He knew Horace couldn’t be thinking of this as an escape route for the entire party. There were over four hundred Kikori with them now, many of them women and children. It would take weeks to get everyone down this steep path to the mountain plateau below. And even if you could get everyone down, they would be seen almost as soon as they tried to escape across the open ground at the bottom.
Horace shrugged and didn’t answer. It was just a vague idea stirring in his mind. Everything he had done so far had been purely defensive. Rebuild the palisade. Find this track, which instinct had told him must be here, and set up defences. But it was in Horace’s nature to attack, to take the fight to the enemy, to surprise them. This track could make that possible. Although how he was going to mount an attack against professional warriors with only hastily trained timber workers, he had no idea. Not for the first time, he recognised the fact that he wasn’t a planner or an innovator. He knew how to organise defences. He could study a position, assess its potential weaknesses and move to strengthen and reinforce them. But when it came to devising an unexpected or unorthodox method of attack, he simply didn’t know where to begin.
‘I need Halt or Will for that,’ he muttered to himself.
Reito looked at him curiously. ‘What was that, Kurokuma?’
Horace shook his head. ‘Nothing important, Reito-san. Let’s follow this goat track down to the bottom.’ He set out after Mikeru. As usual, the young man had forged ahead of them, leaping like a mountain goat from one rock to another.
At the bottom, the narrow track let out onto level ground. The entrance was well concealed. After a few metres, the gully made a sharp turn to the right. To a casual glance, it appeared to be a blind rock wall ending in a shallow indent in the face of the mountain. Shrubs and trees had grown over the entrance as well and larger rocks were piled across it. Horace was willing to bet that hadn’t happened by chance. The main entrance to the valley that led up to Ran-Koshi was around a bluff, about three hundred metres away and hidden from sight.
Horace studied the ground.
‘Say you brought a hundred men down. Single file. No packs. Just weapons. It would take the best part of a day. You could keep them concealed here while they formed up. Maybe do that in the dark so there was less chance of being seen.’
Once again he didn’t realise he had spoken his thoughts aloud. He was a little surprised when Reito answered him.
‘You could do it,’ he agreed. ‘But who are these hundred men you’re talking about? We have barely forty Senshi fit and ready to fight now and Arisaka will have ten times that many.’
Horace nodded wearily. ‘I know. I know,’ he said. ‘I just can’t help thinking. If we had a decent fighting force, we might be able to give Arisaka a nasty jolt.’
‘And if we had wings, we might be able to fly safely over the top of his army,’ Reito replied.
Horace shrugged. ‘Yes. I know. If, if and if. Well. We’ve seen the back door. Let’s get back up to the valley.’
Climbing back up took even longer. It was near dusk when Reito and Horace emerged from the tumble of rocks. Their clothes were torn in several places and Horace was bleeding from a long scrape on his right hand, where he had unsuccessfully tried to stop himself sliding back down a steep pile of gravel and shale.
‘You were right,’ Horace told his companion. ‘It would be impossible to climb up there and fight a determined defender at the same time.’
‘Let’s just make sure we’ve got defenders in place,’ Reito said.
Horace nodded. Another detail to take care of tomorrow, he thought.
As they stumbled down the last of the slope leading to the gully, voices began calling out to them. Horace narrowed his eyes against the gathering dark. There seemed to be a large group of people assembled by the open-sided hut that had been constructed as a communal eating house. He led the way towards them but one of the Kikori detached himself from the group and ran to meet them.
‘Kurokuma! Come quickly. We’ve caught five spies!’
The assembled group of Kikori and Senshi parted before them as Horace and Reito pushed their way through. The young warrior saw the captives, surrounded by an escort of armed Kikori, and his heart lifted with indescribable joy. For the moment, the five newcomers were facing away from him and hadn’t noticed his arrival.
‘Kurokuma!’ called the escort leader, shoving through the small crowd to greet Horace. ‘A patrol caught them on the lowlands, near the coast. They won’t say why they’re here. We think they’re spies. They’re foreigners,’ he added, as an afterthought.
‘So they are,’ Horace replied. ‘Perhaps we should have them flogged. That might loosen their tongues.’
At the sound of his voice, the prisoners turned and saw him. There was a moment of non-recognition, due to the fact that he was wearing Nihon-Jan clothing – trousers and a thigh-length Kikori robe over his shirt, held in place by a sash. A fur cap, low down on his head and with side flaps to protect his ears from the cold, completed the outfit.
Then Evanlyn let out a rising shriek of delight.
‘Horace!’ Before the startled Kikori could stop her, she bounded to him and threw her arms around his neck, hugging him so fiercely that he found it difficult to breathe properly. Two of the men who had been guarding the group moved to drag her away but Horace stopped them with a hand gesture. He was quite enjoying having Evanlyn hug him.
‘It’s fine,’ he said. ‘They’re friends of mine.’ A little reluctantly, he disengaged from Evanlyn’s hug, although he was pleased that she remained close by him, her arm possessively around his waist. He grinned at Halt, Will and Alyss as they, too, recognised their old friend in the guise of a shabbily dressed, unkempt Nihon-Jan lumberjack.
‘I have no idea how you all got here,’ he said. ‘But thank god you did!’
The Kikori, still puzzled but now realising the foreigners posed no threat, stood aside as the three Araluans surged forward to greet Horace, slapping his back – in the case of Will and Halt – and hugging him again in the case of Alyss. Evanlyn didn’t relinquish her hold around Horace’s waist and, when she deemed the hug had gone on long enough, she moved him subtly away from the Courier’s embrace.
For a few garbled moments, they all spoke at once, in a mad babble of unanswered questions and declarations of relief. Then Horace noticed an unfamiliar figure, hanging back from the others. He looked more closely.
‘Selethen?’ he said, surprise in his voice. ‘Where did you spring from?’
The tall Arridi stepped forward then and, in the manner of his people, embraced Horace, then made the graceful hand gesture to mouth, brow and mouth.
‘Horace,’ he said, a broad smile on his face. ‘How good to see you alive and well. We’ve all been worried about you.’
‘But…’ Horace looked from one familiar face to another. ‘How did you come to…?’
Before he could finish the question, Will interrupted, thinking to clarify matters but only making them more puzzling – as so often happens.
‘We were all in Toscana for the treaty signing,’ he began, then corrected himself. ‘Well, Evanlyn wasn’t. She came later. But, when she did, she told us you were missing, so we all boarded Gundar’s ship – you should see it. It’s a new design that can sail into the wind. But anyway, that’s not important. And just before we left, Selethen decided to join us – what with you being an old comrade in arms and all – and…’
He got no further. Halt, seeing the confusion growing on Horace’s face, held up a hand to stop his babbling former apprentice.
‘Whoa! Whoa! Let’s take it one fact at a time, shall we? Horace, is there anywhere we can talk? Perhaps we should sit down quietly and catch up with what’s been going on.’
‘Good idea, Halt,’ said Horace, relief evident in his tone.
Will stopped, a little embarrassed as he realised that he had been running off at the mouth.
‘Anyway, we’re here,’ he said. Then the embarrassment fa
ded and he couldn’t stop a broad grin breaking out on his face at the sight of his best friend. Horace responded in kind. He instinctively understood that Will’s outburst was the result of intense relief that he, Horace, was safe and well.
Horace introduced his friends to Reito, who bowed in the Nihon-Jan fashion as he greeted each of them. The Araluans bowed but Horace, accustomed now to the action, saw that they were a little stiff and uncertain in their reply. Selethen was the only one who managed a graceful response, combining the bow with the standard Arridi hand gesture. The assembled Nihon-Jan stood by, interested spectators to all this. Once Reito had greeted his friends, Horace introduced them en masse to the watching Nihon-Jan. The Kikori and Senshi all bowed. Again, the newcomers responded.
‘Lot of bowing goes on in this country,’ Will said, out of the corner of his mouth.
‘Get used to it,’ Horace told him cheerfully. The sense of relief that he felt at the sight of his old friends was almost overwhelming. He had been beginning to feel out of his depth.
The assembled Nihon-Jan, seeing that the newcomers posed no danger, began to drift away.
‘We’ll go to my cabin to talk,’ Horace said. ‘Reito-san, would you ask the Emperor if he would see us in half an hour? I’d like to present my friends.’
‘Of course, Kurokuma,’ Reito replied. He bowed briefly and turned to hurry away. Horace responded automatically with a swift bow of his own.
Will, watching, mimicked the action uncertainly, not sure if he was supposed to join in or not. ‘Does everyone bow to everyone here?’ he asked.
‘Pretty much,’ Horace told him.
The one-room cabin that the Kikori had built for Horace was roomy and comfortable. His bedroll was folded away in a corner. A low table had been built and was placed in the middle of the timber floor, while a small charcoal-burning grate created a cheerful circle of warmth. The group of friends sat around the table and exchanged details of events over the past few months.
‘I don’t know what’s happened to Atsu,’ Halt said as they came to the end of their tale. ‘He’s probably going frantic down there at the camp.’
‘I’ll send someone to let him know you made it here. He won’t find any of the local Kikori,’ Horace said. ‘They’re all here with us. The ones who ran into you were a patrol we sent out to watch for Arisaka’s men,’ Horace said. ‘But tell me, why didn’t you just say you were looking for me – or Shigeru?’
He addressed the question to Alyss, as she was the Nihon-Jan speaker in the group. She shrugged.
‘We weren’t totally sure who we were dealing with,’ she explained. ‘We didn’t want to mention the Emperor in case they were allied to Arisaka. I guess they felt the same way about us. They seemed to think we were spies. They probably distrusted us because we’re foreign.’
Horace nodded thoughtfully. ‘I guess so.’ He was still a little overwhelmed by the sight of Alyss with short, dark hair.
‘And they never mentioned you,’ Will put in. ‘All we could get out of them was that they were taking us to “Kurokuma”. We didn’t know if that was a place or a person. What does it mean, by the way?’
‘I’m told it’s a term of great respect,’ Horace said, unwilling to admit that he didn’t know.
‘Tell us more about the Emperor,’ Halt said. ‘You’re obviously impressed with him.’
‘I am,’ Horace agreed. ‘He’s a good man. Kind and honest and incredibly courageous. He’s trying to better the lot of the common people here and give them a bigger say in things.’
‘Which is, of course, why Arisaka hates him,’ Halt said.
‘Exactly. Shigeru has the courage not to back down from Arisaka, but unfortunately, he isn’t a military leader. He was trained as a Senshi, of course. All members of his class are. But he doesn’t have the wider military skills – no idea of tactics or strategy.’
‘That was Shukin’s role, I take it?’ Evanlyn said.
A sad look came over Horace’s face. ‘Yes. He took care of that side of things. I think his death has shaken the Emperor very badly. He needs help.’
‘Which you’ve been providing,’ Selethen said quietly. Horace shrugged.
‘I couldn’t just leave him to fend for himself. His other advisers are courtiers, not war leaders. And any experienced warriors are too junior to plan a major campaign.’ His face brightened. ‘Which is why I was so glad to see you lot.’
‘Perhaps we should go and meet this Emperor of yours,’ Halt said.
Shigeru greeted them courteously, welcoming them to his country and asking for details of their journey. He apologised for the situation they now found themselves in.
‘Arisaka has thrown my country into disarray,’ he said sadly. ‘I’m afraid I can’t welcome you with the honours you deserve.’
Halt smiled at the Emperor. ‘We don’t deserve too much in the way of honours, your excellency.’
‘Any friends of Kurokuma,’ Shigeru said, indicating Horace with an inclination of his head, ‘deserve great honour in this country. Your young friend has served me well, Halto-san.’
On the way to the Emperor’s cabin, set at the head of the valley, Horace had quickly explained some of the vagaries of Nihon-Jan pronunciation.
‘They seem to find it difficult to finish a word with a hard consonant, like “T”,’ he said. ‘Usually they’ll add a vowel after it. So if you don’t mind, Halt, I will introduce you as “Halto”. Will can be “Wirru”.’ He paused to explain further. ‘“L” is not a sound they’re totally comfortable with, either.’
‘I suppose that’ll make me “Arris”?’ Alyss said and Horace nodded.
‘What about Selethen and me?’ Evanlyn asked.
Horace considered it for a moment. ‘The L’s in your name will probably be a little slurred,’ he said. ‘And they’ll pronounce all three syllables in your names with equal emphasis. You won’t be E-van-lyn or Sel-eth-en, as we say them. They don’t stress any one syllable more than the other. They’ll say all three in a sort of staccato rhythm.’
He had proved to be correct. Shigeru listened attentively as Horace introduced his friends, using the adapted names he had given them, and then repeated them carefully. Of course, the polite term ‘san’ was added to each name as well.
After the formalities were taken care of, Shigeru sent for tea and they all sipped gratefully at the hot drink. There was a sharp edge in the weather – the heavy snows would soon be starting.
Horace regarded his cup. Green tea was all right, he thought. But it wasn’t his favourite beverage.
‘I don’t suppose you brought any coffee with you?’ he asked the two Rangers.
‘We’ve got some,’ Will replied and as Horace’s eyes brightened, he continued, ‘But it’s all at our camp site on the coast.’
‘Oh. Just when you got my hopes up. I’ll send men to bring your gear up here,’ Horace said.
Shigeru had been following the exchange with a smile. Horace’s relief was obvious now that his friends were here – particularly the older, bearded man. Shigeru knew that Horace had taken on a lot after Shukin’s death and he had worried it might be too much of a burden for such a young man. Now, he could share that burden, the Emperor thought. And he instinctively felt confidence in the abilities of this Halto-san to find a way to oppose Arisaka. Horace had told him a great deal about the enigmatic Ranger over the past weeks.
‘Kurokuma has been missing his coffee,’ Shigeru said.
‘Your highness?’ It was the younger of the two Rangers, obviously with a question, and Shigeru nodded for him to continue. ‘What is this name you’ve given him? Kurokuma?’
‘It’s a title of great respect,’ the Emperor replied gravely.
‘Yes. So Horace told us. But what does it mean?’
‘I think,’ Alyss began uncertainly, ‘it has something to do with a bear? A black bear?’
Shigeru inclined his head towards her. ‘You have an excellent understanding of our language, Arris-san,’ h
e told her.
She flushed a little and bowed in response to the compliment.
Horace, who had been trying to find out the meaning of Kurokuma for some time now, was pleased to hear the translation.
‘Black bear,’ he repeated. ‘It’s undoubtedly because I’m so terrible in battle.’
‘I’d guess so,’ Will put in. ‘I’ve seen you in battle and you’re definitely terrible.’
‘Perhaps,’ said Halt quickly, heading off any further exchange between them, ‘we might take a tour of the defences. We’ve taken up too much of his excellency’s time.’
‘Please, Halto-san, call me Shigeru. I don’t feel like an excellency in these mountains.’ His gaze travelled round the others. ‘All of you, please, call me Shigeru-san. It will save a lot of bowing and scraping.’
His smile embraced them and they all murmured acknowledgement. Then, as they began to rise to their feet, he held up a hand.
‘Princess Ev-an-in,’ he said, ‘perhaps you and Arris-san can stay and talk further. I would like to learn more about your father and his Kingdom of Araluen.’
‘Or course, your exc–’ Evanlyn began, then stopped herself at his admonishing finger. ‘I mean, of course, Shigeru-san.’
First order of business was to inspect the progress of repairs to the palisade.
Halt was silent for several minutes as he studied the weakened western section. The Kikori work gang assigned there were busy digging foundations for new vertical beams. They were well organised and the work was proceeding smoothly. The Kikori, after generations of cutting and hauling the immense mountain trees, were used to working together, with minimum confusion. Everyone was assigned a task and carried it out efficiently. Will watched one group as they went about raising a massive baulk of timber over one of the foundation holes. They worked smoothly and efficiently, reacting instantly to instructions shouted by their foreman.