Sunstone - Dishonor's Bane (Book 2) (22 page)

Shiro picked up the sword and laid it on the nexus. The power of Affinity coursed through his body. He had experienced this filling up of power when he first came through here. The sword filled him in the blink of an eye and then the power stopped.

He rushed back to Chika. Her eyes were closed and her face composed. He put his hand to her neck to feel a strong pulse. The only thoughts were that she had returned to her catatonic state. Sheathing his sword, he picked her up and began the long walk back to the settlement.

After a few hundred paces, Chika opened her eyes. “That’s enough. Put me down.”

A shock of relief flashed through him.

“I’m not that heavy, Shiro,” Chika said. The abrasion had returned. Shiro couldn’t keep the grin off of his face.

“When…”

“I originally didn’t want to walk all the way back on my own — not when I have my own personal mule. But I never realized how uncomfortable it is being carried by someone.” She brushed her dress. “Sit. Now it’s my time to tell you what my father did to me.”

Shiro tried to stop smiling with the relief that he felt. “Excuse my grin. I’m happy that you have returned.”

‘You’re happy. I can remember everything up to when we passed the gate and then I woke up to a jolt of power. The sword? From then on I thought I’d have some fun. Gaining my mind back put me in a good mood. It’s been too long,” she said. “You may hold my hand, but don’t put it in your mouth. You don’t know where it’s been,” she said, giving him a lopsided grin and then her face turned serious.

“I’ll behave.” Shiro said. It was all he could get out. He tried to compose himself. It wouldn’t do to look any more of the fool he already had. He took her hand and she closed her eyes. A tear rolled down her face.

“I woke in a warded room as I’m sure you did. I tried to transport and it made me very, very groggy. My father came in and began to rant and rave about magic and women and how he wouldn’t stand for it. If anything, he had become worse since I had left him. His verbal abuse became physical. In my addled state from trying to transport, I couldn’t defend myself.

“I’ve always respected my father on some level. He is part of me, as much as I am loath to admit it, even now.” She sniffed and opened her eyes, looking off. She began again. “The great Lord Udishi began to tell me how he was going to kill me. First parade me in front of you and then he would kill us both with the Sunstone sword. He called it justice. I thought it just monstrous and from that point all I could think of was ending his life.”

“You remember that?”

She nodded and that brought a flood of tears. “I still couldn’t think straight as he brought in maids to use cosmetics to cover the bruises that covered my face. I must have looked awful.”

“I’ve seen you look better,” Shiro said. She squeezed his hand and he felt a certain shock course through him.

“The rest you know. Walking into his dining room, probably through another ward, just about destroyed my wits. I gathered all of my strength and burned him and the fool sorcerer. I don’t regret any of it. When you pulled me out of the room, my mind reeled again until we rode under the gate and then I blacked out.”

“I’m sure you regret it on some level, Chika. Your father’s dining room was warded. That only made your condition worse. But you had to do it. You saved both of our lives. Even at the very end, your father underestimated the power of a woman.”

“Indeed.” Chika put her arms around him and cried. “I loved him. I hated him. I killed him.” Her emotions seemed to choke her up and finally erupted into a fit of tears.

They sat there for a while until Chika’s sobs had run their course. “Thank you,” she whispered in his ear, kissing it. “Don’t expect another kiss.” With a stronger voice she rubbed her face and rose to her feet, swaying a little. “I’m hungry. Where can we get something to eat?” She turned into the cook’s image that she wore at Shiuki’s inn. “No one needs to know who I am. Help a dewy-eyed middle-aged woman gain a few pounds. I need to keep my strength up for whatever comes my way.” She gave him a sly smile.

Shiro just shook his head and restrained the grin that he felt inside. Chika had returned.

~~~

Chapter Thirty-One

~

T
he key leaders of the White Rose Society
sat on mats in the still-unfinished council room, Miroshi, Tishi, and newer White Rose Leader, Sumi from Hoksaka, as well as Ashiyo and Shiro. Tiles had just covered the roof, and the doors were shut, letting in filtered light from their paper panes. All of them wore their shoes inside, as most of the floors remained unfinished.

It didn’t matter to Shiro. He’d spent the last year down in the South Isle retrieving as many women as he could. Chika couldn’t bring herself to return and remained behind, training the younger women and men in the art of physical war.

“I think our initial work is finished in the South Isle,” Shiro said. “What would you have me do next?”

Tishi acted lead the council. “We don’t need your transport capabilities in the North Isle and we have scoured the North Isle, although you, of all people, know how difficult that is.”

Ashiyo gave Shiro a tentative look. “We have done well in the North. I believe it is time to venture into the Guild’s primary territory. The antagonism towards female sorcerers isn’t as strong, but that could change at any time.”

Shiro balled his hands into fists and laid them on his thighs. “I’m not adept enough for a confrontation with the Guild.” There he’d said it. They could castigate him for a coward or whatever they’d like, but Shiro remembered the spells of the sorcerer at Lord Udishi’s mansion. Stealth led to his success on the South Isle more than his strength of arms and his magic.

“Then what do you suggest?” Tishi said.

“I want to study in Ashiyo’s library for a few months. I don’t worry about my power, but about my technique.”

“But you carry the Sunstone. Surely that can overcome any other deficiencies,” Sumi said, her dimpled face remained smooth as she said it. Shiro didn’t care much for the woman. Chika had told him of her sharp tongue, and continual complaining about the men in the valley. If Sumi had her way, she would rather the valley not be home to any men. He wondered if the Sunstone made her uncomfortable, linked to so much male dominance.

The culture created the dominance, not the stone. He had covered the sheath that Udishi had made with leather, plain and simple, that hid the stone again.

“You overestimate the power of the stone. It doesn’t exist for power, but for focus and communication. True, it saved my life at Udishi’s gate, but my resistance to the spell that downed Chika was stronger anyway.”

“Use your own strength, then. I’m sure the other women on the council would rather you be out of the valley helping the White Rose,” Miroshi said.

“I must disagree,” Tishi said. “Shiro has a better understanding of magic than even Ashiyo. I would rather him study and simplify some of the intricate spells in Ashiyo’s library for the rest of us.” Tishi looked at Miroshi, who looked away.

Of the two women on the council, Tishi spoke alone and Miroshi had just showed subservience to Sumi.

“Let Shiro study for a season. Winter is full upon us at any event. We can use his strength to finish up our village.”

Sumi nodded. Tishi’s face didn’t quite hide the annoyance she must have felt. “It’s settled then. In the spring, you will begin to gather society members on Roppon Isle.”

Shiro rose from his mat on the floor. “If you will excuse me, I will begin to organize my duties. It won’t hurt for Chika to have a helper in training our guard.”

Sumi snorted. “What use have we for a guard? Our collective magic should be enough.”

“In all of the history of Roppon, magicians and soldiers have always fought side by side. Magicians can help fight armies, but it has been shown time and again, that they cannot hold onto defensive positions by themselves for long.”

She waved her hand as if batting away a fly. “Go, then.”

Shiro glanced at Tishi, who nodded her head as he left with Ashiyo.

“We have lost before we have begun,” Ashiyo said after they were midway to his tent. “Sumi has worked hard to rise among the South Isle women. Tishi is stronger willed, but I’m afraid she can only do so much.”

“What if we put Chika on the council?” Shiro said.

Ashiyo shook his head. “Three women must agree on any successors and Tishi is now outnumbered.”

Shiro ran his tongue along the edge of his upper teeth in thought. “Then we will have to develop some defensive strategies.”

“We don’t have many options. We will have to leave with all of the men once the gathering is complete.”

Now Shiro knew Sumi’s strategy. “That was why she wants me out of here. The sooner the women are here, the sooner the men are exiled from the valley.”

“I’m afraid you’re right.”

They walked into Ashiyo’s tent. The house he would share with Shiro had a few weeks to go before completion. Since Shiro had been staying in the tent, the books and scrolls were now ordered. He’d done much the same thing at the prison island.

“What about the simple spells?” Ashiyo said.

“After I’ve gone through the books and learned what I need, I’ll go back and give the White Rose the spells they should have.”

“You will be making the decision on what to give them?”

Shiro stared at a book in his hand. “Indeed I will. We have little leverage here, Ashiyo. I trust Tishi, but I don’t trust Sumi or Miroshi, now. We will work to strengthen the White Rose Society, but that doesn’t mean we are setting up a rival to the Guild. Do you imagine what devastation that would cause?”

Ashiyo rubbed his chin. “I do. What can I do to help?”

With shrugged shoulders, Shiro said, “Let’s get the village built. The materials are here. Despite Sumi’s misgivings, I’m going to make sure the guard is strong, just not a defensive force, but offensive as well. Chika agrees with me.”

~

Shiro sat at his long study table. He sipped a cup of tea amidst orderly stacks of books and scrolls. It didn’t snow in the North Isle like it did in the south, but the rains had turned the village that Ashiyo had completed, into a sea of mud and winter hadn’t even come yet. He slid open a window and looked out at the rain. The water pooled in so many places, Shiro thought of the ocean.

“I wondered if you might be up to a visit to Hoksaka. Perhaps we can pick up some wine and beer. Our supplies are low and there’s nothing like variety,” Ashiyo said.

“I think that’s a great idea. Perhaps we can see if a certain ship has wintered in the port. We will leave tomorrow morning. Why don’t you secure some horses and a cart? We could teleport, but I need some time away from these books.” Shiro said. “I’m going to see Chika right now.”

Shiro put a rain cloak over his shoulders, lifting the hood over his head and slipped on waxed boots. He sloshed his way over to the large training tent.

The guard now numbered over four hundred men and women. Originally anyone who wished to learn martial arts joined the group, but since Chika had taken over, she had winnowed out those who would not suffer through her training. Since the women on the council did not accept men into the White Rose Society, once the construction had finished, most of the men gravitated to Chika’s guard.

Most of her guard had some Affinity. Even though the men might not be trained sorcerers, their power matched most of the women in the society. Shiro watched the many pairs fighting each other. Chika spotted him and walked over.

“What brings you to my domain, Shiro? Does your sword need sharpening?”

Shiro chuckled. “Not today, mighty Chika. I have something to talk to you about.”

“Into my command tent.” She turned as if she assumed Shiro would follow. Shiro smiled because he knew he would, just like a little puppy.

He walked into her tent as she lit a lamp with her power. Chika’s tent opened directly into the main training tent. Her clothes were strewn all over the place. She had stacks of weapons against a single wooden wall. She walked up to her mat-covered living platform, removing her sandals. Shiro did the same and sat down directly on the mat.

“What god do I thank that you have graced my presence.” Did Shiro detect a tone of petulance?

“You know I’ve been concentrating on my studies.”

“Your skills will soften unless you play with my children,” Chika said.

Shiro laughed. “And how are your boys and girls.”

“Toughening. We will be going out on maneuvers next week, rain or no. We’ll be staying in the forest that once bordered Tishi’s inn. Come and play with them. Play with me.” She gave him half a smile. So she had missed him.

“I would like to, but Ashiyo and I are heading to Hoksaka. I was going to ask if you wanted to come along.”

Chika pursed her lips. “I wish I could, but we just accepted more volunteers and I don’t trust their training to anyone but myself. Promise me that when you return and the guard returns from the camp that you will begin to work with them on battle spells. Every woman would love to be under your spell, and many are.”

“But not you.” Shiro smiled.

“I am impervious,” she said. “What is your thinking of the spring?” Chika and Shiro had spoken of Sumi’s ascendance within the society.

“We must be prepared for anything and I’m going to Hoksaka to see an old sea friend.”

“The captain?”

Shiro nodded. “He is likely as not going to winter in Hoksaka. If he isn’t there, perhaps I can find out where he is. Anyway, I need to get out of here. I’m afraid I have done too much studying.”

“You?”

He grinned and stood up. “Even me. I do have some adaptations for your troops and I will spend some time with them when I return.”

“Promise?”

Shiro nodded and put his boots on again. Chika stood looking down at him from her living platform. “I promise.” He waved and left her standing in her stockinged feet with her hands on her hips.

~

Rainy and cold weather dogged Ashiyo and Shiro all the way to Hoksaka. Shiro’s discomfort quickly disappeared when he learned that th
e
Wicked Win
d
sat on its own slip in the harbor. The pair rode to the docks and found the ship.

“I’m looking for Captain Mistokko,” Shiro said to a sailor, his face hidden by an oilcloth raincoat.

“He’s not in Hoksaka. But I know you.”

Shiro recognized the gravelly voice. “Shinku, if I remember correctly. Where is the captain? I have brought another friend.”

“Ah, the apprentice. Mistokko often wondered if you still lived.”

Shiro couldn’t help but smile. “I do, indeed. Where can we find him?”

“Boriako. The Guild has finally caught him. I don’t know if he still lives. They caught him a few weeks ago, walking the streets of Hoksaka. They had warned him about setting foot on Roppon.”

Ashiyo rubbed his chin. “That is strange. The Guild has tolerated the captain for many years. Why take him now?”

“Come on up and let’s talk.” Shinku motioned them aboard and led them into Mistokko’s cabin. He poured them cups of heated wine. “Mistokko received a letter from a lady friend, pleading with him to come here before winter arrived.” Shinku shrugged. “I imagine it was a trap. From what the captain said, he spent some wonderful nights on shore. Is there anything you can do? Are you finally a sorcerer?”

Shiro nodded. “I am. The Guild tried to eliminate me, but I thwarted them. I’ve been building up a little community not far from here and hoped I’d run into the captain. I’d like his advice.”

“Aye. He’s good for advice. His only payment is that you have to listen to him. Sometimes that’s too high of a price,” Shinku laughed and Shiro and Ashiyo joined in.

“A few weeks, eh?” Shiro said. “Did they transport him to the Guild?”

“How do I know? His lady friend told us the news. She felt bad about it, but not bad enough to keep her from selling him out to the cursed sorcerers.”

“I’ll ask around. I no longer need a ship to travel to Boriako,” Shiro said. “I’ll do what I can.”

After another round of wine, Ashiyo and Shiro traveled to an inn close to the guildhouse in the city where Shiro first encountered Roniki. They took a room together, but restricted any talk for other ears to the noisy tavern.

He couldn’t abandon Mistokko to the Guild. His time with Mistokko marked the change in his life from farmer to sorcerer. The captain had never played him wrong all the time that he knew him and he refused to leave him in the Guild’s clutches.

“Do you think he’s in Hoksaka?” Shiro said to Ashiyo just after they were served their evening meal.

“No, unless they have added on cells to the guildhouse here. I imagine he’s in Boriako. We can’t touch him.”

“I can,” Shiro said. “I won’t let him down like I did Boreko. He died because of me.” Mistokko wouldn’t be killed to satisfy Roniki or Yushidon. He still thought of the shame of administering the poison that killed his mentor on the prison island. Deep within, he couldn’t live with himself knowing that Mistokko could suffer a similar fate without doing something to give the captain at least a chance to escape.

“I know you saved me from the guild prison at Sekkoro, but that wasn’t the Guild’s very headquarters. Remember that you couldn’t help Shiuki.”