Heedra: I'm so glad you are enjoying it! I'll get to work as soon as I can. I enjoy bringing London slang into it, even though I'm raised American (Born in Lakenheath AF/RAF Base, in Hereford\Thetford). I wanted my character to seem just like a normal Tommy taken off the streets of that wonderful city! Thank you so much for your review!


Chapter 5

A few weeks later, I paced in front of the den, trying to get my thoughts in control.

The people in Iron Town had taken to digging to get at the iron under the Forest's mountains, since the iron near and underneath the town had already been dug out.

This meant that they cleared some of the Forest away as well.

The protector of the mountains, Nago, leader of the Boar Tribe, was furious. He attacked the villagers, killing several before going on a rampage after being wounded by Eboshi's guns, his rage and hate rendering him uncontrollable and rampant over the countryside.

This, according to Moro, was a big loss for the Forest, and would have hefty consequences for the foreseeable future.

Spiffing.

I glanced up a nearby tree, and grinned when I saw San about three stories above my head. I had been teaching her how to climb, and she was one of the fastest learners I had ever seen. Her adaptability skills were top draw.

I called for her to come down, and she executed an almost flawless Leap of Faith into a pack of bushes a few yards to my left.

"Smashing, San! Bravo!" I said, nodding to her, as she emerged from said bushes.

"I told you I could do it!" She said, grinning, and I nodded. "And that you did!"

She patted me playfully on the cheek. "How many times do I have to knock you on your back before you take me seriously?"

I laughed. "I believe you've done that enough times, San."

We were interrupted by Moro calling us into the Den.


"Now that Nago has gone berserk, and left the Forest behind, the Forest has lost one of it's key protectors. Our responsibilities are now compounded by this, and we must be vigilant."

I nodded, and spoke. "What of the Boar Tribe? If I was them, I'd want revenge."

Moro nodded to me. "I'm sure that they have that in mind, and we almost certainly see their numbers increase in the near future."

I shook my head. "I hope that they are not stupid enough to attack Eboshi or Asano using sheer numbers. Both of those leaders have the technology and weapons to huff and puff, and blow the Boar's house down!"

San gave me a frown. "'Huff and Puff?'"

I winced. "It's from a story I once heard as a kid. Don't mind me, luv."

"I rarely ever mind you."

I turned to Moro and continued. "Horses to courses, luv. Anyway, with the kind of technology that those villagers have, numbers won't matter. They could bring thousands upon thousands of sodding bodies, and, Bob's your uncle, Fanny's your aunt, it will still be a blood bath."

One of San's brothers spoke up. "What the human says is true. Their weapons are formidable."

Moro nodded to the both of us. "True, very true. However, boars are not known to be the most reasonable of creatures, even in the best of circumstances. Right now, this is certainly not the best of times to try."

I began to pace, thinking hard, and San spoke up. "So what do we do? If John is right, the Boar Tribe will almost certainly try to kill as many humans as they can."

I nodded to her, an idea forming in my head. "Aye, San, they will, and they will die. What they need is a leader with a good head on his shoulders, who is experienced and respected enough by the Forest to get the job done."

Moro let out a derisive laugh. "Come now, child! There is no way they would accept you. I admire your excessive self-confidence, but what you are suggesting is nothing short of lunacy! They are still coming to grips with the presence of San in the Forest, and if you even venture near their territory, you'll be ripped to pieces! Even if you traversed their territory without being eaten alive, there is not the slightest chance they would accept your presence, let alone your leadership!"

I said nothing, knowing damn well she was right.

The Wolf Mother continued. "Since you are always so keen to get in on the action, Human, I have a task for you: go to Iron Town, and find out what they plan to do in the future."

I nodded, grinning. "Now that, I can certainly do. I love running circles around those gits!"

San shook her head at me in consternation, a small smile on their face. "You do know, sooner or later, they'll find a way to take you out, right?"

I cheekily gave her a kiss on both cheeks, making her gasp in surprise, and both brothers snigger. "But, until then, I might as well enjoy making complete bloody fools out of them!"

I was about to leave, but looked over my shoulder, smirking. "So, what exactly will you lot do while I'm gone, hmm? Twiddling your paws? Gnawing on your bones?"

Moro gave me a none-too gentle push with her snout. "Away with you, human, before I gnaw on your bones!"

I pretended to grumble as I left: "Kicking me out already? Of all the sodding, ungrateful-" I yelped before I could finish the sentence, as San threw a bone at my back.

I could tell it was her by her unerring accuracy.


Instead of taking another swim, I decided to take the main road, using the disguise of a soldier to get in.

I found him patrolling near the Forest, and, since he was just a teenager, I would feel like a right bastard for killing him.

"Are you going to kill me now?" He asked, as he watched me put on the armor.

I shook my head. "Come off it, Chum. I'm not going to kill a kid, no matter who he fights for. But, since I can't have you lurking about, have a good sleep!"

"Wha-"

"Night night!" With that, I knocked him out with a sharp upper-cut. "If I was you, I would get the fuck out of this place!"

So, I continued my march. "I will hide my sword until you have need of it," Michael intoned, and I nodded. "Jolly good!"


I entered the village unnoticed, and stayed in the background.

I didn't approach Eboshi's house, whose guard had tripled since our little tussle, but I didn't need to. Eboshi was among her townspeople, and it was clear that she was going on a long trip: they were preparing oxen, gathering supplies, and preparing soldiers for departure.

Eboshi, from what I could hear, was preparing for a journey into the mountains to the north of the Forest, but I couldn't hear any reason for it from her conversations, other than digging for more iron.

Before I could hear more, I was stopped by none other than Gonza, who called to me: "Tano, anything to report?"

I shook my head, my reply made in Chinese. "No, Sir, not a sign!"

Gonza nodded. "Good. I will pay you for your services after I return."

I bowed in reply, deciding to sneak out before I could be found out. That had been too close for comfort!

It was a damned good thing I was in a good mood, or I would've laid his fat arse out.

Maybe I would do that someday, when nobody was looking!


I chuckled as I left the village, using the pinnacle of Eboshi's house as a starting point as I preformed a Leap of Faith into the river waiting below.

I mean, these guards were worse than the drunkest of Bobbies in jolly old England!

I found my clothes and armor where I had left them, and made my way back to the Den.


"I don't like this. This doesn't add up."

A few minutes later, that's where I was: back to pacing in the Wolve's Den.

"Well, spit it out!" San said, after I had taken half a minute to gather my thoughts.

"All right, all right, keep your hair on!" I growled back. "There's something not right about this. They're going to take a little jaunt into the Northern Mountains, yeah? That much I understand, but other than searching for iron, what else are they up to? You don't go on that long of a lark with that many of your blokes without having a good reason to do it."

Suddenly, I had it. "It's a diversion. They want us to follow and attack them, and they'll blow us away when we do!"

There was a long pause, then Moro shrugged her impressive shoulders, supremely unconcerned. "Then we shall be more careful in our attack."

I blinked at her. "Eh?"

Moro turned to me, raising an amused eyebrow. "We'll not have this kind of opportunity again."

I snorted. "And neither will they! This could turn into a bloody suicide mission, and if we cock this up-"

San cut in. "Oh, shut up, will you?! We're going, and that's final! Are you coming or not?"

I glared at her. "Well, of course I'm coming! You'll all get killed if I don't! Besides, I'm not going to let you have all the fun, Wolf Princess!"

San grinned. "Good, then cease your whining, and get ready to ride!"


It took us a few days to get to the Northern Mountains. When we got there, it was dark and stormy, with plenty of fog in the bargain.

We stood on top of a hill, and below us straggled Eboshi's small army, ripe for the picking.

It was too easy, far too easy.

To my surprise and great shock, Moro had offered me a ride from the Den on her back. This was probably because of my size and weight, but I wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth, so I accepted.

It was an interesting experience, the Mother Wolf's speed and grace making a horse seem kind of ungainly, although I'm unable to recall much of anything else, since I spent the time hanging onto her neck for dear life!

I grinned as I saw San come into our sight below us, riding one of her brothers, as usual. She and her brothers would attack from one direction, us from another.

"Let's have it!" I muttered to myself, and Moro chuckled. "Calm yourself, Boy. All in good time. We just have to wait for the right time."

Then, just before we struck, Michael's voice interrupted my thoughts. "Be ready for me to call upon you!"

Before I could think of a reply, Moro streaked forward, as San and her brothers struck Eboshi's men from behind.

As I had feared, the expedition held their ground, and I saw Eboshi catch sight of Moro and I dashing towards her, and the smirk on the her face confirmed what I had been arguing. She aimed her rifle, and I knew that she couldn't miss from this range.

"Get out of the way!" Michael snarled, and I surrendered my will to his.

I felt my arm raise as the rifle fired, and the huge bullet roared straight at us.

Oh, bloody hell!


Eboshi allowed herself a sneer, as her bullet headed for it's target: the Mother Wolf, the leader of the Wolves. Nothing was going to stop her from getting that Wolf's head!

Suddenly, impossibly, as if taken by an unseen force, the bullet changed direction. It headed directly for the Assassin, whose open palm accepted the ball of iron.

The explosion lifted the Assassin off the bitch's back, sent him tumbling over the cliff, and out of sight.

It was hard to say who was more shocked: Moro and her Tribe, or Eboshi and her men.

After a short silence, a cheer rose from the lips of the latter.

It was dwarfed, however, by San's scream of horror and rage.


"JOHN!" She howled, as she watched the limp body of her ally and friend fall down to the rocks and river below, and even he couldn't survive such a fall.

To her, the fact that he had seemed so invincible made it so much worse.

San, seized by fury and hate, turned towards Eboshi, and started to cut her way past Eboshi's men to get to the Gun Bitch, but her brothers pulled her back, their mother having called a retreat.

"Let me go! LET ME GO!" San roared, tears of sorrow and fury streaking down her face.

But the wolf brothers were much stronger, and before long, the Wolf Tribe was pulled back to prepare for another assault.


Despite the people of Iron Town being the momentary victor, the Wolf Tribe, enraged by the loss of their ally, went on the war path, killing indiscriminately.

A few hours later, the wolves found the crumpled form of the Assassin bobbing in the slow-moving river.

San, who had spotted him while cleaning her knife and spear, dove into the river and brought his body to the embankment.

Moro, carrying the Sword of Heaven in her jaws, watched with some trepidation as her daughter put her ear to the human's chest.

"By the Forest, he's still alive!" San said in wonderment. He was also unhurt, other than a fractured rib or two, and the hand that had caught the bullet was badly mangled.

With that, she set about pounding at his chest, trying to dislodge the water in his body. "Come on, you stinking, arrogant, insufferable human!"

The brothers gave it a minute or two, then pulled San off of him when the human awoke, coughing up a large quantity of water before groaning harshly from the pain.

"Fucking hell!"

A seconds later, he was out again from the agonizing pain.

Moro spoke next, depositing the sword into San's hands before doing so. "He is in no immediate danger. Let us return to the Den. He'll be awake soon, and I'll have plenty of questions for him when he awakes."

San nodded. "So will I," she said, as she mounted one of her brothers, and they set off for home.


"Lord Asano, the Forest creatures and Lady Eboshi are in the midst of a territorial war."

The tall, armored Lord nodded. "Then we must double our speed. I want to destroy what's left of the two combatants."

When the young aide had left, Asano's voice became a sibilant hiss. "And set my trap for Michael's vessel!"

Lucifer was aching to spill the Assassin's blood himself, rather than that miserable witch at the Stone Table.


When I woke up in the Den, I realized the entire Wolf Tribe was uncomfortably close, crowding around me, watching carefully. Breathing hurt, and my hand was on fire. Broken ribs, and how the fuck do I still have a hand?

"Did I miss something?" I asked, smiling up at them.

It was San who did the honors: the crack of her open palm against my face sounding like a gunshot throughout the Den.

"Oi!" I yelped. "What the shite, you bint?"

"That was for making me think you were dead!" She snarled, as I held my stinging cheek in my hand. The other hand was wrapped in crudely-made bandages. Injury Realization is quite the bitch, I found out a second later, as the pain from my injured appendage struck my consciousness. My hand was broken, at the very least!

"Well, aren't you a right little angel! You need to work on your bed-side manners!" I said, gnashing my teeth from the pain.

Moro spoke next. "Now that you are awake, you have some explaining to do. Your hand is broken, along with two of your ribs, if you must know. While you are healing, I'll be the one who will ask the questions now. If you even consider lying, you will sorely regret it!"

I groaned, sitting up, my other hand rubbed the sleep from my eyes.. It's injured counterpart didn't do anything other than cradle itself against my chest. "All I did was save your life, you pillock!"

Moro snorted. "Don't play games with my, boy! While you did rescue me from death, you did it by changing the path of the bullet with some kind of godlike power. On top of that, you were not blown to bits, and you survived a long fall into the river below shortly afterwards."

I sighed, raising a cautionary hand. "I'm not a god. I'm a human being who was given powers by my Creator."

San snorted. "I've never heard of a human who could do what you just did."

I shrugged, wheezing from the pain. "That's the only way I can explain it. I'm a chap who was given a task to kill some bloke, and the Powers That Be decided to give me a little boost. I'm no fucking god!"

There was a long pause, then Moro nodded. "Well, despite your powers, your injuries will keep you out of the fight for at least a moon cycle, so you will stay here until you are ready to fight again. You will also require herbs to help you with your human sleep patterns."

"A month?"

San smirked at my outburst. "That's quite a squeal you have there!"

I glared up at her. "You're going the right way for a fat lip!"

San merely chuckled. She waited until her adopted family was out of earshot, then spoke again. "Look, thanks for saving Mother, but please don't do that again."

I raised an eyebrow, noting the serious, nigh vulnerable look on her face. "San, I-"

She cut me off. "Just don't argue with me, you damned human!"

I frowned up at her. "Why do you care? A few months ago, you certainly didn't."

She shrugged. "Well, maybe, just maybe, I've grown used to your presence. Just take better care, because I...the Forest would be worse off if you really did die!"

I smiled and reached out a hand to cover one of her own hands. "Alright, I promise."

She returned the smile and didn't object as I pulled her gently against me, and we hugged.


RED ALERT! Revision in effect!