School Time for Death: Resurection (Death Dealer Saga Book 5)

by Jessie Wolf

  “They want a war they’ll get a war. Only this time Death’s own Daughter does not walk alone. This time she will have not only the Children of Mars, Dragons Daughters, the Black Swords of Saint George, and the rest of the Ida-ten Temple.” Alice’s voice matched my own. “This night they shall be introduced to her wife.”

  “Um… Alice-sama, Death doesn’t have a wife, does he?” asked Fuyuko.

  “Oh yes little sister, Death has more than one, but I am referring to the legendary Lady Izanami Queen of the Yumi and ruler of the dead. The only woman to capture the Heart of Death.” The grin that crossed Alice’s face was almost pure evil, and promised a whole lot of pain and misfortune for somebody.

  “Thank goodness, for a minute there I thought you were talking about my Mother.” Susan giggled.

  “Now, why would I be talking about your mother, Susan?”

  “Oh that’s right you all don’t know. My mother is the Lady Ysabel Sto-Helit.” The way she said it was as if this was common knowledge. At everyone’s blank looks Susan realized she would have to explain. “My family name Sto-Helit translates into Light Horse. We use the translation when away from home so people don’t screw it up. Any way Sto-Helit is the family name for the Grim Reaper. So when Alice said what she did I thought she was talking about my mom.”

  I checked my internal time and found that we had less that fifteen minutes till the Black Rose and Crimson Shield arrived. I needed to get everyone into position. “Alright, everyone to their position, and wait for my signal.”

  “Maiha, what is that going to be?”

  “You’ll know when you see it.” I tell them all with a smile. Turning to Alice. “Pussycat, I know you want to be out here with me, but I need you to do me a favor. Go with the others, I need you to protect the Nakatoma Family blood line.” Holding up my hands to forestall her. “As my wife you have access to the GLB accounts for all three of my daughter’s blood lines. The Owens, Nakatoma, and Steel Heart families are all waiting for one of us to just walk in and claim them. That is your job, you’re my failsafe, sweetheart now get your ass into position with the others.”

  “Not, going to happen. We stand together, and that’s the end of the story. Now let’s get out there and face them down.” With that Alice stepped toward the center of the courtyard. Muttering to myself about how damned stubborn the woman could be I followed her while everyone else just giggled or chuckled at the young couple.

  Within minutes everyone was in their assigned positions, and waiting for the enemy to arrive. We didn’t have long to wait. They came in from all four corners of the courtyard. I started counting as they entered. When the last one entered I found the count to be off by one. If I didn’t counted the traitor then there should be nine of them not the eight facing us. Arnold had given me all their names, so I knew there was one missing. Having Dee De and Charlie run a quick headcount and they give the name of our missing Black Rose.

  ‘Fire Wind, heads up you have a job.’

  ‘Go for the Four Daughters, Wave Dancer.’

  ‘I need you four to take care of one, Ronald Hubert the son of a bitch is missing. Track him down and kill him. Understand?’

  ‘Load and clear, Wave Dancer. Four Daughters on the move.’

  I kept my eyes on the eight people who had entered the courtyard, but watched out of the corner of my eye as four shadows detached themselves from the building rooftop and disappeared into the night. Wherever Hubert was he was about to have a very bad night. There were four very determined young ladies armed to the teeth coming after his ass.

  Looking over at Alice. “Shall we let them know we’re here, love?” Alice just grins at me then raises her left arm with its PPC extended. The blast from the PPC slams into one of the picnic tables in the courtyard. Its explosion into hundreds of pieces gets all of their attention. “Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to our little get together. I see you decided to forgo the earlier festivities for a more personal party.”

  One of the four women steps out front and calls out. “How did you know we would be here?”

  “I see you like to get straight to the point Mrs. Read. Very well, I’ll be just as straight forward. One of your own gave me the info.” I watched as this information sank in, and then realization of who it was they had given them up. “That’s right Arnold told me everything. He told me when, who, and how you planned to attack me and my family this night.”

  “You must have tortured Brother Benedict.” Shouted one of the Black Rose. “Not that it matters. There are only the two of you, no match for a full team of Guardians.”

  This time I just raise my arm and let it drop. As one all five of the Children of Mars opened up on the Black Rose order. In the blink of an eye all of them disappeared in a cloud of death and destruction, along with one of the Crimson Shields losing her leg to papa’s sniper rifle.

  “Allow me to introduce you to the Children of Mars. On lead guitar and eight barreled Calliope Gatlin, Colonel Fujiyama. On bass and manning the double barreled thirty millimeter PPCwe have Major Howard. Singing backup and key boards we have Fight Captain Benz with a lovely ten millimeter rapid fire gauss rifle. Her lovely partner Captain Martin on drums with her ten millimeter Hell-bore pulse laser rifle. And singing lead and front man, a true artist with a bang from the Castile sniper rifle, our Big Daddy, Papa of Death and Destruction, the one, the only, the man, the myth, the legend, Lord James Nakatoma- Bailey.” When I finished Alice was giggling out loud.

  The fact that I had just made a joke out of the deaths of four people and crippling of another was not lost on the surviving members of the Crimson Shield. The fact that I could be so flippant wasn’t lost on me either. Then again, I have been facing violent death for a lot longer than anyone here. I reach down and slowly draw my blades from their scabbards. Of the three Pillars of Honor I only need two. Alice follows suit, and draws two of the Pillars of Wisdom. For the second time in as many days the Blades of House Nakatoma shall face off against an enemy of our House.

  I hear Alice whispering to herself. It sounds like a prayer of some kind. I don’t interrupt her, but listen all the more intently.

  “I am Allison Ann Wendell, daughter of Tomas and Marisha Wendell. I am the Wife of Maiha Mana Nakatoma Head of House Nakatoma, and First High Lady of the Death Dealers. By these blades in my hands I accept my Transformation. I must not fear Transformation. Fear of Transformation is the mind-killer. Fear of the Transformation is the little-death that brings stagnation. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain, the Wife of Death.”

  “Alice, what are you saying?”

  “It is part of my family’s traditions. It is a reminder of who we are, and what we will become in times of conflict.” Looking out across the courtyard I can see that it is time to end this. The remaining members of the Crimson Shield have not moved from their places, only to draw their own blades. Three on two, more fairer odds no just God would allow. Alice steps up evenly with me and calls out. “I am Allison Ann Wendell, daughter of Tomas and Marisha Wendell. I am the Wife of Maiha Mana Nakatoma, Head of House Nakatoma, and First High Lady of the Death Dealers. Do you dare face us on the Field of Honor as equals?”

  It was an extremely formal way of issuing a challenge, but it would force both the Crimson Shield and us to abide by the Rules of Can’ lee. She had just taken everyone out of the fight, but her, me and the three Sisters of the Crimson Shield. If they took up the challenge then no matter what else happened here the Empire could not get involved. It was simple, yet complex solution to keeping this war between the Temples. All we had to do is send one of them back with their acceptance of the challenge. I, however need to make a slight change to her challenge if I want this to go the right way.

  “Or are you and the rest of the Temple of Holy Light without honor? You used the Longfellow’s as your pawns to corrupt the
students with these walls, the Daughters of the Dragon pulled them down. The Black Swords of Saint George hauled them before me for judgment. And, now the long arm of Justice has come for you and your Orders. Look around and see what you face.” I raised my arms and signaled for mama and the others to show themselves. As one they all showed themselves. The faces of the three remaining Sisters of the Crimson Shield were ones of pure shock. I had felt them arriving over the past few minutes. Dee De had kept me apprised of their arrivals, and the weapons they carried. “Around you are the very people you would have kept in oppression and servitude to your bent and twisted schemes. Do you see? This is what you order has wrote. They are but a small sampling of what your Temple shall face! Now, you face the Temple of Ida-ten, and the Orders of that Temple, the Knights of Ida-ten. I give you just this one chance. Leave here and never return, but if you stay and fight then by the Laws of Can’ lee the only blood to flow shall be that of the Temples.”

  It was formal, it was definitive, and it was to the point. They either back off and let the Temple of Ida-ten return peacefully or there would be war between the Imperial Temples and Ida-ten. A war that would end on Vega Prime, and at Temple Mount. One way or another after this night the threat to the Temple of Ida-ten will be defined. Either there will be a war between the Temples alone with just their resources or I will be able to use the only thing Richelieu and the Imperial Temples fear. If they refuse to accept the challenge than I can bring down the full weight of the Death Dealer Divisions. Not even with all their military might combined not even the High Families can stand against two hundred full divisions of Death Dealers.

  “You whores will die this night and with you, your dreams of a new Temple of Ida-ten. The Temple Elders declared that abomination Outlawed four hundred years ago. The Laws of Can’ lee do not apply.” As one they charged me and Alice with blades drawn.

  Neither Alice nor I waited for them to come to us, but met them halfway. My blades clash with the one in the center. Alice takes on the one of the left, while the one on the right met the business end of a snipers bullet. I move to the right pulling my opponent away from Alice and hers. My opponent is a good seven inches taller than me. The bitch has height and reach on me. Her stance and the way she holds her sword tells me even more about her.

  Like Maxwell Slade she has been trained by a European Sword Master. Saber meets katana, dagger against wakizashi. She relies on her longer reach and greater strength. As a cyborg these are her advantages. While mine centers on grace and skill. That is where any semblance to my fight with Slade ends. Where he was all about using raw naked power to try and overwhelm me, this woman is actually using her training and skill with a sword. I can tell she is a true mistress of her weapon. I am going to need every bit of skill and luck I have to defeat her.

  For the next five minutes we weave in and out of each other’s reach. It quickly becomes a dance of appalling grace and deadly intent. One as fluid and beautiful as a ballet dancer, while the other a Kabuki dancer straight out of ancient Japan. Two more different styles you would be hard to find. Both as beautiful as they are deadly. Each with the sole intent of killing the other. Our blades clash, we attack and guard, riposte and parry. We each face the other as if our very souls were at stake. In a way they are. For her it is her belief in the Temple of Holy Light. For me it is for more than just my soul, but the soul of a dream. The dream of freedom.

  One so fragile, that in the blink of an eye it could be crushed. The Temple of Ida-ten is that dream. One that would bring justice back to the Empire I had sworn to protect. Mama had accused me of wanting to destroy those in power when I first emerged from my cocoon. That I want revenge for all supposed wrongs of the past. I told her she could not be more wrong, but I lied to her and myself. I did want revenge, but not for the reasons Dai Etsu proposed. No, my reasons were far more personal than what she or anyone would ever know.

  To me, it was the whole system that was broken. I was unable to fix the system before, but now I had the power to change and fix the system. I had no desire to rule or sit on the Imperial Throne. Yes, I would take the Throne if forced to, but only if I had no other choice. I have already torn out the heart of a political rebellion amongst the High Families. One so cleverly supported by the Imperial Temples. Now, after all this time the man behind it all wants an all-out war, for the whole Empire to see. They wish to destroy publicly what they tried to destroy from the shadows. The only real threat to their power, the House and Family of Nakatoma. Before now, it was just politics, now though it was personal.

  She came at me with everything at her disposal. That was when she made her mistake. She came in with an overhand strike using her saber, never expecting me to come up to block with my wakizashi and my close combat blades fully extended. The shock of having her torso ripped open by three micro-edge high tensile straighten CQB blades was perfect. It gave me the opening I needed to end the fight.

  My katana slices through her left shoulder removing that arm. As she screams I spin around behind her going low with my wakizashi to cut through her knees, removing her legs from there down. My speed and sudden movement allowed me to bring my katana down through her right shoulder, striking off her right arm. As she fell forward I brought both blades down through her neck taking off her head. I feel no pity, no remorse, only relief. Then I hear Alice cry out.

  Looking over I see Alice with a bloody arm, and her opponent about to thrust her sword through Alice’s chest. I don’t even think about my next move. With all the strength I can muster I draw and throw my tachi. It embeds itself to the hilt in the forehead of the woman. I was at Alice’s side before the woman hit the ground dead.

  “Oh god! Baby are you alright?”

  “Yes, the cunt only sliced the armor skin. It’s already healing, see?” she said pointing at where the Crimson Shield sword cut her. The fact that it was able to even cut our bio-armor was strange. Reaching over I pick it up and had Dee De and Charlie do a full scan of it. Within a few minutes they gave me a complete readout of what they found.

  Commander that is a bye lateral monofilament edge diamond-carbide blade. (Charlie)

  “And what the hell does that mean, besides it being sharp as hell?”

  It means, Maiha, that it was stolen from the Imperial Armory. I should say the technology was stolen from the Imperial Armory. It’s Top Secret and banned from use in every system within the Empire. (Dee De)

  “OH SHIT! You people broke into the Imperial Armory!” I screamed at the top of my lungs. I went over to the only living member of the Temple of Holy Light. I reach down and grabbed her by the neck. “You ignorant fucks! Do know what will happen now?! Do you even have a clue?!”

  “We are the true Guardians of the Empire. Not that puppet you call ‘Emperor’. We are the ones who truly rule the Empire. The Hall of Lords, House of Representatives, Imperial Prime Minister, even those so called Death Dealers are nothing without our say.” She spat in my face. “We control it all. Soon the Cardinal will have his approval and every last unit of the Galactic Military and House Militaries will come down on your heads. They will destroy you, your House, and this abomination of a Temple.”

  “You poor deluded fool. It won’t matter what your oh so powerful, and holy Cardinal gets or what you think. With these weapons I have all the proof I need to tear down your Temple with the full weight of the Imperial High Command behind me. What that means is this. Until now I had to leave the Death Dealers out of our little beef, but now I can call them down on your false Temple. They won’t be the only ones coming either. As there are now more than thirty members of the Ida-ten Temple who are Elves, I can call on the War Prince of High Winds. So not only will you face the Death Dealers, you get to face his own division as well.” I let what I just told her sink in before I deliver the final nail in the coffin of Holy Light and its orders. I lean in so I can whisper in her ear. “And it will be the House of Nakatoma Military that leads the charge. I will personally be at the front of that charge, de
ad center. When you see Cardinal Richelieu tell him, his time has come and so has his Temples’.”

  I release her and let her fall back as I stand up. Looking around I see all the girls from JES and can tell they have been joined by the boys from JS. It seems our little midnight tussle with the Temple of Holy Light has attracted an audience. Charlie gives me a count of how many are there. Maybe letting papa and the Children of Mars deliver the opening shots wasn’t a bright idea. Then again this just might be for the best. Sliding my swords back into scabbards I began to slowly turn in a circle.

  “Daughters of the Dragon, Black Swords of Saint George, Sisters of Saint Nightingale, Brothers of Balance, and Children of Mars, hear me! On this night the Temple of Holy Light has declared all-out war on your Temple. I leave it up to you, to decide. We can wait for them to come to us or we can in four months take the fight to them at Temple Mount on Vega Prime.” I got my answer before I could even finish what I was saying. It started with the Black Swords and rolled through the crowd until everyone had taken up the chant.

  “Vega! Vega!” it was long before everyone was chanting the battle cry to take the fight to them. I raised my arms palms out to silence them so I could continue. Once I had silence again I laid it all out for them.

  “You have spoken, and I have heard. We will take the war to them!” I turned to face Alice and the rest of my family who came down to join us. “Well, mama, it looks like House Nakatoma will finally tear down the falsehood that is the Temple of Holy Light.”