"Auntie...they're gone so long..." Rolen muttered, clinging to Kona's skirt.
"I know, Dear," she attempted to console the small boy, "It does feel like a long time. But don't you worry, they'll be back and then everything will be fine." She knelt down and put her arms around Rolen. He leaned his head against her and closed his eyes.
"Perhaps when the war is over, Louis and I can finally settle down," Kona thought to herself, "I'd like to have some kids of my own...Maybe by the time this is done with he'll leave the military once and for all..."
Rolen was smiling with his eyes still closed. The captain's wife wondered what the boy was thinking. She could not tell.
Her own thoughts drifted once again. Han Li had turned out to be surprisingly gentle and considerate of the little boy. She did not know the dusty man very well, but he had always struck her as more of the ruthless type than the fatherly type. Things were never as they seemed. More these days than others though, she decided.
Kona turned her head slightly to glance around her and see if anyone else was there. She looked out of one of Jao-Nyang's frosted windows at the wintry sky. A little snow was starting to fall.
Murasaki Fuji no Shita ni Kuni
"The Country Under the Purple Wisteria"
Chapter 86- Winged Creatures and Wandering Votes
Rizu and Junsuke patrolled the edge of the camp quietly, but for Rizu's listless whistling. The ninja didn't mind. His friend was trying his best to lighten the mood, which was a bit low from the arrival of the first snows of winter. Snow was no good for battle, especially in the enclosed spaces they were encountering. The Imperial Compound was as solid as a rock. Work had been resumed on the catapult back at Jao-Nyang. Sanada was going to break those walls or they would break her. Junsuke was a bit impressed with her determination. It seemed somehow different from her previous sort of focus. She smiled a little more. It seemed not so proud as confident. A better kind of thought and focus. Sanada was going to beat the Imperials not to show them she could do it, but for the sake of her friends and all the others relying on the victory to re-shape the country.
"What's that song, Rizu?" the black-haired man inquired.
"Umm..." Rizu considered it for a moment, leaning his spear over his shoulder, "I think it's a lullaby or some kids' song. I don't really know."
"It sounds nice," Junsuke replied with a smile.
"Yeah, but it's not anything special," the scar-faced man shrugged.
As they finished their second walk around the camp, something bright-colored caught Rizu's eye. "What's that?" he exclaimed, eyes widening.
"Huh? What's what?" his companion asked with agitation, trying to see what had gotten Rizu so riled up.
"Over there!" the spear-holder pointed to a fringe of trees. This time Junsuke saw what his friend was so anxious about. There was a huge creature with sparkling wings beneath the trees. It was nudging a prone human form with its nose.
"We've got to help that guy out!" Junsuke decided. They rushed over to the trees to confront whatever terrible monster might await them.
As they approached, the creature spread its featherless brown wings and opened it's beak-like mouth, letting out a resounding, "Kiiiii!"
The rebel dropped to the ground in fear. Rizu put his arms over his head and closed his eyes. Junsuke crawled slowly over to the lightly armored man lying on the ground. Other than some bumps and bruises, he did not appear to have any visible injuries. Perhaps he had fainted in terror.
Rizu picked up his spear and stood up cautiously. The creature had stopped screeching and seemed a little less frightening from familiarity. "Junsuke!" he called to his friend, "Do you think it's a dragon?"
The black-clad man did not turn to look back at either his friend or the beast, "I don't know. I've never seen a dragon before. Only heard of them."
Leaving the creature for the time being, Rizu walked over to Junsuke and helped him to pick up the unconscious man. "He's not dead. Let's take him back to camp. Dr. Clark can probably do something for him."
The moment they started back towards the camp however, the dragon advanced at them fiercely. The two stopped where they stood to consider what to do next. "I don't want to fight a dragon, Rizu..." Junsuke told his comrade nervously, "Especially not without Kiisan or the captain to back us up."
"Do you think that this guy is maybe a dragon knight?" Rizu asked.
"A dragon knight? I've never heard of that."
"Well, take a look at the funny thing he's wearing on his head. Doesn't it look a little like dragon ears? There are supposed to be people who ride dragons around Goya...they were never conquered by Aronia. They just flew away deeper into the mountains," Rizu explained.
"Could be," Junsuke agreed.
"Okay then, how 'bout this," the brown-haired man suggested, "You stay here with the dragon knight, since his dragon doesn't seem to understand that we're harmless and I'll go back to camp and get Dr. Clark."
"Why do I have to stay?" the ninja replied sharply.
"Because that thing scares me!" Rizu sputtered, eyeing the dragon edgily.
"Fine, fine, go," Junsuke sighed, setting the dragon knight down carefully and waving his friend away.
Rizu barely waited for the words to leave his comrade's mouth. He sprinted away toward the camp like his life depended on it. Junsuke sat down cross-legged beside the unconscious man and waited. The dragon kept its vigilance over them all the while.
The leaders of the church were meeting in Crystal Valley to discuss the future of the nation. There was a chance that Aronia could split into as many separate nations as there were states and that could lead only to even greater conflict. Chief Priest Hirano hoped to prevent that. Along with the bishops, he had invited the leaders of the states not currently involved in fighting the war to come to the Temple and consider what would be their next move.
Father Jie Jhin mentioned the possibility that Kiisan might hand the rule of the conquered nation over to Hirano and later, as the next chief priest, control it himself. Hirano was a bit uncertain. The church ruled cities or states at times, but a whole nation under its law was a strange idea. Not that it would be a bad thing. He could imagine the peace and stability the laws of the church might bring. After all the turmoil it would be like paradise.
Princess Sharina from the far north brought up the fact that rumors stated Father Kiisan had already promised the tribes of the Grasslands that they could form their own nation and rule themselves separately. It might encourage other regions to ask for the same freedoms.
Bishop Li, as acting ruler of Crona, suggested that the current state rulers take charge of the nation as a counsel after the war until a more permanent decision could be made. Other leaders felt that was a decent proposal except as leader of the rebel forces, Father Kiisan himself should be included in the counsel. One went so far as to express the sentiment that if Kiisan were left out, he might start another rebellion. It added a bit of humor to the otherwise tense situation.
Hirano wished that Tijo could have been present. His support often got him through the tougher moments of governing during these past few years, but Tijo was in the south, supporting his successor. Duchess Katyana, Lady de Kiron, Bishop San-Feng, General Sasaki and Turan Magno were also stymied down in the fighting in the state of Aurel. Around a fourth of the leaders were not present. Any decisions made at this point could not be considered exactly fair. The Grasslands were not represented at all.
"I move in favor of justice," he spoke out suddenly, "I will assume that we have all come here today with the best of intentions, but still, for the sake of our comrades not with us at this time, I would like to put off making any decisions until a true and equal meeting can be held."
"I'd second that!" Bishop Claric agreed vigorously.
Others nodded and murmured their assent. A general vote taken showed in favor of waiting things out and meeting again in the future. As the men and women who looked to lead the new Aronia left the building, Hirano grabbed Claric's wrist as he stood up to go. "Thank you, Claric. Someone had to say it loudly to give them all the moral courage they needed to agree and give up their selfish hopes of making a choice that would suit them best."
"Oh," Claric smiled and blushed a bit with embarrassment, "It was nothing, Your Holiness..."
"Do not think I will forget this," Hirano beamed as well and adjusted his glasses, letting go of the bishop's arm.
"Although I might be less embarrassed if I knew you would," Claric murmured, his blue eyes turned down at the floor.