7. Challenger
It was a little after dawn. The Masked Warrior of Mystery rode down the trail toward the Master's Compound. A spear was behind her left shoulder on a strap. Her bow and arrows were in a case suspended from her magenta saddle. A set of javelins were within easy reach of her right hand.
It had been a pleasant three days. No Carthaginian patrols bothered her and the locals had gone out of their way to be hospitable. The last night was spent by a non-descript pool. It had been a good place to clean up. She had left well before dawn. Kim's impatience to reach Ronicus spurred her to move with the first available light.
Hills lined the trail. She rounded one, and a sound caught her attention. Dorcas Directoria had spent much of the previous year working on her 'city ears' and it had been a great boon in Iberia, where ambush was the preferred method of combat. Someone is bending a bow in my direction.
A figure rose on a hilltop, about twenty cubits away. Kim took up a javelin. Not the best place for an ambush, he's well within my range. Good spot for a guard, though. She let the javelin rest in her hand, harmless for the moment.
"Greetings, guard."
A woman's voice answered. "Greetings, traveler."
"Bit of a harsh hello. I seek the Master's house. More to the point, I seek Ronicus Stoppabullus."
The bow was relaxed. "You are the Masked Warrior of Mystery, Rome's great champion! What is more, you are Kimora, most fortunate of women. I am Yori."
She leapt down, walked over and bowed. "It is an honor to meet you."
"And a pleasure to meet you." Kim tilted her head. "Did Ronicus tell you who I was?"
"Oh no" Yori smiled. "But he talks of almost nothing but you, or his adventures with the Warrior. Anyone could tell by the way he speaks of both that they must be the same person."
"Unless they're a man." Kim took off her helmet. "Guess I can do without this for a while."
Yori looked wistful. "You are beautiful, like the mist in the morning. It is…a consolation."
Before Kim could ask what she meant, Yori started to run. Kim shrugged and followed.
The scene was one of intense activity. People like Yori were training with weapons. A row of posts was the scene of unbelievable accuracy for archery. Others used swords, or what appeared to be swords at the end of spear shafts. A few older students practiced with what did not seem to be weapons at all.
An old woman came up to her. "You must walk from this point, child. Humility is the path to wisdom." The woman's eyes blended humor, curiosity, and something else. Kim could not put her finger on it.
"You will only find wisdom if you listen to the wise." Mystery cee cee vee eye eye. As she walked, people stared at her. Some were women, so it could not be from shock of seeing her face and long hair. While she was curious about these strange looking people, her concentration was focused on the boy who must be up in the cave ahead.
Yori had entered the cave some time before. Even Ronicus was not nearly as fast, and he was the fastest person she knew. She stepped inside.
"Kim!"
Ronicus ran up to her. He was dressed in black clothes of some strange fabric. The sword he had come for rested in a scabbard on his right hip. He was alive with excitement.
"Ron!" She took advantage of the alien surroundings to throw propriety to the winds. They kissed deeply. When she pulled back, Ronicus had the silliest expression, and Ruffio was on his shoulder giggling at his companion.
"Ave!"
"Ave, Ruffio. Did you keep my man out of trouble? How did he behave?"
"Bene!" Ruffio smiled broadly.
"Kim! It's great to see you! Isn't this the greatest place? I've learned so much from the Master. Look at this!"
He drew the sword. It was an exact replica of the old Italian design. Then it flashed, and became an Iberian slashing sword. Another flash and he held an elegant Gallic long sword. Kim's eyes widened as it became weapon after weapon, some familiar, others completely alien.
"This is the Lotus Blade…a magic sword! I am its keeper. I'm not sure what that means, but the Master is training me how to use and control it. I'll be twice the soldier I was before!" He put it back into the scabbard. "And that's not all I've learned. Watch this!"
He made a grab for her arm. Kim's reaction was automatic. She seized Ronicus's arm by the wrist and elbow and spun. Ronicus went flying into the wall of the cave.
"Oh, Ronicus, I'm sorry!"
"No problem. Good to see the tests didn't throw you off your game." Ronicus was upside down against the wall. Ruffio was staggering. "Now, where are the dice?"
Yori had returned with someone. A dignified old man smiled beneath his moustache. "Welcome, Kimora Possibillis, Masked Warrior of Mystery. I see you know something of the Open Hand." He bowed slightly.
She returned the bow. "Thank you, Master. I was taught the arts of war at the Temple of Minerva. My Mother and Nana were my main instructors. There was also…"
"Dorcas Directoria. That move was a favorite of hers."
"You know Directoria?"
They walked over to assist the stunned Ronicus. "I met her many years ago in her youth. We were in the land of the Sarmatians. She was pursuing a rogue Hunter. I taught her the Open Hand; she taught me the tongues of the Latins, the Greeks, and the Gauls. One never knows where one will end up. She was most pleasurable company. Had she not been foresworn, and I a few years younger…"
She didn't exaggerate when she offered me the world. "She has taught me the bow, and some of the skills of the Hunt. Others remain secret, as I followed my Mother's and Grandmother's cult. And my heart."
Ronicus was back on his feet, and Kim had her arm around him. The Master's smile grew. Yori was unreadable.
"When the heart is served, there is no sacrifice too great. I was there when Dorcas lost her eye. She felt it a fair trade."
He was about to say something else when a horn sounded. By his reaction, it was not a good signal. Yori raced to the back of the cave, avoiding the people who were running out with weapons. She came back with a sword.
The Master drew the weapon. "Thank you, Yori. I had hoped to avoid this, but evil never rests."
Ronicus drew the Lotus Blade. He fell in beside the Master. Kim walked beside Ronicus as they left the cave. "What is it?"
"A shadow of the past, a warning of the future." The Master said grimly.
The old woman was coming up the path. She carried Kim's spear and helmet. While she had no weapon of her own, she appeared to feel no fear. There was an encouraging smile from her as she gave Kim her gear. "Trust your heart, and that of your Love's."
Strange thing to say at this time. Something else's going on here.
Several students were on the wall, bows at the ready. The rest were in a compact formation at the gate. When the Master reached them, another man detached himself from the group. They had a few anxious words together. With a nod, the other man went to the gate and opened it.
It opened slowly. A great shadow stood before the barely risen sun. Ronicus felt his knees melt. The elephant dwarfed any he had seen before. She stepped inside with regal power. Armored men followed. Their skin and features matched those of the Master's students. They looked up to the tower on the elephant's back. A man stood up and spread out his arms. The elephant entwined him with her trunk and lowered him to the ground.
The man wore black, the same as the students. No weapon was visible, but he gave off an air of danger. While his features were the same as the Master, his skin had an odd texture, and a seemingly grayish tint. The eyes twinkled, as if he had heard a joke. His glance at Ronicus was supremely contemptuous.
"Ah, General. It is a great pleasure to find you again. I know you go by Master now, but we are all creatures of habit." The voice was elegant, but lacking in respect. "I believe you know why I am here."
"And the answer is the same as it has been all these years. What you want cannot be given to you. Nor will I allow you to take it." The Master's sword glinted.
"There is no need for threats, General. I have no quarrel with you, merely a claim to resolve. An inheritance, if you will. The Lotus Blade is to be mine, along with the last of the Power."
His look at Ronicus, and the Master's efforts to conceal his reaction, made Kim edge closer to her love. The man smirked at the sight of her.
"An Amazon again? You already have an eta." The way he said the word made Yori flinch. "One as exalted as you should really look for a match worthy of his station."
"Always you judge by the outside. Never have you looked deeper. The Power can never again belong to one as unknowing as you, Elefist."
"Lord Elefist, if you please. After all, the title was awarded to me by your Emperor. For services performed under your command. In a campaign that I believe he said would be remembered for a thousand years. I think longer. The Ainu gave you a most memorable name, did they not…Fire Bringer?"
The stranger used words like weapons. This time it was the Master who took the brunt. The students saw this and edged forward, weapons ready. The stranger's men also began to move ahead. Blood would flow soon…
"Enough!" Lord Elefist broke the tension. "You were fools to open the gate, but the stars say that today is a most inauspicious day for battle. Another time, perhaps. Unless you want to settle this properly and let me and the new champion see who is favored by the Power. I am most comfortable with that. If the previous champions could speak with him; they might beg to differ."
The man turned and walked back to his elephant. The trunk lifted him to his tower. She turned, and his warriors parted to allow them to exit. They followed.
"Again, you are right." Yamoro shook his head as the gate was closed. "The nightmare has returned. We must prepare for his assault."
"Or we must leave. Elefist has never cared who was harmed in his battles. We have students, not soldiers. You and Naieshi-sensei will take the younger students immediately. We are prepared, after all. I will retain the senior students as we have discussed."
The man bowed and turned to give orders. Students rushed about, but in complete order. In seemingly no time, they were lined up before the Master. He walked down the lines, placing his hands on the shoulders of each student. Words were exchanged. The Master smiled. Many students cried.
The Master returned to the front of the students. Yamoro and Naisehi stood in front of them. A few wagons waited to go with them.
"Remember all that I have taught you. Recite the five precepts!
"Seek perfection of character!"
"Be Faithful!"
"Endeavor!"
"Respect others!"
"Refrain from violent behavior!"
The Master bowed to them. They bowed deeply in return. Naisehi gave the order, and the School left through the gate. They were at last going home.
A dozen students, Kim and Ronicus turned to face the Master. "We will not stay long ourselves. Elefist may have men watching. He knows that the Lotus Blade is still here. Our comrades will be safe for now. We must make him believe that we are preparing to face him here. Hirotaka, you will organize the watch. There are things I must discuss with our guest, and the Champion."
You're right about that. Kim had seen enough of war to know that soldiers were always the last to know what the sitch was. It was clear that Ronicus was doing more than keeping a sword.
They sat down at the mouth of the cave. Yori went inside, and soon returned with a tea service. Kim watched and followed Ronicus's motions. The ceremony was beautiful, and she admired how well the boy she had seen lose his tunic, stumble and fall, and commit a thousand other sins of clumsiness had progressed.
"He called you 'General'." Kim broke the silence.
"I have been many things in the service of my people." The Master reflected. "Many paths have I traveled, many roles have I played. I hope that General may be one of those largely forgotten, but I fear it may be the one remembered."
"You are an Imperator. Who are the Ainu? An enemy?" Roniucs's curiosity was aroused. He suddenly realized how little the Master had talked about himself in the past weeks.
"They are a savage people. Uncouth, hairy, primitive. Worst of all, they possess lands the Yamatan desire, and refuse to surrender them without a fight." The sarcasm was impossible to miss. "I was sent to deal with a particularly difficult tribe in a valley."
"It was a beautiful valley surrounded by mountains and the sea. Its bay was too narrow for an attack from the sea, and simple fortifications made an assault through the mountains suicidal. Elefist volunteered to lead a diversionary attack, while I took a handful of men over the mountains to attack from the rear."
"I decided to burn the fort. It worked well, until the fire spread. It was a dry summer. The entire valley was destroyed. The Ainu fled not only that valley, but several more as well. We won great lands with little loss to either side. Elefist and everyone else declared it a great victory. But my heart was as blackened as the mountainsides."
"After reporting to the Emperor, I resigned as General, and sought to teach others the Way. Hopefully I have given my students more than skill in weapons."
Both Ronicus and Ruffio looked respectful "You have taught us much more than that. You have given me a whole new way of looking at the world."
The Master's smile was a sad one. "And I have opened a door for you. One that you would never otherwise have entered. One that could lead to your death."
"He spoke of a Power." Kim was anxious to know what the strange man was after. "What is it?"
"There are many Powers." The Master looked at her. "They come from many sources and take many guises. Elefist seeks the greatest and most dangerous. He desires the Power of the Elephant."
"Elephant?!" Ronicus squeaked. "Not the elephant!"
Kim gave the Master a slight smile as she patted Ronicus's knee. "He has a slight issue there."
"Only the kind of issue that comes from being chased by them, then being tied down so they can TRAMPLE you! It could have been the Power of the Lion, the Wolf, the Boar… the Monkey! But noooo, it has to be the Elephant!"
"This Power flows from the Earth. Those who master even a part of it are much feared. Few have mastered it completely. Elefist is close. He would be even more dangerous than the last Master…Iscandar."
"Iscandar?" Kim shook her head.
"My apologies. That is his eastern name. You would know him as Alexander of Macedon, Alexander the Great."
Kim and Ronicus looked at each other. Now they knew exactly what he was talking about. Alexander. The perfect warrior. The invincible General who destroyed all who stood before him. Who was stopped only when his army rebelled at being taken beyond the ends of their world. Whose death was still a mystery, and whose mummified remains were worshipped like a god in Alexandria, guarded by Monique's family.
"He could become another Alexander?" Ronicus asked.
"He would be worse. Alexander had a nobility of spirit, and was tutored by the finest minds of his land. But he never truly learned to govern his passions. The war within between the Power and his own will eventually consumed him. Elefist has complete control of his passions all has been sacrificed in the pursuit of the Power. He would be its perfect vessel."
"I met Elefist during my journeys. He is from the land of the Han. First, he was my student, then a trusted lieutenant." The Master sighed. "I thought he was my friend."
"And perhaps he was, at first. But as he gained more and more of the Power, he had less and less use for my teaching. We parted after I resigned my commission. At first he remained with the Army, but then he began to hunt me. He sought the Lotus Blade, and the final keys to the Power."
"Keys?"
"When Alexander died, the priests in the Land of the Indus took the manifestation of the Power and scattered it to sacred pools. Pools where either the elephant or its kin had walked. By coming into contact with the water, one would gain its power. You, Ronicus, bathed in the last pool before you came to us."
"The water did seem strange. And the dreams I had that night." His face twisted. "Was I dreaming I was an elephant? Disgusting!"
Kim looked at the Master, fighting to control her anger. "You knew Ronicus was coming. You wanted him to bathe there, to gain this Power. Now he could be killed for it."
"It was not I. It was the Blade." The Master reached over to Ronicus and drew the sword. In his hands it took a different design, single edged, slightly curved. "The Blade called us here, and we waited to see who it would summon."
"The Blade is very old. No one knows who made it. Perhaps no one. It has served in many lands, seeking to bring order to chaos. That it why it is here. For all its faults, Rome is a force for Order and Inclusion, something that Carthage can never be."
"So the Power favors Rome?"
For a moment, Kim could see displeasure in the Master's eyes as he looked at the Blade. "It favors harmony. Rome could provide that. Look at how so many who were once its bitter enemies now fight alongside it against Hannibal and his brothers. No other people have ever done so well incorporating others. Had Hannibal suspected this, he might never have invaded Italy."
"But still, the Blade is a weapon. It can be made to serve despite its own wishes. Elefist has much of the Power, and a formidable will. In his hands, the Blade would wither entire nations. The world could be wrecked."
He returned the sword to Ronicus. "Fortunately, it chose someone of great courage and character. Dutiful to his nation, dedicated to his cause, faithful to his Love."
Kim smiled at the last. Is that what the old woman was talking about? I'll speak with Ronicus later.
"What happens now?"
"I cannot divine Elefist's plan. He has a most subtle mind. For tonight at least we will stay here and see if he means to attack and gain the Blade. We need to arrange a place for you, Kimora. Perhaps…"
"Master, I can stay with Yori." Kim saw the girl's face light up at this. "There is much I need to know and I feel she has much to teach me."
"Your Minerva would be proud." The Master's smile was warm. Ronicus and Ruffio also appeared pleased. "For now we will review the defenses, and I will continue to instruct Ronicus. When I told Yamoro-sensei and Naieshi-sensei that there was little time, I did not know how right I was."
Notes
Bene…execellent!
