In the evening an interesting group gathered on the poop deck, sipping the tea they had obtained from the Sung. Perryn was sitting there with Walters and Wu Chen when the wizard stiffened and Perryn found Pat, Hinatea and Bai Ju sitting cross-legged beside them.
“Oh, damn you, Pat,” said Perryn. “Will you stop creeping up on people? It’s damn annoying.”
“Good tea,” said Pat without expression.
Wu Chen bowed low from his sitting position towards Bai Ju. “Lady, we are honoured.” He spoke with care.
“Are you going to introduce your friend?” Walters asked.
“Sure,” said Pat. “Guys, this is Bai Ju. She is sailing with us now. Bai, this is Perryn and Bishop Walters. They are priests and Perryn knows some tricks.”
Walters smiled and nodded, while Perryn, irritated at the introduction, extended his mind towards her, testing her aura and sensing a stillness he had not experienced before, though there was a similarity in Wu Chen. Wu Chen started to speak and put a hand on his arm, there was a blinding pain in his skull and he rocked back on his haunches, stunned.
Bai Ju glared at him. “Is not polite.”
Wu Chen’s nervousness became apparent. “Please, Lady, he is young, he does not know. I will teach him. My apologies for my student.”
Bai Ju smiled serenely. “Accepted. You take responsibility, wizard. He strong and unschooled. Train fast.”
Pat and Walters wondered what had happened, Hinatea just smiled. Sara, Maciu and Suzanne came up and joined them, followed by the Tokkaidan. Sara sat beside Bai Ju, determined to make friends, while Suzanne put her hands on Perryn’s head, massaging it and looking thoughtfully at Bai Ju.
“This is Takeo,” Sara indicated the Tokkaidan and introduced the others while Bai Ju was introduced to her and Maciu. Sara could sense the discomfort of the wizard and Takeo at Bai Ju’s presence and wondered what to say.
Suzanne inspected the two girls arrayed beside Pat. “So, you met Hinatea,” she began. “No blood. Little is offering good odds you kill each other.”
Hinatea’s eyes went cold and black, causing a shudder to run down Suzanne’s spine. It was Bai Ju who answered.
“We Triad. Is good.”
“Oh, the Captain will love this,” Suzanne smiled with enthusiasm. “We love ménage à trois in Galicia, quite a few. It can be so special.”
Wu Chen coughed. “In Sung, Lady, a Triad is something else. It is a fighting unit of myth, extremely powerful and dangerous. Bandits call their gangs after the Triad to make themselves more fearsome.” He was inspecting the three with care, his brows drawn together.
“Not trained yet,” nodded Bai Ju. “Strong later.”
As the mutters died away, Bai Ju changed the conversation.
“Bishop, it is title, yes?” she asked Walters. “What it mean?”
“Uh, it means I am responsible for the spiritual guidance of a town, but in my case I earned the rank as a scholar and teacher more than a priest.”
“A scholar?”
“One who studies and learns. My main interest is in cartography, map making, and what is in the world.”
“Is good. You know are men like you on Impe’ial Orchid?”
“Really? I am not surprised, but hope to meet them. I would appreciate talking and sharing information with them.”
Bai had not finished. “You here for reason too. You study so can write, is so?”
“Yes, of course.”
“I think you not map maker now. You here to record what happens.” She had everyone’s attention now.
“What happens?” Walters whispered. He had a sinking feeling he wasn’t going to like where this conversation went.
“These people,” Bai Ju went on with a gesture encompassing them all. “Strong people. All different. On own become leaders, rulers, scare people. Now we together. What mean?”
Sara spoke slowly, “Captain Lim says we are world changers.”
“Good name. I think yes. So, what are our duties, neh? We, Pat, Hinatea and me, we the knife, the knife of the Old Gods. You, Perryn and Chen, you the umbrella. You speak to the New Gods.” Perryn started at the lack of honorific for Chen and cold fingers stroked down his spine. Bai Ju went on, looking at Sara. “You the flame, the beacon, leads men. Takeo, he the smith, beat flame to steel. And keeps it white hot.” She considered Suzanne.
“You I not know. Think important. Think you keep her human.”
She returned to Sara with troubled eyes.
“Be careful, girl. Men follow you. People follow you. Countries follow you. You take them to flames and death, make desert, or you their light, who bring rice and freedom? This one,” she indicated Suzanne, “she keep you straight. Or the world ends in darkness.”
There was silence as her words echoed in the dark, and Bai Ju sipped her tea serenely. Mot broke the silence, thumping her tail to the deck, causing Bai Ju to smile.
“Dog clever. She happy, she not worry about death, she think only of good things. We must be same. Concentrate, focus on good result not bad.”
“What about me?” asked Maciu.
Bai Ju smiled sweetly at him. Only the perceptive Suzanne caught the sadness and compassion in Bai Ju’s eyes. “You good man. You give her love, she needs this. You shield and rock for her. When she angry, she hit you, you not mind. Is good. You take anger from her.”
Sara groped for words, anger boiling up in her. ‘
Brazen little hussy! How dare she suggest such things?’
Maciu put an arm around her shoulders and she stilled the words. But it was Pat who changed the subject, to Sara’s surprise. “You did well today, Sara. You found fighting grace today, first time I think. Right in the zone.”
Takeo responded with quick interest. “Zone? Grace? This I not know. She touched the void and entered it.”
“Void? Yeah, good name. I call it grace.”
“Grace? What you mean, grace?” asked Bai Ju.
Pat struggled for words. “When you do things, you are in different mental states, emotional states. It’s a word I use to describe being complete, feeling one thing only and losing other feelings. When you do it right, time slows down, everything is easy. I learnt it from the Elves for running and archery. They call it the state of grace. I found it can be used for other things, like learning. We used it to swim over this afternoon, and, uh, other things.”
Suzanne instantly knew what other things were and smiled faintly for the first time. But Pat’s description hit a chord with her, and she understood what he meant for she used it for sex and hadn’t understood void.
Takeo, Wu Chen and Bai Ju were fascinated by Pat’s words, leant forward and spoke at the same time, then, embarrassed, leant back. Wu Chen checked with the others and spoke first.
“Young man, this is wonderful. A difference in approach from East and West. Tell me, how do you learn to enter ‘grace’?”
“Practice,” said Pat with finality. “I try to remember how I was feeling the last time I did something well, and put myself so I am feeling the same - hold my body the same, breathe the same, take the same steps or sit the same way, think the same things, empty my mind of everything else, and I find myself in the same state of grace. If I work on it, each time it gets a bit better.”
“Do you not practice exercises?”
“Not sure what you mean. I am always exercising, running, shooting, riding.”
“I meant more mental exercises. Words you repeat?”
“No, I don’t think so. For me it is actions. The mind thinks differently depending on what the body is doing.”
“Yes, we seek the void by making the body still and exercising the mind. Your way is interesting. I think we could combine techniques for good results.”
“It lets us dive deeper,” said Hinatea. “My grandmother teach me. We use breathing to get there.”
“I think,” spoke Takeo deliberately into the following silence, “the boy’s methods are good for swordplay. They would work well - we practise moves constantly so they are automatic. At this stage we are not seeking the void, we do later. Perhaps to combine the two. But I do not think his grace and our void are the same. Similar, yes, but not the same.”
“I not agree.” Bai Ju spoke slowly. “I see him go into grace. It is void. Same thing. Different route. Our training different to yours, Takeo, we use his grace. There are many routes to void. See his aura. Only one touched by void with aura like him. These five only ones on ship to have it, like us three only ones of us. I never see aura like yours, girl. Where you find void?” She spoke to Suzanne.
For the first time Suzanne was unsure of what to say. She was slightly out of her depth and wasn’t used to it. Sara spoke up for her.
“Suzanne is the most beautiful woman in Harrhein. She is the most accomplished courtesan, men pay fortunes for her time. Her coaching of the men and women on our ship ensures no fights over partners. Her coaching makes everyone happy.”
The aesthetic Wu Chen appeared blank, while Takeo showed a glimmering of understanding, but Bai Ju understood the implications.
“Oooh! You tantric master! Very good!” She clapped her hands with pleasure. “You share night with us, please? I only poor student, happy to learn more from you!”
Wu Chen was horrified. “You claim to touch the void with pleasure! Ridiculous! It is only through abstinence you can achieve the ethereal heights and mental stimulation of the void. It is impossible to use the low drives of the body.”
“If you strong enough, it makes you better not weaker. Very strong power comes from sex.” Bai Ju spoke with authority. “Big mistake in your teachings, wizard.” She contemplated Perryn who shifted his weight, unsettled. “You no listen to him about sex, boy. Tantric master can make you stronger, but careful of witches. They drain your power. His lot think all women witches.” She pealed with laughter at Wu Chen”s face.
Wu Chen was angry now. “Witch! Good name for you! Speak with more respect, or you will feel my anger!”
“I know your ability and fear not your anger, wizard. I listen inside your walls while you teach. Try me not, or shuriken will feel your throat.”
“Enough! Both of you!” Suzanne was angry. “Bai Ju, never hurt a man’s pride. Wu Chen, accept we are all able to learn from others and some of which we take for truth is not. But both of you remember we are together on the same team, or our in-fighting will bring on the darkness before time!”
Bai Ju responded immediately. “Yes Master.” She leant forward, amazingly supple and knocked her forehead on the deck at Wu Chen. “Wu Chen, I most humbly apologise for my rudeness. I promise to help you where I can and learn from you too.”
Wu Chen rallied magnificently, through the confusion written on his face. He made a brave attempt at reaching the deck with his forehead but was unable to reach it, lacking suppleness. “Bai Ju, I acknowledge your abilities as supreme in your area. Long have we feared you studied us. I look forward to learning from you, and teaching you what little I can.” Concern spread across his face. “But I am too old for sex.”
“I think I will change your mind,” drawled Suzanne, “but plenty of time.”
Sara awoke early the next morning, still thinking about the conversation of the previous night. Bai Ju’s words echoed uncomfortably from her dreams, full of ravening hordes rampaging over countries, leaving deserts and burning towns in their wake while she laughed over the carnage. Getting herself some porridge and tea from the galley, she heard indistinct but shrill cries outside and went on deck. Half the crew were there, looking up.
Pat raced along a spar high up the mainmast, closely followed by Hinatea, and as she watched they jumped, caught a rope and swung down to the next spar in an amazing feat of agility she would never dare emulate. They ran back along the spar, dodging as Bai Ju tracked them from above, a long stick prodding at them.
It was Bai Ju who was crying out.
“Keep arms in! Not need! Use wa! Feel it! Shut eyes! Faster! You can go faster!”
She kept up a constant stream of words, and Sara couldn’t work out whether it was encouragement or criticism, eventually concluding it was both.
Nils came up to her. “What are they doing? They will kill themselves.”
“They are training.” Takeo appeared from nowhere. “You privileged. Not many see ninja train.”
“Nin-ger?” asked Sara. “What is that?”
“What we call them in our country. Secret society of assassins. She is same, I think. She train them.”
“Is she making them run with their eyes shut?” asked Nils.
“I think so. Ninja work at night, other senses more important than sight.”
The spectators watched entranced as they ran about for a good half an hour, before both jumped into a sail and slid to the deck, followed by Bai Ju. Pat was dripping with sweat, Hinatea exhausted. Bai Ju was cool and fresh, immaculately turned out but without the white face. Crew members surrounded them and Sara could hear the questions. What were they doing, who was Bai Ju, could they learn, had he really had his eyes shut.
Pat waved them off, saying to let him clean himself first, and went to the rail where he dived over, followed by the two girls. A cry of “Sharks!” went up and everyone rushed to the rail, to see them climbing up the side of the ship like lizards.
The Bosun was waiting. “What the fuck do you think you are doing Pat? Trying to kill yourself.”