The Flames of Dragons (13 page)

“Come on!” Minawë called. She tugged on Lyubo’s arm. “We’ll reach Sorengaral by noon if we hurry. I want to be the first to see it!”

“All right, all right,” Lyubo said. “We’re the scouts anyway. Show me what you’ve learned these past few weeks. Lead the way.”

The pair of them took off into the jungle, faster than Narunë would normally deem prudent. Yet as he watched them go, he smiled. “I told you I’d convince her to stay.”

Next to him, Rondel huffed. “It’s not like you did anything. All your conversations with her just upset her. I should be thanking Lyubo for taking advantage of her situation and getting all romantic.”

Narunë laughed. “That’s not something a mother should say.”

“Then how would you describe it?”

“I would say it was my fantastic leadership in picking the right men to accompany us from Sorengaral.”

Rondel huffed even louder. “At least she’s changed her mind, even if it was thanks to luck.”

“That’s the spirit!” Narunë bellowed his laugh again, his right eye winking.

Within a few seconds, though, his laughter fell aside. He looked seriously at Rondel. “So when will you be leaving?” he asked.

“You made me promise to see you all to Sorengaral. If I left now, Minawë might still follow me. I’ll wait for you to settle in. Then I’ll slip away some evening.”

“It’s too bad,” Narunë said. “There aren’t many people I can talk to like this. It’s lonely.”

“You’re surrounded by Kodamas who love and admire you. You’re getting a niece that a year ago you didn’t know you had. What’s lonely about that?”

“The niece I’m excited about. As for the rest, you know the answer. You were an emperor’s wife. It’s a lonely spot at the top.”

Rondel winked. “Maybe when Iren’s dead, I’ll come back and visit.”

Narunë looked Rondel up and down. He wondered if she really meant that. He hoped she did.

They walked and talked together another hour. Narunë’s pulse quickened with each step. After three months away, he would finally see his home again. He couldn’t wait.

In a way, he found his longing strange. Three months was nothing compared with his fifteen-hundred-year life, but he had grown attached to the collection of tree homes that marked the core of Kodaman civilization in Aokigahara. They had started out as warriors, but over a thousand years, they had changed into something more: a people.

A shout from the branches above and ahead of him pulled Narunë from his thoughts. “Lord Narunë!” the voice called.

Narunë recognized the caller as Lyubo. That was odd. It was too soon for even him and Minawë to have reached Sorengaral. “What news?” Narunë shouted back.

Lyubo landed beside the Kodaman prince. Minawë was next to him. Narunë blanched when he saw his niece’s expression. She looked in shock.

Then another female Kodama dropped from the trees. Narunë blinked. It was Eritas, one of the scouts he’d left at Sorengaral. “Lord Narunë!” she said. “I’m glad you’re all right! We’ve feared the worst.”

Narunë brushed aside the concern with a wave of his hand. “We were delayed waiting for a slowpoke old Maantec,” he said with a wry glance at Rondel, “but we’re fine.”

Eritas wasn’t amused. “Were you attacked?”

“Attacked? The Yokai are on the run. They wouldn’t have dared to threaten us.”

“No, Lord Narunë, not by Yokai, by Maantecs.”

“Maantecs? The only Maantec in Aokigahara is this useless crone.” He jabbed a finger at Rondel. She scowled and put her back to him.

“Uncle, you don’t understand,” Minawë said. “Something’s happened.”

Narunë was tired of these games. “Someone spit it out, then,” he ordered, his face hard.

Eritas gulped, but she managed to say, “It’s Sorengaral. The Maantecs attacked it!”

Narunë’s heart caught in his throat. The Maantecs had never dared to invade Aokigahara. The rainforest terrified them; they called it “Suicide Forest.”

Rondel abandoned her fake insulted pose. She stormed over to the group, sparks in her eyes. “How far are we from the city?” she asked.

Eritas opened her mouth, but Narunë got there first. “A few hours at most. Eritas, lead the way. I must see it for myself!”

The group set off at a jog, the fastest they could manage in Aokigahara’s tangle. Rondel ran ahead of them, using her enhanced speed to clear a path through the brush.

Every fifteen minutes or so, a new Kodama appeared and joined their group. Each took up a position around the periphery to guard the troop.

No, Narunë realized, not the troop. They were guarding him and Minawë.

Sweat pooled in Narunë’s eyes, and try as he might, he couldn’t clear the stinging salt. Whatever had happened must have been serious to make his sentries act this way. They all knew Narunë’s battle prowess, and they’d all heard about Minawë killing the Fire Dragon Knight. Whoever these Maantecs were, they were powerful enough that the Kodamas feared their leaders might not be enough to handle them.

Two hours after Eritas met them, Narunë and the others reached Sorengaral. To most, the city would have seemed like just another patch of jungle. Apart from a few clearings between trees, the rainforest here was as dense as anything they’d traveled through on their way from Shikari. Even looking up, it was hard to spot the wooden houses nestled in the canopy and sheltered by huge, waxy leaves.

That was how it should have looked. Instead, as Narunë entered the city, he doubled over in horror. Dozens of trees lay uprooted, their houses shattered against the ground. Narunë hadn’t seen this much light on the forest floor since they’d moved in a thousand years ago. Great mounds of rock and soil jutted up. To Narunë’s eye, they looked like the crags of Shikari, only in miniature.

Then there were the Kodamas. Narunë’s people were always watchful, but today they seemed especially vigilant. Even before Narunë could identify himself, he counted twenty arrows trained on him. When he called out the all-clear, a horde of his brethren descended upon him and started talking at once.

Narunë held up a hand, and everyone fell silent. He looked through the crowd and found Kenwë, the Kodama he’d left in charge when he’d escorted Rondel and Minawë to Shikari. He gestured for the man to step forward. “Tell me what happened. Leave nothing out.”

Kenwë wrung his hands. “Two months ago, this woman rose up from the ground. She demanded that we hand over the Karyozaki. When we refused, she lifted the earth around several of the trees and knocked them over.”

Next to Narunë, Rondel clenched her fists. Minawë did the same. She growled through her teeth, “Hana.”

Narunë looked at his niece. “You know who did this?”

Rondel answered, “The Stone Dragon Knight, a Maantec named Hana Akiyama. We fought her in Shikari, but she was too strong. We couldn’t kill her.”

Narunë knew he shouldn’t, but he couldn’t avoid looking at his niece for her reaction. The woman stared at the ground, her arms limp. Narunë could guess what passed through her mind.

But now wasn’t the time to call out Minawë for blaming herself, not when a hundred of her subjects were within earshot. There would be time for that discussion later, in private.

More important at the moment was the Karyozaki. “Where is Palentos?” he asked.

Now it was everyone else’s turn to look at their feet. Narunë frowned. The blacksmith Palentos was the only person besides Minawë who had known where she’d hidden the Fire Dragon Sword.

Kenwë spoke without raising his head, “We tried to fight the Maantec, but our weapons were useless. Even our best plant magic couldn’t break her armor. She butchered our people. I thought no one knew where the Karyozaki was, and I feared she would slay us all. But then Palentos offered to take her to the sword if she left the village.”

Rondel’s eyes narrowed. “And she agreed?”

“Yes. Once she had the Karyozaki, she sank into the ground and left. But before she did, she . . . well . . .”

“Speak up!” Narunë roared. “What happened? Where’s Palentos?”

Kenwë sighed. “Palentos tried to stop her. I guess he figured that while she was distracted with the Karyozaki, he could attack her. But his attempt to breach her armor was no better than any of ours. When the Maantec saw what he was doing, she raised a . . .” he paused and cleared his throat, “a metal pole from the ground and speared him through the stomach.”

Kenwë’s nostrils flared. “She intentionally didn’t kill him,” he growled. “She avoided vital organs and instead let him die slowly from blood loss. She’s a monster.”

Narunë couldn’t believe it. If only he’d been here, maybe he could have done something.

Then again, even Minawë couldn’t defeat this Maantec, and she was the Forest Dragon Knight. Had Narunë been here, he would have been killed too, and the Maantecs would still have the Karyozaki.

What were they going to do? Hana could return at any time. They couldn’t stay here.

No, it was worse than that. Not only couldn’t they stay here, they couldn’t stay anywhere. The only way Hana could have known Sorengaral’s location was if the Yokai had told her. The beasts must be acting as spies for the Maantecs. If the Kodamas stayed in any place more than a month, the Yokai could potentially carry that information back to the Maantecs. Then Hana would return.

“Stand firm, Narunë,” Rondel said in that low, terse voice that refused argument. “Your people need not cower in fear. You have a queen now. You have a Forest Dragon Knight. Minawë fought Hana to a draw on the bare fields outside Hiabi. Here in Aokigahara, she would crush Hana effortlessly. You have nothing to fear now that she has chosen to stay with her people.”

Narunë raised his head. The old Maantec was right. He threw his arms up and addressed his people, “So a Maantec damaged our home. What of it? We’ll rebuild. We’ll become stronger. The Maantecs think they can strike us with impunity, but we’ll show them they’re wrong. If this Hana is so foolish as to attack a second time, she won’t survive it. We have Queen Minawë, the Forest Dragon Knight, to protect us! And she won’t fight alone. I’ll join her. We’ll all join her. We’ll show Hana and the Maantecs and any other damn fools who mess with us that the might of King Otunë lives on in his kin!”

Everyone cheered. Kodamas came up to Narunë and slapped him on the back, praising him and his leadership.

Narunë was glad for their reaction, but he was more interested in how his niece had taken the speech. He searched the press of Kodamas for her face. He probably should have checked with her before declaring her their savior.

His eyes swept the crowd twice before his shoulders slumped. His fellow Kodamas kept up their celebrations, but he didn’t hear them.

“What’s the matter?” Rondel asked. Then her eyes widened. Lightning Sight flared, and she swiveled her head around.

“Seriously?” she demanded. “I wish Iren hadn’t rubbed off so much on that girl.”

Minawë was gone.

Lyubo tore through Aokigahara, his senses alert. It was the toughest tracking job of his life. Minawë could be anywhere. More problematic, she could be any animal. That capybara grazing on the river grasses. An ant crawling out of that acacia tree. One of the spider monkeys in the family group above him.

But Minawë wouldn’t be any of those. She didn’t want to hide. She wanted to run. Lyubo knew which animal he would choose if he wanted to do that.

That’s why he slowed when he saw the flash of black. Few jaguars had that black pattern to begin with. Fewer still would be running flat-out through the jungle in the midafternoon heat.

And none would have missed the hunter from above who descended upon it.

Lyubo landed hard on the black jaguar. It was a soft enough landing not to break bones, but it should have stunned the creature. Lyubo took advantage of the beast’s surprise to pin its head down. The claws were damaging enough, but those canines could tear out his throat or pierce his skull with a single bite.

The jaguar struggled with an unreal strength. That, more than any other sign, convinced Lyubo. “Minawë!” he called. “Get a hold of yourself! It’s Lyubo! I want to talk!”

The animal still struggled, but it reduced its thrashing. It spoke with a female voice, “Get off me!”

“Are you going to run away if I do?”

There was a moment of hesitation, and then, “Fine. No.” The jaguar stopped fighting.

Lyubo slowly released pressure. The jaguar stayed where it was. When Lyubo had gained his feet and stepped back, the big cat stood. It reared back so its front feet left the ground. It stood of a height with Lyubo. The fur melted into skin and leather clothing.

“What do you want?” Minawë asked, her Kodaman form restored.

Lyubo held both hands before him, palms out. “I told you already. I just want to talk.”

“Don’t expect me to listen. I’m going to Shikari. I’m going to kill Hana.”

“I thought you’d decided to stay and help your fellow Kodamas. I thought you’d decided to forget the Maantecs.”

“That was before I saw Sorengaral,” Minawë said. “I can’t forget them now. I can’t forget her. She’s taken away everything important to me.”

“Can you even win against her?” Lyubo asked. “You fought her in Shikari before, and it ended in a draw.”

“That won’t happen again. Iren and Mother’s fight distracted me back then. This time, Hana will get my full attention.” Her eyes flashed, and she bared her teeth. “And when my jaws close around her throat, she’ll finally know what it feels like to be prey.”

Lyubo stepped back. Minawë might look like a Kodama, but part of that jaguar was still in her. If he didn’t play this carefully, she might yet attack him.

Before he could speak, though, he saw Minawë’s eyes focus on something over his shoulder. He turned just in time to see two people break through the undergrowth toward them.

He breathed a sigh of relief. He might not be able to stop Minawë alone, but with Lord Narunë and Rondel here, surely they could convince her to stay.

Rondel spoke first. “Where do you think you’re going, Minawë?” she asked. She spoke casually, as though curious which fruit trees Minawë was off to pick from.

Minawë didn’t relax. “Don’t try to stop me, Mother. I know you’d rather I stay here, but I’m going back to Shikari. I’ll kill Hana for what she’s done.”

Rondel cocked an eyebrow. “What has she done?”

Lyubo didn’t understand why the old woman was so nonchalant. Minawë was on the edge, and Rondel’s unfeeling attitude would only push the queen further. What did this Maantec hope to accomplish?

“What has she done?” Minawë roared. “She destroyed Sorengaral! She killed dozens of Kodamas!”

“True,” Rondel admitted, “yet your anger is misdirected. Why did she do those things? Have you stopped to ask yourself that question?”

“What are you talking about?”

“You’re angry at the wrong person,” Rondel said. “Getting angry at Hana is like getting angry at my rondel. She’s just a weapon. Melwar is the one wielding her.”

Minawë had already started to rebuke her mother, but she stopped short. Lyubo was caught equally off guard. Was it possible Hana wasn’t responsible for her actions?

No, it wasn’t, and Minawë came to the same conclusion. “Even if Melwar ordered her,” she spat, “Hana could have refused. Besides, what about Palentos? She impaled him and left him to die!”

“Because he tried to stab her in the back.”

“She was stealing the Karyozaki!”

“On Melwar’s orders.”

Minawë threw up her hands. “Why are you protecting her? Did you forget that she almost killed you? Or that she gave an Oni the Karyozaki so he could exterminate my people? Oh, and let’s not forget how she manipulated Iren so she could kidnap him, take him to Melwar, and turn him against his friends!”

“Again, all on Melwar’s command,” Rondel said. “You’re missing the point. Evil must be annihilated. I agree with your desire for justice. What concerns me is that you’re succumbing to the allure of revenge.”

Rondel may as well have punched Minawë. The queen reeled. Her eyes dropped to the forest floor.

Lord Narunë spoke for the first time, “There’s a teaching among the Kodamas. Revenge can’t make you happy. If you fail, you’ll either die or suffer for the rest of your life. If you succeed, you’ll be left with nothing, a void in your soul that you can’t fill.”

“I know that,” Minawë said. “Mother—Aletas—told it to me.”

“And she was right to caution you,” Rondel replied. “Look at Iren. He let his desire for revenge consume him. Don’t let it do the same to you.”

The old woman paused. When she spoke again, her voice was quiet, as though she were speaking to herself, “Otherwise you might make a decision you’ll regret. You might kill the wrong person.”

Lyubo frowned. What did that mean? It must be significant, judging by the look of realization on Minawë’s face.

But that comprehension didn’t translate into a change of opinion. Minawë’s expression hardened. “Hana’s a mass-murderer,” she said. “Even if she acted under Melwar’s orders, that doesn’t make her innocent.”

“Doesn’t it?” Rondel asked. “Melwar has a way of manipulating people. It’s been his greatest weapon ever since we were children. I’m not convinced Hana is evil. She’s no hero, but she isn’t a villain either.”

Rondel sounded so certain, but Lyubo had his doubts. “What makes you think that?” he asked.

The old Maantec’s baleful stare made Lyubo wish he’d kept his mouth shut. “The attack on Sorengaral,” she answered. “The more I think about it, the more convinced I am that Hana never wanted to go there, and that once she was there, that she didn’t want to hurt anyone.”

This time even Lord Narunë scoffed. “I find that hard to believe.”

Rondel’s harsh look passed to the Kodaman prince. Lyubo loosed a breath to have her eyes off him. “Consider Kenwë’s description of what happened,” Rondel said. “Hana arrived and demanded the Karyozaki. When your people refused, she knocked over trees. It was a mighty stunt that showed her power, but in truth it was harmless. Only after the Kodamas attacked her did she fight back, and as soon as she had the Karyozaki, she left. Do you get it? Her goal was to obtain the Karyozaki. That must have been what Melwar ordered her to do.”

Rondel’s eyes fell on each of the Kodamas. “I know this is hard for you all to accept, but consider the alternative. Had Hana wanted to wipe out the Aokigaharan Kodamas, this was her opportunity. They were gathered in one place. She knew the only one who could stop her—you, Minawë—was miles away. They were helpless.”

This was the chance Lyubo had been looking for. He jumped in on the old woman, “That’s why we need you here, Minawë. Hana could come back at any time and kill us all, but if you’re here, you can protect us. We need you.” He braced himself and gave her his most caring smile. “I need you.”

Minawë’s hands trembled. She seemed unable to meet Lyubo’s gaze. “Do you . . . really mean that?” she asked.

“Of course I do.”

Rondel cocked an eyebrow. “Do you? Or are you saying that because Narunë told you to?”

Lyubo stiffened. “What?”

Lord Narunë looked just as panicked. “Rondel?” he asked. “What do you mean? What are you accusing me of?”

Sparks filled Rondel’s eyes. “Manipulating my daughter’s emotions.”

“That’s preposterous!”

“Is it? I asked you to convince her to stay in Sorengaral, but you knew you couldn’t persuade her. The only way to make her stay was to give her someone to take Iren off her mind. So you ordered Lyubo to befriend and woo her.”

Lyubo flashed a look between Lord Narunë and Rondel. What was the old Maantec doing? Convincing Minawë to stay had been her idea from the start! Why was she giving him up just when he had succeeded?

Minawë met Lord Narunë’s eyes. “Is it true, Uncle?”

Lord Narunë could lie and manipulate with the best of them, even Rondel. Lyubo knew the man would work his way out of this.

Only he didn’t. He lowered his eyes. “Your mother’s right,” he said. “I asked Lyubo to make you want to stay in Sorengaral.”

Then his expression hardened. “And I did it because your mother asked me to. So tell me, Rondel, what are you playing at? Just a few minutes ago you were saying the Kodamas were safe because Minawë was staying here.”

“I spoke too quickly back at the village,” Rondel replied. “After thinking about it, I realized Minawë can’t stay here.”

“But she must!” Lyubo cried. “If Hana comes back and Minawë isn’t here—”

“That won’t happen,” Rondel interrupted. “I’m certain Melwar’s determined that we could have reached Sorengaral by now. He knows Hana can’t defeat Minawë here, and he won’t send her into a fight he knows she’ll lose, not when the risk is him losing the Enryokiri. It’s his best weapon against me.”

Minawë loosed a long breath. “That’s what convinced you Melwar is controlling Hana. Hana knew she had one chance, and only one chance, to kill the Aokigaharan Kodamas. Yet she didn’t take advantage of it. Melwar ordered her to get the Karyozaki, but he must not have mentioned the Kodamas. She followed his order, but she didn’t go beyond it.”

Rondel nodded. “Melwar didn’t leave out the Kodamas by accident. He knows you’re a threat. He hoped you would see the devastation and stay in Aokigahara to protect your people. I don’t know what he’s planning, but he wants you here when it happens. That’s reason enough for me not to.”

Lord Narunë frowned. “So what will you two do now?”

Minawë looked at him with eyes that reminded Lyubo of the jaguar’s. “Nothing’s changed,” she said. “I’m going back to Shikari. If Melwar’s controlling Hana, then I’m going after him.”

“And I’m going too,” Rondel added. “It’s past time I introduced Melwar to Okthora’s Law.”

“You’re five weeks from Shikari,” Lord Narunë pointed out. “Whatever you hope to do, can you reach Melwar in time?”

“You don’t need to escort us this time,” Rondel said. “Now that I’ve made the journey a couple times, I have a better sense of where to go. Minawë, change into a fly. You can ride in one of my pockets while I run through the forest with my speed enhanced. It won’t be as fast as if we were on an open plain, but I think we can cut that five-week delay in half, if not more.”

Minawë considered a moment, then smiled. “I have a better idea. Going through the jungle twice doesn’t make you an expert. There’s a lot here that can tangle up the unwary. Even Lightning Sight isn’t enough. You need more than one sense.”

“Oh? What’s your plan, then?”

The queen changed back into the black jaguar, but the fury was gone from its eyes. Instead, they looked excited.

Rondel cocked an eyebrow. “You really think you can keep pace with me in that form?”

Minawë tilted her head sideways and flashed a cat-grin.

“Minawë!” Lyubo had to try one last time. “I never lied to you. I really do care about you. I have ever since I first met you. I love you.”

The jaguar regarded him. “When Iren turned his back on me, I didn’t understand why,” Minawë said. “I think now I do, at least a little. I’m sorry.”

Then she was gone, off through the jungle. Rondel gave her a five-second head start, and then the old Maantec ran off as well.

Lyubo watched them go. “I failed you, Lord Narunë.”

The prince shook his head. “You did no such thing. I failed by not understanding Minawë. She’s like her mother; she won’t be caged. Even if she didn’t feel betrayed, she still would have left.”

“Will she come back?” Lyubo asked.

“Maybe,” Lord Narunë said, “but then again, maybe not. If she does, I don’t think you’ll have another chance with her.”

“You knew how I felt about her. That’s why you asked me to approach her. I never could have worked up the courage without your blessing.”

“For that I am truly sorry. I turned her against you.”

Lyubo wiped his eyes. He would not cry in front of his prince. “No, I’m glad I got to spend even a few weeks with her. She’s something special.”