The Sword of Kaigen

by M.L. Wang

A student like you, who can absorb what he is told but also think beyond it, is capable of anything.”

‘there are a million ways to tell the same story. Our job as jaseliwu is to find the one the listener needs to hear. Not necessarily the one that makes them the happiest or the one that gives them the most information, but the one they need to hear to do what they need to do.’

The moon and the ocean fear no change.

We’re water, and water can shift to fit any mold. No matter how we’re broken and reshaped, we can always freeze ourselves strong again. It’s not going to happen all at once,” she added. “You have to wait for the turn of the season to see what shape the ice will take, but it will form up, clear and strong. It always does.”

“A life of dangerous adventures might seem worth it now, when you are young and seemingly invincible, but one day, you will have children, and you will not want that life for them.”

Takeru did exactly that - endanger Mamoru which ultimately led to his death.

“How dare you claim to respect my choices and then deny them because you don’t agree with them? How dare you claim to respect my autonomy and then deny it because it means you don’t get to keep me.”

MEN!

Tou-sama said that there were better and more beautiful things than the rush of battle. You’ll understand when you have children. It would be worth it when she had children. Tou-sama had promised.

For a moment, her hands had been full of pearls.

Kneeling down, she passed a hand over his eyes, closing them, letting herself forgive him. It was easy to forgive a young man following orders. Too easy. And it didn’t lift any of the weight from Misaki’s chest—because this Ranganese stranger wasn’t the one who really needed forgiving.

“You’ve had a difficult few days, Matsuda,” the colonel said. “Maybe you shouldn’t watch this.” “Mmm,” Misaki said without taking her eyes off the pyre. “Maybe I shouldn’t.” She kept her eyes open and watched Mamoru burn. It was the only defiance she could afford.

In the midst of so much sensory input, any feeling in my human self—physical or emotional—becomes insignificant and therefore bearable.”

“You’re guilty of the same thing I am—trying to please and obey your elders.” Misaki shook her head. “Maybe that was a mistake. Maybe not. It doesn’t matter anymore. None of them are here to give us the answers anymore. We’re all out of parents and grandparents and brothers. It’s just us.”

In that moment of awe, Takeru realized how much he owed this woman, who had borne his children, who had fought, and fought, and fought for a family she had never asked for. She had given him her life and demanded nothing in return. Mamoru hadn’t inherited his strength from his father. It had come from her.