Jay and Nami’s Wedding
The invitation came finally, and Gon looked upon a scroll with the words wedding on it. He opened it up and his name with the daughters were listed and also that he was the best man. He told his children about it, and they would travel in seventeen days. They had never been on a holiday, and the girls had never been outside the land or even far from the kingdom. His daughters were very excited to go with their father to see Jay again after so many years. Gon and the girls left for the kingdom and would buy clothes and supplies for the trip, and they picked up a nice gift for the couple.
Gon put Wame in charge of the school once more and took the carriage from one of the small sheds and made it ready for the trip. He had bought a horse and it was an older war horse set for retirement. The girls had packed all their things and had gotten in the wagon. The weather was a little windy and dark clouds covered the land. They headed off, and Gon had told the girls about his travels with Jay and their mom but also about the danger on the trips. He had prepared for bandits, but it had been quiet in the land for a long time and it should be safe. They rode a whole day, set up camp as the rain started to lightly sprinkle down. The next day was better, and they rode another day. They came to a village and stayed for a night. They had some time before the wedding, and since the girls had never been outside the kingdom, Gon wanted them to experience some things on the way to the Domoro Land. They rode in the morning again, and finally came to the border between the land next to the kingdom of Ocenia and the Grasoll land.
Both Sophia and Isabel were exited and Gon had promised them to go to the ocean which they had never seen. They passed the mine that Gon got his wife diamond from so many years ago and it looked like it was not as busy anymore. ‘Perhaps the minerals had dried out,’ he said to the daughters. They finally came to the place where rocks were pointing up from the land, and they could see the ocean from far away and the girls were eager to get there. When, finally there, they ran down to the beach that Gon remembered Jay was talking about so many years ago and looked for the town that was supposed to be close by. He saw it and parked the carriage next to some others and walked down to the beach. There were many families and the girls had tried the water even if they in the beginning were apprehensive about going further than just getting their feet wet. They soon forgot to be afraid and started to swim around.
Gon hadn’t seen the ocean for many years either and jumped in as well. They played for a while until Gon said they would have to go to the town of Nara to find accommodation. ‘We can come back any day since we will stay for a while,’ he said and soon reached the town. They entered Nara and found the place that they would spend a few nights at. They went out for dinner, and Gon tried to find the shop that Jay went to which he soon saw. The food, indeed, was good and different from the Grasoll land’s usual food. He had not cooked for some time but he could tell immediately what ingredients had been used. The next couple of days were spent in the town and at the beach. Gon found it very relaxing for him to lie in the sand and look at the clouds. There was a small animal exhibition for the town’s children and his daughters wanted to go to see the strange animals from the different parts of the land.
The girls were taken care of by some of the people working there who took around a lot of children to see the animals; Gon took the opportunity to try the bath house and recognised the man on the poster who was the owner. He tried the baths and also talked to the owner who happened to spot him. He told him he saw him fight in the big tournament, and Gon had fought in the same group as his friend that was beaten in the second round by another fighter. They talked and the man said the tournament was changing next year to only have the big three competitions with three times the prize money as when Gon fought. He also said anyone of the previous champions would be welcome and most likely Gon would have a letter within the next month inviting him to take part.
It was nice sitting in the bath, but also Gon felt it was a little embarrassing that both women and men shared the baths. He was happy only he and the owner were in the water, but soon, three young women joined in. Gon felt himself pulling in his stomach a little and told the owner he should leave. Gon was relieved to have the bath house behind him and thought about the tournament they spoke about. He didn’t know if he would be able to fight with the children and the school to take care of. He hadn’t been in the great city of Shetana ever since they left all those years ago except for the time he had went to his friend’s, Pan’s funeral. He didn’t have to enter the city since the funeral was held outside of the city. He didn’t stay long because he had to get back quickly to run the restaurant. He didn’t know if it would be a safe place anymore but last time, it looked a little bad even from a distance.
They had dinner at new places every day and the children told him all about the animals they saw. They were leaving the next day so they must go to bed early and everything was already packed. They left in the morning after breakfast and began to ride towards the mountain. They decided to go around the Shamo desert to be safe and arrived a couple of days later at the mountain. It was a brief stop at the temple for them and then straight course through the mountain. They met many travellers and other kids for the girls to play with. They slept under the stars, and the camp had many fires with happy people around them. They came out, and they could see the road down to the land of Domoro where there was a nice waterfall coming behind some of the rocks. They stopped at the first village, and the whole village had canals that went between every house. They stayed at one of the houses for two nights before continuing towards the kingdom.
The girls made friends in every town or village they stayed in, and Gon talked to the residents about the land. Some people knew Jay and had met him many times throughout the years. It was a while before they reached the kingdom and the family stopped again the next day for the evening to make camp. The daughters talked about what they would do when they reached the kingdom and how much food they would eat, while Gon set the tent up. The darkness would soon come, and since they were close to a small forest, he asked if they wanted to go with him. Sophia said she would prepare the food and would stay so the other two left for wood. They walked around and Isabel helped with any small sticks.
They talked as they walked back, but Gon noticed something was off and looked around as he walked. He saw the rocks that were high and some lone trees scattered around but nothing out of the ordinary. He felt it in his body that something was different and walked a little faster to the camp. He came to the camp, and Sophia was sitting still fixated on one of the rocks. He asked what was wrong and as he did, he could hear from behind how footsteps came closer fast. He turned around and there were four people with arrows pointing at them with one of the men coming closer. He demanded all their money right away if they wished to live. Isabel started to cry, and the man told her to stop but when she didn’t he walked closer. He was about to smack her when Gon pulled her away from him, and the man instead tried to slap Gon but his hand got grabbed. The archers aimed at Sophia, and Gon would have to let the man go. He struck Gon but his hand hurt after so the men laughed at him. They started to go through the wagon and found some money as well as the gift for Jay and Nami.
The girls looked at the evil men and one of them looked at Sophia. She turned her head away and hid close to her dad’s chest. Gon kept calm and knew he must do so for the men not to hurt his family. He felt his anger grow immensely throughout the whole time and held his children behind him. The men finally stopped and told Gon to give them whatever he had in the pocket. He reached for the bag on his belt then threw it on the ground close to the man. They were about to leave when one of the men spoke to the others. They all laughed, and the man said he wanted Sophia to come with him. Gon felt the adrenaline rise and said no to the bandit. The men laughed and one of the other men said he would kill Isabel if he tried to stop the man from taking her. He said to Gon to not worry because they would return her after they had had some fun. Gon thought to h
imself that he could possibly take them if he was lucky and they might just shoot him making his daughter escape.
Sophia saw his reaction and knew what he planned to do so she told her father that it was lucky they stopped in the kingdom to get supplies before they left. Gon looked at her as she tapped her side pocket that made a noise. Gon understood what she meant and stared her in the eyes. He shook his head, but she told him they didn’t really have much choice here, he told her no, but the men tired of the whispering said once more they would kill Isabel and then take Sophia anyway.
Gon had many thoughts but also realised time was short then. He was forced to make a terribly hard decision and reluctantly let her go forward to the bandit’s enjoyment. They cheered loud and told Sophia she would become a woman on this day. Sophia made a face of disgust but continued slowly towards one of the bandits that was making the most sound. One of the other men were not happy she didn’t come to him first and grabbed her arm to pull her closer. He told her he was going to have her first and slapped her on her bum to then laugh. Gon was having much difficulty with what he saw but had to keep calm for his daughters’ sake. The bandit holding Sophia put his hands on her shoulder and said she should not be afraid because they would be nice to her. The others laughed a little, and then the man slapped her on her bum again. The men were then all having their eyes set upon Sophia and let their guards down a little.
Sophia smiled when she looked at the man that slapped her on the bum in his eyes. Without anyone having time to react, she brought up a small knife from her pocket and stuck it in the side of his throat. He screamed, and she quickly moved his body in front of herself with a grip her father had taught her. She then began to walk towards her father still holding the knife in. The other men were a little shocked and screamed for her to let him go. Gon was quickly close upon with Isabel and took the man from her then held him in the back of the neck. The girls hid behind their father and the men said to him to let the man go. Gon had no intention to do anything they said and told them to let the weapons go then walk back.
Gon felt the blood running down fast and knew the man would soon pass out of blood loss so they needed to hurry. When they still hadn’t placed their weapons on the ground, he struck the man so hard in the back that his spine detached and he made a squeaking sound. The men finally laid down their weapons and walked back. They stood still looking at the man then hardly making much noise other than mumbling. Gon had to hold for the hole where the blood came out to keep the man awake for a little while longer. He then told them to throw back their things and the men did.
After Gon had taken back the things and the money, he told them to leave and come back for their friend outside the castle because he was coming with them as collateral. The girls were hiding in the carriage and listened to what was happening, and Isabel slid another small knife to Sophia she found next to her. Her sister was very skilled with knives Isabel knew and Sophia then went in position in case of trouble. The men were wanted and didn’t want any trouble from the castle so they grabbed their weapons again and pointed at Gon. They told the man Gon was holding that he should never have let himself be captured. The man with the broken back suddenly got an arrow in the chest and the men said they would not go to the castle because they would be hanged. They said they would now kill Gon and take both the girls from him.
These words did not go well in the ears of the very protective father who lifted the then dead man and held him up as a shield. He rushed the men that spread out and fired arrows. They either hit the man or missed completely. Gon knew he must do something drastic to get a hold of one of them and got a chance when a knife suddenly hit one of the men in the cheek. This made Gon concentrate on the other man and rushed him quickly. He pulled the man against him and unleashed a powerful strike over the face that made him unconscious. Gon got an arrow in the back but with the adrenaline pumping and anger that filled his body he was numb to pain. He saw the injured man run off after pulling out the knife from his cheek and then Gon had only one more man to deal with.
Gon said calmly that before one minute was up the man would be dead. The man who started the trouble with wanting to have Sophia aimed his weapon towards the head of Gon and said if he hit right, he would kill him. Gon said the man lost the minute he decided to attack them and asked the man to lay down the weapon and pray for forgiveness before it was too late. The man fired the arrow that went straight to the head but Gon grabbed it in the air like nothing and broke it between his fingers. The man fired again quickly while Gon grabbed it and did the same again. The bandit tried to run away, but Gon was fast and grabbed him behind the neck. He screamed but was silenced by Gon’s enormous hand. He got dragged back to the girls and Gon told Isabel to hide and cover her ears. He asked for Sophia to come up and asked her what she wanted to do with the last of them that wanted to hurt her. She said she would like a chance to fight him. Not really expecting that answer, he was a little surprised.
Gon smiled and put the man down but made sure to remove anything he had that could be used as a weapon. The man looked confused and thought it must be a trick but Gon said he would let him live if he could beat his daughter in a fair fight. The man would take any opportunity to get free and stood ready. Gon repeated with a more serious voice that it must be fair otherwise he would remove his head with his spine still attached to it. The bandit swallowed and was feeling himself becoming cold in his body. The fight began and the man tried to strike punches and kicks, but Sophia was fast and could avoid them easily. She tested him, and when she had enough information about his way of fighting, she went in for a strike of her leg. It hit him in the head, and she continued to kick him in the stomach. He looked surprised and launched at her but she kicked him in the head fast.
When he came up from falling, he tried to punch but she moved away. He moved forward and tried to grab her from behind, but she disarmed him easily and flipped him on the ground then elbowed him in the chest. She then unleashed a row of punches on his body that were fast and many. He lost the air in his lungs and struggled to come up. He blocks one of her kicks but he did not react fast enough to block the next that came soon after that hit him over the knee. She swung her whole body and made him fall hard after her foot hit hard over the face. He tried to move, but the pain was then too great with blood coming out from his mouth.
He heard Gon say if he couldn’t get up, he would die with his face in the ground. The bandit tried again to come up and manage to get to his feet, but when he was up, Sophia ran towards him. He hit the ground once more after she kicked him hard in the chest. He could not stand anymore and he was breathing with difficulty after a rib could be heard snapping. Gon said the fight was over and gave a kiss on the forehead to Sophia. He told her to get ready and help her sister with the wagon. Gon checked the other unconscious man, but he was still out. He looked behind the big rock, and he found the horses that the men had with them. One of them was gone, and since one of the bandits ran away, he brought the horses and put the unconscious man over one of the horses then tied him to the horse.
They left and Sophia asked what they should do with the man she fought. Gon said they would leave him and said to her to make her sister look somewhere else. Sophia did by pointing to one of the birds in the sky while Gon brought out another knife. He threw it towards the man that had rolled over on his back and looking up with raised neck. His head fell quick as the knife hit him on the forehead and he died on the ground. They travelled further, and when Sophia sat next to him again he told her how proud he was of her. She smiled and she leaned towards her father’s shoulder. They finally reached the kingdom and were met by the guards that knew they were coming. Gon told them what happened, and they took the man in for questioning.
Jay met them and heard about the meeting with the bandits. He immediately ordered the guards to find the missing man and bring him to the castle. They were taken to the castle and a personal room for their stay there. The girls got each a bed next to their
father and the room was situated in the higher part of the castle. An incredible view waited for them outside the window that was facing the land. Jay came to the room later and picked them up for a tour of the castle after they had settled down. He had Nami with him who apologised for what happened and said it was rare there were bandits in the land. They walked around, and in the garden, they stopped for snacks that seemed to always be around.
Gon saw two people he recognised and they him because they had met before in the great city of Shetana. Yanburu and Dorin had arrived a week early to spend time with Jay to talk about memories. Jay had spent one night drinking with the two men and had spoken about everything they had done since they last saw each other. Dorin had opened his own bar that was working together with Yanburu’s Judobo bar. Gon only met the two men a few times, but knew they were honest people in the city then full of corruption. The rest of the day was spent walking around the castle and getting to know it. When they came back to the room, they were all tired and went to bed. Isabel fell asleep right away but Sophia had trouble sleeping and woke him. She felt a little scared about what happened with men earlier and couldn’t stop thinking about it.
Gon knew it would be hard on such a young girl and leaned in and gave her a strong hug. He said he would try to always be there for her but that in the world they were living in had a lot of bad people and she must be strong. She said she would train harder and never let anyone push her in a situation like that again. Gon could see a tear fall from her eye and felt his own heart hurt. He was strong and powerful but would break easily to his own daughter’s fear. The next day was the day before the wedding and Jay would be busy all day for the planning, but he met them for breakfast. He said the soldiers would like to see Gon as they had heard about the great martial artist from the war.
World of Taroo Page 40