The Samurai
It was the day before the annual celebration of Berk's peace with the dragons. This holiday had been started by Stoick the Vast as a means of honoring his son's sacrifice and celebrating their new way of life. All around the village people were setting up decorations for tomorrow's celebration. They were all anxious to see the dragon sky parade the academy put on every year on this day and Bork week. There would be a feast tomorrow as well and the people would use that to toast to Hiccup and reminisce about the old days.
With no classes today Astrid decided to walk through the village and help set up decoration where she could. She smiled at seeing her people in such high spirits. She was feeling the joy of the holiday too as she fondly remembered this was to commemorate her relationship with Stormfly. Yet there was also a pang of sadness in her heart. For tomorrow would mark the six year disappearance of her tribe's heir. Astrid always got melancholy on that day. She just wished she knew where Hiccup had gone. Apart of her wanted to just believe he'd died. At least that way she'd have some closure. But she just couldn't accept it. Her heart wouldn't let her.
As she was walking throughout the village her gaze suddenly shifted to the docks. And to her surprise she saw Trader Johan's ship there. With a smile she ran down to see the man and browse through his selection of items. Yet when she got there she was surprised to discover he wasn't on his ship. A sailor informed her that he was having a meal at the great hall. So she started jogging in that direction to meet him.
Trader Johan always had some interesting things from his travels. She always took a look through his selection to see what she could get. As she was halfway up the village she spied the chief heading in the same direction.
"Stoick," she called out to the big man in greeting.
Stoick stopped and turned around to look at her. He smiled when he saw her and waited for her to join him. "Well hello there Astrid. Headed up to the great hall?" he asked.
"Yes sir. Trader Johan is here and I wanted to see what he had in stock today," she explained.
The chief chuckled. "Just so happens that I'm going to see him too. Care to join me?"
Astrid nodded and walked at the chief's side. She liked the big man. She looked up to him. The chief was a man with a good heart and cared so much for his people. And he had trusted her with the Dragon Academy. It showed how much faith in her abilities he had.
The chief liked Astrid too. As he asked her about the sky parade tomorrow he thought how she would have made an excellent daughter in law. She was strong, brave, stubborn, intelligent, and beautiful. She was what every Viking wanted in a wife. He'd know that his son had developed feeling for her when he was still around. He couldn't help but wonder what would have happened between them now.
When they reached to doors to the great hall Stoick opened them and allowed Astrid to pass. She thanked him before entering and searching for Johan. Stoick entered behind her and did the same. After a few moments they spotted Johan at a table at the far side of the room with Gobber. SO they started to approach. As they got closer it appeared Johan and Gobber were arguing about something.
"Oh you're crazy, that's impossible," Gobber said.
"I'm telling you I saw one," Johan said insistent. Gobber just waved a hand dismissively at whatever Johan was claiming to have seen.
"Hello Johan," Stoick called out when he was within earshot.
The man dressed in decorative furs turned and greeted the chief with a smile. "Ah, Stoick the Vast. Good to see you once again," he said respectfully.
Stoick nodded in acknowledgment. "What were you two talking about then?" he asked curiously.
"Johan here says he saw a samurai," Gobber said rolling his eyes.
The chief and Astrid remained silent. They were completely clueless.
"What's a samurai?" Astrid asked, echoing the chief's thought.
Gobber took a gulp from his mug hand before answering. "Samurai are warriors from the land of the rising sun," he answered simply. That didn't really help Astrid and Stoick much. They'd never heard of this land. Not many of the tribe traveled out of the water of the archipelago. Gobber was an exception. He had traveled to many different lands in his youth, making him very knowledgeable about the world.
"Where is this place?" Stoick asked.
Gobber sighed in annoyance. These people don't know anything, he thought to himself. "The land of the rising sun, or Japan, is a land very far from here. It would take almost a year by ship just to get there. Which is why it's impossible to have seen a samurai," he said looking to Johan.
Johan bristled at Gobbers dismissal of his claim. "I'm telling you I saw one. He appeared out of nowhere and saved me from those damned Vandals," Johan insisted.
The chief's ears perked at the mention of the Vandals. They were becoming more and more infamous over the months. Berk had yet to be attacked but they were keeping their eyes open. "When and where were you attacked Johan?" he asked. He needed to know more about this.
Johan looked at the chief and nodded. Then he paused to take a swig of mead while Astrid and Stoick took a seat. As Johan started telling his story other villagers gathered. They also wanted to hear what happened.
"So I was on Fenrir's Teeth doing some business when the Vandals attacked. And that was when the samurai appeared," Johan began.
Flashback
Johan was in the waters of the Meathead tribe. He had pulled his ship ashore onto Fenrir's Teeth to do some business with some friends of his from the Meathead tribe. Fenrir's Teeth was a small island with enormous rock formation jutting out of it. The cliff's resembled the fangs of a great best and that's where the island got its name.
Johan was conducting some business with some old friends. There was Calder, his wife Ingrid, their daughter Brenna, and Calder's father, Arvid. The family were fishermen within the meathead tribe and were hauling their catch back home when they passed by Johan. Deciding to catch up and do some business they pulled their ship ashore alongside his.
"And here I have a special perfume that will drive your husband mad with desire," he said holding up a vial to Ingrid. Ingrid smiled but politely turned him down. Johan only laughed goodheartedly. "Of course not. Why would you need this? I bet you already do that to him," he said with a wink. Ingrid blushed and slapped him on the shoulder playfully. It was always good to compliment his customer. The friendlier the relationship the better the business.
"And what about you Arvid. I see that cane of yours is looking a little…how should I say it…worn," he said finding the right words. Arvid looked at his can and he conceded his view. Jumping rummaging through his ship he pulled out a new walking stick and presented it to Arvid. "Now here is a cane. Feel that wood. High quality. You'll get some good miles out of this one. I guarantee it," he said. Arvid looked the cane over before accepting it. He handed over two pieces of silver in payment which Johan gladly accepted.
Lastly he set his eyes on their daughter, Brenna. She was a young girl, about 17 if he remembered correctly. As he watched her browse through his items he noticed her eyes were drawn to things like brushes, earrings, hair clips, and other thing young ladies used to fix themselves up and add to their appearance.
Rummaging through his ship he found something she might like. He walked up to her and presented it for her to examine. "Hello miss Brenna. I must say you've grown into quite the young lass since I last saw you," he said with a smile. Brenna blushed and smiled back. "You take after your mother. Your eyes are that same beautiful brown. But if you really want to bring them out, might I suggest this," he said holding up some charcoal grey eye shadow. "You'll be beating those lads off with a stick with this," he assured her.
"Oh no. My daughter doesn't need any of that," Calder said. He didn't like the idea of young lads looking at his 'baby girl'.
"Oh Calder let her have it. She's a lady now," her mother defended.
Calder grumbled before relenting and asking what he wanted in trade.
Johan looked at the excited Brenna and smiled. "Free of charge," he told Calder. Then he placed it in the young girl's palm which she giddily accepted. Johan smiled to himself at having made the girl happy. Happy customers was what was most important to him and eye shadow wasn't worth too much anyway so it wasn't a major loss.
Suddenly Arvid called out sharply and pointed to two approaching vessels. The group looked out to sea to find two ships approaching quickly. Their faces paled as they noticed the purple sails.
"Johan. Is that—," Calder began to ask slowly.
"Yes Calder. It is," he said lowly. It was the Vandals. They had started becoming big new on the waters. They were fierce marauder who attacked and raided vessels found on the waters without mercy. They were very daring coming so deep into Meathead territory. Quickly he scooped up a cloak and gave it to a shaking Brenna. She put it on and pulled the hood up. It was too late to run, they were too close and they would still have to get their own ships back into the water. So Johan ushered everyone off his ship and told them to let him do all the talking.
The Vandals pulled their ships ashore before stepping off. To Johan's chagrin, there were ten of them all armed and dangerous.
"Greetings gentleman," he called out jovially.
The Vandals ignored him as they started surveying the ships and the passengers. Johan had dealt with marauders before. He could usually outrun them with his ship but that wasn't an option now. The Vandals started making their way over to Calder's family. They looked them over to see if they could spot anything valuable on their person's. When they came to Brenna, they stopped and looked her over. Brenna hid her face as much as she could in nervousness. Slowly a vandal began reaching out to pull her hood down when Calder stepped in front of her.
"Don't touch my child," he snarled angrily.
The Vandal narrowed his eyes at the man. "A brave one then? Going to be a hero then daddy?" the man asked with an evil sneer. Calder only continued to glare. The Vandal drew the sword at his side. "Step aside man," he growled. Calder didn't back down. He would defend his daughter to the death if he had too. The man raised his sword to finish him off but Johan suddenly appeared, squeezing himself in between the Calder and the Vandal.
"Now, now my good man. Surely we don't need to resort to violence," Johan said in an attempt to dispel the tension.
The Vandal glared at Johan. "Gonna fight in his place then Trader?" the man said.
"Me. Heavens no. I'm a man of business, not violence. And I couldn't help but notice that your sword look a little…how should I say it…worn," Johan began. The man cocked an eyebrow curiously. "No real surprise considering your line of work. But if you'll just give me a moment," he said before scurrying off and onto his ship. When he returned he had a brand new sword. "Now try this," he said offering the sword to the man.
The Vandal took it and gave it a swing. Johan could tell he liked the feel of the weapon. "See that. A brand new sword. Excellent condition. Perfect balance and sharpness. Much better than your ratty old sword," he said. Johan had learned in past encounter with marauder that if you could satisfy them with some plunder they would go away.
"How about you gents?" he asked looking to the other Vandals. "Some new weapons for all of you?" he offered. In the next few minutes Johan ran back and forth from his ship and too the Vandals passing out some new weapons for them. The Vandals all looked as excited as a children on Snoggletog at their new equipment. "See. How about you take those free of charge and we call it a day. No one gets hurt and we all get what we want," Johan said good naturedly.
The Vandals seemed to consider his offer. He was about to release a breath in relief when a shout from Brenna caught his attention. He turned around to see a Vandal had pulled her hood down and was dragging her away from her parents. She was screaming in terror as her parents tried to puller her back but were pushed down and held at bay by the Vandals.
"Come now gents surely this isn't necessary," Johan insisted. He had to save Brenna. He knew what marauders would do to a young girl like her.
"As you said trader. We'll take what we want and we'll go. And we want the girl," the man said with an evil smile.
Johan looked back to Brenna who was still being held by a Vandal. He was running his hands up her form as she whimpered and struggled helplessly. "Look, why don't you just take the whole ship and leave the girl. She's not worth nearly as much as my selection," he offered desperately.
"Oh don't undervalue the company of a fine lass trader. Being at sea can get very lonely," the man said darkly. Johan stepped forward to argue with the man when he found a sword at his throat. "Step back trader. Unless you want to die for this girl," the man said in warning.
Johan glared at the man. He wanted to save Brenna. Really he did. But there were ten of them. Johan, while no stranger to fighting, knew he wasn't a match for their numbers. He threw Brenna a sorrowful look and stepped back. His heart clenched at seeing her release a tear as her parent called out to her in anguish.
~Yo-hohoho Yo-hohoho!~
Suddenly came a voice. Glancing around in surprise the Vandals attempted to locate its origin.
~Yo-hohoho Yo-hohoho!~
~Yo-hohoho Yo-hohoho!~
~Yo-hohoho Yo-hohoho!~
The sing song voice's origin couldn't be pinpointed. It seemed to bouncing off the cliffs and emanating from everywhere. The Vandals started drawing their weapons as they continued to scan the rocks for the person singing.
~Binkusu no sake wo, todoke ni yuku yo~
~Umikaze kimikase namimakase~
The voice just continued to sing. Irritating an unnerving the Vandals. "Who's out there" one of them called out with a snarl.
"Show yourself," another demanded.
But the voice just continued to sing.
~Shio no mukou de, yuuhi mo sawagu~
~Sora nya wa wo kaku, tori no uta~
~Yo-hohoho Yo-hohoho!~
Johan could recognize some of the words as a language coming from the east. He was sure he'd heard the song being sung by sailors from there.
~Yo-hohoho Yo-hohoho!~
~Yo-hohoho Yo-hohoho!~
~Yo-hohoho Yo-hohoho!~
Suddenly the voice stopped singing as a person stepped out of the shadow being cast by the cliff. Everyone stared at this person in surprise. How long had he'd been here? Who was he? What was he wearing? The man was clad in some kind of black armor. The likes of which none of them had ever seen before. At his hip were curved swords and on his head was a spiked helmet. The man was looking down at the moment, staring intently at his feet as his arms hung at his sides.
"So what are you doing here lad? Get lost from your mother?" one of the Vandals cackled. They were feeling more at ease as they took the person in. He was small and a little scrawny for his size. They didn't see him as much of a threat.
The man looked up. They could see his eyes were green. As they looked at him they noticed he was glaring at them. The Vandal in front of Johan scowled and turned to face the man.
"Leave now boy. Or you die," he said darkly. The man just stood there. From his posture and body language, he wasn't intimidated at all. As the Vandal took a step closer the man crouched low and put a hand onto the hilt of his longest sword.
"You want to fight me then boy?" the man barked out. "Is that it then?" the man just kept his stance. Not backing down nor drawing his weapon either. At this the Vandal had had enough of his attitude. With a war cry he charged with his sword at the ready. Everyone watched as the man made no attempt to move. Even when the Vandal was getting closer he didn't even draw his weapons.
The Vandals cheered their comrade on. Urging him to kill the man in one blow. Just as the charging Vandal was within swinging distance and the man's swords was still sheathed, he pulled back his sword arm to strike. Then in the blink of an eye the man drew his weapon and slashed at the Vandal before sheathing his sword. Then he quickly stood up and stepped around the Vandal as he barreled passed him.
Everyone watched in shock. What had he done? Had the Vandal even been harmed? Suddenly the Vandal dropped his sword. But on second glance that wasn't the case. The Vandal's arm had been cut clean off. The Vandal dropped to the ground and cried out in agony as he clutched his bleeding stump. The other Vandals just started dumbfounded as their comrade suddenly cried out some garbled words they couldn't understand.
"What?" one of them spoke aloud.
The man in the armor drew his sword once more. He let it hang in his hand at his side as he reached out with his left hand and drew his other one. "He's in shock," the man said finally speaking up for the first time.
The Vandal's looked at him in surprise. Having just heard his voice they could tell he was definitely a younger man.
"He said 'kill him'," the man said. Then he crossed his arms over his chest with his swords point up at his sides and stood there waiting for them to charge. They obliged, with war cries they rushed to avenge their downed comrade. The man waited for them to come before stepping back into the shadows. The Vandals rushed after him one by one.
The only Vandal to not rush in was the one still holding Brenna. Everyone was too shocked to move. They kept their eyes trained on the shadows as they waited for the winning side to reappear. They could hear a struggles happening within the darkness. They could hear metal clanging against metal as well as the cries of pain from the marauders. Everyone waited anxiously for what felt like hours until they could see a figure stepping out.
It was the man. His swords were dripping blood as he walked out. It didn't look like he'd been touched at all. He stalked forward slowly, pausing to slash the downed marauder from before across the throat before continuing. His target it seemed was the last marauder. The marauder could feel himself shaking. This man had killed nine of his comrades singlehandedly. Now he was coming after him.
With a cry of terror he pushed Brenna to the side and pulled out the crossbow on his back. Loading a bolt he aimed and fired at the approaching man. But the man simply blocked, swatting the bolt away like it was nothing. The Vandal reloaded before firing again. And once again the man knocked the bolt away as he continued forward.
The Vandal eventually realized the futility of his crossbow and threw it aside. He held up a hand in an attempt to stop the man. "Wait please. Just wait," the man begged as he kept his palm out toward the man. Then he cried out in pain as the man slashed four of his fingers off. The Vandal fell to his knees in pain and cried out. He clutched at his bleeding hand and attempt to stop the bleeding. He looked up to see the man standing directly over him.
"Demon," the Vandal whispered. This man had to be a demon. Sent from Hel itself. "Mercy," he whimpered in one last attempt to save his life.
Everyone remained silent as the man just stood there watching the Vandal. Then he raised his swords to his sides. In one quick movement he crossed them in front of him on an X shape and sliced the man's head off. It rolled off and the man's body fell over backwards. Then the man shook the blood off his weapons and sheathed his swords before turning to Brenna.
Brenna and everyone froze. What was he going to do? He had just killed ten marauders by himself. There was no way they could stop him. Suddenly he took a step towards Brenna who was sitting on the ground. She flinched and squeaked in terror before shutting her eyes. But as she sat there, no attack came. Opening an eye just a crack she looked dup tot the man who was extending a hand down to her.
She eyed the hand before hesitantly reaching up and taking it. The man pulled her up gently. And she could see the kindness in his green eyes.
Johan and Brenna's family watched, stunned as the man pulled her up. Suddenly the man reached his hands up and pulled off his helmet. No one but Brenna could see his face as the other were at his back and side. He seemed to ask Brenna something which she nodded too before putting his helmet back on and stepping to the side. Brenna immediately ran to her family who wrapped her in their arms. Then they watched as the man went to Johan's ship and jumped aboard. They heard him rummaging around before reappearing and walking up to Johan.
Johan could spy some of his stock in the man's hand sand took a good look. The man was holding some paper, a stick of charcoal, a quill pen, and a pot of squid ink. This man was going to buy something now? Johan was so dumbfounded that he didn't hear the man ask him a question.
"Will a gold coin be enough in trade?" the man repeated.
Johan shook his head and snapped out of his stupor. He nodded and watched as the man reached a free hand into his armor before pulling out a gold coin. He extended his hand and placed it not Johan's open one before nodding and walking around him. Johan turned to watch him walk back into the shadows and disappear.
Johan stared after him. No man could take on ten men by himself. Well…may Stoick the Vast could. He looked in his palm to find a gold coin. It was strange though. It had a square shaped hole in the center. Suddenly it all clicked together. The words to his song, the man's swords, this coin. That man was from Japan. He was one of those samurai he'd heard of. He wondered what one of them would be doing all the way in the archipelago before he decided to leave it for later. He walked toward Calder's family to see if Brenna was ok.
She thanked him for trying to help her and he nodded.
"What did he say to you?" Johan asked curiously.
"He asked if I was ok," Brenna answered. Then her face broke into a goofy grin and she released a dreamy sigh. "He was so handsome," she whispered aloud.
The adults exchanged glances. They didn't know why the man had helped them. And they didn't care. They just thanked the gods that he had shown up when he did.
Everyone in the great hall remained silent as Johan finished his story.
"So ten men?" Astrid asked speaking up. "All by himself?"
Johan nodded.
"I still say you're crazy," Gobber said shaking his head. This stared another bout of arguing between him and Johan.
Stoick cut in and began asking Johan more details about the Vandals. They were getting bolder. Going right into a tribes' territory. They were going to have to keep on guard from now on.
Astrid was impressed by whoever this man was. He was obviously a kind man since he rescued the family and their daughter. Not to mention he had to be an amazing fighter. To take on ten men by himself. That was something that maybe only Stoick was capable of.
Astrid turned her thoughts from the samurai to Stoick's conversation with Johan. She needed to focus on the Vandals too. She could feel a confrontation with them was going to happen sooner or later.
And she would be sure she was ready.
New chapter. Anyone who had read Kunoichi's Way knows i like a little anime flare. I just couldn't resist.