My face feels numb… scratch that. My entire body feels numb. Everything is dark. I sit here in the dark for several moments, and sensations start coming in slowly. Now my body feels heavy, and sore all over. My head hurts terribly; like an axe has split my skull strait down the middle. I begin to see light through my closed eye-lids and this only increases the pain. Voices begin to drift in, but they're muffled and hazy.
"Miss?" A calm male voice calls, and I feel a strong hand on my shoulder. "Miss I need you to open your eyes. Can you hear my voice? Focus on the sound of my voice." His voice is the only pleasant thing in this storm of pain and discomfort. It is deep but smooth. It is also completely unfamiliar.
"Apa!" Another male voice calls. It is an older male, but the tone is childish and panicked. "Why her eyes not opening Akisame?! Was Apachai not fast enough?" A sound of short hysterical sobs break out in the same voice, but stop as the first voice cuts in again.
"She is going to be fine Apachai," he says in that smooth calming tone. "but we need to wake her up if we can. She may have a very serious concussion, and she has been asleep for a long time."
"Where on Earth did you find this young woman Apachai?" This voice is new – a third. It's the voice I would give to my grandfather if I actually had one. It is deep, obviously male, but rough unlike the first.
"Apa! Pretty lady was outside of the store!" the second voice still sounds distressed, and his shouting is making my head hurt more. "Apachai had gone in to buy food for the pigeons and saw her run into the alley. Three men were chasing her. Apachai tried to hurry, but one of them hit her over the head with a pipe! Apachai sorry!"
"Do you know how she got the rest of these injuries?" the first voice asks, his tone has the faintest hint of anger in it.
"Apachai not know," the second responds. "First man went to sleep after Apachai hit him only one time! The other two men ran away. Apachai would have chased them, but pretty lady was bleeding so much! Apachai was scared she would die!"
"You were right to bring her to me," the first voice states in his calmer tone again.
Is this Apachai the second voice? If so, why is he talking about himself in the third person? Well… his language skills don't seem to be very good. Maybe he's from another country. I need to respond to them instead of just listening, but everything is so difficult. My eyelids feel like lead weights strapped to my face. I try to open them and pain shoots through my head again.
"Ugh….." I moan slightly, embarrassed by how garbled I sound. Why does my throat hurt?
"Miss?" The deep smooth voice calls to me again, "That's right. Just try to open your eyes. Focus on my voice."
Easier said than done genius, I think bitterly. Wait… how on Earth did I get here? Did that upset man… Apachai… bring me here? Where is here?
After a few awful moments of pain, I am finally able to open my eyes. A strikingly handsome face is looking down at me with gentle eyes. His eyes are his most prominent feature. They are such a pale gray they look nearly as white as the orbs themselves – giving him the look of a blind man. The eyebrows above them seem to cut at severe angles. He has thick black hair that is smooth and cropped somewhat long for a man – just above the shoulders, and it drapes lazily over his right eye. He has a thin black mustache hovering over a warm smile. His face is as calming as his voice. He looks to be in his late thirties. He is also wearing a judo outfit, I realize a bit belatedly, and the image jars terribly with the rest of his peaceful persona.
"Where am I?" I manage to get out through a rough and broken voice. My hand flies to my throat in surprise at the sound, and the skin beneath my fingers screams in pain at my own touch. I flinch.
"Careful," the peaceful man says to me – he is the voice of the first man, the one asking questions. "Your throat is bruised badly. It appears that you were attacked and that someone got their hands around it at some point. For the answer to where you are… you are at my clinic. I am Koetsuji Akisame, and I am a doctor. My friend Apachai here found you and brought you to me out of concern over your current injuries. My colleague, Ma Kensei, and I have been treating you."
He motions to the side and I try to sit up so I can turn and see better. My muscles and my head scream in protest, but I ignore them. I am nearly upright when the room begins to spin and go black. I feel strong arms wrap around me and I am surprised they belong to the handsome face of the first man. The judo outfit he is wearing must be hiding some serious muscle. He assists me in sitting up and holds me carefully until I am steady before letting go and stepping back to a careful distance. Interesting… he seems to expect me to fear him.
Now that I am finally upright I turn to see the other two occupants of the room. They are huge! Turning back to the handsome man… Akisame I think he said his name was… he is also tall, but these two giants make him look average. They are both visibly built like some kind of martial arts masters or something – with more muscles than I thought existed on a human body. One is much older, with long blond flowing hair, and wearing a tight green kimono. The second is wearing brightly colored shorts and a tank top. His hands are wrapped like a boxer's, and he is obviously not from our country… but is still Asian. This one must be the one that keeps calling himself Apachai… the one who supposedly rescued me. He could be lying about the rescue… but… the ridiculously kind and excited smile on his face makes me doubt that very much.
"Is your name Apachai?" I ask him.
"Yes!" he shouts, and I flinch at his volume. He drops it down to a rough whisper. "Oh sorry. Apa…"
"Thank you for rescuing me," I give him a warm smile, or try to despite how much my face hurts.
"How did you know Apachai's name?" Apachai asks, pointing to himself.
"Well, I've been able to hear you talking for a little while," I admit. "Once I recognized Akisame's voice; that left you and this other man. I assumed you were Apachai, because you look like you're not from this country, and I had made that assumption about Apachai before I managed to get my eyes open. Does that mean that you are Ma Kensei?" I ask, turning my attention to the green giant.
"Well, her reasoning ability seems intact," Akisame says in an approving tone. "That's a good sign. And you are half correct Miss, this is my friend Apachai Hopachai – the man who rescued you and brought you to me. However, Kensei is retrieving some of the supplies he needs for your next treatment."
"I am Furinji Hayato," the other older man in green cuts in. "but most people just call me Elder. I am a friend to both of these men as well as Kensei. Would you care to explain how this happened to you young lady?"
"I…" I start, and then stop abruptly. I can't introduce myself because I… I can't remember my name! I can't remember the event the're talking about… I can't remember anything! My mind begins racing as I clutch desperately at a completely blank slate of memory. I can feel my breath coming faster, the room is starting to spin again, and my head hurts so much! Tears leak from my eyes.
"Hold on…" Akisame says, gripping my shoulders lightly. "It's okay if it's too difficult to talk about right now. We don't mean to rush you, Miss….?"
"That's not the problem!" I cry out in my broken voice, "I can't remember anything! I can't remember my name!"
"Uh oh…" Apachai mumbles.
"Please… try and remain calm," Akisame says leaning down to look me in the eye. "You need to slow your breathing or you could lose consciousness again. We need to avoid that."
How can I do that!? What am I going to do if I can't even remember who I am? Who was I running from and why?! I bury my face in Akisame's shoulder and choke back a sob, gripping his shirt front tightly in my fists. I can tell that my movement surprises him, but he is gracious enough not to comment or pull me away.
"Well," the Elder mumbles, "this IS a problem. Is she well enough to be moved Akisame?"
"Yes," he responds talking to the Elder over his shoulder. "In fact, I think it would be wise to get her settled in a more permanent location for right now. I have other patients arriving, and I don't want her to feel uncomfortable. Would you be willing to make a place for her at Ryozanpaku?"
"Of course," the Elder drawls in a reassuring voice.
"No, I…" I look up and try to cut in, but my headache is making it difficult. Akisame steps back from me once again. "I can't impose on you that way. It would be wrong of me to take advantage when you don't even know my name. For all you know, I could be dangerous!"
All three men burst out in simultaneous laughter. It hurts my head, but they die down quickly.
"I assure you, young lady," the Elder says in a laughing tone, "There isn't a soul living at Ryozanpaku who isn't able to defend themselves… and you are in no shape to do any real damage. You see… Ryozanpaku is my home, and it is also where Akisame and Apachai here live – with a few others."
"Is it a dojo then?" I ask, trying to solve the puzzle these men present.
"Why yes," he affirms, "You are perceptive indeed."
"Apa…" Apachai says in a voice full of awe. "Pretty lady is really smart!"
"Well, the two of you are obviously martial artists," I explain, "Akisame seems to be deceptively strong, and wearing a judo outfit I assume he must be also. If you all live together and all others there are able to defend themselves, a dojo is the first logical option."
I need to stop talking. My voice hurts nearly as much as my head. I can hear Akisame chuckle from beside me.
"Well," the Elder replies, "I am going to return there with Apachai and ask my granddaughter Miu to prepare a place for you as soon as possible. Then I will have Apachai return to help retrieve you. Do you have any objections other than possibly being a dangerous person?"
"No…" I mumble, still uncomfortable with their generosity.
"Very good." With that the Elder and Apachai head out the door, leaving me alone with Akisame.
"So, what's the damage?" I ask, turning to face him. "So far I agree that I probably have a concussion. My head hurts like hell…" I reach up, trying to probe for tender spots on my skull. There are several to choose from.
"Should I bother trying to soften it?" he asks in return.
"No," I say sternly. "I want to know the truth, and I will be able to tell if you're lying to me. I may not know my name, but I know that much."
"Very well," he states with a heavy sigh. "I apologize if it makes you uncomfortable, but I did conduct a physical exam. There was blood coming from within your clothing and I was concerned you may have been sexually assaulted. If that had been the case, I would have sent you to the local hospital. I couldn't rule it out completely without speaking to you, but it seems unlikely."
My stomach turns slightly; not at the idea of the exam, but of what might have happened that I can't remember. There is no soreness between my legs, and I have to hope that is a good sign. However, my right breast is aching pretty badly… My hands start shaking.
"So you've handled the goods huh?" I try to joke, "Wha' do ya think?"
"Ummm…" he suddenly looks extremely uncomfortable, and rubs the back of his head nervously. "I assure you that…"
"Whoa," I decide to cut him off. "Apparently I'm pretty rude when I'm nervous. Note to self… I apologize, Akisame. I didn't mean to insult you."
"It's alright," he says, standing more confidently again. "You've been through a lot. I need you to be honest with me. Is there any portion of your attack or your history that you remember? Anything at all?"
I can feel a tear leak from my eye again. "No. I wish there was. I don't even have a name… and no I don't remember any of what happened to me," I try to convey the truth with my tone. "Akisame… I don't remember anything before hearing your voice. That's… bad… isn't it?"
He looks worried. "Well, it's not good, but your continued reasoning ability leads me to believe that you will probably be alright. You had a significant wound to your head, which I assume is from the pipe Apachai said they hit you with. I'll want you to stay awake through the night tonight, but after that we should know if your condition is stable. For your memory… all we can do is wait. It may come back in time, or it may not come back at all. These things are unpredictable."
"How long have I been unconscious?" I realize I haven't asked this. I have no frame of reference.
"According to Apachai, a little over 3 days," he explains as I feel shock resonate through me. "In that time I was able to do an assessment, and conduct some minor surgery on one of your wounds. If you had not woken soon, I would have sent you to the hospital for a deeper evaluation."
"Why didn't you?" I know my voice carries my shock and disapproval. "What kind of surgery?"
"Well…" he looks uncomfortable again. "Honestly, Apachai said you were insisting on not being taken to the hospital right up until the moment you lost consciousness. You seem to have given him the impression that your life depended on it."
"Great…" I mumble. "Maybe I'm an assassin or fugitive."
Akisame laughs, and I realize I really like the sound of his laugh – and his voice. It's as warm as his smile. "Somehow I doubt that," he states with a raised eyebrow.
"What else is wrong with me?" I ask, afraid to know the total damage. Everything is sore.
"Well, you've got a lot of bruising across much of your body. You don't appear to have any severe internal bleeding, however, which is a real blessing," he explains. As he does he comes over to me and grasps the edges of the cloth robe I am wearing. "May I?"
I nod in agreement, surprised that I trust him when I know so little about him. I suppose I don't really have much choice. He pulls the robe apart to reveal my upper body. I have thick bandaging wrapped around my torso, and the dressing apparently will need changing soon. There is heavy bleeding on the side of my right breast. I feel my nervousness rising again as he looks down at me.
"This is where I had to do a little clean up," he points to the bloody bandage. "It looks like you were stabbed here, and the bastard decided to give it a twist for good measure. I've done what I can, but it will still leave a small scar. On your other side, two of your ribs are broken." He touches the last two ribs on the bottom slightly, and I suck in my breath to keep from screaming. "Your right wrist is fractured…"
How did I miss that I was wearing a cast…?! Wait! There's more than one!
"Your hands and knees are pretty scuffed, but should heal without scarring," he continues as if he's reading from a grocery list, "And as I mentioned before… it appears that you were strangled. It sounds like it's done some damage to your voice box, but I wouldn't expect that to last more than a week or so. Thankfully, they didn't use something that would cut you, so it should not scar either. Your lower body suffered mostly bruising, but they did break the tibia on your right leg – the bone in the front. It is not broken through, so I have it casted but it doesn't require surgery. Bone setting is my specialty, so you can trust me on that."
"Why were you worried I'd been raped?" I ask, dreading the answer.
"Ah yes," he says, taking my hand and placing it on the inside of my left knee. "Follow the inside of your thigh with your hand, but be gentle." I do as he says and encounter another bandage very high on the inside of my thigh. My eyes widen as I look up into his face.
"There was another stab wound on the inside of your thigh," he says in a professional tone, but for the first time he doesn't meet my eyes. It was bleeding pretty severely, but you were very lucky. If it had been slightly to the left, or slightly higher, it could have severed your femoral artery and Apachai could not have saved you. My colleague, Ma Kensei, is a specialist in acupuncture – which we were able to use to deal with your blood loss."
"Well…" I sigh, trying to stay positive. "That's something to be thankful for. And you said you didn't think I was raped?"
"Umm, no." Akisame rubs the back of his head again. "Is there any… soreness or discomfort that would indicate otherwise? There is still time to take you to a hospital and…"
"No." I reject the idea immediately. "Whoever I was before I lost my mind said I couldn't go there. I don't want to contradict her." I laugh at my use of the third person – like Apachai. "How long will it take all of this to heal?"
"Several weeks," Akisame explains. "I would like to monitor your condition closely until you are fully healed. If you are willing to stay at Ryozanpaku it will be much easier."
"Akisame…" I hedge, grabbing his hand gently with both of mine, "I'm sorry. You have been very kind, but I already cannot pay you for all of this. You have patients who need your care much more than I do. If you give me a crutch and some…"
"Don't be ridiculous!" he suddenly shouts, and for the first time he looks truly threatening. There is an intense chi rolling off of him – and I'm not even sure why I know that. His eyes practically glow with anger. "You have been brutalized by someone, perhaps even many people. You can't remember your past, or even your name. I am not going to simply let you walk out that door and fend for yourself! None of us will! You will stay at Ryozanpaku!"
By the end of his little outburst I am trembling. He notices this, and regains his composure. The sudden king of cool once again.
"I am sorry," he says in a deep calm tone, "but I will not allow you to willingly endanger your own life. You don't even know who you were running from. Once you are completely healed… I won't prevent you from leaving."
He smoothes out his mustache with his first two fingers. His calm brings my own calm back with it. He seemed un-phased by my injuries as he listed them off, but this has tipped his hand. His anger is not with me. It is obvious he is angry that this was done to me.
"My bandages need to be changed," I change the subject as I can feel dampness from it now against my arm.
"If you would like, I can ask one of the women from Ryoz…" he offers, but I cut him off.
"You put them there the first time didn't you?" I challenge.
"Yes."
"Then you can do it again," I try to make my tone firm instead of nervous. "It's no big surprise by this point I'm sure. I don't want to wait."
"Very well," he agrees reaching for the end of the bandage.
His hands are steady and strong as he removes my bandages. I close my eyes to try and keep my nervousness from showing. His movements never falter. I peek my eyes open and his face is focused and professional. I want to laugh at the brief sense of disappointment that washes through me at his obvious disinterest. I barely know this man. I should be thankful for his professional attitude. I guess it's just a woman's natural want to be desirable to a man as handsome as this one. He asks me for assistance only in handling sections of the bandage as he reapplies them. He's almost finished when I hear a small sound in the corner of the room. I jump in surprise and snatch up the corners of my robe to cover myself.
"Well, well," a nasal voice says from a small Chinese man standing in the corner. He is short with a long gray mustache – much thicker than Akisame's. He is wearing a green Kimono and a large hat, and seems to be carrying a tray of needles. This must be Ma Kensei. "I see you've changed her bandages Akisame. I could have handled the task myself you know." Akisame's hands pause momentarily, but he doesn't turn to face the man.
"Actually, I told him I was tired of waiting," I contradict him with my broken voice – not wanting the man to think Akisame's motives were perverted after his obvious disinterest. "I take it you must be Ma Kensei, the acupuncturist."
"Yes," he replies, "I see she is very sharp."
"Yes, but she seems to be suffering from complete amnesia," Akisame replies smoothly, "Temporarily I hope. Besides Kensei… I thought I would spare you the extra time – so you can conduct your treatments without unnecessary effort."
"How… considerate of you, Akisame," Kensei replies in an aggravated tone. He looks at me with a perverted smile and I am suddenly even happier I had Akisame change my bandages already. "I'll have to repay the favor sometime. Now… I hope you don't mind needles young lady, because we have quite a bit of work to do."