Chapter 8

The day was dead. The shadows fully grown. The moon was alive and in full circle. The bright white light contrasted magnificently over the stark overcast. Orb Castle was still quite a mesmeric city, perhaps even more eminent in the night. The cleared skies showed off the apex of Fuji-san. The homes of many villagers were lit brightly by candles behind the partly translucent shoji. Paper lanterns guided the path of the main road. The city was well alive while at the same time silent. The carefree mood lingered in the chilly air contagiously. An ominous breeze bristled past an opening main gate.

Lord Zala and Athrun walked up to the large gate. The creaking sound of the iron screeching audibly throughout the entire city. Several shoji slid open to reveal peeking eyes while some lights burned off. The two samurai led their horses by the reigns and were prepped to leave. They were already told that Waltfeld-san had already gone ahead to Zaft alleviating some stress from them, but they knew they were needed. They treaded slowly past the front gate and stopped to turn around. They began exchanging farewells to the nobles who had all seen them out including the Emperor, who was drowned in his own thoughts seemingly looking off to the distance. Lenore kissed her son a farewell causing a momentary flash of casualness. The mellowed look quickly disappeared as soon as it appeared. They were about to saddle their horses until they followed the averted gaze of the Emperor.

The Imperial One's fierce eyes softened a bit at the object of his attention. A small breath of air escaped his lips as he thought about the past. He often thought. There were just some things that were inexplicable or not meant to be understood.

Curious, all the nobles followed after his gaze. An audible gasp escaped their lips as they noticed what exactly the Emperor was looking at. They were greeted with quite a surprise.

Leaning against the large stone and iron fortified wall was a peculiar figure. A thin white blanket was spread over the majority of the body, hardly shielding out the crisp spring breeze. The body was slowly moving up and down. A pile of messy brown hair draped over the head of the figure. Several locks of hair was pushed aside by the wind while the black bandana fluttered about compliantly. One black gloved hand tightly gripped on the hilt of a sheathed sword. The scabbard tip partly buried in the earth while a swirling aura seemingly emanated from the bundled form. It was well alive. It was sleeping.

It was Kira.

The nobles were about to ask what he was doing there, but had been abruptly cut off hearing the sound of a galloping horse. They all turned to see who it was and the nobles were once again surprised.

A familiar head of green hair was riding towards them swiftly. The rest of his body was covered with a cloak similar to Kira's. A small smile was on his lips as he recognized the visitors looking at him. He waved to them warmly, breaking the surprised looks. When he had reached the main gate, he unsaddled the horse gracefully landing next to Athrun.

He sent a warm smile to friend that he had not seen for awhile. Athrun returned the gesture after recovering briefly.

"Hello Athrun, it's nice to see you once again."

"Nicol, what are you doing here?" Athrun asked.

"Since your messages have not been getting through, I am sure you all were not informed about Nicol here," the Emperor decided to step in, "He has become an Orb citizen recently and enlisted as a part of the special operations team."

"Is that so?" Athrun asked aloud.

"Hai, Athrun. I have been trying to send you all of several messages including . . ." Nicol trailed off seeing the object that had come to mind.

The nobles noticed the direction of his eyes, and could only guess that he was talking about Kira. More questions started pricking their minds as they would have to get reacquainted with Nicol. They needed answers and it seemed he would be able to provide some. An abnormal silence drifted upon the area as the nobles were once again drifting into another world.

Before they lost themselves in their questions, Lord Zala had broken the silence.

"We must leave for Zaft now," he said simply.

"Hai, Chichi-ue," Athrun concurred.

"Matte Lord Zala," the Emperor broke in once again. The sound of a running horse made its way to their location. Fierce crimson eyes saddled the beast. "Shinn will accompany you on the main roads of Orb. I know he is a bit rough on the edges, but you will know that he is quite an adept samurai."

Shinn reigned his horse near the Zalas and gave out an audible 'keh'. He loathed being assigned such a trivial mission. He often thought about what he would do if he wasn't assigned specific orders. The part about it he disliked the most was that he had to accompany a certain daimyo that he would jump at the chance to slice his head right off of his shoulders. But, he was convinced by the person he thought the most who should have wanted his head cutoff. Kira had told him about the story of his life impartially once before as they had come to grow as close comrades, but Kira always puzzled him. Why was he never filled with hatred in his heart? The life he lived certainly gave him that right. So why?

He remembered the conversation they had after thanking him for giving his little sister a dress she always wanted, but Shinn could never afford. Samurai salaries weren't really extravagant and Shinn was very similar to Kira and Mayu. Except the personalities. They could never take a single koku from the Imperial family that had warmly took them in, when they were in need.

"Kira, why do you treat them as if they had not done anything to you?" Shinn asked Kira. Baffled by his actions. He knew Kira was a kind man, but he still didn't understand him.

"That is not important Shinn. They are not the enemies," Kira reasoned.

"B-but!"

"They have not attacked us nor have they attacked Orb. That itself makes them not the enemy. Neh?"

"But they abandoned you! They treated you like shit! Why can't you see that?"

"Shinn. They had not abandoned me. Remember, it was my choice that I decided to do what I did. I was but a servant, and they had treated me well. They were kind enough to take me in and when I became of no use, well, then the rest is the past. Everyone has their reasons for doing things Shinn . . ."

Shinn shook off the thoughts as he wanted this mission to finish as soon as possible. He knew the reason why Kira seemed so empty at times and why he was exactly the way he was. But it still confused him. It did not take his vision to note that Kira was sleeping by the gate like he had always done ever since that fateful day. There were things more important though, and he wanted to get this mission over with.

"Let's go," he ordered, inciting an flash of irritation on Lord Zala. This trip was not going to be a pleasant one, that was for sure. They just hoped no bloodshed would come out of it.

The Emperor smiled warmly, knowing that it would good for Shinn to get out of the Castle and see what the world had to offer. Uzumi knew about his tragic past and the reason why he became so arrogant on the outside. He just hoped Stellar would thaw him back to the kind boy he used to be. He still was, though not openly.

Dark clouds had gathered forebodingly. It seemed that a storm was soon coming. The lights in the heavens were beginning to dim, while the moon dominated throughout. It was covered by the clouds though, forming a somber setting.

A cold crisp breeze chilled everyone in the front of the gate.

A swarm of metal glinted projectiles flew through the air.

Shock had swept through the ranks of everyone.

It was an ambush.

With their lives on the line, the highly skilled samurai had quickly drawn out their swords. Lord Zala, Lord Clyne, Athrun, Nicol, deflected the shuriken that yearned to imbed themselves on their skin. Their swords clinging to each threatening four-tip bullet. They were all angered by the cowardly surprise attack, but something seemed amiss. To their dismay, they soon noticed what it was.

They all looked behind once the barrage of death subsided. Horror struck just as quickly as the change of events.

The concentration of shuriken was not aimed to take their lives.

Rather, it was to take the life of the Emperor.

A dense shroud of shuriken had been thrown directly at the Emperor. All laced with poison at the tips. The Emperor had bravely fought back against the attack. He was winning. His skill was still incredibly honed, accustoming his Highness. Then it all changed.

The Emperor was outraged and momentarily stunned.

Shuriken were thrown at the ladies.

Lady Clyne, Lady Lenore, and Lady Lacus were awaiting their deaths bravely. They knew they could not escape from this point. They were defenseless and completely caught off guard. The whirling messengers whished at them at an incredible pace. The Emperor had turned to help them, but the Ladies called out to him telling him to defend himself. It was too late though. The brief loss of concentration had dulled his senses to an oncoming last shuriken whizzing by at high speeds. He was caught between saving himself and the ladies and had over thought the matter by a split second that cost dearly.

The swirling deaths drew closer and closer.

The Emperor was not able to save himself nor the ladies.

Death came but an inch of their faces.

But it never came.

A cloak was thrown over the ladies, covering them of the poison tipped projectiles. The speed that whirled by them was quick enough to rival that of the gods. A glint of crimson red exuded from a metal blade. It formed a whirling arc that left a trail behind from the velocity it unleashed. A swift slash cut right through the last remaining shuriken headed for the Emperor. All were equally astonished for a fleeting moment.

Darkened lavender eyes opened abruptly gazing at the night's surroundings. With the blazing speed, the stark figure dashed across the darkened plains. Heads of ninja were cutoff briskly and effortlessly. The figure swiftly climbed the wall and dispatched the remaining ninja on the roof of the gate. The whirling arc was aggressive and merciless. He sheathed the crimson stained sword noiselessly after having wiped off the blade with a piece of fabric. He looked at the darkened sky longingly for a brief moment. Then, he descended onto the Emperor's side just as quickly.

A thankful look was sprawled across the Emperor's face.

"Would this make the seventeenth time you have saved me, neh Kira-kun?" he smiled at the boy.

"Eighteenth," Kira replied in jest smugly. The Emperor smiled a bit. "It is time for you to go inside now, Uzumi-sama."

"Yes, of course."

Kira turned to the bewildered noble ladies.

Kira's entire form was revealed. He was wearing a predominantly black shinobi outfit that fit tightly around his body. It seemed the years trained him well as his muscles had shown right through the tight garment. Lines of blue and scarlet ran down the uniform matching the sword's appearance. He had a special obi that ran across the waist like any other, but was tied in the front with two appendages sticking out. The belt was of a lighter colour and only one scabbard was placed inside of it. His feet wore a matching black tabi shoes that hardly made a sound. It seemed he felt quite comfortable with the attire. The stares of those who had not known about Kira recently were quickly averted as he picked up his torn cloak. He wore the mantle once more and it was enough to cover most of his body, though spots of black could be seen from his attire.

"You should all join him," he recommended in a calm voice. His blackened lavender eyes tried to avert a particular figure. But he failed. Some thing that rarely happened. His eyes immediately relinquished the darkness and momentarily softened. He was still caught up just by the site of her. But he could not let himself think of such things any further. There was just some things that could never change.

Thankfully, Lady Clyne had grasped the attention of the other ladies and led them inside the gate.

Lacus looked back before she turned to go. She couldn't help but think about him. He would always find a way into her mind. She always wondered why that was.

Kira turned to the men who were to depart.

He simply nodded at Shinn.

Athrun and Lord Zala were hesitant to depart at first seeing the danger of the night. They saw Lenore waving them off a farewell and her eyes beckoned them to go. They were after all, needed in Zaft.

The Zalas had gathered themselves and Shinn led the way. His horse was strapped with the Imperial flag that granted safe passage that needed to be respect by every daimyo throughout the land.

Kira had sat back down after their departure. His lavender eyes stared absently at the dark sky. His form curled up once again. He reverted into the same posture as before. His senses still well tuned into the environment. He sensed the danger of the ninja immediately and hoped against hope that they were not attackers. He was proven wrong once more though. One of the many lessons he learned. He returned into a light sleep as his body was aching in exhaustion from his trip and the growing darkness. Kira was long before taught how to remain alert while rest at the same time. Another lesson amongst the many that he would never forget. Could never forget.

Nicol smiled sadly. He knew how Kira was and ordered for the guards to close the gate. Before the gate moved, he stopped in his actions. He smiled.

A thin blanket draped across Kira's back.

Kira looked up to see kind looking into him. Trying to figure him out. She would have eventually succeeded if he did not turn around and waved her off in forced indifference.

Before Lacus got the signal, she saddened a bit. She wanted to know what was going on in Kira's mind so badly that it hurt her just to think about it. Her eyes were quickly trying to decipher what it was she had seen before. When Kira broke the gaze, she knew she could no longer press on. She turned to leave and walked in slow sullen steps until a soft voice spoke.

"Arigato . . ." Kira barely audibly said. His voice was kind and warm. Just like how Lacus had remembered when they were young.

Lacus smiled a small smile and whispered back, "Thank you . . ."

Kira turned around curiously at her words. He was caught off guard. His mind had finally registered the whole of Lacus' visage. She was beautiful. Her kimono was simple yet it was very elegant. The dress fit her perfectly. Purple and gold streaks lined the hem while a light shade of rouge adorned the whiteness of the dress. Her pale skin looked incredible with the white dress. Bundles of purplish pink flowers were imprinted in the dress. The purplish white obi perfectly draped across her thin waist. Her long pink locks were untied and flowed freely. She had grown more mature and ever more alluring in the past year he had not seen her, if that was even possible.

It took a good moment for Kira to ask his question. Lacus had already begun to walk back to the gate. Her soft footsteps fading away with ever step.

"For what?" he asked.

Lacus momentarily stopped in her tracks. She smiled and bit her lip. She continued to walk as if she hadn't heard his question, but she did.

Kira looked down into the darkened ground. For a moment, he thought he knew why. But the girl puzzled him. Very much.

He shook the thoughts aside as he turned his gaze onto the sky that began to lighten just a bit.

He drifted off into a light sleep once again.

A small smile was planted on his lips.

"Well, I believe it is time for you all to rest as well," Uzumi said to the noblewomen who were all but tired. They were mostly riled up to the pinnacle as a multitude of questions swarmed them just like the metal blades. They were compliant though. "I am sure you are all tired from your journey and the events today." Uzumi's reasoning had suddenly dropped their activity levels. They were a bit tired. Lady Clyne and Lady Lenore had resigned to giving Nicol the look that told him to explain in the morning. Nicol smiled back uneasily, knowing that he could not escape the inevitable. He sighed in defeat as he turned his attention back to the men guarding the gate. He signaled to them quietly. But he was unaware of another presence.

The large iron gate began to close noisily. The creaking shrill of the heavy door seemed unbearable for the untrained ear to discern when sleeping. The large noise had begun to slow down, Nicol was very much confused at the notion. It abruptly stopped halfway.

Uzumi had called for the gate to stop.

His wife had come by.

She had smiled warmly at bewildered Nicol and welcomed him. Nicol warmly greeted her after recovering. She was certainly a kind lady and she would be pleased with the news that he brought. The Empress had pardoned her audience with Nicol and walked outside the gate. Her soft footsteps were inaudible even for the trained ear.

Her warm hand had touched the shoulder of the sleeping boy. His eyes fluttered open as he turned to look into the Empress' warm eyes. Her mysterious effect already taking hold of him. He knew what she wanted, and she didn't have to ask. Kira got up and smiled in defeat.

"Hai Lady Attha," Kira turned to go to where he slept. The Empress had kindly asked him many a time to stop his incessant need to patrol the gates. She even offered Kira her room if he had wished so that he could get some sleep. But Kira was Kira and declined the offer. They had reached an uneasy compromise to where he would sleep.

"Oyasumi nasai," Kira said softly.

The kind woman smiled back.

Kira walked back inside the gates with the Empress by his side.

Kira continued walking down the main road until he diverged into a small pathway. It seemed he knew the entire place by heart as his eyes were closed seemingly walking in his slumber.

The Empress stopped by the green-haired boy. She smiled warmly, "Nicol, please take them to their rooms." Turning to the befuddled noblewomen, "Everyone needs their rest, neh?" She turned to head in the direction where Kira went as the noblewomen were led back to the castle by the Emperor and Nicol.

Lacus was settled in a lavish room about four stories high. Situated in the middle was a thick set of blankets and a cushioned pillow of the best quality. The inviting warmth had made several appeals to her tired body. But she could not sleep. Her eyes were focused outside of the window shoji. She was looking at Kira.

Kira was sleeping under the shade of a tree. It was a sakura tree. The flowers had yet to blossom, but the familiar buds were still there. The white blanket was sprawled over him. He was in the same position as before. His back leaned on the trunk of the small tree for support. His hand on the hilt of his sword. There was something else by his side that seemed to be quite peculiar. Lacus couldn't tell what it was, but from afar it seemed to be a book. Lacus wondered about all the things that could have happened to him. What made him change. His hands were tainted with the blood of many, and yet there seemed to be no signs of regret. Just duty.

But there was something else about him. From the naked eye, he seemed to be happy. He seemed to have a positive impact on those that knew him. Mayu. Shinn. Stellar. Nicol. The Empress. And even the Emperor. He was strong, courageous, and respectful. He was just like any other person. Though there were clearly many differences, he was just like any other person.

From the distance, Lacus swore she saw a small streak of liquid form down his face. Was he crying?

She had seen glimpses of the true him whenever her eyes caught onto his mesmeric amethyst gaze. She did not know what exactly it was. But she knew one thing for sure.

She wished she could be by his side.

Deep down, she could barely tell what his mind had gone through.

He was sad.

Lonely.

Afraid.

And hurt.

Was he crying? She asked herself again.

Her thoughts almost drowned her out until the shoji to her room opened.

A figure entered the room noiselessly.

"Lacus-chan," said a soft voice.

It was the Empress.

"Hurry up bastard," Shinn called out arrogantly. Lord Zala grunted in response. His patience was running faster than his horse. If not for the matters at hand, Lord Zala would have long pushed him over the cliff that they were on. Sometime during the trip, Shinn had opted for them to take one of the shortcuts that he knew about, seeing as how they were all urgent to get to where they had to go. The stark night made the shortcut very dangerous, but Shinn was always one to risk chances.

Lord Zala didn't complain a bit seeing as how the shortcut meant lesser time for him to be around the arrogant child. If he wasn't so close to the Emperor, Patrick would have long threw him over the edge without remorse. But much as he would like to, he could not.

Shinn had practically ignored Athrun along the way. Shinn was not disrespectful to him but he showed no signs of respect as well. The reason for his indifference was because the blue-haired boy was a good friend of Kira's. And to Kira, he still was. Shinn thought about the many conversations he had with Kira and many of them were about the noble families. He looked back at one of the members of the Zalas.

His eyes went wide.

Athrun's horse took one fateful step on the edge of the narrow cliff. Athrun's lips had moved but no sound came out. In a controlled distraught, Athrun fruitlessly tried to regather the beast he was in control of. Unfortunately, the fragile portion of the rock broke within the strong hoof of the horse turning them both over and sent him flying into the abyss below.

"Dammit," Shinn said. Shinn had yet to fail a mission, and he wasn't about to start now. He reigned his horse and began to gallop back down the narrow passage. He was stopped abruptly though.

"Iýe," Lord Zala said conclusively. Shinn's eyes questioned the daimyo. Was he hearing things right? "We must get to Zaft by sunset. No matter the costs."

"Nandayo?" Shinn asked. What the hell.

"Let's go boy," Lord Zala said.

"That is your own son down there. Do you not care about him at all? My mission was to escort you both to Zaft," Shinn reasoned.

"Never mind him you fool. Your mission was to get to Zaft. There's no use in going back for him. He knows his duty," Lord Zala shot back as he began making his way across the cliff. He did not even look back once.

Shinn reluctantly followed. He took one last glance over the edge of the cliff and noticed a deep thickly forested area. Shinn rationalized that Athrun was samurai, and if he was a real samurai, he would do just fine. Besides, Kira had always talked so highly about him. This would be a fine test to see if Athrun was indeed samurai. After all, Shinn only believed in what he saw. Shinn hoped he wouldn't die though. After resigning to leave fate up to destiny, he quickly commanded his horse and caught up with the daimyo that he would have rather fell of the cliff.

Athrun's fall had been broken by several branches. The impact of the landing was enough to stun him momentarily, but his wounds were not very serious. During the fall, he managed to unsheathe his sword and stabbed skillfully at the bulk of a large tree, slowing down his fall. His horse suffered the worser of the two plunges. After recovering, Athrun staggered over to the fallen beast, and was relieved that it was still alive. It was unconscious, but at least his fastest way back to Zaft was not dead.

Athrun had survived through worser situations and he was accustomed to things going bad for him. He was glad that he learned survival tactics from training and real life situations. He would have to find a way out until his horse recovered. He did not mind being alone in the ominous forest. Being alone was something he was quite accustomed to. He would have more concentration on trying to find a way out for himself and more importantly, he would have some time alone of thinking about the recent events that transpired. He knew about the rumours that circulated around Zaft and the whole of Nihon about a certain killing monster. He had brushed them aside before reasoning that he knew Kira well enough for it to not be him, but as of late he was getting doubts. But he knew he was glad to see him alive and well nonetheless, and had wanted to talk to him, but duty called over that wish. Athrun knew he had to get out of the forest quickly. He knew he had to get back to Zaft. And he knew that he would be seeing Kira sometime down the future.

What he didn't know was that he was not alone.