Keep Her Safe

Chapter 1

At first, things were difficult.  Had it not been for Rihaku graciously taking them under his wing, Lin and Bat may have very well turned to a life of drifting the land with whatever caravan happened to pass through.  While Bat was upset with Kenshiro's departure, it took a greater toll on Lin.  The once cheerful, hopeful little girl that spent her days trying to bring joy into the lives of others now struggled to spark that same light into her own heart.  

One night, Bat noticed that Lin was not in her bed.  Feeling worried, he searched around in the dark until he found her by a window staring at the stars.  A forlorn expression ever-present on her face.

"I truly wonder if we will ever see him again.  Perhaps I was just lying to myself to finally accept fate."  Hanging her head in hopelessness, Lin began to sniffle.  The sight was too much for Bat to bear any longer.

"Don't say that, Lin!  You know as well as I do that Ken always keeps his word!"

Wiping her eyes, she turned toward Bat.  Expecting a steadfast expression on his face, she was surprised to instead find him blinking back tears of his own.  He missed Ken, even if he tried not to show it.  Bat hated showing this side of him in front of anyone, yet he didn't attempt to hide it from Lin.  She was the one person he trusted entirely.  His face brightened a little upon seeing hers.

"He's our friend and always will be."

A small smile made its way onto her own face.  Bat was absolutely right.  Ken would never forget his young companions and would go through hell to find them if something happened.  He always did.  Ken was strong for them when they needed him most.

And right now, Bat had to be strong for Lin in his place.

"We have to go on with our lives.  There will always be hardships to face, regardless if Ken's here or not.  We've got to stand up and face them no matter how impossible it may seem."

"Heh-heh.  I've never heard you give such an inspirational speech before,"  Lin chuckled, wiping the remainder of her tears from her eyes.  "You sound like the hopeful one for a change."

"I learned from the master.  Maybe you're rubbing off on me" Bat said, now smiling genuinely.

"You're my best friend, Bat."

"You're my best friend too, Lin."

They beamed at each other.  Even without Kenshiro, neither of them were alone in this harsh world.  One would always have the other at their side.  Giving her a hearty pat on the back, Bat guided Lin back to their sleeping quarters.

"Now it wouldn't hurt to toughen up a bit, either.  I'm going to ask Rihaku about giving me some combat training.  It never hurts to learn how to stand up for yourself.  Maybe even learn some martial arts.  Ken didn't make it look very hard.  Heck, you should train, too!  Yeah!  Then one day, you and I could lead an army or somethin'!"

Lin giggled at Bat's boasting.  "Us lead an army?  Do you think we could actually do that?"

"Why not?  When the best of buds like us work together, we can face anything!"

Save for the starlight, the night was dark around them.  Yet even in the darkness, an unseen light shined.  The light of hope rekindled anew in their hearts.

                                                                                                            ***

To say a request for training out of the blue was a shock would have been an understatement. Rihaku had always been more of a tactician than a true martial artist, but he was still very familiar with throwing a punch or two. No, what he questioned was whether this impulsive young boy knew just what he was getting into. The Goshasei leader had his doubts.

"Learning to fight entails more than what you have witnessed alongside Kenshiro. You need to build strength of mind as well as that of body. Decisions must be made without a moment's notice and the wrong one could cost your life. Are you truly sure this is the kind of future you want for yourself?"

"Yes, I'm sure! I wouldn't be asking in the first place if I wasn't!" Bat blurted out stubbornly. It seemed like every adult he spoke to had no faith in him whatsoever. He survived the wasteland fending for himself. That made him plenty tough, right?

Glancing past the unruly boy, he noticed another child (Lin, he believed her name was?) peering out from behind a corner. While not brash like Kenshiro's other companion, she seemed rather meek, hardly fit for the role of a warrior. Rihaku didn't doubt these children had seen more than their share of violence in their lives, but could they reciprocate the same themselves? Only with time would he see just how ill-suited they could be as warriors...

...or perhaps they could prove him wrong.

"Very well. I will teach you what I can. But be warned, this will be much more difficult than you realize. To survive in this world will require a steadfast will, a powerful fist, and a noble heart. Perhaps you will learn something about yourself, be it good or bad, you never knew before. And, maybe...maybe you'll come to understand just what you may need to sacrifice."

"Wo-hoo!" Bat whooped loudly. That's right! Roving bandits had better sleep with one eye open at night. There would be a new savior of the wastes and his name was Bat! The self-appointed "savior" proceeded to make a show of leaping around in celebratory backflips.

Even if he proved to be an inept fighter, Rihaku had to confess the boy had spirit. And boundless energy and agility, so it seemed. An amused grin found its way onto his face.

"See, Lin? I told you he'd agree to teach us!"

"Mmm-hmm," the girl merely nodded. Lin's reaction was far more subdued in comparison. A part of her truly wished to prove herself as capable as Ken himself, to be a force for justice, but deep inside she felt the heavy weight of doubt. What could one insignificant little nobody like her possibly do to make a difference in the world? Shifting her gaze to Bat, still bounding about gleefully, Lin felt smaller and more useless than ever.

𝘐𝘧 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘧𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘰, 𝘉𝘢𝘵...

Her response did not go unnoticed by Rihaku. While Lin clearly thought herself inferior, she also had the sense to consider just what was in store rather than blindly charge in over her head. Observant. She had a wise head on her shoulders for one so young. That very wisdom may serve her well someday.

Turning from the children, his eyes cast as if focused on some unseen figure in the distance.

"We will begin at dawn, tomorrow. I expect to see both of you at the gate."

"Damn right we'll be there," Bat shouted. "The next time Ken sees us, we'll be leading an army into battle against the strongest warlords since Ken-oh!"

"So we shall see," Rihaku whispered to himself.