The Fall of Daigo - Part 4 - Demon Dragon - Chapter 3

The Fall of Daigo

Book 3 of the Dororo Novel Series

Toriumi Jinzō

Part 4 - Demon Dragon

Chapter 3

    

     Night fell over Nomitadani Fortress like a shroud. It had rained all day previously, but there were still heavy clouds drifting across the sky. It looked like there would be more rain soon.

    Hyakkimaru, Dororo and Ochika rode at the head of the bandits from Eguri Valley, being careful not to make a sound. The bandits were all experienced riders, though their equipment was a hodge-podge of what they’d been able to scavenge from other battlefields. Dororo rode the same horse as Ochika. No one spoke; the bandits scarcely dared to breathe. They were nervous, as they frequently were before an attack. They had raided Nomitadani Fortress before and knew that it was extremely well-defended.

    The front gate of the fortress was brightly lit by torches and iron braziers placed to either side. The footfalls of the gate guards echoed into the night. There were more guards than there had been when Dororo had first arrived. The watch had likely been increased since the fortress had received news of the two armies advancing on it. Crossbowmen lined the outer stone walls of the fortress, standing tightly packed together.

    Hōichi listened to the fortress noises for a few moments, then faced Hyakkimaru and the vanguard of the bandit army. He gesticulated with his cane, pointing to entry points and noting potential obstacles.

    Hyakkimaru nodded in understanding. He directed his horse into a bamboo grove near the front gates of the fortress and started making his own preparations to sneak in.

    Hōichi had become something like the bandits’ military strategist over the past few days. The bandits were accustomed to following orders only from Ochika, but there was a strange energy emanating from Hōichi that made him a natural leader. Hyakkimaru and the bandits followed along with his suggestions without fear or resistance.

    Hyakkimaru moved a little way away from the bandits and sat down, then removed his left arm prosthetic. The muzzle of his miniature hand cannon glinted gray like lead in the half-darkness. Jukai had built it into his arm using special parts from Namitarō. The range of the cannon was unusually long.

    The cannon had a wide barrel. Hyakkimaru loaded an explosive shell into it and packed in gunpowder. He only had a single shot, since he was almost out of gunpowder. If he shot in the wrong area, the bandits wouldn’t be able to make use of the confusion to break into the fortress. He stretched his arms out over his hips and calculated the rough projected trajectory of the round with his eyes.

    Hyakkimaru took a deep breath, gathered his psychokinesis, and pulled the trigger of the hand cannon. The round spewed forth, arcing through the sky toward the front gates.

    “Ah!”

    The force of the of the cannon firing sent Hyakkimaru sprawling, then rolling partway out of a bamboo grove.

    The cannon round landed directly in front of the front gates of the fortress and exploded, sending chunks of earth flying in all directions. The torches and braziers outside the gates toppled over and went out.

    “Forward!” Hōichi yelled. “Force a way through!”

    Saruyoshi led the cavalry force toward the confusing muddle of the torn-up ground. The soldiers manning the gates were shocked and concussion-deaf from the explosion. Some stood their ground, but most turned tail and ran long before Saruyoshi and the bandits reached the gates. They likely assumed that the force led by Saruyoshi was sent by the Judicial Office, since that army was known to use gunpowder. Saruyoshi met almost no resistance as he charged forward at top speed.

    Torches still lit the gates dimly from the right side, but the left side was in total darkness. Saruyoshi’s men were able to cut a way through the panicked defenders more easily than expected.

    Some of the fortress’ defenders rallied. “Kill them all! Block their way!”

    Soldiers from the fortress formed a line in front of the gate, but they were too slow. Saruyoshi and most of the bandits were already past the gates. The bandits still outside shot down the defenders from horseback and rode on through.

    Saruyoshi had often boasted about the skill of his archers to Dororo and Hyakkimaru. The archers proved good on that boast. The drew and released as a unit; every arrow found its mark. Many men fell dead, stuck full of arrows, before they could even draw their swords.

    “We’re through! Press on!” Saruyoshi jumped off his horse and entered the fray on foot.

    Families that lived inside Nomitadani Fortress heard the commotion and fled for their lives. Saruyoshi and the bandits paid them no mind. They weren’t here for them anyway, and Hōichi had commanded the bandits in no uncertain terms to leave the women and children alone in this assault. Saruyoshi and the bandits gave civilians time to flee, stripped the outer buildings of all their valuables, then set every roof on fire.

 

***

 

    Hyakkimaru rode straight for the Daigo Clan’s castle on a fast horse. Tahōmaru stood in the courtyard of the castle with his sword drawn. He guarded his mother, who was crouched behind him.

    “Hyakkimaru!” Nui no Kata called out to him, her voice trembling with fear.

    “Sneaking in here in the middle of a battle? I’ll bet you planned this, you coward.” Tahōmaru stepped forward.

    “The army of the Judicial Office is almost here,” Hyakkimaru said. “You need to get mother out of here.”

    “What?”

    Togashi Masachika’s army wouldn't spare the family of a traitor. All of their lives were in danger.

    Hyakkimaru leaped off his horse and led it by the reins. “You have to leave, now! Hurry!”

    Tahōmaru looked to his mother. “What should we do?”

    “If we survive, we’ll owe Hyakkimaru our lives,” she said. “We must flee.”

    “Um...yes.” Tahōmaru accepted the reins of Hyakkimaru’s horse.

    Hyakkimaru helped lift Nui no Kata into the saddle. Her eyes were full of grief as Tahōmaru mounted up behind her.

    “Hyakkimaru,” Nui no Kata said, “you must survive so that we may meet again. Please.” She said nothing else. Tears coursed down her cheeks. She made no move to wipe them away.

    “Farewell,” Hyakkimaru said. “Mother,” he added quietly. This would probably be their last meeting. Hyakkimaru was about to meet Daigo Kagemitsu and the Hall of Hell demons on their own ground. He did not expect to survive.

    “Tahōmaru, go,” Hyakkimaru said harshly. “The rear gate hasn’t been attacked. You can get through there.”

    “Hyakkimaru!” Nui no Kata called out to him as she and Tahōmaru rode away.

    Tears glittered in Hyakkimaru’s artificial eyes, but didn’t fall. He stood still until he couldn’t see Tahōmaru or his mother anymore. Then he dashed forward into the castle.

    Hōichi was already waiting for Hyakkimaru inside. “The Judicial Office army is outside the fortress,” Hōichi said. Hyakkimaru hadn’t realized it, but many people inside the castle were fleeing into the courtyard. He heard screams and hoofbeats as people sought for a way out before they were trapped.

    “The army is quite large,” Hōichi said. “We don’t want to take it on, so let’s finish our business and get out of here.”

    “Right,” Hyakkimaru said.

    Together, Hōichi and Hyakkimaru walked further into the Daigo Clan’s castle.

 

***

 

    Ochika was on horseback, patrolling between the barracks inside Nomitadani Fortress and the outer walls of the city. Buildings smoldered, lighting the sky red. Many people fled from their homes before they could burn. The samurai and ashigaru assigned to protect the fortress didn’t help or protect them at all.

    In fairness to the fortress’ defenders, there was no time. The Judicial Office’s army had Nomitadani Fortress surrounded. They had their hands full keeping more invaders from passing through the gates. The bandits had been able to get inside using the element of surprise because they were few in number, but the fortress’ defenders were trained to protect it against a large army. The Judicial Army was not able to penetrate the fortress’ defenses so easily.

    Dororo realized at the same time as Ochika that the fortress was being surrounded by a very large army. “Will we be able to escape?” Dororo asked.

    “Probably not,” Ochika muttered. “That Judicial Office army got here a lot faster than we thought.” Ochika considered the situation. It was dangerous for her and Dororo to remain inside the fortress city, where they were in danger of attack from the Daigo Clan’s army and the Judicial Office’s army backed by Togashi Masachika. But the exits were blocked, so where could they run? There were too many enemies everywhere, both inside and outside the fortress city.

    Ochika decided to remain inside the fortress, since both Hyakkimaru and Hōichi were here somewhere. But Hōichi had predicted the appearance of the Hall of Hell demons on the battlefield. How would they affect the battle?

    “We should move,” Dororo said. He grinned. “If we stay inside the fortress and move around, it’ll be harder for enemies to track or surround us, and we’ll be able to keep an eye on things.”

    Dororo’s thoughts mirrored Ochika’s own. She nodded. “Let’s see how things shake out. Yah!” She gripped the sides of her horse with her knees and vaulted forward over an ashigaru.

    Dororo wrapped his arms around Ochika’s waist so that he wouldn’t fall from the horse. In that moment, they looked very like a mother and child riding together.

    Ochika guided the horse behind the storage sheds lined up near the barracks. The area was almost deserted. Men who would have usually guarded the supplies had been called out to defend the front gates.

    Dororo slid off the horse and sprinted over to a shed where jars of oil were kept. He removed the lid from one of the enormous jars and poured it all over the floor. Ochika waited for Dororo to return to the horse, then set the puddle of oil on fire with a torch. The shed went up in flames within seconds.

    “We need to destroy this whole row,” Dororo said.

    “Sure.”

    Dororo and Ochika rode up and down the lines of warehouses and storage sheds, setting them all aflame. The center of the city was thick with smoke.

    Some of the fortress’ defenders finally appeared to protect their stores. They likely assumed that Dororo and Ochika were enemies from the Judicial Army, using this tactic to starve the Daigo Clan.

    “They’re setting fires! Stop them!”

    “Kill them! Put the fires out!”

    There was no time for them to put all the fires out and chase after Ochika and Dororo. The actual Judicial Army was hot on their heels.

    The battle inside the walls became fierce for everyone. The bandits struggled to recognize their true enemy, the Daigo Clan army, from among all the samurai fighters. Blood sprayed everywhere as Ochika and Saruyoshi tried to hack their way out. The sky turned red with reflected fire.

    Even Hyakkimaru noticed the fires, though the Daigo Clan’s castle was far from the warehouses. He and Hōichi stood in front of the castle’s front gate, side-by-side. They both had their swords drawn and were enclosed by guards, though they were not immediately recognized.

    The guards seemed to think they were part of the Judicial Office army. They also seemed to realize that neither Hyakkimaru nor Hōichi  were ordinary fighters. The guards kept their distance, waiting for Hyakkimaru and Hōichi  to make the first move.

    “So there are eight of them,” Hōichi  said.

    Yes: eight. Hyakkimaru counted the guards to be sure. He was impressed that Hōichi could tell that before wiping the blood out of his eye sockets. Physical reality didn’t interfere with his powers of perception at all.

    Hōichi bowed his head politely. “I have no desire to shed your blood here, gentlemen. If you will withdraw, we will spare your lives.”

    “Hmph, like we’ll listen to you? We won’t let you pass here.” The guards gripped their spears and swords tighter and filled in the slight gaps they'd left in front of the castle gate.

    Hōichi’s thin sword glinted in the low light. Hyakkimaru stood at the ready, waiting for Hōichi’s signal. They attacked together, sending their eight attackers to the ground as fast as thought.

    Hōichi was obviously using psychokinesis against his opponents, but Hyakkimaru chose to defeat them only with his sword. He couldn’t afford to waste any psychokinetic energy, and besides, he preferred not to attack humans with it.

    Once they were through the gate, Hyakkimaru and Hōichi sheathed their swords.

    “You find Daigo Kagemitsu,” Hōichi said. “Leave what comes after to me.”

    “Right.”

    There was a spearman standing in the front courtyard of the castle, directly in the light of a torch. He looked like a veritable giant. The giant was the devoted Shintoist and great warrior Anazawa Yozaemon Morisada. He wore high-quality armor that made him look as immovable as a boulder. Anazawa was rumored to be the best spear-wielder in the entire province. His fighting style was ferocious, like a wild animal.

    Anazawa stood directly in the way of Hyakkimaru and Hōichi’s progress. His spear was thrust out in front of him, shaft partially dug into the marshy ground. To Hyakkimaru, Anazawa looked like he’d been driven mad by the spirits of all the people he’d killed. There was an energy swirling around him that reminded Hyakkimaru of Sabame Nuinosuke.

    Anazawa bowed mockingly. Many other samurai stood on the steps leading into the castle behind him.

    “I’m Hyakkimaru,” Hyakkimaru said. “I have business with your lord. Would you bring him out here for me?”

    “I have no idea who you are,” Anazawa said. “I won’t call out my lord for a stranger. What do you want with him?”

    Hōichi smiled. “We’re after Daigo Kagemitsu’s life.”

    “What?!” Anazawa narrowed his eyes contemptuously. “You, I remember. I saw you playing the lute at the celebration. You killed my friends.”

    “They were watchdogs come to rouse the fortress against us,” Hōichi said. “I had to silence them.”

    “You didn’t have to kill them,” Anazawa said. “Stand and fight.”

    Hōichi smiled. “Sure. All I’ve seen you do with that spear is hold it.”

    Anazawa smirked, pulling his spear from the sucking mud. “You haven’t tried to pass through yet. I swear you won’t get past me.”

    “Go ahead of me, Hyakkimaru,” Hōichi  said.

    “Be careful,” Hyakkimaru said.

    Anazawa slashed at Hyakkimaru with his spear before he took two steps.

    The wind howled. Hyakkimaru took a flying leap that sent him twenty feet into the air.

    Hōichi laughed hugely. “That one made the wind hurt, son. Be careful, yourself!”

    “Shut up!” Anazawa snapped. He targeted Hōichi with his spear. Hōichi stepped aside neatly and caught the spear’s tip on the edge of his sword.

    Hōichi made the deflection look easy, but Anazawa stumbled back several steps. “You bastard. Can you actually see?”

    “I can’t,” Hōichi said, “but the wind tells me everything I need to know.”

    “Are you soft in the head or something?” Anazawa growled. His next spear thrust had the full weight of his rage behind it. Hōichi’s sword flew out of his hand into the air.

    Hōichi bent to scratch his foot like he didn’t have a care in the world.

    Anazawa chuckled low in his throat. He was about to advance on Hōichi again when Hōichi’s sword dove out of the sky, piercing him through the spine. There was a sharp sound as the blade passed completely through him. The lute that Hōichi carried on his back strummed out a low note as wind passed under the strings.

    Anazawa was dead, but he kept standing on his feet for a few moments, utterly still. Hōichi retrieved his blade and started climbing the steps. Anazawa’s body crumpled to the dirt behind him.

    The other samurai guarding the gate all shrank away from Hōichi in terror. He had a mysterious power that they didn’t understand. Hōichi let them run. It wasn’t their lives that he was after.

    Hōichi sheathed his sword and looked up at the sky. Lightning forked inside dark storm clouds. Hōichi chuckled. “So they’re finally here. It’s about time.”

    Hōichi couldn’t see the lightning, but he could feel the energy of the Hall of Hell demons, close and getting closer. They were preparing to manifest.

    Hyakkimaru was already inside the castle. Hōichi adjusted his lute on his back and followed him.