Distant Thunder: Chapter 5

The Twelfth Day of the Month of Shinjo, 1137

"Remember the armor stand, Tetsuo. Come at sunset."

Yoritomo Hogosha read the note again, for the fifth time. It still made no sense to him.

He had found it placed in the center of his futon when he returned to his quarters in Kyuden Gotei. After a day spent trying to determine why his Champion was refusing to see him, the mystery of the note's appearance was one more frustration he did not need. The calligraphy was rough, workmanlike, and rather squared off – he suspected that it was formed that way deliberately, in an attempt to conceal the author's handwriting. The paper was simple, unadorned, undyed and unperfumed, a square about as large as Hogosha's palm, completely ordinary. Had it not been placed so specifically in the middle of his bed, he might have simply crumpled it up and tossed it aside. But no – he could not shake the feeling that it meant something, and despite being addressed to the wrong man (who was "Tetsuo," anyway?), it was meant for him.

The courtier crossed his chambers to the tall table, about the height of his hip when he stood, that he used for his writing. It was a gaijin thing, much too tall for use when seated on a proper cushion, but Hogosha rarely sat. He preferred to stand, to move, to be ready to take action as soon as it was necessary. He did most of his work at this table, even though he sometimes wondered in the mornings if he was spending too much time bending over it for the good of his back. Placing the note on the table, he took a step back, as though trying to get a better view of it, and reached for the small bottle of sake he kept on a nearby stand.

Something about the movement triggered a memory. Five years ago, no, six – he often had trouble remembering the year he had spent in Yomi after his first death – Hogosha, Yoritomo himself and Yoritomo Aramasu, Yoritomo's adopted son (and now the Mantis Champion) had spent a long, long night drinking; it had been the night before Hogosha left for the mainland, to defend Yoritomo's claims on the Scorpion lands in the Imperial Court, in fact. The last time he had seen either of them, or his home, before he died. Why would he think of that now?

Hogosha picked up the sake bottle, turning it around in his hands, trying to remember. They had begun the night in Yoritomo's chambers, but after the second time some functionary had interrupted them with a meaningless request, Yoritomo had roared, loud enough to rattle the paper windows in their screens, "Enough of this! I am the Son of Storms, and I will find somewhere to drink in peace, damn you!" Laughing uproariously, Hogosha and Aramasu had followed Yoritomo out of the Champion's chambers, down into the bowels of the castle. Hogosha dimly recalled a Scorpion ditty Aramasu had tried to teach him while they went, a bawdy peasant tune about a woman trying to win the affections of a Crab bushi through a series of increasingly unlikely sexual propositions. Eventually, the three of them had found a storeroom near the dungeons, where Aramasu had reduced both Hogosha and Yoritomo to helpless laughter by singing the song to… to…

Hogosha's eyes widened, and he straightened up suddenly. Aramasu had been singing to a stand of armor in the corner of the storeroom, pretending it was the Crab bushi. And the Crab bushi in the song was named Tetsuo.

Glancing out the window, the courtier saw that sunset was fast approaching. He placed the sake bottle back on the table, then picked up his wakizashi and slid it into his obi. With only a moment's hesitation, he also slipped a small tanto into his sleeve, and a second into the top of his tabi. Whatever was going on in the castle, he suddenly felt the need to be as prepared for it as he could. Slipping out the door, Hogosha made his way down the castle stairs toward the basement.

It took him a few minutes to locate the storeroom once again; the memories of that night were hazy from more than just the passage of time. Nevertheless, he eventually found what he believed to be the right door, and pulled it open. Light from the hall's lanterns spilled into the shadowy room, and Hogosha took a slow step in, trying to peer through the darkness.

A hand grabbed him, jerking him sideways, while someone slammed shut the door. Even as he reached for his blades, he felt the point of a wakizashi or dagger in his back, and the edge of a kama touched the skin of his throat. "Your next move or sound will be your last, Yoritomo Hogosha," snapped a voice in a sharp whisper from right behind him. Hogosha froze, more from shock than fear.

"Tsuruchi," came the voice from behind him, louder this time, a harsh growl Hogosha did not recognize. There was the sound of metal on flint, and sparks flew to catch on the wick of a lantern. The room brightened.

Tsuruchi, once the Champion of the Minor Clan of the Wasp and now the daimyo of the Mantis family that bore his name, stood revealed in the light. He was a short man, and though he walked with a slight limp – a legacy of wounds taken during the War Against the Shadow – Tsuruchi nevertheless held himself ready for violence at any moment. He set down the lantern he was carrying, allowing its light to spread across the dusty storeroom, and drew his wakizashi. To Hogosha's eyes, it seemed as though the place might not have been visited since the last time he had been there. Other than the man holding him at swordpoint, there seemed to be no one else in the room.

Tsuruchi moved quickly forward, his limp slowing him down not at all, weapon still at the ready. Completely ignoring propriety and every kind of courtesy, the daimyo actually searched Hogosha with his free hand, quickly finding both tantos and removing them, along with Hogosha's wakizashi. The courtier tried not to display his shock, but he found himself shuddering slightly regardless. The blade at his throat pushed a little deeper, and Hogosha thought he might feel blood.

Setting the weapons carefully aside, Tsuruchi returned to Hogosha, this time carrying a small, carefully carved crystal, about the size of his smallest finger. He pressed the crystal deep into Hogosha's cheek, studying both the skin and the Yoritomo's expression for signs of something Hogosha did not know. Whatever he looked for, however, he did not seem to find it, and he stepped back with a satisfied nod. "It's him, Aramasu," Tsuruchi said, and the blades were removed from Hogosha's back and throat. Hogosha gasped at the name, spinning to look into the eyes of his Champion and demand an explanation.

The words died when he saw his lord's face, however. Aramasu had never been handsome; an assault by a Scorpion assassin some years before had slashed open his left cheek, puckering the skin from mouth to ear in a thick, vivid scar. Now, however, that old wound was matched by two fresh ones, a dark-red mark across his throat that ran from one tip of his jaw to the other, and a half-healed pink scar along his forehead, from just above his nose to near his right temple. The hair there was angled oddly, and Yogosha realized the scar must be deep enough to keep it from growing back out over the wound. Aramasu smiled crookedly as he watched Hogosha's expression. "Yes, Hogosha-san," he said with a chuckle. The chuckle became a slight cough, and he ended it quickly, with an annoyed expression and a rub across the throat wound. "Much has happened since you last visited our lovely shores." His voice was rough and ragged, far different from the smooth tones Hogosha remembered.

"Aramasu-dono!" said Hogosha, shocked. "What happened? Your letters… they never said…!"

"Yes, well," Aramasu replied, shrugging and stepping back, slipping his kama and wakizashi into his obi. The Celestial Sword of the Mantis rested there as well, but Hogosha knew very well that Aramasu never drew it, although he did not know why. "I did not want to alarm you, and by the time the letters were written, all the excitement was over. I couldn't keep the rumors from getting out, however. I assume you heard something?"

Hogosha nodded, still staring in wonder at the injuries. "Well, yes… an assassin in your bedchamber. The culprit…" he paused, then his voice hardened in anger and determination. "The Scorpion will pay for this. We will see their castles razed to the ground, their bodies scattered to the vultures. They will pray for the chance to flee back to the Burning Sands! We will-"

"It wasn't the Scorpion," Aramasu cut him off.

"Although I do like the sound of your plan," Tsuruchi offered. "They may not have succeeded in killing our lord yet, but Fortunes know they'd love to try. Wouldn't mind a shot at me, either, for that matter," he added, holding out Hogosha's weapons. "Please, Hogosha-san, forgive me. Necessity required extreme measures." Hogosha nodded, taking the wakizashi and tantos with a small bow.

"I'm no fan of the Scorpion myself," Aramasu said dryly and with great understatement, "but they really aren't the ones responsible. In fact, if it weren't for the fact that they'd probably kick me into my grave themselves, I might ask them for help on this. They're as likely to have answers as anyone, if only I could trust them."

"Then what happened?" Hogosha demanded.

"You heard there was an assassin. You apparently did not hear, however, that there were three." Aramasu pointed at his forehead, his throat, and then indicated his right ear, where Hogosha now saw a triangle-shaped piece was simply missing. "Each one managed to reach me in my bed chambers, regardless of whatever security we put in place. Each used peculiar weapons – a sharply curved dagger, a silk strangulation cord, a set of blades like an animal's claws worn over the hands. And each was a dark-skinned gaijin."

Hogosha blinked.

"I believe them to be from the Ivory Kingdoms," Aramasu continued, after pausing a moment to let the idea sink in. "Their clothes and weapons match what I know about those lands. Our trade arrangements with the Kingdoms are a quiet and distant affair – by which I mean, they are illegal smuggling – so I don't have much else to go on at this point. At least, not so far." Hogosha noticed Tsuruchi grimace at that, but Aramasu kept speaking. "As far as I know, neither I personally nor our Clan has done anything to stir up this kind of antagonism, but they certainly have some kind of problem with me."

"What is your plan, my lord?" asked Hogosha.

"As you can see, I have chosen to be… difficult to locate, for the time being," Aramasu answered. "I have announced that I plan to be in seclusion for the foreseeable future. As for my other plans… well. Let's hold off on those for a moment until I hear your report about the Empress' wake. You failed to achieve enough support to be named Imperial Advisor, I understand."

"Hai, Yoritomo-dono," Hogosha said, looking down slightly. "I failed in my duty."

Aramasu chuckled. "You managed to make the Crane look like fools and found two other Great Clans to support you. To say you exceeded my expectations would be an understatement. What promises did you make to accomplish this?"

"We focused our attentions on the Crab and Dragon. In retrospect, had we broadened our focus, we might have managed to earn a third Clan's support… but then, we did receive a promise of support from the Imperial families, who would have been the deciding factor if the other factions had ended in a stalemate. Regardless, we offered discounted shipping and trade goods to the Crab, and promised mercenaries to the Dragon for whatever use they might prefer."

Hogosha smiled slightly. "I suspect we all know what use they will be put toward, and I rather enjoy the thought of reminding the Phoenix that closing their ports to us was not a wise decision."

Aramasu nodded. "Well done, Hogosha-san," the Champion said firmly. "Had you not been competing against Munemori, you would probably have been able to find common ground with the Crane as well. I want you to continue those efforts, and strengthen the ties you have already built. We have enemies, it is true, but this latest and most hidden one trumps all the others. We will need our friends behind us when the time comes to deal with whatever hunts us from the Ivory Kingdoms." He paused and took a deep breath.

"Which brings me to my plans. I will warn you now, I'm pretty sure you're not going to like them – I already know Tsuruchi doesn't. But I have made my decision, and it is this: I am going to seek out the answer to the puzzle of the Ivory Kingdom assassins myself. With three assassination attempts, they have made this personal. I will respond in kind. With the rumors of assassination attempts and word of my seclusion for safety reasons, it should be simple for you to handle the political needs of the Clan while Tsuruchi directs our military efforts. I give you free rein to act as you see fit; feel free to couch your directives in my name. I will contact you and Tsuruchi as often as I can, but from tonight forward, I will no longer spend any nights under the roof of Kyuden Gotei."

Hogosha's jaw dropped. "Yoritomo-dono! You cannot mean… How can you risk yourself this way? With assassins waiting for the chance to strike, you would leave the security of this fortress?" Tsuruchi did not speak, but the shift in his stance spoke volumes; his agreement could not have been plainer had he shouted it from the top of his lungs.

Aramasu, however, was already shaking his head. "Kyuden Gotei has already shown itself vulnerable," said the Champion flatly. "I will be safer where I am not known to be. And I will not simply wait for the assassin finally skilled enough to finish me off. There will be a reckoning." A light seemed to flash in Aramasu's eyes, and Hogosha could not help thinking that the Son of Storms had chosen his adopted son well. After a pause, though, Aramasu continued in a less strident tone. "If, however, you do not hear from me for six months… go and speak to Yoritomo Komori, at the temple to Isora on the Island of Lost Wilderness. Tell him I am dead. He will know what to do."

"The Island of Lost…?" Hogosha half-repeated blankly. He was not even sure he had ever heard of such an island, let alone any temple on it. Yoritomo Komori was a hero of the Clan War and the War Against the Shadow, having once saved the life of Yoritomo himself – why would such a man retire to such an obscure location? Tsuruchi looked as blank as he, but Aramasu waved aside their questions.

"Until you have need, forget I ever mentioned the place. Now, I am sure you have questions, and we have a long night of planning ahead of us. I meant what I said – tonight is the last night I spend in Kyuden Gotei." The Mantis Champion face was stone. "And then… I show these gaijin what it means to be Rokugani. To be a samurai. And most of all, what it means to be Mantis."