Chapter 13: The true ambush
The creatures move in towards the carriage, holding their weapons menacingly before them. The first attack failed, as the defenders reacted quicker than they were expected to. Now, as the second attack approaches, the beasts out number the defenders six to one. The sneer on the wretched faces of each shows that they believe they have the advantage. Their inhuman growls send shivers through Megumi, as she watches them moving into the clearing.
As they rush in to attack, Kenshin slips to the side, delivering the blunt edge of his sakabatou to the ribs of the first monstrosity, then its fuchi kashira to the jaw of the next, staggering both. Yahiko defends against the rapid, yet unskilled, attacks of one with a tanto with ease. A quick thrust of his shinai smashes the creatures jaw, removing it from the battle. Kaoru strikes hard and fast against the first creature that approaches her, putting it quickly on the defensive, unable to counter, until, finally, Kaoru's bokken smashes hard against the beasts wrist, breaking it. Sanosuke throws the weird sword that he had taken from a creature earlier at the next one to come to close. Striking blade first, it carves a shallow wound in its chest, causing the beast to hesitate for just a moment. That moment is all Sanosuke needs, as his fist smashes its nose and rending it unconscious. Tengoku moves his sword in short, sure motions as he severs several small, but vital muscles in the creatures arms each time it attacks. By the time it realizes what is being done, it can no longer move it's sword arm to defend itself and Tengoku runs it through with ease.
All of this happens in the matter of seconds, causing the creatures that had not yet reached the defenders to slow their assault. Holding a cautious distance, they wait for the rest of the force to reach them.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Not far from the carriage, Tejina-shi glides down, landing softly, then folds his wings under his course green cloak. Crouching low and drawing his katars, the strange knives of his, he waits for the signal from the others. To his left, forty feet in front of him, he sees the signal from Shudoshi telling him that the monk is ready. To his right, sixty feet before him, Yoake gives the same signal. The three, in unison, come from their hiding places, charging the center. The surprised creatures in the center, back up for the ones attacking the carriage, come from their hiding places with in the field in an attempt to defend themselves.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
At the carriage, the sudden war cry from the right brings a snarl of superiority from the beasts, until the ring of metal on metal reaches their ears, telling them that their aid would not be coming from that side. Nervous glances are exchanged among the creatures as a gout of flame erupting suddenly confirms their fears. Their commander merely shrugs, a smirk on his face showing it has one more trick. Grabbing a whistle from it's belt, it puts it to its lips, puffing hard.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A shrill note sounds through out the woods. At the signal, tall creatures rise from the high grass. Their long, thin legs end in three-toed feet, their arms in wide, powerful hands with sharp claws. Their rough hide is mottled green and gray. A writhing, hair-like mass protrudes from the top of their skull, greenish black in colour. Their eyes sink deep into their skulls, giving them the appearance of having none in dim light.
They begin to move towards the carriage, walking upright, but with the forward hunch of sagged shoulders. Their gait is uneven and awkward looking. Looks, though, can be deceiving.
"Oi, kappa." a voice says, soft yet threatening.
The creatures come to a halt, seeing a small, darkly cloaked figure emerge from the shadows. Drawing his sharply curved blade, a dark smile reaches Taiyoryu's lips as he stalks in.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The cries of pain from their left tell the creatures facing the defenders that they were suddenly quite alone. The glances shared between them tells the defenders that the attacking monsters had just lost their courage with their back up.
A laugh erupts from Tengoku, echoing throughout the clearing. "Okay, Kenshin-Gumi," he yells, hoping it means the same in their language as it does where he's from, "Play time's over. Take them down!"
"Like we have to be told!" Yahiko yells as he charges in, beating one beasts mallet to the side, then smashing it across the neck on the return swing. A loud crack resonates as the beasts head lolls to the side impossibly. Yahiko staggers back, inspecting his shinai. "That had to be the shinai cracking.." he mutters to himself.
Sanosuke swings the club he had taken from one beast fallen next to him in an upward motion, striking the jaw of one of the monsters as it staggered in unsure of itself. Even as it falls backward, another takes its place, only to be beaten over the head as Sano brings the club back down.
Kaoru slips to the side, bringing her bokken hard against the ribs of on creature, then coming back and striking it's back. "Kamiya Kasshin Ryu, Kami Okotta Kobushi!" she yells as the strike hits.
Kenshin ducks away from a naginata, the blade missing his head by a hairs breath. Instantly, he reverses his direction, moving back in as soon as the blade was past, sakabatou leading the way. One deft turn of the wrist and the back of the sword meets the wood handle of the pole-arm, slicing it cleanly in two. Allowing his momentum to carry through, he snaps the front of the blade to the beasts chin.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bolts of energy leave his fingers as Tejina-shi aims his hands at one of the creatures. The bolts of strange energy strike against the chest of a beast, dropping it instantly. Moving his arms in flowing gestures, a ghostly hand appears before him, them moves towards the creatures, grabbing one and squeezing it until it dies, crushed.
Across the clearing, Shudoshi grabs a handful of seeds from a tree's frozen fruit, smashed under his feet. Muttering quietly, he casts the seeds at three of the creatures not far from him. Landing at their feet, he mutters once more and the seeds erupt burst into flame. The three unfortunate creatures find themselves burning mercilessly.
Yoake's sword drips with the blood of the beasts as she feels the sting of several minor cuts. Her breathing, though, is steady, her eyes focused, as she senses movement to her right. A vicious slash removes a leg, just below the knee cap. As the beast falls, screaming in pain, Yoake stands over it. With out so much as a word, she thrusts the tip of her double sided blade through the back of its head.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The battle at the carriage ends as Kenshin blocks the downward arc of a strange looking short sword, then returns the attack, striking the creature at the head.
"Oi!" Tengoku yells, "Is everyone okay?"
"Aa." Sano says, coming to stand next to Kenshin and Kaoru. The battle to their right was over and the three seishin involved walk into view.
"What a mess." Yoake says, looking at the carnage wrought by Kenshin and the others. He attention seems to fall to the back of the cart, where Yahiko still stands, staring down at the creatures. "What's wrong with Yahiko? Was this is first battle?"
"Iie." Kaoru says, worried suddenly, as she runs over to his side.
The sounds of battle still rage to the left of the carriage. "He's still fighting over there?" Yoake asks.
"So it seems." Shudoshi says. "He must be getting old."
"Aren't you going to help him?" Meiyomi asks from the top of the carriage.
The three look at each other, hesitant. "I'm not getting in his way." Yoake says finally.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Meiyomi couldn't believe she just heard his own daughter refuse to help him. Jumping down from the carriage, she runs through the woods the short distance to the edge of the clearing where Taiyoryu stands fighting the strange creatures. She freezes at the edge, terrified by what she sees.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Oi, Yahiko-chan." Kaoru says softly as she approaches the young warrior. After everything that he's been through, she thinks, I can't believe that this bothers him that much.
Yahiko doesn't look up at her call. He can feel her standing next to him as he stares down at a creature that he had defeated not long ago.
"Kaoru-san." he says softly, taking Kaoru by surprise with his respectful tone. "I thought I broke my shinai during the fight."
Kaoru gets a confused look on her face. They had broken shinai and bokken during fights before. In fact, she had broken one over Sanosuke's head the day he told her that Kenshin was leaving to prepare to fight Udoh Jinei.
"It.." Yahiko stops.
Kami... It sounds like he's about to cry. Kaoru thinks to herself.
"It wasn't the shinai." he says finally. "I killed it Kaoru."
The creatures move in towards the carriage, holding their weapons menacingly before them. The first attack failed, as the defenders reacted quicker than they were expected to. Now, as the second attack approaches, the beasts out number the defenders six to one. The sneer on the wretched faces of each shows that they believe they have the advantage. Their inhuman growls send shivers through Megumi, as she watches them moving into the clearing.
As they rush in to attack, Kenshin slips to the side, delivering the blunt edge of his sakabatou to the ribs of the first monstrosity, then its fuchi kashira to the jaw of the next, staggering both. Yahiko defends against the rapid, yet unskilled, attacks of one with a tanto with ease. A quick thrust of his shinai smashes the creatures jaw, removing it from the battle. Kaoru strikes hard and fast against the first creature that approaches her, putting it quickly on the defensive, unable to counter, until, finally, Kaoru's bokken smashes hard against the beasts wrist, breaking it. Sanosuke throws the weird sword that he had taken from a creature earlier at the next one to come to close. Striking blade first, it carves a shallow wound in its chest, causing the beast to hesitate for just a moment. That moment is all Sanosuke needs, as his fist smashes its nose and rending it unconscious. Tengoku moves his sword in short, sure motions as he severs several small, but vital muscles in the creatures arms each time it attacks. By the time it realizes what is being done, it can no longer move it's sword arm to defend itself and Tengoku runs it through with ease.
All of this happens in the matter of seconds, causing the creatures that had not yet reached the defenders to slow their assault. Holding a cautious distance, they wait for the rest of the force to reach them.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Not far from the carriage, Tejina-shi glides down, landing softly, then folds his wings under his course green cloak. Crouching low and drawing his katars, the strange knives of his, he waits for the signal from the others. To his left, forty feet in front of him, he sees the signal from Shudoshi telling him that the monk is ready. To his right, sixty feet before him, Yoake gives the same signal. The three, in unison, come from their hiding places, charging the center. The surprised creatures in the center, back up for the ones attacking the carriage, come from their hiding places with in the field in an attempt to defend themselves.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
At the carriage, the sudden war cry from the right brings a snarl of superiority from the beasts, until the ring of metal on metal reaches their ears, telling them that their aid would not be coming from that side. Nervous glances are exchanged among the creatures as a gout of flame erupting suddenly confirms their fears. Their commander merely shrugs, a smirk on his face showing it has one more trick. Grabbing a whistle from it's belt, it puts it to its lips, puffing hard.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A shrill note sounds through out the woods. At the signal, tall creatures rise from the high grass. Their long, thin legs end in three-toed feet, their arms in wide, powerful hands with sharp claws. Their rough hide is mottled green and gray. A writhing, hair-like mass protrudes from the top of their skull, greenish black in colour. Their eyes sink deep into their skulls, giving them the appearance of having none in dim light.
They begin to move towards the carriage, walking upright, but with the forward hunch of sagged shoulders. Their gait is uneven and awkward looking. Looks, though, can be deceiving.
"Oi, kappa." a voice says, soft yet threatening.
The creatures come to a halt, seeing a small, darkly cloaked figure emerge from the shadows. Drawing his sharply curved blade, a dark smile reaches Taiyoryu's lips as he stalks in.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The cries of pain from their left tell the creatures facing the defenders that they were suddenly quite alone. The glances shared between them tells the defenders that the attacking monsters had just lost their courage with their back up.
A laugh erupts from Tengoku, echoing throughout the clearing. "Okay, Kenshin-Gumi," he yells, hoping it means the same in their language as it does where he's from, "Play time's over. Take them down!"
"Like we have to be told!" Yahiko yells as he charges in, beating one beasts mallet to the side, then smashing it across the neck on the return swing. A loud crack resonates as the beasts head lolls to the side impossibly. Yahiko staggers back, inspecting his shinai. "That had to be the shinai cracking.." he mutters to himself.
Sanosuke swings the club he had taken from one beast fallen next to him in an upward motion, striking the jaw of one of the monsters as it staggered in unsure of itself. Even as it falls backward, another takes its place, only to be beaten over the head as Sano brings the club back down.
Kaoru slips to the side, bringing her bokken hard against the ribs of on creature, then coming back and striking it's back. "Kamiya Kasshin Ryu, Kami Okotta Kobushi!" she yells as the strike hits.
Kenshin ducks away from a naginata, the blade missing his head by a hairs breath. Instantly, he reverses his direction, moving back in as soon as the blade was past, sakabatou leading the way. One deft turn of the wrist and the back of the sword meets the wood handle of the pole-arm, slicing it cleanly in two. Allowing his momentum to carry through, he snaps the front of the blade to the beasts chin.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bolts of energy leave his fingers as Tejina-shi aims his hands at one of the creatures. The bolts of strange energy strike against the chest of a beast, dropping it instantly. Moving his arms in flowing gestures, a ghostly hand appears before him, them moves towards the creatures, grabbing one and squeezing it until it dies, crushed.
Across the clearing, Shudoshi grabs a handful of seeds from a tree's frozen fruit, smashed under his feet. Muttering quietly, he casts the seeds at three of the creatures not far from him. Landing at their feet, he mutters once more and the seeds erupt burst into flame. The three unfortunate creatures find themselves burning mercilessly.
Yoake's sword drips with the blood of the beasts as she feels the sting of several minor cuts. Her breathing, though, is steady, her eyes focused, as she senses movement to her right. A vicious slash removes a leg, just below the knee cap. As the beast falls, screaming in pain, Yoake stands over it. With out so much as a word, she thrusts the tip of her double sided blade through the back of its head.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The battle at the carriage ends as Kenshin blocks the downward arc of a strange looking short sword, then returns the attack, striking the creature at the head.
"Oi!" Tengoku yells, "Is everyone okay?"
"Aa." Sano says, coming to stand next to Kenshin and Kaoru. The battle to their right was over and the three seishin involved walk into view.
"What a mess." Yoake says, looking at the carnage wrought by Kenshin and the others. He attention seems to fall to the back of the cart, where Yahiko still stands, staring down at the creatures. "What's wrong with Yahiko? Was this is first battle?"
"Iie." Kaoru says, worried suddenly, as she runs over to his side.
The sounds of battle still rage to the left of the carriage. "He's still fighting over there?" Yoake asks.
"So it seems." Shudoshi says. "He must be getting old."
"Aren't you going to help him?" Meiyomi asks from the top of the carriage.
The three look at each other, hesitant. "I'm not getting in his way." Yoake says finally.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Meiyomi couldn't believe she just heard his own daughter refuse to help him. Jumping down from the carriage, she runs through the woods the short distance to the edge of the clearing where Taiyoryu stands fighting the strange creatures. She freezes at the edge, terrified by what she sees.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Oi, Yahiko-chan." Kaoru says softly as she approaches the young warrior. After everything that he's been through, she thinks, I can't believe that this bothers him that much.
Yahiko doesn't look up at her call. He can feel her standing next to him as he stares down at a creature that he had defeated not long ago.
"Kaoru-san." he says softly, taking Kaoru by surprise with his respectful tone. "I thought I broke my shinai during the fight."
Kaoru gets a confused look on her face. They had broken shinai and bokken during fights before. In fact, she had broken one over Sanosuke's head the day he told her that Kenshin was leaving to prepare to fight Udoh Jinei.
"It.." Yahiko stops.
Kami... It sounds like he's about to cry. Kaoru thinks to herself.
"It wasn't the shinai." he says finally. "I killed it Kaoru."