Chapter 3
Shioseki rubbed her temples as the three children scampered out of the classroom. She stretched his arms out high above her head and released a heavy sigh.
"I'd better get to work on my apothecary orders while I still have some free time before Akafude gets here. Her ship was expected this morning, but I haven't heard anything from the docks yet. I hope she's okay, what with the disappearances lately." She shook the thoughts from her head. "Knowing her she's probably drinking already. I'm sure she's fine."
She climbed a small ladder at the end of the classroom and pulled the bell rope to signal that school was finished. Then she walked to the ticket box outside the classroom door and took them inside. Kiyoshima residents could put in requests for mixtures free of charge. Except if it was anything exotic that she would have to order supplies from the mainland for. Her own supplies were organized neatly in large closets by her desk at the front of the classroom. She set up her work space neatly and hummed to herself as she sorted through the tickets and got to work.
A short time later she heard footsteps coming up the path and the familiar sound of Taka's voice. She carefully put down her ingredients to pick up again later.
"Sensei Shioseki I've brought a visitor for you." Taka bounded into the school house doorway, looking especially proud of himself. "Lady Akafude!" He made a show of presenting her as she walked inside.
"Thank you Taka. You don't know how relieved I am to know that Shioseki has an honorable man to look after her." He froze while his cheeks turned a hot red color. His face then slowly turned into a look of terror as his brain resolved the implications of Akafude's teasing. "But Sensei Shioseki is like 100 years old. She could be my grandmother, except she can't cook like one." He puzzled to himself. "You would think cooking would be easy for someone so smart, because she is pretty smart."
"Thank you Taka, you've done so much for Akafude and I already, so that will be enough for today. Please have a safe trip straight home where we will have a teacher student discussion about this later." Shio bore holes into the back of his head with her stare. He promptly tripped over himself getting out of the door and out of immediate danger of the wrath of Shio.
"He's such a sweet boy, no wonder you never want to leave this island." She sat down in a children's chair that was too small for someone of her stature.
"I'm glad you made it here safe Aka, we had another quake today during class, but it was a small one."
"I'm more interested in you," Aka scooted her chair closer. "How have you been? Being here with no family must wear on you, no?" She pouted her bottom lip in pity like Shio was her baby.
"I feel the same way I did the day I came here. I didn't feel like I was making any difference in Naaru. There are already so many scholars there. I wanted to go somewhere that really needed someone. I can do a lot of good here with my own hands. Not pushing papers or allocating funds. It's actually really fulfilling and you should try it! Though, you probably outrank me pretty far. What do you go by now days anyway?"
"Well you are right about one thing, the promotions aren't as fulfilling as they promised to be, but fine drink and good company always fill the hungry void, yeah?" Aka's smile curled into a devilish one.
"No, not even when we were just scribes in the libraries." Shio's motherly voice came out.
"Ah, but the minstrels still sing of my conquests in the Historical Fiction section-" Shio raised her hand and then covered her ears.
"I love waxing nostalgic with you Aka, but I am still known to use sleeping powder with impunity." They both broke their serious facades and laughed together.
"I do love your visits, but what brings you here? I can't imagine that it's good news, is it?" Shio's voice lilted hopefully at the end.
"Now days it never is." She sighed and rose from her chair. "Let me preface with I don't pick the rules or even get to see the information, I just enforce it." She paused to measure Shio's reaction. "I've been instructed by a specific collective called The Fellowship that they have reason to believe the island is no longer safe and must be evacuated. Starting with the children on our ship in the morning and that includes all Scholarship property and personnel. That means you and your kids are all coming home with me, whether you like it or not."
Shio paused in thought. She hadn't received any word or filled any surveys for the Scholarship recently. Where had they gotten this information? The island has been the way it is for some time, so what could have changed? Also, The Fellowship sounded familiar, but only vaguely.
"I suppose the children's safety is the most important."
"Well I'm relieved to hear you see it that way. You really gave this place all you could. Naaru is recovering faster than you'd think. Things are going to be good over there. Even better than here, I can promise you."
"The rest of the island will be taken care of as well, you're sure?" Shio anxiously wrung her hands.
"They will be next in the recovery efforts so I'm told, but you and the children are their priority." Aka took Shio's hands in hers to settle them. "Things will work out; there is no wasted time as long as you enjoyed it."
"You know when you want to be you actually seem like someone dependable." Shio laughed and pushed her away.
"And speaking of enjoyment I know you must have mountains of boring things to take care of before we leave, so I will do my best to have a drink for you at the bar on the docks." Akafude tip toed toward the door as she deftly avoided all work. Shio's face was not a surprised one.
Tsurumatsu slurped the last of his fish broth and chugged his last bit of fruit water.
"I'm off to start my rounds. Can I bring anything back for you?" He hefted his spear and gave it a toss between his hands. The butcher declined and Tsuru thanked him for the meal. The sun was setting, so he jogged down to the beach passed the docks and the houses that were just quieting down for the night. He climbed his way up the coastal rock formations to survey the coastline. The wind grew chilly and he clasped his cloak for warmth.
A little ways down the beach he spied an unusual looking wave and then another and another. Then they started shambling up the coast. He secured his spear to his back and climbed down from his perch.
"Getting started a little early today aren't we boys? It's barely sun down." The three figures came into view with squid-like visages and razor sharp teeth glinting in the light. He gripped his spear in two hands and went into a full spin for momentum. They roared their spittle flecked cries at his approach as his spear head cleaning separated the first from his stomach and he back-stepped the reply from his nearest friend. Luckily intelligence was not these creatures strong suit, but they made up for it in long reach with spider like arms tipped with angry death tipped claws. The third creature launched itself haphazardly at him. He braced his weapon in the sand and caught it mid-flight. The creature's cries were cut short as he maneuvered him into the way of the last of the three standing. For all their weaknesses, cowardice was not one of them. The creature bashed his fallen comrade aside and unleashed a flurry of vicious slashes toward Tsuru. He ducked the first but had to roll away from the second, leaving his spear embedded in the other fallen creature. There was no overpowering these creatures hand to hand. Their long sinewy arms held unnatural strength, but they could be outsmarted. He undid his cloak, lured the creature around so that the beach wind was at his back, and then let it fly into its face. Momentarily blinded the creature swung madly looking for its prey, but by the time the creature regained its sight Tsuru was already behind it with his spear in hand. He gave it a swift end.
He recovered his cloak and sniffed it. The smell would take a day of washing to come out. He wished that was the worst of his problems. These creatures seemed to come from the sea and possibly underground from the inner parts of the island. They were usually in groups and were loud and easy to track for him. Tonight seemed to be off to a busy start and the children were probably already at their usual spot enjoying themselves. He silently protected the island from the creatures for quite some time. Only a few of the inhabitants of Kiyoshima knew of their existence. They wanted especially to keep the children from finding out if they could help it.
Tsuru quietly made his way to the usual hang out spot where he saw Kinu and Kawa laying down while they talked. He looked for Taka and saw he hadn't arrived yet.
"Better to find the boy before trouble finds him." Tsuru stalked through the underbrush of the dead leaves and plants of the subtropical island. He heard tree branches snapping and a voice cursing nearby. He shook his head. He observed Taka struggling to break some low branches off of a tree. Using all his body weight, he finally broke them off. He seemed to be trying to sneak up on the girls ahead, but he only succeeded in impersonating how a crab would walk if it was constipated. He laughed quietly to himself. He was glad that he could help the children experience some innocence in their youth. He'd made it part of his mission on the island to give them a peaceful and as normal as possible childhood.
He heard rustling trees behind him. Then he looked up above through the canopy of leaves and saw disturbed birds flying toward town.
"Yeah tonight is not my night. I'm not going to make it to see Shio before she goes to put the children to bed. Oh well." Tsuru and Shio were friends, for sure. He struggled with his feelings towards her. Never sure of himself or if she felt the same way he did. He decided friends was good for him, but was never sure if he was hurting Shio by doing so. He would frequently keep himself in isolation for days. He didn't want anyone's worry or pity. He felt like sometimes he was chasing part of himself that maybe he didn't really want to face. Shio helped him do that, but it's never easy to face your own shortcomings, much less put them on someone else to help you figure out. It was a continuous cycle.
He danced through the forest, almost completely dark now. He needed no light and no help. He silently put to sleep the nightmare creatures that trudged the forest to haunt the people's dreams. In a way, this was his meditation. This was his inner peace. He had purpose and fulfilled it flawlessly.
When all the forest was hushed with only the whisper of leaves, he headed back toward the town to checked that the kids were headed back. He found a good lookout point and climbed up a sturdy tree. He didn't see the children around, but his eyes caught the glint of three lights deeper into the forest.
"Oh, no. " He thought out loud. "They are determined to dig me an early grave. I hope they know I don't like flowers." He climbed down and sprinted down the path deeper into the night, but he slowed to a walk and then crouched down, listening. The forest was silent now, but not a natural silence. He listened for the whisper of the leaves, but there was none. He peered into the darkest shadows beneath the dense tree tops, and it was not dark. He was met with a pair of red eyes in the now growing moonlight and then another pair and another. The hiding eyes around him multiplied. Five, six, seven. He had never seen them hunt this way before. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and unclasped his spear from his back for the feast.
Shioseki stretched up her arms and yawned wide.
"Okay, quick recheck. All my tickets are done and I've left instructions for everyone on where to find everything. I don't think the place will burn down as soon as I leave." She dusted her clothes off and proudly strode from the school house for the night. It was quite dark now, the children should be back already from their usual escapades. She closed the door and latched it shut, but as soon as she turned around she was greeted by a figure two steps away that was silhouetted by the moonlight. She startled so much she almost fell backwards. Then she noticed the blood, the face, the clothes, and the spear. It was Tsuru, injured with lacerations to his arms and legs. He couldn't manage a word and would have collapsed had she not caught him in her arms.
"Oh Tsuru what have you done?" it wasn't the first time he'd been hurt out in the jungle. "Though, you should know I won't forgive you for dirtying these clothes." She got him inside and laid him on her once clean desk. His abdomen was free of punctures; it was mostly deep slices on his arms legs and back. She sighed and went to get a bucket from the well just outside the room. She cleaned his wounds and applied ointments and then quickly mixed a numbing compound for him to ingest.
"Shio," he groaned. "You're beautiful." She stopped her work on his wounds and smiled.
"Thank you Tsuru. The numbing agent must be working."
"Shio," he said again.
"Yes?" She wrapped his arm in bandage cloth.
"The kids," he tried to lift his head. "The Circle."
Shio stopped for a moment as his words sank in. She cursed her luck and grabbed her cloak from a hanger.
"Tsuru stay here, not that you can move anyway. I'm going to get them, don't worry you'll be okay. They will be okay." She headed off into the night. "I hope."