Leaves. The man had conjured leaves.

Taoru wasn’t sure whether to be impressed or worried by the carpenter’s continued creativity. He had to admit though, the tactic was effective. Most of the warlord’s troops had gotten out of the courtyard, either by rushing for the gate before getting buried or by climbing ropes let down by their allies on the walls.

He looked over at Lian, intending to figure out their next move, but what he saw wiped what he’d been about to say off his mind. He had never seen that expression on his daughter’s face before. Oh, he was quite familiar with it and had seen his fair share of smitten young women gaze up at him with the same glimmer in their eyes. Taoru had prepared himself years ago for men to pursue her, but he had never thought about what he’d do when she started pursuing them.

“Hm.” Guankaran tapped his finger to his chin. “I’d say it’s time for us to, uh, leaf.”

Despite himself and the strange feeling that had settled over him, Taoru snorted a chuckle even as Lian groaned loudly between the two men.

“How exactly do you plan on doing that?” she grumbled. “The whole courtyard is buried, and the guards behind us are chipping away at the vine wall…”

“Yes, well.” Guankaran wasn’t finished it seemed. “I considered that, and I believe I have a solution.” A wry grin played across his lips as he raised his hands again, his fingers wiggling whimsically.

Taoru, under the guise of giving him space, pulled Lian back a pace. He felt far more protective of her than he had been before around the young man. Though, he supposed she could do worse for herself than fall for a carpenter… He just didn’t like the idea of her falling for anyone yet. Perhaps when she was five or ten years older.

These thoughts assailed him as he watched Guankaran perform another spell. With those same precise motions and sparing words, he created a catwalk from their current location up to the closest parapet. It was little more than a very thick, knobby log, but it would serve nicely to get them out of the courtyard.

Already the guards were regrouping, overcoming their shock. It wouldn’t be much longer before they attacked, especially once they realized what the three of them were about to do.

Lian was the first one onto the log. No sooner had she started up it that the soldiers figured out their escape route. A volley of arrows sliced through the air toward her, but she expertly dodged them without breaking stride. That is, of the ones that didn’t get waylaid by the still falling leaves. It was wise she didn’t use fire, else stray sparks might have set the courtyard ablaze.

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Next went Guankaran, who was followed closely by Taoru. The older man made it his job to guard the younger as more arrows flew toward them. After a great deal of narrow misses and flailing on the carpenter’s part, they joined Lian at the wall.

She was already in motion, pushing the troops back to give her companions room to leave the exposed position of the massive log. Several guards had been thrown over the sides into the safe cushion of leaves below; still more lay unconscious at her feet. The remaining soldiers learned quickly that despite her size, the young woman was not to be underestimated.

Taoru could only watch her for a moment, but his heart soared with pride all the same. It was the curse of all parents to worry about their children, even after they were fully grown. Part of him didn’t want to admit she was a woman now, that he could not always fight her battles for her. Someday, he would let go of his fear, but not today, not after he had nearly lost her forever.

He turned around, crouching down beside the log that had served as their means of escape. Behind him, Guankaran lingered as well, watching the older man from the corner of his eye.

“I would do anything for her…” Taoru confessed quietly, his words almost drowned out by the sounds of battle around them. To emphasize this, an arrow plunked off the stone near his head. He did not flinch.

“So I’ve observed,” Guankaran responded.

Down below, the courtyard was still filled with a sea of flame-colored leaves. Taoru knew men were trapped within, but that was not something he could take into consideration just now. He closed his eyes, calming himself, being sure in this moment, his actions were not fueled by hate or fear. This was survival; this was a father protecting his only daughter and nothing else.

“She’s quite…” Guankaran seemed to muse to himself again. His voice drew Taoru from the dark recesses of his own mind. “Intrepid,” he finally settled on the word.

Taoru had expected him to say something else, and when he didn’t, the older man inclined his head, gazing up at the other curiously. “Not ‘spirited’, then?” he asked, studying Guankaran closely for his reaction.

He wrinkled his nose in distaste, fixing Taoru with a dubious frown. “Spirited? She’s not a horse…”

There was no way for Guankaran to know he had just passed a secret test. Taoru smirked and turned back to the tree trunk and the courtyard below. The grin faded as the seriousness of the moment returned. He could hear Lian shouting in annoyance at them for dallying and couldn’t blame her. After almost twenty years of living in Baisho Province near the city of Kurokume, it was time to sever all ties to the community and find another home.

Taoru touched the rough bark of the log again, caressing it with his fingertips almost reverently. As though the gesture had created it, a spark of flame erupted, catching the surface alight. At his back, Guankaran was working his own magic once more. He sapped the wood of its moisture and vibrance, turning it into dry kindling so the conflagration spread hotter and faster down the length of its trunk.

The foliage beneath it went up next, turning into a sea of fire. Those unfortunate enough to be caught within screamed in agony as the inferno consumed them as well. Along the walls, the other troops stopped their attack and began turning their focus toward controlling the blaze before it could spread. It was not the outcome Taoru would have preferred, but it was the one he had been pushed to.

He didn’t look back. He would never look back. Warlord Nagisa had begun this feud by threatening what was most precious to him. The lives lost were on her hands.

As smoke billowed into the air, the three fugitives fled amidst the chaos.