Chapter Eleven

Sho heard footsteps approaching his cell, and curled up into a small ball, mentally scolding himself: Silly, silly Sho! You should have taken over your father's business! If you had, you'd be in your bed at home right now, with a hot cup of milk! Then he shook his head furiously, his curls bouncing. Bad, bad Sho! If you had taken over your father's business, you would have never met big sis and have fun with all your friends or live in the palace! I like being a samurai! It's fun, and everyone respects me! Still, he shook like a new-born kitten on the dank floor of his cell. He had been anxious since he had first been locked in here- he was afraid of the dark, and always had a candle burning in his room, to keep the ghosts and monsters away. What if the footsteps he was hearing weren't human ones? What if it was the ghost of Tsunemori palace, like in the stories Shusei always told him about? He clamped his hands over his ears and tried to ignore it.

"Hinakawa…" a voice called. Oh! The ghost knew his name! Kagari always said that if a ghost knew your name, you were destined for death! There it was, calling for him. He could just picture it as he scrunched his eyes up; pale, ghostly fingers extending for him through the bars, a face devoid of eyeballs and a bloodied mouth staring at him.

"No…" he whined.

"Hinakawa!" it repeated again, in a less terrifying voice. Trembling, Sho dared peek through his fringe, trying to be brave like his big brothers and sisters. Right now, Princess Akane was probably facing things worse than ghosts, and they were completely real. When he saw the ghastly spectre he had been so scared of, his face split into a happy smile as he crawled towards the bars. There was no ghost there, but rather, his big sister!

"Nee-nee!" he called happily. "Nee-nee, are you okay?" Akane pressed a finger to her lips, indicating for him to be quiet, and Sho copied her action, a little childishly. "Nee-nee… wha-what are you wearing?"

Akane giggled at his question. "I had to jump a serving girl. I apologised, though, so don't look so sad. I kind of had to lock her in a cupboard…" she rubbed her head sheepishly. "What do you think?"

"Y-You are pretty!" Sho stammered.

"Thank you, Hinakawa," Akane shook her head softly at their exchange, before holding up a key. "Shall we get you out of here?" Sho nodded eagerly, desperately wanting to be free of the horrible cell that was making him fear things that didn't even exist. Once Akane had unlocked the door, he crawled, thanking her as many times as he could.

"N-Nee-nee… my th-thi-things are over there," he pointed to a little cupboard on the wall. "If I-I-I have my sword with me, I can protect you!" Akane smiled and revealed a blade of her own, a thing she'd recovered from her private training room. By now, she was sure Mika had gone to inform Makishima that she had disappeared. "Oh…! Your neck…!"

"It's nothing, Hinakawa, really," she assured him. "Where's Toko-san?" Sho pointed two cells down, and Akane walked briskly to where Toko was peacefully sleeping in a corner of her cell. It was good she dealt with things, Akane thought to herself as she stirred the teenager, and explained the situation. "You two, listen, I need you to do something for me." Both listened intently; Toko was a bit groggy eyed, but she was listening. "Hinakawa, you need to escape the castle immediately and head to where Sasayama is situated. I'd suggest leaving through the kitchen door- it's nearest, and if anyone sees you, you can say you've been assigned to kitchen duties as punishment. When you get to Sasayama, I want you to tell him that the launch has to be now, or as soon as possible. Meanwhile, Toko, I want you to open as many doors and gates as you can- that way, the army will be able to get in quicker. Can you do that for me?" Both nodded.

"Akane-san, what about you? What are you going to do? Are you leaving with Sho-kun?" Toko questioned her.

"No. Makishima told me that Kogami's here," she admitted. "If he's found out about my absence already, then it's likely he's taking his anger out on Kogami. He promised me as such." Her grip tightened around the hilt, her mind running wild with the possibilities of what Makishima could have done to Kogami in the time he'd left her.

"Th-That's dangerous, Nee-nee!" Hinakawa protested, but Akane simply shook her head, and he understood. "Alright. But you better be okay when I come back! Or- Or I'll- I'll… beat you up!" Akane giggled at his threat.

"It's okay, Hinakawa. I'll see you both soon," she was tempted to kiss them on the forehead, but she knew that time was of the essence. The trio ran up the stairs before parting their different ways; Akane took a second to look at their retreating backs, before frowning as she gripped her sword harder. With a slight sinking feeling in her chest, her mind jumped back and forth to where Makishima could be holding Kogami. There was one room in the entire palace that she could think of, and it didn't particularly bode well for Shinya, if that was the case. It was the room Akane had been forbidden from going in by her father, saying that she would never had any reason to enter. However, as a curious child, she and Kagari had gone exploring, and they'd both the paid the price for it. Or at the least, Kagari had. Akane shuddered at the gruesome memory, and pressed on. She was just a serving girl right now, hurrying on her way. The one she'd jumped had cropped dark locks as well, but her eyes were blue, where Akane's were brown. If Akane looked at the floor as she walked, nobody would notice. However, there was always the sword she was carrying that stuck out like a sore thumb. Ah, well, she thought to herself. Whatever happens, happens.

She made sure to avoid anyone who would recognise her right away- namely, Mika and Togane- as she scurried deeper and deeper into the castle's depth. The room was far beneath the dungeon's level, and twice as chilly. Akane decided that once she'd ousted Makishima, all the servants would be given two uniforms, one for the cold and one for the heat- this material was much too thin and did little to shield her from the icy blast. She became absolutely certain she'd unveiled Kogami's location as she got closer and heard grunts of pain and the occasional loud cuss. Between each was a horrible snapping sound, and she knew just what was going on. The door was still open, and she peeked round quickly before retracting to ensure Makishima really was distracted. He had his back to the open door, so she took it as a yes. She stared at the sword in her hand- was it really her place to kill him? Killing seemed wrong, no matter the circumstances behind it.

She cast her eyes around the dank hall and her eyes settled on a rather hefty looking metal bar which was probably used to seal the door before Makishima threw them wide open. As quietly as she could, she placed the sword down and replaced it with the slab. If she had to listen to Makishima's bursts of laughter at Kogami's agony any longer, she really would go insane. She didn't have any time to lose, and she only had one chance to hit Makishima. She had a clear advantage, she thought to herself, trying to calm herself. If her hands were shaking, she couldn't be as accurate.

With a howl of fury, she burst through the doors and swung her makeshift weapon around. Just as Makishima turned around to see the intruder, the cold metal connected with the side of his head, sending him sprawling on the floor. Akane stayed like that for a few moments, the bar raised above her head in case she had to swing it down again, but she had no need to. Makishima stayed frozen on the floor, but his chest rose and fell steadily. She hadn't killed him, which was good.

Before she could lower it again though, a quiet voice next to her grunted: "Kill him." Akane looked warily at Kogami who had mumbled the order, not believing it was really him. "Kill him." Akane cast her eyes down at the hapless man, who couldn't lift a finger to harm her or anyone, or even defend himself. His hand was still loosely holding onto a bloodied whip, and judging by the state of Kogami's back, it was likely his blood that was smeared on it. Akane felt like being sick. Kill him.

Maybe I should. That way he can't hurt anyone, and he can pay for his crimes, but… she thought sadly to herself, before shaking her head. "I can't," she whispered apologetically. "I can't." Maybe she had disappointed Kogami. If that was the case, she would have to deal with it. She would be sad, and it would hurt, but she would not become a murderer; it would go against everything she believed. "Nothing gives me the right to decide when people die." Kogami remained silent as she tried to undo the shackles whilst not looking at his back. Painful scars striped across the skin, bleeding steadily. When Kogami slid to the ground with a groan once they were undone, Akane wasted no time in ripping the long skirts of the servant's skirt to make bandages for Kogami, but they were soaked through instantly, and Akane thought she was going to start sobbing again. "I'm sorry, Kogami." She whimpered as a few stray tears leaked out. "I really am sorry!"

She felt a weight on the top of her head, and saw that Kogami had extended his arm up just to stroke her hair, in that comforting way he always did. "Don't… apologise," he managed to croak out. "I should be the one who's apologising." He closed his eyes, scrunching them up in agony.

"Are you alright?" Akane's worried face peered down at him.

"Heh. I'll live." He sat up painfully. "I could say I've had worse, but not really- I've never had an opponent that could land so many hits on me before. Could you… get my yukata for me?" Akane nodded and ran over, before helping him put in on, not wanting him to re-open any wounds that had started to heal. "Thanks." He glowered at the inanimate form of Shogo Makishima. "What should we do with this bastard?"

"We'll seal him in here for now," Akane spoke confidently and calmly. "The thing I'm hitting him with was meant to bar the doors shut on either side, so we'll do it from the outside." She helped Kogami stagger to his feet, and dragged the bar along the floor, unused to carrying so much weight. Kogami leant against the wall as she slid the bar through the handles. Akane picked up her sword, knowing that in his current state, Kogami was in no way ready for any heavy duty fighting until Shion had tended to his wounds properly. "Can you stand on your own? If we're attacked, I can't support you. Sorry."

"I can walk," he replied. "Let's just get you to safety." His voice seemed breathless and it was then she noticed the slices on his face. "What?"

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sor-" she began, feeling guiltier than she ever had been before.

"Akane." His voice seemed stronger now, but still sad. "You probably just saved my life. He was getting too over-excited, so he probably would have killed me." He cast an eye at the door before grinning. "Also, nice aim."

The fighting had already broken out by the time they reached the main floor, and the only sounds to be heard were ones of anger or agony accompanied by the clanging of hundreds of swords. "We'll get you back to the camp. There'll be somebody who can help you there!" Akane whispered quickly into Shinya's ear. Slowly, they limped around to the deserted kitchens, but Shinya stopped suddenly, before tackling Akane to the floor behind a table. "Kogami! What are you doing?!" she snapped, but her eyes widened as she saw a throwing knife sail over where they'd been. "What was that?" She peered over the edge of their cover and saw Sakuya Togane, a malevolent grin spread on his face.

"I was given some rather strict instructions to not let you escape, Princess."