Disclaimer: I own none of the characters from Kannazuki no Miko or 'Destiny of the Shrine Maiden' as the latest release calls it, I'm just borrowing them for awhile. This is also set in the same continuity as my Arisugawa' Locket and Eternal City Crystal Tokyo series.
Kannazuki no Miko: Eternal
They had existed and would exist forever, twin spirits bound together by shared fate and hard destiny. It began in the broken shrine on the moon and carried on down through ages untold, lives coming together like twin strings of glorious scarlet.
In the days of Rome a warrior princess carried the aspect of the cold moon while her beloved bard carried the light of the sun. Together they faced the powers of gods and demons as destiny ground it's way forward, ultimately parted by death.
A French knight and her ally carried the spirits, but they never found the love that could have been. Torn by honor and duty each carried on as best they could, but finally found themselves parted and loving other people. The only pity that cruel fate took on them was that they did not die by each other's hands.
In the village of Mahoroba in the late twentieth century two schoolgirls found themselves possessed of the Priestesses of the sun and moon and faced the tides of destiny together. Himiko's golden hair shimmered in the sun, while Chikane was the raven haired avatar of the moon. They understood that they loved each other early on, but fate remained cruel in the sacrifice that was demanded of them.
As the Earth changed and things broke down, as war raged and the cites burned, they again and again found themselves meeting, coming together and breaking apart. There was no end to their rebirth and reuniting, not as long as the conditions remained unfulfilled.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
The thirty-first century was a golden age, at least by some definitions of golden. War between countries were long past, hunger and need were largely eliminated and the arts and sciences were flourishing once more. Even more frightening the powers of the supernatural were finally being harnessed, mankind fully grasping the knowledge of ancient eras and places.
Chikane Kisaragi frowned, her long black hair pulled into a ponytail as the young archaeologist studied the mystery site intently, dressed in a simple protective bodysuit in white and blue. She had come to the surface of the Moon to seek out evidence of the mythic Moon Kingdom, but this was not what she had been looking for.
The wreckage, partially buried under the drifting sands of the Moon, closely resembled a Japanese shrine. There was a sanctuary to enshrine the Kami, a hall of offerings and a traditional gate or torii. Now all of it was covered by a protective force field and her team of researchers were carefully mapping out the site.
'Or maybe a Japanese shrine resembles this, instead,' Chikane admitted thoughtfully as she walked forward through the gate. A slight chill ran up and down her spine as she did so, the echo of some long forgotten memory.
Her assistant Reiko Clark excitedly told Chikane, "This site is incredible! It predates the shrines of Japan by centuries, at least!" The redhead shook her head, "This could totally rewrite the book on Japanese architecture."
"Make sure we have scan data to back that up," Chikane noted with a frown. She was gazing at the sanctuary as she asked, "Any... unusual readings?"
Reiko looked at her in surprise, "Funny you should ask... there are traces of something organic in the sanctuary."
Part of Chikane wanted to order her team to abandon the other jobs and tear the sanctuary open, but she restrained herself. "Let me know when a team is ready," she said with a forced mildness. With a frown she added "Is the representative from Luna City here yet?"
"I'm here!" the golden brown haired woman hurried from the transport across the moon's surface them with a cry tripped.
"Are you all right?" Chikane asked as she hurried over, reaching out to help her out. The young woman looked up at her and Chikane felt her heart stop as she murmured, "Himeko?!"
"Yes," she blinked up at her, "I'm Himeko Arashi."
"I...," Chikane was stunned by the pure feeling of connection she had with this virtual stranger, the knowledge that she knew her like no one else. "Are you all right?" she repeated.
"I'm fine," Himeko rose, brushing herself off sheepishly.
"I'm glad," Chikane answered as she gently took the young woman's hand. As she guided the girl forward she tried to focus on business, "This site has ruins, but they're not quite what we had expected to find."
"Not the Greek-Roman style Moon Kingdom ruins," Himeko looked over the place with a artists' eye, "but a Shinto shrine. I wish I could film it."
"Hmm," Chikane nodded, knowing it was somehow right that the woman did visual arts.
Himiko looked at Chikane curiously, "Wasn't there a battle between eight warriors and the planet's guardians a few years ago nearby here?"
"Yes," Chikane nodded thoughtfully, "they called themselves Orochi. Do you think there might be a connection?"
"I don't know," Himeko shrugged shyly, "but it feels right."
"Miss!" Reiko nodded to both women respectfully, "We have a team ready to examine the ruins of the sanctuary."
"Let's go," Chikane said, a bit surprised to feel Himiko shadowing her.
Himeko gave her a little smile, "Would you mind if I watch?"
"I...," Reiko started to protest.
Chikane put a quelling hand on Reiko's are as she said, "It should be fine."
Yukihito Souma was watching the teams move debris, cataloging it and recording the whole site. "It looks like wood," he told them, "but it's not. It's very durable and I suspect normal cutting methods will fail."
"We'll just carry the pieces away," Reiko resolved as her team groaned, "gravity is lighter here, we'll be fine."
The group of graduate students, Chikane and the others took turns, carefully moving pieces aside that had been resting on top of what looked like the collapsed sanctuary roof. They hauled it aside then nearly dropped the piece, seeing two well preserved bodies there.
"My goodness," Himeko breathed out as they took in the two women.
The blond and black haired woman were curled up in each other's arms, each holding a sword in their hands. They looked both happy and at peace somehow, as if they had somehow completed a great task. Each wore a costume similar to a shrine maiden's, colored in white with red highlights on one, purple on the other.
'They won,' was the certain knowledge that flowed through Chikane as she looked at them. Somehow, together they had triumphed against a great evil, possibly sacrificing both of themselves in the bargain.
Reiko recovered first, "Photos! I want images from all angles, as well as a quarentine field. We need to get a medical team out to examine them, too."
"That's you and I," Himeko breathed out softly to Chikane, "I know it, somehow. How can this be? Why...?"
"I don't know," Chikane lied. She did know, she felt the knowledge in her bones but she wouldn't force it on Himeko. If the memories had not come back to her then she wouldn't force it. 'Besides,' she thought with some amusement, 'this time I get to start all over with Himiko. Maybe this time we'll finally get it right?'
Himeko gave Chikane a slightly suspicious look, then she smiled. "You'll tell me when I'm ready?" she asked perceptively.
"Promise," Chikane said as she took Himiko's hand in hers.
Himeko looked back at the shrine as she murmured, "That's all right then."
End.
Notes: the Roman era incarnations are Xena and Gabrielle. The French are from Rose of Versailles, Oscar and Rosalie. I wanted to end this with the two of them finally free of the cycle of rebirth and with a chance of a new start, so that's why their 'predecessors' and the planetary champions finally killed off Orochi in the past.