Her Blood On Your Hands: Part 3

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*This story is from Old Age Canon. Some of the lore may have changed. Author: WinterAnswer

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Previous: Her Blood On Your Hands: Part 2, Continued: Her Blood On Your Hands: Part 4

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The sun was readying itself to once again sink behind the veil of the world, nightfall coming with it and the time for Nuly's first lesson with Aduli Molivas.  To the left, second to the last door she remembered before heading in the right direction.  The keep was particularly noisier this time of the day as the rest of the officers and apprentices drew inward to prepare to teach and learn.

Candles were lit, but it did little to wipe away the forthcoming darkness.  Even so, it helped Nuly find her way to Aduli's room.  A guard waited by the frame of the door, and after she was patted down, the guard knocked on the polished wood door.  Behind it, Nuly heard "Come in."

She opened the door slowly, and off in the corner of her left eye she saw the faded blue color of Aduli's fur.  She stood with her shoulder against the wall, claws extended in hostile anticipation.  Nuly stood frozen, gawking at her.  Aduli caught sight of her expression.  "Oh, sorry," she said in a whisper, lowering her hands, "I get jumpy when people knock on my door."

"I'm sorry if I disturbed you," Nuly told her.

"You didn't.  I'm just being cautious.  I'm a stranger in a strange land.  Like you."  Nuly nodded in agreement.  It was true this land wasn't too compassionate to their kind, and a little paranoia did increase your chances for survival.  "Come in," she said again, and Nuly did so, closing the door behind her.  Aduli walked away from the wall and into the middle of her room which was quite charitable for a guest quarters.

A sizeable bed sat in the left corner of the room with a table beside it.  A small desk awaited at the opposite side of the room, it's surface bare.  Three lit lanterns were the only light sources for the two, but even that was very generous.

"Sao," Aduli spoke, her hands still tense, "can you give me a Shigu salute?"  Nuly searched for any knowledge of what it could be, then she remembered Clan Juigio's salute.  She made a fist and placed it on the side of her upper chest, drawing an invisible line across it from left to right.  She looked at Aduli dumbly after she finished, and she responded with a shake of her head.

"No," she stated bluntly, "that is not it.  This is it."  Her back stiffened to full attention and her left hand came up to cover her left eye, her visible right eye watching Nuly.  Nuly then repeated the action, making sure it was just as precise as Aduli's, and she nodded in approval.  "Can you guess at the meaning of our salute?" she asked her with a light smile.

"No ma'am," Nuly told her, her hand now resting back down.

"It's to show modesty towards General Rain."  Nuly felt an odd twitch echo through her jaw as she spoke that name.  "To cover one of our eyes is to make ourselves half-blind.  It humbles ourselves in her presence and in the presence of our superiors.  You are to salute Rain whenever you catch sight of her, even if she doesn't see you.  Understand?"  Her voice was now hinted with some force, the same kind of assertiveness her instructors boasted, while her tail lashed about.

"Yes, ma'am."
"Enough with the ma'ams," she said quickly, sounding aggravated now.  "I know your general said treat me with respect, which you will, but that doesn't mean you have to keep calling me ma'am.  Treat me like a northern sister.  Okay?"  Nuly's ears twitched from Aduli's apparent agitated mood, responding with a quick and simple 'Yes.'  Aduli smiled and her eyes presented a relaxed expression.  "Smile for me.  I haven't seen you smile yet."  Nuly conceded to her request, her face stretching into a grin.

"Very nice," she told her, putting a hand under her chin to raise her head a bit with her face now just a few minor spaces from her's.  "Now, since you told me about you, I think it's only fair, as northern sisters," she smirked, "to tell you about me."  Nuly awaited with open ears.

"My name is Aduli Molivas.  I am twenty-eight years of age and I was once part of Clan Shigu's army.  Supreme spearlancer squad leader," she announced in a proud tone, her hands waving in the air to punctuate her sense of pride.  "I was there during the beginning, during General Rain's rise to power and unification of the clans."  Nuly wanted to insert some type of retort to Aduli's statement, but the northerner seemed to be entranced in her feverous introduction.  She felt it was best to keep quiet.

"But now...I'm here," her vocals were now hinted with a sort of melancholy, her smile receding.  "I've lead squads, saw countless friends, comrades, and enemies die in the moment of battle.  But now, I'm here, telling others of what I saw and did.  Teaching them."  She wondered over to a lantern, looking deeply into the trembling flame as it danced.  "Any questions?" she asked Nuly with her back turned.

"Uh, no."

"Come now.  I know there must be some questions rattling in that head of yours.  Ask me.  Don't think of yourself as a soldier in this room," she turned and eclipsed the light of the lantern, her frame now a haunting silhouette against the illuminated wall.  "Think of us as friends.  It will make these lessons a lot easier."  Nuly nodded, trying to relax her tense form.

"What happened?"

"Not a question to be answered right now.  Later."  Nuly was disappointed with Aduli's willingness to withhold information about herself, but she let it go.  Later, like she said.  "Any more questions?" she asked innocently.

"No, ma'am."

"No ma'ams!  Since we knew each other now, let's begin.  Sit, please."  Nuly found a chair against one of the darken corners of the room and retrieved it to settled herself in front of Aduli, who found a place to sit on her bed.  Nuly's spine sat flat against the back of the chair, her eyes locked on Aduli.  "The Shigu army and the Reono army," she began, "are not so different.  I found it surprising when I first realized it.  Even though we fight like blood kin, we are just like brothers and sisters."  Her words were drained of any boastfulness, just simple statements to be listened to.  After breathing a quick sigh, she continued.

"But what makes us different, besides our appearances, is our social bonding.  Rarely do I see anybody with the same personality and etiquette that I'm used to.  It's hot here, but, like you might already know, it's cooler up north.  We are used to getting close to friends and relatives for warmth, both because we are cold and because we enjoy their presence.

"That is the main lesson you will have to learn.  You have to learn to act like a Shigu, learn to assimilate into our way of life.  That is the way a true assassin works.  Are you understanding what I'm trying to say?"  Nuly did, listening wholesomely to every word she dispensed.  "Do you remember how you acted around your friends and relatives, back in your former clan I mean?  How close you felt to them?"  Nuly nodded.  "Here, it's not much their thing. It gets hot, I understand, but "she trailed off, looking off to her left at the wall.  "Here," she turned back to Nuly, patting an empty spot on her bed, "sit with me."

Nuly hesitated, but did what she told her, trading seats to place her bottom on Aduli's sheets.  She felt Aduli's tail graze her back a bit.  She looked to see a happy expression beginning to show itself on Aduli's face.  "This is how we sit, as Shigu.  We are close, we have a bond.  Like family."  Nuly's heartbeat increased, but her body was frozen in place as was her expression. She expected Aduli to do something, something she might not like, but instead she continued speaking.

"Clan Shigu's oath of loyalty is this:  As blood cascades to the soil, be it our own or our enemies', our faith in our clan will not waver.  Our bones may break and shatter.  Our flesh may rip and burn.  But our devotion to Clan Shigu will never weaken.  We are forever committed to our clan and our General.  Let her guide us to our rightful place as conquers and with our victory, let us shed this curse among our people.  Let our enemies tremble at our prowess.  As we face them in battle, left them cower and fall as our blades and claws severe their ranks.  All hail to Clan Shigu.  All hail the General Rain Silves.  She will guide us to triumph."

They were both silent, Nuly still unmoving and staring at Aduli. "Repeat it," she said, and Nuly did so.  'As blood cascades to the soil.'  "Again."  'Be it our own or our enemies.'  "Again."  'Our faith in our clan will not waver.'  "Again."  For twelve consecutive times, Nuly repeated the oath, and at one point, Aduli made her stand at attention with her left hand placed over her eye.  "Good," Aduli said, pleased with her progress, Nuly's arm now tired from being held up so many times.  "Sao, have you even been in battle?"

"No, I have not."

"That's a pity.  That's something I can't teach you.  You may think you're ready for it, but every young soldier thinks they are.  But when they catch that first sight of a severed arm or head, they're quick to step back in cowardice.  On a similar note, let me see you fight."  Aduli then rose from her bed and began to walk to the center of her room.

"Excuse me?"

"Let me see you fight, against me."  Nuly was still uncertain if she was serious, but she was careful not to insight any more annoyance upon her new instructor.

"Are you sure the officers will permit this?" she asked while she met Aduli in the right spot.

"Hmmm, good point.  One second."  She then walked towards the door, poked her head out and apparently started talking to the guard.  The guard took the time to peer into the room to see Nuly.  Leaving the door cracked open a bit, she then returned to where she previously was.

"Now, since we won't be stopped by anyone, let's begin."  She readied her stance, a completely different one Nuly hadn't seen since she's been here.  Nuly did the same, taking on the adopted style she had been learning from her martial art teachers.  "No claws.  We stop when either of us scratches or says stop.  Okay?"

"Alright." And with that last word, Aduli pounced at her with a massive kick.  Nuly dodged it by jumping to the side, retaliating with a quick kick to the back of Aduli's left knee.  For a moment, she fell forward, but regained her balance.  So quickly, she threw the back of her fist at Nuly, but she dodged again.  For a minute, they ceased, circling around each other.

Nuly decided to go for a low kick, hitting Aduli on her right leg then throwing a strong right-handed punch.  The kick hardly phased her, and Aduli merely moved out of the punch's range.  Nuly waited and then Aduli went forward again with a sweeping punch.  Nuly ducked down, and landed a quick knee to Aduli's stomach.  She grunted in response, and with her partially dazed and bent over, Nuly elbowed her in the back on the neck.  She spun and stumbled a few steps and Nuly saw another moment to attack.  She threw a heavy kick, but it was quickly blocked.

Aduli hissed at her, following with a blow to her muzzle.  Aduli then grabbed her by the neck, pushing her forward with her left leg behind her, effectively tripping Nuly.  The entire world shook around her as her back slammed against the wooden floor.  "Stop!" she chocked out, the wind knocked out of her.  She was released, but it took a minute for her to get back on two feet.

     "A good fight," Nuly heard Aduli say, her face still aching.  "Again."

"Again?"

"Yes, again."  Nuly stretched slightly before returning to her stance, a maddening glow now coursing through her body.  Her heart quickened, fingers twitching.  She was full of blood rage now and was ready to fight.  "You throw the first blow this time."  She nodded and quickly lashed forward, faking with her right to hit with her left.  Aduli ducked out of the way, landing a punch into Nuly's abdomen.  This time for Nuly, the pain wasn't as bad, merely an afterthought as she formulated her next strike.  But not before Aduli threw a kick at Nuly's right side.  When it hit, Nuly grabbed at it, her right arm clutching the leg.  She then turned to impact the bottom of her left foot into Aduli's midsection.

The blow was powerful enough to make Aduli cringe as she regained control of her leg.  Nuly cocked her arm back, ready to slam her hand into Aduli's throat, but Aduli had already thrown another strike.  The back of her fist smashed into the right side of Nuly's jaw.  She stumbled, the room around her spinning before another, more devastating impact hit her square in the stomach.  She knelt to the floor, all of her air pushed out of her lungs.  Soon she was couching, unable to return to the fight.  "Enough?"  Nuly nodded, her vision of the wooden floor beginning to blur as her eyes watered from the pain.

"I saw you fight in the yard this afternoon," Aduli told her as she sat with her, both of them gaining their breath back.  "Good offense," she complement while rubbing her neck, "but no defense."

"That's what my instructors say."  She presented a half-hearted smile at Aduli and she showed her own.

"The fighting style for southerners are different from the northern styles.  The southerners rely on their speed and quick jabs while we rely more on muscle and heavy blows.  It's a fair trade off, I suppose, but I always enjoy hearing bones break and crack as you pummel them."  Her grin turned into a disturbing sadistic smile, eyes glowing with the fire of a warrior.  It was the same glow many of the officers here at the camp possessed.  "That's another lesson I'll have to teach you.  How to fight like a Shigu."

"How different is their style?"

"Different.  Not particularly better, but to be a Shigu soldier, you'll have to learn to fight like one too."  Nuly nodded in agreement, but her ears slightly went down, breathing a quick sigh.  Another fighting style to learn in addition to the one she was learning from her trainers.  "If you fought like you did in the sight of real Shigus, they would question even if you were a Shigu.  Let me show you the style."  Indeed it was different, but only different from the current style she was being taught.  This style was similar to the technique Nuly's mother had taught her:  Devastating blows and relentless combos.  Nuly soon found herself relaxing as she mimicked Aduli's strikes and poses.  Every movement Aduli made was dripping with the grace of a great fighter, a dance that showed both beauty and hostile potential.

For a while, Nuly replicated Aduli's actions, learning bit by bit the Shigu style.  It was a vicious technique, one that used extreme force in all it's movements, but there was also a need for control.  "Careful not to tucker yourself out.  That's one of the negative attributes of our style."  Nuly panted slightly as the exercise went on, and found a growing knot in her stomach.  Luckily, dinner was near.

"You're having dinner with me tonight," Aduli said to Nuly's surprise, and she was even more surprised as the guard came into the room with two wooden plates with three large stripes of raw meat that Nuly couldn't identify.  She tested the taste with a wet tongue.  Strange meat and a tad dry she thought, but it had a good taste to it.

"What kind of meat is this?" she asked, hoping not to sound too ignorant.

"I'm not sure," Aduli replied with a stare.  "They have all sorts of meats around here I've never seen before."  Maybe another species of native lizard, Nuly thought again.  She didn't want to question it any longer, her mouth now overflowing with saliva and stomach ready to take in the meal.  Even after her first bite, she still couldn't tell what animal it could be from.

"How does it taste?" Aduli asked after she gulfed down a bite.

"It tastes fine," Nuly replied, still savoring the flavor in her mouth.  The taste was more refined than the strips of meat she received for her three meals a day, a spice used on it.  The remaining time of their dinner was in silence, albeit the sound of their chomping jaws as they sat together with their plates on Aduli's desk.  Nuly licked the plate's wooden surface, absorbing the meat's bloody residue.  It was a very fine meal, Nuly thought.  Fine indeed.

"Tastes familiar," Aduli said curiously after finishing her own plate.  "Ah, now I know the meat."  Her eyes widened, a subtle grin etching itself on her face as her tail waved relaxingly.  "Sergal.  It's sergal." She finished the last word off with a lick of her lips.  Nuly didn't say anything at first, taking it as a small joke.  She presented a smile to Aduli.

"Nice joke," she said sarcastically and Aduli shook her head lightly, her own smile lessening in boldness.  Nuly frowned, looking down at her empty plate then at Aduli's.

"A lesson," Aduli told her.  "I asked for sergal meat and they gave it to me.  Shigu, after every battle, feed on the remains of their enemies."  She then lend in.  "You have just eaten one of your own kind, dear."  Her words were heavy with a serious quality and Nuly then fully realized Aduli's grim statement.

Nuly jolted up from her seat, heart throbbing, and stomach churning.  "I need," she said, limbs shaking, "a bucket!"  Her breathing was frantic, her hands coming around her stomach.

Aduli was quick to stand as well, coming close to Nuly as she staggered around the room.  Aduli's hands then clasped around Nuly's muzzle.  "Don't vomit!" she demanded, her grip too strong for Nuly to resist or struggle out of.  "Don't vomit!  It's just meat!  Meat!  Good meat!  Just tell yourself that."  Nuly did, telling her body to resist the signal to throw up.  After a moment, they were both kneeling on the floor, Aduli still holding Nuly's jaws closed.  Nuly swallowed and after a few more moments, Aduli released her.

"Damn you!" Nuly exclaimed, pushing Aduli away from her.  "Why did you do that to me?!"

"Like I said, a lesson," she retorted, face expressionless.  "All Shigu feed on sergal meat, but only the enemies'.  Never on the meat of your brothers and sisters."

"To hell with that!  That is disgusting!"  Nuly tried not to think about it; the butcher cutting the body, selecting the portions to be eaten.  It was a horrifying process.  Only thinking about it made another wave of nausea pulse through Nuly's body.

"Maybe for some, but meat is meat."

"But...why do you eat them?"  Nuly was more subdued now, trying to relax herself and restrain the volume of her voice and her shivering body.

"That's just the way it is," Aduli replied with a shrug.  "Why let good meat go to waste?"  Nuly shook her head, not taking her answer as a valid one.  She didn't like it, even though she remembered it tasted good.  It was sergal, a person, someone.  When she thought about it, she shuddered.

"How often do you eat people?"

"After every battle.  After every skirmish.  We let some live to eat later."  Aduli came closer to her, but Nuly backed away.  "Sao, I'm sorry, but if you're going to be a Shigu soldier, then you must adapt to our ways.  Understand?"  Nuly was silent for a brief second, now remembering her situation, her duty as a soldier and her dedication towards her clan.  She gulped again, and nodded slightly.

"I understand," she took in a quivering breath.  "I'm sorry that I reacted so...outrageously."

"Apology accepted," she waved an open hand in the air, signifying all was forgiven.  "You reacted better than most.  Most vomit through their noses when I force their mouth shut."  She laughed lightly and an awkward silence passed them, Aduli eyes still fully focused on Nuly.  "It's time for sleep, Sao.  I'll be seeing you after your combat training tomorrow."

"Yes, ma'am."

"No ma'ams."  Nuly nodded again, walking towards the door.  "Sao," Aduli said before she opened the door, "you're taking on a great challenge for your clan."  Nuly looked back to see Aduli's blue eyes watching her.  "You have great courage for doing such."

"Thank you, Aduli," she said.

"Be ready tomorrow.  I think more Shigu combat training will be needed."

"Yes.  I will."

As Nuly laid on her blanket that served as her bed in the barracks, she tried to ignore the rush of nausea in her stomach.  When she slept, she dreamed of walking through plains flooded with blood as a yellow sky hung above her.  Her feet hiked through the layer of blood, kicking hearts and other organs she tried to avoid.  Bodies half submerged dotted the landscape.  All around her, the plains echoed with a thousand heartbeats.  When she awake, she found it to be the veins in her head painfully contracting.  "Damnit," she said softly, dawn being very close.  She knew this morning wasn't going to be a good one.