Training
He had slept little since the end of their conversation.
For many hours after Freya got into bed he was still fighting his anger. Several times he had made up his mind to leave the island, cut off Nakano and make the man pay for his crime. He knew the direction he was coming from- it would be easy. Then he would never get anywhere near her again.
But he knew this would be a horrible risk, if Nakano was to ellude him he would reach the island and Freya would be alone. He could not think about what would happen then.
So as the sun began to break through thick cloud, and the moon sunk low, he made his final decision. He would do what he could to help her train. And he hoped like hell that Tomoe arrived soon, to add her wisdom to Freya's defences. More importantly he hoped Tomoe would talk sense into Freya, convince her it was better to let him handle the kage. They had not spoken about it outright, but he felt she had plans that did not include him when it came to Nakano despite the deal made in the Matsukawa ravine.
He dressed hastily and went downstairs to order their breakfast. He was keen to avoid the fat nosy owner as offen as possible, as the obnoxious man was always asking questions thinly veiled with innuendo. This morning he was not spared the conversation. As he descended the last steps he could hear the fat owner berating his wife. He sat down on the mat atop a raised platform and waited for the tea to be brought out. "You look tired this morning tomodachi. Kept you up all night did she?"
"Breakfast to take upstairs please." He ignored the stupid question. Then thinking on his feet, he asked, "I wish to take the lady on a nature walk today. Where might you suggest we may go, remembering we do not wish to be interrupted?" He added a wink to amplify the point, hating himself for the gesture.
"Oh yes I know what you mean. I know the spot for you and the pretty lady, yes I do." He was rubbing his hands together and licking his lips. The combination was grotesque. "Follow the river inland behind the inn here, and about 30 minutes later you will come to a clearing at a bend in the river. There is a rocky overhang and some flat ground where the lady might want to lay down and rest." He continued to lick his lips, chuckling to himself. Blake was saved further conversation by the owner's wife with a tray of food and tea. He took the tray silently and made his way back to the room.
Freya was staring into the hearth when he entered. "Good morning," he said giving her what he thought would be his warmest smile. She returned the smile, but seemed self conscious.
They sat and ate their breakfast silently, until he could handle it no longer. "I am glad you....well, perhaps glad is not the word...." He looked down at his tea, muttering to himself, "This is difficult."
She was looking at him, concern on her face, so he added quickly, the words once uttered began falling, "What you told me.... I am relieved you feel you can confide in me. I do not think a burden such as that you shoulder should be carried alone."
He saw relief pass across her face, but it was gone in an instant, replaced by cold fortitude. "Thankyou, I appreciate the sentiment. This burden, as you put it, can only be mine though. Once he arrives then I will face him, and hopefully the outcome will be different to our last meeting."
She still had designs on facing him alone? Surely that was at best unwise, and worst suicide. But perhaps now was not the time to push the issue. She continued, "I did not tell you what happened so you could share my weight. When this is done, the only damage wrought should be on that man. Do you understand? I could not stand it if anyone else was hurt."
He did not know what to say. Instead he motioned to the swords, "We should get going. I asked the owner about a spot where we can go." He rose and got ready, and she followed his lead.
The walk served as an opportunity to clear his head. Once at the spot the owner had mentioned he removed his large overcoat and unsheathed the katana he wore of his right hip. He felt it was best to waste no time. "Have you ever held this type of sword?"
She shook her head.
He motioned for her to come closer and held out the katana. She took it gingerly as if it would bite. "Heavier than yours?"
"Much," she said. She took a closer look. It was a single blade, quite blunt on one side and razor sharp on the other. The craftsmanship was evident. "Who gave this to you?"
"Not important now," he did not mean to be dismissive, so he added, "It is a long story and I will tell you it one day."
"You have two?" she asked.
"Yes, I can fight with both or one, this depends on the situation. If I was fighting a few men, I would use both to defend both sides of my body and protect my torso from strikes. If I was fighting one man, particularly if he was strong, I would fight with one sword two handed."
"You have fought several men at once?" she seemed shocked.
He answered, "Yes."
"And you have lived?" there was a suspicious tone in her voice and he did not like it.
"Freya, I have fought many times, in wars, private battles, ambushes, hand to hand. If you are hell bent on fighting Nakano I will not stop you but I can show you how to defend and when to attack. If you do not trust my help, then why ask me?"
"Do you think I should use both jian?"
"Yes. He will expect you to fight with one, like you did last time. I think that with two, and taking the speed you have, you may be able to find an advantage."
She had removed the leather sleeves that held her swords when they arrived at the stone overhang. They were lying on the ground a few feet from her. She held out her open hands and both swords flew into her waiting grip. "Perhaps we could run through some defensive moves first."
He stood with his single katana, blade facing up but sword lowered, looking from the empty leather sleeves to the jian in her hands. He had never seen anyone do that before. He thought he had seen a magic trick. She noticed his surprise and looked down on the ground as if embarrassed. "He disarmed me fairly quickly last time. I have been able to teach myself some new skills."
Then she raised one jian high, holding the other low and stood waiting for him to attack.
They sparred for an hour, taking short breaks for her to catch her breath and for him to adjust her technique. She was very strong for her size and he noticed that she learned very quickly. He knew that she moved fast from the experience in the cave. He pushed her. Everytime she began to predict his moves, he stepped up the intensity and his speed. Twice he knocked a jian from her hand only to watch mystified as after hitting the ground it flew back into her grip. On the third ocassion he stood on the hilt before she could recall it. She glared at him. "He will do this you know," he said in a soft tone.
"I know," was her reply.
"Have you a plan?"
She shook her head, looking wildly around her, as if she expected the kage to arrive at any time. She looked like a caged bird. "I wanted to speak to Tomoe to see if she knew anything more about him, something I could use to my advantage. She must know him I think, if you say she is famous and fought in the war. Maybe she knew him? I hope she arrives soon."
He leapt up onto the rock that sat high above the creek bed. Taking a moment to connect to the messages he noticed that there was a threat on the wind, something bigger than Nakano. He decided to investigate it further that afternoon if he could find a moment to be on his own. He re-focussed his energy to look at messages of a more personal nature. There was a small boat approaching the south of the island but he could not make out any more information. He expected Tomoe to cloak her coming to avoid any possible connection to Freya. That was smart.
"I am not sure," he called to her, "but I believe that a boat may be only hours away." He jumped back down. Taking a few steps so he was a few feet away, "But it could well be anyone, possibly even the kage himself. It is always best to be on guard."
She looked instantly scared, as if with the flick of a switch. "I am not ready Blake."
"I am here Freya, should it be him, he will face four blades." She gave a weak smile. "Let's go back to the inn."
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