounds. If you try anything, you’re throwing your lives away meaninglessly.”
The two suddenly saw the truth of her statement. Together, one guard hobbling, they made their way toward the exit. Asa shouted after them.
“If anyone tries to come back in, I will kill them. I can use the sense much better than you can, and if anyone comes within fifty paces of this hall, I will kill them. And him.”
The guards nodded, and Asa surveyed her work. She wasn’t certain her threat would be enough to keep the villagers away, but she hoped so. It was time to have a conversation.
Asa slapped Takashi across the face to awaken him. She had tied him up in a corner of the hall with cloth torn from his clothing, trying to find a spot where an archer wouldn’t be able to hit them from outside the windows. The hall wasn’t the safest place to have a conversation, but she had waited too long for an opportunity like this.
Takashi came to quickly, and Asa felt him immediately take in his surroundings with his sense. She could feel his tendrils go throughout the village, and she saw his shoulders relax as he discovered his people were fine. He saw that she noticed.
“I thought you were an advance for a raiding party.”
Asa shook her head. No point in lying to a dead man.
“My bodyguards?”
“Wounded, but neither fatally. They were hard to convince.”
Takashi bowed his head to her just slightly. “Thank you.”
Asa ignored the gratitude.
“Did the council send you?”
Asa nodded.
Takashi sighed. “As much as I respect some of them, they are part of the problem as well. They need to open their eyes.”
“I’m not here to discuss your politics.”
“Then why are you here? If the council sent you, you only have one purpose, and it isn’t to talk to me.”
“I want to know about Two Falls.”
Takashi laughed, blood spewing from his mouth. “That’s over twenty cycles ago. Everyone knows about the massacre at Two Falls.”
Asa drove her fist into Takashi’s stomach, doubling him over again. She snatched his hair and pulled his head back up.
“You and I both know that’s not true. I want the real story. I want to know what happened that day. Every detail you remember.”
Takashi’s eyes met hers, the mirth having left. Asa could see the pain in his face, the sorrow over a memory he’d never quite been able to erase.
“You should know, that day started me on the path that led me here. When the sun rose on that day, I was like you. Obedient and blind.”
Asa didn’t respond, and Takashi studied her. She felt as though he was searching for something, a truth just a little too elusive for him to hold onto. He spoke carefully. “No, I wasn’t quite like you. You’re not really obedient, are you? You’re more like me. Searching for truth. Only your path is different than mine.”
Asa didn’t know how to respond. It was as though he knew. Either that or he was very intuitive. Or very lucky.
“I’ll tell you what happened that day.”
Asa knelt down next to Takashi, and he began to recite his story. As she had asked, he left out no details, no matter how insignificant. As he continued, she realized he had lived with the consequences of that day for over twenty cycles. Every step he had taken that day was ingrained in his memory, and he shared all with her. She listened closely, having to remind herself to pay attention to the outside world. The village was still on edge from her attack, but they didn’t attempt to retaliate. They must have believed her threats.
When Takashi finished, the sun was just beginning to rise. The story was everything Asa had managed to piece together on her own, and more. She was surprised to find tears running down her face. She wiped them away, ashamed of the bond she had developed with Takashi as he told his story.
“Thank you.”
Takashi nodded. “I don’t know if I’ve ever told the full story to anyone before. It was good to tell. That day should never be forgotten.”
&nb
sp; “And the commander who was responsible?”
“Osamu? He disappeared soon after. Everyone assumed he went off into the woods to kill himself, but no one could be sure. He was never seen by anyone again.” He studied her once more. “If you are hoping to find him, you should not hold out hope. Personally, I believe he killed himself. But even if he hadn’t, he would be an old man by now, over sixty cycles of age. I’m certain he’s dead. Revenge isn’t worth it.”
He spoke as though he understood.
Asa held his gaze. “You know who I am?”
Takashi nodded. “I wasn’t sure at first, but now I am. He was in my unit, but I suppose that’s why you’ve tracked me down. He and I were close, you know.”
Asa shook her head. “I didn’t.”
Takashi looked up at the ceiling of the hall, apparently trying to hold back tears. “I suppose you wouldn’t. You must have only been, what, five or six when it happened?”
“Six.”
“I’m sorry. I can’t even imagine.”
Asa didn’t know what to say, so she didn’t speak. The past was vivid in her mind.
“He spoke about you all the time.”
Asa smiled at the thought.
“He would have been proud of your becoming a nightblade. He was proud of being a dayblade. He thought it was the best way to help others, but until that day, he always saw the need for the nightblades, too.”
Takashi met her eyes again. “You know, that day, when everything descended into chaos, he was one of the few people who kept his head. He tried to save lives. He was the only one who did the right thing that day. When I do what I do, a lot of it is because of him.”
“Thank you.” Asa’s gratitude was genuine. She had been so young and known so little.
Takashi straightened himself. “You’re welcome. But enough. Let’s finish what you came here to do.”
Asa didn’t want to, but she knew she would anyway.
“Will you grant me a request?”
“If I can.”
“Will you allow me to take my own life? I do not want the council to have the pleasure. I would ask that you make the final cut. It is the greatest honor I can give him.”
