1.4...

The storm continued as it had for hours. A cool, musty breeze slipped into the room from the window, obviously released from the constant rain turning the soil into mud outside. The dojo still sat in the ruins of the old Dragon City where real roads were hard to find. It was always a humble building, the "first-floor" consisted of a single room where occasional training was done. Well used exotic weapons lined the walls in hopes to be picked up and worked with. In the back left corner of the room, a thin oak ladder was standing, leading up to the attic where Ashitaka's bedroll and quarters were. His only possessions were a single half-burnt candle, the holder it rested in, and the wooden box it sat on.

The candle silently burned, projecting dancing shadows about the gabled room, fighting the darkness and cold outside. Ashitaka sat in a corner of the room in a lotus position, eyes closed, doing his best to meditate and clear his ragged mind. The bandaged chest of the Samurai rose and fell slowly in a vain attempt to control breath. Only did the steady rain on the roof ease the warriors heart. He had always loved storms. The awesome power always humbled Ashitaka and reminded him of nature's shear command of the world and creatures in it.

Suddenly, the Wolf Samurai felt a strong and familiar presence in the room. It had slipped in like the sharpest of daggers to his heart. Finally, he thought. "There is no need to do that anymore...Nesh," Ashitaka called to the shadows of the room. A slender figure slipped into the candle light, cloaked in writhing darkness. "You still shroud yourself in shadows?" the Samurai asked calmly.

"Shadows are my only true allies Ashitaka," came an even response. He hasn't changed, Nesh thought to herself. It had been a year since she had seen him, and the familiar mix of utter love and absolute hatred returned from the depths of her heart. There was nothing like looking at that lean body of his. Battle scars adorned his chest and his arms. Nesh knew many of them were given to him by her, a gift to remember her by. His strong jaw and hard features gave him the warrior look. She had always adored his short shaggy brown hair with its two gray stripes running down the middle of his head. His strong, yet warm blue eyes had always captured her heart. It was those eyes that made him transparent, betraying his every emotion to the trained eye. Especially in lovemaking and battle, Nesh thought to herself. And it was only in those two environments that they had ever shared any form of intimacy.

"Did you send him?" asked Ashitaka bluntly.

"Our son?" replied Nesh, playing dumb.

The Samurai ignored the ploy, "He said he came on his own. He is too young for me to believe that, he has a lot to learn." Ashitaka opened his eyes and looked at Nesh, "And I don't mean that in a physical sense. He has all the fighting skill he needs."

"I had nothing to do with him coming to you, although I did enjoy seeing him try to stand up to his father."

"It pains me to see my own son act the way he is," Ashitaka remarked. "He has potential for great things. But those things can only be unlocked through honor, discipline, and an understanding of himself."

"I could never understand any of that," Nesh said honestly. "I was created to be a killer with everything I needed to know already a part of me."

I remember, Ashitaka thought. He recalled the end of his childhood at the age of three when his father was killed by the woman in writhing shadows. "Our past is a complicated one Nesh, and I do not wish it to stand in the way of his choices. I want him to find his own path, his own truth. That is when he will be strongest."

"You know that the next time you two meet, one of you will die," Nesh gave evenly.

"No," sneered the Samurai. "The blood of Sosetsu, my father, still runs through him. A small part of his heart still feels that anguish every time he dishonors himself. No matter what he does, he will always feel that. I believe he has begun to realize that."

"Ashitaka," giggled Nesh, "your son cares not of honor. It is that oversight that will kill you. Like always, you trust others far too much. Just like that half-rate wizard and flighty fey that betrayed you in the end."

Almost to quick to be seen, the Samurai was on his feet, his katana in hand. Restraining himself and clenching his teeth, Ashitaka replied, "You know nothing! If it weren't for them, I would not stand before you. Take you tricks and traitorous ways and leave this place."

Nesh snickered, "It is always so easy to get a rise from you. As I taught our son long ago, manipulation is always half the battle."

"This is how you repay debts? I remove your master, releasing you from slavery only to be goaded," snapped the Samurai.

"I owe you nothing Samurai!" sneered Nesh, no longer laughing. "It is you and this entire forsaken world that owes me. I gave you all the means to defeat him. Without me, you are nothing!" After a pause to compose herself, the shadowy figure continued, "Face it Ashitaka, we are two parts to a whole. I need you, and you need me. You are my entertainment, and I am your informer."

"If you do not change once and for all Nesh, that tie will have to be severed," Ashitaka replied quietly.

"We shall see my love," the figure cautioned as she melted into the shadows amid the dancing candle-light.