Fire Escape: The Tale of Mondo

Hanzo would have my head if he knew the truth.

The ninjas are experts at unmasking secrets and going into places that nobody else can. The way of shinobi teaches that "impossible" is a word that "other" people use, whereas it is a disgrace for the ninja to utter. We are not strong, but swift instead--swift, and silent, and very, very lethal. Ninjas can uncover anything, but I thank the Creator of this world that not even Hanzo could unmask my secret. If he did, the worst I could expect was death or expulsion.

You see, several years ago, I was not a ninja. No, I was spending my time elsewhere, in the--get this now--the Scarlet Moon Empire. Yeah, I was one of Barbarossa's lackeys, but if you want to get specific, I worked for Ain Gaide. Anyway, I was one of the better soldiers in Ain's regiment, stationed just outside of Gregminster. Back then, I had heard rumors of the hidden ninja village of Rokakku, but I never thought that it actually existed. Of course, since nobody ever sees a real ninja, how could I know?

Since I was placed in Gregminster, I never really did get a good taste of the war that went on. There were eruptions in Panna Yakuta, Antei, Lorimar, Moravia, you name it--but almost nothing in the capitol. The Liberation Army was either very smart or very cowardly, though I was leaning towards the first option. No army, no matter how powerful they think they are, will have the guts to attack the capitol of an Empire.

When I got word that all five of Barbarossa's Generals had fallen (who knew where the sixth one was, though…), I really started to sweat. If the pillars of a house are toppled, then wouldn't the next objective be the support beam? Since Gregminster was the central nervous system of the Scarlet Moon Empire, it seemed logical that we would be under attack next. To our great disadvantage, the Generals that had held this Empire together were now on the Liberation's side, leaving us with only Ain Gaide, an unreliable man named Yuber, Windy, and the Emperor himself.

I liked those odds.

I liked the way things were going because I was no longer a part of that Empire, like so many others. It had indeed imploded upon itself, and although I wasn't the first one to leave it, I was definitely one of the many who did. See, right around the time when Kwanda Rossman surrendered, I received orders from the Emperor to attack and destroy the hidden village of Rokakku. The ninjas there held no loyalty to either side, but Barbarossa felt that if "Iron Wall" Rossman could change sides, then the ninja might be persuaded as well. Their extremely close proximity to the Empire's capitol city made them all the more a threat.

Ain Gaide led a legion of good troops in the attack, and although the enemy put up a terrific fight, in the end our strength had beaten their stealth. Oh, sure, we lost a lot of really good men, but for the most part, it was a victorious day. I myself was just one of the many men who even helped set fire to the place. Oh, Creator, if Hanzo ever found that out……

Luckily for me, I soon quit the Empire's service after the downfall of Milich and Teo. These two were very solid Generals, my own preference going to Teo, and I figured that if this steamrolling Liberation army could defeat three of the five Generals, then I had better consider whom I owed allegiance to. After all, I was no fanatic, I just liked to be on the winning side (naturally).

So, once Teo fell, I secretly quit the army (to make my disappearance more believable, I volunteered to go on a mission and "died" while on the job). Once I was out, I made a beeline towards the Castle on Toran lake, and I thanked any and all deities that nobody there recognized me. There was an uncomfortable amount of former Imperials there: Kwanda, Milich, Valeria, Alen, Grenseal, Humphrey…… ugh, I could go on forever!

I never contributed that much, and in the final battle, I chose to stay behind as a castle guard (because even though I now hated the Empire, I still liked my commanding officer, who was in Gregminster at the time). I got news of the Army's victory the next day, and of course I celebrated with everyone else. But once things had quieted down, I sailed away and made a path towards Rokakku.

I ended up signing on as one of the people who reconstructed the place, ironically. During this time, Hanzo noted that I had exceptional skills in espionage (hence the reason how I easily left the Empire), and offered me a position as a ninja. To be able to become that which I formerly fought against was a surprising turn of events, but needless to say, I accepted the offer, and three years later, I'm one of the highest-ranking shinobi there are. In fact, I even practice a lot with the second-in-command, Kasumi.

And if you think Hanzo would be mad if he learned that I was responsible for Rokakku's destruction, just think how Kasumi would feel if she learned that I had actually been the assassin that came to kill Lord McDohl!! Oh, I tell you, it's just been one great big leap from the frying pan into the fire for me, and who knows if I'll ever escape this latest blaze!!

The End