Laura Jo Phillips (20 page)

“Nintai wa, go tochaku no tame ni nagaiai matte iru,” Sensei replied. 
Patience has waited long for your arrival
.

“Hai, sumimasen.  Jikan wa, kappu de sokutei sa reteimasen.  Anata wa watashi o tesuto suru ka?”
 
Summer said with another short bow of apology. 
Yes, I’m sorry.  Time is not measured in cups.  Shall you test me?

“Sore ga hitsuyodesu,” Sensei replied, returning her bow. 
It is required.

Sensei turned and spoke to one of the waiting students who raced forward and offered Summer his practice sword.  Summer took it, feeling as though she were in a dream, while at the same time knowing she was not.  She held the wooden sword in her hand, testing the weight, the balance, the feel of it before gripping it lightly, but firmly, with both hands.  Her body turned slightly, her feet shoulder width apart, her balance on the balls of her feet, knees slightly bent. 

Sensei moved first, and Summer watched outside of herself with awe as her body met his movement and responded with a counter move.  She flowed back and forth across the ground, attacking, defending, advancing, retreating, each movement a part of the one before it and the next to come without a misstep or hesitation.  It was a dance unlike anything she had ever seen, and she could barely believe it was her body performing it.  After several minutes Sensei ceased moving, and so did Summer, neither of them the slightest bit out of breath from their exertions.

Sensei slipped his wooden sword into his belt and bowed, Summer copying his actions exactly, slipping her wooden sword into the leather belt at her waist as she was not wearing a sash.  She then bowed to Sensei in return.

“Please follow me,” Sensei said, speaking Standard again. 

Summer nodded, feeling once more in full control of her body as she followed the man off of the practice field and into the building, Darleen at her side.

Just inside the doorway Sensei stopped and called out to someone deeper in the building.  A thin young man hurried forward, and spoke to Sensei in the same language Summer had used earlier.  Only now she did not understand a word either of them were saying.  She stood patiently, waiting for whatever was to come, not knowing what it was but aware that something important was taking place. 

The assistant took off running and Sensei turned back to Summer.

“What is your name, if I may ask?”

“Natsu,” Summer replied without thought.  She gave her head a little shake, wondering where that had come from.  “Summer,” she said.  “My name is Summer Whitney.”

Sensei smiled, a tiny curving of the corners of his mouth.  “I should have guessed it would be such,” he said.  Summer did not understand his comment, but felt it would be rude to say so.

“Do you know of the double headed dragon?” he asked, his tone mildly curious, but no more.

“No, I’m afraid not,” Summer replied.

Another tiny smile.  “Again, I should have known.  But one day, you shall know, and when that day comes, we shall meet again.”

As Sensei finished speaking the young man came running back holding a long, thin package wrapped in what appeared to be red silk.  He knelt on the floor and held the package up, balanced across his palms, toward Sensei. 

Sensei unwrapped the silk carefully, almost reverently.  Summer noticed that he was careful not to touch the object beneath the silk which, she soon realized, was an ancient Japanese sword.  When the sword was completely revealed, but still lying on its bed of silk across the young man’s palms, Sensei stepped back and waved her forward.

“Patience,” he said.  “As you have sought her, so she is here, awaiting you these many centuries.”

Chapter
25

Summer could hardly tear her eyes from the sword..
katana
whispered the voice in her mind that she had thought gone.  It was so beautiful.  The sheath...
saya
...was red lacquer, inset with white jade designs that Summer knew had meaning, though she did not know what the meaning was.  She waited a moment to see if the voice would whisper their meaning to her, but this time it remained silent.

She reached out for the katana with both hands, lifting it carefully, understanding that this was an important moment, but not knowing why. 

She pulled the katana from the saya just enough to reveal a short expanse of mirror-bright steel blade, razor sharp even after centuries of waiting.  She slid the blade home again, shifted it to one hand and bowed deeply to Sensei, holding the bow for a long moment.  When she straightened again, Sensei smiled.

“Until we meet again, Miss Summer Whitney,” he said softly. 

Summer nodded, then turned and left the building, Darleen hurrying to catch up with her.  The moment she stepped outside the students, still standing in their formation, bowed to her.  Summer returned their bow solemnly, knowing somehow that failing to do so would be a grave insult to them.  When she straightened, she removed the wooden practice sword from her belt and returned it to the young man who had loaned it to her.  That required some more bowing, but she did it with as much grace as she could muster.  When she turned to leave the area, she was startled to find Maxim, Loni and Ran standing a few yards away, watching her.

She wanted very much to turn her back on them and walk the other way.  Much had just happened to her that was surprising and confusing, and she wanted time to think about it.  But if she turned around now it would be blatantly rude, and once again, much as she wanted to, she couldn’t bring herself to do it.  She approached the Katres, her step now reluctant.

“Hello,” she said, feeling self-conscious with the katana in her hands.

“You are most skilled,” Maxim said.  “It was a joy to watch you dance with Sensei.”

“You must have studied most of your life to attain such skill,” Ran said.

Summer felt her face heat.  She wanted to tell them the truth, which was that she had never even seen a katana before in real life, let alone practiced with one.  But she didn’t think they would believe her after what they had just witnessed.  She wasn’t sure she would have believed it herself. 

“We would accompany you to the armory, if you don’t mind,” Maxim said.  “We would be honored to assist you in selecting and fitting a back harness for your katana.”

Back harness?
Summer thought.  She automatically began flipping through her store of weapons knowledge, but quickly gave it up.  She was too overwhelmed and confused at the moment.  She would just wing it.

“Okay,” she said.

Maxim stepped aside, indicating the correct direction, and Summer started walking.  Again she had that strange sense that walking with the Katres in this way was close to normal, but not exactly right. 

“What was that all about?” Darleen asked in a low voice as Summer headed toward what she thought was the correct building.

“I’m not altogether certain,” she admitted as they walked past a long building that, from the aromas pouring from it, she thought must be a cafeteria. 

“Yooo-hooo!”  Summer turned toward the high-pitched voice coming from the doorway of the cafeteria and was surprised to see a large woman with frizzy brown hair hurrying toward them at a fast waddle.  Summer had never seen such a large woman before and was shocked by the sight.  She had read about the disease of obesity which had once plagued humans centuries past, but it had been treatable through basic metabolic management for so long that it rarely occurred any more.  She schooled her features and admonished herself not to stare as the woman reached them, breathless and red cheeked from her short trip.

“So there you are,” the woman said, ignoring Summer and Darleen completely as she planted her hands on her ample hips and addressed Maxim.  “I’ve been waiting for you to join me for lunch, and here I see you sniffing after these two females like adolescent boys instead.  Well, I’m sure they’re no better than they should be, so just you let them go on their way and you come and sit with me now.”

Summer’s breath caught in her throat at the woman’s rudeness.  She turned to look at Maxim, Loni and Ran, wondering who the woman was, and whether they would stand for being ordered about like errant children.

Ran and Loni were stony faced, but did not seem particularly shocked by the woman.  Maxim, on the other hand, had the strangest expression on his face as he looked from the woman to Summer, then back again.  Without thought, Summer reached for Maxim’s emotions and was surprised to discover that his strongest feeling at the moment seemed to be deep confusion.

“Well, are you going to keep me standing in the street all day while you just stare?” the woman demanded.  “Let’s go now.”

“Do not presume to give me orders, Mara,” Maxim said, his voice low, but blade sharp.

“Do not call me Mara,” the woman retorted, not in the least bit cowed by Maxim’s tone.  “I am your mother and you will address me as such.”

Summer nearly gasped at that.  This woman was their mother?  Summer looked at her more carefully, but saw no resemblance at all.

“It you will excuse me, I have other matters to attend to,” Maxim replied coldly.  He turned to Summer. 

“Shall we continue?” he asked politely, ignoring Mara’s retort that she did not, in fact, excuse him at all.

“Um, yes, of course,” Summer stammered.  She glanced at Mara, whose face was white with rage, then turned and headed for the armory, her head buzzing with questions that she knew she couldn’t ask.

She heard Mara’s voice behind her, but could not understand anything the woman was saying.  Considering what had already left the woman’s mouth, she wasn’t really all that interested in hearing more anyway. 

Summer stepped onto a long, narrow porch of the building she was fairly certain was the armory, wondering why they didn’t put signs out for those new to the place.  She reached for the door, but Maxim was faster.  He turned the knob and pushed the door open for her, then stepped back.   

“Thank you,” Summer said.

Maxim bowed his head and Summer stepped through the door, Darleen right behind her.  She paused a moment for her eyes to adjust to the dim interior, and couldn’t help but overhear Maxim as he spoke softly to a man who was standing just inside the doorway.  She was not altogether surprised that Maxim was telling the man to prevent Mara from entering the building, but she still found it difficult to believe. 

“Gardez donc
,” Summer exclaimed softly as her eyes became more attuned to the light, surprised at the number and variety of weapons laid out before her.  There were hand guns, rifles and even field artillery of every size and description from those that shot particle beams and lasers, to those that fired projectiles and darts.  There were knives, swords, and axes, as well as batons, staffs, bows, spears, pikes, halberds and such a wide variety of throwing weapons that she couldn’t take them all in. 

In spite of the number of books she had read on the subject of weapons, there were still many of them that were totally unfamiliar to her.  Some items were similar enough to others that she could make a guess as to their usage.  Others she could only wonder at.

“I suppose the best thing for me would be a hand laser,” Darleen said doubtfully.  “Something simple that I can learn to use quickly, but which won’t require skill to operate.”

“That would be wise,” Maxim said politely.  He looked up and waved a hand, calling a human clerk forward. 

“Greetings, Lord Commander,” the man said with a polite bow.  “How may I be of assistance?”

“Greetings,” Maxim replied.  “If you would, please assist Miss Flowers in the selection of a hand weapon.  Something light-weight and suited for her small hands.”

“Of course, Lord Commander,” the man replied.  “It would be my pleasure.”

“Summer, if you will come with me, I will assist you in selecting a back harness for your katana,” Maxim said.

“You okay?” Summer asked Darleen. 

“Yes, of course,” Darleen replied with a nod.  “You go ahead.”

Summer turned to Maxim.  “Lead the way,” she said.

Maxim turned and headed for a different section, Summer at his heels.  She smiled when they turned into an aisle that held racks of katanas, sabers, swords and knives, as well as a variety of harnesses, scabbards and belts designed to hold them.  Maxim studied a display of such things for a few moments, then reached for one that was a deep, midnight blue with a design stitched along the shoulder straps.  He held it up and Summer reached out to run one finger along a strap.

“I think this is a phoenix,” she said as she studied the design closely. 

“I am not familiar with that bird, but I think it suits you,” Maxim said quietly.  “If you like it?”

“Yes, I like it very much,” Summer replied.

Maxim smiled, an expression that nearly caused Summer to gasp aloud.  She was glad that he chose that moment to begin adjusting the straps on the harness and was not looking at her, as it took her a few moments to wipe the shock from her face.

“I think this will do,” Maxim said, holding the harness up.  “Turn around, please,” he said.  Summer turned and allowed Maxim to put the harness on her, holding out her arms as he requested while he made some final adjustments.