Emi stared at the clock. Willing it to go faster, to skip a few minutes, but no matter how hard she tried it wouldn't co-operate.
She wished that the torture would end, but it wouldn't. Detention, it seemed, would remain the punishment that it was supposed to be.
She frowned as she recalled the reason for her torture. As a martial artist it was her duty to protect the weak and to not use her abilities except in defence of herself or others. The school of course had it's own rules. She didn't hurt the boy, too much. He was in year ten and was picking on a young girl in year seven. He was calling her names and pushing her around. Emi saw this and jumped in to rescue the poor girl. It wasn't her fault that he had to be taken to hospital. He threw the first punch. He charged towards her, unmindful of the stairs behind her. He fell down the stairs on his own. The slight push from Emi wouldn't have made much difference to the outcome. But because the teacher knew of her martial arts training and because the boy's friends all claimed that she pushed him (that one of them was the principal's son made sure that the testimony from the young girl was ignored), she was given detention. The damning allegations from the teacher convinced her mother and stepfather of her guilt.
She stared at the paper in front of her and the pen next to it. She was told that she had to write an apology to the boy. She would not
Apologise. There was nothing to apologise for. But she knew that if she didn't then she would have detention the next day, and the next,
until she did. She knew this because this was her fourth day of detention.
"Still nothing?" asked Mister Henderson as he returned from the staff room. Emi tried to glare at him as best she could, and took satisfaction in his surprise.
"You know, I don't get paid any extra for this." he stated, knowing that she didn't care, "Just write something and save both of us the
hassle."
She thought for a moment, before deciding. Absently she picked up the pen and began writing. Once finished she asked the teacher for
an envelope, which he graciously provided. She sealed the envelope, addressing it to the young hooligan.
"Well, finally we can both go home." Mr Henderson said, "Now, we expect not to have any more trouble from you Emi."
On her way home Emi pondered the outcome of her situation, kicking herself for not thinking of the solution sooner. Oh, she apologised all right. Apologised on his behalf for picking on that girl, for his stupidity on attacking a martial artist, for his idiocy in charging her and thereby falling down the stairs. She apologised for his parents, who obviously didn't raise him correctly. Finally, she apologised to him for getting his arse kicked by a girl. Yes, if it all worked, then it was the best possible outcome that she could hope for. She stepped up her walk to a jog, there was no need to get lax in her training. It was ten kilometres home, and her stepfather had refused to come and get her as further punishment. After two years of marriage to her mother, he still didn't realise that a ten kilometre jog was nothing to her. She could do twice that and still practice her martial arts for three hours afterwards.
She didn't practice Aikido, judo, karate or any of the other mainstream styles. Her art was taught to her by her father, who had died three years ago. It was a style taught to him by a family run school in Japan whilst he was there studying and later working. It took a little from all of the different styles, amalgamating them into something new. Something different, and if needed something deadly. 'Not that it should ever be needed' he used to say. She could tell that he hated teaching her the moves that fit into the last category, but he refused to skimp on her training. If she were ever put into a situation where she would need them, it was better to know them than to be ignorant. After seven years of training, she still didn't know all that he could teach, and her mother wouldn't allow her to study at a school near home. But in two years time, she would be out of home and at University. Perhaps she could join a school in Melbourne, perhaps they could teach her something new. When she finally went to Japan, perhaps she could study under the grand-master of her school. In no time at all, she was home and swapping her school dress for something more appropriate for raining. Her mother and step-father John weren't home. Although both worked, they were probably at the local pub safe in the knowledge that she wouldn't be home for another few hours. That suited her, because both hated it when she practiced and so she would usually jog down to the local park. Today she could practice in the backyard. About to slide open the back door, she was surprised to see a strangely dressed woman in the backyard. The next door neighbours were nice people, hippies and frequently high, jumping over the side fence to visit. This wasn't one of them. She had red hair, similar to Emi's and was wearing a light brown jacket and pants with a scarf of a similar colour wrapped around her head. She carried what looked to be a spear. She shifted into a stance at Emi's movement but relaxed it as soon as she looked at Emi. A look of recognition seemed to dawn upon her. Emi grasped a knife from the kitchen bench beside her and opened the door.
"I am Tanil, Far Dareis Mai of the Jaern Rift sept of the Codarra Aiel." the woman introduced herself, "Please, I have been sent to get you for your assistance is needed."
"Get me?" Emi asked, brandishing the knife in front of her.
"Yes." Tanil replied, "My journey has been long, but the Wise Ones instructed me of it's importance. If I do not return with you, then all of the Aiel will die."
"What Wise Ones, what Aiel?" Emi asked, ready to run to the phone to dial triple '0', "What are you talking about?"
The woman, Tanil, somehow sensed her fear and spoke a little less forcefully, "Please. The last thing I would do is think harm upon you."
Fed up, Emi threatened the woman, "I warn you! Get lost or I'll call the police!"
The woman seemed to get frustrated and upset, saying to herself, "I knew this would happen! Why did I have to be the one to find the Amulet? Why couldn't it have been Braen or Allander?"
Resigned, Tanil pleaded with Emi, "Please. We only have a short while before the portal closes."
"What portal?" Emi asked, confused.
"That portal." the strange woman replied, pointing to the back wall of the house. Emi stepped out of the door and dropped the knife in shock when she saw not the bricks of the back wall but a circular picture of a forest. The picture seemed so real, there was no way that it could have been a photo or a projection because the branches of the trees were swaying and she could not see the bricks of the wall.
"Please." Tanil repeated, "We don't have much time."
Emi tried to weigh everything in her mind. A strange woman needed her help. The woman wants her to go through a portal. A portal, presumably to another world. The woman needed her help. She had no friends, her family didn't care about her. She wouldn't be missed. Her need for adventure tugged at her, along with her sense of duty towards protecting those in need. 'There better be enough time to pack and write a quick note.' Emi thought, as she hurried inside.
"One sec!" she shouted behind her as she run up towards her room.
Emi returned outside a minute later, her backpack over her shoulder and her katana in one hand.
"What are you doing with that?!" Tanil asked distastefully, pointing towards the katana that had once belonged to her father.
"My katana?" Emi asked, "My father willed it to me when he died."
"Swords are forbidden to be used." the woman replied.
"Oh. Um. Well, hold a sec." Emi said, as she raced once more towards her bedroom. She returned a little while later with a naginata, the last present her father had given her.
"Well then." Emi said, "I won't use the sword but I'm not leaving it behind."
Together, they entered the portal.
Everything blurred, then went black. Emi then found herself in the middle of a forest.
"I am afraid we must hurry, it is a long way from here to the Three-Fold Land." Tanil said, pointing to her left, "This way."
Emi hefted her pack, shoved the katana through her belt and lifted her naginata. They began a slow jog through the forest, Emi admiring the quiet and peacefulness of her surroundings. She doubted that she would see a possum or kangaroo and wondered what sort of animals there were around her. She soon grew accustomed to jogging with her naginata in one hand, the awkwardness and weight eventually making little difference. Tanil seemed a little surprised that Emi could keep up and quickened her pace. Emi matched her, knowing that she could jog for at least twenty kilometres before she needed a rest.
Eventually they came to a small river and Tanil stopped dead in her tracks. The river wasn't too wide, or running very rapidly.
"I reckon I could swim that, but I'd get my backpack wet." Emi said as she walked to the river bank, trying to gauge it's depth.
"You could what?" Tanil asked.
"You know, swim." Emi replied, making swimming motions with her arms.
"You can do that?" Tanil asked incredulously.
"Of course I can." replied Emi, "What? You can't?"
"No." answered a shocked Tanil, "Up until I came into the wetlands, I had never seen so much water. There is nothing like this in the Three-Fold Land."
Emi was surprised, almost everyone in Australia knew how to swim. 'This Three-Fold Land must be a desert.' she thought.
"I suppose that it would be too much to ask for a bridge or something?" Emi asked herself as she sat down, going through her pack for the packet of Tim Tams she had pinched from the pantry.
"A bridge?" Tanil said, "I did use a bridge to cross over the river, but it was close to a town. I do not think that I would be able to protect you if we went near it."
"Protect me?" Emi asked, munching on a Tim Tam as she threw another to her new friend, "I didn't bring my weapons for nothing. I don't need protecting, and why would people attack us anyway?"
Tanil took a bite of the biscuit and apparently liked the taste, "I am Aiel and you look like one. The wetlanders would attack us on sight."
"Theres no hope for it I suppose, if you can't swim." Emi replied, "Which way's the bridge?"
"I think," Tanil said, looking around her and finally pointing upstream, "It's that way."
Emi packed up the Tim Tams and followed Tanil, at a more sedate pace this time. Tanil was obviously wary of her surroundings, so Emi attempted to pay more attention herself. Eventually the forest thinned and a grassy plain was displayed before them. Together they followed a path, looked to be well worn down by cars (or more likely carts!) that ran alongside the river. Both were surprised, when they came over the top of a hill, to see a group of armed men riding horses. All wore armor such as a medievil knight would wear. Tanil was just as quick as the men. The shouts of "Filthy Aiel" reached them even as Tanil finished winding her head scarf around her mouth and jaw. Throwing another to Emi, she motioned for the young girl to do likewise. Tanil waited patiently for Emi to wind it over her head and mouth, even as the horsemen charged. Emi finished, just in time as the men were about fifteen meters away and closing rapidly, swords drawn. Emi soon proved that the reach of a sword is nothing compared to that of a seven foot naginata, felling one man and bringing the haft around to deflect the blow of another. The man whose sword she had blocked brought another sword around and was blocked again, but this time Emi shortened her grip and swung the naginata up and down. She brought the weapon down so forcebly that when it struck his shoulder, it continued down. When the man fell off his horse however, the naginata was ripped from her hands.
She fell, barely registering the contact as a blinding flash of pain emenated from her shoulder. Absently looking down she wondered why there was so much blood soaking into her new shirt. Everything went blank for a moment then she heard a fear scream, "Nooooo!" and her sight returned. God, she wished that it hadn't. Tanil was running towards her but a man on horseback came between them briefly. Then, there was just Tanil. Kneeling on the ground, headless. The peaceful blackness returned.
She wished that the torture would end, but it wouldn't. Detention, it seemed, would remain the punishment that it was supposed to be.
She frowned as she recalled the reason for her torture. As a martial artist it was her duty to protect the weak and to not use her abilities except in defence of herself or others. The school of course had it's own rules. She didn't hurt the boy, too much. He was in year ten and was picking on a young girl in year seven. He was calling her names and pushing her around. Emi saw this and jumped in to rescue the poor girl. It wasn't her fault that he had to be taken to hospital. He threw the first punch. He charged towards her, unmindful of the stairs behind her. He fell down the stairs on his own. The slight push from Emi wouldn't have made much difference to the outcome. But because the teacher knew of her martial arts training and because the boy's friends all claimed that she pushed him (that one of them was the principal's son made sure that the testimony from the young girl was ignored), she was given detention. The damning allegations from the teacher convinced her mother and stepfather of her guilt.
She stared at the paper in front of her and the pen next to it. She was told that she had to write an apology to the boy. She would not
Apologise. There was nothing to apologise for. But she knew that if she didn't then she would have detention the next day, and the next,
until she did. She knew this because this was her fourth day of detention.
"Still nothing?" asked Mister Henderson as he returned from the staff room. Emi tried to glare at him as best she could, and took satisfaction in his surprise.
"You know, I don't get paid any extra for this." he stated, knowing that she didn't care, "Just write something and save both of us the
hassle."
She thought for a moment, before deciding. Absently she picked up the pen and began writing. Once finished she asked the teacher for
an envelope, which he graciously provided. She sealed the envelope, addressing it to the young hooligan.
"Well, finally we can both go home." Mr Henderson said, "Now, we expect not to have any more trouble from you Emi."
On her way home Emi pondered the outcome of her situation, kicking herself for not thinking of the solution sooner. Oh, she apologised all right. Apologised on his behalf for picking on that girl, for his stupidity on attacking a martial artist, for his idiocy in charging her and thereby falling down the stairs. She apologised for his parents, who obviously didn't raise him correctly. Finally, she apologised to him for getting his arse kicked by a girl. Yes, if it all worked, then it was the best possible outcome that she could hope for. She stepped up her walk to a jog, there was no need to get lax in her training. It was ten kilometres home, and her stepfather had refused to come and get her as further punishment. After two years of marriage to her mother, he still didn't realise that a ten kilometre jog was nothing to her. She could do twice that and still practice her martial arts for three hours afterwards.
She didn't practice Aikido, judo, karate or any of the other mainstream styles. Her art was taught to her by her father, who had died three years ago. It was a style taught to him by a family run school in Japan whilst he was there studying and later working. It took a little from all of the different styles, amalgamating them into something new. Something different, and if needed something deadly. 'Not that it should ever be needed' he used to say. She could tell that he hated teaching her the moves that fit into the last category, but he refused to skimp on her training. If she were ever put into a situation where she would need them, it was better to know them than to be ignorant. After seven years of training, she still didn't know all that he could teach, and her mother wouldn't allow her to study at a school near home. But in two years time, she would be out of home and at University. Perhaps she could join a school in Melbourne, perhaps they could teach her something new. When she finally went to Japan, perhaps she could study under the grand-master of her school. In no time at all, she was home and swapping her school dress for something more appropriate for raining. Her mother and step-father John weren't home. Although both worked, they were probably at the local pub safe in the knowledge that she wouldn't be home for another few hours. That suited her, because both hated it when she practiced and so she would usually jog down to the local park. Today she could practice in the backyard. About to slide open the back door, she was surprised to see a strangely dressed woman in the backyard. The next door neighbours were nice people, hippies and frequently high, jumping over the side fence to visit. This wasn't one of them. She had red hair, similar to Emi's and was wearing a light brown jacket and pants with a scarf of a similar colour wrapped around her head. She carried what looked to be a spear. She shifted into a stance at Emi's movement but relaxed it as soon as she looked at Emi. A look of recognition seemed to dawn upon her. Emi grasped a knife from the kitchen bench beside her and opened the door.
"I am Tanil, Far Dareis Mai of the Jaern Rift sept of the Codarra Aiel." the woman introduced herself, "Please, I have been sent to get you for your assistance is needed."
"Get me?" Emi asked, brandishing the knife in front of her.
"Yes." Tanil replied, "My journey has been long, but the Wise Ones instructed me of it's importance. If I do not return with you, then all of the Aiel will die."
"What Wise Ones, what Aiel?" Emi asked, ready to run to the phone to dial triple '0', "What are you talking about?"
The woman, Tanil, somehow sensed her fear and spoke a little less forcefully, "Please. The last thing I would do is think harm upon you."
Fed up, Emi threatened the woman, "I warn you! Get lost or I'll call the police!"
The woman seemed to get frustrated and upset, saying to herself, "I knew this would happen! Why did I have to be the one to find the Amulet? Why couldn't it have been Braen or Allander?"
Resigned, Tanil pleaded with Emi, "Please. We only have a short while before the portal closes."
"What portal?" Emi asked, confused.
"That portal." the strange woman replied, pointing to the back wall of the house. Emi stepped out of the door and dropped the knife in shock when she saw not the bricks of the back wall but a circular picture of a forest. The picture seemed so real, there was no way that it could have been a photo or a projection because the branches of the trees were swaying and she could not see the bricks of the wall.
"Please." Tanil repeated, "We don't have much time."
Emi tried to weigh everything in her mind. A strange woman needed her help. The woman wants her to go through a portal. A portal, presumably to another world. The woman needed her help. She had no friends, her family didn't care about her. She wouldn't be missed. Her need for adventure tugged at her, along with her sense of duty towards protecting those in need. 'There better be enough time to pack and write a quick note.' Emi thought, as she hurried inside.
"One sec!" she shouted behind her as she run up towards her room.
Emi returned outside a minute later, her backpack over her shoulder and her katana in one hand.
"What are you doing with that?!" Tanil asked distastefully, pointing towards the katana that had once belonged to her father.
"My katana?" Emi asked, "My father willed it to me when he died."
"Swords are forbidden to be used." the woman replied.
"Oh. Um. Well, hold a sec." Emi said, as she raced once more towards her bedroom. She returned a little while later with a naginata, the last present her father had given her.
"Well then." Emi said, "I won't use the sword but I'm not leaving it behind."
Together, they entered the portal.
Everything blurred, then went black. Emi then found herself in the middle of a forest.
"I am afraid we must hurry, it is a long way from here to the Three-Fold Land." Tanil said, pointing to her left, "This way."
Emi hefted her pack, shoved the katana through her belt and lifted her naginata. They began a slow jog through the forest, Emi admiring the quiet and peacefulness of her surroundings. She doubted that she would see a possum or kangaroo and wondered what sort of animals there were around her. She soon grew accustomed to jogging with her naginata in one hand, the awkwardness and weight eventually making little difference. Tanil seemed a little surprised that Emi could keep up and quickened her pace. Emi matched her, knowing that she could jog for at least twenty kilometres before she needed a rest.
Eventually they came to a small river and Tanil stopped dead in her tracks. The river wasn't too wide, or running very rapidly.
"I reckon I could swim that, but I'd get my backpack wet." Emi said as she walked to the river bank, trying to gauge it's depth.
"You could what?" Tanil asked.
"You know, swim." Emi replied, making swimming motions with her arms.
"You can do that?" Tanil asked incredulously.
"Of course I can." replied Emi, "What? You can't?"
"No." answered a shocked Tanil, "Up until I came into the wetlands, I had never seen so much water. There is nothing like this in the Three-Fold Land."
Emi was surprised, almost everyone in Australia knew how to swim. 'This Three-Fold Land must be a desert.' she thought.
"I suppose that it would be too much to ask for a bridge or something?" Emi asked herself as she sat down, going through her pack for the packet of Tim Tams she had pinched from the pantry.
"A bridge?" Tanil said, "I did use a bridge to cross over the river, but it was close to a town. I do not think that I would be able to protect you if we went near it."
"Protect me?" Emi asked, munching on a Tim Tam as she threw another to her new friend, "I didn't bring my weapons for nothing. I don't need protecting, and why would people attack us anyway?"
Tanil took a bite of the biscuit and apparently liked the taste, "I am Aiel and you look like one. The wetlanders would attack us on sight."
"Theres no hope for it I suppose, if you can't swim." Emi replied, "Which way's the bridge?"
"I think," Tanil said, looking around her and finally pointing upstream, "It's that way."
Emi packed up the Tim Tams and followed Tanil, at a more sedate pace this time. Tanil was obviously wary of her surroundings, so Emi attempted to pay more attention herself. Eventually the forest thinned and a grassy plain was displayed before them. Together they followed a path, looked to be well worn down by cars (or more likely carts!) that ran alongside the river. Both were surprised, when they came over the top of a hill, to see a group of armed men riding horses. All wore armor such as a medievil knight would wear. Tanil was just as quick as the men. The shouts of "Filthy Aiel" reached them even as Tanil finished winding her head scarf around her mouth and jaw. Throwing another to Emi, she motioned for the young girl to do likewise. Tanil waited patiently for Emi to wind it over her head and mouth, even as the horsemen charged. Emi finished, just in time as the men were about fifteen meters away and closing rapidly, swords drawn. Emi soon proved that the reach of a sword is nothing compared to that of a seven foot naginata, felling one man and bringing the haft around to deflect the blow of another. The man whose sword she had blocked brought another sword around and was blocked again, but this time Emi shortened her grip and swung the naginata up and down. She brought the weapon down so forcebly that when it struck his shoulder, it continued down. When the man fell off his horse however, the naginata was ripped from her hands.
She fell, barely registering the contact as a blinding flash of pain emenated from her shoulder. Absently looking down she wondered why there was so much blood soaking into her new shirt. Everything went blank for a moment then she heard a fear scream, "Nooooo!" and her sight returned. God, she wished that it hadn't. Tanil was running towards her but a man on horseback came between them briefly. Then, there was just Tanil. Kneeling on the ground, headless. The peaceful blackness returned.