Moonshadow burst into the open hall at the mouth of the archives.

Smoky holes broke the ceiling here too, and the glow of several small overhead fires lit the entire hall, but no enemies were visible. The sounds of nearby combat went on, but so far, he saw no defenders either. Why wasn’t Snowhawk here already? She was so fast and agile – what could have delayed her? Had she been wounded?

A plan instantly came to him: he’d lead Kagero deep into the rows of shelves, outflank and ambush her! Then he’d look for Snowhawk and make sure she was safe.

He quickly wove his way to the darkest corner of the archives. Rounding a set of shelves, Moonshadow collided heavily, chest to chest, with someone. Exhaling loudly, the unarmed man reeled backwards and fell to the floor. Recovering his balance, Moonshadow leapt the prone figure and spun round, shinobi eyes penetrating the gloom. Kagero had disappeared! Where was she?

‘Moon? Is that you?’ Brother Badger called from the floor, his voice thin with fear.

‘Yes!’ Moonshadow hissed, looking about urgently. ‘Stay down!’ He turned a circle. Still no sign of Kagero. Perhaps she had moved on. He relaxed his guard just a little.

A foot smashed into the crown of his head, driving him to the floor. Half-stunned, Moonshadow flung himself into an evasive roll but it was too late. As he tried to tumble away, a foot landed on his sword, pinning it firmly, then a strong kick whumped into his skull. A searing jolt went through Moonshadow’s neck and he sagged to the floor. His sword was kicked out of reach. Rolling onto his back, he realised what was happening.

Kagero had attacked from the top of a long, high set of shelves, ambushing him with fine cunning. Badger, cowering just paces away, wouldn’t be of much help.

‘Empty-headed little squirrel!’ Kagero sneered down at him, her weapon’s sharp iron tips gliding to his neck. ‘Thought I’d gone to look for another playmate, eh? In battle and in life itself, it never pays to assume things. This world’s far too tricky for that!’

Above Kagero, a sleek form moved atop the shadowy shelves: a long tail, moving on all fours – Banken? Perfect! He played for time.

‘Snowhawk warned me that you like to give advice,’ Moonshadow scowled. ‘But since you’re really just a killer, why would I assume you have any real wisdom to offer?’

‘Don’t get cute with me!’ Kagero snarled. She leaned closer, menacing his eyes with one fan. ‘But speaking of dear little Snowhawk … where is she?’

Moonshadow frowned. How curious! ‘What do you want with her?’ He forced the distracting sense of surprise from his mind and reached out to the animal hiding above them. There were three stages to the Eye of the Beast: beast sight, the first level, let Moonshadow enter an animal’s mind, harness its eyes and use its senses. The second level, dual sight, allowed him to see through both a creature’s eyes and his own at the same time. Finally came sight-control, level three, which enabled him to control an animal, turning it into his spy or weapon!

To save Badger and himself, he needed to hook straight into that third and highest level now, but even success would double their jeopardy. This Old Country science produced a tell-tale sign, a subtle green glow in the eyes. Here, in shadow, would Kagero see it? All shinobi were reared to see and fight in the dark, but some fared better than others. If Kagero’s night vision was too good, she’d notice and slay him instantly.

The floorboards rumbled at the mouth of the archive. Familiar voices, breathless and urgent, made him glance in their direction. He heard Heron’s battle cry, then the shiinngg of her naginata’s blade parrying a sword. A muffled yelp quickly followed.

Combat was spilling into the archives’ open hall. Beyond the shelves, the din of ringing steel filled the air. He heard Brother Mantis shout ‘He’s mine!’ followed by a loud swish and the whump of a body hitting the floor. The sounds of further impacts made Moonshadow take heart: though under heavy attack, the pair were felling enemies!

‘Pay attention!’ Kagero’s hateful glare drilled into him. ‘Where’s Snowhawk?’

Good question. Moonshadow blinked. The tips of his fingers trembled. He concentrated, his mind on Banken … a breath, his mind with Banken … another breath … and his mind suddenly in Banken. In the cat, in total control of her. He’d done it!

Superimposed over his normal human vision now lay another, very different view, its perspective anchored somewhere above him. Through what appeared to be a thin layer of quivering water, Moonshadow saw himself as Banken did, lying in the darkened aisle, Kagero hovering over him, Badger crumpled nearby. The cat’s view shifted smoothly, steadily closing in on Kagero’s shoulders, then the top of her head.

‘Answer me now or die!’ The kunoichi glowered. ‘Where. Is. Snowhawk?’

From beyond the shelves came several more thuds. Then silence, a lull.

Flashing his attacker a cheeky grin, Moonshadow pointed upwards. ‘There!’

Kagero shuddered as Banken the temple cat landed on her head, digging in every claw. While the ninja squealed and bumbled in the fleeting grip of surprise, Moonshadow rolled free, snatched up his sword and scrambled for Badger. Kagero stabbed at the cat with her fans. Jump! Moonshadow prompted and Banken leapt for the nearest shelf.

Brandishing her weapons in each hand, Kagero anxiously turned a slow circle, warily hunting for her new, four-legged nemesis.

Through Banken’s eyes, Moonshadow saw Kagero’s back align with the cat’s new hiding place. Mind-to-mind he ordered the beast to attack again, this time harder.

Hissing, Banken struck from behind with claws spread, landing solidly on Kagero’s shoulder. Twisting her head, the cat sunk her teeth into the startled kunoichi’s ear then arched her back and tugged hard. Kagero gave an agonised howl and Banken jumped clear a split-second before two war fans raked the air above Kagero’s shoulder. With eyes watering and teeth grinding, the kunoichi fell against the shelves, one hand to her ear.

Seizing the moment, Moonshadow broke the link with Banken and darted to Badger. As he dragged the archivist to his feet and herded him along the aisle, he looked back. Kagero had melted into the shadows. Badger was unharmed, but his beloved Korean sleeping robe was torn and his short beard was a tangle of cobwebs and sawdust. Moonshadow realised that he must have taken refuge under a wall of shelves, between the bottom plank and grubby floor.

‘Run for the map-drying room and don’t look back.’ He gripped his teacher’s arm. ‘Don’t come out, not unless the fire spreads and you have to make a run for it!’

Badger nodded, gulped a breath and hurried away. Moonshadow retraced his steps. As he rounded the end of a tall shelf, the open hall at the archive’s mouth appeared, its ceiling awash with smoke. He stopped, taking everything in.

Mantis and Heron stood back to back, watching all directions, a circle of downed enemies on the floor around them. Both panted, drenched with sweat and ruddy with exhaustion. Heron’s naginata blade and Mantis’s sword bore a red sheen. No sign yet of Groundspider … or Snowhawk. Where was she? And why did Kagero seek her? To slay her as punishment for defecting from the Fuma’s ranks? He bit his bottom lip. Was she cornered in some other part of the monastery? At least here, the battle appeared to be over.

There was a soft creak. The smoke billowed and a fresh wave of hooded figures began descending from the ceiling. The most strapping new arrival carried a chisai odutsu suspended on a wide leather band: a hand-carved, disposable wooden cannon, the type usually loaded with iron chips and gravel. Straightening up from his landing, the cannon-eer stood tall and surveyed the indoor battlefield. More Fuma landed around him. Some wore shuko on one hand, iron claws that assisted climbing but also made fine close-quarter weapons, especially when their prongs were smeared with a Fuma poison.

Was the man with the cannon their leader? Once the reinforcements around the hefty ninja numbered more than a dozen, Moonshadow stopped counting the new arrivals. Taking slow, deep breaths, he listened over his shoulder for Kagero. Nothing! So what now?

Victory, and perhaps even survival, had just become impossible. But as Mantis liked to say, there was only one honourable way to react to impossible, hopeless odds: with hopeless valour and impossible tenacity.

Help me do that, Lord Hachiman, Moonshadow silently prayed, lend me an arrowhead’s worth of your divine fury. And if there are simply too many foes, then just let me die well!

He raised his sword and rushed at the nearest enemy.