Samurai Son (24 page)

Chapter Forty-Nine

Windcatcher brought Akira to another part of the forest, where the hill was steep and his footing slippery.
 
Windcatcher tossed a bokken to Akira.
 
Akira caught it, trying to ignore that his hands had become almost paw like, with long nails and darkened skin.
 
The feathers from his wings extended down his arms, and he wondered how long he would continue with this metamorphosis.
 
He wondered if he could shapeshift back into his old body.

Windcatcher clacked his beak to get Akira’s attention.
 
Stormhammer, today you will show me your sword work.

Certainly you know how it is since you sent the Karasu-Tengu to train me.
 
You know I’m not that good.

The Tengu did not reply.
 
Instead, he bowed to Akira.
 
Akira hesitated for a moment then resigned himself to training.
 
He bowed to Windcatcher and took the ready stance.
 
Perhaps if he showed Windcatcher what he knew, the Tengu would accept his limitations.

Windcatcher charged, swinging the wooden sword, in an attempt to surprise Akira.
 
But Rokuro had taught Akira to expect such attacks, and Akira blocked and countered, despite the steep hill.
 
Windcatcher swung again.
 
This time Akira stepped to the side and let the attack pass by before smacking the Tengu with his bokken.
 
Windcatcher squawked, reminding Akira of a chicken in the yard, and Akira laughed, despite himself.

You find this amusing?
 
Windcatcher’s voice was reproachful.

Akira shrugged.
 
“I didn’t think I could get inside your guard.”

“All right.”
 
The Tengu charged again.
 
Just when Akira was going to block and counter, Windcatcher leaped into the air and with a ferocious beating of his wings and attacked Akira from the air.
 
Windcatcher caused Akira to lose his balance and he slipped and fell to the ground, sliding down the hill.

“Not fair!” Akira said as he took two blows before blocking the attack.

Battle isn’t fair,
Windcatcher said.
 
He smacked Akira along the side of the head.

Akira reeled.
 
Why were they doing this to him?
 
What purpose did it serve for them to injure him?
 
He twisted around and forced his wings to beat so he could gain some ground.
 
The blows came faster and more painfully.
 
He wanted to be anywhere but here…

Akira screamed and suddenly he was no longer
there.
 
He found himself high in the air, looking down on the island.
 
Then Windcatcher was there with him, swinging his bokken.
 
Akira backed up but found he hadn’t the skill to back up properly with his wings.
 
He fell.
 
Windcatcher came after him, swinging his wooden sword.

Akira twisted in midair and tried to focus on transporting himself again.
 
This time he found himself over the water, with Windcatcher right behind him.
 
He blocked and fled, hoping to evade the Tengu, but Windcatcher seemed to anticipate every move.
 
Bruised and battered, Akira folded his wings and plummeted into the water.

Before he splashed into the ocean, he took a breath.
 
He didn’t know if the Tengu would follow him into the water, but Akira knew that the bokken wouldn’t have the same impact when Windcatcher raised it to pummel him.

Akira dived deep into the water.
 
As a human, he had learned to swim as part of his samurai training, but he had no idea how the wings and feathers would act in the water.
 
He didn’t know if the Tengu could swim, so he held his breath and continued downward into the ocean.

He swam into the murkiness toward a coral reef that lay below.
 
Myriads of fish darted among the brightly colored corals and swam past him in a flurry.
 
He puzzled for a moment at the muddy water but was glad for the cover it provided.
 
It would make it harder for Windcatcher to spot him in the ocean.

The cold water caused his lungs to burn, but he swam downward, letting escape as few air bubbles as he dared.
 
He felt the currents in the water wrap around him, and he closed his eyes.
 
His mind went back to the Karasu-Tengu they had used to lure him.
 
The Karasu-Tengu had been so much more understanding than this Taka-Tengu, but he now understood it had been a trick.

Akira wanted to die but didn’t even have a proper tanto to kill himself.
 
Perhaps dying beneath the waves would keep them from me,
he thought.
 
The urgency to expel the bad air and breathe in grew frantic, and for a moment, he almost succumbed to them.
 
He let the last of the bad air out and was going to open his mouth and let the water fill his lungs.

Little Tengu!

Akira twisted around.
 
A creature, translucent among the murk, flowed around him.
 
A
suijin,
or water kami, moved around him like a current.
 
At first Akira thought it might be a kappa—one of the dangerous river sprites who would drown unsuspecting swimmers or worse—but the suijin didn’t look like the kappa in legends, so he suspected it was a benign water kami.

He opened up his mouth to speak but got a mouthful of salt water.

The suijin ran its hand along his mouth, and a large air bubble formed around it.
 
He coughed and the water came out of his mouth.
 
What is a wind kami doing here in my domain?

Akira coughed again.
 
The creature looked at him with large, luminous eyes filled with curiosity.
 
I’m sorry suijin-san.
 
I am trying to flee the Tengu called Windcatcher.

Why?
 
The suijin swirled around him.
 
Why would you flee your own?

I’m not a Tengu.

You look Tengu.

Akira snorted.
 
I am samurai.
 
My mother was Tengu.

You are part human?
 
Interesting.
 
The suijin considered him thoughtfully.
 
You do not wish to be Tengu?

Akira fell silent, not knowing what to say.
 
He had said he wanted to be Tengu to the Karasu-Tengu he had met, but seeing how they lived, he didn’t really want to be one.
 
Yes, he would live forever but without human contact.
 
He could train with other Tengu, but for what purpose?
 
He could call the winds into a storm, but to what purpose?

The suijin smiled, showing sharp teeth glistening in a watery mouth.
 
The Tengu often drive us into a frenzy with their storms.
 
There was one last night.

There was?
 
Akira almost gasped but held his voice neutral.
 
He remembered his dalliance with Windstorm that night and how he had brought forth a violent storm.
 
He had almost forgotten about it in his passion.

You did not see?

Not exactly.
 
Akira considered the suijin.
 
He knew nothing more of water kami save that they could be treacherous.
 
While he doubted this one could drown him, he didn’t entirely trust it, especially if they were anything like the Tengu.
 
Still, the creature hadn’t harmed him either.

I will show you.
 
The suijin started upward.

Akira stared.
 
You want me to follow?

Yes.
 
I promise I will not take you back to the Tengu.

All right.
 
Akira swam after the flickering water kami.
 
The air pocket seemed to never empty and stayed with him as he swam.
 
The water became murkier as the coral gave way to sand.
 
It was very hard to see, and the suijin had to double back several times when Akira lost sight of it.
 
The kami finally took his hand and pulled him forward into the shallows.
 
He swam slowly, and as his feet touched the sand, he peered out over the water.

The remnants of the storm were clear.
 
The muddy, green-gray waves were oddly rough.
 
Looking up into the sky, he could see the clouds beginning to darken, but saw no sign of Windcatcher or any other Tengu.
 
The water kami slapped his shoulder, and he turned to look at what the kami wanted him to see.

He stood in the shallow harbor at the northeast side of the island, staring at what remained of the little fishing village that used to sit there.
 
Where there had been several huts, he saw nothing more that shattered timbers and flotsam.
 
The pier had disappeared; only the thick, upright logs that supported the docks still remained.
 
A few people were picking up bits of whatever they could find useful, but there were only a handful out of what had to have been a few hundred in the village.

“Where are their boats?”

Gone—all gone,
the suijin said in a quiet mental voice.
 
All wiped away by the storm.

Akira felt a lump in his throat.
 
What had the Tengu made him do?
 
He had no idea that calling the storm would bring ruin to these people.
 
“How many died?”

The suijin said nothing.

“Couldn’t you have stopped it?”
 
He turned to the translucent creature, wanting to vent his anger and frustration on it.

How, Stormhammer?
 
How?
 
The water kami looked on him with translucent eyes.
 
When the Tengu call us, we must obey.
 
None of the elemental kami can fight a Tengu’s power.
 
None save Suijin himself.

Akira shook his head.
 
“I had no idea.”

The powerful must be responsible for their actions,
the water kami said.
 
Certainly you knew this.

Akira shook his head again.
 
He hadn’t thought of the control he had over the winds as being something he forced the winds to do.
 
Nor had he thought of the water kami.
 
How many things did he control with his powers?
 
And would they listen to him if he asked?

The suijin seemed to know what he was thinking.
 
“They didn’t tell you, did they?
 
They didn’t tell you that we serve the greater kami because that is what we must do?”

“No,” Akira whispered.
 
“I’m so sorry I made you do this.”

The water kami shook its head.
 
You may be sorry, but it is not I who needs to make amends.
 
With that, the water kami left him, standing cold and alone in the water.

Chapter Fifty

Kasumi awoke from her sound sleep to the breeze rustling the tree branches against the hut’s thatched roof.
 
She lay there for a while, listening to the wind as it made the walls shudder in its grasp.
 
The room was dark, and beyond the shoji screen, she could hear Tenko’s low snores in the corner of the hut.
 
He had graciously given her the pallet, choosing to sleep on some rice sacks stuffed with straw in the corner.
 
She wondered how the kitsune could sleep through the wind’s racket.

Probably used to such things,
she thought.

She shivered under the thin blanket.
 
The coarse cotton scratched her unlike the fine spun silk or even wool she preferred.
 
She suspected it might have been warm at one time, but it was filthy and stained; the fibers had lost most of their integrity.
 
She frowned.
 
She’d be warmer if she changed into a cat, but she wanted to keep her human wits about her.
 
Changing into a cat often dulled her human intelligence and required focus to maintain that intelligence while in feline form.

Listening to the wind pound against the hut made her yearn for home.
 
As much as she liked Tsuitori, the weather reminded her of the stormy island of her people.
 
The wind kami would often tear across the island mercilessly while her people worked the tea fields of its mountains.

She sighed, sliding her feet to the edge of the pallet and putting on the soft tabi socks and sandals before letting them settle in the floor’s dust.
 
Her samurai clothes were probably not dry yet, so she had to make do with the rough cotton clothing Tenko had provided.
 
She tied her hair back again and slipped her kamishimo over the peasant garb, fastening the obi with the two swords around her waist.

She slowly opened the door and peered out.
 
The sky was a mix of clouds dotted with an occasional star.
 
The first moon shone ghostly silver, lighting up the cloudbanks with its white light.
 
The cold air slapped at her face, and the wind pulled at her jacket.
 
She breathed in slowly through her nostrils, taking in the night wind’s scents.
 
A familiar odor tickled her nostrils.

Kasumi stepped out and quietly closed the door behind herself.
 
A shadow flitted from one bush to another on the edge of the forest.

Come, my sister.
 
Tell me why you are here,
Kasumi mindspoke to the dark shape beneath the pine tree.

A tail flickered as Kasumi made out the dark outline of a leopard beneath the tree.
 
I bear news from the Guardian,
the creature said.
 
Nanashi has sent a samurai fleet to destroy the Neko.
 
We cannot hold out without help.

Kasumi shook her head.
 
There have been complications—I have not had a chance to speak to Takeshi.
 
What of the other samurai clans, my sister?

A low growl emanated from the leopard’s throat.
 
None have offered to join the cause.

What of the Shinobi?

The leopard’s growl grew into a snarl.
 
The Shinobi are mercenaries.
 
Nanashi has bought their fealty.
 
You must speak with Takeshi.
 
It is the only way you can save our clan.

Kasumi chewed her lip.
 
That may not be easy.
 
The Tengu have taken both his wife and son.

The Tengu?
 
What use would they have with his wife and son?

I do not know.

The leopard sat up, turned, and began grooming her coat.
 
Her large, rough tongue ran over the spotted fur like a comb.
 
Kasumi waited patiently, knowing the big cat was thinking.
 
When the leopard turned back to her, she could see the cat had come to a decision.

You were planning on finding his wife and son?

Yes.

The cat nodded.
 
Kanayo would approve.
 
If you rescue them, we will have leverage to ask Takeshi for his help.
 
He would not refuse or he would dishonor himself.

Kasumi folded her legs beneath her and sat down just outside the pine tree’s circle.
 
They suffered a great loss when the Tengu took the wife and son.

But he has other samurai who have sworn fealty to him, yes?

Kasumi thought for a moment before answering.
 
Yes.
 
Takeshi may still help us.
 
Ikumi said he would.

But without his family, he will not.
 
The boy is his only heir?

Yes.

The leopard stood up and stretched.
 
I will tell Kanayo.

Kasumi rocked to her feet and backed up.
 
I could use some help.

I must return,
the leopard said.
 
You must do this alone, my sister.
 
We can’t spare anyone in this fight.
 
With that, the leopard turned and left, a silent shadow softer than the breeze.

#

Akira swam slowly to the shore not far from the harbor but away from human settlements.
 
He knew that in his half-Tengu state, he would scare most people there, or worse, cause them to gather stones and clubs and chase him away.
 
He knew the Tengu could become invisible at will, but he wasn’t certain how to do that.
 
Perhaps it was just a matter of concentrating on being invisible, but he wasn’t willing to try it just yet.

Akira walked onto the sandy beach just south of the harbor, feeling the wind kami ruffle his plumage and chill him.
 
He shook his feathers and folded his wings tightly across his body to give him some warmth against the breeze.
 
His fine silk kamishimo was ruined, and his scraggy hair was filled with mats.
 
He wanted to strip out of his cold, wet things and dry.

But where would he go?
 
Where could he go without the Tengu following?
 
While Windcatcher had still not caught up with him, Akira knew it wouldn’t be long before he found him and beat him for his insolence.
 
Akira looked down.
 
He had dropped his bokken sometime after entering the water, but he still had his two swords.
 
He could defend himself from Windcatcher if necessary.
 
But what about the other Tengu?
 
He had broken his promise to them, but then, they broke their promise to him, hadn’t they?
 
Ikumi was not free but enslaved as a hawk.

The more he thought about the Tengu, the more he realized they had played a cruel trick on him.
 
They had promised him immortality but at a cost of being something he was not.
 
They had offered freedom to Ikumi but had made her a captive in a hawk body.
 
They had promised to make him into a great warrior but inflicted great pain, and as far as he could see, he would never need to use this legendary fighting skill the Tengu boasted about.
 
He could command the winds but only because the kami were servants to his will.
 
And no one told him when he was about to hurt people; they probably didn’t care.
 
They had given him sex, but it had been unfulfilling.

Akira slowly sank down to the warm sand and sat there for a while, looking over the ocean.
 
He felt sick as he thought about those poor fishermen and women who simply worked to earn a living there.
 
Most were dead, swept out to sea or worse.
 
These people didn’t deserve death.
 
Oh, they were peasants, to be certain, but they were still people.

Akira had heard of ruthless samurai who killed peasants without reason or provocation.
 
Inevitably these men came to bad ends in stories.
 
But it wasn’t the fear of reprisal that bothered Akira; it was his sadness at taking innocent lives.
 
These people had done nothing to him, and he had killed them.

He closed his eyes and buried his face in his hands.
 
He couldn’t stop the tears as they ran down his face.
 
His throat burned and he felt so ashamed.
 
How could he have done such a cowardly thing?

Akira felt the tug of the wind kami but did not respond.
 
At this point, he didn’t care what the wind kami did to him.
 
He had behaved badly.
 
He wanted to hide from the world.

Stormhammer!
 
Windcatcher’s voice rang in his head.
 
Akira did not look up.
 
Stormhammer!

“Leave me alone,” Akira muttered.
 
“I don’t want to be Tengu.
 
I want to be human again.”

You can never be human.

“Why not?”

You are not human.

Akira stood up, the rage building inside him.
 
He knew Windcatcher was close by; his Tengu senses told him Windcatcher was ten feet behind him and slightly to his right.
 
He turned around, forcing himself to relax.
 
Then, as the Tengu came into his sight, he drew his sword and charged.