Part 33 (1/2)
I was just getting settled in when Mitsu literally burst into the room. It was not that difficult; the doorwas made from paper. She simply smashed right through it. As entrances went, it was pretty impressive.
”Oh,” I said. ”h.e.l.lo.”
She was across the room in record time. She didn't bother to walk; she did several handsprings, propelling herself forward, and it was a miracle that I was able to get out of the way in time. I did so by throwing myself to the floor to avoid her as she sailed over me.
She landed gracefully, bounced an inch or two to absorb the impact, and then whirled to face me.
”How could you?” she snarled, and came right at me.
I was still holding my walking staff. I angled it in her direction as she barreled toward me, and the four-inch blade snapped out of the mouth of the dragon. Mitsu realized her mistake too late, caught up as she was in the force of her rush at me, and she twisted her body to try and prevent the impact. She failed, and her chest slammed against the end of my staff.
She gasped, antic.i.p.ating the metal jamming into her. Then she froze there a moment, not quite understanding what had happened.
”You're all right,” I told her. ”I retracted the blade an instant before you hit it.”
Mitsu stepped back to see that I was telling the truth. The blade was gone, pulled back into its place of concealment. She rubbed her chest in irritation, scowling at me. ”I should kill you for that,” she said.
”I could have killed with that,” I reminded Mitsu. ”I don't desire you dead.”
”I wish I could say the feeling was mutual.” She was still angry, but she made no further attempt to attack. Instead she stalked the interior of the room, never taking her angry glare from me. ”After everything we've discussed, all the time we spent together... I thought I knew you, Apropos.”
”n.o.body knows anybody,” I said. ”We only know those aspects of others that they let us see. The true individual remains hidden from the world. And that's as it should be. Otherwise we'd all probably want to kill each other.”
”That's certainly true in this case.” Her fists were clenched and shook with suppressed rage. ”You swore loyalty to the Forked Tong, Apropos! And the next thing I know, you're accepting a position as my father's chief advisor? Why? Why are you doing that, when you carry the demon sword?”
”What does that have to do with anything?”
She dropped down onto a pillow on the floor. ”Veruh w.a.n.g Ho told me there was a great likelihood that you would return to the village where you found the sword. That if you didn't know the magic words that released the demon, you'd learn them there so the sword can be used to end my father's reign and perhaps force him to...”
”To what?”
”To do as the Forked Tong demands. His oppressive rule...”
”Mitsu,” I said in a very low voice lest someone overhear, ”I'm still on the side of the Forked Tong.” That stopped her cold. ”What? What are you--”
”Veruh's suspicion was correct: I didn't know the magic words. But I've learned how the sword works. I know what to do to unleash the power within.”
Her eyes widened at that. ”You... you know? You found out?” I nodded. ”But... how did you...?”
”By accident. The same way, I suspect, that Ali, my teacher, found out.”
”What is it? What do you say to--?”
I raised a finger and simply shook my head. ”No. No, for the time being, that remains my secret.
However, you are here as a representative of the Forked Tong. So my question to you becomes: What do you wish to do now?”
”I...”.
”Well? Come now.” I sounded annoyed with her. ”We have this weapon at our disposal. I have managed to put your father off his guard. He has no idea where my loyalties lie.”
”Nor do I.”
She sounded suspicious. I shrugged. ”What would you have me do to prove my loyalty? Would you have me execute your father? I could have done so earlier, you know. It would have been no great difficulty. But you could have done that. You live here in the palace. Certainly the opportunity presented itself, as I've pointed out. Instead what I'm told is that you've no immediate desire to do so. Why is that?”
Mitsu looked a bit confused, a swell of emotions playing across her face. ”Why... is what?”
”You call your father a tyrant. A brute. To you he is the most evil creature that ever walked the planet.” I started to raise my voice.
”And yet I sit here now, telling you that I possess a weapon that could easily put an end to him. Why are you not interested in that?”
”Shhh!” she said with some alarm. ”Keep your voice down! You never know--”
”No, I never do,” I said. ”I never know what you want from me. I never know what's truly going through your head. I never know what you or any of your shadow a.s.sociates want. But I'm going to d.a.m.n well find out.”
”Find out?” Her face was a question. ”How?”
”Tonight I go to kill the Imperior. I've had it with the lot of you. No one seems to know what they want around here. There's all this talk of honor and sacrifice and changes in power, and manipulation and secrets, so many secrets. Well, I'm flus.h.i.+ng it all out into the open. It ends tonight.”
”It can't!”
”Why?” I reached over, grabbed her by the wrist. ”Tell me why. Why can't it?” ”I can't!”
”Why not?”
”None can know!”
”Know what?”
And suddenly there was a flap of wings, and Mordant sailed into the room like a thrown javelin. He struck me in the chest with such force that he knocked me flat on my back. I looked up at him in surprise as he hovered over me and said, with more anger than I'd ever known him to display, ”Leave her alone.”
”This is none of your business, Mordant.”
”Oddly, Apropos, I get to choose what is and isn't my business.”
”Fine. You choose your business, then.” I stood and straightened my clothes, endeavoring to recapture some degree of dignity. ”Mine is with the Imperior. Tonight.”
”You can't!” she said with great urgency.
”I can. Why? Do you plan to stop me?” I tapped the demon sword with one hand. ”I would not advise it. Matters could prove ugly.”
She stared at me for a long moment. It seemed as if she were trying to bore deep into the recesses of my mind with her dark eyes.
”You're bluffing,” she said abruptly. She turned to Mordant.
”He's bluffing.”
”No,” I a.s.sured her. ”I am not.”