The fortress of Mononobe was the largest of its kind in the land of Miitsu. Located in the south of the over-large province it was modelled after one of the larger Takimoto estates in the Montō region from whence the Takimoto clan came. It was thus an important location not only to their prestige but also to their status as regional lords, sworn to the Tennō and the Kampaku[1]. In this capacity they had the duty of not only defending the north, but also holding it.
The fortress was immense, more than thirty meters high, and almost a full league wide and half that in length. It was often called the 'bastion of the north' or the 'northern bulwark' for a reason. Surrounded by towering walls that were twenty-five meters high and half that in thickness, and a moat that surrounded the immense fortress, it was white-stoned so that one might well have believed it built out of ice and snow rather than stones. It was connected by the Takimoto Iron-Bridge as it was dubbed, to a small walled town with a wooden palisade all about it. The town had grown up just to the east of the bridge, and was populated by more than twenty-five thousand people who had established themselves there some one hundred years prior. The bridge could not be raised though there were great gates that were kept shut at night and which were overseen by those within the watch-towers next to the gates. It was only by this bridge that one might gain access to the keep and it was through the small city that Satomine hoped to gain entry to the tile-roofed castle where his ancestors going back two hundred years had served faithfully.
It was the favourite of all the places in the land north of the inland sea. And the favourite place of Satomine who adored it and found that the fortress was everything one could hope for in one. Large, was to state the apparent about it, with the fortress one that was more than twenty-five meters high and twice that in width and length, with the fort surrounded by high walls that were fifteen meters high, and dotted with towers every five meters. These gates stood apart from one another, with there being a city that were to be found outside those gates, with there being another series of similar gates that surrounded the city.
The men at the gates could hardly believe their eyes when they saw who it was that stood before them. There were a great many shouts and cries and whispers that raced to and fro from wall to wall as the guards stared in astonishment.
"Do not release your arrows, it is Satomine!"
"Yet why is he dressed like an Emishi?" Others were to ask, yet none had a clear answer to the query.
It was with more than a little nervousness that Akemi clung to the hem of his sleeve from where she sat behind him on his horse. "They recognize you, yet do not seem altogether as friendly as I had hoped they might be, what are we to do Satomine-san?"
Not bothering to answer her, the youth patted her hand in answer in what he hoped was a comforting gesture, even as he ignored the heated look Akito threw in his direction. "It is I, Satomine! I have returned hither from the north bearing terrible news along with Takimoto-donō's katana Kazokiri! Let me in, I must speak to Yoshitada-donō please! He must be warned of the dangers that lie to the north!"
Never one to beg, proud and stern as he was, his tone and choice of language had an immediate effect upon the guards. Realizing the gravity of the situation, if the likes of Satomine, was reduced to pleading they almost tripped over one another to get to the chain so that they might open the gates.
"Oh thank the Kami, they did not kill us," Harukor gasped at once, relieved.
"Agreed," Akito agreed.
Silently, Satomine agreed with them, nodding his head ever so slightly, ere he urged his horse forward. Grateful though he was, to be home once more he was however more than a little aware of the shadow that lay over everyone he saw. The fact that the fortress was not yet under siege, was reassuring to him, for it signalled to him that there was hope still that they might have time to prepare themselves before the enemy's arrival.
"Right this way," ordered one of the guards once the gates were open, signalling for them to follow after him.
It was with a great deal of nervousness that Akemi clung all the tighter to Satomine, her lower lip trembling that she murmured to him, "I do not much like this."
"Do calm down," Harukor urged with a short laugh, "We are among friends, as these are Satomine's kindred and he has not yet led us astray and would not do so now."
Quite a bit more hesitant about his own judgement, Satomine was to cast a quick glance from the other youth to the monk, who looked upon him with a far more piercing eye. It was thus, with a sigh, he chose to leap down from his horse and to guide it forward on foot. In this way the young bushi could avoid the eyes of his companions, whilst seeming decisive. He had long ago learnt this technique when he was still a child and had the chance to observe not only his father, but also Yoshinobu-donō. The latter being the one who had later in life confided the truth behind this sort of decision to him.
It was with more than a little uncertainty that the bushi studied those around him, with their suspicious gazes and where some were concerned outright hostility. He had never seen some of them look on him so, not since his earliest childhood when his mother was still alive.
The tension in the air eased when at last Yoshitada at last arrived. Tall and well-shaped he was a few centimetres shorter than Satomine himself, he wore a short moustache just above his thin lips, and below his hawk-like nose. He was a figure who sought to be as imposing as his father, but as he was untested he had never quite achieved in the eyes of many to lay claim to such stature. Still though, many such as Satomine sought to cling to the ideal that he someday might.
When he spoke though, it was in a powerful voice, one that caused every single man's eyes to leap from the newly arrived travellers, to the young lord. "Satomine, we had given you up for dead."
Throwing himself down upon one knee, the man in question shook ever so slightly hardly able to bring himself to meet Yoshitada's eyes. "I very nearly was however somehow I clung to life and fought my way through the battle."
"A remarkable way to describe how you flew from before the enemy, and abandoned our father," Nobuyoshi sneered with a snort.
Irritated, Satomine threw a furious glance in his direction. Any other man he might have cut down for such an accusation, yet he could not touch one of the sons' of Yoshinobu-donō. Sucking in a breath alongside his temper, he was to continue, "There is more… much more, for one thing Motonaga the ancient Dark Lord of ancient Makoku has returned. He has a great many men with him, and has rallied the Emishi along with a great many warriors such as Hidemasu to his side."
The reaction to his words was instantaneous. Where many had listened with a great deal of interest, they now descended into a raucous laughter that shook the very courtyard of the castle. Such was their amusement that it was heard even in the village just outside the castle walls, so that men were given over to wondering if they had descended into revelry. This demonstration of mockery and ill-discipline also made a great many men glumly say to themselves that the former Takimoto-donō never would have tolerated it.
This though Satomine did not know it at that time, was the first hint that though the news had not yet fully spread of Yoshinobu-donō's death, the people had come to suspect the truth. Their Lord was dead, and in his place were half a dozen sons' who would seek to imitate and claim his title for themselves, with many aware that filial piety had never been a noteworthy Takimoto virtue. Most still told stories of the barbarity of the likes of Takimoto no Hideyaru, who had it was said hounded a family enemy the terrible Momohana no Makao more than seventy years prior. Or of the virtue with which the sons' of Hideyasu; Hideshige and Yorihide had perished eighty years before him against the Nohara rebels nearly one hundred and fifty years ago. The two men had been told to surrender and had favoured death, even as they fought to their last breaths near the Kuronaga Mountain pass. Naturally the brothers, one of whom Yorihide was the ancestor of Yoshinobu were still celebrated in song and poetry to this day. There were many other valiant ancestors that the Takimoto could boast of. In all theirs was the most prestigious line of all the Bushi of the isles of Zipangu. None could compare to them. It was for this reason that they often mocked the jealous Nohara, and Momohana who had but a handful of warriors to compare with in the whole of their family lines.
"Follow me, Satomine, your companions could remain here," Yoshitada commanded as he turned to lead the youth into the castle proper.
When the young man did not budge, Nobuyoshi growled at him, "Did you not hear the command of your liege-lord?"
"Yes, Tonō, if I may though, this monk Shinkei has been a valuable aid to me in my travels," Satomine told him, "I would be grateful if something could be done for him."
"Of course, now do hurry," Yoshitada replied impatiently.
Though Harukor and Akito had both at various times taken a dislike to Satomine, both men appeared no less reluctant than Akemi to see him leave their company. The two men made to follow yet when they saw the displeasure this inspired in those around them, they thought better of it. Both of them, held tight to Akemi who was soon distracted though with the care of her uncle.
A number of those around them studied the small group of peasants, with curious eyes if slightly guarded eyes. It was however the wish of their liege-lord that they care for them. This was the sole reason for which they were to decide that they had but one duty with regards to the small family that had accompanied the bushi to their keep.
Making his way past a number of men he had either grown up with, or had looked upon once upon a time as uncles of a sort and comrade-in-arms, Satomine was dismayed at their coldness. Not one face seemed to welcome him, seemed keen to see him still alive so that a part of him wondered if maybe they had secretly hoped he might have died with Yoshinobu-donō. Forcing himself to repress those thoughts, he made his way inside.
Welcomed into the home of the Takimoto, which was a large keep that had stood for more than two centuries, and had never been invaded in all the time it had been under Takimoto possession. It was there within those halls that he hoped to find succour after days of hard riding the likes of which he had never undertaken before.
Escorted through countless hallways, ones that began behind enclosed walls with the interior of the building dark and foreboding so that even Satomine felt a sense of uncertainty the further into the castle he journeyed. He was pleased that he had made it so far, and was even more so when they climbed up the stairs which led to the next floor. The second floor's hallways were blessed with large windows with wooden covers that were often opened during the day, and in some places they were barred by wooden bars that were similar to those of Yōsashima further to the north as was the norm in most keeps on the Isles of Zipangu.
Brought to a halt in the great antechamber where Yoshinobu had once received his guests and held court Satomine was to suck in a breath. It had only been a few months since he had last been there, and yet it felt longer. It felt as though it had been a great many years since he had last been there.
There had been more than one night, more than one day since his departure, since the death of Yoshinobu that he had questioned if he might someday see it again. It had of course not changed, but he had.
He had aged and had changed as a man. He was now older and had lived long enough to see the only man who had ever truly been a father to him perish.
Shaken from his thoughts by the sound of a cough from the other end of the great hall, where Yoshitada was seated he jumped some ten feet into the air. It was thus with more than a little amazement that Satomine watched as the heir of Yoshinobu took the old chieftain's place atop the central cushion.
A red object full of bird-feathers, it was the height of comfort, with it once having been the bushi's duty to ensure that it was properly cared for and that when it grew too flattened that a replacement cushion was seen to. It had been a duty that he had revelled in, as household management since the lady of the manor had been cast out of the keep and into the local convent had fallen into the care of the sister of Yoshitada.
Akigara no Tomizen for his part remained where he was standing, an impatient expression on his face as he looked on as one man after another filed their way into the roofed reception hall. Eight men sat to one side, and another eight to the other in a pair of lines that led up to the grand seat where Yoshitada sat.
There were also the two ladies of the house that entered the hall. The first did not surprise the young man, who could not help but study her out of the corner of his eye. As always the lady Himari with her pale flesh, midnight dark hair and flashing eyes, the third daughter of Yoshinobu fascinated him and yet this was but for a single moment for she was soon he noticed followed by a woman he recognized at once: Aiko-donō.
The old woman was grey-haired, with a lined face that bore evidence of a great deal of make-up, with her hair no longer as long as it once was, since Yoshinobu forced her to take the tonsure. A plump woman with an unpleasant air about her, she was to regard the bewildered Satomine with visible triumph and disdain.
She remembered all too well he knew the role he had played in her displacement. It was he after all who had caught her with her lover, Enkai more than a dozen years prior, and had reported it to Yoshinobu. Whereupon the old man had flown into an immediate rage, and stormed the inn where she had snuck off to meet with her lover, at which time he slew the young man before he seized hold of her. The fact that Satomine and others were commanded to search her lover's chambers and they had found letters detailing a plot to kill Yoshinobu in the name of the lord of the house of Momohana had only furthered the rage of the great lord of the Takimoto.
It was then that he had cast her out of his house, forced the tonsure upon her and had her imprisoned in the nearby convent. Her children had been forbidden from visiting her, with some of them later permitted to on occasion. Satomine for his part in the discovery of the plot had been promoted rapidly within the household and even became the lord's page and was to be entrusted with all his plots, plans and secrets.
The lady did not say a word. Nor did she need to, as her children and those of her rivals in love took their seats, even as the other lords of the house of Takimoto seated themselves. It was clear now that a second plot had unfurled whilst Yoshinobu had been away, Satomine mused if tartly. The plot to restore Aiko to her prior place of influence within the house of Takimoto was one that troubled him almost as much as the other, so that though he bowed dutifully he did so also to hide his grimace.
It was only after the guard had left that Yoshitada relaxed enough to lean the full weight of his body against the slight bar of wood that was always next to slightly elevated platform the lord always sat upon. Moving it from before him to his side, he leant on it with the slightest of sighs, before he addressed his childhood friend, "Now tell me Satomine, how is it that you came to be here, with my father's head and body along with his katana?"
Feeling uncertain, Satomine hesitated briefly. Glancing towards Nobuyoshi and Himari hesitantly he struggled for words. There were a few others present, such as Sugawara no Minato, Akigara no Tomizen and the new lord's younger brothers Takimoto no Nobuyasu along with Minayoshi, the latter two who like Nobuyoshi had never much liked him. Only Yoshiyori had ever of the sons' of Yoshinobu ever had any sort of affection for the bushi, and that was due to his being the youngest of the sons' and also the only son born of Yoshinobu's second marriage. The lady Rin herself the daughter of a lowly merchant, noted more for her beauty and meekness than the fiery temper of his first wife.
"All those you see before you can be trusted Satomine," Yoshinobu assured him.
Still hesitant, the youth did not know from whence the words that now poured out from him came, yet when they did it was to the outrage of a number of the men present. "It happens that something similar was said just before the battle of Torakawa, and your father paid for his naïveté with his life."
The first to climb back up to his feet was none other than Nobuyoshi who always the swiftest to anger, roared with all the fury of a wounded jungle-cat. The next to reach his feet was Nobuyasu, who was no less displeased by the implications against them.
"How could you speak so against our family, after all that we have done for you Satomine?" Himari demanded of him, her voice wounded and unhappy, her words a knife through his heart.
"Himari-donō, it is not that I seek to insult or impugn the honour of the Takimoto, it is only that your uncle Hidemasu betrayed the family and is en route to put an end to the whole of your lineage. In this one situation with regards to Hidemasu the traitor one must be cautious," Satomine advised urgently, leaning forward ever so slightly where he sat at the end of the room, farthest away from Yoshitada as was traditional.
It was traditional for supplicants and messengers to present their suits before the lord, and in this situation this meant Satomine. To either side sat the family members and highest ranking of the loyal followers of the Takimoto, so that they formed a kind of fortress for the lord who sat at the end of the hall on a slightly raised dais on a cushion.
"Satomine-kun have you any notion, any whatsoever of the dangers that such an accusation might cause amongst the northerly lords?" Yoshitada demanded of his oldest friend, who studied him a hint of dismay in his eyes.
"But you must, it is the truth," Satomine replied earnestly, whereupon he caught himself and studying the youth he asked of him, "He slew your father, and marches as we speak upon this very fortress!" At those words most of the men assembled there looked on doubtfully, even Himari looked hesitant to believe him. It was with more than a little disgust that he was to complain, "Would you have us surrender before him and those who sided with him against thy own father?"
"Mind thy tongue Satomine, lest we tear it out!" Nobuyoshi growled at him infuriated by the question on the part of the other youth.
"Such talk is necessary, it is what Yoshitaka-donō's father the esteemed lord would have said himself," Satomine retorted persisting in his view that action must be undertaken against Hidemasu and Motonaga. "We must rally what forces remain and send for the Nohara and inform the Imperial Court of the disaster near Midorinoki if we are to have any hope of victory in the days to come."
"Such actions would surely lead to the undermining of confidence in the Takimoto to protect them and to guarantee victory against the barbarian threats against us all." Nobuyoshi countered at once, with a great many of the lords all about him nodding their heads.
Looking from one man's face to the next it was with a start that Satomine began to gradually realize that he was outnumbered and outflanked. How long, he asked himself had this been brewing. He was not as close to Nobuyoshi or a number of the other middle-children of his liege nor had he known a number of the other middle-sons of the higher ranking lords, who had now succeeded their fathers half as well as their eldest brothers and fathers. It had not been his duty to attend to them, since his responsibilities had been to their male relatives.
Filled with wonder, he gaped at them and was to bow his head to his new liege. "Tonō, I beg of thee please heed my words! We must rally the north and the whole of Montō if we are to repulse the enemy, and call for aid from the Imperial-Court!"
Yoshitada stroked his bearded chin where he sat. His dark eyes clouded, as he studied some point a little above the bushi's head. It worried him that his liege's eyes should prove so unfocused at such an important time so that he repeated himself and bowed a great deal more in supplication.
At last after a moment, the new lord unfurled the paper-fan he had brought with him and had been tapping his knee with while all others spoke, his thoughts elsewhere. His next words served though to deject Satomine who resisted the urge to begin to weep so strongly did they wound him. "Go. I will summon thee later Satomine, for now I must discuss the matter with those I trust. You will be informed of my decision when I see fit."
It hurt as badly as though Yoshinobu had been struck dead a second time.
Yet there was naught that the bushi could do, other than bow his head and retreat a few steps before regaining his feet, bowing once more and stepping out of the large audience hall. As he left, he felt the pang of desolation at the disgust he saw in everyone's eyes, but most especially in those of Himari and Yoshitada.
*****
Made to wait in the garrison-building that was attached to the castle, among the castle and city watch were meant to rest was unexpected for Satomine. It also sent a message to those who lived in the castle or worked there as servants, one that also bespoke of how things were changing in the Takimoto clan. In the days of Yoshinobu's lordship, the youth had enjoyed considerable favour and had slept just outside the lord's bedroom and sometimes in the bedchambers as befitted the man's personal guard. Yet now, he slept apart and was expected to wait for decisions to be made, alongside the regular guards.
It was a slight, and a great one. One that brought more than a flush of shame and humiliation to the cheeks of the young man, who knew what everyone thought: In spite of their boyhood closeness, he had lost the favour of Yoshitada and had been dismissed as little more than a castle guard's son.
He could not have imagined things to have gone worse, he thought as he wandered the halls amazed at how much they twisted the events from but a few minutes prior. Satomine had thought that he was to be well received by Yoshinobu's kinsmen, and had assumed they would share his indignation and his great desire to see the man avenged.
How is it, he asked himself he had come to them armed with the truth and yet they had not only rejected him but claimed he was guilty of the worst of sins; cowardice.
The accusation of cowardice stung.
Never in all his life had he ever had anyone dare to make such a disgusting statement against him. He had always fought as ferociously as a tiger might, in the hopes that he might prove himself worthy of the faith that Yoshinobu-donō had placed in him. Always the likes of Kami no Akio, brother of Pimiko and the likes of Yoriie the great conqueror, along with the ancient servant of Wakamikenu no Mikoto, Satomine, there was also the hero Kami no Isamu or Nohara no Satomine who had served the Nohara clan, all of them had served as his guides. He had hoped to emulate a tenth of their fidelity and courage, to prove himself no less a worthy servant of the head of the Takimoto than they had for their masters.
Without the likes of the ancient hero Satomine, Wakamikenu no Mikoto never could have repulsed the Dark Elves, and would have never saved the isles of Zipangu in the First Wars of Darkness. And without the likes of Nohara no Satomine, the peasant hero adopted by the Nohara clan posthumously, the Second Wars of Darkness could not have been won either.
So the accusation of cowardice, was a vile one that made the youth wish to do as he had been asked and slit his belly. It also made him want to weep not unlike a child.
It was in this atmosphere of anger and bitterness that he was to find himself seated by the boiling pot in the middle of one of the rooms. Cooking a small bit of meat and fish he had been given along with a small clutch of carrots and pickles, the warrior took his time in the making of his meal.
Some men did not much like cooking, yet Satomine could appreciate it and even revel in the quiet moments it provided. To him, battle was certainly enjoyable in its own way but then there was a need for such moments, such times when the blade must be sheathed and set aside in favour of the quill or the chopsticks.
His mother had loved to cook, he remembered with a near smile. Much as he might well have liked to keep from thinking of her, and present himself as the height of manhood, it was at such times he struggled to do so. He could not help but revel in the temporary joy of mixing ingredients together, in the preparation of the food.
Pleased with himself, he soon set to pouring himself some of the soup into another bowl, one that he had found in the barracks. He was to eat with a great deal of eagerness, such that had anyone been present to see him, they might have remarked about the relish with which he devoured his lunch.
He had just to say finished eating, when he was called away from the barracks by another of the bushi sworn to the service of the house of Takimoto. "Satomine, it would appear that his lordship has decided upon a course of action."
The man hesitated for a few minutes, considering his words with a great deal of care. Impatient to hear what had been decided, he hardly waited for the man to continue speaking. Racing past him he was out the door and into the courtyard, and across it before the other man could so much as breathe another word.
Hurrying through the outdoor hallway that led to the interior of the great fortress he was more than a little eager to hurry back to whence he had come from before his meal. While he was to follow after the guard he was to murmur a quiet prayer to Konohanasakuya-hime, whom his mother had always revered if only for some measure of hope.
The hall was as he soon discovered exactly as it had been left, save for a few differences. Aiko was to greet him as one who lords over a place and people. "We have summoned thee hither once more, Satomine in spite of the great cowardice that you have demonstrated with thy acts of continuous flight from the enemy of this clan."
"Co- cowardice!?" Satomine gasped hardly able to believe his own ears.
"Cowardice indeed," she continued with a snort of disdain, "A true bushi would not have flown from his liege's side, he would have either torn his belly or otherwise slain his foe and then did so. This talk of 'black candles' I think was an excuse for fear and cowardice!"
"It was no such thing!" Satomine snapped at once, before he could stop himself. He might well have said more when he saw the glowering eyes that stared back at him.
Gaping in amazement at the sons of Yoshinobu, he could only wonder at how one and all they looked on him with resentment, fury and other manner of displeasure. Never before had he ever seen such hostility on their part directed against him by one of the Takimoto. Even beauteous Himari-donō stared at him with a certain disgust before she lowered her eyes meekly.
It was her glare that had most wounded the youth who felt his will buckle, and the axis of his being as his beloved hero Yoshinobu had once dubbed it falter and break so that Satomine averted his eyes from her as he swallowed tears and bitterness alike.
Only Yoshiyori did not look on him with fury. Rather, he appeared visibly lost, seated the nearest to him to the right side, he had his eyes lowered, to his trembling hands that gripped his hakama.
It was thus with a sinking feeling that he realized that all that he had braved, had been for naught and that he had endured more than he thought he could, only to return home to hatred.
"Satomine-san, while you have been preoccupied with eating, I have decided to proceed with the assumption that you speak true. A messenger will be sent to the Imperial-Court, notably to our lieges, the Tahara clan that they might. This is not only because of your own message, but because of one from old Kawamoto no Michiie, who arrived back home to his own fortress not long before thine own return. The first thing he did was to send us a messenger, who arrived shortly before thee, at first we doubted and now we have come to a decision." Yoshitada said with a stern air about him, his eyes flashing with a fury that gave the former herald of Yoshinobu pause.
Satomine bowed his head.
"Yoshiyori." Yoshitada called with a stern glance at the youngest of his many brothers, with the youth in question answering with a 'Ha!' and a bow. "You will accompany Satomine-san, to the Imperial Court as our formal representative. So that in this manner the Court will hear the testimony of Satomine, and know that the Takimoto take this matter seriously. You will report the matter and request what aid and support the Tahara Clan is willing to offer, on our behalf."
"But I had thought that-" Yoshiyori began only to stop mid-speech when he saw how some looked on him, only to nod his head miserably, "Yes, nii-sama."
"Excellent, now the two of ye are dismissed. Away with the both of ye that preparations for thy departure might be made." Yoshitada declared before he turned to Nobuyoshi, "Nobuyoshi I should like stock taken of the stores we have, as we might have to endure a short siege before the winter, and possibly in the spring of next year."
Nobuyoshi was to answer promptly, with Satomine staring at them. He could not believe his ears. Certainly he had hoped that they might send him on to the Imperial Court or assign another to the task that he might counsel Yoshitada on the war, but this dismissal was unlike anything he had expected. Satomine because of this could not help but stare at his childhood friend, then at the other man's mother.
He could see the triumph on Aiko's face, and the nervousness that haunted Himari so that he was to guess that it was by virtue of the old woman that Yoshiyori had been selected for this journey. It was sure to remove the youngest of Yoshinobu's sons' from the keep, and from the lands in the north so that he would not be able to be positioned as a possible rival to Yoshitada.
All knew the plans that their father had formulated for Yoshiyori. He was to be fostered for a year despite having already undergone his genpuku, with Kawamoto no Michiie who had always favoured the boy.
"With respect, tonō, I understand that you have the best of intentions, and that none have lost more or sacrificed more at this present time for the Takimoto than you and thy siblings… however Yoshiyori-donō is far too young to undertake such a journey!" Satomine objected hardly able to contain himself, "The dangers I had to endure, the number of monstrous riders and villains that pursued me and that will likely hound my every step still will likely prove indescribable! Therefore I would urge that Yoshiyori-donō be sent instead to Kawamoto-donō for his own safety, he and his mother along with the lady Himari-donō should be sent there while the castle is prepared for war!"
His words which might well have influenced Yoshinobu to reconsider his actions, fell upon deaf ears. The placid and impassive faces of those who sat before him hardened ever so slightly. There was not only sternness and even bitterness to be seen on every individual face, but a hostility there that Satomine had never seen before on any of their faces. Most especially that of Yoshitada. The young lord stared at him, long and hard before he growled, "I have spoken Satomine-san. You would not have questioned my father thus."
It was on the tip of his tongue to counter that he would indeed have done so, or that Yoshinobu's judgment was beyond reproach. However sensing that this could only serve to anger his new lord needlessly, the youth swallowed his anger and bowed his head. In the end there was naught he could do other than this, and to with a glance to young Yoshiyori promise himself to let no harm befall his visibly worried friend.
*****
Yoshitada was true to his word. Not only did he acquiesce to take the trio and Shinkei into his household for the time being, he also agreed to supply Satomine with supplies, a horse and arms. This along with his letter of recommendation was supplied to the bushi, shortly before his departure. Very shortly, as in just a few minutes before he was made to leave in the middle of the night so that the bushi though eager to return on the road, felt a certain sting at being made to leave so abruptly. He had thought he might have another day or two before he had to leave, so as to rest properly before being made to depart.
"There is no time for such prevarications," Sugawara no Minato snapped at the youth, who glumly nodded his head.
Still tired from the journey, and from being woken up after only having slept for four hours he climbed atop the horse, noting absently as he did the coldness in the other man's eyes. Gone was the warmth that might have been there when Yoshinobu was alive.
When the bushi chose to trot forward out of the gates, his head bowed slightly in weariness and hurt, Minato frustrated who had kept a spare horse-whip in the event of such a reaction, struck the steed on the rear with all his might. "I said with all haste you filthy half-blooded ingrate! Therefore gallop! Gallop with all haste!"
The war-horse tore across the fields with all the haste of a gazelle in the midst of being hounded by wolves and jackals. Not since he was a boy of nine had Satomine lost control of his steed in such a manner, so that cheeks burning he fought and grappled with the animal as hard as he could. Tugging and pulling on the reins to bring it under control once more, all while he tried to keep his racing heart from tearing itself out from within his throat where it had seemingly jumped to.
It was after he had disappeared on the horizon that the steward of the castle hurried off to fetch and prepare another horse, this one for another of the denizens of the castle-town. The guard he found was already awake if groggy, a man of fifty-three with greying hair, a short beard and slanted eyes that could have pierced the thickest of castle walls.
"Tomizen, what took you so long this morning to prepare?" Minato growled at him, one of the few men brave enough to do so.
"I had to bathe, as I always do in the morning," Tomizen retorted irritably, hardly overjoyed at the stern tone the other man had taken with him.
"Bah, and it is why you are always late to your duties," Minato snapped irritably at him, "Yoshitada however has a great appreciation for your talents, and loyalty though and has favoured you with the duty of visiting the Capital."
"Really now?" Tomizen remarked amazed, and pleased. In truth he had never visited the great city of Zipangu as it was also known, this in spite of his fifty-three years of life in which he had visited all the lands of the east and west of the principal island of the Empire.
It was with more than a little joy that he congratulated himself. The great city was where all men longed to go to, not simply because they longed to see the sites but because there was a longing to enhance their own positions. It happened that it had always been the ambition of Tomizen to venture there.
At last, he told himself, his loyalty to Yoshitada had begun to reap dividends. He knew Satomine and knew the youth to be idealistic and utterly consumed by honour. The youth would doubtless occupy himself with his duties, leaving Tomizen to do as he pleased.
These ideas and images in his mind's eye, he was to throw himself forward with a great and bombastic laugh that echoed down across the land. He hoped only that he might win some favour with the Imperial court for himself.
Why should, he support Satomine, he told himself in his cowardice and quest? Once Satomine had made the request for aid, Tomizen would have to have him slain. A simple enough task he mused with a chortle to himself. The old bushi pondered that the only difficulty would be in distancing the likes of Yoshiyori from the older youth, only for him to shrug his shoulders.
Challenges such as these were meant to be overcome, he mused to himself with a grin on his bearded lips. He had once upon a time envied the favour that had been poured upon Satomine by Yoshinobu, and now that the old man was deceased the youth was without his protection.
*****
Tomizen was true to his word, as the two of them travelled south he did not leave Satomine's side. At first this was something that served to bother the bushi a great deal, such was the apprehension he felt whenever he looked up to see the older man that he remained tense for days, as they travelled. Some nights he would not sleep, with the youth ultimately coming to the conclusion that the other man mistrusted him. Discovering him at times still awake when he woke up, or having just fallen asleep he would be greeted by the sight when he would try to nudge the old man awake to him drawing his wakizashi. The menace in Tomizen's eyes as he turned upon him instinctively, never failed to send a spike of apprehension and disgust straight to Satomine's stomach. This along with the manner in which Yoshiyori-donō could never quite meet his gaze and seemed always to be discomfited in his presence, where before he had often followed him about every which way he went ere the bushi's departure with the Lord of the Takimoto for the North.
It only hardened his conviction that he had been disgraced in the eyes of the Takimoto. It also made him even more resolved to win himself a meeting with the Tahara clan the traditional feudal lords of the Takimoto. It was this clan who at present ruled the land, in the name of the Tennō, and thus they alone who held the ability to declare an emergency and assemble the nation's forces. They were soon on the Takuma-Road, which was said to be the road that the legendary warrior Tennō, Takuma had utilized to reach the then capital of Hoshō-kyō, which lay far to the south. He had later when he moved the capital further to the north, had the road paved and a number of bridges constructed (each of them of stone) so that he might move his armies throughout the Empire more readily. Naturally he had given his name 'Takuma' to each of the bridges he built and the road itself, with the grateful people happily acquiescing to this on account of their fondness for him. He had after all made life better for them, and was a stronger protector and ruler than his predecessor had been.
"We should take the Takuma-Road which runs through the mountains, to the south of Awaumigawa and back north to the city of Miyakō-kyō," Tomizen had told him at the start of their journey and he had remained convinced that his travelling companion needed daily reminders of this.
Not only did he insist upon repeating this as often as he could, but he disliked it when Satomine preferred to ignore him. Persisting in repeating himself, or otherwise growling at the youth, when he attempted to brush the man's words off.
The two did not get on well or seem to ever agree on the slightest of things. It was suspected by the youth that the older bushi might well have slit his throat open in the middle of the night, if it were not for the fear of bandits and the risk that Yoshiyori might fly from there to Mononobe to report the crime, or worse; report it to the Imperial-Court. One might travelling on his own, even a bushi was liable to find himself prey to local bandits whereas two well armed men were more likely to let them pass quietly.
"That route is the long way; we must take the southern road ignoring the Mountain road." Satomine retorted sharply, "That road of yours takes us out of the way too far south and too near to Montō."
"Bah what would you know about the roads in the central provinces?" Tomizen retorted impatiently.
"I know them, because I have travelled through these parts, where you have not!" Satomine growled, feeling his cheeks redden as he gave himself ever more to his temper.
"Please, the both of ye do calm yourselves!" Yoshiyori pleaded weakly, hoping that the two might resolve their differences.
While Satomine was willing to let the matter be he could see that there was a dark glint to Tomizen's eyes. The old man was not at all willing to cede any ground at any time. It was all the worse because his younger companion knew with every breath, and every step southwards that they took that the old man was not present for the youth's benefit.
He wondered if maybe it was the view of Yoshitada that Satomine might take fright from his duties and desert. Is that what he and the other Takimoto thought of him? A coward who might turn his back on his duties? It was thoughts like these that caused him to brood late at night, and to ponder if it might not have been better if he had turned his sword upon himself.
The trouble was that he could not do so. He would not die, he often swore when alone with his thoughts whether late at night or when bathing. Not until his liege-lord had been avenged and all those guilty of betraying him had been properly punished.
These were the brooding thoughts that occupied him that night as he sat down to eat dinner (a boar that Tomizen had caught with his assistance). Dinner-conversations are sparse compared to those with his previous travelling companions Harukor and the others. He sometimes missed them if only because, they at least spoke to him and on occasion on the road sang songs between themselves where neither Yoshiyori nor Tomizen would.
One was too shy, and bereaved at the passing of his father, and the other was too stern and scornful of all things musical and artistic, believing only battle and war mattered. "Bah, leave the singing to the women and the farmers."
"I should like some music," Satomine had replied to him late into the night, in a rare moment of weakness.
"Bah you would, it suits that feminine cowardly nature of yours!"
This had nearly resulted in drawn katanas and curses, only for Yoshiyori to intervene between them physically and order, "Tomizen-san to that side of the camp! NOW!"
"What but he was the one who began the quarrel and draw his katana first!"
"I do not care, and as to yourself Satomine-san, once you were as a brother to me and I would entreat thee to comport yourself as the man you once were, and let this insult slide at once!" Yoshiyori scolded looking more like his father than he ever had hitherto then, his eyes burning with fury and his jaw set like the older man's might have.
Infuriated, Satomine nearly ignored him but with a curse and after he had spat on the ground between him and Tomizen he turned away. Slouching down into the corner of the camp, he could hear the young lord sigh melancholically. "This is going to be a long journey."
"Perhaps, but it need not be," Satomine grunted grappling still with his fury against the old man before throwing himself against the ground with a curse. When sleep at last found him, it was accompanied by nightmares so that when he awoke in the morning it felt as though he had not slept at all. No one spoke that day. Each of them was too full of anger and none of them had slept well.
*****
It was on the fourth day of their journey, when the road that led up the Shitakawa-Hill, which had gotten its name in ancient times when the Yamatai people first, stumbled upon this place. They had arrived first in the south-west of Zipangu and had journeyed north-east. It was as they established themselves and came into increasing conflict with those around them, such as the Emishi people of the far north that they were to enter into their interminable wars with. The history of the hill lay in the age after the Wars of Darkness, when the Yamatai people first began to come together. It was in this spirit of unity that they were to march north and throughout the south, annexing and uniting lands together. They stumbled thus upon the hill to the south of the nearby river and were immediately struck by the beauty, whereupon a number of villages and shrines sprung forth, with the hill dubbed Shitakawa or 'south of the river' in honour of the aforementioned river.
Thereupon the top of the hill the whole of the great lake that cut through the heart of the island was laid out in its entirety before them. The cerulean beauty of the lake amazed Satomine, just as it did Tomizen. It was as they stared out across vast fields and a great forest at it that both felt humbled. It was not that they felt small and insignificant but that they were filled, with the beauty and perfection of nature.
The seas and rivers and glens and all other natural visions of the isles of Zipangu were to their minds greater and grander than any art, or any things that man might ever achieve.
"We must stop here," Tomizen decided throwing himself off of his horse, with a grace and dignity that surpassed that of even the most able of the older lords of the north.
Remembering the great and frenetic chase from the most northerly of frontiers of the Sun-Isle to the walls of Yōsashima, Satomine objected at once. "Wait, we shan't do that! We must continue onwards, the city of Miyakō is but a day or two's journey from here. We must press forward!"
"No, we must rest," Tomizen replied quietly, beginning to work on gathering what sticks and wood he could, even throwing grass onto where he intended to start a fire.
It was times such as these the impatient youth hated the old man, more than anyone else in all his life. It was as though the old man did not take his duties seriously, regarding their journey south-west as some sort of trip rather than as a quest of the utmost importance.
A glance overhead revealed that the suns' were indeed setting as the older man had said, which meant that it would not be long before it was night-fall.
Frustrated he conceded defeat and set to work preparing for camp, just before he made to leave for further into the forest when Tomizen called out to him. "Whither are you headed, Satomine?"
"To find us something to eat," Satomine retorted sombrely with a glance over his shoulder at the guard who relaxed at this response.
Relieved, he was to turn away with Yoshiyori that they might attend to arranging the fire and their beds whilst Satomine scouted all around them not only for food but for enemies.
*****
The rest of the night was peaceful if stiff and cold, with the moon hidden behind a great many clouds. This however was not the part of the night that most worried Satomine, for he felt rather more keenly the cold than he had on the road to Yōsashima. He also felt even more aware of just how exposed their present position was, and did not much trust Tomizen, not to turn on him.
"We must be sure to take turns on watch and to ensure that the enemy has not made it this far," Satomine told the other man, as he eyed the shadows with more than a little trepidation.
"Yes, yes now get to sleep," Tomizen grunted impatiently at him, with the young bushi shaking his head at him.
Somehow he did not feel at all comforted and resorted to grumbling beneath his breath. He still did as bidden, eager to leave the planning and commanding to another. He had been forced to bark out orders and take the situation in hand, since the battle that had felled his Master, so that now he wished only to cast the responsibility unto another.
If only, he told himself he could somehow convince the likes of Tomizen of the necessity of being as cautious as possible. This was his last thought before he drifted off to sleep.
When he awoke some time later, it was to the sound of snores, so that disturbed he groggily wiped at his chin where a small line of drool had gathered whilst he slept. The dreams that had so haunted him previously soon disappeared so that he was left with a sense of disappointment and emptiness.
It was the same hollowness that had filled him everyday since he had first escaped from Oyasippuri and after he had failed to kill Motonaga.
"If only," He caught himself saying irritably, "One could travel backwards into the past, to alter but one moment in time."
This thought was one that he had had a number of times hitherto then, only to repress it whereupon he climbed up to his feet to look up into the heavens. High above their heads were the stars which formed a number of constellations. So that he was easily able to discern a dozen of them such as the likes of the constellation of Wakamikenu no Mikoto the first of the Emperors, with this first ruler in the midst of slaying the mighty son of the Orochi-drake that had menaced the lands near present day Heijō-kyo. There was also a constellation of the first Satomine, the one who fought against the Dark Elf Fratriarch, Pravregueyvan with the hero's sword cleaving through the armour of the distressed monstrous enemy. There was also Nohara no Satomine, who had fought with all that he had in the Second Wars of Darkness, against the chief-priest of Vollech the Devourer, the one known as Yasu-tari who had captured a daughter of the house of Tahara. There was also the dragon Ryunohide the Cerulean in the midst of battle against the monstrous Erde Wyrm Vyrgarras whom he tore the throat of with his front claws. There were other constellations of course, each of them of various kami, heroes and warriors who had contributed in some fashion to the glory of Zipangu or Amaterasu-ohkami. The most remarkable of all the constellations to the young bushi was that of the great Tennō Wakamikenu no Mikoto, and his conquest over the great Cyclops Akuenagi after this monster had sought to break apart the Yamatai people.
The constellation was one of his favourite, for it always inspired in him a great sense of valour that he feared might not come naturally to him. He would have need, he told himself at that time to be brave lest he should fail in his last duty to Yoshinobu-donō.
*****
It was not long after they had passed Mt-Kusuyama as they journeyed thither to the Iron Bridge of Yotoku that a new incident took place. This was the incident that was to reshape their journey and to change the very course of their lives and to influence all attempts to plead with the Imperial Court. The finest bridge in this part of the nation, it had been constructed in the midst of the Wars of Darkness some three centuries prior, to facilitate the movement of provincial warriors to the west. Constructed by the likes of Tahara no Masashige, one of the finest members generals in the service of the Imperial family who had fought in the battle of Kusuyama and Ueyama in honour of Yotoku-tennō who perished in his arms in the battle of Nishitani just to the west of Kusuyama, across the river. One of the finest rulers in the history of the nation, Yotoku-tennō had with his last breath begged his general to continue the battle against the enemy, so that he had hurried to the rescue of their dearest friend Nohara no Satomine. Both battles had taken place in the west where the Dark Elves had first made their beachhead during their invasion of the islands of Zipangu.
The bridge had never endured an attack and was a place that inspired still a great deal of confidence and pride in the people outside the city of Miyakō. It was thus a place of some importance that connected east and west within the nation. It was also a place that connected together the different temples that lay to either side of the bridge with one of the greatest shrines in the area dedicated to the kami of the nearby mountain. It was there that a number of pilgrims tended to pour out from the principal city of the realm.
Familiar with the history of the shrine up near the top of the mountain and those en route to it, Satomine could still remember how his mother had spoken of the mountain in awed tones. His mother's love for this place which she had visited once upon a time in her youth with the boy's father was such that Satomine knew it better in some fashion than Tomizen, not that the older man wished to hear it.
"I will not hear of how much better you know this place, when we have one who has visited it; Yoshiyori-donō!" He was to proclaim at which time the uncertain youth glanced from one man to the other uncertainly.
"Yes, Tomizen however I must confess that I am not as familiar as one might believe, with this region as I only visited twice and that was before I had turned even six years of age." Yoshiyori replied earnestly before he added, "I know only the local song about how the Mountain-kami once fell in love with a rice-farmer's daughter and she birthed the bushi Masahide."
The tale was one that Satomine could well have recounted yet he bit his lip to keep from doing so, knowing all too well that Tomizen had no wish to hear it from him. The youth could well have recited the song from memory thankfully there was no need to, for Yoshiyori was to do so.
"There once was a rice-farmer,
He toiled the land harder
Than any other
Man, his daughter
Was prettier
Than any other
Her eyes were
As the moon,
Her hair as lovely as the night,
Her laugh was bright,
All who heard her, felt their hearts take flight,
O how they swooned,
How they chortled,
Until the Kami arrived,
Lonely as only a mount could be,
Sad and alone was he,
The summit of his home was white
As the whitest of plums,
Ne'er one to take flight,
Lo! How his furious gaze snuck
A glance, and didst become bright
As they found she of the rice-farm,
To her he gave spun gold,
This she wouldst not hold,
So that he offered rich food,
This she didst refuse also,
Wherefore he gave cloth of the richest sort,
This also she refused,
Her hair as lovely as the night,
Her laugh was bright,
All who heard her, felt their hearts take flight,
O how they swooned,
How they chortled,
Until the Kami arrived,
Furious that she didst reject him,
He thought her dim,
So that he came to her father to demand of him,
Her hand for which he offered him
Vast treasures and demanded to know of her,
This she didst approve,
So that away into the mountain home
Didst she go, alone
She didst go, and happily so into his home,
That she might mother Masahide in his home,
Her son she named after her father,
For her love, the Mountain-kami gave all he had,
For their son he gave all that had did not,
For her father, he gave rice incomparable
And a grandson who lives on in the stars!
Her hair as lovely as the night,
Her laugh was bright,
All who heard her, felt their hearts take flight,
O how they swooned,
How they chortled,
Until the Kami arrived."
The figure from the song was that of Masahide. He was the fiercest of bushi, and the worst of enemies who went on to fight near the beginning of the Second Wars of Darkness. Violent and ill-tempered he had however risen to the occasion and was said to have taught swordsmanship and archery to the likes of Takuma-tennō and also the likes of Satomine. It was his generalship that won a number of battles in the south-east of the island and also in parts of Montō before he died in the battle of Akaigawa.
It was when the song had ended that it happened. A cry pierced through the foggy morning air with all the bluntness of a great hammer smashing down upon a nail, or that of a great log being used to hammer at city gates in a siege.
The scream that resounded throughout the forest, was one that none of the three men had foreseen, distracted as they were by the heat that had risen to their cheeks as they quarrelled between one another. Both of them jumped what must have been some fifty or sixty feet into the air at the unexpected sound.
Alarmed they exchanged a quick glance before as one they hurried forward, using the reins to urge their steeds forward. Neither man was at all pleased at the discovery of a number of men, nine in total who were in the midst of hounding two young women by the side of the wooden-bridge that linked the two sides of the southern arm of Shitakawa that seemed to cut straight through the forest itself.
"No! No! No! Leave Tsubaki-donō be!" one of the women shrieked and pleaded, as she futilely beat her fists against one of the men's shoulders to no avail.
He was to cast her down to the ground with a great snigger, even as he and another man made to press themselves down upon her. All the while they attempted to do the same to the lady named Tsubaki, who dressed in the manner of a country-girl in a faded yellow woman's yukata attempted to stab at one of the men handling her friend. Once again this was to no avail as her umbrella was soon torn and cast aside.
"Come hither girl, that we might see the face that has caused such madness in Yorinaga!" the brigand growled at her, and reaching out an arm for the straw hat she wore.
"Come Tomizen! We must help her!" Satomine cried out, eager for battle and eager to prove himself not a coward as all those who belonged to the Takimoto clan had accused him.
"Wait, Satomine-san we do not know how many there are! Wait!" the middle-aged warrior yelled after him, desperate to make him see sense.
But it was too late.
Charging the enemy with a great deal more impulsive fury than he might otherwise have shown, arrow already notched as he galloped as quickly as he could possibly encourage the horse to. The dart flew through the air, slashing across the winds ere it hewed its way through the throat of one of the thieves.
The first man among them did not see the youth arrive until it was too late. Sword flashing, he was to be decapitated in a single swing of the youth's katana. Throwing himself off his horse in the next moment that he might avoid presenting as large a target, Satomine leapt aside from the next man's blow, only to find himself forced back a few steps by the next brigand who rushed at him in coordination with the other man.
"You two see to the interloper, while we assist these fine young ladies," the chief of the bandits bellowed at the two just as they threw themselves into a renewed assault against the young bushi.
The glum look followed by a curse, were followed by the brigands in question turning away to advance upon the 'interloper'. Neither man was terribly happy at having been selected for this particular duty, and was resolved to end it quickly if only that they might besmirch the honour of the two maidens also.
They did not make it very far before Satomine had thrown himself against them, with the same ferocity that he had exhibited before, against their compatriots. The first man parried his blow and was thrown back when the other man pushed him back. Losing his footing he very nearly tripped over his own feet and the edge of the great stone bridge.
The sword of his adversary slashed downwards at him, with all of the man's weight and strength behind it. This very nearly toppled him over down, down into the stream far below him. The world might well have lost him and the knowledge that he had carried south with him, were it not for the swift action of Yoshiyori who had raced to his side.
The youngest of their group was to tremble briefly under the scowl thrown in his direction, and might well have paid the price for his intervention were it not for Satomine running through the bandit with his own blade.
His distracted foe properly dispensed with, the bushi was to move to the next man parrying his blade which had been thrust at him swerving as he did so. The attempt to move from parrying the katana to hewing down the other man was one that most bushi might have hesitated to perform as it would mean leaving Satomine's right side open to attack. This he knew and yet he did not hesitate to perform this particular act, for by this time battle-fury was upon him and he could not truly bring himself to think in the same manner he was accustomed to.
The brigand for his part did not wear armour or even a war-helm, for none of them had foreseen that there might well be bushi on the road at this hour. They had thought only to lay a trap for the lady they had set their hearts and minds upon.
Two men defeated, Satomine was to move to dispatch a third parrying one desperate sword blow before he moved to slash the next one just above his wrist so that he howled with pain as his hand was slashed in half. This man was to lunge at the youth in the hopes that he might allow those behind him to slash and stab through him.
Yet Satomine saw through him and rolled to the left-hand side, a song on his lips and his heart battering against his chest as he moved. It was however Yoshiyori who tore him apart as he lunged forward with his own slash, which severed the man's head from his shoulders just as a new man threw himself before the one who had once been as a brother to him.
Satomine was to be pressed back against the side of the bridge. From the corner of his eye he was to see that the other bandits stared in astonishment and that the young woman that had so fascinated them had unsheathed a tantō as though to defend her friend in a futile gesture. Pressed backwards, it was this vision that inspired in him such passion, such fury that he was to growl and reach down with his spare hand.
He very nearly tipped over the edge of the stone rail of the bridge as he reached down for his own tantō, just before he drew it and slashed at his foe's belly. The other man shrieked so loudly that it froze all the other bandits where they stood, whereupon Satomine ended the other man's life.
It was with a start that he realized as successful as he had been in the act of slaying nearly half a dozen bandits, Tomizen had slaughtered one more than him and was hardly winded unlike him.
This worried him if distantly somewhere within his soul.
It was however swept aside as one of the ruffians, a great big man with dark brown hair, dark eyes and filthy dark garments cried out, "Back! Back to our lord! These brigands are much too fierce! Let no man fall behind!"
"Yes, indeed ye had best fly from this place filthy pigs, before ye all are gutted and spitted like the pigs that ye are!" one of the maids shouted after them as they began to take flight, to the laughter of Tomizen and Satomine, both of whom revelled in their victory also whilst Yoshiyori shook.
The young woman's rancour was to amuse the two men, who now took a solid look at her plump build with appreciation, both of them amused by her fury that had hidden beneath timid fear but a few moments prior. Her yellow kimono filthy now, even as she picked up her fallen umbrella to hold it above her liege-lady so as to cover her features from the burning suns and the newly arrived men.
When the last of the ruffians had fled, their numbers diminished from a healthy nine to a mere trio, Satomine made to give chase after them, when he was called to a halt by Tomizen. "Wait, wait you fool, we must see to the women!"
Annoyed at how the other man had barked out orders after him, the youth cast furious eyes back, only to swallow his frustration and battle fury when he saw the women trembling with fright. Feeling guilty, he was to swallow once more, and this time reached out a hand towards one of the two ladies. The first lady accepted his assistance, and he was to bow his head ever so slightly with her hat bowed low over her face, it was however the second that caused not only Satomine but Tomizen's breath to catch.
The lady was perhaps the fairest they had ever seen, in all their lives. If the goddess Amaterasu had suddenly come down into the islands as she was said, to have once done long ago she could not have shone brighter than this lady did. Though she was dressed in muted, and conservative fashion her clothes hugged her figure which was voluptuous and very much a womanly one. Her face was naturally heart-shaped, and pale in the way preferred by the men of the court. Her hair was dark, as were her piercing eyes and with her lips full and tempting in a manner not even Himari's were. In all, she was the most beautiful woman Satomine had ever laid eyes upon.
It was not simply him, but also Tomizen and Yoshiyori who at once when they set eyes upon the maiden that stared back at them in alarm found themselves tempted to swoon and stare at this maiden. Never before had they beheld such a vision so that each of them knew love then, of a sort they had never known before.
Only Satomine remembered Himari still, while the other two men knew then misery and passion never before known by either of them. They could not have known the disappointment and agony their passion was destined to bring them.
[1] Regent for an Adult Emperor