The Initiate Brother Duology (90 page)

The old man who had for so long tormented Komawara about his “foolish” opinions, unlike the rest of the men present, did not look like he was about to taste steel for his own foolishness—he looked like the blade had slid home as Gitoyo spoke.

Akima gathered himself together to speak, but his voice emerged small and old. “The reports from…from our northern border are grave indeed. A barbarian force crossed into Seh west of Kyo before sunset yesterday. This force consists of cavalry, soldiers, bowmen, and train. The combined force…the combined force approaches one hundred thousand fighting men.” He could not go on then for some seconds, but it was hardly noticed. Some of those who had believed this number to be rumor were as shaken as Akima.

With a visible act of will Akima continued, forcing some strength into his voice. “I am assured by Governor Shonto’s staff that this barbarian force will
take six days to reach Rhojo-ma—its apparent destination. This force is well armed and horsed, with a supply train large enough to support an extended siege.” Akima finished reading and let his hands fall back onto his knees. He met no one’s eyes but seemed to stare out to Seh’s distant border. “And I would not listen to reason,” he said with what sounded like disbelief.

“Lord Akima,” the Major Chancellor whispered almost sharply.

Akima seemed to come out of a daze, and he bowed toward the dais. He returned to a kneeling position, but his face could not hold the rigid impassivity of the other lords despite his efforts.

Shonto looked out at the men before him. They did not seem like men of great pride in that moment, but he knew this was deceptive. How many could he convince to follow him down the Grand Canal? That was the question. Proud northerners, none afraid to die. Let their names be sung in the ballad of a great battle, that would be reward enough for them—especially now. Seh was about to fall because they had known too much to listen to others and now they were proved wrong.

Shonto reached over and took his sword off its stand, laying the scabbard across his knees. Seh would have been lost if they had listened to him the first day he had arrived: Shonto knew this to be true. The barbarian army was overwhelming. How to convince them to abandon Seh to save the Empire? That was the true task.

Shonto took a long breath and began. “Lords of Seh, we have often debated the extent of the barbarian threat…that debate has come to an end. Those who argued that the barbarians were not a threat believe that their lack of foresight has brought us to this situation, but they are wrong. If we had begun to prepare for this war the day I became your governor, we would still not be able to meet the army that rides toward our capital. One hundred thousand barbarian warriors.” He let the number hang in the still air of the Great Hall.

“Without the support of the Emperor and all of Wa, we cannot mount a force large enough to counter the barbarian threat. Rhojo-ma is a strong city, but force of numbers will tell even in a siege. One hundred thousand attackers and only fifteen thousand defenders. Despite the bravery of the men of Seh, it would not be a battle long enough to allow the rest of Wa time to raise an army. And that is what we must do…slow the barbarian advance long enough that an army can be raised.

“This Khan who has gathered the uncounted tribes of the desert—he
could easily have taken an unprepared Province of Seh in the autumn. But that would have given the Empire a winter to raise an army. Seh is not the prize the Khan desires. With an army of one hundred thousand he seeks the Throne of Wa.” Shonto looked out over the hall, trying to gauge the reactions of the northern lords, but he could not read their faces. It was too much for them to take in all at once—too much for them to lose at one time. “Yet I am certain that we can save the Province of Seh.” Shonto paused to let his words have their effect. “The Khan must reach the inner provinces before a force can be raised to stop him. If there is no army to fight in Seh, the Khan will not linger here but will push south. He has no choice. To move a force of that size the length of the Empire will take many weeks—and that army must be fed. We can slow his march south, there are ways. There are places that will allow the few to battle the many. If the barbarians can be defeated in Chiba Province or Dentou, Seh will bear the marks of the barbarians’ passing less than other parts of Wa.”

Yes, Shonto thought, he could see that he was being heard, by some at least. “I will take my forces, and those who will follow me, and set out south. All other craft in Seh will be put to the torch. It is my intention to slow the barbarian march south and to destroy everything that an army could use for sustenance. When the barbarians have gone far into Wa, they will be very hungry indeed.”

Shonto glanced over at Hojo who gave an almost imperceptible nod.

“I cannot command that you follow me. The course of honor will not be the same for every man. By sunrise I wish to know your choices.” Shonto rose and left the hall as the attending lords bowed.

*   *   *

The Kalam appeared after a quiet tap on the screen leading to Shuyun’s rooms. The tribesman dressed in Shonto livery was a sight Shuyun had trouble adjusting to, though not as much trouble as many others. It had been decided that the Kalam should be dressed like this for his own safety—the times dictated it. Emotions ran high among the men of Seh and it was not for them to make a distinction between a member of a hunting tribe and a follower of the Khan.

The tribesman executed a bow that was a credit to his blue livery. Shuyun did not need to be told the reason for the interruption—there was only one thing that could make the Kalam blush: Lady Nishima must be calling.

“Yes?” Shuyun said.

“Lady Nishima,” the tribesman said, mangling the “sh” even more than usual.

Since he had first seen Lady Nishima, the Kalam had believed that she was a great princess and he still seemed to think that the distinction “lady” was a foolish technicality.

It was very late for a visit from Lady Nishima, but no doubt few had slept in the hour since the Council of War.

“Please tell them to enter.”

A moment later Nishima appeared in the opening and stopped as though unsure of herself. Shuyun knew by the sounds of her footsteps that she came unaccompanied by servants or ladies-in-waiting and he was surprised.

In the light from the lamp Lady Nishima seemed so slight standing in the door. This evening she did not display the imperious air that so impressed Shuyun’s barbarian servant. Instead she seemed fragile, vulnerable. Large dark eyes looked out at him and Shuyun was not sure what it was they asked, for certainly there was a question there.

“No one sleeps, Shuyun-sum,” she said softly. No apology for the interruption and indeed, Shuyun felt it unnecessary.

He gestured to the cushions, “Please, Lady Nishima, like everyone else I have been sitting wondering….”

Nishima retained her customary grace, despite all, and lowered herself to the cushions as lightly as a dancer. She pulled her robes close at the throat and looked around the room. “You have no charcoal burner?”

Shuyun shrugged. “But I am not cold,” he said rising to his feet and disappearing from the room through another screen. Returning almost immediately, he brought a thick quilt and gave it to Lady Nishima. She smiled her thanks and wrapped herself in Shuyun’s offering.

They did not speak for some time. More than once Shuyun thought Nishima would break the silence, but something stopped her. It almost seemed that what was occurring in the Empire was too momentous—defying the power of words to describe. Shuyun felt that everyone was in such turmoil that they could not find a place to begin discussing what they thought and felt.

Nishima looked up at Shuyun almost shyly. “What is everyone else doing, I wonder?”

“This,” Shuyun said quietly. “Sitting in rooms alone or with others, saying very little.”

Nishima nodded, it seemed true somehow. Rearranging the cushions, Nishima curled up and propped herself on one elbow. A hanging lamp went out and began to smoke, but neither seemed to care. Reaching for the remaining lamp, Nishima said, “May I?” Shuyun nodded and she turned the lamp low. She lay down, folding her arm under her head, but her eyes remained open.

“If the Yamaku fall…” Nishima began, her voice small, almost childlike. “If they fall, someone must ascend the Throne.” But it was not a question, and the lady did not look to Shuyun for an answer. She stared at the flame of the single lamp for a long time, drawing Shuyun’s attention there. When Shuyun looked back at his guest, her eyes were closed. Not wishing to wake her, but feeling it was improper to be in the same room while she slept, Shuyun started to rise.

Nishima stirred then, coming half awake. Reaching out, she took his hand in both of hers and settled back, her forehead against his wrist. She slept.

I must leave, Shuyun told himself, but even so he did not move. Nishima’s soft hand in his own held him more strongly than any oath and he struggled with feelings he barely recognized.

Eventually Shuyun stretched out on his cushions, resigned to the fact that Nishima would not let go of his hand. He lay so that they were head to head and willed himself to sleep so that he would be rested for his duties in the morning.

A bell sounded the hour of the owl and Shuyun heard Nishima moving. Her hand slipped from his and he felt the air stir and the warmth of the quilt descended on him. Footsteps crossed to the screen but there was no sound of the screen opening. A few seconds passed and then the footsteps returned. Shuyun felt Nishima squirm in under the cover, pressing softly up against his back. Her arm encircled him and she searched until she found his hand, pressing it. Breath like a caress on his neck.

Shuyun could feel Lady Nishima struggling to control her breathing, but this passed. They lay close like this, neither of them sleeping for some time. Nishima finally gave in to sleep, exhausted from worry, no doubt, and Shuyun lay awake, feeling her soft breathing, the warmth of her hand in his and something more that he could not name.

Botahist training told Shuyun that Lady Nishima had reached out to draw him into the Illusion and he felt as though he did not resist as he should, felt
himself stepping into a cloud of desire and tenderness and emotion that no Botahist monk should know. The path upon which he should walk was becoming lost in the same cloud.

*   *   *

Rohku Tadamori, formerly Corporal Rohku, now Captain, looked down at the camp of the barbarian army in the first light of day. It was at least five rih off, but from his vantage atop a cliff he had a clear view and it chilled him to the center of his heart. He had been sent to assess the possibility of raiding the barbarian train—a large army on the march was an unwieldy thing and often easily harried.

Rohku handed the reins of his horse to one of his men and bent over the cliff edge to look at the corner they had seen from below. It was almost a chimney, stone shattered into uneven blocks. Sixty feet below there was a ledge with a good sized bush growing on it. From Rohku’s vantage it looked possible.

He turned away from the cliff and began to strip off his armor, handing each piece to a Shonto guard. He pulled warmer robes on then and a surcoat and then strapped his sword to his back. When he was done, he nodded to his guards and turned back to the cliff.

Two of Seh’s best trackers assisted him over the edge so he would not disturb the sod that clung to the cliff top. Reminding himself of Shuyun and Lord Komawara’s feat in Denji Gorge, he began to climb down, stilling his fear of the height. Concentrating on each step. Above him he heard the sound of the trackers hiding the signs of his party.

The Khan’s army would pass directly below him here. Only a few hundred feet would separate him from the barbarians. It would be the closest look they would have at this force.

Though much of the rock was loose, he reached his destination without mishap. The ledge was half sheltered from above by overhanging rock which formed a natural cave behind the bushes. He settled himself to wait. It would be at least two days until the entire barbarian force would pass—and then he would be in barbarian lands.

*   *   *

Daylight ceased to be a welcome sight in the province of Seh, for it meant the Khan’s army was on the move again, drawing closer to Rhojo-ma. Shonto’s senior staff were so aware of this that when the conversation paused they seemed to be listening for the sounds of an army drawing near. The lords of
Seh had made their decisions and Shonto met with his staff to decide what would be done now.

General Hojo held the tally scroll in his hands. “Ten thousand armed men, most on horse. Combined with our own men we will field thirteen thousand, five hundred men in all.”

Against one hundred thousand,
was left unsaid.

Shonto nodded to Hojo to continue.

“We do not yet know how possible it will be to attack the barbarian train, but it seems unlikely given the size of their force. Lord Toshaki Hirikawa and Lord Ranan have chosen to remain in Seh, though they have commanded their sons to join the governor’s forces. The lords who stay are determined to stay in Rhojo-ma, hoping to slow the barbarian advance by several days. If the Khan can be convinced that Rhojo-ma is well manned, he will be forced to waste time preparing a siege and making rafts—an activity barbarian raiders may not be masters of. Death in battle, Sire, it is the penance for their error.”

Shonto shook his head. “Huh.” He tapped his thumb on his armrest. “It is unfortunate that they put their pride before the safety of the Empire. A glorious death—their glorious deaths—is preferred to a retreat. A rearguard action that does nothing but provide others time to raise an army and perhaps perform the great deeds.” Shonto banged his hand on the armrest, but his face displayed no anger. “It cannot be helped. There is little time to mount an assault on the enemy train before it reaches Rhojo-ma. Our own assessment of the barbarian force?”

“Will take two more days, Sire, if all goes as planned,” Hojo said.

Shonto turned to Kamu. The old steward knelt as rigidly as a bronze figure, yet Shonto could detect a tremor in the man’s frame, a sign of the effort being expended. “Kamu-sum, are preparations for our departure complete?”