by Ryan Kirk
He had meant to confront them the morning after Hana came to him. That morning, Ryo had eaten breakfast with him. Hiroki didn’t join them, remaining near the family’s younger daughter.
Ryo had fixed him with a stare over the table. “You didn’t sleep with the girl last night.” The comment was half a statement and half an accusation.
Koji met the other nightblade’s gaze. He couldn’t act, not with Hiroki in another room. He needed to bide his time, wait to get the two of them together. Then he could confront them and fight if the confrontation turned violent. Until then, he had to play along as well as he could. He wasn’t a man skilled at deception.
“She wasn’t to my liking.”
Ryo nodded slowly, and Koji got the distinct feeling the older nightblade was unraveling his statement and looking straight to the truth of the matter. Neither was sure of the other. Each was suspicious, but neither was willing to shed blood, not yet.
Since that breakfast Koji’s two hosts had never been together. One was always with a family member, the other going about a variety of daily tasks. Ryo, in particular, seemed a man of letters, with a constant stream of correspondence coming and going. The farmer’s family made for excellent couriers.
As the days passed, Koji met the members of the family whose house he now slept in. The father, a man who was just starting to get the first hints of gray in his hair, walked with a noticeable limp. His wife was a plain-looking woman who cooked some of the best food he’d ever tasted. Both tended to avoid him, and he caught only glimpses of the couple.
Koji saw more of the four children. The older son was often dispatched with Ryo’s letters, but sometimes they sent the older daughter, a cycle or two younger than the son. The two younger children, also a son and a daughter, most often performed chores around the house.
None of them spoke much to Koji, turning the other way when he came into the same room or hallway. Occasionally the older daughter would make eye contact, but he otherwise felt as though he was living in a house of ghosts.
The more time Koji spent with the two other blades, the more he began to believe they were involved in something larger. The correspondence was the biggest clue. Couriers arrived throughout the day, and from a glance, Koji got the impression they were as willing to perform their duties as the farmer’s family. The volume indicated the messages couldn’t be going too far. Koji was consumed by curiosity, but he kept his own counsel.
Every morning when he woke up, Koji hoped the day would be the one when he could confront his hosts about their behavior. He sensed their actions at night, and it was all he could do not to crash out of his room. But wasn’t silence better than the loss of life? Every night he gritted his teeth and contained his anger.
Ryo, at least, was clever. The two never slipped up, were never together anywhere except near a hostage, and Koji might as well have been tied to a chair for all the good he could do. His only outlet was his morning practice, as unsatisfying as that was.
Koji sensed Ryo approaching the barn but didn’t stop his practice. He switched to a standard form, one taught to all nightblades when they were young. His sword came up above his head over his right shoulder, and he pivoted around, stepped backward, and cut down. He stepped forward as he brought his sword back up, his body easily remembering the form he had worked through a thousand times. Even if Ryo observed him, he would learn little from the practice.
Ryo watched as Koji finished the form, then nodded approvingly. “It’s vital to practice the basics. Hiroki could learn something from your dedication. How long have you held the status of master?”
“Almost two cycles.” Koji couldn’t help but feel a flush of pride in his chest. He had been one of the youngest nightblades ever to complete the trials of mastery.
Ryo agreed. “You were young.” The nightblade seemed like he was about to say something more but stopped. Koji could guess, though. Passing the trials at such an early age indicated a level of skill Koji hadn’t yet displayed. His limited practice was further proof he didn’t trust Ryo.
Koji wanted to interrupt Ryo’s thoughts before they got too far. If he was going to help the family, he needed to stay in Ryo’s good graces. “Can I help you?”
Ryo came out of his trance and looked at Koji. “Yes, as a matter of fact. This evening there is a gathering of blades. I’d like you to join me.”
“Is Hiroki going?”
Ryo shook his head. “He would like to, but someone needs to stay here to make sure the family doesn’t try to spread more unfounded rumors about us. He wanted me to ask you to stay, but we both decided it was more important for you to meet some of the people at this gathering.”
Koji considered the offer. He couldn’t decline, not really. The meeting was either a test of his loyalty or a trap. Perhaps both. But Ryo confirmed what Koji had suspected—other blades were in the area. Koji wanted to go to the meeting, regardless of its purpose. He was afraid to leave the family alone with Hiroki but didn’t see a better option.
“It would be a pleasure to meet other blades. Thank you for your invitation.”
Ryo bowed slightly and departed.
Koji left the farmhouse with a strange mixture of trepidation and excitement. The day had passed like his last few. He trained and tried to meditate while Ryo and Hiroki went about their daily tasks. Koji remained alert for any break in his hosts’ routine. He found none.
The sun had fallen when the two warriors left the farmhouse. Koji was impressed by how cold the weather had become. Winter wasn’t for another moon, but the snow crunched under his feet as they walked. He realized it would be almost impossible for him to go anywhere without leaving tracks.
He followed Ryo, who seemed to know the land intimately. They proceeded without hesitation, even in the dark snow, toward some unknown destination. Their walk was silent, Koji extended his sense farther than usual to catch any possible traps.
He sensed the blades just before he saw another farmhouse. Surprising, considering they were out in the plains. The sight should have traveled farther. Only after they crested a small hill did Koji realize Ryo had approached the farmhouse keeping the rise between them and their destination. Koji wasn’t certain, but they apparently hadn’t taken the most direct route. Had the blades here made traps to protect the farm? The sense wasn’t much good against a sharpened stake in the ground in the middle of the night.
More blades were in the farmhouse than Koji expected. If he had to guess, he would have said that most of the blades who had once been stationed in Haven were here. At least two dozen were present.
Koji wasn’t expecting what he discovered when he stepped inside. Not only was the farmhouse filled with blades, but the mood was almost boisterous. The gifted passed cups of drink around freely, and the room was filled with laughter and shouts.
His stomach sank. As much as inebriation sounded appealing to him, he was disgusted by what he saw. Some of the blades were completely drunk, their faces red and voices out of control. Others were more subdued, but they were in the minority. Koji remembered that outside these walls, the Kingdom was falling into civil war. His anger was intense, and it took all his willpower to keep his rage contained. Ryo watched him carefully.
Koji took the first drink that was offered. No harm in one, and if drinking helped allay Ryo’s suspicions, so much the better.
They imbibed and socialized, and as they did, more blades trickled into the farmhouse. Koji recognized a number of them. In his role as Minori’s aide, one of his first tasks had been to go to the gathering places of the blades in Haven. He had sought out the leaders or blades most prone to spreading rumors. Then he would tell his story about being sentenced to death for doing his duty. Minori had rescued him, and Koji’s work was to let the blades know that his master stood up for their rights. Because of that work, Koji recognized several people, and several recognized him as well.
Fortunately, his name was known far more than his appearance. Most who recognized him saw him
just as he saw them, a face they had seen in the inns and teahouses around Haven. One or two knew his name, but he did his best to keep what distance he could from them in the small hall.
The door to the room opened one more time, and a silence slowly descended upon the crowd. Koji turned, his stomach sinking even farther into his bowels when he saw who had entered.
Koji knew her all too well, and she knew him, too. Her name was Akane, a tempestuous nightblade who had been willing to watch the world burn back when it was still standing. Most of the places Koji had gone to as an aide had been sympathetic to his story. Akane had been willing to go to the streets and attack the lords that night.
Koji wished he knew more about her. She was fierce and believed the blades needed to have more authority in the Kingdom. Akane was clearly the leader of this contingent of blades, a group strong enough to change the course of events. He suspected he already knew what her goals were.
Akane recognized him, and her face lit up. She shouted, even though the room had largely fallen silent upon her entrance. “Brothers and sisters! What a great day this is! Do you know who we have in the room with us? It’s Koji, once Minori’s right hand and the man who killed King Shin!”
Koji’s heart missed several beats as he swore repeatedly in his mind, a fake grin plastered on his face. How had she known? She must have been close enough to the stand to have seen him. Maybe she’d even had the same idea, and he’d just beaten her to it.
None of that mattered. Everyone in the room was looking at him, and he was afraid they would be able to see through his grin, see the dilemma eating him up within.
They didn’t. Their smiles grew wider, and what Koji observed was a horror he had never thought to live through. He was their hero. Several blades were bowing deeply to him, and the rest were nodding and cheering even though he couldn’t hear anything. Cup after cup was brought to him, and he drank them all freely, hoping to find solace and peace wherever he might. He had killed a king. He had killed their king. And they were celebrating him.
He was given the seat of honor at Akane’s right side. The meeting began, and Koji still couldn’t work through what had just happened. Sound slowly returned to his awareness, and he realized his nightmares were coming true. They discussed recruiting more members, of growing their ranks so they could fight against the armies of the lords.
Koji’s attention fully returned when he heard a name he’d heard once before. Akane was continuing a monologue. “Takashi, one of our greatest commanders, taught us that this new world was coming, a world in which every person was free to choose their own path.”
The leader of the group was waving a small book. Koji caught the writing on the front, which read simply, “The teachings of Takashi.”
Where had he heard that name? The memory came, particularly potent in his current company. He remembered drinking with Asa the night they had dueled. She had told him her story, which had begun with an assassination she had completed for the Council of the Blades. Takashi had been the man she had killed, the man who’d been her father’s commander at the massacre of Two Falls.
The world was a large place, but sometimes it didn’t seem that way, the threads of people’s lives constantly twisting and knotting up. So the man she had killed had teachings that were spreading through the land? He wondered if she would find that as funny as he did right now. Minori, Kiyoshi, and now Takashi. The blades of the present couldn’t look beyond the blades of the past.
His attention returned to Akane’s rising voice. “I see a day, not long in the future, when blades are able to decide their own destiny! A day in which our power and our abilities are respected for the gifts they are!”
She finished her speech by pounding her cup on the table and drinking deeply. She was joined by many around the room. Koji studied the group. Akane had obviously enthusiastic supporters, but Koji had no doubt that even those who didn’t shout agreed quietly with her words.
After Akane finished, Ryo spoke next. Koji took note. The other nightblade must be high up in whatever passed for a hierarchy here.
“Our leader speaks truly. She has the vision, and it is up to each of us to put it into practice. Our numbers grow day by day, but we are reaching a point where there are not many more blades in the immediate area. Akane and I have spoken, and we believe it is time to move to the next steps in our plan.”
“The idea of staying in farmhouses was a good one. We were able to spread out and recruit many of the blades traveling between Haven and Starfall.”
That was new to Koji. He thought he had just stumbled upon the first farmhouse through pure chance. But if everyone here was also occupying farmhouses off the road that led between the two cities, they would catch all the blades trying to make it to Starfall for guidance. A smart plan and a simple one.
“Unfortunately, we are gathering fewer and fewer blades. That is to be expected. We assumed most would head to Starfall, and there are few left in the area surrounding us. Now the distance between us is no longer a strength but a weakness. We must remain in a small area to be better able to protect ourselves.”
Koji saw the logic behind the idea. If the blades were discovered now, armies could isolate the farmhouses and pick them off two or three at a time. All together, overwhelming force would be required to dislodge them.
“After much debate, we would like to propose River’s End as our new location.” Ryo held up his hand to still the argument that instantly sprang up around the table. “We’ll have a chance to discuss the decision, but here are our reasons: First, we sent a shadow to the village several days ago. It’s well stocked with food for the winter, which promises to be a cold one. Second, because of the river access, we’ll be able to get messages and news much faster than overland. Third, they burned our way station. They have no love lost for the blades, and it’s worth teaching them the mistake in that.”
The assembled blades started a vigorous debate, voices rising in disbelief and anger. Koji thought their plan sounded a lot like that of the blades who had lived at Two Falls, and he was one of the few who knew how that had actually turned out. More than twenty cycles had passed since that group of blades had tried to break away from the authority of the Kingdom, and each and every one of them had rejoined the Great Cycle for their efforts. But he didn’t reveal that history, content instead to listen to the arguments. They seemed to fall into two categories.
Some felt that River’s End was too small. If they wanted to grow, they were going to need more space and more houses. Others seemed to feel uncomfortable gathering at all. Spread out they were more vulnerable individually, but their movement was safer. There was no way for one military maneuver to destroy them.
Despite his anger at what he saw, Koji also observed hints of what life could be like under Akane’s direction. All blades with something to say had their turn to speak. Whether dealing with the logistics of running a village or mulling over the ethics of their actions, everyone with a concern spoke, and every concern was discussed with equal merit. Koji had never seen anything like it, and at times, he almost forgot the context and was impressed by Akane’s leadership. The downside was that the meeting lasted long into the night. It was far faster to tell others what to do than to convince them all of a course of action.
At least that was what Koji thought initially. As an outsider, perhaps his experience was just different. What he noticed as he watched was that, although there was a place for disagreement to be voiced, there was never any doubt of what would actually happen. The details might change, but the larger mission never would. No doubt, no misgiving, no matter how valid, would change Akane’s mind. She wanted River’s End, and they were going to take it. First, though, they were going to talk.
The meeting was just another facade. Another illusion of power. Most of the blades around the table had no more say than they had when they were taking commands from the Council of the Blades. They had merely traded one master for another.
Now that Koj
i had a bit of alcohol flowing through him, he couldn’t summon the anger he had earlier that evening. Now he was just saddened. The monks devoted to the teachings of the Great Cycle had it right. History always repeated, an endless cycle no one knew how to break.
The moon was past its midpoint when the meeting finally finished. As Koji had expected, the decision had been made to attack River’s End. To their credit, the blades moved fast, deciding to attack the day after next.
Everyone was about to disband when Akane made one final announcement. “Brothers and sisters, remember we can’t leave witnesses behind when our movement is so young. Make sure when you leave the farmhouses, no one is around who can speak of our plans or slander our reputation.”
Even inebriated, Koji was shocked. The command was met by the others with silent acceptance.
His anger, even smothered by drink, flared back, his rage and frustration as hot as ever. These blades had trained their entire lives to protect the people they were now talking about killing! And they didn’t even object. Koji was disgusted to be among them.
He kept his emotions in check, just barely. Before, he wasn’t sure what he was going to do, but now he was committed.
One benefit to the frigid air was that it sobered Koji up quickly. He and Ryo had only been walking for a little while, but Koji’s head already felt clear, and small tests of his reflexes let him know most of his speed was still present.
Ryo had been silent after the meeting, probably thinking through the details of the attack. Koji had the feeling that Ryo was the man who took care of details. Akane was the woman who provided the leadership, the figure whom warriors were willing to follow.
Eventually Ryo’s attention turned to Koji. “What did you think of the meeting, king-killer?”
Koji hated the title, given to him by a few of the blades who had been present. The question was weighted with meaning, but Koji had decided on his course of action. He would never get Ryo and Hiroki away from the family, not the way events were transpiring. Soon he wouldn’t have any more chances.
