UPDATE (2/6/2016): Edits and corrections.
One Day Later
Jiro really couldn't explain what was going on inside that ice pagoda. All he knew was that he was the kind of man who lived by his emotions and feelings, and as a result he was having a great time. He had no idea why. He liked roaming out and around wherever he pleased. He liked wide-open spaces and flexing his power. He liked freedom. And yet, he found himself just as happy here being around Eiko. One might say she was growing on him, but the truth was, he realized, something far greater than that. From the very moment he first saw Eiko's face following their "skirmish", something inside his heart had stirred…
…for joy.
Eiko was doing better all the time. He had been serious about her needing a lot of time to get perfect control over her power, but she had grown so much more at ease from their first encounter that she was making giant steps. When calm, her power effectively had no limit. Jiro wasn't even sure how to test her. What he had seen so far, he realized, was just a fraction of her potential. The original fears that Nakamura had were not only well-founded, they were far too small. No matter how much power Eiko put out, he never saw her straining or winded. He began to believe it would be nothing for her to freeze the entire planet. The only reason Arender-ken hadn't immediately turned into a frozen wasteland was because the entire action was involuntary. Nothing was stopping her from doing it.
Still, her power was growing more and more stable. By now, her soul was so calmed that Jiro wouldn't be surprised if Arender-ken's winter was beginning to recede. He was even beginning to try to purposely agitate her to start trying her calm techniques. She was a bit rough around the edges on that front but she was getting better. All of this was probably a good thing because he realized that the third day had come and gone. Even assuming that Nakamura gave them full day periods, he wasn't sure if it was too late for them to go back…
Yet he realized he didn't really care that much. After all, living in a land of nothing but snow and ice sort of appealed to him so long as he could get out. This place was a playground to him, and Eiko was a great "playmate". Unable to use his own power to engage in his normal antics, he instead encouraged her to let go and have more fun, and she was getting more and more talented. While the first night he had to encourage her to even get started, she was more forthcoming the second day. She was smiling more. Jiro liked seeing her smile. In fact, something inside his heart was more overjoyed at seeing that than he thought he ever would.
There was only one thing that made him a bit uncomfortable…
It had happened last night, after the two had just enjoyed an even better night under the nearly-full moon, a bit more waxed. They had "played harder" than the night before and both of them were actually sweating, if it was possible to even sweat in the frosty landscape. Eiko was vibrant and full of energy, but Jiro, in spite of his own smiling, was yawning and trembling a bit. On the way in, Eiko noticed.
"Are you alright?"
The pale man managed a smile. "Yeah, just rather hungry…and sleepy…after, you know, messing around this much for two days…"
Eiko hesitated. She held for a long time as they walked inside. Finally, with a bit of reluctance, she held her hand out to the floor.
A moment later, a very long futon mattress, about fifty feet, generated with two sets of covers and pillows. Jiro raised an eyebrow, as Eiko, turning red again, got on one side and drew aside the covers. She motioned to him. He hesitated a second, but then went over to his side and touched the covers as well.
Just like fabric. He was sure to a mere mortal it would be a bit frigid, like wrapping yourself in a blanket of ice. But to him, it was just soft covers, so he smiled and slipped in.
"That side." Eiko stated, gesturing her power to make a line down the mattress. "Not one inch closer."
He snickered. "Not a problem. I know full well you come to me, not the other way around."
"Wh-what?!"
"Kidding, kidding!"
She did something rather unexpected after that, at least since Jiro had met her. She held as she slowly calmed down...and then she gave him a smile before slipping in.
It was at that moment as Jiro himself was getting into the futon that he felt a different sensation. It wasn't just the smile, which made his heart suddenly surge and beat faster. It was something more. For a brief moment, he looked at that smile she gave him and somewhere in his mind he got a sensation that he had actually seen it before.
And when that came, it hit him like a ton of bricks.
Pain.
Some of it actually felt like physical pain, it was so potent. Like a knife in his heart. But more of it was sadness. Sadness like he had a deep emotional wound somewhere that had just been pried open and had a pinch of salt thrown into it. It almost made him gasp. Eiko didn't see it, and Jiro himself didn't understand it, but he felt tears welling in his eyes.
One even ran down his cheek before he knew it.
As a result, Jiro was not his normally jovial self as he lay down in the bed. Eiko didn't notice. In spite of her claims, she was tired from having been alert and fighting so many emotions for so long, and she dropped off almost immediately. Yet as the young man stared at her, his own smile was gone.
Who was this woman? And what was her presence doing to him?
It took Jiro about four hours to fall asleep and it was practically dawn by the time he did. He realized he couldn't have gotten more than an hour of it. However, an hour was enough to mitigate a lot of his fear. As a result, he was calmer and more at ease, more his casual, happy self. Nevertheless, due to the lack of sleep, it was Eiko stirring first as the sun reached up and touched her ice palace, causing light to glitter and reflect throughout the structure, that ended up waking him.
"Mmm…" She said as she leaned up out of bed and stretched her arms. She looked around a bit, and saw Jiro had stayed on his side. She smiled at this, although, if one could look inside her mind, they would have found there was just the slightest hint of disappointment somewhere deep inside… She called out in a bit of a whisper.
"Jiro? You awake?"
Even if he hadn't been in one of his light sleep moments, Jiro would have awoken anyway. That was just the kind of person he was sleeping on the road. His eyes cracked open and he gave her a smile.
"Yup."
"Sleep well?"
He gave a stretch. "Well…anyone other than me and you probably would have thought sleeping like this was like burying yourself in a snowpile…but yeah, it was great to me. Just let me get out before you do or this thing will turn to ice and I'll have to break it to get out."
Eiko did something he never would have expected from her a few days ago, and actually let out a small giggle. Only once he was free did she get out as well. However, Jiro distinctly wobbled on pulling himself out, not only in the knees but actually wavering a bit, like he nearly lost balance. Eiko had barely managed to rise herself before she looked concerned.
"Are you still not feeling well?"
"Heh…I went five days without food once…but even going one day isn't much fun…" He answered. "Two and I'm really starting to feel it."
The noblewoman hesitated again, realization coming over her. Unlike her, Jiro needed to eat regularly. And about two days had gone by without him having anything.
"We…should really get you something to eat…" She answered, a bit hesitantly. "…But there's no food here for miles. The only food is back in Arender-ken…and you said you'd be in trouble if you went back there now…"
"Oh, that won't be a problem." Jiro answered. "I can sneak in, grab something, and get out…but…" He exhaled a bit. "…I don't think I'll be crossing that bridge again."
Eiko blanched. "Oh…that's right…" After a moment, she lit up. "You know, there's a trail down and through it you can go single-file easily…" She held after saying that, and shrank back again. "But…that'll take a day and a half on foot, plus another day to head back to Arender-ken…"
"Don't have much choice…" Jiro straightened and rubbed his stomach. "It's not going to get any shorter just standing around here. Looks like you'll have a couple days of practice all to yourself up here…more like a week, really, but still."
Eiko didn't seem to like the sound of that. It wasn't just the danger to Jiro, however; how he might collapse on the way back. She realized she didn't want to go back to being alone in the ice pagoda. Of course, she wondered why not. She had been alright being alone before. It hadn't been the most fun, but she had withstood it. She was strong enough to tolerate the solitude. And yet, the thought of being apart from Jiro made it seem so much more…lonelier…
Before she really knew what she was doing, she looked up again.
"You could fly pretty fast when I first met you. How long would it take you to fly back?"
Jiro froze in the middle of rubbing his stomach.
"That's a moot question. I can't even hover without my staff."
The woman held. She clenched and relaxed her hands a few times. She looked up to the wall nearby, where the staff was still locked in ice. She stared at it for a full ten seconds. Finally, she looked back to him.
"Could you be back today if you could fly?"
Jiro stared at her for a few moments. He realized what she was starting to get at.
"…No question about it. You weren't seeing me at full speed most of that fight."
Eiko hesitated a bit longer. She looked to Jiro and the staff a few times, thinking hard the whole while. At last, however, she exhaled and held up her hand and made a gesture.
The ice evaporated around from the staff, exposing it.
Jiro's lips actually parted a bit, and he looked to Eiko. She swallowed but stood up tall and folded her hands. After a moment, she gave a weak smile and a shrug.
"I'm going to have to see whether or not I can trust you completely sooner or later. It might as well be now."
Two days ago, Jiro would have snatched the staff up like a favored toy and might have even hugged it. But seeing how hard of a decision this had been for Eiko, he found himself…hesitating.
"You sure, my lady?"
"You said you wouldn't attack me again, right?"
"Yeah, but I can see this is obviously not the decision you're the most comfortable with. I don't want to make you uncomfortable."
She snickered lightly. "I may not 'have my soul under control', but I'm calm enough for that."
Jiro, for once, didn't smile. "That's not what I meant."
Eiko blinked; her smile fading a bit.
"I don't want you to do anything you're uncomfortable with. If you don't want to give me my staff back yet, I can wait."
The noblewoman's mouth loosened. Hearing that from Jiro, out of the blue, in this current state, she began to realize something. Before she suspected that all of his good nature, laughs, and games were attempts to sweet-talk her or flatter her. Yet when she heard this in perfect seriousness, for the first time, she took the comment at face value. Someone genuinely concerned with her.
She visibly turned red yet again, the deepest shade yet, and bowed her head.
"I am grateful for your concern, Jiro…but please take it. I won't let you make that trip on foot. Even if you're immune to cold, that's asking you to pass out from hunger. You could have gotten food a lot sooner if not for me."
Jiro hesitated here as well. The way Eiko said this, even with the proper "wording", didn't sound like a noble, dignified queen, or a daimyo. It sounded like a regular woman…a friend…and someone with genuine concern for him. He didn't see it, but on his devil-may-care expression, he turned a bit red himself.
"...In that case, my thanks, my lady." Jiro answered. And then, he not only bowed to Eiko; he actually dropped to one knee and lowered his head to her. He couldn't remember the last noble he had done that for. He rose soon after, and then went over to the wall and plucked his staff out. He already felt more alive holding it and soon it made him smile again. He looked to Eiko afterward. She was standing there, hands folded and reserved, but in spite of the situation and her anxiety, she actually smiled a bit to see him with his staff again.
He balanced it over one shoulder and began to walk for the doors.
"I'll be back as soon as possible. Any requests for you?"
Eiko snickered. "Oh no, of course not…other than to see how Arender-ken and my sister are doing…and how bad the winter is."
"I'm sure it's lessened. You're so much quieter now than you were when we met."
"…Just the same, please tell me if things are getting better."
"I will. Good day, my lady."
Jiro felt surprisingly energetic on leaving. Part of it, he supposed, was that he was glad to have his staff back, and with it his full range of powers. Normally he'd cover the countryside in an inch of snow to celebrate…but seeing as he was on top of a snow-blanketed mountain range it was somewhat superfluous. Instead, he enjoyed the sensation of being free to fly again. In spite of that, he realized he barely did a few maneuvers before he started heading south once again, surprisingly on task.
A bit to his surprise, he wanted to be there and back as soon as possible. And he could only think of one thing now that he had his staff back.
Eiko hasn't seen anything yet. Wait until I take her for one of my personal "slides". Her heart will be in her throat after that… It'll be more fun than she thought she could ever have in her entire life! Anyway, I'm sure things are doing better further south. I should still pick up something for her. I wouldn't feel good just stuffing my face in front of her. She obviously can eat, after all…she just doesn't…
"Jiro!"
For a brief moment, while flying along, the young man looked up in surprise, genuinely surprised that he had just been called. After that, he looked down below him to the source. But even as he did his mind began to click.
Jiro had just crossed around the narrow walkway to the snowfield expanse beyond. Already, from here, the ice pagoda had disappeared. What made it look even more like a regular landscape was that Eiko had pulled in her guards except for a sentry or two since Jiro had arrived, just standing on the highest peaks and watching for anything out of the ordinary. Climbing up the peak, navigating around larger rocks, were a group of travelers; ones he knew very well. The noblewoman in their midst was waving at him.
From this distance, Jiro let out a grimace. He couldn't believe his stupidity. How exactly had he managed to completely forget about the others? That was inconceivable... They were part of the reason he was here! Pretty much the only people who knew him personally! Yet he realized it had happened none the less. He didn't remember them at all yesterday. In fact, he found his mind felt awkward, like he couldn't really remember of thinking of anything while he was around Eiko. It was only because she kept mentioning Arender-ken that he even recalled why he had come there in the first place.
And to be honest, even though he said he would train her just to let her go back home, he didn't feel like that was his reason more than once.
He felt there was a reason, to be sure, but it was something hazy…hard to think of…
At any rate, he swallowed a lump in his throat. They couldn't be happy about this… With that in mind, he lowered himself to the ground.
Sure enough, as he got closer, the others looked a bit tired. They had been out hiking up a snow-covered mountain for days, after all. They didn't look blasted with frost, but they definitely looked like they had seen better days. Takara, in particular, looked rather cold, and Satoru was panting from having to dig through the thick snow every step of the way. Nobuyuki seemed a bit more comfortable but, similar to Takeshi, who had a more critical and cross look, he looked to Jiro with a stare that said: "Where in the world were you?" Only Akiko still seemed energetic, as if nothing could keep it back. And so did…
…A snowman?
He waved eagerly at him as he showed up and came in for a landing. "Hey Jiro! Look everyone, it's Jiro! Yay! Jiro is back!" He continued to stand there and grin for a moment. "…Who's Jiro?"
"Where have you been?" Takeshi nearly snapped. "We haven't seen hide nor hair of you for days! We were starting to think you got yourself killed! Don't tell me you were messing around having a 'snow day' for the past two days while we were trying to get through that chasm back there! We could have used you flying!"
"Were you captured?" Nobuyuki asked. "Or have you already defeated Eiko?"
Akiko went a bit wide-eyed at that. "You didn't hurt her, did you? She's still alright, right?"
Jiro was taken aback at this flood of questions but one thing in common that he saw on everyone's face was their mixture of confusion about where he had been for two days, and what he was doing here now. He swallowed at that. He tried to calm himself a bit before he rubbed the back of his head.
"Er…well…it's, um…kind of a long story."
"Mind telling us what it is?" Takeshi grumbled in response. "After having to thaw my ears out two days in a row I'd like to know why or at least where she is."
"Yeah, Jiro." Takara joined in. "I've barely been able to fly in this temperature. Are we almost to Eiko's?"
The pale young man hesitated a moment, but then nodded. "Well…yeah, it's just a bit ahead, but-"
"Alright!" Akiko cheered. She motioned to the others and nearly took off right away. "Come on! Just a little further!"
"Wait, wait!" Takeshi called, interrupting. "If Jiro already took care of things, I want to know. We're already past the three day deadline so we need to head back right now if we can."
"So what is it, Jiro?" Nobuyuki asked, crossing his arms. "What happened to you during that fight?"
"The only thing that seemed natural at the time." Jiro answered with a shrug. "I surrendered."
The rest of the group looked stunned.
"What?"
"She caught me off guard and she ended up being pretty strong… She knocked most of the fight out of me before I was able to get going. So…I ended up surrendering to her."
Takeshi grit his teeth. "You didn't think to just fly away?"
He paused, then narrowed his gaze.
"Wait a second. If you surrendered to her, does that mean you broke out of some sort of ice dungeon?"
Jiro sheepishly grinned and rubbed the back of his head. "Well, uh…not exactly. I kind of…went back with her to her ice palace."
Now the others of the Jido-no-Hogu-sha were really stunned.
"You went back with who we're supposed to be fighting?" Takara answered.
"Relax! I only did it so I could try and learn her weaknesses." Yet even as these words came out, they sounded uncertain…hesitant…and that was a fact that those listening soon picked up on.
"You tried to learn her weaknesses for two days." Takeshi answered, in a tone of disbelief, his eyes still narrow. "What exactly did you find out? A vulnerable spot?" His teeth clenched a bit. "Or how much you like the idea of a world covered in snow?"
Everyone looked to the Ghost Hare at this.
"Takeshi?" Takara began to say.
"What are you-" Akiko started to chime in.
However, they were cut off as he barked at Jiro. "You know, you never took an oath to bushido, kenshusei. And we all know you're the biggest slacker here…the one who likes having fun at the expense of others."
"Hey!" The young man retorted, his own face tightening at that. "That's crazy! I like having fun, but I don't want people to suffer for it! I've been busy trying to find out the scope of her power, that's all! And hearing her side of the story! How she got these powers and all that."
Akiko was getting more uncomfortable hearing all of this talk, and she showed it. After all, this was getting into the realm of hurting her sister again. However, everyone was so focused on Jiro that they didn't notice it.
Takeshi rolled his eyes and groaned. "So, now it makes sense… It wasn't you liking to have a 'good time'…it was you kicking everyone else into the garbage while you tried to handle your own problem from your memory loss. You saw what she could tell you about your power while you let people in that district down there freeze."
This made the young man even more indignant. "It wasn't like that at all! I don't appreciate you accusing me of it as if it was! I care as much about the people of Arender-ken as the rest of you!"
"If that's true, then why didn't you just knock her out the first chance you got!" Takeshi shouted. "You know what's been happening over the past two days while you're been messing around with her? We've been hiking through this whole landscape, risking avalanches and falling into cracks and freezing to death! And even if you think we can take it, what about Akiko? She's just a human! What about everyone back in Arender-ken? Every minute you wasted up there is another minute that winter got worse! And you didn't happen to forget about our little three day deadline, did you? A deadline that expired?"
Jiro was silent. He was ashamed to admit he hadn't really thought of most of that. He had been so intent on Eiko, so dominated by thinking of her, that he had almost forgotten the rest. Not just Arender-ken but his friends and comrades. Even if he was willing to stomach the three days, were they?
Nobuyuki inhaled and exhaled. "Takeshi has a good point, Jiro. Many are still suffering in Arender-ken. We must end the winter as soon as possible or it won't matter. The growing season will be ruined. And it gets colder and stormier by the day."
"No it doesn't." Jiro spoke up again at this. "It's getting better."
This made all four members pause. Satoru quirked an eyebrow, and then gave a jingle.
On hearing the jingle, Jiro paled. He shrank again.
Takara's own brow furrowed. "How do you know that? Did you fly back down the mountain without us knowing about it?"
Jiro swallowed. "I…I…"
"Go on, kenshusei." Takeshi said slowly. "You said that with some conviction."
Jiro swallowed. He looked away and dug his foot into the ground.
"I…kind of…well…I've been teaching her."
The other four looked stunned.
"You…you what?!" Takara nearly exclaimed.
"Look, I told you!" He insisted, raising his head again. "What happened back at Arender-ken Castle was an accident! She lost control of her power! She-"
"She murdered people, Jiro!" Nobuyuki suddenly spoke up. "You cannot just look the other way on that or ignore it! She has to answer for her crimes, accident or no! She can't hide here! Especially when her power is hurting other people!"
"And you just went and trained her to be even more of a threat to us?!" Takeshi shouted. "Just whose side are you on, anyway?! Do you want this winter to never end?!"
Jiro was feeling more and more uneasy. He didn't like the four, his only friends, growing so angry and hurt about it. Again, he tried to defend himself. "Of course I want it to end!"
"I really wonder…" Takeshi snorted.
"I do! And it will end once she learns to control her power! That's all I wanted to do!"
"But how long will that take, Jiro?" Takara spoke up anxiously. "You're alright up here…but we're on the brink of frostbite because we're losing the battle with drying our clothes. We're almost out of the food we brought. It's going to be the same everywhere. I don't want to hurt her if we can avoid it but people are suffering. Maybe dying. And you did all of this without even telling us."
"Jiro…you and I might be able to survive up here," Nobuyuki went on. "But Takara, Takeshi, and Satoru cannot. And neither can Akiko. We cannot return to Arender-ken without having succeeded. If we do, we'll all be marked men and women again. They may even accuse us of working with Eiko. You needed to at least tell us that this was what you had in mind. It would have been safer all along to just render her unconscious and bring her back down bound…"
"No!"
Jiro's sudden outburst alarmed him as much as everyone else's. His voice actually sharply echoed through the snowy valley for a moment. It was enough to make everyone recoil, even Takeshi.
However, the man held there only a moment. He spoke slower.
"So that's the real reason… You fell for her, didn't you?"
The pale young man's lip quivered. His sound caught in his throat. He swallowed and looked to one side quickly. "I…I don't know what you're talking about…"
Takeshi seized him by the shoulder and spun him back around to face him. And in spite of Jiro's normal attitude, he couldn't fight back or avoid looking him in the eye. The hare-eared man went wide-eyed.
"It's true. You love her. That's why you've been up here two days! That's why you hung us out to dry and left Arender-ken to freeze! The two of you living up here in your own little winter wonderland while the rest of the world turns into your own personal courtyard!"
"No!" Jiro shot back, managing to wrench free, but his voice a bit weaker. "I told you…I care about Arender-ken! I do!"
…Don't I?
All I've been thinking about is Eiko… All I can see in my dreams is Eiko… All I fantasize about is her when I'm playing… All I focus on is her smile, her eyes, and her lips when she's practicing… My heart always feels so warm whenever she's around… What if…what if I didn't just 'magically forget' about everything else when I was with her? What if I didn't want to remember? What if I didn't care?
Jiro looked to the others, hoping for support; for votes of confidence. However, in light of his disappearance, and coming back without a scratch on him, not to mention all he said, he saw none. Nobuyuki looked rather grim. He showed a bit of pity in his eyes, but not much. Takara actually showed hurt; like he had betrayed them. That look replaced any feelings of fun and lightheartedness in his chest with feelings of pain and guilt. He could have taught Eiko back in Arender-ken. He could have knocked her out long ago. But no…he stayed up here. Why? So he could enjoy a frozen world and being secluded just with her?
A tingling rang out. In the silence, it was easy to hear. Jiro didn't look to Satoru right away, but the others did.
"What is it, little friend?"
The Sand Moth opened his palms and gathered some of his golden dust into them; forming small statues of Akiko and Osamu.
Takara, still a bit stunned at everything, blinked a few times. "Those two? Why would you make statues of…"
She slowed as she looked up and around. The others did too, and they all got the same surprise.
Akiko and Osamu were gone.
"Oh…why'd we have to leave so soon, Akiko?" Osamu innocently asked from his position. "They were just starting to get louder. I wanted to see how loud I could get!"
"Osamu, you heard what they said!" She called back. "They're here to get my sister! I can't let them do it! Jiro sounds like he was lulling her into a false security for two days now! I've got to get to her first!"
"But I thought Nobuyuki and the others were your friends, Akiko?" The snowman innocently asked, genuinely sounding confused.
"That may be, but they're still ronin and they were still brought in to go after Eiko! They told me they were going to give her a chance, but now they sound like they just want to take care of her and be done with it without letting me talk to her first! Jiro even admitted she said the whole thing was an accident, just like I knew it was from the start, and they still want to take her back by force! I can't trust that they'll let me talk to her unless I go there first! Besides, if she sees them all coming up with me and realizes they're here to attack her, she'll freak out for sure!"
Osamu blinked for a moment, and then finally chuckled. "I lost track of that a while ago…but I'm just glad we're on our way to see Eiko!"
At the moment, the snowman had revealed an interesting ability that was helpful. Shortly after the discussion had gotten more heated, Akiko had begun to sneak away from the others, meaning to run on ahead. She wouldn't have had a chance normally, but Osamu began to run after her on seeing her go. Afraid he'd blow her cover, she whispered to him that she needed to get away in a hurry. In response, much to her surprise, the snowman flattened himself on the ground and began to slide across it like a sledge. It didn't even matter that they were going uphill; he still managed to do so. He offered to give Akiko a ride and, not really able to afford to refuse, she got on, and soon had been racing away from the still-arguing Jido-no-Hogu-sha as she struggled to balance on him while standing up. It was a bit nerve-wracking at first but not too far on, it became a bit fun and exciting.
After a few moments, she looked around. "Osamu, this is great! How come you didn't do it yesterday while we were going through the chasm?"
He looked up from his position, on his belly in the snow. "…Do what?"
"…Slide on the snow like this."
"I can slide on the snow?" He asked innocently, and then looked around him. "Oh yeah! I guess I can! That's right… Eiko made me so I could go places in a hurry!"
Akiko blinked. "So why didn't you do it yesterday?"
"I can't do it on anything but snow. Not ice. Plus, if I took you along, wouldn't that not be fair to everyone else? In fact…maybe I should head back right now and let them get a turn…"
"No, no Osamu!" Akiko quickly interjected, her voice rising a bit, before quickly calming down. "Just…just get me to Eiko first, alright? She's not much farther, is she?"
"Nope! Not at all!" Osamu cheered. "Um…unless you think about five minutes from now is 'far'. Because in that case, yes, she's much farther."
"Great!" Akiko shouted back, even as she wobbled a bit as Osamu went into a "side slide". She made sure to hang in a bit more there because they were getting close to the edge of one of the incoming rock peaks, and falling would mean a rather nasty, if not fatal, spill. "Keep it up! I just need to be alone with her for a minute…"
To be honest, Itachitoko hated being outside, and he especially hated having to go up this snow-covered mountain, freezing his rear end off, huddled under his thick clothes on top of his horse. He had secretly hoped that Shitakarahi would be able to effect his reward without him needing to be physically present, but such was not to be. He had to be there in person for the whole thing, including in her face. The thought made him genuinely nervous. He didn't realize he'd have to be so close to the queen. If he didn't do this just right, the queen would kill him before Shitakarahi had a chance to be enraged at him…
He was sticking to the center of a company of about twenty men all together, all on horseback. The animals were doing surprisingly well, or perhaps not-so-surprisingly as the winter was continuing to lessen. Although the mountains remained perpetually frozen, they weren't nearly as cold or stormy as they had been when the Jido-no-Hogu-sha had left. In fact, with the sun out, they were actually more picturesque and beautiful. Such things were lost on Itachitoko. He wasn't much of a nature-lover…and he especially hated having to be out in the cold.
It was such a good thing that he'd never have to see a flake of snow ever again after this...
Nakamura was taking the lead, actually riding ahead slightly. He wanted to make sure that he got the first sneak attack if there were any. Hachiro was the head of the others. Both of them as well as the men with them were in full combat regalia, preparing for quite the battle. And all of them, from the greatest to the least, had a touch of anxiety. The last expedition to go this far north after Eiko had been stopped many miles to the south, beset by her power and constructs. Now everything was clear. The thought had occurred that the Jido no Hogu-sha may have succeeded, but Itachitoko "reassured" them that she hadn't. As a result, they were more nervous for a surprise.
However, now the group found themselves with a new obstacle. Although the horses had somehow managed to make good time through the thick snow without stepping on obstacles or into holes to break their legs, this next challenge wasn't going to be so easy. Itachitoko saw it as they neared; one arch to what had to be a massive bridge. As he got a little closer, he noticed that it spanned a massive, deep, rocky and jagged chasm that stretched on and on in either direction.
Nakamura pulled his horse to a halt, and the others soon drew to a stop as well as they reached him. There was a rather good reason for that; only half of the bridge was standing. The other half had already fallen.
Hachiro pulled closer to Nakamura before halting his own horse. As for Itachitoko, he came forward a bit more and then stopped as well but in an area in between the two of them and the rest of the men. Close enough to hear everything, at any rate.
"Seems like she figured someone would be coming…" Nakamura grumbled. "No way across now."
Hachiro looked about a bit, and then pointed. "It looks like there may be a trail there we can take."
"Across this?" The lord responded, pointing ahead to the vast uneven and icy terrain. "Nothing but razor sharp rocks and icicles. It would take forever. I don't think the horses can even make it all the way through."
"What other choice do we have? The alternative is to go around for miles, and there's no telling we'll be able to do it even if we do. We might not be able to cross this without crossing a mountaintop…"
Itachitoko frowned under his hawklike nose. More delays. He couldn't afford any more of those. They had to get to Eiko now. They had to cross this obstacle now. However, how could they possibly do it?
Well, he supposed being the onmyoji for the shogun, he should have been able to come up with something although no one really expected him too. After all, other than divination and some "magic tricks", no one expected him to be capable of much of anything.
However, perhaps he still did have a solution.
While the men behind them waited for the next move, and Nakamura and Hachiro continued to talk and debate their options, the twisted man made sure no one was paying attention and lowered his head, as if huddling down closer to the horse. But underneath his thick robes, his hands went for his sides and soon emerged with the small idol. Rather than expose it, he kept it hidden but spoke to it none the less.
"My lord Shitakarahi…" He whispered.
There was a moment of silence, before a voice spoke low and accented from the stone. In truth, the onmyoji was a bit relieved. His "partner" had already regained enough power to manifest his voice without a ritual. It was getting close to time…
"You had better have a good reason for this. I told you not to disturb me again until you finished with the queen."
Itachitoko felt a touch of anxiety on hearing his tone and wording, and swallowed slightly. "Forgive me, my lord, but there is a problem. We are on our way to deal with Lady Eiko right now, but she took precautions to make herself inaccessible. We have to cross a chasm to get to her, and the bridge she made to get across has been torn down."
"And what concern of this is mine?"
"It could take days to get around, assuming that's even possible. During which time anything could happen with her…"
"And do you think I can just 'do something about it'? If I could manifest my power so easily, do you think I would waste my time with humans such as you?"
"My lord, if you can't get us across, then there's no way for me to carry out my end of the deal…"
A growl sounded, one that made the onmyoji shudder. "I hope you aren't trying to 'collect early' on your end. Even if I was willing to go along with that, I'm not in a position to give you our half of the agreement until you've dealt with the woman. But very well… Just keep in mind that this is the only help you will receive from me until you succeed, so don't bother asking again."
The idol went silent but Itachitoko could feel heat rising from it. Power was beginning to flow out of it, and power so strong that his hands were almost immediately burned. He had to struggle not to yelp at it, and quickly put the idol underneath his cloth and hid it once more. Even so, however, the heat continued to grow under the fabric. Before things could get too bad, he quickly put on a fake face and straightened in the saddle.
"S-S-Stand back, Lord Nakamura!" He suddenly proclaimed, trying to sound like he was confident and knew what he was doing. "I shall get us inside! I'm not the head court onmyoji for nothing!"
Nakamura and Hachiro both turned and looked to him, as did the rest of the men. They were all a bit puzzled. They had enough faith in the emperor's choice not to question him, but at the same time they didn't know what exactly he was supposed to do. It's not like he had much in the way of power. Nevertheless, Itachitoko was already advancing, and that caused the two men to pull to the sides as he reached the edge of the chasm. He tried to look bold and powerful while at the same time hiding his anxiety and fear at the heat growing beside him. It would soon start burning him even through the clothing. Nevertheless, he cleared his throat, said a deal of babble that he would say during some of his normal rituals, and then aimed his palms ahead of him…wondering what would happen but making it look like he was doing something none the less. Nothing occurred right away, and for a moment he swallowed at the thought he had moved too soon.
Then it came, and he had to struggle not to show his own shock as everyone else's jaws dropped.
The earth began to shake violently. It was originating deep in the bottom of the chasm, but it spread all the way to the top of it and through to the men and their animals. Soon, the horses began to trot in place and whinny, clearly scared, and the men had to struggle to keep them in place…including Itachitoko. As the quaking grew worse, bits of the edge of the chasm began to break off and fall inside, along with parts of the bridge. Cracks appeared in the snowy landscape. Nakamura, looking around in shock, feared there would be an avalanche.
Yet what happened next was more surprising. Suddenly a great number of ice pillars and bits of rock within the chasm were blown aside or outright melted, and to the astonishment of everyone a column of raw magma and fire burst forth from the earth itself and shot toward the heavens. Tremendous heat billowed over all of them, causing a massive amount of steam to arise as it vaporized the snow and rose higher and higher. Now, the horses really did panic. One threw a rider and bolted for it. The others went away from the chasm, unable to endure it. Itachitoko himself was thrown to one side, barely holding onto the saddle. The lava continued to rise until it reached the level of the valley. Once there, it held, letting the ice around it continue to melt on it and the cold wind blast it.
The end result was that the magma pillar rapidly cooled. Being battered by icy winds and surrounded by liquid water turning to steam, it wasn't long before it became gray and solidified. In only two short minutes, whatever was holding the flow up ceased, leaving a tower of magma rock in its wake. It continued to smoke and cool, though the men could still feel the heat radiating off of it, and slowly turned to stone once again. Now, there was a rock bridge spanning the chasm. It needed to cool a bit longer, but soon, in the icy weather that seemed to try to maintain its coldness by responding with more cold, it would hold the horses and the riders.
With that in mind, Itachitoko struggled not to sweat or tremble as he went back into his saddle. Such was merely a single sample of Shitakarahi's power? It terrified him, but he reminded himself that soon such power would be his to command. No man or army in the world would be able to stand against it. He let that fuel his greed and, in turn, his bravery as he steadied himself. Swallowing, he smoothed his body out and spoke again.
"Well now…it seems we have a bridge. In just a bit longer it will be cool enough to cross, and we can proceed."
No one said anything at first. Instead, both Nakamura and Hachiro looked to Itachitoko in open mouthed shock, while the rest of the men did so from afar.
"…How in the world did you manage that?"
"Oh, my lord," The onmyoji answered with a hand wave. "Such a trifle is simple for the emperor's court onmyoji."
Nakamura didn't change. In fact, his look grew darker.
"No…no, it isn't."
Itachitoko, for a moment, felt fear slowly leak into his expression. However, he coughed and made himself look more indignant. "Wh…what? How could you say such a thing? Do you doubt my power?"
"I do." Nakamura answered, his gaze turning to probing. "I have seen you in the court of both the emperor and the shogun, Lord Itachitoko. And all I have ever seen from you is what the other onmyoji do. You aren't even that talented at crafting shinigami to do your bidding. The one I saw you make with my own eyes actually teased and taunted you. I've seen no less than two dozen more talented than you in my time. And none of them ever managed magic like this."
Itachitoko scowled. "I don't care much for your insolent, doubtful tone, Lord Nakamura. I saw no need to flex the full measure of my power before you in the court. And I don't appreciate your insinuations. And just what exactly are you insinuating in the first place? Are you trying to call me a fraud? I may not outrank you, but if you think for one moment I won't complain to the emperor of this slander…"
"My lords, please!" Hachiro suddenly interjected, pulling his horse up in between the two, breaking the dark look Nakamura was now giving Itachitoko and the sneer the latter was giving the former. "There's no time for this! Lady Akiko could be in grave danger! We haven't seen her yet and we're nearly to the top of the mountain! If the bridge is stable, can we cross now?"
The two nobles were silent. Both continued to glare a bit longer. Nakamura eventually broke the stalemate.
"It's your bridge, Lord Itachitoko. So it's only fair that you cross first to show us all how safe it is."
It was unmistakable. In spite of his best efforts, for a moment, the onmyoji's face blanched and showed genuine fear. He got it under control a moment later, but there was no way Nakamura missed it. Swallowing hard, he swept the reins around and began to move to the edge.
"Very well…follow my lead."
That ended up being harder than he thought. He was scared of the bridge, wondering if it was cool enough to where if he stepped in the wrong place he could break through, sink into still-flowing magma, and then be incinerated. But his horse was another matter entirely. It didn't want to risk it at all. And not much of a rider, used to normally going from place to place in a litter, he had considerable trouble forcing the animal to start walking out on it. It took almost five whole minutes before he was able to do so; especially since he only reluctantly tried to force the horse onto it. The whole time, he could feel the gaze of Nakamura and the others on him…though especially Nakamura. Yet at last, he managed to get the beast walking across.
No one else moved until Itachitoko finally got over to the other side, and he paled and swallowed the whole way, barely able to keep his horse moving through its own fear mixed with his. He tried not to look on either side of the bridge at the steep fall down to oblivion, to say nothing of being impaled on the rocks. Yet at long last he made it to the snow on the other side, and quickly he went over a bit more, and then waved to the men. It was mostly an empty gesture. From this far, he only looked like a tiny dot, but they could at least see him moving away from the bridge before they realized it was safe to cross.
All the while, he wore his unbridled hate for Nakamura on his face.
Damned bastard… He's on to me! Damnit, now I have to succeed! I have to get my reward before they can deal with Eiko, or I'll be doomed at the shogun's hand if not at Shitakarahi's!
Quickly, he reached behind him to a different pocket, and made sure he still had something else from his 'special trunk' inside. That one was more important…
Enjoy intimidating me while you can, Nakamura… You'll be the first once I have my new power…
Eiko didn't know what had caused it. After all, she was far from the area of the quake and she hadn't heard the magma flow or the eruption, and so had no external awareness of the source of the disturbance.
All she knew was that a nameless fear had gripped her heart so violently that she collapsed to one knee and had to reach out her hand to stop herself.
Eiko nearly felt like she had been choked for a moment. The fear was so strong that it made her sweat, filling her with terror. She was so aghast by it that she didn't realize that, in spite of her terror, the room stayed fairly the same. When the fear wasn't originating inside of her she was able to mitigate it more. This fear was of something else besides her and her power; something innate to her that made her feel as if it was something much worse than the thought of eternal winter…
But what?
She didn't know. As the feeling of terror ebbed, leaving her feeling pretty much the same as before, although still stricken with unease at what had just caused that, she only realized that she knew something else. For some reason, she could "feel" where the source of this fear was. She knew it as innately as how she knew her own power. And it was coming from the south; where she had built her ice bridge and subsequently had it torn down.
With that in mind, the woman pushed herself back onto her feet and looked ahead of her. At the moment, she was on the higher floors again, with the window aimed outward that looked over the landscape. She could see little from here, but rather than go to the window she swept her hand out. A bit to her pleasure, the ice lenses she had made previously came together much more quickly now and assembled themselves in less than two seconds. Her power was getting easier to use. Unfortunately, the memory of the fear was too much for her to relax, and soon she positioned her the ice glass in the right spot and moved up to look through the eyepiece. Normally she would let her servants handle this, especially the sentries who were already out, but she didn't want to wait for a report…not as bad as that vision had been. She wanted to see this as soon as possible.
A gasp went out almost immediately on looking through the lens. This was far north of the limit she had established days ago when the first attempt of invaders had come toward her. But then again, that was when her power was more temperamental and severe. If anyone had come this far north, it would have resulted in her making them lost in a freezing whiteout and being beset by her snow oni. Yet now she saw, much to her horror, that at least twenty men on horses, armed for combat, were crossing the one natural barrier to her pagoda: the chasm. Somehow, they had made a bridge over it, one that looked like it was made out of raw magma that had cooled.
How…how is that possible?! The woman thought in horrified shock; the snow beginning to fall around her and quickly building in intensity. No…no! I was so worried about hurting people and getting my power under control that I drew everything back too much, including the oni! They were able to get this close right under my nose! And they're armed for war… I don't know how they managed to make that bridge, but they have to have more magic power with them… They must have found someone else with abilities like the Jido no Hogu-sha! And now they're coming for me… They're going to…
Eiko paused in her thoughts. She looked and saw that a snowstorm was rising around her, and the palace was beginning to crackle as fissures appeared in it.
No…I'm losing control again! Calm down! Breathe! Remember what Jiro taught you!
Closing her eyes, Eiko struggled to straighten herself out and breathe deep again. She did so for about a minute and then opened her eyes again. No change. She nearly grew more anxious and fearful at that.
No! Stay calm! Do it again!
Concentrating harder, working more at it, she closed her eyes and began to recite whatever mantras she could remember that she had practiced as well as kept breathing, purposely relaxing the muscles in her body. It took a lot of concentration but slowly the snow died down around her. The fissures faded and became flawless again. She opened her eyes, and sighed in relief. She had successfully controlled it…at least this time.
Thank the gods for Jiro. If he hadn't taught me how to relax, I might have undid everything I learned and made the winter in Arender-ken worse than…
On thinking this, her train of thought froze again.
…Wait.
I'm sparing Arender-ken…but I'm also sparing those men below. And Jiro only left just now, right as they were coming…
Did…did he…?
The woman shook her head.
No, Jiro's my friend. He couldn't have known about this or had anything to do with it…
…Right?
She didn't know, but she didn't let her mind dwell on it either. All she knew was that she was in trouble. These men were close now, and in her current state she couldn't deal with them as last time. She couldn't batter them with cold and frost or risk freezing Arender-ken further as a side effect. That left her snow oni, but what good would that do? If she made them go all-out like before, they could kill people. But if she didn't, they could be too minor and let them get through. Especially to whoever down there had the power to generate magma and fire… She knew innately that the only way to kill her constructs was to melt them, and if they could make a bridge of raw magma dealing with the oni would be nothing. They were too crude. Too bulky. Too slow. Too clumsy…
Yet as she thought that, she got an idea.
I created the snow oni out of fear before. I just 'slapped them together'. What's to say…I can't make them better?
She was hesitant, but realized there was nothing stopping her. Her power was still not fully in her control but it was under more control now than it ever had been before. When she had been clear-minded and happy she had made this magnificent palace in seconds; all of it obeying her thoughts exactly. Couldn't she do the same to the oni?
With that in mind, she turned away from the ice spyglass, dismissing it with a wave of her hands, and then called out into the halls as she made for the stairs. Her voice easily echoed and resounded through the whole palace.
"Everyone! Come to me in my main chamber at once! Hurry!"
Without waiting for a response, the woman made for the stairs and took them as fast as she could. If they were at the bridge, they were only a mile from the rock peak, and rounding that they'd be no more than a half mile from the pagoda itself. Time was of the essence.
On reaching the bottom of the stairs, she quickly entered her main chamber. Already, she saw eight of the massive snow oni were thundering inside the room, their footsteps letting out massive echoes with each step as they entered. Others were behind them. As she drew herself into the middle of the floor, she beckoned and motioned them to spread out around her. More continued to come in until she had twenty in all, surrounding her on all sides and looking obediently to their queen.
She exhaled. "I need you all to go out into battle. Attackers are coming here. Keep them out at any cost, but you are not to kill any of them. You can injure them as much as you have to, but do not take their lives. And to help make sure you're all precise enough to do this…"
She extended a hand and began to gesture with it. As a result, a white powder rose up from the floor and began to whip through the room. It quickly built in intensity, growing larger and more distinct, and moving in and around all of the snow oni in the room. They merely stood there and curiously looked about as this happened, but Eiko continued to work, knowing exactly what she wanted and now applying her power at her highest current level of control.
The white powder wasn't snow, however. It was more "diamond dust"; made up of thousands and thousands of icy crystal knives. The same kind she had used to destroy her old clothing and put the kimono she was currently wearing together. With this in mind, she got to work.
Slowly, the powder began to "sculpt" the ice oni, shaving off excess, packing in the extra, rebuilding them both inside and outside…
No one will get past these. Eiko reassured herself. Not even Jiro would be able to…
Akiko was honestly very impressed. She expected Eiko to be holed up here in something besides a cave, but this was beyond her expectations. Even after seeing the magnificent bridge, she stared in a bit of open-mouthed shock on dismounting Osamu. She had no idea Akiko had this level of power, even considering the winter she had brought. She thought it was just generalized; not so specific as the beautiful ice pagoda which now loomed in front of her. She was forced to stand and stare for a moment.
"Home sweet home!" Osamu cheered as he got up, spreading out his flattened belly to be more normal after the slide.
"This…this is…" Akiko slowly remarked. "Incredible…"
Osamu blinked, looking to her. "But…Akiko, don't you live in a castle too?"
The young woman shook her head. "Well…yeah. And it's honestly bigger than this…but…that doesn't make it any less incredible… It's made out of ice…and it's so pure and perfect… It looks like it's nothing more than one giant beautiful crystal… Eiko…she's amazing…"
"Well, let's go see her, then!" Osamu chirped. He began to waddle forward again with a smile on his face.
Akiko held. Now that she was here, this was a bit intimidating. To see something so massive that Eiko had built with such ease… In spite of having walked through her winter for a few days, Akiko was only now really getting a grasp about how powerful she was. How much more of a god she was compared to her. It sent just a tinge of anxiety into her. But she couldn't stop now. She needed to get to her before the others did. She wasn't sure what Jiro had been doing, if he was wanting to spare her or not, but the fact that he had talked about finding a weakness of hers made her too tense to let him and the rest of the Jido-no-Hogu-sha go first; at least not before she had her own chance to talk. Soon, she was taking off as well. In spite of the snow being deeper here, she ran faster than before.
Yet she didn't get too far before she gained enough elevation to see that the pagoda had a wall around it, and that it was gated and shut. Osamu himself drew to a halt, and she did the same as she neared.
"Oh…the gates are closed." He remarked. "No problem! I'll just go knock!" He nearly took off again.
He was stopped as Akiko shot out her hand and seized him by one of his limbs, pulling it off in the process. She grimaced, but it had the desired effect, making Osamu stop and look to her.
"Wait! What if more of those snow ogres come out?" She asked.
"Oh, that's alright!" He cheered. "I'll just tell them you're with me!"
Akiko looked a bit sheepish. "Er…thanks, Osamu, but I don't think they're going to listen to you. Remember how they kind of stepped on you before?"
He blinked silently. He turned his head up and thought. Time ticked by. After about a minute of thinking, he looked down and shook his head. "Nope. I sure don't."
Akiko sighed. "I think that was something else that got 'knocked loose' back there… Anyway, we need to find a way to sneak inside."
"But there isn't any other way." Osamu gestured around. "The wall goes into the mountain on the back, so we'd have to climb over the wall, and it's too slick even for me."
The young noblewoman didn't like the sound of that. She had just started to think of how they could get around this when a groaning rang out. She looked up, and saw the gate doors of the palace opening. Osamu lit up in delight.
"Hey look! They're opening it for us! Let's go!"
Again, Akiko stopped the snowman, this time darting forward and reattaching his arm, then holding it to do so. "No, Osamu! Hide! It could be more of those snow ogres coming out!"
The snowman was a bit confused, but didn't have a chance to protest as Akiko grabbed him and quickly pulled him along with her behind one of the snow banks. Thanks to the snow being so deep, they were able to sink in a bit and hide themselves from view on approach. Only if someone was looking behind them after exiting would they spot them…and Akiko began to hope that wouldn't happen if the snow ogres really were coming out. At any rate, both she and Osamu were able to look out at the gates from behind this snow pile. She peeked her own head out just barely, but Osamu merely removed one of his eyes and held it up and over the top.
The gates continued to open wider and wider. But before they even reached full width, a sound of trampling in the snow rang out. It rapidly built in volume and intensity, not being as deep or powerful as the previous footsteps of the snow ogres, but instead being lighter, more rapid, and in greater number. Akiko realized she recognized the sound. She had heard it before. And soon, both she and the snowman saw the source.
Snow ogres didn't come trampling out of the gates. Rather, twenty ice samurai warriors, each eight feet tall, perfectly shaped and proportionate and wearing complete suits of armor, all also made out of ice, emerged. Each one was on a massive warhorse, dressed for combat and scaled to be able to handle their size perfectly. The horses were likewise made of ice, but snorted and moved just as flawlessly as real horses. And with their greater size, they were rather fast as the band raced out of the gates and tore down the mountainside. Akiko quickly pressed herself to the ground, hoping her red, blue, and green colors didn't show off too much from the snow. Because although they were formed perfectly, their eyes were still icy blue torches, and they drove their horses on with single-minded devotion.
Soon they were down the hill; the hoofbeats echoing back up to where Akiko and Osamu were hiding. The young noblewoman looked up and down after them, as did the snowman, replacing his eye in the process. They reached the rock pinnacle and rounded it in single file, not slowing and flawlessly moving together to do so.
The young woman swallowed. "Those…looked a bit, um…'deadlier' than the ones from the other day…"
"I've never seen them before in my life!" Osamu exclaimed. "…Granted, I've only been alive for about a week…but Eiko didn't make those guys before!"
Akiko hesitated. The snow ogres alone were tough before, but these new snow samurai were sleeker and faster. She could bet they were stronger and less clumsy too. The last ones had given the Jido no Hogu-sha a lot of trouble. These ones… She hated to think of it. She didn't think even they could take care of twenty of them, even with Jiro back…
Another sound rang out, this time of large clacking, before a groaning followed it. Akiko looked up and back to the palace. The gates were beginning to close.
They were open now and the last of the guards, hopefully, were gone. That meant this might be her only chance to see Eiko free of danger. With that in mind, she quickly got up and took off for the entrance, moving as fast as she possibly could through the deep snow.
"Huh?" Osamu announced as he turned and looked to her. "Hey! Wait for me!"
The snowman went off, hot on her heels, but Akiko couldn't concentrate on that now. She focused only on running as best as she could through the snow. The doors continued to slowly close, and so she tried to push herself faster. More than once, she feared they'd be too late. After all, she was still rather far from the gates when she began to move. She panted and nearly twisted her ankle not once but twice. But miraculously, the gates closed only very slowly and finally, when only four feet worth of opening was left, she slipped through.
Osamu got a bit pinched on the way behind her but he still managed to drag his full body through just as the doors slammed shut, letting an echoing ring go through the entire countryside.
To be continued...