L5r - scroll 03 - The Crane (14 page)

"You can defend only one land, Hoturi-sama," Tsukune said forthrightly. "The emperor's city, or the palace of the Kakita. It is certain that both are in danger. Where will you stand to fight?"

Lowering his cup, Hoturi stared at the samurai-ko. The game had taken a turn. "What do you know of Otosan Uchi?"

For a moment, Tsukune seemed trapped by her own cleverness. "The same as you. The emperor's health is not good."

"Not good." Hoturi repeated, sipping his tea. "How kind of the Phoenix to take an interest in my cousin's well-being. The affairs of the court are, as always, widespread." He moved closer to her.

The memory of their past lingered in her eyes. She was beautiful, still as lovely as the day he first saw her, performing the dance of the sword among Phoenix snow. "Hoturi ..." she said severely. "Our clans have always been allied. Through ten generations, the Phoenix have stood beside the Crane—"

Hoturi grasped her hand. "Then stand with us now against the Lion."

"No." Tsukune attempted to withdraw, surprised into honesty by his forward gesture. "We cannot risk being drawn into war. Please believe me. If I could aid you, I would."

"For the sake of old times, Tsukune-chan?"

"For many things," she said evasively. "I've come with a message to deliver to you from the masters themselves." The Five Masters, guardians of the elements, were the empire's most powerful shugenja. Together, they ruled the enigmatic Phoenix, rarely traveling from their high mountain peaks. Instead, they sent their oath-sworn to deliver messages of importance—some written, some told through blood and visions. Hoturi did not pretend to understand their ways, but their power demanded respect.

"And after you deliver it, what then?"

"I... am to do as I am bid by the champion of my clan. The Master of the Void has said that my path will become clear to me in time."

"The Elemental Masters use their power to manipulate their clan. How will they use you, Tsukune?" He drew her hand to his face, touching it lightly to his cheek and feeling her pulse beneath his fingertips. "How will they grant you death?" On her right hand glistened the twin rings of the Phoenix oath-sworn.

"They command me, Hoturi-sama...."

"You, of all people, do not need to remember my title."

She leaned toward him. "Hoturi. I have a duty." Her voice was rough, tested by steel and desire.

"I know duty." He touched her lips softly with a finger, bidding her to silence.

"No," her eyes were haunted. "There is something else. I must deliver a message to you. The masters have made me their herald for a message they cannot trust to writing."

"Tsukune ..."

"You must believe the message," she whispered. "It speaks of danger and blood, Hoturi. I fear for you. I heard them speak, before they ordered me to leave the Shiba lands. They said that you must make a decision between duty and honor and destroy a part of yourself to face the future." Her eyes grew faraway, and he sensed the presence of an alien force. "It is time." Clutching Hoturi's hand, Tsukune leaned back and closed her eyes. "It is time."

Suddenly, Hoturi grew chilled. The Elemental Masters were watching, using their oath-sworn as a servant to their power. Her hand grew cold in his touch, and her heartbeat slowed. "Hoturi-sama, Crane Champion," she whispered, and her voice became the voice of the Five. Hoturi had seen it before, but only in times of great danger. Once, when Satsume's life had been threatened and once since then, on the day the Scorpion attacked the Emerald Throne. To see it again here chilled his blood and turned his stomach to ice.

Her eyes became as white as snow. Her pulse seemed to cease beneath his touch. Tsukune's features grew pale, animated by a celestial intelligence. The masters spoke with Tsukune's voice, and the echoes held five new tones. "Champion, you will be tested, as we all must be tested. The writings of Shinsei have long foretold your coming, and it is time that you learned of your future."

Hoturi swore softly at the sudden change. "By the Fortunes!"

"The Fortunes will not aid you. Your only resort is to destroy yourself. The stars have foreseen it. It has been told in the Tao. You, Hoturi, will be the death of your clan. Your men will overrun the land, and your sword will cut a bloody swath in the province of the Crane. The Lion are not your true enemy, Doji Hoturi. Your enemy is yourself." The Shiba samurai-ko shivered, her voice dropping to a low rasp. Another master spoke. "Follow the present, Hoturi, and you will destroy your future."

"I do not fear you, Phoenix. Keep your prophecies to yourselves."

"All men forge their own destinies, Hoturi, this is true." A third voice emerged. "But know that even jade cannot protect you from the burden of your soul. Forget your duty, and you will be lost. We tell you this as allies of the Crane, even as we foretold your father's failure on the day your mother died. He did not fear us either."

Snarling, Hoturi jerked Tsukune's nearly limp body toward him and stared into the empty white eyes. "I will go to Otosan Uchi, and I will face that future. And if 1 must die to defend my clan, then so be it. But I will not fail."

"The cost of arrogance is blood and dishonor. Remember that. If you are determined to continue, remember the price of friendship."

The samurai-ko's eyes began to flutter. Shaking, she clutched at Hoturi's shoulders. The brown of her irises gradually returned. The unseen power of the masters faded and as their presence receded, Tsukune shook violently.

"Have . . ." she coughed. A thin trail of blood formed a single tear from her eyes. "Have they gone?" Her voice was a bitter rasp.

"Yes, Tsukune-chan," he whispered, awed by the power of the transformation. "They have come, and they have gone."

"I have fulfilled my duty to my masters." Her eyes closed in relief, and her pale face began to gather some of its lost color. "My purpose is finished. Now my only duty is to await their next command."

"Your duty demands that you deliver your message. You have. But it says nothing of your men or of their duty. Their duty is to you, Tsukune—and they will go where you lead them. The masters cannot argue. They have sent them with you for this purpose. Kyuden Kakita is not far, and the snows have already begun in the north. In all they had to say, they did not tell you to return." His roguish smile returned for a moment as her brows furrowed in understanding.

"Hoturi—I have no reason to remain here, either."

"No?" He lifted her hand to his lips, his gray eyes holding hers. "Then let me give you one."

Her dark hair fell like a shadow over her face, touching the high cheekbones and brushing lightly against shoulders that trembled beneath her silk kimono. The muscles in her arms tensed, uncertain whether to reach for him or to move away.

"Tsukune," he whispered, "you have become a commander in the Phoenix armies—a leader of honor and of courage. But still..." His touch raised the hairs on the back of her neck. Gently, he breathed on her hand, not quite touching the palm with his lips. "Still you are a woman."

"And you are champion of the Crane."

"Not tonight."

She smiled, at last allowing her hand to travel to his cheek. She touched the smooth, pale skin and felt the soft bristles of a day's growth of hair. "Who are you tonight, Hoturi?" Her voice was low and full.

"Only a samurai. Only a man."

"And if I stay with you tonight, where will I be tomorrow?" she murmured against his forehead as he bent forward to kiss the hollow of her throat.

"You will be safe, Tsukune-chan. Safe within the palace of Kyuden Kakita, where your men can rest from their wounds, and where you can rest from your burdens for the long winter."

"The night is cold this time of year, Hoturi," she whispered softly, a lock of dark hair falling into her brash eyes. "Do you remember how the Phoenix keep warm in the winter?

"My lady," he smiled, kissing her lightly, "I could never forget the warmth of the Shiba fires."

She smiled as he drew her close, and the shadows of the lanterns played upon the silk walls of the tent. For a while, the entire world was empty of all but warmth and the pleasure of two souls, glad to be alive.

deadly ground

The chill of winter had filled the city of Otosan Uchi with travelers, some preparing for the emperor's Winter Court and others merely sheltering from the cold. Heavy ocean rains washed through the city, bringing its river to torrential heights. The waterfall that sparkled down the inner wall was filled with long icicles. The black marks left by the Scorpion Coup had nearly been erased over time, and the walls were white with frost.

The southern gate to the city, known as the Gate of Dawn, shone in the noonday sun. Golden kanji, enameled into the highly arched stone, protected the city's inhabitants from ill luck and bad fortune. Above, the sun shone sporadically between the thick clouds, peeking through in long, slender beams that dotted the city's elegant streets. Heimin, covered in thick cotton cloaks and heavy straw hats, roamed through the city, enjoying a day

without rain. The ocean roared in the east, crashing against the wall of the city, and the banners of the palace snapped above curling rooftops. Their enameled shingles gleamed green above bare trees and icy ponds.

Riding his pony down the southern road to Otosan Uchi, Hoturi looked over the seven hills of the city. From this distance, he could see the faint indentations in the northern mountains where the palace of the Emerald Champion stood. It was uninhabited now, empty of all save a few Sep-pun samurai and heimin. The emperor had not needed a champion since the Scorpion had been destroyed, since Satsume had died.

Hoturi grimaced, feeling his pony stumble over rivulets caused by the heavy rain. To him, the city was not beautiful. Though it looked white and clean beneath the sun's bright gaze, he could not forget how it had appeared when he had last seen it, surrounded by the tents of the six clans. Nothing could burn that image from his mind. The white walls had been covered with the blood of Scorpion bushi. High banners had burned. He could still see the city smoking and in rubble.

Opening his eyes to the bright morning, Hoturi drew in a long breath of cold air and tried to see the city as it truly was. Now, Otosan Uchi was the home of the 39th Hantei, Favored Child of Amaterasu, Goddess of the Sun. The Seppun, servants of the emperor, boasted that Otosan Uchi had become a city of renewal, reforged since the blood and rage of the Scorpion Coup. The city belonged to a new emperor—and his chosen bride.

Kachiko.

"Come on, boy!" Toshimoko called. His pony cantered ahead toward the city. "You're falling behind. This trip is your idea, remember? At least try to look as if you are excited to be here!"

Hoturi waved at his sensei. His pony continued down the sloping path. When last he saw this city, funeral pyres had surrounded it. He could still see the bodies of his friends placed into the flames. Hoturi remembered trying not to be afraid as his father died in the tents of the Crane, as the armies of the Doji, Daidoji, and Kakita looked to him for leadership. He remembered trying to be worthy of their trust....

Trying not to be afraid for a woman that was not his to lose. Kachiko. She had been inside the city when the clans gathered for war. Hoturi remembered her smile, seeing the softness of her shoulder beneath her silk kimono. He had met her on a winter's day like this one, just before her engagement to the Scorpion Daimyo had been announced. She had been but fifteen years old and he only seventeen. That was nearly fifteen years ago. Since then, she had changed, growing cold and distant. For more than ten years, no word, no message of love or hate. Nothing at all except the emptiness of a love they had once shared.

Slapping the reins against his steed's neck, Floturi rode toward the city's streets.

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Despite the evening's chill, the garden was full of blossoms. Gardeners tended the soft petals through the winter, encouraging the flowers to bloom despite the season. In preparation for an imperial announcement, they worked twice as hard, and the gardens put forth a last-second effort, overgrowing the path with exaggerated prosperity.

Yoshi stepped through the hanging branches of the imperial walkway. Ah, the magic of the artisans. Even here, in the Imperial Palace, their efforts did not go unnoticed.

Ahead of him stood the empress's guard. Her handmaidens were arrayed beneath silken hoods of gold and green. They circled like birds around the bench where another figure sat, as still as a garden statue. Around her, the flowers had closed with evening. Their petals whitely gleamed like early snow, but they still spread their fragrance upon the wind. Stone lamps glowed with soft fire.

Three burly guards parted as Kakita Yoshi passed. They looked stoic, as if they were trying not to stare at the lithe man in the dark-blue kimono. Yoshi's white hair fluttered like a banner in the breeze. More than one of the handmaidens sighed softly beneath her concealing cloak.

Kachiko had been true to her word: there were no other courtiers present—only the handmaidens, and his own attendants. This meeting was to take place between the empress and the foremost Crane courtier, and no others. No doubt, because of its very nature, it would be swift. Yoshi had known the empress would keep her word. All eyes in the palace followed her, and many belonged to his spies.