World's Edge

by Ryan Kirk

  Ryuu watched in mute horror as he tried to flex his left wrist and hand, all to no avail. The pain in his arm was intense, a fire burning, centered in his arm. But the physical pain was dwarfed by his mental anguish. If he couldn’t fight, if he wasn’t a nightblade, what else was there for him? It had been all he had known since he had been five and Shigeru had rescued him.

  The crowd had dispersed. They had been entertained by the fight, but now that their champion had demonstrated his superiority, there was little left to interest them. Ryuu didn’t understand. Couldn’t they see they had destroyed him? How could they walk away as if nothing had happened? His rage swallowed his despair whole.

  Tenchi came near and Ryuu looked up at him with hatred. Tenchi was the man responsible. He may not have swung the sword, but he had given the command. Ryuu looked at Tenchi and saw nothing but a slight mirth, inflaming his rage all the more. He could barely control himself. “Look what you’ve done to me! I’ll never swing a sword again!” The words came out in an angry whisper.

  Tenchi’s look changed from humored to surprised. “I’m sorry, Ryuu, I’d forgotten that you didn’t grow up on this island. Some days it seems like you’ve been here forever.” He motioned to another blade to approach. Ryuu glanced at the young man. He seemed no different than anyone else, and he wondered what Tenchi was hiding from him.

  “Ryuu, give him your arm.”

  Despite his anger, Tenchi’s calm voice and command wrung obedience out of him. Without question he raised his arm to show it to the young blade. The man frowned and glanced at Tenchi. “It’s a bad break. Should we give him some drugs?”

  Tenchi looked at Ryuu. “This young man is going to heal your arm. If you like, I can have a liquid prepared which will help numb the pain. The healing process is quite intense. I might recommend it to you.”

  Ryuu glared at Tenchi. “I’ll be fine.”

  Tenchi shrugged his shoulders. The mirth had returned to his eyes. “It’s your decision. But don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

  Ryuu was distracted by his anger at Tenchi, and he didn’t even feel the warmth spreading through his arm right away. The young man was brushing Ryuu’s arm rapidly, barely touching it with his right hand. Ryuu couldn’t understand what he was feeling. His arm was warm, and with a sudden motion, the young man jerked on Ryuu’s arm in a precise motion. Ryuu could feel the bones snapping back into place and he screamed out in surprise. Tears streamed down his face as he fought to control his reaction. The young man clasped Ryuu’s arm with an unbreakable grip, sending spikes of pain up and down Ryuu’s spine. But as he grasped, Ryuu could feel something happening, something he couldn’t understand. The warmth permeated his arm again, mixing blinding pain with surprising serenity.

  Ryuu tried to keep his focus. Everything became a blur as his sense became internal. What he experienced was indescribable. He could sense his arm coming back together as though nothing had happened, as though time was somehow being turned backwards. Ryuu could feel the young man grasping his arm, and he could tell it was the will of the young man creating the change in his arm. And then his sense got tangled up in the young man’s will, and Ryuu felt his entire body fill with the lightness of the sun. He felt at peace for the first time since Shigeru had died. He didn’t even realize how distraught he’d been.

  Ryuu drifted further and further, the tendrils of his sense filling with light and order. He understood. He was locked in the will of the young man grasping his arm. Dayblade. The word came unbidden to his mind, but he knew what he was experiencing. Ryuu had known about them, met plenty of them around the island, but he hadn’t placed any stock in their abilities. Ryuu understood the young man’s focus, but at the same time he was lost. Everything became an unbearable brightness and his world went white.

  When Ryuu came to, he knew days had passed. He also knew he wasn’t alone. He sat up and realized with a start that his arm didn’t hurt at all. It moved through its full range of motion without a problem. It was as good as it had ever been. He looked down at his arm in astonishment. He could have sworn it had been broken. Had he dreamed the entire event?

  Tenchi was there, looking over him with an air of concern. Ryuu wondered for a moment about the government of the island. Tenchi was the head of all blades, but he rarely had much to do. Ryuu had expected that the head of the island would be much busier.

  Tenchi glanced at him. “I believe I owe you an apology. Please, there is some fresh water on the table beside you. Drink slowly.”

  Ryuu didn’t need to be told twice. He sipped at the water, resisting the strong urge to gulp it all down at once.

  “How long have I been out?”

  “A little over a day.”

  Ryuu nodded. Not as bad as he had expected.

  “He was a dayblade, wasn’t he?”

  “Yes. I apologize. I forget that in the Three Kingdoms there are no dayblades. You thought your injury more debilitating than we do here. It is my oversight. I forget not everyone has grown up knowing the truth of what we are capable of.”

  Ryuu nodded. He understood now why people hadn’t seemed to care when his arm was broken.

  “Do you know how he did it? He told me you turned your senses onto him. You should know, it made his job much harder.”

  Ryuu shook his head. “It was as though he was bringing order back to my body. I don’t know how else to explain it.”

  “You’re not that far off. You’re familiar with the lines of force that run through the world?”

  Tenchi’s tone indicated he believed it to be a rhetorical question. He was surprised when Ryuu shook his head no.

  Tenchi sighed. “For one so talented, it’s surprising how little you know. It’s not your fault. Shigeru left before he could tie the pieces of his training together.”

  Ryuu held his tongue. The only reason Shigeru had to leave was because he had been hung from a cross to die, an order Tenchi had given.

  “Let’s start with a basic question. What is the sense?”

  “It’s a heightened state of awareness. It’s the ability to gather more information from the world than anyone else can.”

  “Yes, but how does it work?”

  Ryuu started to speak and then closed his mouth. He realized he didn’t know.

  Tenchi shook his head in disbelief. “All that power, and you really have no idea what it is? It’s amazing that you’ve lived as long as you have.”

  Ryuu ignored the well-meaning sarcasm as Tenchi launched into his explanation.

  “The world is filled with energy, the energy of all living things. You possess the energy, ants possess the energy, the trees possess the energy. This I’m sure you know. You’re right in saying the sense is a heightened state of awareness. What we call the sense is in fact two different abilities coming together. First, it’s a full and complete understanding of the world around you. It’s the five senses all humans possess developed much further than usual. There is some debate on the topic, but I personally believe that anyone, with proper training and dedication, can achieve this aspect of the sense. I don’t think it’s limited to those who are considered sense-gifted.”

  Tenchi checked to see if Ryuu was still following. He was, with rapt attention. He felt like he was finally starting to get to the heart of the secrets he had come all the way to the island for.

  “The second ability, and the one that truly defines us, is the ability to sense this energy in all living things. It’s a sixth sense of a sort, but it allows us to know where someone is even when we can’t see them. There are those who believe it is also accessible to everyone, it just takes extreme amounts of training. I’m open to the idea, though I’ve never seen anyone develop the sense without an inborn aptitude.”

  “Put these two abilities together, and you have the sense. It allows nightblades to know where their opponent is going to strike a moment before it happens and it allows dayblades to mend broken bones.”

  Ryuu was confused. “How is that possible? T
hose seem like two very different activities.”

  Tenchi nodded. “They are, but not by as much as you might think. The energy in the earth is collected and funneled. For right now I’ll ask you to trust me on this. Understand there exist what we call lines of force, the channels through which energy seems to pass across the planet.”

  Ryuu didn’t believe Tenchi, but he let him continue.

  “Just as these lines pass through the Earth, they also pass through you. When a bone is broken, the lines are interrupted, broken. Dayblades have the ability to bring these lines of energy running through your body back into order. What this means in practice is that bones heal in moments instead of moons.”

  “That seems unbelievable.”

  “Perhaps, but you’ve experienced your own bone healing. How can you doubt what you’ve lived through? But maybe a demonstration is in order. There is a way to demonstrate the lines of force concept. Given your stunt when you were healed, I think we could do it together. Perhaps it will allow you to believe the same exists in your body. Is there anyone back in the Three Kingdoms you would like to sense?”

  Ryuu’s mind jumped to Moriko. He missed her every day. “There is.”

  “Good, then come over here. Can you duplicate what you did with the dayblade?”

  Ryuu dug through his memories and nodded. Tenchi asked him to stand behind him and put his hand on Tenchi’s shoulder. Tenchi reached down and put his hand against the ground. He looked up at Ryuu. “We do this together. I’ll show you the way, but you need to find the person.”

  Ryuu didn’t even have time to nod. He had focused his sense on Tenchi, and as soon as they were connected Ryuu felt his sense torn away. It spread out and out, and Ryuu could feel the earth pulsing beneath him. There was a sense of tremendous speed, of tremendous distance covered. Ryuu shook off his shock to keep himself linked with Tenchi. He searched for Moriko, knowing how she would feel. It was as though he was looking for a drop of water in a sea of energy, but something in his will did the work for him. He got closer and closer until he sensed her. She was in a strange, barren land, angry and hungry but not alone.

  It was just a moment, but Ryuu knew everything. He knew she had been wandering south trying to find the Azarians. She had seen battle and had found them, tens of thousands of them at least. She was surrounded by them, a rabbit surrounded by wolves. But she was alive, and as near as he could tell, physically fine.

  And just like that the distance receded underneath him, and he was back in a hut, sweating over Tenchi, trying not to throw up from the disorientation.

  Tenchi looked at him with his quiet humor. “I didn’t know there was another nightblade out there as well. So much has been happening I haven’t been paying attention to. How long have you known her?”

  “Two cycles. She was Orochi’s disciple.”

  Tenchi stroked his chin thoughtfully. “Now, that is interesting.”

  He seemed to shake off his train of thought and turned to Ryuu. “I hope the concept has been validated.”

  Ryuu was stunned. He thought he could pull off the same feat now that he had done it with Tenchi, but he would wait until Tenchi was gone. Ryuu still didn’t fully trust the nightblades and didn’t want to show off all his abilities, even the new ones. Pieces settled into place, raising even more questions for Ryuu.

  “If you could do this, why didn’t you find Shigeru?”

  Tenchi glanced at him. “Who says I didn’t find Shigeru? I was the one who made the decision to leave him alone. After he escaped from the island he had nothing, and his life was meaningless. It was the best punishment that could have happened. Although, I admit to forgetting about him after a time. He kept our secrets well. If I had known about you, we might have come after him.”

  Tenchi stood up. “From now on, I’ll train you directly, as often as possible.” The leader of the island seemed to have something else on his mind. Had he sensed something Ryuu had missed? He walked out of the hut. “Get your rest. You’re going to need it.”

  Ryuu agreed, lost in his own thoughts. Moriko was in the heart of the Azarian camp. He wondered what she was up to, a world away.

  As Tenchi left, Ryuu felt another presence at the door of his hut. He groaned. It was Shika, calling for him at a late hour. He didn't want to see her, not now. If he met with her, he wanted it to be when he was fresh and ready to deal with politics.

  There was a three-way conversation outside his door. Tenchi, Shika, and Rei were trying to have a quiet argument. Tenchi was telling Shika that Ryuu was exhausted, and it wasn't a good time for visitors. Shika was insisting she'd only be a moment.

  Their bickering made Ryuu sick. There had to be a better way to spend their time. He struggled to his feet and to the door. His appearance silenced the argument.

  "It's okay, Tenchi. She can come in. If she causes me too much trouble, I'll just have Rei kick her out for me."

  Tenchi didn't look so certain, but conceded defeat.

  Ryuu gestured Shika in.

  "So, to what do I owe the pleasure?"

  Shika looked torn, and Ryuu was surprised. He had only met her at the supper, but there she had been a dynamic and forceful presence. He had expected the same here.

  "There's a few reasons. First, I wanted to see how your healing had gone. Rumor has it you interfered with the dayblade's efforts."

  Ryuu smiled gently. "Apparently I did." He flexed his left hand. There was some residual soreness, but everything was working well. He was still amazed at the healing.

  "There aren’t many nightblades who could do that."

  Ryuu shrugged his shoulders. "It wasn't something I meant to do. I'm still not quite sure how it happened, but Tenchi seems to have a more clear idea."

  Shika nodded. "He and I may disagree, but there isn't any doubt he's got more knowledge and wisdom about our skills than anyone else alive. You are fortunate to train with him."

  Ryuu heard the respect in Shika's voice. "Shika, if I may, why do you disagree with Tenchi if you think so highly of him?"

  She sighed. "It's sometimes hard to explain, and I regret the trouble it's caused on the island. If you asked me logically, should nightblades stay on the island or return to the Three Kingdoms, I wouldn't know which way to answer. Up until this cycle, the Three Kingdoms have gotten on well enough without us. I can't explain why I feel so passionate, but I am. It's time for the nightblades to return home. I've felt it now for a while, this desire getting stronger every cycle. And now you're here, and I can't even think straight, I want to return to the Three Kingdoms so badly. And I'm not the only one. There are others too, lots of us."

  Ryuu was polite enough to shut his open mouth. It wasn't the explanation he'd expected, not even close.

  Shika's outburst had put her in a thoughtful mood, and she didn't speak for some time. Ryuu shifted uncomfortably, not sure what to say to her.

  She looked up at him. "I'm sorry, I didn't come here to talk politics with you. That can wait until you're in better health. Do you mind if I ask Rei to come in here?"

  He shook his head. "If you can get her to come in, but she's pretty vigilant about that door."

  Shika smiled, as though she had a secret Ryuu didn’t understand. She poked her head out the door and said a few words to Rei. In a moment both women were inside the hut. Ryuu realized he was alone with two beautiful, strong women. He started thinking of Moriko.

  Shika's voice was low. "Ryuu, I want you to be careful."

  Ryuu smiled. "There's no need for the dramatics. It's just a broken arm, and now I know it can be healed."

  Rei shook her head. "That’s not what she's talking about, Ryuu." She turned to Shika. "What's happened?"

  "He's had men on the ships lately. Two or three every time."

  Rei lost her smile, and Ryuu knew he was seeing the warrior underneath. "You don't think he'd dare?"

  "I want to think he wouldn't, but it makes me nervous."

  Rei nodded and the two women turned to Ryuu, who was
lost as to what was going on.

  "What are you two talking about?"

  Rei looked to Shika for an explanation. "I don't want to say too much, Ryuu, but I am worried for your safety. Please be cautious, and whatever you do, bring Rei with you wherever you go."

  "Even here on the island?"

  Shika nodded. "Even here on the island."

  Questions were running like rabbits through Ryuu's mind, but he couldn't catch any of them. Shika stood up and dismissed herself. Ryuu wanted her to wait, wanted her to explain, but he knew she wouldn't say more. She left, leaving behind more questions than comfort.

  Rei was about to follow Shika out, but Ryuu stopped her.

  "Rei, I thought you were Tenchi's prize student. But you seem quite close to Shika."

  Rei paused for a moment as she considered. "I have nothing but respect for Tenchi, and I'm not sure he's wrong, but I know what Shika speaks of. I feel it too, the burning desire to go home. And anyway, we're all blades here. We need to stay together if we're going to survive."

  Chapter 18

  The war was going better than Renzo had hoped. There had been large deviations from his original plan, but the critical pieces continued to move forward. What was important was that Renzo's campaign was working its way through the Southern Kingdom, making more progress every day. Every league they covered was one more step towards Renzo’s ultimate goal.

  And now Akira had called a Conclave. Renzo was curious, wondering what trick Akira had up his sleeve. Renzo hadn’t even known what a Conclave was until Tanak had told him. A mandatory time for the three Lords to meet, only to be called in times of the most dire crisis. Tanak had given him all the details. They each smelled a plot, but neither had any idea what it could be. Tanak had ordered his armies forward while he left with his honor guard to the Northern Kingdom, host of the Conclave.

  They had been on the road for a few days now, almost half-way to their destination. At first, Renzo’s mind had circled the possibilities, but there was no guessing what Akira was up to. He had settled back into his daily routine, ready for anything.