Death's Sword Book 1: Finding and Seeking

Chapter 8, part 4: Day 12

Kleymin leant hard on the door and pushed with all his might. Slowly, the great stone slab swung into place, sealing the opening. Its closing made a hollow boom echo about the chamber. The boy dropped the bronze bar into place and fell to the floor, panting. He was bleeding from numerous cuts and grazes, none of them serious. He was concerned about his left arm, however. Using the steel katana he had won in one brief fight, he carefully cut open his sleeve, to get a better view of the wound. He breathed a sigh of relief; a long but shallow slash was now visible. It had felt much worse than that. Dark red blood oozed from the length of it, trickled warmly towards his elbow. Cutting strips of cloth from the remains of his sleeve, the boy bound the cut as well as he could. Then he looked around for the first time. He appeared to be in one of the food stores beneath the citadel. There were great wooden vats festooned with cobwebs marching into the darkness beyond the pool of his torchlight. The ninja knew that these would hold kjava grain, stored in case of siege. He saw a pair of green eyes glowing at him from the darkness. One of the castle cats, used to keep down vermin. Or possibly a mongoose, he couldn't tell. His breath regained, Kleymin climbed back to his feet. He would have to try and find another exit from the chamber. He was not sure if the klchzak was still pursuing him or not. He'd lost it during one of the many melees during his flight. Something nagged at him as he started to explore the room. Somewhere, he had missed the significance of something. What was it? Useless to worry after it, like a terrier with a rat. Let it surface by itself. With these thoughts, Kleymin held the torch higher and continued moving around the room, dark brown eyes steadily absorbing all the details the light revealed. Massive grey stone pillars supported the ceiling at regular intervals. Archways led off into further chambers, with inky black shadows lurking in the corners. Motes of dust kicked up by his movements sparkled in the light, tickled at his nose. He sneezed once, twice, in quick succession. The faint, peppery odour of kjava lay heavily in the air, irritating his nostrils further. Kleymin shivered as he started to cool down after his exertions. It was cold in the big room. Cold but quite, quite dry.

"So you used a spell of Summonsing and succeeded in calling the klchzak." said Ishimata, gravely. "Interesting that you managed to draw it back from its state of dissipation. Very interesting." Kneeling before the pool of liquid, he saw Takata bob his head. "Yes, master. The boy was a traitor, a nukenin. Did I act incorrectly?" the apprentice mage asked, earnestly. A wisp of heavily-scented smoke passed between them, temporarily obscuring Takata from Ishimata's view. The old seer rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I do not know. It was full of risk for yourself but probably as good as any action you could have taken. It was quickly thought out and acted on, too." Ishimata saw the tiny image of Takata flush with pleasure at this little compliment as he continued, "I am not convinced you understand the risks you took, however. I am please you were able to escape - and somewhat surprised. It is very strange that you did indeed summons the klchzak. From what little I know of them, I would have expected it to still be dispersed by the earlier bite of iron and the enchantment on Da-keimin's blade. We must get that sword back, and quickly. Hmmph. Return here; I have many questions for you." Ishimata broke the connection and raised his head.

A figure moved soundlessly within the smoke-filled room, loomed suddenly over Ishimata as the mage knelt by the tiny fire. The mage knew well the shape of that figure. He could feel the prickling, icy aura of power that always lay like a storm-cloud around the head of the ninja clan. "Well?" asked Murito, having been unable to hear any of the conversation between mage and pupil, "What went wrong?" The seer was silent for a few seconds, considering the facts. Finally, slowly, he replied, "There are many forces at work here. It is beyond my powers to give you all the answers now. The facts are these." Speaking briefly, yet covering all the salient points, Ishimata recounted Takata's report. The vapours that had filled the room slowly dispersed as he spoke, leaving the air cold, clammy, clinging unpleasantly to exposed skin as though feeding on the life within. Murito's face was an expressionless mask but Ishimata saw a brief flare of fury in the hard, black eyes as the story reached the point of Kleymin's betrayal of his companions. When the clan-head spoke, his mouth opened and closed like a trap. "I will be calling an immediate meeting of all the tutors in the main hall. Be there." Ishimata bowed low, his forehead touching the ground. When the seer raised his face, Murito was gone, without a sound to mark his passage. Ishimata pulled a face and slowly began gathering some of his utensils and powders into a small heap on the floor. Even without the use of magic, he could foresee that he would have need of them shortly...