Guardian of the God - Return from the Hard Journey - Part 2 Chapter 5 - Reverence to the God

 Guardian of the God

-

Return from the Hard Journey

(Book 6 of the Guardian of the Spirit Series)

Author: Uehashi Nahoko

Translator: Ainikki the Archivist

 

 Part 2 - The Trap

Chapter 5 - Reverence to the God

 Asra awoke when the wagon she was riding in jolted against a large stone in the middle of the road. For a second she thought she was riding in Mr. Naka's cart again, but when she opened her eyes and looked around, she knew right away that she was somewhere else. The cart was almost completely empty. There was a small window that revealed people walking outside the wagon.

 "Are you awake?" Shihana asked from outside. She called out to someone else, but stayed near the wagon's window. The wagon slowed down suddenly and stopped. A door at the back of the wagon opened, revealing Ianu carrying a basket. Seeing Ianu made Asra remember what had happened to Balsa. She stared at the floor as she washed her face and drank some of the water Ianu had brought, but she could not be persuaded to eat anything. A bitter aftertaste lingered in her mouth from her last meal, so she knew that her food had been drugged. They had drugged her and placed her in this cart as she slept. What were they planning to do with her?

 "Where are we going?" she asked.

 "Jitan," Ianu said. "Rota's Ritual Hall and Prince Ihan's castle are there."

 She said nothing else. Her casual tone and brief reply made Asra irritable.

 They drugged me and put me in this wagon without my consent. Too many people have treated me like this. Like a pawn in a game.

 "Why did you put me to sleep?" she asked. She felt vaguely nauseated.

 "I'm sorry about that," Shihana said through the window. "I only did it because we're short on time."

 Asra's eyebrows furrowed together. "Why are we in such a hurry?" Her rage at being treated as Shihana's plaything flared up as she spoke. "What's going on? Why are we going to Jitan? Why don't we have more time? What are you going to do with me?!"

 She was choked by sudden tears and couldn't say anything else. Why did people keep chasing her? Why was Shihana taking her to Jitan? She didn't understand anything that was happening at all, and no one was explaining anything to her. They were intolerably cruel.

 Everyone's treating me like a baby!

 As her anger roiled inside her, the silver ring around her neck began to glow. Her body overflowed with power like storm clouds swelling up with water before a storm. Her eyes shone with angry tears as she yelled, "Stop ignoring me, and stop treating me like a baby! I can call down the god whenever I want, and she'll kill you all if I say so!"

 Ianu went deathly pale and stepped away from her. All trace of the meek and mild-mannered little girl that Asra appeared to be was gone. Her eyes flashed with the predatory gleam of a rabid wolf's.

 "Calm down, Asra," Shihana said. "We don't think you're a baby, and we don't mean to treat you like one. You went through a terrible ordeal yesterday, so I thought you might find it difficult to sleep. That's why I added a little bit of sleeping medicine to your dinner. And I'll explain why we're heading to Jitan as soon as I can—all right?"

 Asra said nothing. She glared at Shihana like she was trying to cut through her with her eyes. Shihana remained completely calm as she said, "I just said that I'll explain, so please calm yourself and listen."

 Shihana sounded sincere. The rage building up within Asra lessened a bit, but she wasn't ready to let it go. At her slight nod, Shihana began to speak.

 Shihana told Asra that she was descended from the Sul Kashal, the hunting dogs of Sada Talhamaya in ancient Rotarbal, and that she currently served as the eyes and ears of the royal family of Rota. In that capacity, she'd gotten deeply involved with the Tal people, especially the Ramau.

 "Isn't that right, Ianu?" Shihana asked as she shifted to face the Tal woman.

 Ianu's face was still pale with fear and dread, but she nodded. "Yes. The night before last, I told you a little about the Kashal. It's their duty to watch us so that no Tal person will ever be able to reclaim Sada Talhamaya's power."

 "But," Shihana cut in, "interacting with the Tal people made me change my mind about what my duty actually was. I detest the utter subjugation that the Tal people are forced to live under in modern Rota, all because of crimes their ancestors committed a very long time ago. It isn't fair, and I think it's wrong."

 Asra remembered all the times Shihana had sat and played with her when she was little. She knew that Shihana didn't hate the Tal people.

 "But my father leads the Kashal, and he's stubbornly loyal to Rota's royal family. I couldn't share my feelings or my plans with him. But fate works in mysterious ways. A way forward for the Tal people appeared without me even having to look for it."

 Shihana told Asra that Prince Ihan had fallen in love with a Tal woman when Shihana was still a teenager. "Prince Ihan is a good man, and an honest one, so of course he wanted to marry her. I was only sixteen at the time, but I remember clearly how serious he was about the marriage. He really loved her. The Kashal would watch over them when they met so that they wouldn't be discovered by others."

 Shihana sounded like she was talking about a friend. Asra became completely absorbed in her story.

 "But Prince Ihan wasn't allowed to marry her. Marrying a Tal woman would have cost him the trust and support of every clan lord in Rota.

 "The woman he loved was clever, so she guessed that this would be the case. So when he asked her to marry him, she made herself disappear so that he wouldn't lose everything. She fled from her home and her family to live among strangers. That woman was your mother, Asra."

 Asra stared at Shihana in shock. She knew that her mother had been forced to flee to the sacred forest before she was born, but she never knew why until now. She never would have guessed that her mother had fallen in love with Rota's Crown Prince. Asra was still too young to understand all her reasons for fleeing, but she remembered how terrified her mother had been of coming into contact with any Rotans and how sad and embittered she'd become over the years.

 "Prince Ihan went mad and searched everywhere for her. He ordered the Kashal to find her. I had to look for many years, but eventually I found her. Do you remember that day? We met for the first time on the day that I discovered where your mother was hiding."

 Asra nodded.

 "When I saw her playing with you, I knew that she was happy. She begged me not to tell Prince Ihan where she was, so I never did. I didn't think things would work out well if they saw each other again."

 Shihana told Asra how Prince Ihan worked to protect the Tal people and improve their lives, even though he was a member of Rota's royal family. "But the southern clan lords are greedy and mean-spirited. When they found out that Prince Ihan had fallen in love with a Tal woman, they spread rumors to erode his influence and blacken his reputation. They've always hated him because he's introduced reforms that would increase their taxes and infringe on their rights. I even overheard some of them conspiring to assassinate him."

 Shihana's eyes shone with a hidden light that revealed a secret source of strength within her. "The southern clan lords are incredibly wealthy. They use their power to increase their economic influence and consolidate their resources. I expect them to revolt against the north at any time. King Yosam is a good king and is well-respected by everyone, but his health is deteriorating. Prince Ihan will become King of Rota when he dies, but I don't believe the southern clan lords will obey him. Even if they did choose to cooperate for a while, they'd probably work to make the lives of the Tal people worse so that Prince Ihan would suffer."

 Asra knew nothing of Rota's politics or its rulers, so what Shihana was telling her was entirely new. She understood why the Tal people and the Rotans were treated differently now. She listened closely to Shihana in case she revealed anything else of similar importance.

 "Prince Ihan wants to find a way for everyone to live in peace—Rotans, Tal people, Kashal, and even the southern clan lords. But I often wonder if that's possible. I worry about it all the time."

 Shihana suddenly brought her face close to Asra's and whispered, "But Asra, I've seen miracles. First, there were signs of a coming change. Three years, ago, the pikuya moss that grows along the sacred river from Noyook blossomed with tiny yellow flowers. No one's ever seen that before."

 Asra nodded. She'd heard rumors about the flowers growing, too, though she hadn't seen them.

 "Nothing else happened for half a year after that, so the rumors eventually died down—but the winter before last, wauru flowers bloomed in summer and didn't wither until the snows came. Wauru usually bloom for a very short time, so the news spread quickly among the Tal people. The Kashal heard of this as well."

 Asra remembered hearing about the wauru flowers, too.

 "Do you understand what these signs were, Asra? They were telling us that the sacred river would soon flow into our world from Noyook again. When I consulted with the Tal Kumada about this possibility, they expressed both joy and fear. Joy because the river brings riches and blessings from the world of the gods, and fear because the river also contains Talhamaya. I knew that the Kashal would have to be especially vigilant in the years to come. But my father..." She paused. "Well, he never saw things the same way I did."

 Shihana's eyes locked on Asra. "The Rotan people have been in power for a long time, but they've forgotten how they came into their power in the first place. The more I saw of how Tal people lived, the more uncomfortable I got with the way things are. There's no evidence that any of the ancient legends about Sada Talhamaya are true. The Tal Kumada all tell the same tale, but they have no proof. Who's to say the Rotans didn't twist historical facts to suit their purposes?"

 Shihana waited. She looked like she was expecting Asra to agree with her. Shihana lifted her eyebrows and said, "Talhamaya has a lot of power. If someone evil managed to get that power, they would definitely be terrifying. But think about it, Asra. If someone with a pure heart were given Sada Talhamaya's power, they could use it to create a happier and more peaceful world."

 Asra nodded reflexively.

 Shihana smiled happily at her. "I was sure you'd see it the same way. If a person that didn't want to harm anyone had Sada Talhamaya's power, they could use it to help everyone, not just the Tal people. Maybe the Rotans would even thank the Tal people if such a thing came to pass. The Tal people wouldn't have to hide in the shadows anymore. Rota would take its first steps to being a truly free and equal kingdom."

 Shihana was so zealous that she looked feverish. "I shared this dream with your mother, Ianu and the other Ramau. Isn't that right, Ianu?"

 Ianu brought her chin to her chest. "Shihana and the Kashal are our guards and overseers, but when we heard such words from her, we thought that the gods must be speaking through her. Until that time, I felt like I'd been pinned to the ground by unforgiving hands and that I would never be allowed to rise, but the dream of a free and fair Rota released me from all my feelings of fear and oppression. I am tired of living in the shadows. I wish to live in the light. I want to believe that the legends we tell of Sada Talhamaya are untrue and that her power can be used to make Rota a wonderful place to live for all its people."

 Ianu's eyes shone with hope. "If Sada Talhamaya truly was a kind person before she united with the god, I can't believe that the god would make her evil or cruel. If Sada Talhamaya walked among us again, I'm sure she would find a way to let us live without fear or prejudice. That's why I stopped being afraid of the signs we saw before the sacred river began flowing again. I think that now is the perfect time for Sada Talhamaya to return to us."

 Ianu smiled at Shihana, then looked down at Asra. Her entire demeanor changed in an instant: she looked like a worshipper deep in prayer at a temple. "And then, when the sacred river did flow into our world, the god chose you, Asra! She chose someone with a pure heart and no hatred for others, just as I hoped for. If that's not a miracle, what is?"

 A chill went up Asra's spine.

 "Asra, this is your destiny," Shihana said. "You have the power to save us all from darkness and destruction. We're not afraid of you. All of our hopes are resting on you." Shihana spoke as if she were in a trance.

 Ianu sank to the floor and rested her forehead against the ground to pay reverence to Talhamaya. When Asra remembered the awed and fearful expressions she'd seen on the faces of the people she'd passed by in the wagon, her skin went tingly and numb, but it wasn't an entirely unpleasant feeling.

 Asra...

 Asra suddenly heard her mother's voice and felt her arms around her.

 You're going to change the world, Asra! You've been chosen, chosen by the god! You'll become Sada Talhamaya, transcend ordinary human existence, and bring peace to our world. We don't need to be afraid of anything anymore.

 Asra's chest swelled with pride. She wanted to be worthy of Talhamaya. But at the same time, her legs felt like rubber. She hadn't been able to save her mother, even with Talhamaya's power.

 I wouldn't be scared of anything if only she was here.

 "You've been blessed by the god, so I think I have to confess something to you, Asra." Shihana spoke softly. "Once, not very long ago, I thought that I would have to kill you. I even tried to once."

  

 Asra started shaking all over.

 "When your mother told us that the sacred river was flowing again, we weren't sure whether or not to believe her," Shihana said. "No one can see the river except the Ramau and the Tal Kumada. I didn't think you were capable of seeing it yet, Asra, because you're so young. That's why I didn't stop my father when he handed your mother over for execution."

 Asra's heart beat faster. She took shallow, panting breaths and curled in on herself.

 "It's the truth," Shihana said. "I hated her for what she'd done. She was reckless and foolish to do something so dangerous without telling anyone first. She had to know she'd be caught. And if news reached the Rotans that the Tal people were trying to restore their ancient god, they might strike out against the Tal people and kill them." Shihana spoke without stopping for breath; she seemed determined to reach the end of her confession as quickly as possible.

 "But when I saw what happened at Shintadan, I finally understood her. It was like being hit by a bolt of lightning. I knew then that Torisha had discovered a way to bring Talhamaya into our world. You're the very first person to realize that the sacred river was flowing again, Asra. The Tal Kumada and the Ramau should have known you were the Chamau just from that. I should have figured it out myself. My willful ignorance and stupidity got your mother killed. I'm sorry."

 Tears formed in the corners of Shihana's sharp, clear eyes. Asra was deeply moved.

 "My father saw the whole thing through the eyes of a dog at Shintadan. When I learned what had happened, I knew that I had to find a way to save you."

 Asra's throat felt rough and raw like it had been sandpapered over. She couldn't move.

 "My father clings stubbornly to the ancient laws and pacts that bound the Sul Kashal.When he realized that you possessed Talhamaya's power, he chased after you. I went with him, of course. I wanted to protect you and find some way to save you if he tried to kill you."

 Asra found it strange that Shihana seemed to have some of the same motivations as Balsa. She hadn't expected that at all.

 "We finally tracked you down at that inn on New Yogo's border. But Balsa realized that my father wanted to kill you, too, so she took you and fled." Shihana closed her mouth sharply. Asra heard nothing but the sound of the wagon wheels scraping over ice and snow outside.

 Shihana sighed and shook her head. "I know that Balsa had good intentions, and she probably saved you many times, but I was honestly worried that I would never see you again." Shihana faced Asra squarely. "We explained the whole situation to Tanda. Eventually, he told us where to find you and Balsa in Shirogai. We didn't want to rush in blindly, though—you know how smart Balsa was. I expected her to set a trap for us, so I sent a letter telling you both to go to Jitan. Then I mobilized all of the Kashal's resources and spies that I could and assigned them to the roads between Shirogai and Jitan."

 Oh! So that's why Tajiru told Balsa about the clan lord's son looking for her, Asra thought. He must have been working with the Kashal.

 Asra had no idea that most of what Shihana had just told her was a lie.

 "Was Ianu a spy, too?" Asra asked.

 Shihana nodded. "I asked her to keep you safe no matter what and to bring you to me as soon as possible. I ran the risk of losing you two in the mountains, but fortunately that didn't happen. Balsa gave up her life to save you."

 Asra still couldn't believe that Balsa was dead. Shihana seemed to sense that her death disturbed Asra. "It must have been so awful, Asra. But you're here now, with me. It's safe now." She sounded awed and grateful.

 Shihana sat seiza in front of Asra and slowly brought her forehead to the floor. She kept her face down in reverence to the god as she said, "You've been so blessed, Asra. You've been chosen by a powerful god. Please protect us and fight with us so that the Tal people may live in the light once more."

 Asra felt like her entire body had been encased in ice.

 "I don't ask this only for myself, Asra. I believe your mother would have asked this same thing if she had lived."

 Asra shook from head to toe as she stood above the prostrate Shihana and Ianu. They were both on the floor with their faces down to pay respect to the god—and to her. They wanted her to become Sada Talhamaya to save her people. How could she refuse?

Illustration: Reverence to the God

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