Fushigi Yuugi Fan Fiction ❯ Fushigi Yuugi: Daydream's Embrace ❯ Episode 15: Night in the Stronghold ( Chapter 15 )

Episode 15
Night in the Stronghold
By: Nyan Nyan and Mrs. Tasuki

"Whoo..." Joan sighed with relief. "I was so worried."

"Wait, if we're calling this dangerous..." Diana started to point out, "It gets even worse later on!"

"I don't think this is such a great idea anymore," Joan said. "It was fun at first, but now it's just too dodgy."

"They should really come home," Diana said worriedly. Though she wasn't related by blood to any of the other three, Diana viewed Joan, Christina, and Katherine as her own sisters; they returned the sentiment with equal feelings. Out of the corner of her eye, Diana saw more words appearing on the pages of the Universe of the Four Gods. She looked down at the book in Joan's lap, reading the words as soon as they appeared. Joan looked over her shoulder at Diana, who was still reading the story aloud as it wrote itself.

"The bandits deeply apologized to the Lady Katherine and Lady Christina. The Priestesses graciously forgave them," Diana murmured quietly, reading the passage more to herself than to Joan.

*

"Genrou, look. We're really sorry," one of the bandits guiltily confessed.

"Forget it!" Genrou said with a wave of his hand, as if simply brushing away what had happened.

"But Genrou..." yet another bandit interrupted.

"If yer gonna thank anyone, it oughta be the Priestesses of Suzaku here!" he pointed out as he gently knocked his knuckles against Christina's head. She looked up questioningly. "They're the reason I'm leader now," he continued.

"He's got a point," the men muttered.

"Thanks, yer ladyships," another brigand said.

"Before you came along, we were jest ignorin' th' old boss's orders."

"No prob," Christina modestly said.

"Yeah, really," Katherine humbly, shrugging her shoulders added, "It was nothing."

"So what can we do t' thank you?" Kouji asked the girls.

"It'd be a big help if we could crash here tonight," Christina said as she looked outside at the scenery, now blanketed in darkness. Katherine nodded in agreement. Nuriko and Hotohori looked at each other questioningly, not sure whether or not to trust the bandits again. In turn, the rest of the bandits looked at each other, also skeptically, wondering if Genrou and Kouji would actually allow the strange group to stay the night.

"It'd be no problem a'tall. 'S the leas' we can do for ya," Genrou answered, politely but uneasily, not knowing what kind of mischief the two priestesses might cause.

*

Tamahome and Miaka were eating dinner in Tamahome's room, a practice which had become part of their everyday routine. They had gotten to know each other quite well in the short amount of time they had known one another. Tamahome stared into space, his mind noticeably filling with worry he could no longer ignore.

"Miaka...can I ask you something?" he said awkwardly while fiddling with his chopsticks.

"Sure," Miaka replied, her mouth full with food. Her large eyes looked innocently up at him, twinkling in the setting sun.

"Um...I was just wondering...why didn't you come with me when you had the chance?" he asked uneasily, referring to the crisis they had faced in the Seiryuu shrine.

He watched Miaka's face go blank with a guilty twinge appearing in her eyes. She swallowed the food she was chewing in one big gulp as she stared at him, motionless, for a couple seconds. "Um...I'm sorry...I should be going," Miaka stammered, suspiciously at a loss of words. She quickly stood up and left the room, leaving Tamahome dumbfounded.

*

Katherine and Christina opted that they would spend their time on something productive. Christina was sprawled on one end of the bed they were sharing, wearing a white tank top and a pair of tiny blue boxers. Katherine was sitting on the other side of the bed, wearing a navy blue spaghetti strap tank and matching long pants with moons and stars scattered all over them.

"Hey, I was thinking-" Katherine started.

"Good for you," Christina interrupted condescendingly.

"Shut up," Katherine snapped. "Anyway, what are we gonna do about Amiboshi and Mitsukake?"

"I dunno," Christina replied, stretching her arms.

"Well, we should figure something out," Katherine pointed out, utterly vexed. She found it so hard to get Christina to focus on anything for more than a few minutes; Christina had the shortest attention span of anyone Katherine knew.

"I hate you," Christina complained, cursing Katherine's persistence to stay on-topic.

"That's good to know," Katherine answered sarcastically. "But we still need to figure something out."

"Stop being so pushy!" Christina complained.

"Well, someone has to be," Katherine replied, knowing that this banter was leading into one of the joke fights they so commonly had.

"Are you implying something?" Christina questioned, barely paying attention. She was more interested in staring at the ceiling than in Katherine's ramblings.

"Yes, I am."

"Good, just wanted to make sure," Christina replied calmly.

"Okey dokey then..." Katherine slowly said, not knowing how to respond to her friend's placid comment. "But we really need to figure out what the hell we are doing," she repeated as Christina sighed heavily.

"Fine...first things first. What are we gonna do about Mitsukake?"

"Well, what about Tasuki?" Katherine questioned.

"What do you mean?" Christina asked confusedly.

"Well, are we gonna tell him we know he's Tasuki, or what?"

"I think we should let him choose for himself. Or whatever..." Christina mumbled, becoming harder to hear with each word. Katherine drummed her fingers on the bed sheets.

"But what if he hates you and never wants to see your ugly face again?" Katherine joked. Christina gasped, completely taken aback.

"You better run away before I step on you, you midget!" she shouted angrily, jumping to her feet. Katherine's eyes went wide and her jaw dropped, she was very touchy about her height. It also didn't help very much that Christina was merely two inches taller.

"YOU'RE DEAD!" she yelled. Christina ran out into the hall, laughing at Katherine's melodramatic reaction. She turned around to see Katherine right at her heels.

"I'm gonna get you!" Katherine laughed, trying to sound dangerous.

Christina turned back around and sped up, sprinting down the hall as Katherine followed close behind. She ran through a series of corridors, twisting and turning down as many as she could. After a few minutes, she finally slowed down, no longer seeing Katherine trailing behind her. She collapsed against a wall, taking deep, ragged breaths. Deciding that it would be hilarious if she scared Katherine, Christina hid right at the edge of a corner wall, visible to only those who had already made the turn.

Christina willed herself not to breathe loudly, even though she was still out of breath. She covered her mouth as she spotted a shadow advancing towards her. The shadow turned the corner, and Christina jumped out and yelled, "AHHHHHHHHHHH!" at the top of lungs.

"SHIT!" Kouji shouted as he stumbled back in surprise.

Christina started laughing loudly at the shocked look on the bandit's face. "Sorry, Kouji! I thought you were Katherine!"

"What're ya doin' down here?" Kouji asked irritably, once he had gotten over the fright of the fifteen year-old girl had given him. "Yer room's all the way down there!" he exclaimed, pointing down the series of halls.

*

Katherine felt the white tiles passing under her feet. Off in the distance she saw Christina talking to Kouji; this inspired her to run faster. "You are such toast!" she shouted. Christina gave one look at Katherine, eyes wide. Kouji turned in time to see Katherine darting towards Christina and himself.

"FUCK!" Christina yelled as she turned on her heel and ran as fast as she could, still tailed by Katherine, laughing as the pair dashed down the hall. Kouji shook his head. Granted, they were priestesses from another world, and an entirely different culture, but they were simply strange nonetheless.

Katherine continued to chase Christina, sprinting at full speed. They turned countless corners, probably retracing their steps dozens of times. Christina snuck a glance behind her to see how far Katherine was behind her. She turned left down a corridor and focused on the space in front of her. She tried to skid to a stop when she spotted someone right in front of her, but didn't stop fast enough.

Genrou was walking down one of Mt. Leikaku's many passageways, trying to find Kouji. He was just about to turn a corner when a small, clearly distracted, figure came hurtling towards him. The girl turned her head back around, spotting him all too late, and unsuccessfully tried to stop.

He quickly grabbed her shoulders, preventing her from knocking them both to the floor. Christina gasped in surprise and he looked down at her, as if demanding an explanation.

"Ummm...hi?"

"What're you doin' down here?" he asked, looking her over. Her clothes were nothing less than bizarre, not to mention barely there.

"Ummm..." Christina said again as she tried to think of a good excuse. "I was just...uhhh..."

"Hey, Chris-" Katherine shouted as she rounded the corner. Genrou and Christina turned their heads at the noise. Genrou saw Katherine and immediately snapped his hands off of Christina's shoulders and back to his sides, as if not wanting anyone to know he even touched girls.

Katherine, seeing Christina and Genrou together and thinking they had been having 'a moment' that she had just interrupted, promptly turned around and ran back down the hall, afraid that Christina might run after and pummel her.

Christina, seeing Katherine leave, looked back up at Genrou. "Well, that's my cue! Exit, stage left!" she yelled as she chased after Katherine. After a minute or so, Christina had caught up with her friend.

"Don't kill me," Katherine pleaded.

"Huh?" Christina questioned.

"What are you two doing down here?!" a voice scolded.

"Not again..." Christina sighed heavily.

Christina and Katherine turned around and saw Nuriko standing in the middle of the hall, his right hand resting on his hip.

"Hey there, Nuriko," Christina greeted, trying to act innocent. Katherine took one look at the angry look on Nuriko's face and knew that fun-time was over.

"Will you two get back in your room?" Nuriko asked, advancing on them. "I can trust Koji and Genrou, but not the rest of the thugs around here," Nuriko told them, lowering his voice until it was barely above a whisper. "What do you think Hotohori would do if he found you talking to one of the bandits down there?" he asked them, trying to prove his point to the priestesses how their fun could easily have turned into an ugly fight.

"Well, first he would pull out his sword and threaten to decapitate the bandit with it, thinking that he was, like, trying to molest us or something," Katherine explained with full confidence. Nuriko just bit his bottom lip, trying to hold back his laughter. Katherine was right.

"Then he would say, 'I demand an explanation!' Christina continued, mocking his deep voice. "And he would go into slice-and-dice mode."

"'Cuz he comes to irrational conclusions about people like that," Katherine stated.

"I come to irrational conclusions about people?" Hotohori interrupted, putting emphasis on the word 'I', drawing attention to the equally mistaken conclusion they were making about him. He was leaning on the door frame with his arms crossed, one eyebrow raised.

Christina and Katherine suddenly jumped, shocked to hear his voice.

"How long has he been behind us?" Katherine whispered, becoming tense.

"How the hell should I know?" Christina hissed back.

They both turned around with wide, guilty smiles on their face. "Hi!" they chimed cheerfully in unison. Hotohori nodded, acknowledging their greeting.

"How are you feeling this lovely night?" Katherine asked innocently as Christina side-stepped behind Nuriko, using him for a shield.

"Just go back to your room, okay?" Nuriko asked them, saving Hotohori from answering such a random question.

Katherine agreed quickly. Nuriko looked over at Christina and raised his eyebrows. He wasn't going to budge until he heard an 'Okay' from Christina.

"Loud and clear," Christina stated as she jokingly saluted Nuriko. Nuriko gave Christina a look that said 'You're weird,' and the four of them started to walk down the hall. After passing a few doors, Nuriko and Hotohori brought them right outside the door to their room.

"If you need Hotohori or me, we're in the room right over there," he told them as he pointed to the room behind them that Hotohori had just entered.

"Okay," Katherine acknowledged.

"G'night, Nuriko," Christina said as she and Katherine walked into their room. "'Nite Hotohori!"

"Sweet dreams!" Katherine called across the hall as Nuriko opened the door to his own room.

"Will you two do me a favor, shut up, and get some sleep?" Nuriko implored.

"You got it," they answered as they closed the door to their room.

*

The next morning, the group went to ask the bandits if anyone knew who Tasuki was. Katherine and Christina wouldn't have bothered, but they didn't want Nuriko or Hotohori to get suspicious about why they suddenly gave up the search for the fifth sei, and so made the inquiry for form's sake.

"Before we leave, is there anyone here called Tasuki?" Katherine asked.

"Yeah, or someone who sometimes has a symbol appear on his body?" Christina added.

The many bandits whispered and murmured in question.

"Tasuki?"

"Who's that?"

"I never heard of him..."

"Eiken, do you know him?"

"I-I really don't know who he is," Eiken stammered.

"I know him."

Genrou suddenly spoke, and all eyes turned to focus curiously on the flame- haired bandit leader. "But don't get too excited. That guy Tasuki...he's th' old boss. In other words, he's already dead."

Nuriko and Hotohori's faces fell as Katherine and Christina did their best to look worried.

"Sorry to say this, but you can't bring the dead back to life," Genrou continued apologetically.

"Oh yeah, Genrou," Kouji remembered. "Do you want to visit the boss's grave? You probably miss him too..."

*

Genrou walked towards the lone coffin in the center of the tomb. He sadly placed his hand on the coffin. "Boss..." he muttered forlornly. Christina and Katherine looked at all of the bandits' gloomy faces, sensing how much they missed their old leader.

"Hotohori, what will we do? Without Tasuki..." Nuriko whispered to the emperor.

"Yes, but you can't resurrect the dead," Hotohori quietly replied. Suddenly, a bandit came up next to Genrou and cleared his throat, as if asking permission to speak.

"Um, boss? You see, I've heard this rumor..."

"What?" Genrou asked, irritable at the bandit for interrupting his memories of the old boss.

"In Choko, to the north...there's supposed to be someone who CAN bring the dead back to life."

"Are you serious?!" Nuriko asked loudly, grabbing the man's collar.

"Well, as serious as y' can be for a rumor."

Katherine and Christina looked at each other, and then Katherine nodded, signaling Christina that she ought to make the next move, which, of course, they had expected.

"Then we'll go there," Christina stated in such a voice that Hotohori and Nuriko knew that she would not reconsider the idea.

*

The bandits gave four horses to the group, wondering why the girls had requested two extra steeds. The outlaws could only watch in disbelief as Christina and Katherine mounted their own horses. Many of the men muttered to each other, still not believing that girls would dare ride horses by themselves, let alone girls from another world, who were now straddling the saddles as skillfully and nonchalantly as any man. The priestesses and two seishi said their final goodbyes from atop their horses.

"Byeness!" Christina called as she waved her hand through the air.

"See ya later!" Katherine called as the group galloped off towards the town of Choko.

"There they go," Genrou said, watching their retreating backs.

"Those girls are really weird. Amusin'...but weird," Koji commented.

"We're sure actin' strange because of 'em. You'd think we'd all forgotten how t' act like bandits," Genrou chuckled. The rest of the men walked back into the hideout, still talking about the exotic young women who rode horses as well as men and ran about as recklessly as children.

"Ferget it," Kouji shrugged. "I'm just relieved tha' yer the boss now, Genrou."

Kouji turned and started to follow the rest of the crowd into the stronghold. He turned back around when he realized Genrou wasn't following after him, but still watching as the group of horsemen and women journeyed further and further away.

"The Priestesses of Suzaku, huh?" Kouji thought out loud. "You really wanted t' go with 'em, didn't ya?"

"Don't be stupid," Genrou reassured his friend. "You think I'd turn my back on the boss's wishes and on all you guys? Besides, I hate wimmen, remember?"

"Then, you're sure it's better this way?" Kouji asked as they started walking back inside. Genrou paused one last time, and stole a glance over his shoulder.

"Still," Kouji added, "You gotta admit, they sure were easy on th' eyes!"

Genrou turned around and continued walking inside, rolling his eyes and sighing at Kouji's unfathomable interest in girls.

*

Katherine reached down into one of her saddlebags, searching for her water canteen. She dug frantically through the bag while still trying to control her horse with one hand. Finally, she found it and brought it out, but once it was open and she tried drinking some, she noticed that it was empty.

Parched, Katherine asked, "Hey, do you guys happen to have any water?"

"Nope, sorry," Nuriko replied, shrugging his shoulders. "We all ran out of water a while ago, but there's a pond somewhere by here."

"Um...we passed that pond a bit back," Christina pointed out, remembering seeing it on their way to Choko.

"Okay, then nevermind," Nuriko said. He bit his bottom lip, not knowing what to do. They had no idea how long it would take to get to Choko, and they needed water immediately. "One of us should go back and fill up the canteens," he advised.

"I will," Hotohori volunteered, turning his horse around.

"Wait, I'll go with you," Katherine said, knowing that it wouldn't be a smart idea for anyone to be separated from the group. "We'll catch up with you guys later!" she called back as they galloped away.

"We should probably take a break so they can catch up," Christina advised.

Nuriko and Christina watched as Katherine and Hotohori rode back towards the stream they had previously visited. They dismounted off of their horses and tied them to a tree, glad to take a rest, no matter how short.

They stretched their legs and sat down on a patch of grass. Christina stared up at the blue sky and allowed her mind to wander. She looked at the puffy white clouds that floated high above the tops of the trees, out of reach of the emerald leaves. Before she knew it, she imagined Genrou's face in front of her. She sighed at the very thought of him. He was so damn good- looking. She rolled her eyes at herself as she remembered her loss of words the night before.

Christina hated how she always acted so differently around guys she was interested in. She had absolutely no problems with diction around Nuriko or Tamahome, but put her in front of Genrou for a minute and she can't even form sentences. Pathetic. "God, I must have seemed like an idiot," she thought to herself, silently laughing.

"And what are YOU thinking about?" Nuriko interrupted, almost making Christina jump at the sudden surprise.

"Nothing..."

"Uh huh..." Nuriko said knowingly, winking.

"And what do you mean by 'uh huh'?"

"What do you think I mean?" Nuriko teased.

"You are SO mean to me," Christina joked, still looking at the light blue sky.

"Am not," he argued.

"Are too."

"Am-" Nuriko started, but stopped short. Christina turned her head towards Nuriko, wondering what was wrong. Nuriko stared into the woods behind them, his head cocked, listening to every sound.

Christina stared into the forest also. Her head snapping around at any sound she heard. A rustle of leaves, a cracking twig.

Suddenly, a mass of men jumped out from the woods. Nuriko and Christina scrambled up and scurried to mount their horses, but found themselves completely surrounded by thugs. Over a dozen thieves attacked Nuriko and Christina. They both fought back valiantly, even though the odds were utterly against them.

*

Hotohori and Katherine dismounted their horses and approached the tranquil pond. Katherine took out the four canteens and kneeled down by the water. She took off the top of one and put it in the water, waiting for the water to flow into it. Hotohori walked behind her and watched her for a moment. She pushed her tawny hair over her left shoulder, hoping not to get it wet.

Katherine suddenly felt warm arms around her waist. She was slightly startled from the spontaneous embrace, causing her to let go of the canteen in the pond, but once she felt silky brown hair caress her cheek, she relaxed. She felt Hotohori's fingers run through her wavy hair. She turned her head to look into his golden brown eyes. He tilted her chin up with his hand and moved his lips closer to hers. Katherine closed her eyes, forgetting about the Hotohori she once knew. The one she had seen on her television so many times, the one that risked everything for Miaka. She let all her preconceived assumptions about the emperor leave her memory, and she embraced this new one with all her heart.

*

A dozen men jumped at Nuriko, trying to knock him unconscious. Nuriko beat men aside like they weighed nothing. Christina, on the other hand, tried to beat up as many muggers as she could. They soon outnumbered her, and one particularly muscular thug easily picked her up and ran off into the forest with her over his shoulder. As he ran through the brush, Christina banged her fists on his back and tried to kick his face. With one thump on her head, the thug knocked her unconscious. Her body became suddenly limp, bouncing up and down as he ran like a rag doll.

The dozen men attacking Nuriko decided to give up on the sei; he was too hard to beat and they already had one hostage anyway. The men quickly retreated into the woods. Nuriko looked around the clearing, finally able to see with the absence of the crowd of bandits. Christina was nowhere in sight.

"Christina!" he called. Nuriko looked into the forest where the crooks had left. He dashed off into the darkness of the wood.

*

Tamahome sat on the side of his bed with his face in his hands, wondering what to do about Miaka. He didn't want to lose her. Miaka always had a smile on her face; she was beginning to grow on him, but he couldn't admit, knowing that he would be leaving her soon and confessing his attachment would mean more pain for the both of them in the long run.

He began to curse himself for saying something as stupid as to her. He stood up, deciding that maybe if he found her, he could apologize for being so mistrustful.

As he walked towards the door it slowly opened to reveal Miaka standing there uneasily. "Oh...hey, I was just about to go out and find you," Tamahome said nervously, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Oh, okay..." Miaka replied while looking intently at her feet. "Well, I have to tell you something..." she continued, walking over to the bed and sitting on it.

"Oh, well I just wanted to ap-" Tamahome started, but was cut short.

"I have to become the Priestess of Seiryuu," Miaka quickly said, before Tamahome finished his sentence. Tamahome's blue eyes widened in shock, not knowing how to respond. "I have no choice..." she muttered under her breath, tears already starting to form in her eyes.

"But...why?" Tamahome asked, sitting next to her on the bed, completely flabbergasted.

"When I first came to this world, I was attacked," Miaka started, looking at the floor and nervously playing with her hands. She paused for a second as she felt the tears run down her cheeks. "I was in the downtown section of the capital alone and a couple men came up and..." she continued, not wanting to finish her sentence.

"When I woke up Nakago was there, he took care of the men who had hurt me, and nursed me back to health. Once I was healthy, I didn't want to admit I was...that I was raped. I even thought of suicide, but that was too drastic, and I could never go through with it. Anyways, I owe Nakago my life; I have to repay him somehow, so..." she trailed off as she looked up at Tamahome. She shrugged her shoulders with a slight smile on her face, even though her eyes were red and puffy from crying. "I just thought you deserved some type of explanation," she said, standing up.

Tamahome looked down at his hand, biting his bottom lip. He felt so ashamed of himself for mistrusting her reasoning. He heard her walk towards the doorway, and glanced up, hoping she wasn't leaving him.

Miaka rubbed her eyes, walking towards the doorway. She suddenly felt warm arms wrap around her waist.

"I'm so sorry," she heard Tamahome whisper in her ear as he rested his chin on her shoulder. Miaka placed her hands on his arms and closed her eyes, feeling at ease for the first time since she had been in Kutou.

*

Hotohori and Katherine galloped out of the woods, trying to catch up with Nuriko and Christina. Katherine scanned the landscape, trying to find where Nuriko and Christina might be waiting. Off in the distance she saw two horses stranded. "Uh-oh..." she mumbled under her breath as she stopped her horse, knowing that Christina and Nuriko wouldn't have abandoned their horses for no reason. She quickly glanced over at Hotohori, who had brought his horse to a halt too; he looked towards her simultaneously. They both knew that something had to have happened and started to gallop towards the abandoned stallions. They noticed the grass they traveled over was driven into the ground, trampled. They dismounted their horses once they reached the deserted mares in order to look around some more.

They walked quickly around the clearing, searching for any clues as to where Nuriko and Christina were.

"Christina! Nuriko!" Katherine called. She and Hotohori explored around the clearing in hopes that their friends would waltz out of the woods so they could continue their journey to Choko. Katherine worriedly wrung her hands, wondering where they could be hiding.

"Nuriko!" Hotohori yelled from behind Katherine. She turned around to the see the purple-haired sei stomping out of the forest, dragging behind him one of the bandits that had attacked Christina and himself.

"Nuriko!" Katherine yelled happily, sure that Christina was right behind him. She ran up to Nuriko, wondering who the man was. "Where's Christina?"

Nuriko shrugged angrily and tossed the man onto the grass in front of Katherine and Hotohori. They looked up at Nuriko questioningly, still wanting to know who the strange man was.

"When you two left," Nuriko started to explain, "All these guys attacked us...and I guess they carried off Christina."

Nuriko glared at the man. "And he's going to tell us where they're taking her," he informed Katherine, Hotohori, and the bandit.

The man looked around in fear, wondering what the strange group would do to him. His eyes darted around the clearing, looking for the best escape route. He jumped up, knocked Katherine to the ground, and sprinted into the forest. Nuriko turned around to chase after the man, but instead quickly shielded his eyes from the intense whirlwind that had suddenly emerged.

Genrou appeared from the midst of the air stream, holding the thug by his collar.

"Tas- Genrou?" Katherine asked incredulously as Hotohori helped her up from the grass.

"I saw some guys skulkin' 'round the hideout," the tawny-eyed bandit explained as he dropped the man onto the ground, "turns out they're from Mount Kaou."

"Where?" Nuriko asked.

"Mount Kaou. Where's Christina?" he asked as he looked around, not seeing the girl with her companions.

"He knows," Nuriko said as he pointed to the man on the soil, who looked as though he was about to either wet himself or make another run for it.

"N-No, I d-don't! Really!" he lied. Genrou quickly removed the tessen from its sheath and brought it up against the man's neck.

"You know what this can do, don't ya?" he smirked.

"O-OKAY! OKAY!" the utterly frightened man confessed quickly, frightened by the prospect of death. "They're prob'ly takin' her back t' the mountain! To sell 'er or somethin'! I don't know!"

"Which way would they be going?" Nuriko asked.

"That-a-way!" he stammered, pointing in the direction where the shortcut to Mt. Kaou was. Genrou removed the tessen from its place at the man's throat and put it back in its scabbard. He threw the man to the ground.

"Yer lucky I got more important matters than dealin' with you," Genrou threatened. The man sat for a few seconds before realizing that he was dismissed, the scrambled to his feet and ran away, down the path that led towards the city, not wanting to get involved with either mountain for the time being.

To be continued...