A Tiger's Call
Part 3 - "A Dagger at the Throat"

By Jannah P.

Nodoka, seated once more on the pallet provided, stared at the girl she had come to consider friend. That sight... She shuddered, her mind unable to relinquish the image of the beaten young man in chains. You weren't supposed to see that. Pale green eyes matched Hualan's nervous pacing, unblinking.

"Hualan..." The dark-haired girl continued her pacing, seemingly oblivious to the other girl in the room. "Hualan, what was that?" Nodoka swallowed the lump which had risen in her throat. Hualan stopped, mid-pace. Her dark eyes found interest in the wall while one hand clenched around the fabric of her clothes. Nodoka swallowed again. "Was that... one of the prisoners you mentioned?"

"Yes." The answer was hardly audible, although Nodoka was certain she had heard it. Or perhaps she heard what she wanted to hear. Hualan's hand tightened, balling into a fist at her side. Her eyes remained fixed on the wall, but her voice gradually grew to a normal volume. "There was a shipwreck a few days ago - three survivors, like I told you. They tried to take advantage of our hospitality." Her dark eyes shone, her eyebrows moving in a sign of anger, even as her voice became quiet once more. "I told you I didn't want to talk about it." Still clenching her fist around the fabric at her thigh, she turned her back to Nodoka. Her last words before leaving the room were a warning if the teenager had ever heard one. Don't try and go in there again. Something just might happen, Nodoka-san. With that, Hualan was gone. For some strange reason, Nodoka had the feeling she wouldn't see Hualan again anytime soon.

Shivering more from fright than anything else, Nodoka wrapped herself in the blankets of her pallet and tried to shake the young man's image from her mind. Every closing of her eyes brought back the tortured look in those dark brown orbs the young man turned to her upon her entrance. She shook her head furiously, drawing the blankets tighter to herself. How was it possible? What could he have possibly done, and what of the other prisoners? What condition could they be in... She drew her knees to her chest unsconciously, wrapping her good arm around them while keeping the other close to her body. I don't want to keep seeing that face, that tortured look..

"Nodoka?" The sudden knock on the door startled her. Of course, the sudden entrance of the dark haired woman from before immediately following the knock startled her even more. The woman raised a slim eyebrow at Nodoka's sitting position, and Nodoka hastily dropped her feet to the floor while tugging her skirt down to cover her legs. The woman nodded absently at these actions, gazing around the room with a specialized eye. Her nose scrunched up at the observation that the only places to sit were stools. For some reason unknown to Nodoka, the woman remained standing in all her finery.

"That's your name, correct?" Her voice held the underlying quality of velvet, a soothing quality utterly lost on Nodoka's current condition. Nodoka nodded wordlessly. "Yes, Hualan told me so. She also mentioned that you happened upon one of our less - hospitable rooms." The woman glanced around the room once more, as if this one was also 'less hospitable.' Her dark eyes finally settled on Nodoka's slim form, still wrapped with the pallet-blankets. Her eyes betrayed her amusement at this, although her actions and voice did not. "I will assure you that what you saw is not the standard with our prisoners. That one - well, that one has proven most difficult." Raising an eyebrow once more, her dark eyes gleamed. "Difficult and rather dangerous. You mustn't get to close to him, of course. It could be most dangerous for your health." She inclined her head towards Nodoka's injured arm, encompassing the girl's bandaged head as well with a hand gesture.

"What did he do, that he is considered so dangerous?"

"Oh, this and that.." The woman's avoidance of the question was oddly suspicious. She grinned slyly, stepping closer so as to lean in for effect. "Murder. He murdered ten of our best warriors upon his arrival. Said all he wanted was some rest, food and shelter, since he was shipwrecked and unaware of where those with him were. We were, of course, happy enough to give him these things and hurry him on his way - we don't quite like having male ruffians about - but he threatened us, killed ten warriors when we tried to stop him. It took twenty more to subdue him. That is, knock him unconscious so we could properly secure him in a dungeon cell. It was a terrible day." She sniffled, dabbing at the corner of her eye with the trim of her sleeve. Her tears vanished in a moment, however, as she straightened in order to complete her original speech. "Which is why we intend to find him as quickly as possible. I have some of my best warriors out searching for hi-"

"Excuse me, but why are they searching for him?" Nodoka's face scrunched up in puzzlement. "He's still right there."

The woman shook her head, chuckling under her breath. "That one has some sort of magic, Nodoka. He can make it seem he is one place when he truly isn't. You probably saw an illusion meant to trick us into believing he is still safely locked away. Now, I intended to meet with you when you were well, and despite the fact that you were out and walking about, you don't look much better than you did when you were brought in. So, rest up and once you are fully recovered, we'll be able to talk about sending you home."

Nodoka's eyes widened at this last part, although they had been gradually widening all during the story concerning the young man. "Sending me home?"

"Why, yes. Hualan tells me you're from Sairou. It's quite a distance, I'll give you that, but we should be able to find a way to get you back. We're always happy to help a fellow woman in distress." The dark-haired woman smiled, although it didn't quite seem as sincere as Nodoka would have thought, took one final glance around the room, and left before any more questions could be asked.

Nodoka sat watching the closed door, her free arm pulling the blankets around her body once more. A murderer... She shuddered. I wouldn't want to be near him. Yet.. I know I saw him there. It was too real to be an illusion. The woman's words echoed through the girl's mind. The murderer was able to create illusions to trick the eyes.

"That was no illusion," Nodoka whispered, the sound of her voice slicing the silence like a knife. "I can't explain it..." She pushed the blankets away from herself, letting them settle on one side of the pallet. "I just know that wasn't an illusion." Five quick steps brought her to the door. Her hand reached out to grasp the thick cord serving as a door handle. It was those eyes. She tugged the door towards her, cringing as the force reverberated through her injured arm. A tall pale-haired woman standing beside the door turned sharply to face Nodoka and effectively block the only pathway out of the room.

"Is there something you'd like me to get you?"

Nodoka blinked, unconsciously taking a step backwards. "I wanted to walk around the building to calm my nerves a bit." The woman's critical stare unnerved the girl, who found herself fidgetting as she waited for a response she believed would be negative.

"It's really not safe for you to be wandering around right now," the woman answered, exactly as Nodoka had suspected she would.

"I-I know. I'm a little jittery, I suppose. Seeing that-" The woman nodded, evidently misinterpretting Nodoka's nervousness. She stepped aside enough to let Nodoka pass, watching the girl with crystal clear eyes. Nodoka bowed upon passing the woman, thanking her in a soft voice.

"Don't let anyone know I was the one who let you past, girl," the woman answered, "but I know what it's like to want to get out for a while. Don't be long, or I'll have to go find you and bring you back." She mumbled something under her breath, then impatiently waved Nodoka away. Nodoka bowed once more, then turned and headed down the familiar hallway. She was certain the pale-haired woman would continue to watch her progress until she was out of sight. Luckily, the hallway bent around a corner before arriving at the iron door.

It was still askew, although it now looked as if someone had started to move it back into place but gave up part-way through. The chill from the dungeon beyond seeped out into the hallway, seeming to form ghostly fingers that beckoned Nodoka to enter before fading into nothingness. She shook her head. Only illusions. Brushing back strands of blood-red hair from her eyes, she stepped towards the door and the image of the battered young man she couldn't seem to shake. The ghostly hands seemed to curl around her feet as she stepped closer to the dungeon beyond, swirling in dust-like eddies that dissipated as soon as she focussed on one.
The room was far colder than it had been. The ghostly hands swirling about her feet dissipated gradually into the floor, as if vaporous dry ice. A non-existant wind blew them in lazy circles as she stepped further beyond the iron door. The cell was the way it had been before. She could see that now, as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. Chains kept the young man in place, his head dejectedly lowered towards the floor. Her steps brought her within a foot of the cell's door. The chains rattled, and the young man looked up through gray-green bangs as Nodoka felt a sudden pressure at her throat.

"Don't move," a deep voice whispered into her ear. Her eyes widened as she sought to get some inclination as to who was behind her. Her gaze fell on the young man, but the cell was empty; ghostly tendrils slithered around and between the chains, which she could now see were lying perfectly still on the ground. She would have laughed aloud had the tip of a dagger not been hovering dangerously close to her throat. So it was all an illusion afterall.

"Start moving towards the door." A hand pressed against the small of Nodoka's back, and she swallowed the rising fear in her throat. Wordlessly, she took a step towards the door, then another. Her eye caught a hint of gold beside the iron door, the stone beneath it darkened. So that's where the dagger came from. She averted her eyes, attempting to calm her stomach as she reached the open doorway. "Don't try anything," the young man whispered, the pressure at her neck never ceasing. The quiet squeak she found herself able to make as way of reply was the only sound her fear would allow.

They moved out into the hallway; he must have looked around, but she couldn't be sure. A nudge in the small of her back started her walking forward. The silence of the hallways was massive, ready to crush the two if they remained in one spot for too long. Her slippered feet were noiseless against the stone floor, as were whatever footwear he was wearing - she couldn't recall if he was wearing any footwear. What a stupid thing to be thinking of.. She felt her eyes welling up with tears at the thought of being killed and dumped in a ditch on some remote island she had never even heard of. How would her family find out? How long would they wait for her to come home until they gave up entirely?

"Drop the weapon, prisoner." Nodoka blinked back her tears, feeling the pressure at the small of her back lessen as the young man turned slightly. The dagger, unfortunately, remained at her throat. The large redhead along with three other women of equal height and build stood further back down the hallway, each carrying a sword or other such sharp weapon. The redhead's weapon was, of course, already in her hand. She repeated her demand.

"Nodoka-san!" The voice was Hualan's, from up ahead. The girl stood in the middle of the hallway, her hands covering her mouth in surprise. Her dark hair fell half across her shoulder, and the young girl she was with had fled in terror at the sight of the captive girl. Hualan took a hesitant step forward, stopped, and stared miserably.

"If no one attempts to stop me, no one will be hurt," the young man called out to the women on both sides of the hallway, his voice loud enough to carry to any others who may be in the vacinity. Ghostly hands curled around his feet and Nodoka's, swirling outwards to reach out for the redhead and her companions on one side, and Hualan on the other. The hands formed into claws which tore upwards, grasping at anything they could touch. Hualan turned and ran without a moment's thought, and the young man lightly shoved Nodoka forwards. Behind them, the redhead swore as the ghostly hands swirled around her and her companions.

The hallway seemed endless - a corridor to the realm of death, with ghostly hands pointing the way.