Falina's sudden outburst took General Keiichi by surprise. As the armored Aronian-supporter blinked up at the group atop the wall two people took grabbed their best chances. Ocha burst out from the supply tent where she had been hiding and snatched Kiisan away from the immediate danger. And before either Kiisan and General Keiichi could react to Ocha's movement Sasshalai squeezed his tiny hands free from the ropes that bound them and called out, "Earth Rune! Gather the power of the spirits! Become a path that will shield my friends!"
Falina stared down at the spot where Kiisan had just been standing in shock. The ground had seemed to open up beneath him, swallowing the three rebels, and then close up as if nothing had happened, leaving no trace of the disturbance. She closed her eyes and shook her head, before looking back to the general. How could they have just disappeared like that? Where was Kiisan now? She grasped Han Li's arm tightly, disregarding the layer of dust that seemed to have settled on him in the few windless moments they had stood on the wall. "Mr. Han, where did Kiisan go?" the girl murmured desperately.
"Turan Magno!" yelled General Keiichi angrily from below the wall; "Your tricks will cause this city's destruction to be multiplied! We will wipe you off the map!" The turan sighed, "You leave me with no choice. We will resist until we breathe our last! Tell your Imperial masters that, traitor!" Sheathing his sword, General Keiichi T'Rumor turned and pushed through the assembled troops to consult with his strategists. As the rest of the Imperial soldiers returned to their previous tasks Captain Hai-Yong moved to the spot where Kiisan, Ocha, and Sasshalai had vanished. He knelt down and felt the earth beneath his hands. It felt solid enough. The tiny strands of grass that had not yet been crushed by soldier's boots also seemed entirely normal. He sniffed the air and found nothing even as suspicious as smoke lingering in the atmosphere. The red-haired man had never been much of a believer in magic, but this was obviously not the work of anything normal or natural. He sat back and scratched his head in disbelief, "Has to have been a trick- right?"
As Captain Hai-Yong searched for a final shred of the captives Falina, Carlos, and Han Li followed the turan around the edge of the wall dejectedly. Although Kiisan had escaped his execution they had no way of knowing where he would turn up again or even if he was still on the continent. Falina asked Han Li about the spell the little boy had used, but he seemed unwilling to discuss it, so she quickly dropped the subject. They rounded the corner of the wall, and just after the turan entered the government building a familiar voice called out to them, "Hey! Falina! Wait for me!"
Kiisan ran up the steps towards them as fast as his long robes would allow, his hat bouncing up and down on his head and his staff clacking against the stone, "I'm here! I'm here, Falina! I'm back!"
Murasaki Fuji no Shita ni Kuni
"The Country Under the Purple Wisteria"
Chapter 15- The One Who Would Lead the Revolution...
Falina rushed over to Kiisan and threw her arms around him. "I was so scared! I thought they were going to kill you and it would all be over and I would be all alone! Kiisan! Kiisan, I don't know what I would do if you were gone!" The young priest put his free arm around his friend and tried to keep the relief of safety and joy of reunion out of his voice, "Yeah, well, you don't need to worry about that now. I'm back and we'll be okay. No worries Falina..." His friend's ebony tresses shone in the sun as she tossed her head back happily and laughed, tears sliding down her cheeks. "Don't ever do that again Kiisan! I won't forgive you next time!" Kiisan shook his head sadly, "I won't...I promise..." He looked away from Falina upon feeling a slight tug on his sleeve. Sasshalai smirked, his bright eyes sparkling, "Why don't you tell her how happy you are to see her, Big Brother?" Kiisan shoved the tiny child playfully, "Oh, you just keep your mouth shut!"
Falina smiled at Sasshalai cheerfully, "Okay Kiisan, I already met Hyoko and Hittoko, since they showed up here, but I see you met some other people while we weren't with you. Why don't you introduce us?" Father Carlos nodded his approval of this idea and Han Li took the opportunity to look carefully at Ocha's wand. The mysterious man brushed some dust from his shoulders and bowed deeply, "A pleasure to meet you Madame Time Mage. If there is anything a lowly person such as me can do to assist you, just ask." Ocha laughed loudly and stepped away from the cloaked man. "Please don't talk to me like that. I'm just a normal person," she reprimanded him energetically, "...I mean...well, you understand!" Kiisan gestured to Han Li with his staff while looking at Ocha and Sasshalai; "This is Han Li who helped me find the Circle Rune. My friend's name is Falina. We come from the same village. And my other friend standing back here there is Father Carlos."
Ocha grinned widely, displaying her pearly teeth; "I'm Ocha. Father Kiisan here is going to help me get home." Those who had been already introduced acknowledged her politely; Father Carlos mentioned something about how helpful Kiisan was always trying to be and Falina shaking Ocha's hand. Kiisan pulled Sasshalai closer to him and with a hand set on the child's head, trying not to crush the garland of dandelions, explained, "This is Sasshalai. When I stopped in Klikk his father-" Han Li cut Kiisan off rather suddenly, finishing the introduction, "Master Matataki sent him off with you. He is a mind reader and he also bears a True Rune. ...one that I don't get along well with." "Hmm?" questioned Kiisan, looking down into Sasshalai's miss-matched eyes, "True Rune? Do you really? ...I mean, I thought something had to be up when you moved us into the city like that, but, well, I wouldn't have guessed that..." The tan boy did not avoid Kiisan's curious stare. "It was supposed to be a secret. I wasn't supposed to use its power in front of you, but..." "Yes?" questioned Han Li, suspiciously. "I didn't want you to get hurt, Big Brother!" squeaked Sasshalai, as he ducked behind Kiisan, out of Han Li's icy gaze, "...he scares me..."
Kiisan looked back up at Han Li, "Cut it out...why don't you just leave Sassha alone?" It was more of a suggestion than a question. The older man put his hands into the pockets in his cloak and turned away. "Nice to meet you Sasa...Sasshara...I...um..." mumbled Father Carlos, stumbling over the boy's name, "I just can't seem to say it right, sorry." Sasshalai looked at the priest optimistically, "That's okay. It doesn't bother me. Say what you can." Kiisan laughed a little at Carlos' pronunciation, "It must be your accent...don't you come from the state of Failon? That's really far to the west..." Carlos nodded, "Yes, I'm from Failon. ...Alright then Sasa! And Kiisan... we'd better hurry in and let the turan see that you're back."
********
Turan Magno appeared considerably less happy about Kiisan's return than Falina believed he should be. Kiisan was, after all, the one who had traveled to Crystal Valley and Crona City, becoming a priest, and spreading the anti-Aronian sentiment despite the threats to his own life. The turan just sat in his office and gave orders like some sort of old dictator. Upon returning to Serif City, Falina had been disappointed to hear that Medina had not even been admonished for burning Finnel Village and other border hamlets. The turan had only requested that they refrain from further attacks while they fought against the central government together. Falina was not asking for them to rebuild the village or replant the crops. All she wanted was an official "I'm sorry" message from the leader of Medina. The way Turan Magno had been speaking of Kiisan also upset her. The more states that came to openly support the revolution the more the turan credited himself. It had been his notion, but Kiisan was never so much as mentioned. It should at least be an equal thing she felt.
After Kiisan met with Turan Magno and discussed the current situation about having an Imperial Battalion sitting on their doorstep and other such matters the leader of the state summoned his original agents into his office, leaving the remaining revolutionaries to ponder what the proceedings within might be. Kiisan attempted to relate his whole experience away from the group to Falina, Carlos, and Russ, but his storytelling skills were somewhat lacking due to how tired he was growing from the long, strenuous day he had endured.
Following the secret meeting the companions ate together in the large hall rather casually. Falina and Hyoko had taken over the kitchen from the usual cook to make something special for Kiisan's return. Even Yuber was convinced to try the meal and he told Falina that he was "really impressed" and thought it was "a nice change of pace" to the great surprise of everyone who overheard him. That evening the turan paid for lodgings at the inn for Kiisan and all his companions, except for Rizu and Junsuke who had a place to stay in the barracks behind the government building. Kiisan failed to notice the odd whispering between Lucien, Louis Abdul, and Sonoa before he fell asleep that night.
Han Li, however, felt the tension in the air and mentioned it to Falina as a warning before slipping off into the night, followed closely by Mai Mai. Falina was unsure of what Han Li's comment on the atmosphere meant and decided to ask Sasshalai's opinion. She was fairly sure that if anything strange were going on he would've observed it passing through someone's mind.
The little boy was sitting in the open doorway of the room where Kiisan and Carlos were sleeping. He held his odd piece of headgear in his hands, trying to weave a loose stem tighter into the bundle, but when Falina approached he set the wreath back on his head as it was and smiled nervously. "Excuse me, I don't want to bother you Sassha, but I was wondering if you knew about why Captain Louis Abdul and Sonoa and Lucien are acting so strange..." He nodded in response and gestured for the girl to come closer. Falina knelt down beside him and Sasshalai whispered in her ear softly, "The turan is going to have Kiisan assassinated." Falina gasped and felt her heart beat faster as the boy continued. "He wants Big Brother to be a martyr...a sacrifice to the revolution... He wants to use him to stir up the people even more. He wanted one of his people to do it, but even Sonoa was afraid to and didn't want to be responsible. So the captain said he would get someone to kill Kiisan tonight and they would blame it on a spy they caught trying to get in through one of the side gates." Falina felt herself go cold with fear, "Why didn't you tell anyone then?!"
"I did. I told Sir Yuber while we were eating. But I don't think she really wants to do it... So I'm staying awake...even though I'm really worn out...to see what happens. Sir Yuber's right over there Miss Falina," Sasshalai explained as he gestured to a dark corner of the hall, "He wanted to keep watch too. He said that for a "cursed child" I sure was useful. What does he mean by that? ...Besides, Sir Yuber also told me that if anyone was going to get to do any killing and start the chaos again it would be him."
********
The moon shone over the city of Serif. Despite the Imperial troops just outside the walls, with sentries from the state army patrolling the walls the citizens slept peacefully. Falina felt herself starting to doze off, her head tipped back against the door. Sasshalai had also managed to keep himself awake to this late hour, but his resistance was failing.
A cloaked figure snuck down a staircase, from the third floor of the establishment to walk softly along a hall on the second floor. Her breathing was as tense as her hands, tightly grasping the hilt of the dagger the turan had presented her with specifically for the task at hand.
Yuber smirked. These were the sorts of moments he lived for.
The cloaked mercenary stepped closer to the room where Kiisan slept, completely unaware of the events proceeding around him. Falina and Sasshalai had both fallen asleep in the doorway; unable to hold their eyes open any longer. Just as she was about to step over the sleepers Yuber drew his blades. The sharp sound of metal hitting metal rang through the night.