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Lightning arced across the black night sky accented by a powerful clap of thunder echoing down the Watanabe Pass. The violent thunderstorm assaulted the Red Frog Inn all evening and now as night embraced the inn the storm continued to rage, trying its best to wash the inn off the pass. The Red Frog was a pleasant inn along the side of a road that ran through the only mountain pass for forty miles which connected the kingdoms of Nokota and Johko, which made the Red Frog a very prosperous inn. But tonight not a soul dare venture out on the pass for fear of being washed off the road and over the treacherous cliffs that populated the entire pass. **************************
Reiko woke with the sun, feeling refreshed and happy not to hear rain hitting the roof. Reiko slipped her sandals on and stretched. She was ready for a dry and sunny day. She descended the stairs into the kitchen and found Yuki already preparing breakfast. That was odd because Yuki usually was the last to get up. " Morning" said Reiko. " Morning" said Yuki, still dressed in her kimono from last night. " Up late entertaining the samurais?" asked Reiko. Yuki smiled, " Of course" she said, " I found an easy mark." Yuki showed six gold coins to Reiko, " I hope he stays all week, I'll be so rich I can open my own store in town" she said. Reiko looked in surprise at the coins, " We aren't helping ourselves are we?" asked Reiko. " No, no" she replied, " I wasn't even expecting to get paid this time, he just gave them to me after we finished. I really gave him a real work out." Reiko and Yuki prepared breakfast but the samurai didn't rise until mid morning. Hiroki looked worse than last night, in the bright light of the day he looked near dead. They ate breakfast quietly and then started taking turns pacing back and forth across the road waiting for someone. " Reiko" said Yuki, entering the kitchen fresh from her bath, " we're you upstairs last night?" " Yes, I thought I saw lights in one of the rooms" said Reiko, " I thought it was you or maybe one of the samurai." " No, I didn't leave his room all night" said Yuki, " but didn't you go back an hour later?" " No" said Reiko, " did you hear something?" " We were having a rest and we both hear footsteps going down the hall and looking through the rooms" said Yuki, " after twenty minutes I thought there was something up so I got dressed and went looking. I didn't see anybody but I smelled lilacs." " I did too" said Reiko, " you don't think a fourth samurai is here?" " It might explain some of their odd behavior" said Yuki, " think something has gone wrong?" " I don't know but I think once we've finished serving lunch we should have a thorough look through here and see if they brought a friend" said Reiko. Reiko made her way out to the road where the three samurai where standing to tell them it was time for lunch. As they went inside, Reiko felt Hiroki grab her arm. " You must leave here" he whispered, his eyes staring deep into Reiko, " death is coming, you must flee or you will die too, like all the others have." Reiko shook Hiroki's grip off and hurried inside. She shook off Hiroki's words, the Watanabe pass had changed hands three times since she was born, both sides treated them extremely well, true the Johko liked to tax them a little heavier but their rocky kingdom offered them few options for revenue. The samurai ate lunch like they ate breakfast, quietly and tensely. After the dishes were cleaned the two women began to casually search the guest rooms, then the hallways, the bath house, the kitchen, the employees rooms, the store house, the kitchen, even the their rooms but found absolutely nothing. Convinced they were probably just hearing things went back to the kitchen to prepare dinner. It was late in the evening, the storm clouds were starting to gather once again in the west preparing for the second round against the Red Frog. It was as the sun was dying in the west, scattering long rays of orange sunlight across the pass when a rider appeared coming up from the south end of the road. His approached was announced by Hiroki's panic shouted, " He is here! He is Here!" Both Reiko and Yuki rushed out to the road and saw a magnificent samurai, in beautiful handcrafted armour, his flag on his back, stopped and tipped his helmet back to stare in confusion at his men who stood before him. " What is going on?" he asked. " There is trouble in the fortress" said Taiko, sweating nervously. " Then we better go inside and discuss it" he said. He dismounted his steed and offered the reigns to Reiko, " I am Mamoru Umetsu" he said with a slight bow, " please stable my horse and prepare a room for me, I do not believe the weather will be good for traveling tonight." " Certainly" said Reiko, slightly blushing at the sight of such a dashing and handsome warrior. Reiko quickly took the horse into the small stable by the store house and quickly rushed back in through the kitchen entrance. Yuki was peeking out of the purple curtain, " What's going on?" asked Reiko. " I don't know" said Yuki, " they went into the private dining room and closed the door." " Do you know if they want food?" asked Reiko, intent on knowing what was going on. " I don't know, why don't you go ask?" asked Yuki, poking Reiko in the butt to make her move. She walked across the dining area to the door with a waterfall painted on its screens and gently knocked. The door slid back and all four men glared at Reiko, " May I put out dinner for you gentlemen?" asked Reiko. " Yes please" said Mamoru, gently sliding the door closed. Mamoru turned back to the three squirming men, " This is truly an amazing story" he said, " I'm not sure what is more amazing, the stupidity of Matsuda or what happened afterward. You're sure they were raiders? Or Ninja?" " No" said Taiko, " we would have been able to stop them." " Well we shall stay here this evening" said Mamoru, " tomorrow we will rejoin General Sonada and inform him of this event. Miya, you are the only officer of this shameful deed left, you will have to take responsibility." " Yes sir" he said, his head hung low. " Now the events of the past few weeks are clear" he said, " you're dishonor is great, once you have answered to General Sonada I will help you regain your honor." Taiko nodded, he knew this was the only way out, but at least he could have another night with Yuki. Reiko laid out the dinner for the men and watched as they exited the private room and sat to eat. The original three samurai drank a great deal of sake with dinner, Reiko assumed it was to drown their troubles, but Mamoru didn't touch a drop. They managed to drain almost all the bottles in the inn before Mamoru sent them to bed. He walked to the front doorway and looked out at the rainy night. Reiko quietly walked into the dining room to start clearing the table. " Thank you for you're excellent hospitality" he said, not turning around, " I have heard your baths are the best in the kingdom." " Yes, yes they are" said Reiko, " if you wish to use them I can show you the way." " Please" he replied. Reiko led him to the baths and returned to the kitchen where Yuki was finishing up washing the dishes. " Not going to entertain Taiko tonight?" asked Reiko. " He is drunk beyond reason" said Yuki, " and when he is drunk apparently things don't work the way they should." Both girls giggled and returned to cleaning up. Reiko finally climbed the stairs after over an hour of cleaning. She listened to the thunder rumbling over head and the rain gently hitting the roof. At least it wasn't raining as hard as it did last night she thought as she walked into her room. She slipped her sandals off and rubbed her tired feet. She flopped down on the bed and prayed her parents would return tomorrow, this entire inn was a heavy load to carry. Reiko slowly dozed off thinking about what was going on with those samurai. Reiko was snapped out of her sleep by the most awful scream she'd ever heard. It was worse than the time that baby was born in the dining area. Reiko hurriedly stumbled down stairs without her sandals and bumped into an equally groggy Yuki in the kitchen. " What was that?" she asked. " I don't know, I'm going to check on the samurai" said Reiko. The women exited the kitchen and crossed to the dining area. They entered the guest rooms and found the other samurai standing around Hiroki's door. " What is going on?" asked Reiko. " We heard Hiroki scream" said Nezu, " now we can't get the door open." " Try again" said Mamoru, " this door can't be that strong." Nezu and Taiko again tried to force the door open, this time it violently slid back, slipping the pair into the room. Everyone stepped back in horror of the sight that assaulted them. Hiroki lay flat on the floor, his head sliced clean from his shoulders. Blood stained the entire room in an almost neat pattern. The smell of lilacs hung heavy in the room. The trained eye of Mamoru could easily see what had transpired. Hiroki was standing this is back to the window and turned, as he did his attack cut his head from his shoulders and his body spun around, spraying blood in the arcs on the wall. But everyone one was wondering where was the head? It was nowhere to be seen. " Lord" gurgled Taiko, feeling the sake rising up his throat. Taiko ducked into the hall and violently threw up. " Not again, not again" he muttered over and over still bent at the waist. Both Reiko and Yuki just stood there in wide eyed shock. Neither had seen more than a fist fight in their lives, this was beyond comprehension. " What happened?" was all Reiko was able to mutter, her eyes still glued to Hiroki's headless corpse. " He's back" said Nezu, gripping his sword tightly, " he's tracked us here, he is coming for all of us!" " Get a hold of yourself solider" said Mamoru, " this just an attack by raiders, I want we'll get lanterns and sweep the inn, we will meet back in the dining area once you've finished." " I'm not going alone!" said Nezu. " You are still a soldier Nezu" said Mamoru, " you will do as you're told." " Yes sir" he replied. " I'll go fetch some lanterns" said Reiko, pulling herself away from the scene. Reiko and Yuki ran down the hall into the kitchen and then into the store room. They both grabbed lanterns and lit them. They returned and found all three men fully dressed in their armour as if ready for battle. Reiko gave them both a lantern, " It will be best if you two stay in the dining room, if anything happens just run for town, don't stop" he said. Both women nodded and stayed put as the men started their search. Taiko reached the top of the stairs and looked at the long hall before him. He could be anywhere, even behind him. Taiko turned and looked back down the stairs. He stiffened his spine and started down the hall looking in each room. As he reached closer and closer to the end he began to feel more confident that nothing was up here. Taiko opened the last door. He let off a long sigh, nothing. He turned and started back for the dining room. Let Nezu or Mamoru find him and try to deal with him. Nezu crept slowly towards the bath house, his sword was clenched in his hand. He was so tense the tip of the blade shook back and forth like there was a strong wind in the hall. Nezu reached the door to the bath house and opened it. The bath house was empty, he was constantly sniffing the air for lilacs, if he smelled those fragrant flowers it would be time to run. Nezu looked into the male bath and saw nothing. Nezu smirked as he looked into the women's bath, despite his fear he still felt like a young teenager again peeking into the girl's baths back home. There was nothing in there either. Nezu sighed and slipped his sword back into its sheath. Nezu smiled and started to return to the dining room. Nezu stopped just before leaving, all his hair stood on end. He turned and saw a samurai standing in the bath house. He drew his sword and readied for the attack. " What are you doing Nezu?" asked Mamoru, " lower your sword." Nezu lifted his lantern, illuminating Mamoru's face. " Sorry" he said, " you never can tell." " Come back to the dining room" said Mamoru, " there is nobody here, they must have fled." " You don't get it do you" said Nezu, " he doesn't have to walk in through a door like a normal man, this is just like what happened at the Mountain Fortress. We have to flee." " And go where?" asked Mamoru, " we'll never get more than a few miles in this storm and what about the women? We just leave them here?" " He won't want them" said Nezu, " they weren't at the fortress." " Enough of this, we'll meet back in the dining room and worry about this as a group" said Mamoru. Nezu followed Mamoru through the servants' entrance and back to the dining room. Reiko and Yuki saw as Mamoru and Nezu walk in through the kitchen. " There is no one here" said Mamoru. " But who killed your friend?" asked Yuki. " Raiders, they've already fled by now" said Mamoru. " Then we'll clean up" said Reiko. They started to head for the kitchen when everyone smelled the almost over powering scent of lilacs. They heard a wet footsteps squish in the doorway making them all turn. In the doorway stood a samurai in bright red armour, water running off it onto the floor. Taiko and Nezu stepped back, their faces as pale as Hiroki's hand been the day before. Mamoru stepped forward and raised his lantern. The light from the lantern illuminated his helmet. Everyone gasped when they saw that behind the face guard, painted with snarling fanged teeth was nothing. Everyone could clearly see that he had no head. He stepped into the dining area and with a lightning fast movement his sword flashed from its sheath. He rushed towards Mamoru who stumbled back and fell over a table in the room. He smashed through the table, the headless samurai's blade flashing over him. But the blade found its mark in Yuki. The razor sharp blade ripped through her neck. Yuki turned to seek help from Reiko but her words were only wet gurgles as she tried to speak through the blood rushing down her throat, blood spraying from her neck all over Reiko's white kimono. She took two steps and dropped lifeless into Reiko's arms. Reiko screamed, and dropped Yuki to the ground. She fled with Taiko and Nezu into the kitchen. Mamoru swung his lantern into the samurai and flipped backward. He drew his blade but saw the headless samurai was gone, leaving only a faint scent of lilac. He stumbled past the fallen body of Yuki and into the kitchen. " What the hell is that?" Reiko demanded, soaked in blood and wildly eyed, " what the hell have you brought here!?" " I think you should tell her" said Mamoru, looking out through the purple curtain. Taiko cleared his throat, " It is the spirit of Kendo Oshii" said Taiko. " You mean you killed Kendo Oshii, the Red Devil?" asked Reiko, " the man who was supposed to be unbeatable, how?" " We killed him and his wife while they slept" said Nezu, looking out the kitchen windows across the courtyard. " It was our leader's idea" said Taiko, " we left the Mountain Fortress at evening and traveled into Johko at night until we reached the Fortress of the Red Devil. We over powered the guards and a group of us went into his quarters. He was still asleep when Hideki Matsuda cut his head off, others stabbed his wife. We returned with his head to display on the wall of our fortress to show how strong we were." " The night after we returned the first death occurred. It was Saiko who was standing guard at the main gate. We found him the next morning still at his post but without his head" said Nezu, " Matsuda thought it was raiders or ninjas too. We doubled the guards at night but to no effect, the next night both men on guard where dead, headless. We closed the gates at night and stayed inside but it didn't stop." " We lost half the men in the fortress before Matsuda would come to grip on the truth that Oshii wanted vengeance for such a dishonorable death" said Taiko. " Finally one night he came for Matsuda" said Nezu. " We tried to stop him twelve men lined the hall. He came, the smell of lilacs preceding him" said Taiko. " He cut through them all, no one could stop him" said Nezu, " he cut men in half without any effort at all. In the end it came for Matsuda. He squealed like a pig, offered Oshii his severed head, begged like a woman. But his head was cut off as well." " At dawn the survivors agreed to abandon the fortress" said Taiko, " in the beginning six of us left. Us three were the only ones to make it down the hill." " Now us two" said Nezu. " You'll never escape" said Mamoru, " now neither will we." " Why?" asked Reiko. " We've been touched by their dishonor" said Mamoru, " now we too share in it. At dawn I will commit suicide to cleanse myself for the next world. Assuming I survive until dawn." " What do we do til then?" asked Reiko, " we can't just stand around here and wait for him to just kill us off?" " Any ideas?" asked Nezu, " little girl whose never seen battle, seen ten skilled warriors fighting him and all losing. He can't be killed, he can't be stopped, and we're all dead!" Mamoru quietly whispered, " Ssshhhh" to them as he peered out the curtain. Reiko, Nezu, and Taiko started for the rear of the kitchen. Reiko found a carving knife and picked it up. Mamoru deaftly slipped his sword from its sheath and rose up to block the swift attack that sliced through the curtain. He leapt back as another powerful swing drove the Oshii's blade into the door frame, snapping the wood into pieces. Mamoru deftly swung at Oshii as he came through the door. His blade slit through the elbow joint of Oshii's sword arm, cutting through the flesh and bone. The severed limb hit the ground and a vile stench of rotting flesh filling everyone with nausea. Mamoru drove his sword through Oshii's chest. Oshii staggered and dropped into the cooking fire. The stench turned from rotting flesh to burning rotting flesh. " Is he dead?" asked Reiko. " He was dead to start with" said Nezu, " we never figured out to make him any more dead." Mamoru reached for his sword when suddenly Oshii planted both his feet into Mamoru's chest and flung him across the kitchen smashing into the pots. Oshii grabbed his arm and swung the severed limb. Mamoru grabbed a pot and blocked the sword slash. The force of the blow bent the pot and knocked it from Mamoru's hand. " Go help him!" shouted Reiko, pushing at the two staring samurai. Mamoru drew out his small sword and tried to slash the arm from Oshii's grip. The blade buried into Oshii's left arm and he slammed his shoulder into Mamoru into the kitchen counter. Mamoru eyes got wide as he felt a kitchen knife rip into his lower back. Mamoru struggled to pull his short sword from Oshii's arm but Oshii swiftly slashed with his severed limb. The sword cut through Mamoru's neck, slicing through the flesh effortlessly. His body dropped to the floor and everyone watched as Oshii pressed his severed arm against the stump. The limb slowly began to knit itself back together and in a few moments the limb looked new. Oshii turned to the three who stood backed against the wall. He turned his arm about a few times, swinging his sword about him. He looked down and saw Mamoru's short sword still in his arm. He drew it out and flung it into Mamoru's headless corpse. He picked his head up and slipped it behind him as if to place it in an invisible bag. The three ran into the employees' quarters and waited for Oshii to follow. Ten tense minutes passed but he didn't show. " Where is he?" asked Taiko. " He is playing with us" said Nezu, both men sweating furiously, " is there any other way out?" " There is an old cave entrance by the baths" said Reiko, " it leads into a bigger cave that exits almost in town." " That will give us a great head start, you go grab a lantern" said Nezu. " Fuck that" said Reiko, " you go grab the lantern big warrior man." Nezu placed the blade of his sword against Reiko's neck, " Don't think I have done this before" he said. Reiko took to Taiko for help but the younger samurai just stood there. Reiko brushed the sword away with her carving knife and started for the kitchen. Reiko carefully used the large carving knife blade to look around the corner into the ruins of the kitchen. She couldn't see Oshii nor smell that awful stench of his corpse. All she saw was Mamoru's body, it seemed such a waste. Reiko carefully started for the lanterns that were sitting next to the now nearly extinguished cooking fire. Reiko crawled on her hands and knees towards the fireplace. Half way across she accidentally hit a cup and listened to it spin across the floor. The noise normally would have barely caught Reiko's attention but now it sounded like thunder. She stayed totally still holding her breath, her eyes clamped shut. After several seconds of not being killed by Oshii, Reiko opened her eyes and continued to crawl for the lanterns. The room was nearly pitch black due to Oshii almost extinguishing the fire with his body. Now only a few embers were still glowing casting tiny shafts of light to add to the moonlight as it streamed in through the windows. Reiko kept sniffing the air trying to catch the slightest scent of either lilacs or rotting flesh. She slowly crept up to the table and stopped. She carefully lifted the knife above her head and looked towards the shredded curtain. Her parents were going to have a heart attack, especially her mother. She loved that purple curtain and now it was half a purple curtain. She softly exhaled, he wasn't anywhere to be seen. Reiko quickly crawled over to the lanterns and carefully snatched a sliver of wood off the top of the hearth and stuck it into the last few red embers in the fire. She slowly blew on the embers trying to get the little sliver to light. She turned it over and over on the embers and continued to gently blow, watching the embers glow bright for a brief moment but not light the sliver. Finally after what felt like an eternity the sliver of wood lit and began to glow. Reiko gently carried it into the first lantern and watched the wick light and began to glow warmly. Reiko lit the second lantern and tossed the sliver of wood into hearth. Reiko grabbed the two lanterns and sprinted back to the two samurai. " Here" said Reiko shoving the lanterns into their hands, " now let's get out of here." The trio started down the hall, their swords out. Every room they opened the door and looked inside. " Where is he?" asked Taiko, " he must know where we are?" " Shut up" said Nezu, " I don't care what he is doing, let's think about what we're doing." They reached the end of the hall and Reiko carefully unlatched the secret door and pushed it open. " Where is the passage?" asked Nezu. " It is behind the large rock at the rear of the men's bath" said Reiko. " Let's go" said Taiko. The trio started for the men's bath and they all froze. Traveling through the air was the unmistakable scent of lilacs mixed with rotting flesh. There standing in the doorway was Oshii sword in hand. " Shit" said Reiko. Everyone turned and ran for the door. Taiko slipped on the ground and fell hard with a thud. " Hurry!" screamed Reiko. Taiko got to his feet and started to run for the door as Oshii casually walked out of the men's bath. Nezu started pulling the door closed before Taiko was saftely inside with them. " What are you doing!" shouted Reiko. " Making Taiko a man" said Nezu, " time to be leader rich boy." Nezu slammed the hidden door and latched it shut. Taiko beat on it like a caged animal, screaming to be let in. Then the tip of a sword cut through the door and blood began to run under the door. The pair simply ran back to the relative safety of the kitchen. " Fuck, fuck, fuck" swore Nezu, " we can't escape, that fucker won't let us!" Nezu stormed around the kitchen slashing at anything he could with his sword. Nezu stopped and looked over his shoulder at Reiko. A cold shiver went up Reiko's spine. She started to move towards the door, she would rather take her chances with Oshii than Nezu. Nezu sprinted across the kitchen, slamming his sword into the door blocking Reiko's escape. He grabbed her and slammed her hard into the main kitchen table. He had a crazed look in his eye. He pulled his short sword out and slashed through her kimono sash. The tip of the blade slicing through Reiko's skin made her shriek on pain. " Hmmm" growled Nezu, lifting the blade to his mouth and slowly licking the blood off it, " you taste pure." Nezu tore her sash off and yanked her kimono open. He slammed his short sword right next to Reiko's head and began to roughly explore her body. " Hmmm, so soft" he said, grin on his face, " I might die but at least I'm going to enjoy myself." Reiko tried to fight but the much stronger samurai simply slapped her twice and continued on. Reiko felt his rough hands on her, she had to find a way to escape. Reiko's outstretched hands tried to find her knife. Reiko looked over and her stomach sank when she saw the knife was by the fire where she left it when she picked up the lanterns. She looked down as saw Nezu opening his pants as he slowly laughed. Reiko let off an angry scream and grabbed for the only thing she could. Nezu looked up and saw Reiko leap off the table and jam a chopstick into his eye. He howled in agony as the chopstick tore into his eye. Nezu stumbled back flailing his fists screaming loudly. Reiko rolled off the table and picked up her knife and stayed crotched near the fire. Nezu turned and leapt out the window into the courtyard. Reiko sighed and slowly picked up her sash. She tied it on and fell back on the floor. Reiko itched her face, Yuki's dried blood was now starting to itch. She picked at the dried blood, she felt finally at ease, the last samurai was dead and Oshii would leave. He had his revenge and would leave. Reiko was about to stand back up when the scent of lilacs began to drift into the room. She looked up and to her horror she saw Oshii standing in the doorway, only Nezu's sword blocking the way. Oshii plucked the sword from the doorway and threw it to the ground. Reiko leapt to her feet and ran. She burst through the shredded curtain and ran for the front door. Oshii stepped into the front door, his sword in hand. Reiko stopped, and began to stumbling backward over the table. She stumbled over the table and sprinted into the guest rooms. Reiko ran upstairs and ran to the far end of the hall. She threw the door open of the last guest room and slammed the door. She threw the mattress against the door and retreated to the far corner. She pulled herself into a little ball and listened to the rain outside. Why was he still here? What did I do to this guy? Damn it, why isn't Nezu dead? Nezu stumbled down the hall, moaning in pain. The pain from his eye was so intense the other eye was blinded by the white hot fire that was filling his head. Nezu dropped to his knees and howled in rage. He wanted to find that little bitch, he was going to tear her intestines out if it was the last thing he did. Nezu gripped the chopstick and slowly began to pull. He yelped and snarled as he felt the bamboo chopstick slowly pulling back, little slivers tearing deeper into his eye. Nezu pulled the chopstick out and flung it down the hall. He gripped his head, the pain was burning through him. As he got to his feet he stopped and smelled lilacs. He spun around, his one good eye trying desperately to focus on Oshii in the pitch black hallway. He spun around and around trying to figure where he was going to come at him from. Finally Oshii appeared, bathed in blue moonlight. The light shining through the mask at the empty void inside, his hand went to his swords and slowly drew out the short sword. He dropped the sword of the floor at Nezu's feet. It was then Nezu realized what was going on. Nezu had killed his wife, he wanted revenge on Nezu, not the others. Nezu dropped to his knees and screamed at Oshii, " Kill me!" Oshii kicked the short sword to Nezu. He grabbed the sword and spit at Oshii. Nezu jammed the short sword into his stomach and began to drag the blade across his stomach, his eyes locked on Oshii. He felt hot blood and the wet slippery feeling of his intestines in his hands as he stared at Oshii trying not to scream. With a gently stroke Oshii cut Nezu's head off, now his wife's spirit would rest now that her murderer died with honor. Oshii lifted the head up and sheathed his sword. Reiko lifted her head from her arms her eyes slowly opening, she wasn't sure where she was. Then it all came flooding back, the entire events of the night. Reiko leapt to her feet, her heart racing. She looked around the room and saw nothing, Oshii wasn't standing over her with his sword ready to strike, Nezu and his awful rough hands wasn't on top of her. She sighed and looked out the window. The sun was starting to rise among the slowly disintegrating storm clouds pouring orange rays of sun all over the pass. Reiko carefully pulled the mattress back and opened the door. It was totally silent in the hall, no birds were singing outside, no crickets chirping, everything was silent. Reiko stumbled downstairs and looked into the dining room. Yuki was there, among the wreckage of the tables. Reiko felt tears drip down her cheeks, she just had to escape. She stumbled towards the door when her nose was filled with lilacs. Reiko slowly turned and saw Oshii standing in the middle of the dining room. Reiko fell down, crying, and laughing at the same time. She didn't care anymore, he could kill her now, it just didn't matter. But Oshii didn't move, he just stood there like he was a statue. Reiko continued to sob and laugh, " Well come on, come get me. I'm right here" she laughed, tears dripping off her chin, " what are you waiting for." The morning sun poured through the open door and began to illuminate the intricate red armour of Oshii. Before Reiko's eyes she watched as the armour began to fall off him a piece at a time. First the gloves, the shoulder plates, the arm guards, the greaves, the breast plate, and finally the helmet and the mask all clattering to the ground. The scent of lilac slowly drifted out the front door past Reiko like a soft breeze. She got to her feet and bravely picked up a chopstick off the floor. She poked the helmet and watched it roll harmlessly around on the floor. She smiled and slowly walked out of the Red Frog. Reiko basked in the warming glow of the new morning, she never felt so alive. Every sensation, the soft song of the birds in the willow next to the door, the feeling of the sun on her face, the smell of the fresh rain, everything was so refreshing to her. Reiko smiled and looked down her favorite kimono. It was soaked in blood and torn, exposing her chest. Reiko snickered and tried to rearrange her kimono so less showed. She started to turn to walk back into the inn when she heard the most welcome sound she'd ever here. She looked to her right and watched as her parents and their little wagon slowly crested the hill on the approached to the inn. It was filled with supplies, and was being pulled by a handsome young man, no doubt another suitor. Then Reiko realized she had an awful lot of explaining to do. |