***
The emperor watched the ceremony from a balcony, cast in shadows. He motioned to one of his guards. “I want to know everything there is to know about this Akio – and I want to know immediately.” The guard nodded and shuffled off quickly.
Moriyasu continued to watch the scene below, casting his eyes everywhere. He noticed an unbelievably beautiful woman in warrior dress flee the ceremony and took note, sending someone to follow her. He also noticed that the bride was one striking creature herself. It seemed this Akio was a very lucky man.
His eyes narrowed as the ceremony concluded and one of Kuninaka's servants brought in a large tray of foods and ale. Cheering and celebrating was beginning below him, but he felt a well of anger and resentment rising inside of him. The emperor should have the power, not the shogun. He knew it had been this way for a long time and his family had been content to live in the imperial palace with everything they could ever want. Yet, he wanted the power now as well, not just the glory.
With a snarl, he produced his copy of the scroll that made Akio shogun. His signature lay at the bottom of the page from the night before. He snatched a cup of sake from the tray and took a long sip of it, letting the warm liquid flow down his throat.
***
At the monastery, books littered the tables and floor all around the old library. Asas had been pouring through the volumes for a couple of days now. He remembered that he had seen that sword in one of them and was determined to find it.
As he was about to stop for the night, he decided to look through one last tome. He pulled a blue leather-bound book from a shelf and blew the dust away from the cover. Returning to his desk, he carefully turned through the pages, studying the drawings inside the book as he went.
Then, he saw it – the Kurou No Tatsu. The dark dragon.
Right in front of him was the same sword that Baba had brought him a drawing of. The sword was said to possess unknown power that could only be wielded by someone who had taken in the soul of an ancient warrior race. Asas shivered as he read the information. The one who could control the sword would bring about utter destruction throughout the lands at the hands of this ancient warrior.
And this sword belonged to Ratnakar.
Chapter Eleven
The monastery sat just as it always had, perched peacefully on the edge of a large cliff. Birds sang nearby, the breeze caressed the trees, and everything was peaceful – as it should be.
Ratnakar felt a hard pang of remorse as he looked around. However, as soon as he felt it, Tux'els took it away and replaced it with hatred and need. The young man's face twisted and he gave the order to approach. On top of the wall, next to the monastery gate, a sudden movement caught his eye. Damn, there had been a lookout!
Inside the monastery, the bell was sounded. Ratnakar gave the order and his men launched flaming arrows over the walls. He could hear shrieks and screams as they landed. Fire crackled here and there as the arrows hit soft targets that were not made of stone. He hoped that there would not be too much damage by the time that they got inside. He made a sign for others to use a ram on the gates. He knew they weren’t as fortified as they should have been – unless Asas knew that he was coming.
In a break between hits with the ram, there was a loud sound on the other side. It wasn't a crack, like they had snapped the securing logs, but a sound that let him know the gates were opened. Cautiously, he ordered his men to push on the gates. And as they charged inside, several monks ran out to meet them and put up a good fight. Ratnakar was impressed. A few of them he recognized, a few were younger than he was. But, as before, as soon as he felt the slightest hint of compassion, Tux'els replaced it with hatred.
His men stormed through the monastery. Fate, Karma, and Furi moved silently through the shadows, dispatching hidden monks before they had a chance to strike from their defensive positions. Each woman had their own mission that needed completing. Fate was to take on the monks that would be manning the bells and neutralize them before more warnings could be issued—though Ratnakar knew that the town below had already heard the warnings from the monastery and they would have to get ready for blowback. Karma was to head to the infirmary and eliminate anyone there as quickly as possible—save for the doctor and nurses. They were to be held at bay until Fate finished and joined her sister to keep watch over them. Furi was to make her way through the main buildings, driving out, or killing anyone she came across there. Ratnakar was to join up with her as soon as he could do so.
Ratnakar charged through the gates as well, meeting up in combat quickly. A monk lunged at him, anger on his side. His sword swished through the air beside Ratnakar's head as the latter slid out of the way. Ratnakar laughed and struck back at the soft monk, opening up a gash in the man's swordarm, causing both blood and the sword to drop from his fingertips. Impressively, the monk snatched up the weapon with his other hand, threatening to wield it in an awkward manner. As the blood continued to leak from his wound, the monk circled Ratnakar, who held a relaxed defensive stance, smiling all the while.
Finally, Ratnakar grew tired of this short back and forth. He thrust the dark dragon, piercing the other through the heart. A look of surprise and fear came over the monk's face as he dropped down. Ratnakar pulled his sword out, noticing only for a second that the blood on his weapon began to be pulled into the onyx of the blade.
On his knees, maroon blood leaking in waves from his chest, the monk looked up at him. “Why, Ratnakar?” he asked before he fell, face first, into the blood-soaked grass below him.
Ratnakar again felt that pang in his chest, but as soon as it came, Tux'els pushed it out and replaced it with aversion.
Ratnakar pushed forward once more, shoving other monks out of the way. He sliced quickly at one who tried to lunge at him through other battling men, and his sword found the monk's lower belly. Entrails and blood erupted from the wound, causing the man to stop and grasp at his emptying mid-section.
A third monk tried to do the same thing, but protected his stomach as the other had neglected to. Metal hit metal as Ratnakar raised his sword high to block the monk's attack. He quickly punched the monk in the nose to push him away. Regaining his footing, the monk took up a solid stance to have another go at him. But before he could move, a large blade drove through his chest from behind, as one of Ratnakar's men thrust it through his heart. The monk dropped instantly.
Ratnakar turned and looked around to assess the situation. Three of his men were dead, lying in pools of their blood. Yet, he counted at least nine dead monks so far. And the fighting continued. As he watched, another two monks fell with mortal wounds at the hands of his force. He gave the order for the gates to be resecured, and a couple of men rushed to do the job. He couldn't have anyone coming in behind them and undoing everything they had just achieved. From his right side, he felt movement and instinctively leaned backward, forcing his body back, just in time to avoid a spear meant for his neck.
He swept his sword around, catching his opponent right in the waist, slicing through his robes, the tip of the dark dragon slicing clean through to his middle. The monk wrapped his other arm around the wound and continued to come forward. Ratnakar recognized this monk as the one who had followed him into town. The one who had been beaten up at the tavern. Baba Munemitsu.
“Well, well, well,” Ratnakar said, “if isn't my old pal, Baba. How are you, friend?” He feigned an attack with his sword, but Baba didn't flinch.
Instead, the monk lunged forward, taking advantage of the spear’s longer reach to strike at Ratnakar and slice his left arm.
The cut, while mainly superficial, absolutely pissed Ratnakar off to his very core. He let out a haunting scream that caused several battles to pause and look in their direction. Rage was instantly everywhere in his body and he shove his blade at the other man, catching him in the left hand, severing two fingers. The monk howled in pain, yet he screwed an angry face on and came at Ratnakar again. Weapons met repeatedl
y as the two were locked in battle. However, Ratnakar could see that the other was weakening; his blood-stained robes were growing heavier with the blood from his injuries.
“Just give up,” Ratnakar told him. “Just die. Do yourself a favor and give yourself mercy, fall on the tip of your spear.”
The other's answer was to jump on Ratnakar. Even though Ratnakar moved out of the way, Baba’s sudden assault caught his shirt, slicing it open and ripping another part of it. His chest exposed, the jagged, black scar that the dark dragon had left on his body was in the open for all to see. Angry and whelped up, puckering the skin around it with a black bile that was starting to spread to the skin close by.
As Baba was caught off guard at the sight of the scar, Ratnakar made his move. He brought his blade down at an angle and struck the monk in the shoulder, slicing through bone and muscle, severing all ties to his right arm and his weapon. Baba dropped on all fours, the dark dragon wedged deep in his upper body. Ratnakar could feel the man's life draining into the sword and dared not pull it out yet.
“You will pay for all you have done,” Baba whispered.
“Not today,” Ratnakar replied, placing his foot on the man's chest. He pushed with his heel, pulling his sword out. The monk fell backward, dead, on the grass.
Then, he was standing in the center courtyard, remembering his time here. For an instant, he considered what the monk had said and knew that there would come a time when he would pay for everything he had done and was doing. A time when his bad karma would catch up with him. A small commotion knocked him from his thoughts and caused him to turn. “Is this the one you wanted, sir?” a younger member of his group asked. Behind him, three of his men were dragging up a monk, his cowl hanging down over his face. He had clearly been knocked out.
Ratnakar went up to the unconscious man and lifted the hood. The face underneath was Asas, his old teacher and mentor. “Yes,” he said. “This is him.” He let go of the cowl. “Take him there.” He pointed to a nearby building. “To the infirmary. And be careful! He is valuable. Make sure he is laid carefully in a bed and let me know as soon as he awakens.” The men did as they were told and Ratnakar watched until they disappeared inside the building.
Furi was at his side before he even realized she'd been standing there. Her hands on her slender hips, she looked around. “This is a good place,” she said. “Small, but large enough for our group – and more.” She turned a bit, taking everything in. “The girls did a good job when they found this place.”
He wanted to say something about this being wrong, that taking over a monastery was not something he had wanted to do. But Tux'els stopped him from saying anything but “Yes.”
Furi turned to look at him. “Are you having trouble, Ratnakar?” She narrowed her eyes slightly.
“I...” His mind went blank for a second. “No. I am fine,” he said. “And, yes, this is the perfect place. Much better than that farm house. Everyone will have room to train, to sleep, and live here. Plus…” He pointed to the gates which were closed again. “It won't take long to fortify everything here.”
She smiled and nodded her approval. “I completely agree.”
The sun was setting over the cliff behind them. He looked at her and then looked around again. There were bodies of monks everywhere. He hollered at a few of his men to build a burn pile and dispose of the monks’ bodies as soon as possible. While he could not express his remorse at the killing of these individuals who used to be his friends, who had taken him in and cared for him, he could at the least give them peace. Furi studied his face, obviously noting the internal conflict deep in Ratnakar.
“I am going to look through the place,” he told her without turning. “I need to check what...” He walked off, not finishing his sentence, and she let him go. He was no good to her right now anyway; no good to make any type of decisions. She knew that Tux'els would have him back in line before the morning. She turned her attention to the men piling the corpses up in the courtyard.
Ratnakar made his way through the buildings, unsure exactly of where he was headed. Eventually, he wound up in the ancient library. As he opened the doors, he found books everywhere. At first, he thought that maybe his men had ransacked the place – and began to get angry because he had ordered them not to touch anything. But then, he realized that this was done before they even arrived. Someone had been rummaging through the shelves, looking for something.
He approached the large desk and the lone book that occupied the middle of it. The pages were open to the drawing of a sword.
His sword. The Kurou No Tatsu.
Why was his sword here in this ancient book? He sat down at the desk and began to read through the text. As he did, he felt the war inside his mind with his own thoughts and Tux'els intensify. Tux'els continually told him that this book was wrong, the information was false – that it was written by a Eza, one who wanted to ensure that others were tainted by deceitful words. But, deep inside, Ratnakar started doubting Tux'els. The pages told of a major destruction that was to come with the wielder of this particular sword.
It was foretold that the one who could finally control the dark dragon would unleash hell upon Earth. That he would bring the country to its knees. He would be the one to rule everyone and everything. Tux'els smiled inside as Ratnakar read this.
However, after he turned the last page dealing with the dark dragon, Ratnakar—still battling with his mixed emotions—came upon the drawing of another sword. This weapon was similar to his, but shaped slightly different. It bore the same type of symbols all over it. Ratnakar began to read about it, the Hi No Tamashi, the fire soul. It was the only thing that could defeat him and the dark dragon. Not wasting any opportunity, Tux'els planted a massive burn of hatred inside Ratnakar at the sight of the drawing and its name. He told Ratnakar that he must destroy the man who wielded it and then destroy the sword itself. Ratnakar wanted to continue to read and learn more about the fire soul, but Tux'els willed him to close the book.
Ratnakar could not resist the urge; however, he was able to oppose Tux'els' insistence about throwing the book into a fire. He told the being inside him no, that he would not let it go up in flames. There could be valuable information in there and he needed to continue perusing it. Tux'els was silent for a moment before he finally agreed there might be value to keeping the book.
As Ratnakar was arguing with himself, Furi and the other two girls found his hiding spot.
“We have dinner,” Fate said as they entered the room.
“Your favorite,” Karma said, laying out a platter on the desk in front of him. Furi watched from the doorway as the other two brought in his food.
He looked at the meal and poked a rice ball with a chopstick then looked up at Furi. “Girls,” he said, “I need you to leave Furi and I alone for a bit. I need to speak with her.”
The girls bowed and left the room quickly, closing the door behind them. Furi smiled and moved toward the desk. He sat there, watching her as she looked around the room. “Did you do all of this?” she asked.
“No,” he said, never taking his eyes off of her. “It was like this when I found it.” She ran a finger along the book shelves as she sauntered past. Finally, she came closer to the desk. “Here,” he said, “take a look at this.” He opened the book to the pages about the dark dragon and pushed it across the desk to her. She stopped walking and came over to take a look. He could see her eyes scanning the paragraphs, reading through the words. She turned the page and read through the other two. When she was done, she looked up.
“You don't believe any of this, do you?” she asked.
“I don't know what to believe,” he spat before Tux'els could shut him off. He fought the other being for a moment and said, “Turn the page, check the other sword.” Furi did as he suggested and her eyes widened as she saw the fire soul. She glanced up at him with surprise in her face and then looked back down again to continue reading.
“The fire
soul,” she whispered. “It seems to come with the same powers that the dark dragon provides.”
“Yes,” Ratnakar said. “It is the one thing that can stop all this, that can stop me.”
She sat on the desk and leaned over toward him. “Well, don't worry about it right now. Tonight, let's enjoy the spoils of our triumph.” Seductively, she reached up and began to unbutton the top few buttons of her shirt, exposing her ample breasts as they lay smashed against the desk. She pulled him closer, kissing him deeply. That was all it took to get his attention away from the book and the swords.
But as they began to make love on the large desk, a tiny hint of doubt crept in Furi’s mind. She couldn't help but think about the book that lay under her back. What if it was correct? Had she been on the wrong side all of these years?
Their lovemaking reached its height and her head was still on the mystical swords, their power and their destiny to meet. As Ratnakar finished and she held him tight to her chest, he breathed the words, “I love you.”
***
Akio hated leaving Seki behind. She cried as she watched his horse move out of the compound. Her father had wished him good luck and sent one hundred more soldiers with him. He also informed Akio that he'd sent scouts ahead to find out where this group had set up shop. Akio assured Seki that he would be back in a couple of weeks and that they would travel home to his city, together.
As they rode out of town, Akio realized that Kiso had not said a single word to him since they had met up that morning. “I did not see you at the celebration last night,” he said as he pulled his horse up next to hers.
She grunted. “I was there.”
Her demeanor wasn't the normal Kiso he was used to and it bothered him. “Are you angry with me?” he asked.
Samurai 2.0 - Destiny: A Harem Fantasy Adventure Page 15