by Max Jager
Moving and elbowing his uncle, Torakus hissed. "If you are screwed then what about the rest of us? Girls included. I mean come on, there is hope. Look at Mama and Father."
Laughing and pulling his gold eyes to him, Kuri shook hi hsead. "You can't use them as a for instance Torakus. According to my father and Uncle Kiyoshi, your father fit right in with everything from the start. He was never your typical demon."
Turning and hissing at Kuri, Torakus crossed his arms. "Oh shut it."
"If you ask me the whole topic is mute anyway. Unless a male or a female has an inherit crazy streak, there is no hope for any of you. Well with the exception of Chiren that is."
Turning to glare at Isamu, Torakus crossed his arms. "Really there Isamu? You claim to be Katana's best friend. So what does that make you?"
Laughing as he rested his arm on the hilt of his sword, Isamu winked. "Demented. Different from crazy."
Crossing his arms again, Katana growled. "You know I could say the same thing about you Isamu."
Laughing, Isamu nodded. "You could, I just thought of it first."
Blinking as he watched them all laugh, with the exception of Katana, Chiren dropped his head as he sighed. "Oh man."
X
With a sigh as he stood back, Shone couldn't help but smile as he watched the next generations of Lords as they laughed and talked with each other. Even with the seriousness of what happened, and what could possibly happen in the future. It was rather refreshing to see, and he was elated that they were all raised together for the most part. It would truly be like Chirio, Kurosai, Torakus and his own father Koraen. Each keeping to themselves, but friendly at the same time and worked together to keep it that way.
And right now, each of them had something they wanted to go after either Noke or Kenji for, with the exception of Kuri. Noke's mother attacked Cho and Yuriko, forcing Isamu to step in and make his first demon kill to defend them. And both he and Isamu knew that Noke was going to cause trouble at some point.
Torakus still wanted to get ahold of him, for what they tried to do with Hoshiko, then what that pack did do with Shian. And he couldn't blame him on that either.
And the finally Katana. He never knew anyone other than Kaoru. But he witnessed firsthand the frustration that Isamu went. And saw the pain that happened with Shian. So he would understand his want to go after him as well.
Chiren, though had the rawest reason to want to go after either Noke or Kenji, or both of them. He just lost a good chunk of his family to one or the other, or both of them. Two of them never even got to get started in life. And yet they still stood and smiled. They were still able to laugh as they cut up with each other. To him, that was a sign that the country was in good hands for a long time to come.
Clearing his throat as he walked up to them, Shone pulled all six sets of eyes to him as he smiled. "It is pleasing to see that you all get along as well as anyone would expect."
Turning together, Chiren and Torakus both gave him a small bow. "It is good to see you again Shone."
Growling, Isamu pulled eyes to him as he glared at the leopard and bird. "Hey I didn't get a greeting like that."
Turning to him, Torakus gave an extra low bow as he smiled and swept his arm out to the side in a rolling motion. "I am ever so sorry great Lord Isamu. Please forgive me for not addressing you in such a many My Lord."
His eyebrow twitching, Isamu gave him an odd look then shook his head as he shivered. "Yeah you smart ass. Don't do that, it was just creepy."
Laughing, Torakus stood up as he sighed. "I meant it to be."
Laughing himself, Shone sighed as he turned to the palace. "Come on then all of you. Let's go in the palace and hopefully catch Kiara before she gets to the hot spring. I want to have a talk with you all so you can leve in the morning." But he didn't get but a few yards when he stopped and blinked as he gave the palace an odd look. "This isn't good."
Blinking at him, Isamu let his head fall to the side. "What isn't good father?"
Keeping his eyes on the door she was coming for, Shone sighed. "Your mother is on her way here, and she is not happy about something." He then joined the others in flinching to see the glare on her face as she stormed out the door and right for them. "Isamu did you do something?"
Shaking his head as he watched his mother in shock, Isamu blinked. He had never seen his mother look that angry about anything! "Nothing. I have no clue what did this."
As she reached them, Yuriko was breathing hard as she pointed back at the palace with a growl. "Shone you need to get in that palace, and do something about YOUR daughter right now. I won't have it."
Blinking, Shone just looked at the palace then back to Yuriko. He was more than a little confused. The only time she used that tone of your was typically when Isamu had done something and then since it was wrong or stupid, he was all his son. "My daughter?"
Nodding Yuriko crossed her arms as she stepped to the side. "That's right YOUR daughter Shone. Yours."
With the anger that she had right now starting to get to him now, Shone reached out for her as he sighed. "What did she do? It couldn't be that bad."
Jerking away from him, Yuriko shook her head side to side as she stomped her foot and pointed again. "Don't you dare even try to calm me down on this one Shone. Now go!"
Looking at his son then back to his mate, Shone sighed as he rubbed his neck. Nothing that Cho had ever done brought this side of Yuriko out. "Alright fine. What am I talking to her about?"
Growling as she took a deep breath, Yuriko never let her eyes leave his. She couldn't believe that her daughter even thought this, let alone asked her like she was going to do let her! "That girl in there has illusions of going with them! She never took to any kind of training at all and she thinks she can still just go with them. No way in hell Shone!"
Crossing his arms as he let out a short sigh, Shone shook his head. "I am not going to take her side on that. She isn't going. She has to know that no matter what she does we aren't letting her go."
Rolling her eyes, Yuriko sighed. "Oh she thinks she really is going with them in the morning. Even telling Kiara when she came in to say hello that she was going with them and she can't wait for her first real mission with her brother and best friend before she left my study for her bedroom."
Understanding now, Isamu sighed as he laughed and walked on toward the palace. "Father can't handle her when she gets this determined Mother. I will go and talk to her."
Growling, Shone crossed his arms. "What exactly do you mean by that son? I can handle your sister just fine."
Looking over his shoulder as he laughed, Isamu shook his head no. "You are way too soft with her even when you are angry Father. She knows with you all she has to do is turn on the tears and those big chocolate eyes and she usually gets her ay with you." He then vanished into the palace.
"That pup." Shone growled as he glared at the door. But he couldn't deny it. He knew he was right. He just couldn't stay mad at his little girl when she did that. But he didn't have to call him out on it right now.
Throwing her hands in the air as she went toward the palace again, Yuriko closed her eyes. "They don't get any of this from me. Not at all. This is all your fault Shone. It comes from your side."
X
Walking in his sister's room, Isamu sighed to find her standing in the middle of it with a glare and crossed arms. She really thought that she was going. "Cho you know you are not….."
Shaking her head, Cho growled. "Don't try to talk me out of it brother. I am going with you all and that is final. Final."
Looking to the side to find Kiara in there with her, Isamu sighed. "Kiara Father wants us all to meet in his study before you go to the hot spring. Alright. Soon as I am done here I will be there."
Seeing what was going to happen here, Kiara nodded as she left the room. "Right."
Turning back to his sister, Isamu glared as he crossed his arms. "Just knock off that tuff act Cho. You are not going and you know that. Why woul
d you ever think that anyone would let you go? Even if Mama and Father said you could, I wouldn't let you go."
Keeping her glare as her brother stopped just a few feet before her, Cho growled as she stomped her foot. She wasn't going to just let it go. She wanted to go with them! "And just why not? I am not a tiny little pup anymore Isamu."
"I can give you two reasons." Isamu gave his sister the same cross look he used to get from his father when he would do something this stupid. "First is because you don't know how to fight at all. You never even learned basic self defense Cho. There is no way you could fight in a battle if it came to it. Second, is that there is no way in hell that you are going to be in a position where Noke can get anywhere near you. Not after what he tried to do twice with you, and don't forget about Hoshiko and Shian."
Dropping her head, Cho moved and sat on the edge of her bed with a sigh. "So what you are saying is that I would just be in the way."
Moving to sit next to her Isamu sighed as he gave her a nod. "That is exactly what I am saying."
With a gasp, Cho jerked her head up, she gave her brother a bright smile and a sharp nod. "I can still go. If there is a fight, I can just stay back out of the way while you deal with it. And if anyone gets hurt I can help take care of them and then….."
Growling loud and make her jump, Isamu wasn't going to fall for any of this like she thought. "Enough Cho. You are not going. There is no way in hell we would leave you far enough back not to get in the fight with that monster out there most likely just waiting for a chance to get his hands on you. Get it the hell out of your head little sister."
Dropping her head, Cho sighed as her eyes half closed. "But I get tired of being left behind on everything that happens outside the walls of the palace. I just want to help for once Isamu."
Reaching over and laying his hand on her head Isamu sighed as he smiled down at his sister. "Don't worry about it so much. Right now with who we are against, the best way for your to help is to stay home so we know you are safe. If you were as good of a fighter as Kiara or Santrix. I might be able to make an argument for you. But you just don't like it and never trained. You aren't the only one either. Mama, Yokiyo, Kisa, Hiroko, Koto. They all know more than you for self defense. But if you want, when all this is said and done, I will train you some."
Her eyes going hopeful, Cho blinked. "If you didn't leave tomorrow. Stay for a couple more days and I train with everyone. Would that be enough?"
"No. You aren't going this time Cho. One day maybe, right now no." Isamu sighed as she dropped her head with sad eyes. He didn't like seeing her like this, but he wasn't going to relent on this either.
Leaning over on his shoulder, Cho sighed as she let her eyes half close. "Fine brother. But as soon as you are back we start training right?"
With a laugh as he stood up, Isamu nodded. "Right. It's a promise. But I need to get to Father's study. And I think you need to find Mama and tell her that you are sorry. She was really angry when she came outside. Okay?"
On her feet and following him out her door, Cho nodded. "I will Right now Mama is with Father and everyone else in his study. I may not be able to go this time, but I still want to know what is going on out there."
Laughing as they headed down the hall, Isamu tussled her hair making her growl. "That I think we can allow you to do Cho."
Rolling her eyes as she crossed her arms, Cho shook her head. "Oh gee thank you so much brother. How thoughtful you are."
"Well I thought I was." Isamu laughed as he dodged her smack. "Come on let's go."
X
Once they were in the study, Cho apologized to her mother, and then the two moved to the side so that they could hear what was going on. Shone now stood with all four heirs there, and Seiji, Kuri, Santrix and Kiara along with them. His eyes focused as they settled on Chiren he took a deep breath. "I want to start this by formally saying that I am sorry for your loss Chiren. I know how it feels to have someone taken from you in a tragic way."
Nodding Chiren took a deep breath. "Thank you Shone."
Keeping his eye son the leopard, Shone crossed his arms. "Katana filled me in on what happened with your sister and her guard not long ago. And you seemed to start this little mission that everyone is on. Fill me in from your point of view."
"Well it all started out simple enough." Crossing his arms, Chiren sighed as his eyes turned serious. "Though my father didn't explain it to me, and Kiyoshi just said that he understood. Sanzo simplified it for me as showing that we all are still close and working together. I was sent to do a crisscross pattern. The South for someone there. The East for Torakus, here for Isamu, then we were going to go back to the North, stay for a few days and then the others leave on their own and go home. However, thinking on the way here, the death of my family changes things a bit I think."
Nodding, Shone crossed his own arms. "How do you think it changes it?"
"Well Kiara could probably explain it better. Seeing as I told her some of it when we stopped last night." Chiren then turned and looked down at Kiara.
With a sigh, Kiara met Shone's eyes. "I spent time running through all the scrolls I have ever read about dragons. Every time something horrible came up, it was always Kenji. Father used to say that Kenji defeating him and forcing him into hiding, taking over and ruling the dragons like his father would have, that Kenji would have it out for him. And we are nearly certain that he had help with that. Or he would have done this to Tikae long ago. Our best guess is the only one vile enough to help him would be Noke."
Nodding, Shone looked down as he sighed. "But something I wanted to talk to you about. The dragons are a force to be reckoned with that is for sure. And only about a quarter of them followed Kenji into hiding. The others had always only ever stayed around there because of Tikae. And when he took over, they were overjoyed. I don't know how Kenji could have gotten the force he needed to even reach Tikae, let alone Toki and the kids."
His eyes going wide then narrowing, Chiren saw flashes of the burning buildings. The few bodies strewn all over. "You know now that you mention it, there were not many bodies around there. Which really changes what the nine of us are going to have to do. Instead of just staying there and then going home on their own. We need to get a few days of good rest in the North, and then go out and see what we can find that would lead us to who did this so we can deal with them."
Thinking for a moment, Shone did like that plan. It would do a double service for anyone who thought about following Noke or Kenji in the path they were doing. That they not only stay in touch, but will work together when something happens to just one. If you mess with one, they all come down on you. "That would be a good idea I think. Showing we not only stay in touch and travel around. But that the lands actively work with each other if something happens to one, we all get involved with it."
Nodding Chiren narrowed his eyes. "Exactly."
Satisfied now that this generation had everything well under control, Shone turned and walked toward the door of the library, Yuriko and Cho following him. "Well I can see that you all have everything under control. Be careful out there, and do keep the rest of us up to date with what happens."
Branching Out Chapter 125
With a glare and a growl, Soichiro paced back and forth in his study. They should have been back by now by any rights. It has been six days since they got the message form him telling them about what happened to Toki and Tikae and everyone else. He should have been back by now! The messenger should have left the East the same time he did. But no he wasn't there yet!
Stopping, he looked out the window toward the West as he let out another annoyed growl. "Where in the hell is he at anyway? He should have been here by now. It takes four days, three if you push it to go from the East to the West. And then 1 day if pushed to get here from the West."
With a sigh, Nyoko watched as her father paced. "But Father don't you remember? The messenger told you that Chiren was probably just then leaving the East cause he was going to
stay there for a couple of days so he and Kiara could get back on track. He will be here in the next day or so."
Turning to pace, Soichiro growled again. "He just needs to get here already damnit."
But then all three of them looked toward the window with wide eyes. He was coming, it was feint, but he was defiantly coming. But he had more with him than he should have had. "He is coming home with three more than he was supposed to get. But I don't know one of them."