The Arrow That Flies by Day

Over the next few days, I managed to hold myself together. Anyone speaking to me would have noticed that something was off. I had erected walls around my heart twice the height and thickness as before. I spoke only when spoken to and with as few words as possible. My training kept me busy, and for the first time I was grateful for it. Being trapped in my room with nothing to do but think would have ruined me.

The news had shaken me to my core. In Seeker Len’s office I had threatened all of Wosurei by refusing to comply. Now I knew exactly what these people were capable of, what they were willing to do to me and my family if I refused. Being on Earth didn’t make them safe, not if I pushed Seeker Len too far. That was why I couldn’t stop my training, I had to keep going and save this world and its worthless gods.

In the meantime, I tried to get back to Arthur only to make an unwelcome discovery. There were people besides me capable of entering the labyrinth and I nearly got caught by someone. They were wearing dark robes with a hood pulled up over their head, and I didn’t stick around long enough to hear them speak.

The next night, Arthur was gone, his cell empty and devoid of any sign that he’d been there. My best guess was that he had been put back in the dungeon. There was likely a path that led to the dungeon from the labyrinth, as easy to find as a needle in a haystack.

Arthur deserved to be rescued. If he was stuck here in Wosurei, then the least he deserved was to be a free man, master of his own destiny. A name change and some distance between himself and the Palace of Gratitude would ensure that no one knew who he was. Still, I had no idea how to save him. Getting around locked doors and endless guards would be no simple task. I left it on the back burner to simmer while I pondered my own predicament.

Daisuke noticed my attitude towards training had morphed to become single-minded. I sweated and cursed, but I never complained. I didn’t beg for any kind of reprieve. If I was going to be at the mercy of Wosurei itself, I need to be as ready as possible.

“Perhaps this sounds odd, but I wanted to say that I’m proud of you,” Daisuke said as we placed rocks in our packs for the afternoon hike.

I frowned. “Proud of me?

“Yes. I’ve seen how seriously you’re taking this and I wanted to applaud you. I know it’s been difficult, yet you’ve really risen to the challenge and show me and Fumi what you can do.” Then he gave me one of his big, toothy grins.

I wanted to both cry and punch him. Screaming, “I am a prisoner, you are my warden” in his face would have been satisfying for the moment and also changed nothing. I swallowed hard, keeping my mask firmly in place, and said, “Thank you.”

The hike was my preferred part of training. Surrounded by nature with a slow and steady task. My mind wandered, carefully navigating the mine field of painful topics. No family, no friends, just observations.

It’s quite cold today. The leaves are almost all gone on the maples, leaving skeletons behind. The pine trees are the same as ever. The brook will probably freeze over, I wonder what that will look like. Do they clear the hiking trails in winter? Will it snow much? Winter seems like a bad time to climb a mountain.

“Rin!”

Fssh. Thunk.

I stuttered to a stop. An arrow sprouted from my right arm, jutting out just below my shoulder. The fletching was bright red, as if the feathers were dipped in fresh blood.

“Oh God,” I said. I looked around me wildly. While walking, I’d kept my eyes on the path with Daisuke behind me to ensure that I maintained a good pace. The arrow could have come from anywhere. “Oh God, oh God.”

Fssh. An arrow shot out from the bushes on my left to soar into the barren canopy above. It struck something, a shadow swayed, then fell out of a pine tree.

In the time it took for the arrow to find its mark, Daisuke had caught up to me and was examining my wound. “Ah, it’s in your arm. Good, that’s good. Well, not good but better than just about anywhere else. We need to get you back to the palace, immediately.” In one swift movement, he dropped his pack and pulled out a small knife. He cut the straps off my pack, retrieved my flask, and tossed the pack into the underbrush.

I opened my mouth and no sound came out. There wasn’t any pain yet, that would come later. I’d been shot. Why?

“Forgive me, but we need to move quickly. I’ll be picking you up now,” Daisuke said. He handed me my flask, which I held in numb fingers. Then, he picked me up, one arm around my knees and the other around my torso, careful to avoid the arrow. I didn’t make a fuss as I wasn’t sure I could move very fast on my own. My breathing sped up and got shallower. I started to feel light-headed.

“Drink your water,” Daisuke advised me as he started sprinting up the path. The trees blurred together as we went. With how physically fit Daisuke was, this speed shouldn’t have been surprising, yet it rattled me.

My arrow wound had started to burn, and with that came the pain.

“It hurts,” I said, feeling the need to say what Daisuke already knew. “It burns.”

“Burning, alright. Anything else?” he asked. He was panting now, still maintaining a sprint.

My vision was doubling and my mouth had too much saliva in it. I could feel myself drooling. “Can’t see,” I slurred.

Daisuke swore, something I’d never heard before. “It’s poisoned. Gods-damn them.”

I wanted to ask who was “them”, why was I being targeted, who had shot the person in the tree, but my tongue wouldn’t cooperate. I was coming unglued. It was so hard to think.

“Ssss,” was all I could manage. I was trying to say “sleep” as a wave of fatigue had surged up out of nowhere.

“Don’t close your eyes, my lady,” Daisuke said. His face was flushed crimson and he was starting to slow a little. I recognized the Sparrow Hall courtyard and it flew by.

I held out as long as I could, managing to see twin palaces come into view before everything faded to black.