John Flanagan - The Emperor of Nihon-Ja

'Well said, Kurokuma!' Shukin called to him, smiling. He turned to the assembled Kikori. He too could see the new sense of purpose infusing them. The tall gaijin had an excellent sense of timing, he thought, and an excellent choice of words to fire the spirits of these people.

'We do need you. The Kikori will be the loyal heart of the Emperor's new army. We will train you. We will teach you to fight!'

A roar of enthusiasm and defiance greeted these words. Many felt that arrogant, overbearing Senshi such as Arisaka had enjoyed their own way far too long in Nihon-Ja. Even without the cold-blooded destruction of the neighbouring village, Arisaka's act of treason towards the Emperor was enough to harden their hearts against him. But there were still some who favoured caution. As the cries of defiance died down, one older woman voiced their thoughts.

'But what if Arisaka's men come here? We're not ready to fight them yet.'

Horace saw the doubt begin to spread among the Kikori. They didn't believe in their own ability to face armed Senshi warriors. But they were forgetting one important fact. He stepped forward into the clear space around the Emperor, Eiko and Jito.

'You said there were a dozen in the scouting party?' he asked.

Eiko nodded. 'A dozen. Maybe a few more.'

Horace smiled at the answer. He looked around the assembled group of Senshi loyal to the Emperor – a dozen in his immediate bodyguard and at least another twenty-five uninjured survivors from the battle at Ito.

'It seems to me,' he said, 'that for once we have Arisaka's men seriously outnumbered.'

Evanlyn and Alyss were practising their fencing skills on the foredeck, under the somewhat bemused eye of Selethen.

Evanlyn's exploits in Skandia and Arrida in recent years had been widely reported throughout Araluen – she was, after all, the crown princess and enjoyed a certain amount of celebrity. As a result, many Araluan women and girls had been influenced to take a greater interest in weapon skills. Alyss was one of these, but her motivation went beyond following what was currently seen to be fashionable. She had been more than a little frustrated by her inability to defend herself effectively when she was captured by the traitor knight Keren at Castle Macindaw. She had determined that she would never let that happen again. This new emphasis on martial skills was evidenced by the fact that her dagger, part of the Courier uniform, had changed from a narrow, needle-pointed ceremonial design to a more practical – and more lethal – heavy-bladed fighting knife.

In addition, she had taken to practising the javelin and to wearing a lightweight sabre while on assignments. It was a style of sword rapidly gaining popularity with girls her age. Evanlyn had a similar weapon and, when they discovered the fact, it was only logical that they should practise together.

Logical, perhaps. But not wise.

One of the ship's crew had carved wooden practice weapons for them and the two girls began a daily training routine. Selethen had offered his services as an instructor and referee after watching the first few sessions and both girls had accepted the offer.

'Very well,' he said now, 'fighting positions, please, ladies…'

'That's debatable,' Halt said in an undertone to Will as they stood watching. A number of the off-duty crew had gathered to watch as well. There was a certain enjoyment to be had in watching two extremely attractive girls trying to split each other's skulls open with wooden swords.

'The "fighting" part or the "ladies" part?' Will replied with a grin.

Halt looked at him and shook his head. 'Definitely the "ladies",' he said. 'There's no debate about the "fighting".'

Will shrugged. He knew that there was an edginess to the girls' relationship and that it had something to do with him. Why that should be so was beyond him.

'Weapon a little higher, Evanlyn,' Selethen said. 'You tend to drop your guard too low.'

He waited as she adjusted the position of her sword, then glanced at Alyss to see if she was ready. The blonde girl had an edge over the princess in skill, he had noticed. Probably because she had a more focused approach to her swordsmanship. When she practised, a small furrow formed between her brows, evidence of the concentration and sense of purpose she was putting into her moves. Evanlyn, on the other hand, was a little slapdash in her approach. She had taken lessons in the sabre for some time, but never with any particular dedication to the weapon. She was faster than Alyss, but Alyss, tall and athletic, had a longer reach and stride, and Evanlyn tended to let herself get off balance too often.

'Begin,' Selethen said, with a sense of resignation in his voice. He had a fair idea what was about to happen.

Evanlyn lunged forward to attack, as he knew she would. She was too impulsive, he thought, too inclined to want to get things started, without any preliminary sparring.

Alyss knew it too. She had waited calmly for Evanlyn's rapid attack. She swayed to one side as Evanlyn lunged, deflecting the thrusting wooden blade past her body. Evanlyn staggered slightly, losing her balance, then Alyss cut back with a quick wrist movement, laying her own blade across Evanlyn's knuckles with a crack that made the spectators wince. Money changed hands among the watching Skandians.

'Ow! Ow! Damn it!' Evanlyn yelled. Her sword clattered to the deck and she nursed her bruised hand, glaring at Alyss. Then she turned angrily to Selethen. 'She did that on purpose!'

But before Selethen could reply, Alyss chimed in with equal vehemence, colour flaring into her cheeks. 'Well, of course I did it on purpose! That's why we're practising, isn't it? To do things on purpose? Or are we trying to practise accidents and flukes?'

'Please, ladies,' Selethen began. He was unmarried and so had little experience with women. He was beginning to wonder if he ever wanted any.

'But it's true, Selethen!' Alyss protested. 'She always leaves herself open to that reply.'

'Which you always manage to make,' Evanlyn said angrily, taking her sword from the grinning Skandian who had retrieved it for her. 'Thank you,' she said briefly.

The sea wolf leaned a little closer to her.

'Kick her in the shins next time, Princess,' he said in a whisper. 'I've got money on you.'

Alyss failed to notice the exchange. She was still appealing to Selethen as the referee of the bout. 'I mean, she's got to learn, hasn't she? If this was a real fight, she wouldn't get a do-over. She wouldn't have a hand.'

'On the other hand,' Selethen said, instantly regretting the words as he heard the Skandians snigger at the unintended pun, 'if you simply do that every time, we will never progress past this point, will we?'

Alyss seemed to consider the point. Then, reluctantly, she agreed. 'Very well, Selethen. If you say so.' She turned to Evanlyn. 'All right, Princess, your hand's off limits from now on.'

Will shook his head despairingly. 'Oh, Alyss, Alyss, Alyss,' he said under his breath, just loud enough for Halt to hear him.

Wisely, the bearded Ranger said nothing.

'Don't do me any favours,' Evanlyn said, through gritted teeth. She flexed her hand on the sword's hilt, trying to ease the pain in her bruised knuckles.

Selethen looked doubtfully at the two girls. Both had high colour in their cheeks now.

'Perhaps we should call it a day?' he suggested.

'You can,' Evanlyn said, her eyes fixed on Alyss. 'I don't feel like it.'

Alyss smiled at her, a smile completely devoid of good humour. 'Well, neither do I,' she replied sweetly.

There was a long pause, then Selethen accepted the inevitable with an eloquent shrug of the shoulders.

'All right then – ladies.' He glanced at Halt and rolled his eyes at the word. Halt nodded gravely. 'Positions…'