L5r - scroll 02 - The Unicorn Read online

  breath of the shadow

  A thunderstorm had left the woods soggy. In the gray-black shadows of the nighttime forest, a steamy, oppressive heat rose. Moonlight sifted through the darkened canopy and made watery pools of light on the forest path.

  Tetsuko felt sweat trickle down the back of her neck as she pressed against a tree. The rough bark dug into her back. She concentrated on taking shallow breaths and letting them out silently so that whatever was on the path would not hear her.

  Slowly, she brought her hand to rest on her katana and felt the familiar smoothness of the hilt in her palm. The night was being kind to her; moon shadows danced through the branches and made the forest a chaos of movement. Even the sharpest-eyed shugenja

  1

  would have trouble seeing her.

  For the last five days, Tetsuko's Unicorn patrol had ridden the boundaries of their lands, searching for a band of bandits. They found vandalized homes, broken walls, and contaminated water supplies. While large towns could withstand such acts, small villages in outlying areas could be crippled by them. Ide Jikkyo, the patrol leader, was determined to find the outlaws and bring them to justice. Tetsuko, on her first patrol, was just as determined that she would not fail.

  Concentrate, she told herself. She took another breath and, pursing her lips, gently let it go. Her senses calmed and became sharper, and the sounds of the forest became clearer.

  Water dripped from the branches high above and made occasional plops in the darkness. Tetsuko could smell the scent of wet humus, damp leaves, and the clean air after rain. Forest creatures shuffled in the leaves. An insect rubbed its legs in a tentative buzz, found the sound to its liking, and began its nightly call. Here and there above her head, a tree branch creaked with tiny echoes. A bird took off from its perch, its wings beating the air with a soft thwutnp thwump that slowly faded into silence. Down the path, a twig snapped.

  Tetsuko gripped the hilt of her katana. Her fingers wrapped around the leather bindings, sticky from sweat. She peered into the inky darkness. She could see nothing. The hairs along the back of her neck stood on end.

  With no more thought, Tetsuko pushed off the tree and launched into the dark, hoping surprise would work for her. In midair she collided with a solid form. They both hit the ground with a thud.

  "Oof!" the form said as it fell.

  Tetsuko sprang up, raising her katana in a battle stance, lust as she was about stab the slender blade through the lorm, it rolled away from her and jumped to its feet.

  "Don't you think you should know who you're going to kill?" a familiar voice asked in the dark.

  "By Shinjo!" Tetsuko yelped as Jikkyo chuckled. "You .11 most got a katana in the belly!"

  "Calm down," Jikkyo said. "I thought you knew it was me. I knew it was you fifty yards ago."

  Tetsuko straightened up, katana still at the ready. The moon had emerged from the clouds, and she could make out t lie large, dark outline of the patrol leader against the pale light. Although her heart was still pounding from the fright, her breathing had slowed enough to allow her a grunt of disbelief. "How could you have possibly known it was me, in this dark?" she asked. "I could have been one of the thieves, following you."

  "I doubt any of the thieves washes his hair with lavender," Jikkyo calmly replied.

  Tetsuko's one indulgence on patrol was an occasional bath, scented with lavender from her grandfather's garden. Most people did not have the nose to catch the faint scent, especially hidden among the other smells of sweat, leather, horse, and wood smoke that all the patrol members carried on them. Jikkyo, however, was not like most people.

  Jikkyo sidled up to her and put his hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry about this," he said kindly. "And certainly don't give up your baths because of it! I'd rather have you smelling like day-old lavender than Horse Dung Hishi."

  Tetsuko managed a grim smile at the joke. Ide Hishi, one of the patrol members, was known for his pungent odor no matter how much he bathed. Which, she had to admit, was not much.

  "Perhaps I should make Hishi a lavender bag for his bath," Tetsuko said, sheathing her katana. "Then you would not be able to tell me from him on a darkened pathway"

  "Ha!" Jikkyo said with a snort. "The day I can't tell a well-scrubbed Battle Maiden from a smelly horse trainer is the day I cut off my nose."

  Tetsuko laughed out loud, and she could feel the tension between her shoulders relax.

  Jikkyo turned serious, and he said, "I saw no sign of the thieves down this path. Did you find anything?"

  "No," she replied. "But they cannot have traveled far."

  Jikkyo was silent. Moments passed.

  Tetsuko stood at casual attention, waiting for her leader's reply. Years of training had made this stance as natural to her as breathing or riding; legs slightly apart and knees bent, balancing her weight evenly in case of a surprise attack. Her right hand rested lightly on the hilt of her katana. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly, shifting her weight from one foot to the other.

  Tinged with humor, Jikkyo's voice came from the darkness, "Am I taking too long for you? Your legendary impatience is showing."

  Tetsuko ignored the jibe. She wasn't surprised her leader had heard her movements. Will I ever be experienced enough to hear such sounds? she thought to herself with a sigh. Out loud she said, "I await your orders as always, Jikkyo-san."

  "Even in this darkness a band of desperate thieves would be hard to miss," Jikkyo said finally. "Perhaps Fumi and Kin will have something to report." His mind made up, Jikkyo turned and started down the path, and Tetsuko followed.

  As they walked, Tetsuko glanced from one side to the other, her hand on the hilt of her katana. The humid stillness of the forest pressed down on her, making it hard to breathe. Even the sounds of the forest, so clear before, were muffled, as if a blanket of despair had descended on the wood. A sliver of fear ran up Tetsuko's spine.

  With a troubled frown, Jikkyo looked back at her. She smiled at him, and his face relaxed. He turned and continued on. Tetsuko's smile faded once his back was turned.

  Her mentor and leader, Jikkyo had specifically asked for Tetsuko to be assigned to this patrol. It was a brave and honorable thing for him to do, considering the disgrace she had brought on herself by leaving the Battle Maiden school before her training was complete. Jikkyo had faith in her, and she was determined not to let him down. She would never betray weakness by voicing fear.

  The trees began to thin. Tetsuko and Jikkyo emerged from the forest. The moon had come out in full force, and its white glow illuminated the path. Tetsuko caught a savory whiff of stewing meat and spices, and her stomach rumbled again. It was a relief to be finished with foot patrol duty for the night, and she was looking forward to a hot meal—the first one they had allowed themselves all week.

  Jikkyo and Tetsuko strode into camp. "Where are Fumi and Kin?" Tetsuko asked, realizing the two were not at the fire.

  "Not back yet," Moto Yuko replied as he squatted by the fire, stirring the large stew pot that hung over the flames. "They left after you. They had better be quick, though. We're hungry enough to eat this entire pot!"

  Soon everyone was around the fire, eating hungrily. The rabbit stew was thick and hearty, exactly the right meal for a group of cold, wet, soldiers. For a long time there was no sound except an occasional slurp as the members of the patrol dug into the meal.

  Tetsuko gazed around the camp as she sipped the thick broth from her delicately carved wooden spoon. Hishi had taken most of their soggy belongings out of their packs and laid them near the fire to dry. Garments, sleeping mats, bags, and sacks lay strewn around the ground. The horses were tied to nearby trees, happily grazing on the thick green
grass of the clearing.

  Jikkyo looked up from his bowl. "Well done!" he said to Moto Yuko, raising his wooden spoon in salute.

  Yuko grinned, his long black hair tied back with a fragment of silk cloth. He reached into the pot and stirred the contents. Not only was Moto Yuko an expert hunter, he was also a good cook. Everyone in the patrol looked forward to the nights when it was his turn at the fire.

  Beside him sat Shinjo Rinako. She was a seasoned cavalry veteran who had fought in the Unicorn armies during the Scorpion Clan Coup, just two years before. Rinako wore the scars of many battles beneath the silk of her travel-stained kimono, but she rarely spoke of them. She rarely spoke at all, if the truth be told. Tetsuko knew little of her, other than that she was a master bowman and that she had survived the deadly plague that was sweeping Rokugan.

  Ide Hishi, the horse master, sat a distance from the fire. Even there, Tetsuko could smell his ever-present scent of horse sweat, leather, and dung. His bald head, bent over his wooden bowl of stew, shone brightly in the firelight. He was a pleasant man, fiercely devoted to the Unicorn mounts. He had spent his life in the stables, and both his sisters had been respected Battle Maidens in their day. Although he was of little use as a fighter, his skill with animals was indispensable to the Unicorn units that patrolled the borderlands. Tetsuko liked him.

  Across from her sat Jikkyo. He was a few years older than she, about twenty-eight or so. He proudly wore his long, shiny black hair tied loosely behind his back. He had a thin, well-kept mustache and goatee, which made him look older than his years. Even now, after days of hard riding and soaking rain, his kimono looked as fresh as it had when he had first removed it from his pack.

  At this moment he sat with legs stretched toward the fire and back propped against a large rock. Sensing Tetsuko's eyes on him, he looked up from his stew and smiled at her.

  "It's a relief not to be rained on, for once," she quipped. "I was beginning to wonder if I'd ever be dry again."

  "For myself, I'll be glad when we catch these bandits and return to civilization," Jikkyo said.

  "These thieves aren't smarter than us," Rinako said. "But luck is certainly with them. We would've caught up to them by now if we had found their abandoned camp sooner."

  Tetsuko's cheeks flamed at Rinako's remark. The day before, when it was Tetsuko's turn to lead the patrol, they had walked right past the remains of their camp. It was not until a second pass through the area that they had discovered it. By then, the rain was coming down in full force, and any clues as to which way the thieves had gone had been washed away.

  Tetsuko stood up, hands clenched at her sides. Rinako glared at her, contempt clear on her face. Before either of them had time to speak, Jikkyo jumped to his feet and said, "That's enough. This is not the time to let tempers overcome judgment." Trembling with anger and embarrassment, Tetsuko slowly sat down.

  "As for you, Rinako," Jikkyo said, turning to the older woman, "your frustration is certainly understood. But we must work as a unit to complete our task. These criminals are armed and deadly."

  He looked from one woman to the other. "Shinjo Yokatsu himself assigned us to guard the southern borders and all the Unicorn villages between here and the City Between the Rivers. We have no clear idea how many roving bands there are. We are in constant danger. Protecting the people who live here is our duty. Finding these bandits and bringing them to justice is our goal."

  There was silence. Then Rinako rose, turned on her heel, and disappeared into the darkness. That seemed to be a cue for everyone to start moving. Hishi scrambled up and trotted off in the direction of the horses. Yuko quietly gathered the dinner bowls and made his way to the stream nearby. Jikkyo settled back, picked up his spoon, and dipped it into his now-cold stew.

  Tetsuko stared into the bright, dancing flames and lost herself in thought. A drop of water from the leaves above fell into the fire, making it sizzle and pop. Sparks swirled in the warm draft and scattered like fireflies into the dark night sky.

  "It was more than two hundred years ago when our ancestors returned from exploring the world," Jikkyo said aloud.

  Tetsuko looked up from the fire. He had lifted his spoon, filled with meat and broth, and now gazed at it lovingly. He continued, "No matter how long we are here, or how much we become like the rest of Rokugan, I hope that we never lose our taste for red meat." With that he popped the spoon in his mouth, closed his eyes, and chewed slowly, a look of ecstasy spreading across his face.

  Tetsuko smiled wanly. "Jikkyo-sama," she started, "I..."

  "No," Jikkyo said, quickly swallowing. "It is done."

  "But she is right. It was my fault. If I had been more alert, we might already be on our way home," Tetsuko said.

  "Yes, you were at fault for not finding the camp," Jikkyo replied. "But now you have learned. You will never forget this mistake. Not forgetting will make you more skilled. Do not speak of it again."

  Tetsuko sighed. It had been cold, it had been wet, the day had been long, her eyes had been weary.... Excuse after excuse tumbled through her head, but none made her feel better. Her blunder had been severe, and another mistake like that could cost lives. Jikkyo was right. She learned.

  Suddenly the tension and fear of the day weighed her down, and her eyelids began to droop. Bidding Jikkyo good night, Tetsuko pulled a damp sleeping mat from the pile of supplies and spread it out at the base of a nearby tree. She stretched out and closed her eyes. In the darkness, she heard the soft mummer of Hishi's voice as he spoke to the horses. Somewhere Yuko sang to himself as he washed the dinner dishes. Tetsuko smiled as she caught snatches of the song, a silly ditty sung to children to make them laugh. Slowly, her exhausted mind fogged over with sleep.

  The sound of screaming startled her awake.

  Tetsuko's eyes flew open, and she sat up, heart pounding. She looked wildly about her. The fire had gone down and was now only a glowing red spot against the darkness. Thousands of stars flickered and winked in the sky. It was the cold hour before dawn. There was no wind. Nothing moved.

  "It must have been a dream," Tetsuko said to herself, breathing deeply to quiet the hammer in her chest.

  She heard it again: a long, high-pitched scream that started loud and faded into a desperate wail.

  Tetsuko jumped up and grabbed her katana. Jikkyo was only a few steps away, already awake.

  "I heard a scream," Tetsuko said, "but I don't know where it came from. Did you hear it?"

  "Yes," he replied in a low voice as Rinako appeared, a worried expression on her face.

  "Where's Yuko?" she asked. Yuko, who was supposed to be on watch, was nowhere to be seen. "Where are Fumi and Kin?"

  Tetsuko felt a stab of fear in her belly. They should have returned hours ago. Jikkyo seemed to read her thoughts. He dashed toward the horses and returned almost immediately. "Hishi is asleep near the horses," Jikkyo said, "but Fumi and Kin are not here."

  The black trunks of the trees seemed to close in around her. The glow of the dying fire reflected off the trees, streaking them with blood-red light. A chill wind blew through the clearing, making Tetsuko shiver. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a dark shape move through the trees, just beyond the camp.

  "Jikkyo, look," Tetsuko whispered, but he had seen.

  The form paused and then disappeared among the shadows.

  Jikkyo pulled his katana from its sheath and hissed, "Tetsuko, guard the camp. Rinako, follow me!"

  The two Unicorn samurai raced toward the form, leaving Tetsuko alone in the dying firelight.

  The forest was dim and hushed. Tetsuko paced back and forth like a caged lion, her eyes scanning the endless darkness beyond the trembling light of their fire. A cold wind streaked through the clearing, followed by a low moan that sent a chill deep into Tetsuko's bones.

  "Hishi," she whispered. She turned and ran to where the horses were tethered. Her mount, Cloud Dancer, neighed softly in greeting. The other two horses grazed quietly by the elegant beast's side. Nearby,
the horse trainer was huddled beneath his heavy woolen saddle blankets.

  Tetsuko pushed his shoulder and said "Hishi, you must awake. There is trouble." Instead of rousing, he rolled lazily onto his back. The blanket fell open and his arms flopped to his sides.

  His neck had been slit from ear to ear so deeply that his head had nearly been severed. Blood covered him. His eyes were closed as in sleep, and he had a serene expression on his face.

  Tetsuko jumped back and clapped her hand over her mouth. "By Shinjo!" she whispered. She looked wildly around in the dark, but there was nothing there except the shadows and the wind. She was alone.

  The wind filled the wood with its terrible moan, and fear washed over the young Battle Maiden.

  The last thing she wanted to do was to stay here, with death and fear all around her. Even so, Jikkyo had commanded her to guard the camp. But what if he and Rinako were in trouble? Tetsuko wavered between terror, duty, and loyalty, and then decided. She threw a saddle on Cloud Dancer's back and untied the other two horses, whispering soothing words to them. Then she quickly mounted and turned Cloud Dancer in the direction Jikkyo had gone. The other horses followed obediently behind as she galloped into the woods.

  The forest had lost all its earlier friendliness. In its place was something angry and dark, darker than the shadows that had played with her mind on the path earlier. Dead branches clawed Tetsuko's face as Cloud Dancer crashed through the underbrush. Her lungs burned, and her eyes watered, but she rode on. Her armor began to rub bloody patches against her neck where her undergarment had shifted.

  Tetsuko followed a trail of broken branches and trampled undergrowth. The path was barely visible in the feeble moonlight. Time ceased to mean anything as Cloud Dancer struggled through the forest. Tetsuko had no idea how long she had been in the forest or how far she had traveled when, deep in the shadows of the trees, so far ahead of her that she could barely make it out, Tetsuko saw a red glow. Firelight.

  She pulled Cloud Dancer to a halt and dismounted. The horse's sides heaved, and her coat was foamy from exertion, but she nuzzled Tetsuko's neck in understanding.