Chapter 4

In Iron Town, the townspeople found out that the strange foreigner that had visited them earlier had become their enemy. The three terrified survivors spoke of a blood-colored man who fought like a ferocious animal.

This news spread like wildfire, and the foreigner's reign of terror began in earnest, especially after it became crystal clear that he sided with the Forest, particularly the Wolf Tribe, and he had joined in on their raids on the surrounding townspeople.

In just a few days, the color red became synonymous with fear and death.

He was named the 'Mori no akuma,' or the 'Demon of the Forest.'


San had to give the human credit: he knew how to kill.

With his skills, he was one of the few humans that could go toe to toe with her and her brothers. This he had proved a few days after his display: standing fearless, without the sword, with only his wrist blades as her brothers charged him.

They stopped short of attacking him, content to snarl in his face.

To his credit, the human stared back, daring them to do their best.

No human had ever done this before, and it was then that San and her brothers began to respect him.


As the days passed, San began to get to know just who the strange human was.

San's own story was simple: when she was a baby, her parents, fleeing and frightened by the wolves, left their infant daughter at the mercy of the wolves. Instead of killing her, Moro had spared and raised her as her own. San did not consider herself to be anything but a wolf.

The human's story was far different.


The first time she asked about my past was about a week after my bloody display.

I considered her for a long moment, weighing my options: I could trust her, and tell her the whole truth, but I couldn't be certain that she would believe me.

In her position, I sure as hell wouldn't!

I could tell her part of the truth, but that would mean that I didn't trust her, which I did.

"It's a very long story, and you might not believe most of it," I cautioned her.

Her response was to sit down, and wait expectantly.

"Do not tell her of me, not yet," Michael's voice warned, and I obeyed him.

So I told her: London, the Pevensies, Narnia, Christ, Cair Paravel. I told her that the sword was given to me by Christ while I was in His service.

After I was done, at least an hour later, San whistled. "Well, that is quite a tale!"

I nodded, grimacing. "Come to think of it, it is. Maybe I should be a story-teller!"

She smiled, shaking her head. "Nah, you're not clever enough!"

I gave her a playful glare. "Oh, really?"

She smirked. "Really! I believe you, by the way."

He blinked at her, annoyance becoming surprise. "That was quick."

She shrugged. "Like I said, you're not smart enough to think up that sort of tale!"

With a growl, I leaped for her, but she had already moved aside.

Swearing, I pulled myself from a bush with sharp leaves.

"Stupid and slow! It's a wonder you're still alive!" With a snarl, I leaped for her.

The next few minutes were used up by an impromptu wrestling match.

Despite my size and experience, San fought with the ferocity and tenacity of a carnivore, landing a few good ones on me, and never staying in one place.

She was the only human to date that could subdue me, to her credit, though she did cheat by clawing and biting at me when she felt like it, the little animal!

When I grumbled at her, she shrugged. "Be thankful that I didn't hurt you as much as I would have if I felt like it. You caught me in a good mood!"

Ah, well, when she put it like that, I could understand!


One week later

"Well if you don't like it, you can leave!"

"Do I look like I'm going anywhere, Princess?"

"You'll be going to your damn grave if you make you more snippy comment!"

"The grave? You couldn't kill me if your life depended on it, you little snot!"

Moro sighed, listening to what must be the tenth argument in only two days.

It had quickly become clear that whatever connection her daughter and the Assassin would be a tempestuous one.

The two were like ice and fire. The Assassin was ice: not so much cold as calm and centered. He was supremely, and justifiably, confident in his abilities and skills to the point of arrogance. Cool and calm in the heat of battle, he had a quick wit and charm that could lay waste his enemies as well as rescue him in times of trouble, not to mention rendering him a man of mystery.

San was fire: reckless, passionate San. San was also an unmatched warrior, and extremely aware of it. But unlike the Assassin, who was as mysterious as he was competent, San always let her emotions and opinions out in the open.

Now, they were currently nose to nose, bellowing at the top of their lungs, although San was about half the others' height.

They were arguing over who would lead the next hunt.

The brothers cackled off to the side, thoroughly enjoying the show.

Moro sighed again. It might not seem like it, but she would combine them into a force to be reckoned with!


Soon afterwards, I stormed away from the little brat, wanting nothing more to do with her.

"Arrogant, snot-nosed, insufferable little hag!" I snarled, putting as much distance between me and her as I could.

What had begun as a disagreement about a hunt had descended into a shouting match, all because she couldn't stand being subordinate to me.

The fact that I wasn't acting very mature either didn't occur to me until later.

I stormed through the Forest until I found the path to leading to Iron Town.

I grimaced, watching the smoke billowing from that wretched village.

I had nothing better to do than continuing to scout out those buggers!


It was in the early evening, the sun almost out of sight behind the nearby mountains. Except, this time, I wouldn't be stupid enough to try getting to the Town via the road.

It was time for a swim! I needed a bath anyway.

It took me a few minutes to find the best spot of the town to approach the town from the lake without alerting the greater part of the town, and I tested the waters: tepid, and hardly any current.

Thank goodness for the summer heat!

Swimming quickly, but quietly, I emerged from the river, and started to climb the embankment under the firm wooden walls of the town.

That took less than five minutes, at least half the time it took to swim across the river, and I took out the nearby sentry with a blow to his temple.

As fate would have it, I discovered I was very close to Eboshi's house. "Well, good! That's a spot of good luck, and no mistake about it!" I said to myself.

I crept closer to the house, hiding against the wall as I did so. Not far away, I could hear Eboshi's voice: "-Thanks to our new improvements of our rifles, and the newest shipments, we will finally be able to bring down the Great Forest Spirit, and with that, the Forest's power as well. Not even the Assassin will be able to make a difference."

Just then, she appeared, carrying a rifle, and she was followed by two other women, also carrying rifles. The rifles looked newer, and their fire-pin was similar to almost twice the size of the flint-lock of an eighteenth century rifle.

Suddenly, she aimed and fired at a boulder at least five hundred feet away. I swore softly as the boulder became pebbles, the explosion exceptionally large and incinerating.

Hmm, that could change things a little!

"It's only a matter of time that we'll have the upper hand, and become a name to be feared throughout the land," Eboshi finished confidently.

I grimaced, realizing that I needed to either sabotage or take some of the rifles for myself. Sabotage was the easier option, because I couldn't carry a rifle without some effort. Eboshi, for instance, showed with her grimaces how heavy those things were.

So sabotage it was, but I needed to know where these new rifles were kept. Eboshi made it unexpectedly obvious by reentering the house, and coming outside weaponless a few minutes later.

I smiled slightly, shaking my head. Ambition was not the same as cleverness. And overconfidence could bite you when you least expect it. All I needed to do was not show the same overconfidence!

"What about Asano, Lady Eboshi?"

Eboshi snorted. "He will expect it even less than the Forest will! He would never expect a woman like me to be so ingenuitive and ambitious. He may be a powerful rival, but he is not an open-minded man, and that makes it easy for me to take advantage of him."

I remembered Christ and Michael speaking of Lucifer, and it was his intolerance that defined him the most. He had never expected Susan to kill him after the Great Battle because Susan was a female.

Now, plenty of people were intolerant, but sometimes it takes a single sentence to hear all you need to hear.

Eboshi and the woman left the porch, and walked into the greater part of the village, and sabotaging the guns was only too easy, especially for an experienced Assassin.

Breaking things came naturally to me!

I didn't need an escape plan, as planning escapes rarely worked for me. All I had to do was stay put.


About half an hour later, I dived into a dark corner of the room as Eboshi entered her house, only to be greeted by the sight of dozens of rifles in various states of destruction.

The thunderstruck look on her face was absolutely perfect.

"Good evening, luv. Fancy a little chat?" I asked, stepping out from my corner.

To her credit, she showed no fear as she turned to face me, even when I had Michael's sword at the ready.

"You take much risk being here, Shadow. You do realize that you might not leave here without paying some kind of price for this mess that you have created?"

I shrugged, smiling. "I only just popped in here for a visit. I overheard a few things from you and those girls that had me interested in hearing more."

Eboshi raised an eyebrow. "Why should I tell you anything?"

I smiled. "True, I'm not an entirely trustworthy chap at the moment, but I can help you kill a rival of yours. Asano, yeah?"

Eboshi snorted. "If you got that name from my earlier conversation, that is all the information you need. He is a tyrant and a rival of mine. You might not like my ambition, but he is far worse of a threat to the Forest than I am. He is as cruel and ruthless as he is intolerant."

I shrugged. "That gives me even more reason to slit his throat!"

Eboshi approached me slowly, her eyes never leaving mine, and I tensed warningly. "And what is this newfound interest in my affairs, hmm?"

I shook my head. "This is something different...something more."

She frowned. "You speak as if you are part of something different than your Order?"

I grimaced. "I am, but that is as much as I am willing to say."

She nodded, recognizing that nothing could change his mind. He was as mysterious and stubborn as he was comely. She liked that about a man, and it had been ages since she had one.

His black hair was now cropped short, and his chiseled face seemed to glow with an inner fire. He was quite attractive, and she regretted that they could not be allies.


"So, now that you have information, perhaps you would be so kind as to tell me whatever I want to know? It's the least you can do, after the mess you've made!"

I shrugged, gesturing to go ahead.

"Why side with the Forest?"

I grimaced, but acquiesced. "Moro. She has a connection with my Father that no one else has. Also, this forest is special, a place of magic, and it would be a right shame to let it go without a fight."

Eboshi, surprised at his obvious honesty, continued with her questions. "What happened with that girl? You gave her quite a scare!"

I winced. "A difference in philosophy. We were interrupted by my supervisor, and he banished me from the town. I am sorry for the fright I gave her, though, so please send her my apologies."

Eboshi smiled. "So, you are not completely averse to common sense!"

He chuckled. "Perhaps not, but we'll probably never really be allies after this," He said, gesturing to the mess around them.

"That is true. Speaking of which, you owe me some kind of payment for this debacle."

Her hands moved like lightning, drawing an enormous wakazashi from her belt, shedding her outer cloak as she did so. I used Michael's sword to bat hers away from my own throat.

"Impressive, but a piss-poor choice. What the fuck are you doing?"

She lunged forward, our blades meeting, and rasping against each other.

She leaned in close, so that our faces were inches apart. "You attack my men, I break you."

"Wha-" She used my surprise to plant a kick into my chest, sending me reeling out of the open door of her house, tumbling down the steps, and landing in a heap on the ground.


I rose back up, as Eboshi charged out of her house, shouting for the guards. Minutes later, guards surrounded me, Gonza snarling for my blood.

"Stay back! He is mine!" Eboshi called.

As they obeyed her orders, I smirked at Gonza. "Take that glare out of your stare, mate! I spared your life on purpose, and the least you could do is be a little grateful!"

Gonza made to attack me, but Eboshi waved him off. "Enough talk! Come at me, Assassin!"

I smiled, whirling my sword into a fancy salute. "I'm all yours, luv!"

She locked blades with me, then slashed at my head, after feinting for my knees.

I knocked it away, stutter-stepped, and struck down in a vertical slash, turning into a lunge as the blade came down, but she side-stepped, and I yelped as something sharp opened a gash along my right forearm.

The clever bitch had cut me with a hidden dagger that had been hidden in her sleeve. "You bitch!"

There was a raucous cheer, and I realized that the villagers were surrounding us, each holding weapons.

Maybe I should have thought of an escape plan!

"Lost your taste for battle, Assassin?" Eboshi asked, and I smiled at her. "Bugger that, luv! I'm just keeping all of my options open!"

Eboshi snorted. "You seem very sure of your chances! I doubt you will make it out of this village in one piece!"

I smirked. "Come off it. A few minutes ago, you wanted a piece of me, as well!"

With a growl, she offered me several vertical slashes, all of which I easily avoided.

"I seem to have struck a nerve! May I have this dance?"

With a roar of rage, she tried to cut me in half...for keeps!

Michael chose this moment to intervene. "Enough of this charade, boy! You have more important things to do!"

I shook my head mentally. "I've got this, old-timer. Wait your turn!"

"She's trying to kill you, you foolish child! You need my help, so shut up and get out of my way!"


Eboshi, furious enough to crush the young man's skull, never got the chance to do so.

One minute, she had him wounded and on his back foot, the next he was gone with a white blinding flash of light, as if he was never there.

Eboshi, breathing deeply, allowed herself a chuckle, as a wild cheer rose from the onlookers.

That young man must have had some kind of god on his side, and to her, that made him even more interesting!


"You are a very fortunate boy." Moro said.

I had appeared near the Wolve's Den, and had told them what I had accomplished.

"Man. I'm a very fortunate man. Besides, luck's for gits! Skill is what I have!" I corrected, wincing as I attempted to give stitches to the gash to my own arm.

"Yes, I can see that." Moro drawled, looking at my rather significant gash, and I shrugged.

"So she got the drop on me. I still gave her what for."

San, who had been silent until now, sighed. "Give me that, John," she said, gesturing to the cloth I was using to stitch my wound.

I stared at her. This was the first time she had shown any interest in my well-being, and the first time she had called me by name.

But I was not about to look a gift horse in the mouth, so I allowed her to do so.


San avoided her mother's gaze, as she began to tend to her ally's wound. After the argument, San surprised herself by missing the damned human during her hunt.

And when she had discovered that he had sabotaged Eboshi and gave Iron Town trouble again, she decided to tolerate his presence.

Besides, he wasn't completely unpleasant to be around.


Moro allowed herself a purr of satisfaction. It was funny how things turned out the way her Father had said it would: "Give them time, and give them freedom. One way or another, they will soon come together, and it will be difficult to separate them when they do."