A Tiger's Call
Part 2 - "Rescue in Nyosei"

By Jannah P.

"I think she's coming to. Jian, bring me some more water, and a few more strips of cloth, if possible."

Something cold made contact with Nodoka's forehead and she shrugged it off. This elicited a positive reaction from the group surrounding her. Someone ordered quiet, although the demand was ignored. Nodoka slowly opened her eyes, blinking several times to adjust to the sudden light. She was lying down amidst several bedsheets on some sort of pallet. Gathered around her were three young women, at least one around her own age, and a middle-aged woman with a basin of water balanced in her lap. The middle-aged woman smiled warmly as Nodoka turned her head to survey her surroundings. The room was plain, and the walls looked wooden. The group of women surrounding her were all garbed in elaborate costumes out of some movie set in Ancient China.

"What happened?" Nodoka asked quietly, pale green eyes watching the middle-aged woman intently. Her attempt to sit up was met with a sharp pain running up her right arm. With an exclamation of pain, she sank back down onto the pallet. "What is this place?"

"We were hoping you could tell us how you wound up here," the middle-aged woman answered calmly, setting the water basin on the floor. "Leyi discovered you about a half day's walk from our gates during one of her patrols, and -"

"You were in really bad shape! Leyi brought you back here, and Miss Dailin patched you all up!"

"Hush. Let me finish." The woman identified as 'Miss Dailin' touched the back of her hand to Nodoka's forehead, then stood with a satisfied nod. "Don't try and move around too much, dear. Your arm was pretty badly injured - your head, too." She reached down and retrieved the water basin from its place on the floor; looking at Nodoka's puzzled face, she smiled warmly. "This is Nyosei, dear. I can't really say how you wound up here. My best bet.." She adjusted the position of the water basin in her arms, and a dark-haired girl moved to help her with it. "Thank you, Hualan. Now, as I was saying - my best guess as to your arrival is a shipwreck in that storm we had yesterday." She sighed. "Get some rest. Musu-sama will want to meet you. Until you feel well enough to meet her, you may remain here. Leyi will watch after you." Miss Dailin smiled once more, then left the room quietly. Two of the girls followed her, but the third remained.

The girl identified as Leyi seated herself on a stool in the corner of the room. She kicked one foot in the air, impatiently tapping a steady and silent rhythm. Her silvery eyes remained fixed on Nodoka throughout, and Nodoka found herself staring at the ceiling just to avoid the girl's unnerving gaze. She wished desperately to be able to get out of bed; as if in answer to her wish, her arm throbbed lightly. The sheer silence permeating the room and those around it sent a shiver down Nodoka's spine.

"Miss Lady alright?" Leyi questioned suddenly, placing both feet on the floor in anticipation of Nodoka's response.

"I'm fine," Nodoka answered, wincing as she turned her head to look over at the girl. "Nyosei.. I've never heard of that before. Is it in Japan?"

"Japan?" Leyi blinked several times. "Leyi doesn't think so. Nyosei is -" Here she stood, laughing. "Nyosei is in the east." She pointed to one of the walls extravantly. "East of Konan, and east of Kutou." She pointed to the opposite wall. "West of Sairou and Hokkan."

Nodoka sighed again, far more confused than before. She assumed that 'Konan,' 'Kutou,' 'Sairou' and 'Hokkan' were places as well, but the names were unfamiliar to her ears. She decided to try a different tactic. "What is Nyosei?"

"Nyosei."

"That's right. What is it?"

"Nyosei is... Nyosei!"

Nodoka leaned her head against the pallet's pillow. This line of questioning was getting her nowhere. A female voice called from the hallway, barely audible at first. It grew in volume until its owner was undoubtedly on the other side of the door. The door creaked open, and a girl Nodoka's age stuck her head in. Her eyes swept the room in an instant, taking in Nodoka's seeming frustration and Leyi's bouncing foot. Pushing the door open farther, she bent over and whispered in Leyi's ear. The seated girl jumped up happily, grabbed the newcomer in a bear hug, and leapt out the door without even a goodbye. The second girl leaned her head out the door, watching Leyi's progress down the hallway. After a short time, she closed the door and seated herself on the stood beside the bed which Miss Dailin had vacated. She waited a few more moments before adressing the bedridden girl.

"Sorry for that. I think Miss Dailin is becoming senile, to leave someone like Leyi with a sick girl." She smiled at Nodoka, brushing stray locks of dark hair away from her eyes. "I figured having a more intelligent companion would serve you well, for a while." She leaned forward slightly. "How did you wind up on Nyosei? It's a long distance from the other kingdoms, and you don't look like a sailor."

"I - " Nodoka paused. "It's all a bit fuzzy. I remember going to the library for work, as usual. There was something about a book. A book and a tiger." She shook her head, which elicited another wince. "All I remember after that is sands and a sharp pain in the back of my head."

The girl leaned on her intertwined hands, dark eyes twinkling as she watched Nodoka. "The tiger is the animal representation of the country of Sairou, to the east. You must be from Sairou, then." She laughed, her voice the sound of chiming bells. "A ship from Sairou crashed on our shores a few days ago. There weren't many survivors - we picked up about three. You must have been on that ship as well. It makes sense." All of a sudden, the girl stuck out her hand, nearly jabbing Nodoka in the face. "I'm Hualan."

Nodoka blinked at the sudden movement, then gingerly moved her free arm to shake Hualan's hand. "Nodoka." She struggled to sit up, wincing at the pain lancing up her injured arm due to the pressure. Hualan wordlessly offered support, and Nodoka smiled gratefully as she succeeded in sitting up. The room and the hallway beyond were still quiet. Nodoka opened her mouth to ask about it, but Hualan's attention was turned to the firmly closed door. A faint deep voice could be heard in the distance, only a few words audible to the girls' ears. The voice was followed by a second, of higher pitch, and a third with the sound of velvet.

Nodoka strained to hear the conversation between the three, leaning forward on the pallet. Her free hand unconsciously tightened on her blankets. The velvet voice laughed deeply and said something, which was followed by a loud crack. The second, higher pitched voice, added something, but the first voice said nothing. A door slammed somewhere in the building, and heavy footsteps passed by the door to Nodoka's room moments later. The velvet voice was speaking again, happily. Hualan's dark hair fell across her shoulder, her dark eyes still turned to the door.

"Hualan-san, what was that?"

"N-nothing." Hualan turned back to Nodoka, her hands tightening on the fabric of her clothes. "Just some trouble with one of the- prisoners." She avoided Nodoka's eyes, gazing at the hands folded neatly in her lap instead. Nodoka watched the door, her eyes unwavering.

"Prisoners?"

"From a shipwreck," Hualan answered, standing up without giving Nodoka a second glance. "I really don't want to speak about it, Nodoka-san. Excuse me." Turning her back on the startled bedridden girl, Hualan moved to the door and left without another sound. She carefully closed it behind her. Nodoka, still sitting up, blinked. A shipwreck? Prisoners? Why would Hualan not want to speak about it? Nodoka reached across her body, gingerly avoiding contact with her bandaged arm. Slowly, she pulled the covers away from her body, keeping her injured arm as close to herself as possible. She winced at every slight touch to her wounded arm. Swinging her feet around, she noted the absence of her shoes. Looking down, she discovered a pair of soft slippers beside her pallet. She slid her feet into them, although still wondering where her shoes were.

Carefully, she leaned against the pallet with her free arm and stood on shaky feet. The slippers helped to cushion her feet, but she wondered how far she would be able to get with her injuries and lack of knowledge about her current location. She moved her hand away from the pallet in an attempt to stand on her own. It took several minutes before she felt secure with her still-shaky legs. Taking a deep breath, she stepped forward. Her slippers against the wooden floor sounded as loud as a cannon to her ears. She inhaled sharply, hoping no one could hear her movements. Afterall, she didn't want them to think she was well enough to go wandering.
Nodoka exhaled slowly, making her way to the door. Silence seeped through the door and walls from the hallway as she reached out to pull the door inwards. It opened silently, as if aware of her intentions and need for quiet. She slipped through, closing the door behind her. It touched her injured arm ever so slightly before closing, and she found herself biting her lip to prevent from crying out. The pain racing along her arm subsided to a dull throb, and she continued on her way down the hallway. It was uncannily empty. Her mind recalled the direction from which the voices had come. West. Then down somewhat. That seemed about right.
Her steps brought her to an iron door half-askew. Her attempts to pull it open farther were futile; she simply didn't have the strength. She found she couldn't fit through the existing opening, but was certain the voices had come from the room beyond. Familiar voices further down the hallway startled her. Her eyes frantically searched for a temporary hiding place. She settled on the room across the way, praying it to be unoccupied. The footsteps halted beside the askew door. The iron door was moved, and the high-pitched voice from before swore.
Nodoka opened the door to her room a crack, pale green eyes recognizing the figure of Hualan. The two other women with her were unknown to Nodoka. One carried herself like a warrior, with flaming red hair exploding about her face. Her garb was less decorative than the clothes of the other two and fit tightly to her well-endowed body. She towered over the other stranger, who was just barely two inches taller than Hualan. The second stranger's black hair obscured Nodoka's vision of her face, hanging down the woman's back to taper off below the waist. Portions of her hair formed loops on the top of her head, and a golden crown kept them in that position. Her outfit was far more elaborate than anyone else's that Nodoka had seen, trailing on the floor behind her. Behind the two, Hualan looked small and uncomfortable.

"Calm down, Daoji. He couldn't have gotten far," the velvet-voice belonging to the dark-haired woman whispered silkily. "We made certain he would have a hard time if he attempted to escape." She laughed gaily.

"Of course, Musu-sama," the redhead replied, although her face said otherwise. "We'll begin searching for the prisoner immediately."

"Do that, won't you?" The velvet-voiced woman turned to Hualan. "Come, child. There are preparations to be made." The redhead bowed and left in the opposite direction.

"Yes, mother." Hualan and the velvet-voiced woman turned and proceeded back down the hallway in the direction they had come. Nodoka waited several breathless moments after both sets of footsteps had faded away in either direction before creeping out of the room. From beyond the iron door, she heard heavy gasping. Curious, she noted that the redheaded woman had actually pushed the door open further. Making certain to hold her injured arm close to her body to avoid any accidents, she stepped through the open doorway. The space beyond was dark and filled with a musky odor. She squinted to make out the source of the heavy breathing and took several more steps into the 'room.'

Her eyes adjusted to the dim light after a few moments, enabling her to see that what lay beyond the iron door was no room at all; it was a dungeon of some sort. She was currently in a chilly hallway, with an emphasis on chilly. She absently tugged her skirt down slightly in an attempt to ward off the cold. Chains rattled nearby, drawing her attention to the sudden sound. A barred cell stood to her right. Inside was a figure kneeling on the floor, arms held against the wall by chains. As if sensing her gaze, the figure looked up through thick gray-green bangs.
Nodoka inhaled sharply. The figure was a young man, hardly a few years older than herself. His dark green eyes seemed glazed, and his left cheek was covered in a red mark the size of a woman's hand. A wound over his right eye mingled blood with his hair. His clothes were foreign as well - unlike the costumes of the women Nodoka had met. Or rather, what remained of his clothes was foreign. The top half of his outfit was badly torn; the skin beneath was covered in thick welts and various bloody wounds. The young man gasped for air once more, and the faintest of white glimmers seemed to fade away just below his left shoulder. Nodoka blinked, and it was gone. Shaking her head in disbelief, she took a step backwards.

"N-no.." She took another step backwards, her eyes still locked on the pitiful form before her. A voice called out her name from somewhere behind her; her mouth continued to silently form the word 'no.' Slim hands gripped her shoulders.

"Nodoka-san.." Hualan wrapped an arm around Nodoka's shoulders, leading her somewhat forcefully away from the dungeon-hallway. The heavy iron door remained askew behind them, but now Nodoka's gasping breaths drowned out any sounds from behind them. "Nodoka-san..." Hualan's voice was softer than before, more sympathetic. "You weren't supposed to see that."

Nodoka had no reply.