Walking over the hill the distant path of the comet they follow can be
seen. Musashi, still with the knapsack of blades, pauses with Akari and Mariko to see. He breathes, looks
down to the village in the path, listening.
A mild disruption, a dropped pot.
Birds fly.
They descend the hill.
____
The knapsack slams on the counter before the tender. She looks nervously from him to behind, where the room is filled with a brawl paused, all staring at him.
Musashi - To the tender, "Did you ... have a favored side ?"
~ The bandits look up at her ...
Tender - Shrugs, "Eh ..."
~ The bandits look heartbroken ... "Aww ..."
Musashi - "And do they ... play ... ?"
He looks at the band.
All and the bandits turn to the band.
Musashi - With the open knapsack filled with swords, looking in ... "Oh ! This one's nice." Looks up at them, "Legacy."
The tender's face turns to horror watching, a bucket blood splashes across the wall behind her. The a slight confusion on her face with the cracking sound.
________
The deep shelf cracking sound as the fleet passes beneath.
Inside the Xinhua vessel the dominoes fall in rhythm. Qiu pulls the pulleys and counter weights to reset from behind the wheel one by one, two by two when she can with struggle against the wheel's counter spin.
____
The sounds of smashing and struggle, pounded meat and steel as the looks flash across the tender's face. A giggle, confusion, horror, astonishment, revulsion, a full on laugh, etcetera.
____
The oars of the Xinhua pursuers tap off from the cascading bergs with the tips of oars, navigating the light craft through like a millipede, red flags flapping, red cloaks working the decks in storm.
____
The random sacks of bandit gold on the counter next to a well filled sack of blades. Musashi sets down the bottle.
Musashi - "May I fill my bottle ?" He slides over the bandit pile. "This is for the damages." He reaches into his pocket for a coin and places it on the counter. "This is for the wine."
...
Tender - "Are you tired ?"
Musashi - "No ... but I may be bleeding."
A bandage pulls across screen.
________________
The stranger looks through the mist from the aft deck.
Shumi - "Still ?"
Stranger - "Still."
____
The Xinhua captain sits in her chair overlooking the decks.
The attendant priestesses port her tea and prepare spice.
Attendant - "There are two now."
The captain - Smiles, "Yes. How many in count have yet to kill ?"
Attendant - Crushing the powder in a mortar, "Only three this turn. They are ready. If I may ask of curiosity ?"
Captain - "If the question be wise then so shall be the answer."
Attendant - "Is the island real ?"
Captain - Smiles again as the powder is poured into the drink, stirring. "Thank you. The island is real enough here, but it is not there now. They will find nothing, and we will find them broken and hungry."
Attendant - "We carry on to where it should be ?"
Captain - "We will lose them in these mists, but they have no reason to go anywhere else."
________
Chiyome stares at Shumi as the ninjas chant, "Ice cream ..."
Shumi - "Yes ! France ! I said that !"
Stranger - "What is ice cream ? It's just ... frozen cream ?"
Ninjas recoil in horror and defense ...
Shumi - "Pretty much ... with stuff in it ... I honestly don't even know. I just know the make it in France."
Chiyome - "Wait !"
Ninjas hands to hilts with a stare.
Chiyome - She pulls off her mask and looks intently, "It is more than that. You do not know."
____
Hundreds of ninjas in the sunny field, the camera swirling around as Chiyome holds the ice cream high in her hands, dripping in the sun as they gather round ...
____
Stranger - "Where did you even find that ... ?"
____
A decorous carriage travels the path, well guarded, the driver sits next to shogun.
Driver - "You know what I hate ?"
Shogun - Mildly annoyed and distracted, "What ?"
Driver - "Ninjas."
Black fabric and screams.
They slide the massive ice block from the back, two halves sealed horizontally like a sarcophagus. They looks at each other ...
Pried open. One bowl of ice cream.
____
They twirl in the field licking the dripping ice cream from Chyome's arms ...
____
Stranger - "Whoa."
Shumi - "Yeah."
Chiyome - "Mm hm !" She turns as the ninjas depart with her, looking back suspiciously.
________
The Xinhua captain sips the tea smiling, "We go to wait where they learn what all children one day do. That there is no Utopia. After all."
The attendant laughs and carries the orders to deck.
________________
The floor creaks over the magistrates head. He smiles, then looks to the dervish.
Magistrate - "Do you know love ?"
The dervish stares breathing hard, the rumbling in his chest.
Magistrate - "I'm sure in you somewhere it must be, or is that how they come to you ? Already broken ?"
He leans forward suddenly, the dervish jolts a bit.
Magistrate - "I must admit I have curiosities."
...
He smiles leaning back.
________________
The tender wakes to an empty bed and a letter beneath the ribbon blade.
"My name is Miyamoto Musashi. And you should know that I did not spend this night lightly. I found my heart in you and it is yours for the taking."
~ Another ship lost to the ice, they struggle to rescue.
"I admit this unexpected. You are very beautiful, and of course I was interested but then it was what you said about ... candy. Of all things. Of the sweetest things I've ever heard, it will be with me forever."
~ The magistrate's guest looks at herself in the mirror, then to her hand.
"Mine is a world of war and death. If you come for me, that is the life you choose. I welcome it. I desire it most dearly and for this very reason, I fear it tremendously."
"I leave you my finest blade, if in stead of my heart."
"Musashi."
A map and directions to his home, the dawn out the window.
Down the path Musashi walks where the burn of the asteroid crosses it.
~ The sound of falling dominoes across Qiu's ship as they exit the horn.
The magistrate's lover grows a vine down her arm into an apple and takes a bite.
____
The dervish attempts to rise, the chair cracking and all greying around him instead.
____
Outside in the village the dervishes form from the mist, the ground cracking away in their wake and falling into the water beneath.
____
Magistrate - "No no ... not yet no." He smiles and opens the book to the deep cracking sounds. "You've agreed to a tale."
A mild disruption, a dropped pot.
Birds fly.
They descend the hill.
____
The knapsack slams on the counter before the tender. She looks nervously from him to behind, where the room is filled with a brawl paused, all staring at him.
Musashi - To the tender, "Did you ... have a favored side ?"
~ The bandits look up at her ...
Tender - Shrugs, "Eh ..."
~ The bandits look heartbroken ... "Aww ..."
Musashi - "And do they ... play ... ?"
He looks at the band.
All and the bandits turn to the band.
('Talkin' Loud And Sayin' Nothing' by James Brown)
They begin to play as Musashi turns and pulls off his hat, bandits
turning for the door, a flying sword sticks and jams the latch. They
turn.
Musashi - With the open knapsack filled with swords, looking in ... "Oh ! This one's nice." Looks up at them, "Legacy."
The tender's face turns to horror watching, a bucket blood splashes across the wall behind her. The a slight confusion on her face with the cracking sound.
________
The deep shelf cracking sound as the fleet passes beneath.
Inside the Xinhua vessel the dominoes fall in rhythm. Qiu pulls the pulleys and counter weights to reset from behind the wheel one by one, two by two when she can with struggle against the wheel's counter spin.
____
The sounds of smashing and struggle, pounded meat and steel as the looks flash across the tender's face. A giggle, confusion, horror, astonishment, revulsion, a full on laugh, etcetera.
____
The oars of the Xinhua pursuers tap off from the cascading bergs with the tips of oars, navigating the light craft through like a millipede, red flags flapping, red cloaks working the decks in storm.
____
The random sacks of bandit gold on the counter next to a well filled sack of blades. Musashi sets down the bottle.
Musashi - "May I fill my bottle ?" He slides over the bandit pile. "This is for the damages." He reaches into his pocket for a coin and places it on the counter. "This is for the wine."
...
Tender - "Are you tired ?"
Musashi - "No ... but I may be bleeding."
A bandage pulls across screen.
________________
The stranger looks through the mist from the aft deck.
Shumi - "Still ?"
Stranger - "Still."
____
The Xinhua captain sits in her chair overlooking the decks.
The attendant priestesses port her tea and prepare spice.
Attendant - "There are two now."
The captain - Smiles, "Yes. How many in count have yet to kill ?"
Attendant - Crushing the powder in a mortar, "Only three this turn. They are ready. If I may ask of curiosity ?"
Captain - "If the question be wise then so shall be the answer."
Attendant - "Is the island real ?"
Captain - Smiles again as the powder is poured into the drink, stirring. "Thank you. The island is real enough here, but it is not there now. They will find nothing, and we will find them broken and hungry."
Attendant - "We carry on to where it should be ?"
Captain - "We will lose them in these mists, but they have no reason to go anywhere else."
________
Chiyome stares at Shumi as the ninjas chant, "Ice cream ..."
Shumi - "Yes ! France ! I said that !"
Stranger - "What is ice cream ? It's just ... frozen cream ?"
Ninjas recoil in horror and defense ...
Shumi - "Pretty much ... with stuff in it ... I honestly don't even know. I just know the make it in France."
Chiyome - "Wait !"
Ninjas hands to hilts with a stare.
Chiyome - She pulls off her mask and looks intently, "It is more than that. You do not know."
____
Hundreds of ninjas in the sunny field, the camera swirling around as Chiyome holds the ice cream high in her hands, dripping in the sun as they gather round ...
____
Stranger - "Where did you even find that ... ?"
____
A decorous carriage travels the path, well guarded, the driver sits next to shogun.
Driver - "You know what I hate ?"
Shogun - Mildly annoyed and distracted, "What ?"
Driver - "Ninjas."
Black fabric and screams.
They slide the massive ice block from the back, two halves sealed horizontally like a sarcophagus. They looks at each other ...
Pried open. One bowl of ice cream.
____
They twirl in the field licking the dripping ice cream from Chyome's arms ...
____
Stranger - "Whoa."
Shumi - "Yeah."
Chiyome - "Mm hm !" She turns as the ninjas depart with her, looking back suspiciously.
________
The Xinhua captain sips the tea smiling, "We go to wait where they learn what all children one day do. That there is no Utopia. After all."
The attendant laughs and carries the orders to deck.
________________
The floor creaks over the magistrates head. He smiles, then looks to the dervish.
Magistrate - "Do you know love ?"
The dervish stares breathing hard, the rumbling in his chest.
Magistrate - "I'm sure in you somewhere it must be, or is that how they come to you ? Already broken ?"
He leans forward suddenly, the dervish jolts a bit.
Magistrate - "I must admit I have curiosities."
...
He smiles leaning back.
________________
The tender wakes to an empty bed and a letter beneath the ribbon blade.
"My name is Miyamoto Musashi. And you should know that I did not spend this night lightly. I found my heart in you and it is yours for the taking."
~ Another ship lost to the ice, they struggle to rescue.
"I admit this unexpected. You are very beautiful, and of course I was interested but then it was what you said about ... candy. Of all things. Of the sweetest things I've ever heard, it will be with me forever."
~ The magistrate's guest looks at herself in the mirror, then to her hand.
"Mine is a world of war and death. If you come for me, that is the life you choose. I welcome it. I desire it most dearly and for this very reason, I fear it tremendously."
"I leave you my finest blade, if in stead of my heart."
"Musashi."
A map and directions to his home, the dawn out the window.
Down the path Musashi walks where the burn of the asteroid crosses it.
~ The sound of falling dominoes across Qiu's ship as they exit the horn.
The magistrate's lover grows a vine down her arm into an apple and takes a bite.
____
The dervish attempts to rise, the chair cracking and all greying around him instead.
____
Outside in the village the dervishes form from the mist, the ground cracking away in their wake and falling into the water beneath.
____
Magistrate - "No no ... not yet no." He smiles and opens the book to the deep cracking sounds. "You've agreed to a tale."
! The End !