The Varied Path (Akatsuki no Yona Fanfiction)

Chapter 41: Ambush

By the time morning came, everything was in full swing. Pirates were loading up supplies onto the ship, Hak and Shin-ah were training the stragglers who wanted swordsmanship lessons, and Yoon was off doing his own thing. Hani was teetering after Captain Gi-gan, having become pretty attached to her in a short period of time.

Yona was the only one who didn't have anything to do, and when Jae-ha saw her wandering around aimlessly, he offered to take her into town with him. She enthusiastically accepted, and a minute later, they were soaring through the sky.

Calista stretched her arms above her head languidly as she saw them disappear from view. It had only been a day since the senjusou treatment, but her hands seemed to have healed overnight. She immediately sought out Yoon's tent, the boy having given her strict instructions the night before to come and see him when she first woke up so he could document her progress.

Though, she thought that was more because he wanted to see for himself how well the medicinal herb worked. Not that she blamed him, it already was doing wonders. It truly was extraordinary.

He took her hands, rotating them carefully like he had before, but this time the pain was dull, not a sharp stabbing throughout her knuckles and wrist.

"Incredible..." Yoon whispered in awe. There were plenty of other patients in the makeshift tent that he had setup, but he was beyond intrigued by the healing properties of the senjusou. "The skin is completely healed!"

There was no trace of any blood or marks that should have been left behind. Her knuckles weren't marred with scars, but instead had new skin stretched across them. She still felt a slight pain when her bones shifted as she curled her hand, but it was significantly less than before.

"Don't even think about it!!" Yoon scolded, recognizing the eager smirk on her face. "You're still in no shape to fight, you stubborn fighter!!"

Calista grinned at him, laughing when he swatted her away dismissively. Yoon left her to her own devices as she checked out from his medical exam, turning his attention back to the other patients vying for his care. Everyone else was busy, and since Yona was in town with Jae-ha, she set off to the clearing where they set up camp when they first arrived at Awa.

A pair of eyes watched her as she slipped away from the others.

Just before she cleared the hill, she proceeded to secure the cloth wrapped around her arm around her face. Since Yoon gave her the new clothes, she hadn't had to need it tied around her waist. 

She approached a giant evergreen, craning her neck to look up between the branches. They were close enough together that it might be possible. But after a failed attempt to pull herself up it, she decided she might be better off leaning against it instead. 

Her face turned up to the sky, and she closed her eyes as the sunlight warmed her being. She hummed to herself, unaware of the four dark figures advancing from the shadows.

She gasped as she was caught off-guard. A hand closed around her neck, throwing her down harshly to the ground. Scrambling away blindly in the other direction, they closed in on her from all sides. She finally found her footing, and scrambled to her feet. The mask covering her face fluttered as she danced away from their strikes. Diving for the floor, she slid underneath the first offender's legs, popping back up on her feet.

Calista's eyes scanned over them quickly, trying to pick out anything notable. There wasn't much. Two of them had their faces covered, and the ones that didn't had hoods on. 

Angling her body defensively towards the newcomers, she shifted so that her arms were hidden behind her back. The boy would be angry at her if she injured them again. One of the fighters stepped forward, and as the hood hiding his face fell away, Calista's expression fell in despair as she recognized him.