Brave Story - Miyuki Miyabe [348]
Wataru looked into the old man’s eyes.
“Your friend, she’s not doing well. I’m afraid if we don’t get her help…”
Wataru pulled at the man’s elbow, and they stopped. The man patted Wataru’s arm lightly, but said nothing.
“Isn’t there something you can do? If there’s any way we can save…”
“The wound is deep, and she’s lost a lot of blood. We can’t do much about that. I believe she’s aware of the situation herself.”
That’s why she wanted to see me.
Part of Wataru didn’t want to face it. He didn’t want to know. He walked slowly, dragging his feet. Yet he walked, and soon he could see Kutz lying in the shadow of a low thicket. Someone had thrown a shirt over her. The wound at her neck was wrapped with strips of cloth. An old woman sat by her side, gently patting her arm.
“My wife,” the old man told him. “That we both made it this far is thanks to you.”
Kutz’s face was paler than the moon. Wataru walked softly over, taking her hand in his own.
“You okay?” she asked, her voice the same as always—perhaps a little weaker.
“Yeah. I managed to make it without getting hurt too bad.” He tried to smile. “You too. That’s a nasty bite you got, but you’re looking good.”
Kutz chuckled deep in her throat. “Yeah, well, I’m not so sure about that. I’ve been hurt before, but never like this.” She spoke calmly, quietly. Kutz was never quiet. Even when she was sitting in her chair back at the branch in Gasara, the blood always seemed to be boiling just under her skin. That’s who she was. Not this quiet person lying here in the grass.
“Don’t give up so easy,” Wataru said, trying to sound tough. “Rest tonight and you’ll be fine. We’ll go back to the Isle of Dragon and get you some proper medicine. Okay? Just got to hold on a little longer.”
Kutz released her grip on Wataru’s fingers and lifted her hand to his cheek. “I’m sorry,” she whispered softly. “I asked the impossible of you, brought you all this way, and it was all for nothing.”
“It’s not your fault, Kutz.” Wataru said, but his voice quivered, and his eyes burned.
“And look at me. Here I am leaving before you…I can hardly ask for forgiveness, can I…”
“Don’t say that!”
Kutz smiled and looked at Wataru. She gently brushed his cheek.
Wataru heard footsteps coming across the grass. He looked over his shoulder, thinking it was Meena, and saw instead the girl in the white dress. She was standing, clutching herself with both arms.
“The emperor died, didn’t he?” Kutz asked in a hoarse whisper.
“Yes.”
“Can’t really call it a success, though. Lost my whip too.”
Wataru felt Kutz’s hand on his cheek, her fingers—so soft. He had never realized how gentle, how delicate her hands were.
“I’m afraid I may have made a terrible mistake. Not just this time, but so many times before.”
Wataru wanted to tell her, “No, that’s not right,” but his mouth remained closed. She wasn’t talking to him. She was talking to someone else only she could see. Her good eye wasn’t focused on him. She was already back home, in the south, the familiar sound of the busy Gasara streets ringing in her ears.
“You’re the chief, Kutz. You’re my chief,” Wataru said, putting his hand over hers. “You’re a great Highlander. You were always faithful to your duty, and you did what was best to protect Vision.”
She smiled up at him. “Thanks.”
Wataru saw his own face reflected in her eyes. “Wataru. You…you have to make it. Don’t die.”
Wataru nodded. A tear ran down his cheek.
“Your journey…it’s not over. It’s nowhere close to being over. Don’t even think about giving up.”
Her last words were barely more than a breath. Wataru had to lean close to hear. The old man knelt down next to his wife and looked down at the fallen Highlander. “We are Solebrians. You saved us. Can you hear me?”
Kutz moved her head almost imperceptibly, looking in his direction.
“You will go meet with the Goddess now. Until the day you are reborn, you will become a light shining over Vision.”
Kutz closed her eyes and took a deep breath, then whispered