Forest's Requiem
Legal Disclaimer: Sunrise owns Mai Hime, not me.
Attempting to resurrect this from the bowels of my hard drive. Thank you to everyone who has reviewed thus far—your comments and feedback are always very deeply appreciated!
Also, to those of you who originally read this when I first posted this and then went on hiatus…I'm very sorry—I know how much it sucks waiting for an author to update!
~Logos Minus Pity
Chapter IV: The Land of the Impure
Natsuki dropped back into her human form to assess the carnage she had left behind. Most of the workers had fled when she had burst through the tree cover in wolf form to launch a ferocious attack on their operations. She knew that many of them believed that the broad daylight gave them greater safety from the beasts of the forests, naively so. Her midday assault had been perhaps all the more affective because of such foolhardy thoughts.
Although, a few unfortunately brave soldiers had refused to abandon their guard posts before her; their broken corpses now marked the area. It was distasteful work, but she took the time to go back through the work site, looking for any would-be stragglers. Experience had long since taught her to be thorough.
There was only one this time. A guardsman, whose inverted chest armor and choking breath indicated that she must have crushed his rib cage during her rampage, leaving him to slowly suffocate to death. His eyes widened in momentary and wordless terror as Natsuki knelt by his side, her glittering eyes emotionless. She spoke a quick prayer to the great forest spirit and then drew her dagger across his throat in a single fluid motion. The action was professionally swift, the blade drawn in such a direction that the fountain of arterial blood spurted away from her. She wiped the steel blade clean on the grass before re-sheathing it in her belt.
Her bright eyes narrowed as she examined the site closely, focusing in on the large, man-made pit that now scarred the earth. Nostrils flaring as she instinctively sniffed the air, she moved around to better examine the now decimated work site.
This was no lumber works, she quickly deduced. She knelt down again, but this time to look at a tool that had been discarded by a panicking worker. Instead of an axe head, the wooden haft was fixed into a long, metal crescent. It was undoubtedly a pick axe. Natsuki straightened, walking briskly over toward the tree line where the villagers had been cutting down the precious wood of the forest. She placed her hand on the great tree trunk that had just begun to feel the bite of an axe when she had come to its rescue. A few quiet moments of concentration later, and the cut had healed into an old scar when Natsuki removed her hand.
The settlement was still quite obviously trying to make use of the forest's lumber, as they always had, but the mining pit was a new development.
She thought of the arrogant lord who had managed to wound her, and then her thoughts slipped to the beautiful daughter of the Fujinos, with her unnaturally catching eyes.
In retrospect, she had no idea as to why she hadn't attacked then. To have killed a Fujino…the chance had not once come up before, but it would have struck a devastating blow to her enemies. And yet, when the woman had called her guards back, it had piqued Natsuki's curiosity. And when she had caught and held that crimson gaze, she had felt something entirely different than she could ever remember. Something hazy and restless that had sat in her mind ever since, making it hard to sleep at night as her mind constantly called up pictures of the woman, and memories of her own harshly buried past.
She ground her teeth, irritated both over not having taken action that day and over the fact that her thoughts were still wandering back to that woman. It was a pointless waste of her time and was currently diverting her from the tasks at hand. Brow furrowed, Natsuki's gaze inadvertently drifted back over toward the wrecked mining site.
She disappeared back into the trees, moving slowly and calmly for all that her stomach clenched in nervous anxiety.
As the name Oaken Ridge would indicate, the forest that the settlement had been built next to held an unearthly wealth of oak trees. And not just any oak tree species, but the rare blue oaks. Extremely slow-growing, the blue-gray bark and dark wood of the massive trees was nearly as hard as refined iron, and could easily fracture a poorly made axe. However, the high tool cost of lumbering the giant trees was easily surpassed by the precious demand for the uncommon material. The wood made beautiful and hardy furniture imbued with a rich natural aroma. And though the wood was loathe to ever burn, often just smoking instead of allowing flame, furnace pressing logs of it produced the highest quality of scribes' charcoal for ink. It was said that his Imperial Majesty in Kyoto had long since demanded that his own scribes and artists use no less than blue oak ink in all of their work.
At the very moment, Shizuru Fujino was, herself, making use of the famed ink, penning out another letter to an old friend and mentor of hers who was still currently enjoying the luxuries at the Imperial Court.
Her brush strokes were sure but delicate, making even her simple characters appear like a calligraphic work of art. Shizuru admired her work as it dried, considering the few letters she and her old friend Anh Lu had exchanged thus far since her relocation to Oaken Ridge.
Anh had certainly had quite a lot to say about the bizarre encounter Shizuru had the spirits of the forest, as well as the one Reito and his men had before her. "Intriguing" was the exact wording that had used, which, coming from Anh, meant a great deal more than if anyone else said it, in large part, too, because no one else had said much on it
No one seemed to be particularly forthcoming over the question of the forest guardians. When she had asked Reito about the matter, he had told her, in no uncertain terms, that it was his duty here to ensure the success of Oaken Ridge as a production settlement and to remove all and any obstacles that stood in the way—as per orders of her father. Upon pressing the concern she had felt about the wolf being a god, or god-touched, Reito had shut down the discussion, his irritation at being questioned quite clear.
"A god? Don't tell me you listen to those old wives tales, Shizuru."
She flushed, a mixture of both embarrassment and anger. "Do not patronize me, Reito. You have heard the stories as much as I. It serves no good to draw the fury of the old gods."
He laughed, now amused more than anything. "You are assuming they are gods, Shizuru, dear. What is to say that they are? It is a beast, no more than that. Quite a large and particularly bloodthirsty one, no doubt, but it can be wounded and killed no different than any other wolf. These are the wilds, my dear, not Court. Rest your worries and leave the work to me and my men. What happens to the wildlife is of little concern to you, no?"
For all that Shizuru knew both Reito and her father simply wanted them out of the way, she could not help but feel differently. She knew there was something more in this. It was almost like a puzzle or mystery out of a childhood story, and she felt inexplicably compelled to solve it.
Much to her personal fortune, Anh, even if she did not share Shizuru's same interest in the matter, was at least more than willing to play along with her eccentricities rather than dismissing them out of hand. However, in the last letter she had received from Anh, her friend had touched upon an overlooked detail of information concerning the whole setup.
Shizuru had known for many years about Reito's heritage. His father had been the fifth son of the Kanzaki clan, ascending as the family patriarch after a vicious assassination had been dealt out to his older brothers and father through a blood feud. The bloody massacre had crippled the power and prestige that the newer Kanzaki clan had been steadily accruing over several generations. His mother, interestingly enough, was the last living descendent of the Kuga clan. Though there was not even a coin to the family name, Kuga was nonetheless an ancient and blue bloodline, equally as old as the Fujino line. Shizuru knew relatively little about the now-dead clan, except for the hushed and sorrowful tones that the lords and ladies at Imperial Court would speak in when they thought the young Kanzaki heir could not overhear them. They were whispers of a grandiose line that had fallen before the anger of the gods. A curse, they said.
It was, either by coincidence or something more, the Kuga clan that Anh had brought up in their last correspondence. She cited the initial "fall" of the Kugas over two hundred years ago when they resided and owned the land near this very mountain as the beginning of the forest troubles, though she admitted that even she could not clearly remember why. She had apologized, promising to look up the old story in the Imperial Archives and send it to Shizuru in her next letter. It was all very peculiar.
The rustling fabric of a moving person interrupted her musings. She turned toward the servant who had entered her quarters.
"Mistress Fujino," the young girl spoke, her eyes shyly downcast. "Dinner is about to be served."
Shizuru sighed and set down her brush.
The formal dining hall shone in the evening lantern light as kitchen servants soundlessly brought out plate after plate richly laden down with food. For all that Oaken Ridge lay on the farthest edge of the civilized provinces, they still were able to provide a plethora of exquisite dishes, each prepared to perfection.
She and Reito talked pleasantries as they dined together. Though curious, she avoided the subject of the most recently destroyed lumber cite from earlier in the day. It would only serve to sour his mood, and she knew, from experience, that he would divert the topic, stressing that she need not worry herself over it. As they chatted about her father's health and good luck throughout his life as the Fujino patriarch—be it from her own boldness or from the bottle of sake—Shizuru found herself asking back.
"What about your parents, Reito? I know that they both passed on when we were very young, but having known each other for so long, I must admit I find myself surprised when I realize I know little more than that."
Reito leaned back, his face unusually pensive as he both considered and remembered.
"Well," he spoke, beginning slowly. "As you know, my mother was the last descendent of the Kuga clan. For all that she was nearly destitute when my father married her, the Kuga clan used to be an extremely prosperous and noble bloodline—much like the Fujinos."
"They used to be the holders over these eastern lands, didn't they?" asked Shizuru, sipping from her cup of sake. The rice wine was rich in flavor, but not overly sweet, fermented to just the perfect degree for her tastes. Truly, the lands here were an agricultural wonder alone, if anything.
Reito bestowed a gentle smile. "Indeed. That was a great many generations ago, but these were their original feudal lands when the Kuga lords still commanded armies across the lands and their daughters still graced the Imperial Court. By all accounts, the Kugas were not a clan to be meddled with on any grounds."
"So what happened?" interjected Shizuru, genuinely curious as to how a clan could fall so far over the course of several generations.
Her fiancé shook his head. This time his was gaze dark. "Mother used to say it was the blood curse when she still lived. Some nonsense about an encounter and the wrath of an old god of the forest over two centuries ago."
Shizuru quirked her head to the side. "But you don't believe it."
Reito pushed his plate back, obviously starting to get annoyed with having to recall the subject. "I don't know what to believe. What I do know is that while there was a series of unfortunate happenings that occurred thereafter—poor luck in battles and marriage agreements, stillborn babies and young deaths—I also know that there was quite the string of human errors. Too many heirs decided to waste good money and men, dissolving the fortune and loyalty that had once made the Kugas so grand."
He shrugged then, as if to recall himself. "Stupid, but very human mistakes. Is that the curse of a god? If so, than perhaps I am skeptical."
He smiled then, revealing perfectly white teeth. "But enough of such stories, my dear. Let us turn toward lighter subjects over dinner."
Her fiancé set his chopsticks down on his plate and folded his hands, leaning back into his seat.
"As I'm sure you're aware of, the primary value of this settlement has always been, quite literally, in the forest. For all that collection of the wood has been…taxing, our losses have never outweighed the profit we still make."
Shizuru thought that the look of polite distaste on his face gave testament to just how taxing the efforts had been for a man who was clearly used to getting immediate results. She said nothing, though, as this was the first time Reito had truly spoken to her about the settlement and what they were doing here, so far from Imperial Court.
"However, the true riches of this land have only just been discovered." Reito paused here, turning around to signal one of the servants.
The footman approached the table quickly, holding a long box made out of the finest grain of soft walnut wood, with colorful images lacquered onto the cover. The craftsmanship on the box was impeccable, making it a treasure within itself, the joint work so smooth and flawless that the hinges could barely be distinguished.
The man knelt before Shizuru, his eyes cast downward demurely as he held the box aloft in his hands. When Shizuru raised a quizzical eyebrow, looking up toward Reito, he simply nodded, encouraging her on.
She undid the latch that held the wooden box firmly closed and, then, with both hands, lifted the lid open.
In the center of the silk-lined box lay a necklace and matching hair pin, both easily worth a small fortune. Tiny freshwater pearls winked and glittered in the firelight, all caught in a weaving mesh of finely crafted gold, silver, and a third, differently colored metal, something halfway between its counterparts.
Pleased with somewhat in her reaction, Reito signaled again, and two more servants rushed over to begin adorning Shizuru with the kingly gift. He smiled again when they had finished, running his eyes over Shizuru in a leisurely possessive manner, apparently satisfied with the outcome.
Shizuru, for her part, didn't even mind his raking gaze, she was too shocked with the sheer value of the gift. "Where on earth did you get this, Reito?"
He reached into his pocket, unearthing a small clump of dirtied ore to hold up in the candlelight. Though not so refined and polished as the necklace and hairpiece, the metal caught and held the light, veins of purer gold and silver hinted at here and there.
"Pure electrum," he spoke, his own tone betraying some of his wonder. "Sitting under the forest all these generations, just waiting to be found. And we've yet to even tap into it. Almost all that we've found so far has been from sifting through the streams that run down from the mountain."
He set the ore down on the table gently, gray eyes meeting Shizuru's. "That is why your father has sent me here, as my last test before I take your hand in marriage. By securing this ore for the Fujino legacy, we will have attained a financial security greater than that of any other warlord in the Imperial Court."
He finished triumphantly, his hand still resting on the raw ore as though it were the winning tile in a game of Mahjong. Shizuru stared at him for a very long time afterward, even when they resumed eating. She had first met Reito when she was not even six years old; they had played with each other, attended Imperial Court together, grown into adults together. And Shizuru had long since discovered a pleasantly useful ability within herself to manipulate the people around her. She could, for the most part, quickly discern a person's character, even just within a short time of meeting them, and use that to her advantage as needed. Reito had been more than a simple acquaintance to her for over a decade, but looking at the ruler of Oaken Ridge before her, the young samurai warlord and her betrothed, she keenly felt that she had not the faintest clue just whom Reito Kanzaki was anymore.
Shizuru retired to her rooms after dinner, immediately removing the heavy jewelry and allowing her hair to fall down onto her shoulders. She absentmindedly thanked one of her hand maids when they brought her usual cup of freshly steeped tea for the night; her mind was already elsewhere.
Another piece had fallen into place tonight. The presence of precious metals easily explained why her father had sent Reito here of all places, and also as to why the rationale was being kept to only a select few.
But it was just another piece. There were many more left to fill before she would find the answers to the questions that gnawed at her thoughts, Reito himself not being the least of them. Whatever had happened the smiling, mischievous boy that she held out of her childhood memories? They had certainly become more estranged in the past five years, as Shizuru spent nearly all her time in court, and Reito rode the frontiers with her father, suppressing rebellions and conquering new lands; but the man who now held her hand for marriage was a stranger, a cold individual whom she was certain was looking only to advance his own position in the world, and though she knew that had always been their respective fates, it made part of her shudder.
She peered down into the depths of her green tea as she blew over the steaming liquid to cool it. Her mind formed the image of eyes of the same hue without even trying, and she sighed as she recalled the gruffly feminine voice in her head.
She would be patient. And she would solve this mystery soon.
She needed to finish her letter to Ahn.