Tales from an Unknown Corner

The narrow footpath was irregular, and covered by overgrowth, suggesting it had not been used for a very long time. The pale light of a half moon didn't provide much illumination, and the slowly drifting clouds kept covering up the moon for extended periods. The woods around me were filled with the sounds of night creatures, alive with activity, and I kept listening for any changes in my immediate vicinity. I continued towards my destination at a steady but slow pace, taking care not to disturb anything. I was a silent ghost in the darkness, a predator among the nocturnal creatures; the nearby birds and bugs kept singing their tunes, taking no notice of my passage.

When I neared my destination I left the pathway, moving into the woods, and continued on my slow trek, the gentle slope taking on a steeper angle. At the edge of the woods, I hid in the shrubbery, and looked for signs of life. There was a small clearing between the woods and my target, devoid of any cover I could use for my approach.

When the moon cleared the clouds for a short while, I took in the structure. It was a bland, two story high stone building, without any distinguishing features. The wooden door looked to be sturdy, but it was half open; beyond it nothing but darkness. The windows were very small, with thick wooden shutters. It looked abandoned or empty, but every time I looked at it, I felt the hair rise on the back of my neck. There was something in there. I just didn't know what it was.

Doing a short reconnaissance using the cover of the shrubbery, I could find no entry points except the door. I could, of course, try the windows, but they could prove to be lethal traps. Checking the clouds, I decided to wait until the half moon was covered; the darkness would be my only cover when I made my move. Using the night vision binoculars, I tried to get a view into the building, to see what lay beyond the half open door. I couldn't see much, except that there were no obstructions such as furniture that would cause any problems when I rushed in through the door. Then, I took in the landscape carefully, memorizing the lay of the ground. Satisfied with the mental map, I sat down and closed my eyes, to regain my night vision and prepare myself for whatever I would be facing in there, waiting for the clouds to cover the moon.

A while later, I opened my eyes. It was dark, but not as dark as I would have liked it to be. Hiding my bag with the binoculars and other paraphernalia in the bush, I stood up and put my katana on my back, tightening the straps of the scabbard. Quietly, I moved along the edge of the woods, until I was facing the half open door at an angle. The frame was blocking my view of the edge of the door. If somebody was watching from inside, behind the door, he would have to lean to see my approach. On the other hand, I couldn't see into the building. All things considered, I was at a distinct disadvantage, as I didn't know as much as I would like to about the lay of the battlefield, what was waiting for me, what traps lay in store.

I approached the open door, at a crouch, moving as silently as possible. At a distance of thirty yards to the door, I stopped and listened, while checking the cloud cover. My timing had been correct; a thicker layer of clouds was moving across the moon, covering it completely, and suppressing what little light there had been. The next phase was the dangerous part.

Rising to my feet, I ran at a fast but quiet pace, angling towards the gap between the door and the frame in the last few steps of my approach. Just before clearing the door, I leapt in a dive, tucking my knees to my chest, and shot past the opening like a ball. When I hit the floor, I kept rolling. Quickly arresting my movement in a crouch, I changed direction and moved laterally, so that I wouldn't be an easy target. The whole sequence had not taken more than a few seconds, but they had felt like an eternity. I expected the burning pain of the cut from a blade or an arrow embedding itself on my flesh at any moment. I kept moving very slowly, while listening, and scanning my immediate vicinity for any threats. Once I ascertained there was no immediate danger, I stopped and took stock of my situation.

A quick exploration told me I was in a large room with little furniture; one table with a broken leg, and two chairs just behind the door. At the back of the room there were stairs going upstairs, but there was no light or sound coming from that direction. As I moved along the wall, towards the far left of the room, still exploring, I picked up the smell of burned oil and wax. Feeling along the walls opposite to the door I kept moving until I came across a recess, which turned out to be stone steps going down to some sort of basement.

Cautiously I made my way down, the stairs curving gently to the left. By the time I was half way down, the smell was getting more distinct, and there seemed to be a bit of light further ahead. When I reached the end of the stairs, I found myself staring at a narrow corridor. At the end it, there was a sharp bend to the left, where I could discern a flicker of very faint light. As I moved along I had the first warning signs of danger; ants crawling along my spine. Slowly I pulled my katana from its scabbard; the sound of the blade clearing its sheath loud in the dead quiet of the narrow passageway.

It took me a long time to reach the end of the passageway, as I proceeded at a crawling pace, checking the walls, and the floor for possible traps. When I reached the end of it, the smell of burned wax and oil was almost cloying. Taking a quick peek, I saw that the passageway extended a few paces before it took another sharp bend to the left, and the flickering light seemed to be coming from further away, possibly from candles or oil lanterns-if the smell was any indication.

Before moving further, I mentally checked the path I had taken, trying to figure out where I was. I had completed around 200 degrees of turn, relative to the stairs. Getting my bearings, I continued along, until I arrived at the sharp bend, and took a quick peek. The corridor extended several paces and curved right after that, and the light was stronger.

As I made my way, I had an image of myself as a mouse in a maze, but quickly chased the thought away and concentrated on my task. The sense of danger grew as I got closer to the bend. When I reached the bend, a quick glance revealed the passageway to be a short span of approximately ten paces, leading to a large and well-illuminated room, its wooden door completely open. Seeing no sign of life, I kept watching and listening, but I couldn't see any threats.

With my eyes on the open door, I made my way at a crouch, feeling around for any traps, all my senses screaming danger. Quickly clamping on them, I continued. When I was almost half way, I heard a faint noise. Closing my eyes, I listened, trying to discern its nature. It sounded like a moan or whimper, definitely human.

Standing up, I put my back against the wall, leading with my left hand and foot, feeling the wall and the floor. The katana was in my right hand, held straight, tucked along the back of my arm, the tip pointing upwards, and the hilt pointing down, as if it was a long knife. I continued at a crawling pace, getting a better view of the room with each step.

I had already determined the source of the sound, before I reached the door. It was coming from somewhere on the left side of the room, behind the door, and sounded female. Unfortunately the door was blocking my view. I had a better angle into the right side of the room, and kept moving cautiously. The room had a high ceiling, and from what I could see, there was a raised platform on the right side that ran the whole width of the room, with wooden boxes stacked on top of each other, and a small door. Below the platform there was a small table and a chair, but I couldn't see more into the right side without stepping into the room.

As I moved to the opposite wall, and checked the left side, I could only see a small portion of the room. There were shackles and chains on the wall, and based on the sound, I realized somebody was being kept prisoner, shackled to the wall, my view blocked by the heavy wooden door. The air inside was musty, and smelled heavily of burned oil and wax.

Despite the acute sense of danger, I stepped inside, quickly moving in a circle, and scanned for any threats, ready to face whatever danger that was awaiting me, until... Until my eyes caught sight of the prisoner... correction, prisoners!

Chained along the left wall in a row were Dana, Sarah, and Reina. Before I could even comprehend what I was seeing, I was on a dive to my right, rolling on the floor, and something whizzed passed my head, hitting the wall with a clung. Bouncing off the wall, it clattered on the stone floor with a metallic sound. Finishing my roll quickly, I sprang to my feet, and turned to face my adversary; my katana held in 'middle attitude.'

It was a carefully arranged trap. Wandering in the darkness ready for combat, the feeling of danger compounded by the adrenalin pumping furiously in my veins, only to find my loved ones shackled to the wall as prisoners. Whoever he was, he knew how I would react to seeing them like that, the momentary shock giving him the opportunity to launch his unexpected attack. And, he would have succeeded, if my instincts had not kicked in in time.

He was dressed in the traditional hakama, standing in the upper platform next to the wooden boxes-his hiding place-wearing a helmet and facemask. His katana was seated in the saya (scabbard) he held in his left hand. His right hand was resting on the tsuka (hilt) of his katana. From the metallic sound, I knew he had used a small blade, something like a shiruken that he probably had hidden within the folds of his obi.

With a casual attitude, he jumped down from the platform, landing on his feet, while I deflected a second projectile with the blade of my katana. He had flicked the shiruken almost imperceptibly; his right arm moving from left to right in a natural manner, to keep his balance during the jump. It was the sharp wrist action as he moved his arm that gave away his attack, but the manner his right hand was resting on the hilt of his sword instead of gripping it had been a subconscious trigger, warning me something was not right.

He was proving himself to be a tricky and a very dangerous foe. As I tried to prepare myself mentally for the confrontation, I couldn't help but wonder about his sword skills. I had a nagging feeling that I might be facing somebody who was more skilled than I was. Before I could chase the thought away, and clear my mind, he flicked another small blade, but this time he didn't even resort to any trickery. Why should he? I wasn't the target, as confirmed by a sharp scream from one of the girls.

I knew the bastard was trying to put me off balance, and he was succeeding. It took all my training to clamp hard on my feelings, but it was very difficult not to worry about the welfare of the girls. I knew I had to ignore such distractions. Against my better judgment, I quickly moved between him and the girls, to prevent any further attacks, even though I knew I was letting him dictate the terms of this engagement.

Remembering the words of my sensei, I controlled my breathing, seeking the Void, as my eyes took him in. Drawing his sword, he got ready, as I slowly started to immerse myself in the nothingness of the Void.

The attack came like lightening, and our blades clashed in a blur, before we disengaged. The next several minutes were spent probing and testing each other, and to my dismay I found I was having difficulty sinking into the Void. Time after time he attacked, and I barely managed to keep him at bay. As we circled each other, I knew he was playing with me like a cat plays with a mouse. With a sinking feeling I realized I hadn't yet seen the full scale of his skills. It was straight out of Musashi's book; 'Holding Down a Pillow', leading me about.

He attacked again, his speed and strength feeling almost inhuman, and I fell back, barely managing to parry. I felt a sharp, burning pain on my left arm, then the trickle of something wet. When my eyes caught sight of his blade, it was streaked with blood. My blood! He came at me again and I staggered back under the ferocity of his attack, getting slashed again, this time on my right thigh. He didn't let up. As he pressed his attacks I felt myself growing tired, hardly able to defend myself, and each time he drew blood.

My fingers felt numb, my grip on the hilt weakening as I tried to parry. I was panting with the effort, feeling light headed from lack of oxygen. Disengaging, he stood back, watching me, as if telling me something.

I took a step back, as the realization of defeat started to settle in. I tried to gather myself, but... this was it... the end! I knew it, and he knew it. He stood stock still, almost mocking me, filling the room with his presence. It was the last blow, 'Penetrating the Depths'; not only crushing the enemy but destroying his spirit. I lowered my sword, and turned half way towards the girls to take one last look at them, uttering a silent "I'm sorry!"

My eyes took them in one by one, shackled against the wall, in chains, and helpless. Reina and Sarah seemed to be unconscious, hanging by their wrists, and Dana was semi-conscious, moaning; her shirt was soaked in blood from the small wound where the small blade protruded from her shoulder. The image filled me with anger, turning into a burning fury. How could I let go so easily, when they were hanging there, helpless, with nobody to protect them?

Dragging the anger up from the depths of my belly, I felt its heat. Then, my training kicked in, and took control of it. I shaped it as if it was putty in my hands, and channeled it to every muscle and nerve ending. As it washed all over me like a cool breeze on a summer evening, calming me down, I readied myself to face my enemy, one more time, perhaps the final time. Hanging my head in defeat, I closed my eyes, and waited for his attack, completely at peace. I didn't have to wait too long. As soon as he saw me close my eyes, he came at me. And in a blur, I cut from right to left. Only to feel my sword being swept aside. Then, I felt a searing heat... and a burning agony that consumed me briefly, leaving me breathless... before it gave way to numbness.

I heard the sound of something heavy clattering to the floor, and when I opened my eyes, I saw a sword on the floor with a severed hand still gripping its hilt. I didn't comprehend what had happened. As my eyes swept up, I noticed the blood spurting from the end of my wrist... Before the comprehension hit me, a strange noise like the buzz of an angry bee filled the air. I looked up trying to locate the source, and for a split second I caught a flash...