Fuel to the Fire

Chapter 13


I never understood the thoughts of men. Their constant desire to exist in a state of chaos threatens everything women are born to accomplish. They insist on shedding innocent blood in the name of whatever belief system or government ideal is popular at the moment. We currently live in a country that is constantly at war with itself. Why do we go through so much effort to create new life while others feel the country needs death to grow and enact change? Do they not realize that these constant wars do not lead to peace or resolution, but only forces the cycle of war again?

~*~*~

Even though the evening was gradually cooling down, Yume’s hand was sweaty within my own. I gripped it tighter as her body began to tremble, and placed my free hand on her shoulder to keep her steady. Arashi was watching us closely from within Tamaki’s grasp, though his eyes were unreadable in the darkness. Miki moved in front of us to take the brunt of any frontal attack.

Tamaki held the frightened boy tighter. “Well, isn’t this sweet?” he cooed into Arashi’s ear. “Do you know who that woman is?”

Unsure of how to respond, Arashi simply nodded, and sniffled back his childish fear. He didn’t dare to wipe away the tear rolling down his face for fear that Tamaki would hurt him. Tatsu was very proud of his son in that moment when he chose to stay strong against his captor regardless of any observable physical weakness, just as he had seen his mother do during a past incident with Yakuza leaders. He just hoped the boy didn’t inherit her spontaneity as well. She had a true knack for making rash decisions that could only make any tense situation worse.

Clouds began to gather overhead, the wind pushing in an unexpected summer storm to suppress the situation. Lightning flashed in the distance as the first drops of rain spotted their clothing. Gunfire exploded from down the street, the scuffle between guards and enemies sounded so loud and sudden that we thought it was thunder from above. More lights flashed from the battle as guns discharged. Arashi covered his ears against this new and unfamiliar sound. Yume made a motherly attempt to ease her son’s discomfort, but I grabbed her arm before she could make the instinctive move. Sensing unrest from the trio, Tamaki moved his hand to the boy’s throat.

“If you want to keep your son alive and breathing, I suggest you restrain your woman,” he yelled, squeezing hard enough that Arashi had to gasp for air.

Before anyone could respond to Tamaki’s sudden confession, men wearing an unknown crest filtered out from the shadows behind him. One who appeared to be the leader spoke in Tamaki’s ear, and the trio could only watch his acknowledgement of the news he received.

“All right,” Tamaki said loud enough for all parties to hear. “Burn the evidence before the sky opens up. I’ll handle the rest.”

Tamaki released his strangle hold on the boy. Yume and Tatsu stood strong behind the shield created by Miki. Tatsu placed his hand on the hilt of his sword as three of Tamaki’s men ran past the group, and into the estate.

“It seems there has been a change in circumstance, so I will need to return to my daimyo,” he said, bowing his head as he grabbed Arashi by the arm and started to drag the child away. “But I will be taking this insurance with me.”

Rain began to pelt our weary bodies. Under the smell of the oncoming torrent, I picked up the stench of burning wood. Howling dogs drew my attention away from our antagonist to see his Tokyo residence engulfed in an inferno. Fire bells rang loud around the district. I knew the water wagons would be near soon.

Grabbing Yume’s arm, I swung her body behind me, and drew my sword. As Miki took my cue, he produced two hidden knives from the folds of his garments. Yume wanted to follow suit as well, but as she grabbed the handle of the wakizashi, an arrow struck the ground at her feet.

“I wouldn’t tempt him if I were you,” Tamaki laughed as more men filtered into the clearing. “He’s been itching to take a shot lately. And he’s not picky about his targets.”

Tamaki’s warriors circled our group, hiding us from the sight of any water wagons or reinforcements who might tread our way. I began to wonder how long it would take members of the Imperial Guard to catch up when I heard the distinct sound of a sword leaving its sheath.

Yume stood beside me again, unphased by the archer’s threat. The sword in her hands was shining like some weapon forged from Hell’s flames as it caught in the fire’s light. I watched as she glided past me and Miki to face Tamaki in a direct challenge. Though I could not see her face, I could feel her savage spirit. I really wanted to know about her family’s legacy, and what fueled them into such a cool, yet brutal, rage. She could slip into her ‘other’ self so subtly, and now she was prepared to draw blood to protect her son and family. Death was her comrade, and in situations like this, it was her servant. Death always arrived on the battlefield when she beckoned. Tamaki didn’t know it yet, but his death was upon him now. It was up to Yume to determine when to strike his body with the realization.

She shifted her balance to the right, freeing her left hand by moving her sword to the other. In one slow movement, she reached into her hair and released the knife from its unnatural prison. She brought it back within eyesight, twirling it around her finger as another arrow struck the ground, this time directly in front of Arashi.

“I’ve warned you once,” Tamaki taunted, his laugh carried away into the night. “I’m truly surprised he gave you a second warning.”

Yume and Miki didn’t move, but they continually surveyed their state of affairs. These two were a fluid and flawless team, accustomed to each other’s mannerisms and able to equally share in the burdens of dealing death to their enemies. Yume did not even move as the stormy winds whipped her locks about her head. Her shortened hair twirled like the summer grass caught in a turbulent dance of air, simply moving where the lead directed.

“So, why are we here, Tosa man?” Yume asked coldly. “Why do you dangle him in front of us without making your true demands?”

I had heard that tone in her voice once before, when her blade divided Shinra’s head from the rest of his body. She was deep into her bloodlust now. Even the heat from the burning estate couldn’t warm her soul when she switched to her alternate self.

Tamaki sneered at her as he rearranged his grasp on Arashi, hoisting him under his arm for ease of transport. “I want you…”

I turned my head to the side, trying to hear some of the conversation, while visually searching for Imperial Guards.

“You had me. Remember? You left me for dead,” she said.

Tamaki laughed again. The tense nature of our predicament was getting to the troops now. The two men closest to me shifted their weight repeatedly, uncertain if they should wait or strike. That was when two things happened in one singular motion, prompting them into action. The only thing I heard was some object pierce the night air, then the soft thud of a body crashing into death. But though I heard only one sound, it came from both directions.

“I would ask you to explain, Tamaki. What do need from me?” she said, her voice so low now it was almost a growl. “I can stand here and pick off your men one-by-one all night, but I’m guessing you’re on a tight schedule, so let’s get on with this.”

The man in front of me was young and inexperienced. The sweat on the trooper’s face rolled down his brow, his fear very apparent in his innocent eyes. He was probably some rice farmer’s son, enlisted in Tamaki’s private army as payment for his family’s debt. A sword was thrust into a hand that was more suited for a kama and his family’s paddy fields. Ignoring my unsteady opponent, I looked to my right, trying to gauge Yume’s mood and her next move when I discovered that she had both hands on her sword again. The knife she once fondled was buried in the neck of the man who had given Tamaki his information.

“We no longer need to worry about the archer either,” Miki whispered in quiet pride while wiping his free hand on his pants. I watched as he produced another knife from his boot.

Just as the stench of smoke began to thicken, the sky finally gave way to a cleansing shower. The drops pinging off of our exposed blades served as a sobering silencer, reminding us all that these swords would shed blood this night.

“I would have you dead, woman. I wanted to see your bleeding carcass once the dogs were finished feeding on your flesh. I wanted to shove your head on a pike and thrust it deep into the palace grounds,” he spat, tossing Arashi to the muddy ground in his fury. “But your ‘honorable’ lovers had to interfere and come to your rescue once again. Since I could not make this whore my own, I had to use my secondary plan. If only Emiko had the options that you do…”

“You could have saved her,” Yume yelled over the pounding rain. She paused for a moment, as if waiting for more explanations from Tamaki. That’s when the comprehension sunk in. She knew what this was about, why the circumstances had changed. “But you didn’t want to save her, you sick bastard. In fact, she served no further use to you or your cause, right? But I do.”

I didn’t like where this was conversation was going. I turned around to grab her, to make her stop talking. Didn’t she know this man was nothing but lies? I reached for her shoulder, but she shrugged me off. In the same motion, she thrust her sword into the ground, leaving herself defenseless.

“You didn’t know it until now,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest. “I see it in your face, so I’ll make the offer you’re needing to hear. Let the boy go, and I’ll give you the one thing that Emiko never could.”

“No!” Miki yelled, wheeling around and pushing me out of the way to get to Yume.

His sudden action scared the young opponent. As I hit the ground, he was already in full motion, trying to stop Miki. He tripped over my body, and thrust his sword into Miki’s thigh. The blow knocked him to the ground at Yume’s feet.

Tamaki clapped at the two brave warriors, her rescuers who now faltered into a comedy of errors. “Your brother would be so proud of your negotiating skills, whore. He really should send you to the Americas rather than letting you rot in this country,” he said. “I will accept your bargain. I can already see from the little bastard that everything is in working order.”

Tamaki waved for his men to stand down, and one actually ran off into the darkness. The man on top of me managed to free himself from our tangled limbs, and rejoined his regiment. Miki was on his hands and knees when I reached Yume. She turned to me, still wearing the serene face of her killer self. I grabbed her face with my hands.

“What have you done?” I asked, stunned by the thought of her leaving again.

She shook her head, a woman defeated by fate once again. “What I have to do,” she said, touching her hand to mine. “Look after them for me, Tatsu. You and Miki are the only family they have now.”

I couldn’t bear to see that defeat in her eyes. “No, they have you.”

“I’m sorry, I’m not an option right now,” she whispered as she looked down, unable to lock eyes with me any longer. “I may never be.”

She backed away from my touch, away from Miki’s outstretched hand seeking to grab her leg. I could hear the sound of horses, and watched as a horse-drawn carriage pulled into the clearing. Yume turned her back to us, moving along to take the hand Tamaki offered.

He gave her a smug and triumphant smile. “It’s time to create a new regime, my dear.”

The guards moved away with Tamaki, surrounding the carriage instead. Tamaki stopped when Yume reached him, and waved for my young foe to come over.

“Check her,” he said. “I don’t want her slitting my throat before we leave the city’s borders.”

Yume grinned, and placed her hands in the air. The short and wet undercoat that clung to her body really left nothing to the imagination at this point. Not only was she barely clothed, but she was barefoot as well. The nervous soldier simply patted her ides and waist, then backed away satisfied that she was unarmed. Tamaki soon showed his displeasure by slapping the young man in the face.

“Idiot, she’s not your sister!” he shouted. “She’s a ninja. She could have any number of lethal weapons buried in her body, like here…”

As he made the last statement, he thrust his hand between her open legs. Yume merely smirked at the intrusion, as if she was prepared for it. I, however, was not, and readied my sword to rush the defenseless man when a knife cut through the air. It passed closed enough to graze Tamaki’s arm attached to the obscured hand, and landed in the chest of the young man behind him, sending his body to the ground. Tamaki ignored the wound, and he didn’t even regard the dead boy as he pulled his hand away. He pretended to smell his hand, then licked away her juices from his fingers.

“Ooo, still fresh from defiling my house. Oh yes, the two of us will have a great time rebuilding this country,” he cooed in her ear, licking her earlobe in plain sight.

The rain was starting to let up as the carriage left. Yume didn’t even glance our way as Tamaki and his men left our sight just before the water wagons arrived. Miki managed to get to his feet, and remove the sword from his leg before the wagons could run him over. The rain had smoldered many of the flames eating away at the estate, so there was less work for the men involved.

With the wagons came the Imperial Guard. It turned out that Tamaki had other archers surrounding the area, enough to engage and annoy the Guard, keeping them occupied during our meeting. With the disappearance of Yume and the arrival of the Guard came our immediate summons to the Palace.

~*~*~

It was not easy to report everything that happened after the raid of Tamaki’s estate. The situation itself couldn’t have lasted more than a few minutes, but I couldn’t begin to fathom how long the repercussions would last.

I paced the room as we waited for the Council to return. He demanded to know every detail, which we recounted while Miki had his leg bandaged. Miki stood against the wall now, balanced on his uninjured leg. His head was bowed in stern contemplation. We had not spoken since the carriage pulled away, carrying Yume back to destiny’s door. I thought he was silently blaming me for her decision, but that was the one thing about the entire night I couldn’t understand. Why did she think that leaving with Tamaki was their only available option?

Her reasons for fighting were both sleeping on the Western style couch. I didn’t want to tell the story with the children in the room, but they refused to leave. I could empathize with them; I wouldn’t want to be left alone in strange surroundings either.

The Council came back, his face unreadable. Miki only looked up when he was seated behind his desk.

“We will not act at this time.”

The words froze my blood. “What do you mean? If we leave now, we can catch them before they reach the sea!”

“No,” the Council said in a flat tone. “We will not dishonor her sacrifice by chasing after her like wanton dogs. The Emperor believes in his sister. She will return when her fate determines it is time.”

“Then she will return as a corpse,” Miki said, breaking his silence. He stepped away from the wall to limp toward us.

I was getting more frustrated with every word. “Stop talking in code! Whose sister, and why will she die?”

Miki and the Council exchanged a look, one nodding to the other that it was time Tatsumaki knew what was going on.

“It was part of her payment for working with the government,” Miki started, taking a seat next to the Council. “She wanted to know what happened to her family. Well, our historians discovered that the man she lived with for years was just a drunken peasant charged with her care, and her mother sent her to him. Her blood was actually linked to the palace, directly to the Emperor himself. She is his half-sister, Ayume Osahito, a surviving daughter of the former Emperor Komei and an untraceable lady-in-waiting.”

So, that was what Tamaki knew. I could easily put the pieces together now. I ran my hand through my damp hair, and I worried when each one led to the same conclusion.

“He plans to put an heir on the throne.”

Miki nodded with my deduction. “She knew it was what he wanted, but I’m not sure how he found out.”

I looked back at the sleeping twins. “But what about…”

“They are not of royal birth,” the Council said, matter-of-factly. “Tamaki shares blood with this house. Though it is distant, it is still possible to produce an heir if he aligns himself strategically. The Emperor wishes to wait for the result before making any decisions.”

The man collected himself, and rose from his seat. “I will leave the two of you to discuss the stratagem that does not officially exist.”

The Council bowed his head to both of them, then exited the room. I tried to keep my voice low for fear of waking the children. They had suffered enough traumas for one lifetime.

“Was I going to hear about any of this?”

Miki shook his head. “I’ve told you before. Her affairs are not mine to reveal.” He stood again to look me directly in the eyes. “Do not blame her for the decisions she made. What’s done is done. I can only fear for her life when Tamaki learns he cannot produce an heir from her body.”

Too much, it was all too much. The carnage at the bathhouse, her bleeding body hanging in the estate, Arashi held captive, Yume’s desertion, her new family, and now this? I rubbed my eyes, the pressure behind them growing stronger with every new detail.

Miki grabbed my shoulder. “Don’t. Don’t go down that road now. The past cannot help us. She needs us here, now, plotting her return.”

I smacked his hand away. “I can’t help you with all of these secrets surrounding her!”

I moved away. His very presence was making me sick, yet he owed me no explanations. “How do you know she can no longer have children?”

Miki’s stare moved to the floor, then shifted to peer through the shoji door that opened onto a private courtyard. “You wouldn’t have noticed, and I’m not surprised she didn’t tell you. She was in her fertile time with you by the river. And she was fertile during our one night of pleasure when she moaned your name instead of mine.”

It was such a natural reaction. My fist was out and knocking Miki across the face, causing him to narrowly miss the desk. He hit the floor hard with the thrust of my anger and betrayal. Miki remained on the floor, but he continued.

“She was with child for one cycle when her body rejected it. She was in so much pain when she lost our baby,” he said, the painful memories turning his voice into a whisper. “She took a serum after her night with you, not wanting to feel her body’s rejection again. It turns out the twins took all the life her body could give.”

I heard a sniffle behind me. I turned to see Arashi awake, his eyes filled with tears from the story his young and fragile mind couldn’t possibly understand.

“So, Miss Yume is our mom?” he asked, moving away from his sleeping sister.

I rushed to the boy, dropping to the floor to hold him in my arms. The boy mumbled against my shoulder, something about always knowing, that she treated them different than the others did.

As his tears stopped, and his breath evened, I pulled him away to look him square in the eyes.

“Arashi, this needs to stay between us men for now, ok?” I said, wiping a stray tear from his cheek.

The boy watched me for a moment, then glanced to Miki for reassurance. When he saw what he needed, he nodded. “We will tell Seimei, right? She always liked Miss Yume.”

“Of course, we will,” I said, rubbing Arashi’s head. “But now I need you to take Seimei down the hall. The Council has set up a room for us to sleep in. It is perfectly safe.”

The child nodded again, and moved to wake his slumbering sister. Once they were gone, I looked back to Miki to finish this tale of secrets and lies.

He was in the courtyard now, staring up into the clearing sky. The storm had blown over, leaving only a trail of sparkling stars in its wake. Miki had to be apprehensive about telling any more tales, especially since my anger had not receded.

“I have to wonder how safe it is here. Tamaki has people on the inside who can watch our every move, that much is obvious,” Miki said.

I only looked the sky, not acknowledging that which I had already surmised. I hated lying to the children about their safety. It was lies like that that led me to this point. “Can she save herself?”

Miki sighed, as if choosing his words carefully. I was beginning to wonder which of us he was trying to delude. “She has no serum with her to stave off her body’s needs. She will go to him willingly at first, complying with his every order and desire. But this will be short-lived. As her body rejects each child, Tamaki will take it as a personal insult, thinking she is deliberately aborting the children. He will rape her, he will beat her, and he will bleed her body until he gets the son that he wants. She will be his prisoner. And he will kill her without a second thought when he’s tired of her games, and move along to another scheme for conquering Japan.”

The night breeze chilled my body wrapped in damp clothes just as his words chilled my heart. “Does the Emperor know these details?”

Miki shook his head. “The Council does, but he can have no knowledge of what we do from here on out. He is the most trusted advisor among the court, and he would have to divulge every detail of our plans to the Emperor.”

The large maple trees in the courtyard swayed with the breeze. The moon was now cresting over the city’s skyline. It was a full moon, signifying an end to our present cycle, and a new rotation of fortune’s wheel.

“Then this is where we part ways,” I said. “I can’t trust anything you say after what you’ve told me tonight. I will find her my own way, using my own sources.”

Miki laughed out loud, stunning me momentarily. “Unfortunately we are tied together by fate, my friend.”

“How’s that?”

He looked to me, smiling this time. “I am sworn to seek you out if anything ever happened to her, as the express order of the Emperor who enjoys his only living relative’s company. He knows she doesn’t always make the most sensible decisions, so we are his backup plan of action. Where you go, I go.”

“And the twins, where do they go?”

“They stay here and resume their daily training and lessons. They may not be sired by royalty, however they will not be treated with any less respect. The Council will see to their education.”

I didn’t like it one bit. He had touched her, and held her in the night when her dark dreams engulfed her mind. I had been there before, and I knew what was required to settle her back into slumber. He brought my children into this world, and he had created life anew in her body again, if not for just a short time. He held secrets about her life that I couldn’t comprehend. He had spent years with her, loving her from a distance, where I had only a few months to make her my own. Maybe it was divine providence for both of us to seek each other out, yet never connect for more than a few moments. Maybe the three of us would always be connected, much to my dismay. There were just too many uncertainties for me to feel comfortable. Every journey is unpredictable, but this one wasn’t going anywhere with out a starting point.

I looked to Miki, solemnly agreeing to his proposition. “So where do we begin?”

Owari