The Way of the Fox (3 page)

The fox sat down and pondered, musing on whether or not she should venture deeper into the swamp, or return back to the road.

Surely it was safe enough to leave the boys on their own?

Tonbo would be marching along the road, with the new guy – the one with the attitude –
at his side. They should be able to look after themselves for a few minutes more. Paws twinkling, Sura
trot-trot-trotted
along the edges of the swamp. She finally spied a series of hummocks that lead off into soggy islands out amongst the reeds. Sura leapt over onto a little island of decaying weeds, and began to spy out a path deeper on into the marsh.

A fallen lo
g made a clear bridge out into the swamp. Sura made her way across onto another isle. This one showed a great deal of black mud, churned up by what looked like footprints. Greatly pleased, she nosed her way forward,
sniff-sniff-sniffing
. A rank scent led off along the far edge of the island, stopping at the shore.

A shallow stretch of water lay between Sura and the next island.
There were bleached old sticks and branches lying just beneath the oily surface, glittering in the light. Fortunately a scatter of stepping stones led over to the isle. With delicate, mincing steps, Sura walked along the stones and out towards the little island. She came ashore dry, quite pleased at having avoided the mud. She quested up and over a mound of dirt, whiskers quivering, and made a discovery there amongst the reeds.

A peddler’s pac
k frame lay on its side. The wood frame had been gashed and splintered clean in two. The broken wood was discoloured by dark old stains.

There was some other wreckage just nearby: a helmet almost ripped to ribbons, and some mottled, mildewed priestly robes...

Another set of rags had been caught by the wind and tangled in the brambles. It was a single garment – weird, stiff and pink, like old discoloured paper. Sura crept forward, sniffing, and nudged the weird thing with her nose.

The rags flopped and shifted. A fold drooped free, hanging upside down.

It was the complete, empty skin of a woman’s face, with long trailing hair. The ‘rags’ were a discarded, rotting human skin.

Sura recoiled, snee
zing furiously at the stench of blood and decay. She looked suddenly back to the swamp behind her. Amongst the sticks lying there beneath the water, there were several gnawed and broken human bones.

“
Mother pus bucket…!”

There was no need to panic
! Everything was still OK. The boys were up there on the road, well away from the swamp. They were armed, they were armoured, they were together…

…
and the new guy had absolutely no nose for danger.

Crap!

Leaping from stone to stone, Sura sped wildly off towards the shore. She skidded in the grass, took her bearings, then shot off like a streak of orange lightning.

As the road
dipped down towards the swamps, the trees became far more grey, more drab and dull. Great sheets of spiders’ webs hung loose across the leaves, scarcely stirring in the still, thick air. Overhead, dark clouds gathered. It seemed that they were due for a cold spring rain.

The sky grew dark – and the air seemed deeply still.

Kuno halted at the swamp-side of the road, listening carefully. There was a sound – a very slight lilting in the air. The sound of a girl singing. Kuno saw a side trail leading off towards the marsh. Tonbo joined him, and they stood together, carefully considering the path.

Tonbo shook his head.

“We should wait for Sura.”

“If there has been murder, then it is our duty to investigate.” Kuno saw to the already immaculate set of his swords. “Foxes notwithstanding.”

“We might need her.”

“I cannot imagine why.”

Kuno straightened his sleeves, and
set off down the trail. Tonbo drew a deep breath and gave a
humph
of disapproval. But he hefted spear and club, and followed Kuno onwards down the path.

The pathway
wound a hundred paces on towards the swamp. There were clear signs of habitation: a rope had been tied about a tree trunk, and a fishing net was strung up over a long wooden pole. The place had a deepening, rank, unpleasant scent.

A large hut with low eaves sa
t close beside the edges of the marsh. A tree shaded the roof, and a string bag beside the door held a great many tortoise shells. The thatched roof was held down by rows of great, flat stones.

A young girl in red robes
embroidered with patterns of spring flowers sat upon the porch weaving hemp upon a loom. She had a sweetly pretty face – pale, red lipped and smiling. She saw her visitors approaching. Her eyes assessed them, and she gave a supple bow.

“
Samurai! Good day to you. To what does this humble girl owe the pleasure?”

Her voice
had a low, purring allure – subtle, and filled with hidden promises.

It was a pleasant surprise to find so genteel a figure in such uncouth surroundings.
Kuno advanced and gave the woman an elegant, formal bow.

“
We have few visitors, samurai san – except for those who wish to use the shortcut to the main road. Few choose to use it.”

“A shortcut?
Is there a path through the swamps?”

“Yes,
samurai. It takes a full
ri
from the journey.”

Leav
ing aside her loom, the girl arose. She was a creature of considerable grace. With robes trailing about her, she walked serenely to the rear of the house, where a line of stepping stones led off into the inner reaches of the swamp.

“There are causeways between the islands.
The route is easy enough, if you do not mind the surroundings. The swamps can unnerve those who are unused to them.” The woman cast an eye towards the cloudy skies overhead. “But it will be raining in half an hour. You would most certainly be drenched, whichever way you travel.”

The
girl archly considered the two handsome young samurai – one tall and massive, the other polite and erudite. A warmth smouldered in her eyes.

“If you would
choose to grace my home, honoured samurai? You could weather the rain until it has passed.” The girl drifted off towards her house. “It is but humble, but I can offer you both what small…
comforts
… I possess.”

Kuno bowed, accepting the offer as a gracious one. The woman moved with dainty steps to the door of the house, knelt down, and slid open the door. Kuno entered the house with great politeness. The girl
inclined her head, beckoning Tonbo to follow his companion inside.

Tonbo considered the little swamp hut, and scratched his chin. He then set down his back packs, leaning Sura’s spear against a tree. He pulled out her clothing and lai
d it flat upon the ground, propping open the neck of her robes. With all stowed neatly beneath the tree, Tonbo took up his mighty tetsubo and clomped up the steps to the hut. He nodded a brief bow to the red-robed girl, then passed inside.

The hut had a low ceiling and floor covered in mats of woven reeds. A low, smoky fire of swamp wood served to boil a tea kettle. At the back of the hut there were several boxes, ba
skets and folded mats, with a few strings of copper coins. Yet more baskets held dried fish, and great bales of cut reeds were stacked beneath the eaves.

The air was thick with the stench of fish, ill-dried
tortoise flesh and smoke: the effect was quite eye watering. Kuno and Tonbo sat themselves down – Kuno kneeling formally, Tonbo cross-legged with club in hand.

H
er red robes gleaming, the girl set out tea cups, tea caddy and bamboo whisk upon a wooden board. Her hair was beautifully ordered, tied back with red ribbons. Her skin was so pale it seemed almost blue. Kuno complimented the woman upon her tea set – the cups were most beautifully glazed! Tonbo, however, had little interest in small talk. He looked about the hut quietly, then wrinkled his nose.

“It is our catch
, samurai. Please forgive our rustic home.” The girl measured tiny spoons full of ground green tea into each cup. “Surely it is not too strong?”

Tonbo shrugged.

There were some toys on the floor – a man’s garments hung upon one wall. Kuno looked quietly about the hut.

“Your family are still fishing, honoured lady?”

“They will be gone for hours, samurai san. We are quite alone.” The girl poured hot water from the kettle. She then briskly whisked a cup of tea. “We may enjoy one another’s company.”

She
turned the cup most properly, and presented it to Kuno. As she reached forward, Tonbo saw her hair ribbons. He reached into his belt, and drew out the ribbon Sura had found beside the road.

“You’re missing one.”
He tossed the matching ribbon to the floor. “Bridal ribbon.”

Black, vicious eyes flashed in the girl’s face.
She drew in a breath, and suddenly she spat.

Kuno twisted aside like lightning
as a green dart spat from the girl’s mouth and missed him by a whisker. He drew his sword in a blur, cutting twice. The girl wrenched herself aside with inhuman speed, and the blade scarcely scored her skin.

Tonbo slammed his tetsubo forward.
The girl span into the blow, seizing the weapon and sending Tonbo – muscles, armour, club and all – hurtling head over heels through the air. Rolling up into a ball, he hit the floor, crashed into Kuno, and sent both of them smashing backward out through the wall and into the yard beyond. Rocks and boards crashed down from the roof. Dazed, both men rolled back up onto their feet.

The door of the hut shattered. Out strode the girl – her face slit by Kuno’s sword and a
sleeve of her robes sliced in two. The skin of her arm split: one side of her beautiful face peeled away, revealing green, warty skin beneath. The woman gave a great, thundering roar – a yell that stunned both men in place. She seemed to swell, her skin and robes bursting open to reveal a massive form beneath. The girl tore away the last shreds of skin, expanding massively to tower over her prey.

She was now a great, bow-backed knobby figure with pendulous breasts, long muscled arms, huge claws, and a mouth packed full of fangs. The creature stank of old blood and decay.

Sura came barrelling out of the bushes in fox form. She saw the girl as the last of the woman’s skin split away. The fox looked at the creature and seemed relieved.

“Oh – you found her
then!”

The monster
ripped a porch pillar free from the house. She launched it like a lightning bolt at Sura, who leapt like a grasshopper, squeaking as she dodged the shot. She tripped and plunged into a pile of reeds. Tonbo surged up onto his feet.

“Sura!
”

“
I’m on it! Cover me!”
The fox erupted up out of the reeds.
“Go go go!”

Kuno held his sword out, trying to keep the monster
at bay. The great naked, snarling figure loomed over him, spreading wide its claws. Kuno was awash with panic and bewilderment.

“
Cover her?”

“Cover me!”

Sura made a dash for her clothing. Tonbo set his tetsubo into attack position, and face the monster.

“Cover her.”

Sura dove into her clothes and tu
rned back into human form. She leapt up from the ground, hair flying, and dug into her sleeve for a sheaf of painted strips of paper. She seized her spear and threw away the sheath, then instantly took off into the long grass nearby. Kuno stared in shock.

“What?
Where is she going?”

Tonbo was already in action.
The huge man thundered into the attack. His great iron staff thrummed through the air, streaking for the monster’s neck. The creature dodged, and the tetsubo demolished part of the porch – but a lightning swift butt strike slammed the hilt of the iron club against the monster’s face. She snarled, staggering back, then ripped for Tonbo’s head with her claws, each blow powerful enough to snap a man’s neck. Tonbo parried one blow on his iron staff and twisted aside from the other, spinning his staff to crash a blow against the monster’s back. The monster screamed, bones cracking – but the creature had its claws into the sagging eaves of the porch. It wrenched the roof down, half burying Tonbo in roof beams, rocks and reeds.

Kun
o raced forward and attacked. His sword moved with speed and immense precision. The monster moved backward, parrying each strike with its steel-hard claws, sparks flying – then it caught Kuno with a massive blow that sent him reeling. Claws ripped armour plates and lacing. Kuno cut with lightning speed, and blood sprang from the monster’s arm. But the beast caught Kuno with a backhanded strike and sent him skidding backwards across the ground.