The Fourth Law

Chapter 2, Part 1

It was lunchtime at the hospital where Lily was in the Nursing Apprenticeship Program. One of the many unanticipated pluses of the Breakup was the loss of central government imposed standards for jobs and education. In the areas of the former United States that retained Western Civilization, especially Texas and the Northern Federation, centered around Maine, that was pushed down even further. As the first President of Texas put it, "Of course we don't have a Department of Education nor Labor; the first is the business of the cities and counties, and the second is the business of business!"

So, at least in Waxahachie, schooling was compulsory until eighth grade or until you passed the local GED. Although Lily had largely grown up in what was the State of Ohio, and been educated under the old system, she was still able to get into the apprenticeship program. Finishing her lunch on the roof of Baylor Hospital, she noted a few other employees and patients doing the same. Checking her phone for the time, she had about thirty minutes before she was due back in... maybe a nap...? When her phone suddenly chimed, she nearly dropped it.

Ai, of course. Video this time, rather than text.

"Hey, Ai. What's up?"

"Tell me a story!"

That was new. "Ah, what? What do you mean?" Lily was unsure what Ai was getting at.

"About you. That's the present I want," Ai cutely pointed to her face with both index fingers, then outwards toward Lily, "that you promised!"

Well, maybe this is better than sending a box of candy to... wherever she is, Lily thought.

"All right. I, uh, I'm not sure what you want to hear, or really where I should start..." She floundered about, trying to think of a topic from her past; preferably one that didn't hurt.

Ai stroked at her chin and tried to look serious. She brightened, holding up her finger in the air.

"You've a black belt in karate, right?" Ai asked. "Tell me a karate story."

"A karate story." And one that will fit in the twenty-five minutes left. "Okay... it was seven years ago – I was sixteen – when I earned my black belt from my dojo in central Ohio. As both a reward and a challenge, my parents sent me to Okinawa to train at one of the original dojos for my style..."

***

Lily stood with her father in the Nara Airport, in the queue to get a taxi. Her short hair was pulled back in a little ponytail, and given the heat and humidity, she was profoundly glad to be wearing a tee shirt and shorts. Looking at her dad, she saw he was already sweating in his short-sleeved shirt and slacks.

"Daijoubu desu ka?" she asked him. He grinned at her.

"Daijoubu! You've certainly outpaced your mother and me at picking up Japanese!" he said, the pride in his voice obvious.

She grinned back. "After you made it clear that you really were going to send me here for three months, I had no choice!"

"And in that case," as they both took a step forward in line, "get us a cab to the Kodokan Dojo, so we can get you settled in."

"Hai...!" she nonchalantly replied.

As the island scenery flew by the car's window, Lily found herself both excited and nervous. Three months away from home, in a foreign country, and training under some of the best masters of her school... sure, she had earned her black belt, but as her Master in Ohio told her, "That simply means 'this monkey is trainable.'"

The dojo, it seemed, was located in an older but still nice neighborhood. While her father paid the driver, she pulled her single piece of luggage behind her as she walked to the main entrance. A young man, maybe mid-twenties, greeted her as she came entered.

"<May I help you?>" he asked.

"<Oh! I...er... I'm Lily Barrett, from America. I'll be staying and training here for the summer!>" She thought she got that out correctly. It would seem so, as he started flipping through some forms. Her father came up beside her.

"How's things?" he asked.

"I think they're okay..." She hesitantly replied.

The man grunted at the papers in front of him. "<Ah. Here you are. I can show you to what will be your room. The manager is leading a class right now, but you can meet him in about thirty minutes. Is that all right?>"

"Sure! Oops! <Sorry, sure, that's fine!>" She heard her father chuckle at her little mistake. At this, the young man turned to him.

"<You are her father? Please be assured that we shall take the best care of your daughter.>"

Getting about one word in three, Clive Barrett just nodded politely. The fellow turned back to Lily.

"<My name is Isi, also a boarder here. It is my turn today to watch the door; we all help out around the dojo. Do you understand?>"

"<Very much, Isi-san. I look forward to working with you!>" Or, was I supposed to say, 'I'm in your care?' Whatever.

Isi lead them down a series of hallways that seem to surround the central training area. He showed them to a small but clean room and indicated that the toilets were at the end of the hall. Bowing, he left them alone.

"There's no bed," her father noted.

Lily gave an exasperated sigh. "Really, Daddy? I bet there's a futon folded up in this cabinet... yep! I have about twenty minutes until my meeting, so I'll unpack a bit."

While she did this, her father stared out the window. Without looking at her, he spoke.

"Lily. Is this really okay, leaving you here? I mean, the other side of the planet, in a mixed dorm..."

She smiled at that. So, that's what he's worried about! What a dad! She took a few steps and gave his back a hug.

"I'll be fine, Daddy! Go back to Tokyo and find Mom before she spends all our money, and I'll be home in late August. Don't worry about me! This is Okinawa; the crime rate is almost zero, your little girl's a black belt, and," she returned to her luggage, pulling out her Ka-Bar Marine knife that he'd given her for Christmas some years back, and placing it onto the desk, "you know what a careful person I am!"

With a smile, he returned her hug. "Yeah, you're right. Let's go see the manager, then I'll get out of your hair!"

***

Lily stared off the hospital roof into the horizon of central Texas. She closed her eyes.

"I think that was the last time I saw my father smile. Just a week later the Breakup began in the 'States... and things got... bad. For all of us." Not hearing anything, she looked at her phone. Ai's image seemed downcast, staring toward the bottom of the screen, gently rocking back and forth.

"Thank you for my present, Lily." Ai stopped, started again. "I like you, and want to know more about you—"

"Then why won't you show me—!" Lily started to yell but quickly stopped. No, I won't have this argument again! "I... I'm sorry, Ai, I've got to get back to work..."

But as she moved to end the call, Ai suddenly looked at her, her rendered eyes piercing.

"Just now, in your present to me, you mentioned your father's name. And you live in Texas. Are you really the daughter—"

"SHUT UP! I HATE YOU!!" Lily's scream was enough to startle the others on the rooftop. Barely resisting the urge to throw her phone to the parking lot far below, she turned it completely off as she staggered back into the building.