The
old lady lived in the castle complex of Tsurugajo near the port. It was her
duty to go down to the shore well before sunrise to give the fishermen her
predictions.
It was common
for the area to be cloaked in a blanket of snow this time of year and this
morning was no different. She woke and covered her aging joints in layers
before climbing slowly up the staircase of the west tower. From here she could
listen and feel the coming of the day's weather. She also received other
messages that were unrelated to weather but she kept those to herself. They
were meant for her. They were private.
She had been
excited for some days prior as she expected the arrival of a red headed girl.
This girl would want to speak with her, perhaps learn her skills. The thought
of a visitor, one she could talk to about the old ways lifted her spirits. In
fact, for a while there she had thought about picking up her swords and running
through some basic motions. But she was in her seventies and the bones were
more fragile than she hoped, the muscles hung loosely on her frame and she
limped badly from an old injury. Adventure seemed a thing of the past.
This morning
she was anxious. Arriving at the top of the tower staircase she took a moment
to catch her breath before opening the crude door. She could feel bad news
before she went outside, it seemed to be seeping through every small opening in
the door frame.
Being centred
and alert was important. The wind would deliver much to her particularly in the
first few moments atop the turret. She had to be ready and focus on what she
needed. It was very much, she imagined, like a mother who walks into a room
full of her children, all yelling at her, pulling at her kimono, demanding that
she listen to them and not their brother or sister. Except she had no children
of her own.
Once she
reached the centre of the small turret, the wind whirling around her head, she
closed her eyes to draw her concentration to the fore. Opening her eyes they
glowed red and she could see the messengers cloaked in smoke racing through the
air, some black menacing and wild, others white and joyous. She waited for a
moment till she saw it, and opened her arms inviting. Several messengers
trailing black smoke made vain attempts to crash into her but she was too quick
and she slapped them away with a carefully placed movement of her hand. They
held what she did not care to hear, the threat of war, the coming of the Mongols.
There would be time to know the details before the invasion. A moment later she
welcomed the messenger she was looking for, grey smoke passing through her
body.
She retreated
inside. The girl was not coming, she was fleeing the man who had attacked her.
She was stuck in a place and trying to call a stranger to help her. And the
worst news, Nakano was trying to find her, and he had picked up her
trail of jasmine on the wind.
She sat on
the first step trying to make sense of it all. This was bad indeed. She had
only been able to do so much to keep Nakano away from the girl. She had
convinced him in a dream that he needed to go South to pick up the fees he was
owed. That if he didn't war would come and he may never see the money. He must
strengthen his ties to the nobility of the South, too much time had passed
since his last visit. He had taken too many women, there had been too much
pleasure and not enough work. He would pay for this. The God of War would not
be happy.
There was
little she knew she could do to stop him once he was hunting the girl. His
passion once flamed would not dim till he found her.
But the girl
was not ready, not prepared. She was a warrior yes, and she had some natural
talents. Like all warrior women she was proud and strong, but she lacked
knowledge that would unlock her skills. That is where Tomoe would come in, she
would be the girl's teacher. The girl must not perish, there were too little of
her kind around anymore. So few were born with the gift.
So perhaps she would have to go to the girl. As old and frail as she was, she would
need to travel, and to teach the girl in
less time than she would probably need. The question was how was she going to
get to her before Nakano did? Perhaps she should break her silence and send the
girl a message to warn her somehow.
The daimyo
would never let her leave for an extended period because of the warnings she
provided the fishermen were important to the livelihood of all the villagers.
But it was not uncommon for her to go out on the boats from time to time. She
would use this as her way to escape. She would ask a local fisherman, a trusted
member of her family to take her to the island of Sadogashima where she would
have the girl meet her. It was further north for her, but according to the
messages she had received was west of the girls location, away from Nakano who
was coming from the east. No time to waste.
Getting up as
quickly as her tired body would let her, she returned to the turret. Standing
in the centre again she drew her concentration inward. Her eyes blazed red, and
a mist fell around her. She raised her hands to the sky and the mist turned to
rainclouds, the wind increasing in speed her garments billowing around her
legs. In a swift motion, her hands came together in a soundless clap and the
clouds shot off to the Northeast, racing like thoroughbreds through the sky.
Every messenger in its path cleared the way.
Returning
inside she did not pause to rest, but continued down the stairs. With each step
the list of questions grew. She wondered where the stranger fit into all this?
She wondered if she had the energy for the voyage? But most of all she wondered
if her message would reach the girl before Nakano did.
