frowned a bit, not understanding his reasons still.
«Usually we kill anyone who attacks us. You, however, are different matter entirely.» Lord Ryuu explained. «You have… potential.»
«So you took me prisoner because I have… potential?!» Kara twitched her eyebrow.
«We took you, yes. Prisoner? No.» the man smiled. «For the moment you are my guest.»
«Who sleeps in a cage, yes.»
For a second she thought that some servant or guard would jump out and strike her down for talking so rude to the lord of the castle. But no one came – and Lord Ryuu started laughing.
«Only because you managed to kill four of my men.» He finally replied. «As I said before – potential. I could not let it go to waste in that graveyard of a world.»
«I still don’t understand why…»
«I am looking for people like you, Mariko. If you get to know my people better, you will find a lot of those who don’t come from this realm. They were stranded, and they were taken – just like you, and they have prospered here. Just like you can. You have skills that can blossom into something great. We can help each other.»
«But how do you travel between worlds?»
Lord Ryuu immediately became collected and serious.
«We do not travel on purpose.» He said. «The gates open once in a while and always lead to different realms. Sometimes we walk through the gates to scout if it is connected to the Dark Realm. On that day the gate took us to your world.»
«And you can’t open them again?»
«People do not open them.»
«Then who does?»
His black eyes pierced Kara to her heart with a cold and long stare before he answered:
«Oni.»
Kara froze – oni were demons in the vilest way they could ever be described. Destroyers and murderers that left nothing but blood and bones. She knew that – because she had seen them. Oni came through her world and kept coming in groups through some of the Shadow Rifts that were left after the dreaded experiment gone wrong.
«How long have you battled the oni?» she asked.
«Generations. Our gates started appearing a long time ago.» Lord Ryuu replied, concentrated on his food. «But we manage as best we can. And we find fighters like you and bring them here from their dying worlds.»
«Inei?» Kara whispered more to herself, but the lord heard her and chuckled.
«Yes, he too was a lost soul a long time ago. But he is now one of the most powerful men in the castle.» The man twitched his eyebrow and gestured towards the food. «Are you not hungry?»
Even though she was too lost in her thoughts, Kara took a little bit of meat and vegetables, but her appetite was very faint. She took a few bites not to insult her host and it gave her a little time to decide on what to ask him next.
«Has anyone tried closing the gates?» she asked.
«Yes. We have a number of capable… mystics who do this for us. But closing the gates is easier than battling the hordes of oni that can come out.» Lord Ryuu looked Kara straight in the eyes again. «You don’t seem to be at all shocked hearing of oni.»
«Yes, I… I have seen them.» Kara said quietly. «And killed a few. Small ones, but still.»
«And you did this all by yourself?»
«Yes. Why?»
A strange expression of acknowledgement and respect appeared on the lord’s face:
«You are much stronger than you appear, Mariko. Others might miss it, but I have an eye for potential and talent. You have both.» He said. «And you understand some things that others might find… barbaric and unacceptable.»
«Like executing three men…»
«Exactly! With all my searching I have come across various people. Most of them are not worthy of saving at all. They are weak, flawed, and either enjoy killing too much, or do not kill at all, even when it is absolutely necessary.» Lord Ryuu fell silent for a couple of moments, studying Kara’s face. «But you do not enjoy violence. You do not kill for the sake of killing. And you fight with honour.»
«I spent too much time surviving on my own. I kill only when threatened. That is why I killed your men – you kidnapped me and I was defending myself.»
«We had no time to persuade you. So I took the risk. And I am sorry to have snatched you from your home.» Lord Ryuu suddenly bowed. «But I could not let you die in that place.»
Kara looked down into her bowl. She knew that even if she could come back – there was nothing to go back to. Her world was dying and Lord Ryuu was right. Perhaps, he did what no one else could do for her – actually saved her from the lonely existence and constant survival that was slowly driving her insane.
«Inei said that you enjoyed my garden?» Lord Ryuu woke Kara from her thoughts, returning her to reality.
«Yes. Thank you. It was very beautiful.»
«I told Inei that he can take you out into all of the gardens within the castle walls. You will be able to see how we live and, perhaps, understand us better?»
«Thank you, Lord Ryuu.»
«I hope I have answered your questions?»
«Yes, quite.»
«Then, perhaps, you can tell me a little bit about yourself – where did you learn to fight like that and what you did back in your home world?»
Kara smirked and took a few bites of food before starting her story. She had nothing to hide and didn’t see any need in doing so. She told him everything he wanted to know.
3
* * *
Lord Ryuu was right about taking strolls in his gardens. Kara learned about the people and their traditions more by looking at how everyone lived – including the simple people, like the gardeners and servants who tended to the needs of people living within the castle walls.
She loved spending time in the gardens, and she didn’t mind her silent guard – the shinobi Inei, who followed her everywhere and never said a single word. She knew that he was watching her and studying her just like she was studying everyone else.
Her shoulder healed and she returned to her training every morning and evening, but she also found that having a little time to meditate in the garden was a pure bliss.
One day, as she was walking on a path she had never taken before, she came across a small pagoda with a drum inside. Intrigued, she walked in and found a monk sitting behind the drum and meditating.
Kara took her time looking at the beautiful carvings and paintings on the massive columns that held up an intricate roof of the pagoda, before the monk stood up and walked up to her, offering her two big drumsticks.
«You are welcome to pray, if you wish.» The monk said with a gentle smile.
Even though he was a young man, he spoke with such confidence and tranquillity that Kara felt a little lost. She glanced back at her shadow – Inei stood at the entrance and slightly nodded at her silent question.
She hesitantly took the drumsticks and stepped up to the drum.
«I’ve never prayed like this…» she said quietly.
«All you have to do is let your soul out and follow it through the beating of the drum.» The monk replied and stepped back, leaving Kara by herself.
She looked at the drumsticks and at the massive drum in front of her, then closed her eyes and sighed. For the weeks that she already spent in the castle there was enough in her