Nightblade Boxed Set

by Ryan Kirk

  Ryuu thought about Moriko’s ability to hide her presence. He could match it to some degree, but Tenchi was right, despite his other abilities, hers was beyond him.

  Tenchi saw that Ryuu understood. “The problem with a standard curriculum when it comes to the sense is that it must be the lowest common ability, which is quite low. Because of this shared curriculum, the abilities of the monks in the monasteries have degraded to the level you know it to be. They’ve strayed too far from the paths which grant true power.”

  Ryuu nodded. He didn’t know about the heritage of the monasteries, but he knew his strength was much greater than that of the monks. Now he had an idea why.

  “Other factions were exiled. A large contingent ended up here, almost a thousand people when all was said and done; close enough to the Three Kingdoms we never really lost touch, but hidden and far enough away that we haven’t been discovered. Some blades elected to stay in the kingdoms and were killed. Other factions have spread out throughout the world, although we only know of a few that still survive and attempt to communicate. Most have been lost for good.

  “However, we’ve done well on the island. The plateau provides enough land, and the sea enough food, for us to support a bit over three thousand people comfortably. We’ve been at this population now for hundreds of cycles, dedicated to only one purpose, strengthening our abilities in the sense. It’s the tradition you yourself were trained in, even if you didn’t know it.”

  Ryuu took in all the information with rapt attention. Every word was news to him.

  “What happened between Shigeru and Orochi? Shigeru said they had a feud which ended in a young girl dying at his blade.”

  “He didn’t lie to you. The elders knew about the feud, but underestimated how serious it had become. The death of the young girl was not intentional. That was clear. But our laws, our values, are strict and unbendable. We must never repeat the failings of our ancestors. I loved Shigeru almost as a son, and his skill set him apart from others his age. But there can be no leniency. I was the one who sentenced him to death by exposure.”

  “What happened to Orochi?”

  “He was a more complicated case. He had broken some of our rules, but the punishments were not as strict. He was always different after that night. He had never been a happy child, but he became hostile and prone to violent outbursts. Six moons after the incident, he managed to escape the island by forging my signature and gaining admittance to the boat going to the mainland.”

  “Why do you sail to the mainland at all? You’ve been exiled and seem happy here.”

  Tenchi stood up. “That’s a good question, and one I can answer as we walk to dinner. It plays a role in what is coming.”

  They both stepped out of the door. With a nod from Tenchi, Rei led them on.

  “Ever since the Great War, we have been divided about our purpose here. Politics come and go, but each of us is raised with a love for our homelands. We all know where we come from, even though most of us have never touched the ground we want to call home. Our ancestors were trying to escape. We now debate whether we should go back.”

  The news was surprising to Ryuu, but he supposed it was understandable, with as many nightblades as were on the island. With the kind of military might surrounding him, they could take the Three Kingdoms by force if they chose.

  “Mostly we stay connected to trade and to gather what news we can, even though we’ve never established a significant network of spies and informants. We have a general idea of what is happening in the Three Kingdoms, but that is all. We keep the boat because we aren’t willing to sever the tie completely.”

  “How does this affect me?”

  “I am the leader of this island, but I hardly rule with an iron fist. I was able to reserve your time for this first day, but that will end tonight. Tonight you will meet the leader of another faction on the island, a political group whose membership is becoming quite large. If the trend continues, they will be in the majority by this time in the next cycle.”

  “What’s the argument?”

  “There is one faction that believes the proper role for us is to remain on the island. It is the faction I lead. I believe we should live here, apart from the Three Kingdoms. I am not convinced our power is meant for the Three Kingdoms. As much as I want to return, I think we would only do more harm than good. The second faction, the one which is growing in power, believes we should make a triumphant return to the Three Kingdoms, using force if necessary.”

  Ryuu tried to juggle all the implications in his mind, but there were too many for him to wrap his mind around. “You want me to support you?”

  Tenchi laughed. “Of course I want you to support me, but I won’t attempt to coerce you more than you would expect. Someday later I will explain my reasoning to you, but for now I’d simply ask you keep an open mind and resist pledging your support to either side. I don’t know what your personal thoughts are on the matter, but I would ask that you recognize that as an outsider, your opinion will carry more authority than others’. Please use the responsibility wisely. Much may rest on your shoulders.”

  Ryuu couldn’t help but like Tenchi. Even if he was an excellent politician, Ryuu thought the old man believed in what he was saying. He thought of Akira. The best and most dangerous leaders were the true believers.

  Ryuu’s thoughts were cut short as they reached the large building where dinner would be served. Ryuu had no problem identifying it. It was filled with the energy of dozens of people, and Ryuu knew it was his turn to step into the political spotlight.

  Tenchi ushered him in without fanfare, but Ryuu could still tell he caused quite a stir with his arrival. The island was small enough that everyone knew everyone, so an outsider stuck out from the crowd. To his host’s credit, everyone was very polite. He had worried he would be mobbed, but people circulated easily and Ryuu was introduced to people one at a time, each person having enough time to introduce themselves. Ryuu was able to remember most names, but it wasn’t just the people in front of him that interested him. It was the crowd.

  Tenchi had warned him about the tension among the island’s population, but it was nowhere to be seen in this room. Everyone seemed to mingle freely, and Ryuu couldn’t identify any distinct cliques. The atmosphere was more “family dinner” than “political showdown.”

  There were nine long tables spread throughout the hall, three rows of three. Ryuu was seated next to Tenchi at the table in the center of the hall. They were joined by another eight, men and women alike. As Tenchi sat down, so did all the others. Conversations ended as people made their way to seats. Ryuu noted each table had ten people, for a total of ninety present. Tenchi had said tonight’s meal would be held among the leadership of the island, so it seemed ninety people ruled over three thousand. Ryuu wished he understood government better.

  Tenchi introduced Ryuu to all the people at their table, even though Ryuu had already been introduced to many of them. Ryuu’s attention was immediately drawn to a small woman just a few cycles older than him named Shika. She was quiet, but very attentive, and she seemed to command the focus of the room whenever she spoke. Ryuu knew he was making a host of assumptions, but he somehow knew she was the leader of Tenchi’s opposition. It was something about the body language and the effortless way she attracted people to her. She was a natural leader, even though she was quiet. She radiated power and confidence.

  Once food was served, the volume of the room increased. People were busy speaking to one another, and at Ryuu’s table almost all conversation was directed at him. People were eager to hear news of the Three Kingdoms, even if Ryuu didn’t feel qualified to give it. He was hardly versed in the current affairs of the region, and really only knew what Akira had told him before he left. But he recognized he was still more familiar with the Three Kingdoms than anyone at the table and tried to answer questions as honestly as he could.

  As he gave his answers, he watched Shika studying him. He felt that she could read him lik
e a book. He wondered what Shika was thinking, what was going on in her mind. His wondering was put to rest as she asked him directly.

  “What do you think would be the reaction of the Three Kingdoms if they learned about this island?”

  Ryuu paused. He felt like he had walked right in front of an archery target, and Shika was holding the bow.

  Ryuu couldn’t bring himself to lie. If his information was going to influence the decisions on this island, they needed to have accurate information.

  “I don’t know, but if I had to guess, I would guess the reaction would be panic and fear. The prevailing attitude in the Three Kingdoms is that the nightblades and dayblades are a menace. Every child grows up in fear that if they are naughty, a nightblade is going to come for their head. It’s hard to shake hundreds of cycles of tradition.”

  “But Lord Akira knows you, and your relationship isn’t based on fear.”

  Ryuu considered her point. He supposed she was right. Maybe it was mutual respect? Ryuu had never thought about it much.

  “What would you say if I told you that people in the Three Kingdoms don’t fear us because we’re nightblades, but because they don’t know us? That if they were exposed to us, they’d come to realize we’re just as human as them? People only fear us because we have become myths they tell at night around the fire.”

  Ryuu was frozen on the spot. “Maybe? I really don’t know. I suppose it’s possible.”

  Shika turned up the corner of her mouth, and Ryuu felt like he had just given her what she wanted.

  The rest of the meal went smoothly, but Ryuu continued to replay his answers in his head. He knew he’d have a lot to think on. The meal went late into the night, but everyone was polite, kind, and welcoming. Ryuu had never felt like he could be so open with people. When your biggest secret wasn’t a secret, life was much simpler. As people filed out of the building, Shika came up to him.

  “Ryuu, I would be happy to talk to you more in a private setting. Please come see me when you get the chance.”

  Ryuu forced a grin. “I’d be happy to.”

  As Shika left, Ryuu looked at Tenchi. Tenchi was stroking his beard, lost in thought.

  “She’s the opposition, isn’t she?”

  Tenchi nodded, saying nothing. He looked like he had lost a battle, and Ryuu felt like he was responsible.

  15

  Akira wandered around his camp, lost in a state of shock. His men bowed respectfully as he passed, but Akira thought he could see it in their eyes, the same doubt that enveloped him. They had known throwing the Fifth into battle against a larger enemy would be a gamble, but it had been necessary. They needed to stop the advance of Tanak’s troops. Akira realized now that he had thought fate would be on his side, had thought that something would happen to save his kingdom.

  It wasn’t so much the death of his men that shocked him. It was the loss to Tanak’s forces. Akira had been lord of the Southern Kingdom now for over ten cycles, and his forces had never been defeated in battle. He had thought he would never see the day, foolish as the belief now was.

  Different gambles ran through his mind. He thought about calling the First up from the pass. Toro’s latest report was more of the same, an army prepared to fight with nothing but empty prairie in front of them. Akira thought back to when he left the pass. At the time, leaving the First had seemed like a brilliant plan, but now that he had the benefit of time and space, he was regretting it. If no attack was coming this cycle, Akira could use those men up north with him.

  He thought about bringing either the Second or the Third north and finishing the work the Fifth had started. Though the Fifth was no more, they had hurt Tanak, and reports filtering in said Tanak had taken a few days to reorganize and regroup. If they attacked now, they could crush Tanak’s center forces. But Makoto and Mashiro had warned him against it. They would fight, here in the south, before they moved north. They considered their two armies as one now, a force strong enough to walk through and cleanse the Southern Kingdom of this western scourge.

  There were times he considered surrendering. His people deserved to live, and if there was no way to protect his kingdom, the honorable action would be to surrender and allow his people to live in peace. Life under Tanak wouldn’t be too different for most of the people who had nothing to do with government. Court politics would be a little more deadly, but Akira found he didn’t find the idea as reprehensible as he would have expected.

  But Akira couldn’t shake his belief the Southern Kingdom was meant for something more. This war was far from over, though they had lost the first major engagement. He believed he was a good leader, the leader the kingdom needed. He wouldn’t give up yet.

  When he returned to his command tent, there was a messenger waiting there, almost ready to pass out from exhaustion. Akira straightened his back. He was still a lord of the Three Kingdoms, and his men needed him.

  When Akira let the messenger into his tent, the messenger’s demeanor changed. He went from exhausted to alert in a moment. Akira was startled by the transformation. “Sir, I come from the shadows.”

  Akira’s ears perked up. His shadows were his spies, sent to gather information from the other kingdoms. Rarely did one show up in person.

  “Report.”

  “There have been happenings in the enemy camp, my lord. This past night Lord Tanak’s tent was attacked by almost a hundred men who wore the uniforms of the Western Kingdom.”

  Akira’s eyes shot up. “A coup?”

  “No, my lord. It was a large group of men from the Fifth who had come together. They stripped uniforms from the dead in the battlefield. With the uniforms they were able to sneak close to Tanak’s command tent. When they were finally discovered, battle broke out within a dozen paces of Tanak’s personal quarters.”

  Akira was on edge. “What happened?”

  “They were slaughtered, my lord.”

  Akira was surprised. He had thought, hoped, for a moment that his men had killed Tanak. But why come to report something ultimately so meaningless?

  “How were they slaughtered if they got so close?”

  The spy hesitated, as though he wasn’t sure Akira would believe his report. “Sir, I believe there is a nightblade with Tanak.”

  Akira was glad he was already sitting. Had Ryuu betrayed him? He pushed the possibility away from his mind. Not Ryuu. The young nightblade certainly had enough reasons to hate Akira, but Akira believed that if Ryuu wanted him dead, he would already be dead. He didn’t think Ryuu trusted him, or even liked him, but Akira trusted Ryuu. If it wasn’t Ryuu, that meant there was another nightblade in the Three Kingdoms. That made five Akira had learned about in the past two cycles. It meant there were probably more. It was inconceivable that nightblades would be coming out of the woodwork like this without purpose.

  “Explain.”

  “Sir, our troops were doing well. They were only moments away from fighting directly with Tanak. Then a single swordsman, dressed all in black, attacked our troops. I’ve never seen anything like it. He passed through them like he was made of water, cutting them all down as he passed. He must have taken out thirty or forty men by himself in the space of a few moments. It was terrifying. I’ve seen excellent swords in my life, but I’ve never seen anyone so capable of taking human life away so quickly. It was almost meaningless to him.”

  Akira’s mind was racing. More nightblades? The consequences were far-reaching.

  Akira looked up and noticed the shadow wasn’t finished.

  “Yes?”

  “Sir, I think I know who their nightblade is.”

  Akira was surprised again.

  “I was able to follow the nightblade for a time after the battle, and I saw him speak briefly with Tanak before departing. It reminded me of someone else. I wasn’t able to follow the man after the conversation, but it came to me later. His stance, his posture, his height and build, all point to the nightblade being one of Tanak’s chief advisers. A man named Renzo. The man escap
ed into the night, but I checked Renzo’s tent right after and it was empty.”

  Akira considered the accusation. It would be a reasonable plan for Tanak. Akira had hidden Orochi in his court under the thin disguise of being an assassin. It had been the truth, but not the whole truth. He had thought it clever. Orochi’s role had been an open secret, but because everyone felt privileged to know it, they didn’t probe any deeper to find out he was a nightblade as well. Adviser was another role Akira could have used, but he didn’t have the time to set the cover up. Akira suspected Renzo had been with Tanak for some time.

  “Thank you. Do you have any proof, anything that can’t be refuted?”

  The spy shook his head. “There was no evidence for me to collect. But I only speak it to you because I am as sure as a man can be.”

  “Thank you. Is there anything else?”

  “No, my lord.”

  “You have done a great service. You will be rewarded. Thank you.”

  The spy bowed low and departed from the tent while Akira pondered the news. If Akira could prove Tanak had a nightblade, he could change the course of this war without more of his men having to die. There was only one way to make the spectacle and the news big enough, but if it worked, it would change everything, the course of the entire war. Perhaps even the entire history of the kingdom. Akira had to call in his advisers to consult. They had a day full of planning ahead of them. For the first time since the defeat of the Fifth, Akira felt hope racing through his heart. He was going to call a Conclave, the first in six hundred cycles.

  16

  It was a difficult decision, but Moriko left the horses behind. Although she craved the greater speed they afforded her, she suspected she was getting closer to the answers she had been seeking, and a horse would attract attention. She could hide easily in the tall prairie grass. She had taken plenty of food from Kalden and the guards who had confronted them, enough to last her days without hunting. Although she couldn’t say why she was so certain this stage of her journey was almost over, she knew her wandering was at an end.