Kichi almost followed Akisane in pursuit of William, but she heard the groan of Yoshiie, who held a bleeding right hand with no fingers save for a thumb. Blood dripped from the partially cauterized stumps. It looked inflamed and painful, and she tore a bit of cloth and wrapped it around his injury.
Gon pulled Hisa to Whitebeard. Luckily, she couldn’t be much heavier than the boy if at all. “Can you heal her?”
“Of course I can,” Whitebeard said and laid hands on her. Moments later, she lay in a growing bed of sunflowers.
Barely able to move, Ema scooted beside Gon and smiled when Hisa opened her eyes.
Then everyone seemed to notice the split, smoking ruin that was Kiyosue. The mood in the room descended into a sad introspection before Kichi spoke up in the echoey chamber, which felt much smaller after the reality warping had ceased, “We should leave before the guards get here.”
One hand and that’s all he had, propped a man at the jam of the double doors. “Don’t worry, no one’s coming. The rebels have the full attention of the Duke. Oh, for anyone who doesn’t know, I’m Shank. I believe we’ve met, Lady Knight.”
Kichi looked at a giant and a skinny man floating on a carpet. “Didn’t you guys try to kill me?”
Shank’s forehead wrinkled in thought. “I don’t know. We’ve tried to kill a lot of people.”
“Are you going to stop us from leaving?”
The stubbly face split into a broad grin, and he moved to the side to unblock the exit. “I don’t think we could if we tried. We’re waiting for Akisane to have a word with his brother.”
She relaxed and started to wonder about what he first told her. “You said they’re rebels outside, but who are they.”
A giant man with a massive arm filled the double doorway. “They are the proud people of Dunaguard. Akisane led them in revolt against the Duke.”
Shank eyes widened, and he looked like he wanted to stab the man with his blade-replaced hand. “That’s not exactly what happened. They followed him.”
“Yes, and they’ll follow him till he rights the wrongs.”
Kichi turned away from the argument and again tried to reason with Whitebeard. “Are you sure you want to stay? It sounds like the castle may fall.”
Whitebeard nodded and told Masahide and Ema to come close with a chain-rattling gesture. Even on his knees, he seemed to stand over them; in actuality, he was still taller than Kichi. “I don’t know if we’ll get a chance to speak with you again. Right now, the Blue Chaos Lord rides the ash clouds to watch the rise of Thailoc. If Akisane lives long enough to see him, then you must take the Duke’s son to Crann. Masahide, the Mount Templar Champions are only the beginning for you. Find the Heroes of the Neptune Dome, The guardians there will teach you what you lack. Ema, you will never escape pain, but you’ll have these two to hold you up when it comes again, and if you survive, your strength will have few limits. Kichi, the realm needs purity spirits to give a thousand of their own to the cause. They can give some now and have a chance to thrive again or be utterly devastated in the dark times. Take what I’ve told you and prepare yourselves. Now, leave me be.” He lowered his head and didn’t respond to any questions.
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Kichi led her friends out of the grand hall and past the three henchmen. Shank watched them go and carefully crossed his arms. The strange pair departed the carpet and rolled it up. The thin one slung it over his back, and the huge one pulled a cudgel from a loop on his belt. That trio was trouble.
Knights packed the main hall overlooking the arena, throwing up shields and fighting unarmored people with war scythes. A few knights invoked Shining Armor and descended into the throngs of rebels to keep order. Bare hands could bypass the armor, and those knights stayed balanced on stone walls and pitched roofs.
Kichi found an opening to look out to see the full scope of the conflict. Thousands of Dunaguardians crawled below like ants, and some climbed high enough to try to enter the hallway. A sword hilt found one on the side of the head right beside her in a spray of blood. “I don’t know what to do.”
The Celestial knight who struck the man looked down at her. “Defend the realm.” He turned back and kicked the injured man down to his death.
The second rule in Kichi’s book was to do just that, and she felt its pull, but it raised questions. What was the realm? More importantly, she knew the Duke wasn’t a legitimate power—he couldn't be—and that brought to mind the third and seventh laws to defend the weak and bring justice to the unjust.
Masahide was ruddy in the strange moonlight. “This isn’t our fight. The knights who don’t know are bound to protect the castle, but we aren’t.”
“I feel an internal conflict.”
“That’s because when you took the oaths, your mind has to resolve any conflict between the rules, and one is never fully convinced.”
Ema pulled them away from the battle scene and led them towards the apartments. “We need to get Hisa in bed to rest. I think we should all barricade ourselves in her room.”
It was a good idea to stay together if the rebels penetrated the castle’s defenses and swarmed the apartments, so Kichi didn’t protest. She gathered blankets and spread them on the floor. When she started to barricade the balcony with a chest, she glimpsed the duke on a tower. He held a cross polearm and stood in an armor of specs of swarming triangles. She now understood how he maintained power; he could single-handedly fight any enemies who confronted him. However, what about this Thailoc or the necromancer?
Ema put a hand flat on the bed before laying Hisa down. “It’s hot.”
Kichi yelled, “Get away!”
Kichi
Level: 14
Focus: Prescience
Secondary focus: Lava+4, Tandem Dream Sword, Fire Sword, Spirit Dipping, Tandem Black Star Rain, Tandem Vanquish
Weapons: pure sword - 5% pure
Items: Near Field Amulet (Prescience+2, focus)