Chapter 13. Assassin's Promise

rescent Blade lay on her side upon the infirmary bed watching Master Bei through hooded eyes while feigning sleep.  The charm that concealed her thoughts was currently bound on the inside of her thigh where she assumed no one would look.  Master Bei was oblivious to her as he drew up a chair and sat at the bedside of the poor girl while the monk eased sips of a soothing draught past her shuddering lips.  No words passed between the two men as the monk gently released the whimpering figure and drew the blankets up around her throat.  Her occasional cries for her mother tore at Crescent Blade’s heart.  Death had been too good for that horrible demon summoner.  She rarely took so much pleasure in destroying another human being.

Tomorrow or the next day she would retrieve her stash of weapons and papers.  The evil man had been working on someone’s behalf to kill Master Bei.  Clearly a lot of people wanted him dead and were not beneath hiring dishonorable scum to achieve that aim.  She was curious who the paperwork would reveal to be his client.  There had not been time in the ghastly darkness of that lair to study the documents.

If she had been carrying her weapons, Master Bei would have been an easy mark.  He was alone now, abandoned by the monk who wished him good night and admonished his master to call him if he needed sleep.  She watched Master Bei rise and close the infirmary door.  He then opened a box of beeswax candles that had been resting under the examination table.  The young woman grew quiet as he laid out a couple rows of them on the counter nearest her bed and illuminated the room with their warm steady light.  No words passed between them and yet Crescent Blade sensed that he was reacting to a perceived need as he laid an incense pot at the foot of her bed and let a single bead of sweet smelling cedar resin burn slowly so that its odor filled the little room with the soothing odor of a forest glade.

And then he sat at the girl’s bedside, holding her hand gently upon his lap as he chanted, his words a soft unintelligible whisper, a mantra Crescent Blade did not know.  His face was calm and beautiful in the candlelight as he meditated.  The peace within him suffused the chamber, wrapped it in a serenity she had only found in the presence of temples and holy people.

Gradually the young woman stopped trembling and her hollowed features grew peaceful.  The only sound now was his restful breathing and the low murmur of his chant.  Crescent Blade’s own eyes grew heavy but she forced herself to stay awake, to observe her mark and plan accordingly.  Dawn’s light gradually flowed through the pale curtains.  The monk returned, opening the door without a sound and moving to Master Bei’s side.  He lowered his hand to touch the girl’s throat, then gently took her limp hand from his master’s lap. 

“She is gone, Master.”

Master Bei grew silent, his eyes glistening in the candlelight as he gazed up at the monk.  Wordlessly he rose and doused the candles.

“Peng Ren?”

“I sent him to bed with his wife many hours ago, Master.  You should get some sleep now.”

“Make sure the other girl does not awaken alone,” he whispered.

“I’ll stay.  Sleep now, it has been a trying time for you.  I let the servants know you won’t be down for breakfast so they will not disturb you.”

“Thank you, Xiang Yi.”

“She went peacefully, Master.  You gave her a beautiful gift.”

“You are too kind, Xiang Yi,” Master Bei murmured, turning to gaze upon the monk before departing.  Crescent Blade remarked the profound sadness in his dark eyes and felt an unfamiliar surge of compassion for him.  He bowed his head to the monk before departing, leaving the man alone in the infirmary.  Xiang Yi watched the door for a few moments before dropping back in the chair and weeping quietly.

She was suddenly overcome with a desire to see her friend Kalidri and speak to her of the ache blossoming in her heart.  There was something wrong here, something that did not quite fit.  

“But I am the blade of the Empire, I remove obstacles.  It is not my place to question.”

Crescent Blade closed her eyes against a surge of unfamiliar tears.  She needed a friend, someone who did not know the nature of her work and would not rebuke her.  She needed the peace of a temple to help her sort through her confusion.

“I will do my duty, just not immediately.  Nothing says I must act in haste, only that my blades are sure.”