Czytaj książkę: «In The Darkness», strona 2
When the shinobi passed her the cup, she smiled faintly and he bowed.
The tea he made was delicious and warming, but the feeling of the sun on her skin warmed her even more. Whatever she felt for the past few days now seemed far away.
«Thank you.» Kara said to the shinobi.
He bowed again, acknowledging her words.
«Thank you for saving me that night.» Kara said, sipping her tea. «And for today. I needed it.»
The man bowed once more – collected and self-disciplined, as always.
They stayed in the garden for at least a couple of hours before Kara felt her strength returning. When she stood up to take a short walk around the garden, her shinobi stood up as well and followed her – a silent and vigilant guard.
Kara was charmed by the beautiful composition of this garden – it had everything to soothe a troubled mind and help recover from anything that stressed her out. She sat by the small pond filled with koi fish, then breathed in the fantastic scents of various flowers planted all over the garden, and, finally, admired the statues that stood above a tiny rock garden in one of the corners.
«Mariko…» She heard Ayame’s voice and noticed the woman standing by one of the doors. «Master Ryuu wanted to speak to you.»
Kara felt shame that she had to leave such a beautiful and tranquil place, but she knew that if she refused to see the lord commander of this castle – the consequences might be dire. So she nodded and followed Ayame inside.
Ayame took her to one of the halls Kara had never been to before – it was a large, well-lit hall that had various paintings on the walls. On the far side of this hall Kara noticed a luxurious cushion – one of those that were usually used by the shogun in ancient Japan.
On it sat her captor – the lord commander of the castle.
Once he saw her come in, he nodded and offered her to walk up.
Ayame and the shinobi stayed at the doors, while Kara walked up – close enough to hear what the commander had to say, but not too close so that she wouldn’t offend him. She bowed to him, even though it was still hard to do because of her injured shoulder.
The lord commander looked to the side and nodded, and immediately a servant ran out from behind a screen and lay down a small cushion on the floor beneath Kara’s feet. She sat down in the manner people here were used to – on her knees, with her feet under her.
Some why she felt the need to bow again to the lord – only this time – very low, almost touching the floor with her forehead. Usually this meant leaning on both hands, but she had only one – her left arm was wrapped tightly to her torso, so that the dislocated shoulder could heal.
The man in front of her smirked.
«You know our etiquette well, Mariko.» He said.
«I learn quickly.» She replied looking at him.
«Good.» He nodded again. «Now, I have called you here for a number of reasons. First of all, accept my deepest apologies for the attack that happened to you a few days ago. Such behaviour is below a samurai and the men responsible will be punished.»
«Thank you.»
The lord shouted something and the screen doors on one side of this chamber slid open. Kara looked outside and saw a small courtyard, where her three attackers stood kneeling and strapped up by their arms to bamboo poles.
The lord commander stood up and walked up to the doors, gesturing Kara to come too. The woman had some trouble standing up, but when she managed it and approached the lord, he looked at her with a strange expression on his face.
«Inei wanted to execute them at once, but I decided that you should be able to see them being punished for the horrible crime they have committed against you.» The lord said.
Kara looked back and noticed the shinobi nod to her.
«You are here to see the execution and, if you wish, carry it out yourself.» The commander said and Kara looked at him with surprise.
She took a moment to recollect herself.
«I beg your forgiveness, my lord, but I am in no shape to carry out an execution.» She replied.
«Perhaps, you would like to name someone in your stead?»
Kara looked at the shinobi again and noticed his eyes flash with a dark will to do it if it pleased her.
«Inei!» the lord commander shouted and the shinobi ran up to them and knelt.
For a few moments he was looking down, but then looked at Kara and she suddenly noticed something she wasn’t able to see all this time – the shinobi had deep blue eyes.
«Would you be willing to be my hands today?» Kara asked him, and the shinobi nodded and stood up, unsheathing his katana.
Silent as always, he walked out into the courtyard and approached the first prisoner.
Inei stopped for a second, turned to face Kara and his commander, and with a swift move ended the man’s life, chopping his head off. He stepped to the next one and once again raised his sword and swiftly decapitated the man. The third man started begging, but Inei walked up and ended his pleading with one move of his katana.
When the execution was done, Inei bowed to Kara and his commander and walked inside again.
As he was walking past Kara, she caught his arm and he froze mid-step.
«Thank you, Inei.» She said and the man gently freed his arm, turned to her and bowed before walking away to the doors.
«Now that this is done…» the lord commander smiled. «Would you like to join me for dinner tonight? I will be able to answer any questions you have.»
«It would be my honour.» Kara replied, bowing to him.
«Ayame! Please be so kind and find Mariko an appropriate haorihakama for tonight.»
«Yes, Lord Ryuu.» Ayame bowed.
As the lord of the castle left, Kara followed Ayame again. Inei walked behind her and she felt grateful for him being there. He did not only protect her that night, but went even further to help her understand that what those men wanted to do was not tolerated among the samurai living in Lord Ryuu’s employ.
It was a lot to take in, and she now felt a little safer having the shinobi by her side.
«Do you have any preferences to your clothing? Colours, ornaments?» Ayame asked, making Kara dive back to reality from her thoughts.
«Black, red, dark green.» Kara replied, naming her favourite colours. «As for the ornaments… I don’t know. Something without flowers. I don’t do well with flowers on my clothes.»
Ayame glanced at her for a second and smiled mysteriously.
«I think I have a perfect haori for you.» She said.
Kara was taken to the bath again, but this time there was a servant girl who helped Kara undress and bathe, since her shoulder was still injured. And when Kara got out, Ayame was already waiting with her new haorihakama.
At first glance Kara understood that this one was far more exquisite than the one she wore before. It was made from fine silk – plain black hakama and silk black haori with a beautiful tiger on one of the sleeves – with its head on the right shoulder.
Ayame helped Kara to get dressed, and the servant girl tied Kara’s long red hair into a beautiful braid.
Even though Kara had never been dressed, she knew – without help she would have taken forever to get into the clothes, since she still had her arm tied to her torso to let the shoulder heal.
«I found this in your old clothes…» Ayame showed Kara a plain leather string with a sword hanging on it. «I think you should have it back.»
She put it on Kara’s neck and smiled.
«Thank you.» Kara whispered, feeling very relieved that she got this little trinket back.
«Now you are ready, Mariko. Follow me.»
Kara didn’t object and very soon Ayame entered a small hall, where Lord Ryuu was already having a conversation with one of his men. He looked at the women and nodded, then sent the man he was speaking to away and gestured to the table.
«Please…» he said with a faint smile.
Kara watched as Ayame left, closing the door behind her. Feeling a little insecure, the young woman took her place on the opposite side of the table from Lord Ryuu.
«I know that we have started on a…» Lord Ryuu stopped for a moment, trying to find the correct words. «Bad page… is that how you say it? But I want you to know that we took you here not because we needed a captive.»
«Then why?»
«Well…» Lord Ryuu gestured to someone and a couple of servants began serving the table. A few minutes later, as they exited, Lord Ryuu continued, while having a bite of meat. «You see, your realm is lost. It’s broken. It is dying. And we were scouting. But we found you.»
Kara frowned a bit, not understanding his reasons still.
«Usually we kill anyone who attacks us. You, however, are different matter entirely.» Lord Ryuu explained. «You have… potential.»
«So you took me prisoner because I have… potential?!» Kara twitched her eyebrow.
«We took you, yes. Prisoner? No.» the man smiled. «For the moment you are my guest.»
«Who sleeps in a cage, yes.»
For a second she thought that some servant or guard would jump out and strike her down for talking so rude to the lord of the castle. But no one came – and Lord Ryuu started laughing.
«Only because you managed to kill four of my men.» He finally replied. «As I said before – potential. I could not let it go to waste in that graveyard of a world.»
«I still don’t understand why…»
«I am looking for people like you, Mariko. If you get to know my people better, you will find a lot of those who don’t come from this realm. They were stranded, and they were taken – just like you, and they have prospered here. Just like you can. You have skills that can blossom into something great. We can help each other.»
«But how do you travel between worlds?»
Lord Ryuu immediately became collected and serious.
«We do not travel on purpose.» He said. «The gates open once in a while and always lead to different realms. Sometimes we walk through the gates to scout if it is connected to the Dark Realm. On that day the gate took us to your world.»
«And you can’t open them again?»
«People do not open them.»
«Then who does?»
His black eyes pierced Kara to her heart with a cold and long stare before he answered:
«Oni.»
Kara froze – oni were demons in the vilest way they could ever be described. Destroyers and murderers that left nothing but blood and bones. She knew that – because she had seen them. Oni came through her world and kept coming in groups through some of the Shadow Rifts that were left after the dreaded experiment gone wrong.
«How long have you battled the oni?» she asked.
«Generations. Our gates started appearing a long time ago.» Lord Ryuu replied, concentrated on his food. «But we manage as best we can. And we find fighters like you and bring them here from their dying worlds.»
«Inei?» Kara whispered more to herself, but the lord heard her and chuckled.
«Yes, he too was a lost soul a long time ago. But he is now one of the most powerful men in the castle.» The man twitched his eyebrow and gestured towards the food. «Are you not hungry?»
Even though she was too lost in her thoughts, Kara took a little bit of meat and vegetables, but her appetite was very faint. She took a few bites not to insult her host and it gave her a little time to decide on what to ask him next.
«Has anyone tried closing the gates?» she asked.
«Yes. We have a number of capable… mystics who do this for us. But closing the gates is easier than battling the hordes of oni that can come out.» Lord Ryuu looked Kara straight in the eyes again. «You don’t seem to be at all shocked hearing of oni.»
«Yes, I… I have seen them.» Kara said quietly. «And killed a few. Small ones, but still.»
«And you did this all by yourself?»
«Yes. Why?»
A strange expression of acknowledgement and respect appeared on the lord’s face:
«You are much stronger than you appear, Mariko. Others might miss it, but I have an eye for potential and talent. You have both.» He said. «And you understand some things that others might find… barbaric and unacceptable.»
«Like executing three men…»
«Exactly! With all my searching I have come across various people. Most of them are not worthy of saving at all. They are weak, flawed, and either enjoy killing too much, or do not kill at all, even when it is absolutely necessary.» Lord Ryuu fell silent for a couple of moments, studying Kara’s face. «But you do not enjoy violence. You do not kill for the sake of killing. And you fight with honour.»
«I spent too much time surviving on my own. I kill only when threatened. That is why I killed your men – you kidnapped me and I was defending myself.»
«We had no time to persuade you. So I took the risk. And I am sorry to have snatched you from your home.» Lord Ryuu suddenly bowed. «But I could not let you die in that place.»
Kara looked down into her bowl. She knew that even if she could come back – there was nothing to go back to. Her world was dying and Lord Ryuu was right. Perhaps, he did what no one else could do for her – actually saved her from the lonely existence and constant survival that was slowly driving her insane.
«Inei said that you enjoyed my garden?» Lord Ryuu woke Kara from her thoughts, returning her to reality.
«Yes. Thank you. It was very beautiful.»
«I told Inei that he can take you out into all of the gardens within the castle walls. You will be able to see how we live and, perhaps, understand us better?»
«Thank you, Lord Ryuu.»
«I hope I have answered your questions?»
«Yes, quite.»
«Then, perhaps, you can tell me a little bit about yourself – where did you learn to fight like that and what you did back in your home world?»
Kara smirked and took a few bites of food before starting her story. She had nothing to hide and didn’t see any need in doing so. She told him everything he wanted to know.
3
* * *
Lord Ryuu was right about taking strolls in his gardens. Kara learned about the people and their traditions more by looking at how everyone lived – including the simple people, like the gardeners and servants who tended to the needs of people living within the castle walls.
She loved spending time in the gardens, and she didn’t mind her silent guard – the shinobi Inei, who followed her everywhere and never said a single word. She knew that he was watching her and studying her just like she was studying everyone else.
Her shoulder healed and she returned to her training every morning and evening, but she also found that having a little time to meditate in the garden was a pure bliss.
One day, as she was walking on a path she had never taken before, she came across a small pagoda with a drum inside. Intrigued, she walked in and found a monk sitting behind the drum and meditating.
Kara took her time looking at the beautiful carvings and paintings on the massive columns that held up an intricate roof of the pagoda, before the monk stood up and walked up to her, offering her two big drumsticks.
«You are welcome to pray, if you wish.» The monk said with a gentle smile.
Even though he was a young man, he spoke with such confidence and tranquillity that Kara felt a little lost. She glanced back at her shadow – Inei stood at the entrance and slightly nodded at her silent question.
She hesitantly took the drumsticks and stepped up to the drum.
«I’ve never prayed like this…» she said quietly.
«All you have to do is let your soul out and follow it through the beating of the drum.» The monk replied and stepped back, leaving Kara by herself.
She looked at the drumsticks and at the massive drum in front of her, then closed her eyes and sighed. For the weeks that she already spent in the castle there was enough in her soul that needed some way to escape. She raised her arms and two beats sounded, as she gently hit the drum.
Then something inside her opened up, and she began beating a melody that sounded somewhat soothing and familiar. It was as if a giant horse was trotting in the midday sun on a road to somewhere. Then the trotting turned into a gallop and the melody changed into a more powerful, vibrating sound of strength and a sense of purpose.
Kara dissolved in these sounds, creating something insane and magical – something that made her soul sing and cry at the same time. She kept beating and beating, until a scream rose from deep inside and escaped with the last hit she made before falling to her knees – emptied of all the anger, hate and hurt that were living inside her for so long. She felt tired, but free.
When she looked at the monk, she noticed that he was looking outside – at the sudden storm that was rumbling and roaring with thunder above the gardens. Heavy rain was falling from the skies, and Kara stood up and walked out of the pagoda into the rain, soaking in the feeling of its cool embrace and the thousands of fingers that caressed her face.
She had forgotten how it felt – to be free, soaking wet and happy just to be alive. And she started laughing, swirling under the cold rain in a simple and yet captivating dance.
Kara didn’t know how long she was enjoying herself, when suddenly she bumped into Inei – the man caught her mid-step and embraced her gently. She looked into his eyes and smiled – something in his gaze was different. Softer, more intrigued than ever.
He nodded his head in the direction of the castle and she understood that he was asking her to go inside. Maybe, he was worried that she would catch a cold?
Bursting into laughter, Kara nodded. Inei took her hand and they ran off towards the castle, where it was dry and warm.
«I’m sorry.» Kara smiled to her shinobi. «I don’t remember when I felt so… good.»
Even though she couldn’t see his face – she noticed that he was smiling under his mask. And for some reason this made her feel warm inside.
It wasn’t until the evening when the storm started to weaken and Kara found out that it was a very much needed rain – the land was suffering from draught all the time she was there. She even overheard some people talking about someone praying at the pagoda right before the storm broke out. She understood that it was her they spoke about, but she couldn’t understand how her beating the drum would cause for the weather to change so quickly. All she did was dissolve in the music she tried getting out of her heart.
Whatever the case was – she now felt much better and found it in herself to really dive into the life she was now given.
And, most of all, she was grateful to Lord Ryuu for letting her go out into the gardens. She loved this little routine – walking in the morning and evening to set her mind at ease. Sometimes she would even train in the far corners – watched by the shinobi, but never distracted. She began looking at him as her own shadow.
One evening, as she was returning to the castle from her usual walk, she noticed movement on the castle roof and froze mid-step. Looking into the thickening shadows of the creeping night, she saw multiple figures among the rooftops – hiding in the smallest crevices and behind the statues that decorated the rooftops.
She felt the shinobi touch her shoulder and slowly raised her hand to point him in the direction she was looking so intently.
«There’s someone on the roof.» She said, and at that very moment she noticed a detail that made her heart stop for a moment. It was a tail! «Oni!»
She darted forward, feeling a cold wave running down her spine. She needed to warn others about the demons – they could rain down onto the people any moment!
Fortunately – she ran into the courtyard at the same time as someone finally noticed the figures hiding in the dark.
«ONI!!!» someone screamed at the top of his lungs, and the evening switched from a calm and tranquil one into a fierce battle in a split second.
«Get everyone inside!» Kara nudged a couple of servants that froze in panic towards the doors, and the people scattered, hurrying everyone, who wasn’t armed inside to the safety of the castle walls.
The figures started jumping from the rooftops, raining down into the courtyard and immediately engaging with the samurai. Screams and clashing sounded in the evening air, creating a cacophony of different tones.
«I need a weapon!» Kara darted towards a young mother, who was trying to pick up her tripped child to his feet. Kara grabbed the boy up and shoved him into his mother’s arms, pushing them towards the doors. «Go! NOW!»
She turned to face the fight, and noticed that the oni kept coming, and the men were fighting frenzy. Kara glanced at her shinobi, finding him only a few steps away, already on two strange creatures that towered over him with their bodies large and muscular. They roared, trying to surround him, but he was quick and managed to evade every attack they made with their sharp claws.
Desperate to find a weapon – any kind of weapon – Kara noticed a broom nearby. She grabbed it and broke off the end, making it into a makeshift spear. The next moment she jumped into the fight, diving under one of the oni’s arms and shoving the spear into his throat and up – into his skull.
When the demon fell, Inei slashed his other opponent across the back and immediately cut his throat, ending the demon’s life.
«I need a weapon!!!» Kara screamed at the shinobi, but he shook his head and stepped away to take the fight with another oni that was approaching.
Kara growled at this, but noticed a samurai a few steps away – he was knocked down and battling some winged creature that tried reaching for his throat. Having no other weapon, Kara freed her makeshift spear from the demon she killed and ran to help the samurai. She used the force from her movement and pierced the flying oni through its side, throwing it off the samurai.
The spear broke – after all, it was only a broomstick and not fit for heavy fighting. But the samurai was safe. The man accepted her helping hand and got up, running off into the fight again.
It was insanity around her, and she felt so helpless and powerless, but she still wanted to help. She turned to find Inei and saw that he was fighting, and a small flying oni was creeping up from his back. Kara decided to help, even though she was unarmed – she could at least leap onto the creature and save the shinobi from its claws.
Kara ran to them and leaped just in time, catching the flying oni mid-air in its jump and knocking it to the ground. They tumbled into a ball of claws, fists and blows. Kara hit the creature as hard as she could – again and again and again, feeling the bones breaking under her fist, until the creature twitched and fell to the ground without movement.
«Someone give me a fucking weapon!!!» Kara roared angrily into the deafening sound of battle, and jumped up to her feet, ready to fight again. She saw some fallen samurai near and ran to them in hopes of picking up something that she could use against the vile demons.
She slid next to one of the wounded, avoiding the claws of one of the flying oni, and picked up a katana. Feeling more capable to help, she jumped up and sliced the oni’s head off as it was returning to attack her. Noticing another katana by her feet, Kara picked it up and jumped into the fight with all her will.
The battle turned into bloodshed – more and more demons came, but the castle had enough of capable warriors to defend it. Kara was fighting fierce, not even bothering to realise the danger of such a battle. She simply sliced, hit and jumped from one encounter to another, until the courtyard was filled with dead bodies – more of demons than men.
Suddenly she heard a deafening roar behind her and turned just in time to see a giant black-skinned creature jump from the roof. It was at least two times taller than the young woman, but instead of making Kara fall to fear – it only made her angrier.
«Come on!» Kara screamed at the top of her lungs to the creature and ran towards it, as it too jumped to her.
Kara used her small size to avoid the giant’s attacks – for her it was slow, clumsy and not very coordinated at all. She jumped from one hooved leg, slicing into its hide, to another, cutting the tendon.
As the demon tripped and fell to one knee, Kara cut into its other leg, then slashed his back and, finally, under his arm.
Black thick blood covered her already, but she continued her frenzy dance around the demon. She jumped to its arm and sliced the muscle along the inner biceps, rendering his arm useless, and turned to the belly. The beast was still very much dangerous and roared from pain and anger, but Kara ignored, making it her target to just stay alive and take this thing down.
As she was cutting it from the front she finally noticed the samurai gathering around the oni and trying to help as best they could. They gave her the few opportunities to wound the beast even deeper, before it fell to its more-or-less healthy arm and close enough for Kara to jump up and hit its throat with both swords.
The creature twitched and tried grasping at the throat, Kara took a couple of steps back – still ready to hit it, but already very tired and trying to catch her breath. Her muscles felt tense, her whole body was hard as a rock and capable to do everything that she will ask of it.
But the oni fell to its side, then twitched for the last time with a long and deep rumbling groan, and stopped moving.
Still trying to catch her breath, Kara looked around and found herself surrounded by samurai and a couple of shinobi. She noticed Lord Ryuu – bloodied and armed, looking at her with a strange expression.
The woman sighed, lowering the weapons and understood what they all wanted from her. She stuck the swords into the ground and stepped back from them, feeling her head becoming a little dizzy from all the fighting she went through.
Showing everyone that she is unarmed, she continued to step back, before turning her back to them and walking towards the castle.
«Stop!» Kara heard Lord Ryuu’s voice and froze.
Feeling threatened and very vulnerable, she turned to the shogun.
«You have fought well! And you deserve a worthy name! I name you Nakano! Thank you for helping us protect our home!» Lord Ryuu said loudly.
Feeling a little shaken, Kara collected herself and slowly bowed to Lord Ryuu. The samurai all around raised their weapons and shouted her new name.
«Nakano! NAKANO!»
Kara nodded, acknowledging this honour, but knew, that she needed to sit down and rest a little – the battle was really tiring for her.
She turned her back on the warriors, leaving them to take care of the wounded and dead, and walked off to the castle. She didn’t see, but rather felt that Inei followed her – silent as always.
Half way to the cellar she now called her home Kara suddenly felt a wave of dizziness wash over her and tripped. Fortunately, she was walking next to the wall and managed to catch herself upright, by grasping at it. But even though she stayed on her feet for a second, her legs bent under her weight and she fell to the floor, realising that something was terribly wrong.
She saw Inei by her side, frantically checking her body for injuries, and felt something warm flowing down her side.
Kara couldn’t hear anymore – her ears were ringing, but she thought that it was because of the adrenaline rush she had experienced during the battle. Now she knew – it was because one of the creatures actually got to her. She slowly realised that one of the claws reached her and cut through the back and side, leaving her wounded, while she was ignoring this injury during the fight.
As she slipped into the warm embrace of the dark, she thought that it might be for the better.
* * *
Kara woke up to a scent of some herbs and a feeling of overwhelming pain clutching her body. She lay in a fine bed – on the floor in a big room. There was a small table next to her bed and someone was sitting in the corner. Through the mist in her eyes, she tried to get up, but the person jumped up and ran up to her, gently forcing her down.
It was hard to concentrate her eyes, but when her sight became clearer, she saw that it was Inei. Her own shadow was watching over her.
«Hello, Inei.» Kara whispered, not expecting him to answer.
Instead, she heard him sigh with ease.
She stopped trying to get up – she felt too weak to do that anyways, and the man reached to a small cup on the table. Very gently he raised her head a little and offered her the drink. She didn’t refuse – her mouth felt dry and harsh, as if she hadn’t drank anything for days.
«Thank you.» Kara whispered to the shinobi.
She felt him press on her chest a little.
«You’re right. I’ll stay in bed.» She smiled, feeling sleep creeping over her.
For the next few days she was staying in bed all the time – in and out of sleep. Inei was always there by her side, tending to her how he could – gentle and careful. He helped her drink and fed her soup, while she was too weak to hold a bowl.
But, bit by bit, she recovered, and by day five she forced herself to her feet – not without Inei’s help.
The wound still hurt and it was very painful to walk, but Inei helped her to walk to the doors of the room and opened them. Behind them Kara saw a beautiful private garden – a very small one, but just enough to have some time to herself while having some fresh air.
Inei aided her down onto the tiny patio, and as she sat down, she leaned against one of the poles that held up the roof.
«Can I ask you to bring me some tea?» Kara sighed, feeling the chilly morning air entering her lungs.
Inei nodded and walked off. A few moments later he returned with a tea set on a beautiful lacquered tray that could be used as a tiny table.
«I don’t suppose you will join me for a cup?» Kara smirked, already knowing the answer.
Inei shook his head, confirming her guess. He set down the tray and began preparing her a cup of tea.
«Well… Maybe, some day we will be able to actually have a conversation.» Kara smiled. «And share a drink or two.»
She heard a very quiet chuckle and noticed how the man shrugged his shoulders.
He handed her the tea and for a few minutes Kara stayed with the warm cup in her hands – just to feel it warming her body a little bit. She knew that she must have lost quite a lot of blood to feel so weak and cold. And she was grateful for someone so attentive like Inei taking care of her.
Kara sipped her tea, carefully examining her capability to move. Since the wound was located on the left side, she needed to know how fast she could get back to her usual self. So while drinking tea she slowly raised her left arm and lowered it, moved it around just a few times, feeling the wound stretch and burn with pain each time. Inei watched, but didn’t force her to stop. Perhaps, he knew it was for the best to keep the blood flowing and the muscles return to their usual form.
