Over the Mountain of the Moon by Reiko Morgan

Author:Reiko Morgan [Morgan, Reiko]
Language: nld
Format: epub, pdf
Tags: MLR Press; ISBN 978-1-60820-257-7
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

ChaPter nine

Two more days brought Jin and Tetsuya in sight of a village

that lay sprawled out in a small, steep valley at the foot of a huge

blue mountain. The snow was still falling, but there were people

out and about on the roads, hauling firewood and water for their

homes. As the horse passed over the river bridge, Tetsuya could

not believe that they were in a town again so quickly after leaving

the isolated temple. The road had been deserted and partially

blocked with all the snow, making the short trip treacherous, even

on horseback. To find a town just at the outside of the steep

mountain pass seemed like a miracle.

The horse trotted through the village on the well-packed snow,

passing by playing children and a group of men that looked like

soldiers out for a training exercise. Tetsuya stared in amazement

at a stone and timber castle built into the side of the mountain

some height above the village, its walls fortified for protection,

yet its graceful curving roofline reminding him of the paintings

of Kyoto temples he had seen once. The horse continued on

through the village without slowing, passing buildings and people

as Jin urged it forward.

Several people bowed at once, lowering their gazes until the

horse and riders had passed, and others stared with open mouths.

Jin seemed to be the reason for all the sudden excitement and

Tetsuya looked back to see people running out into the road

behind them, staring and pointing, their voices too low and the

horse moving too quickly for him to understand what they were

saying.

The looming castle of stone and wood grew nearer, the

imposing walls and towers a sight to behold. A majestic fortress,

the castle cast its shadow over the village below where farmers

and laborers went about their daily lives in the protection of its

feudal lord and his soldiers. There were many such strongholds

in the country, but Tetsuya had never seen one at such close

160 Reiko Morgan

scrutiny, a sight he would never forget.

Turning upward into the mountain, the horse continued

through the town, making directly for the castle gates. In awe

and terror Tetsuya clung to Jin’s waist, unable to believe that they

were simply going to charge right through the gates of an armed

protectorate. Had Jin lost his mind? Was he honestly expecting

to charge into a castle and singlehandedly call someone out to

battle?

Tetsuya’s mind raced with the possibilities, all of them bad.

The clattering of the animal’s hooves on the stone paved bridge

drowned out the sound of his thumping heart. To his amazement,

the men at the gate allowed them to pass and the faces of the

next group of soldiers registered shock and recognition, much

like the faces of the villagers they had passed earlier.

Nearing the steps and doorway that led into the main dwelling

itself, Jin pulled the horse up to a slow walk. A group of men

began gathering around them, voices whispering in a hushed

sound of awe.

“It is the young lord,” someone said in a tone of shock and

a whisper of disbelief. Another wave of nervous voices melded

with that one, a ring of shocked faces staring up at the two men

on horseback.

“Isn’t

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