Disclaimer: I do not own Warriors Orochi, the Odigan War or Pànduàn Shén. I only own Da Li. Warriors Orochi belongs to KOEI, Pànduàn Shén and the Odigan War goes to the awesome Teddypro. Happy Birthday and I hope you enjoy!

Warriors Orochi: The Judgment of Heaven

Chapter 1: Meeting a Legend

Borders.

The lines separating one kingdom's territory from another, the boundaries that all ambitious leaders seek to break; the rivers or stone walls that stand between vastly different domains, the places where potential dangers await. And one such fiery path, the dragon's spine that lies between the empires of Shu and Wu, is the starting place of our story.

It is autumn; the vast forest that lay between the kingdoms of the Dragon and Tiger had turned into a most spectacular scene of fiery colors and drifting gold. Leaves of yellow, orange and bright red, some still carrying a tinge of their greenness, fluttered on the boughs of the great trees—waiting for the wind to take them away. Already many of them had floated to the forest floor, covering the dirt with their warm hues; but most of them were still sailing in the air, creating such rain as never seen before. The chilly breeze blew, carrying with it several of the most colorful ones, and let them fall upon two figures walking amongst the breath-taking spectacle—a male and a female.

"Bored!" whined the female. She was a young girl, of perhaps eighteen years of age, with a small, lithe build and slender hips. Her skin was pale, so pale, actually, that it could be described as white; her large eyes were a brilliant violet, and there was a little black scar-mark over one of them. Her waist-length purple hair was pulled up into a high ponytail behind the velvet crescent-shaped hat she wore; which, in turn, had a flower ornament at one tip and a tassel hanging down from the other.

Despite the cold air of the season, the girl's attire showed much of her skin and complemented her figure. She wore a dark purple shawl patterned with white flowers, and it was tied in such a way that it only covered one of her shoulders and left the other one bare. Under that she wore nothing but three black straps covering her breasts and the center of her back, secured to her collar and belt; under the belt was another sideways-tied dark purple shawl embroidered with the same white flowers, serving as a sort of skirt. The maiden also had a metal ring-like object fitted around her waist, decorated with an assortment of jewels and decorations. She wore red skintight pants that showed much of her thighs and flared out at the bottom. As well as this, she also donned velvet bracers, fingerless gloves and a plate of silver armor on her bare shoulder to protect it. Slung over her covered shoulder were a most peculiar pair of chakrams: instead of the normal round shape, they were shaped like teardrops, with razor-sharp blades framing the elongated ends. They were inlaid with rubies and had velvet wrapped around the handles.

Strange as she was, the odd maiden also showed inhuman traits. Faint black markings could be seen on her face and body, and her pierced ears were pointed and furry. Her nails were long and sharp. Her feet were paw-like, vulpine; and most prevailing of all were the five fox-like tails that swished behind her, with smooth pinkish fur.

"Bored? I'm not." It was the male, replying. He looked like a direct opposite of his companion, normal as she was odd, but there was also an unmistakable air of braveness and righteousness about him. He was tall and was in his early twenties; with a handsome countenance, warm brown eyes, and long brownish hair tied in a pigtail. A green headband was tied around his forehead. Over his green top and white pants he wore light, shining white armor: white shoulder plates, white bracers, white chest-plate secured with a shoulder strap, and a white warrior's belt and waist protector, all bearing the outline of a golden dragon and trimmed with deep blue. A white flag-like cloth hung from under his belt and tailed behind him. His skin was a regular color, and in his hand he held his weapon—a long, slender spear, with a silvery gleaming tip reflecting the autumn sun. He looked to be a normal human and showed none of the vulpine features of his younger friend.

The scantily-clad fox girl heaved an exasperated sigh and raised her sharp-nailed hands to the back of her head, letting the blades of her teardrop chakrams clatter.

"You're not bored, but I am!" She pouted. "Yeah, this forest is looking super and nature walks are great—but why can't I be back in Cheng Du with Lady Shang Xiang and my friends? I like being with them more!"

"Of course you would like to be with them more," said the male calmly, "and I understand that you are bored. But patrolling is very important work. This is the Shu-Wu border, Da Li, and we were told to keep a lookout here. Also, I'm your friend too, aren't I?"

"…Oh! How could I forget you?" the girl, who was obviously Da Li, blushed and clapped her hands over her mouth. "Of course you're my friend too, Zhao Yun! How could I not include you…?"

The male, Zhao Yun, smiled.

"…But, aren't Shu and Wu supposed to be friendly?" Da Li snapped out of her embarrassed expression and looked back at her fellow traveler with a frown, "Like, Lady Shang Xiang is from Wu and she's Lord Liu Bei's wife. How will there be danger on our borders if we're allies?"

"It's true that Shu and Wu are allies now, but that does not mean we can let down our guard." Said Zhao Yun. "No border is truly safe, Da Li. There are still bandits here and they might use the friendliness between us to pass safely into our domain. That's why we are here, to prevent bad people from coming."

"…I see. Not just a nature walk. But why didn't anyone let my buds from Lady Shang Xiang's guard come with us?"

Now it was Zhao Yun's turn to look embarrassed.

"I…don't know myself," He said, flushing. "But it was Lord Zhuge Liang's decision, so…"

"Zhuge Liang?" Da Li raised one eyebrow. "Why would he not let Li Hua or Mei Li come with me?"

"He must have his reasons." Zhao Yun concluded. "He is a man who always has a good reason with his decisions and judgment, so he must have his reasons with this too."

"But I don't see any good reason in not letting my buds come…"

"Well, that's the mysterious part about him. He knows a lot of things we don't, and most of his strange orders turn out to be life-saving. Who knows what will come out of this?"

"…Yeah."

Da Li had to agree. After all, the man with the feather fan was a genius, and his actions were really confusing to those who did not understand him…just like a Mystic. And, as Zhao Yun said, there was no saying how his radical orders would save the day. The one thing that was certain was that they always did.

There was some moment of silence before Zhao Yun spoke up.

"You know, Da Li," he said, "Sometimes I just realize that you are so unlike your sister."

The comment caught the fox girl off guard. She stopped walking.

Of course she couldn't forget that. She didn't have violet hair and eyes, fox feet and five tails without a reason.

It just so happened that Da Ji, the most villainous of fox spirits, was her own older sister. Nobody could deny that, and it certainly didn't help. For because of it she had spent the entirety of the first five hundred years—and yes, she was that old, actually—of her life running and hiding from people who sought to hunt her. And it wasn't until the end of the bloody Orochi Wars that she finally ended her flight, and learned to become a real person.

And for taking her in and raising her, she was forever grateful to the warriors of Shu—including Zhao Yun—for their kindness.

Zhao Yun looked at her. "Really, I'm not kidding," he said. "You are her direct opposite. She's cold and calculating, but you're a pure soul and you are constantly trying to know everything. She's cruel, and you're innocent. Isn't that true?"

"…Yeah, you're right in some way…" Da Li slowly replied. But then she straightened up and gave a scowl to her partner. "But have now officially renounced my relationship with her, right? You should change the topic."

"Maybe I should," laughed Zhao Yun, realizing that he had slightly offended his companion. "Well, how about a chat?"

To his surprise, Da Li shook her head indignantly. "No," she said.

"…Why?"

"I wanna be with myself, once in a while." Da Li turned to the bright, beautiful forest. "Look, it's so wonderful in the forest at this time of the year, and I love to be a part of it. I won't go in too deep. Please, Zilong, please? May I?"

Zhao Yun sighed. "Alright," he said, but don't go in too far. I'll still be watching you, though, in case you get— "

But Da Li didn't wait. As soon as she heard approval, she raced away, instantly disappearing into the trees.

Zhao Yun shook his head. "Such a child she is," he breathed.

Somewhere else in the same forest, surrounded by the same fiery-colored sea of leaves, were another pair of figures, again a male and female. But this time, it was in a clearing, and looking through the massive tree trunks and falling gold, it was hard to see what they looked like.

It seemed that it was a sort of simple camp, with a charred pile of wood in the center still smoking, and it seemed that the male was packing it up. He looked to be in his twenties as well, and through the flurry of raining leaves and branches, his attire was vaguely gray and his hair a strange color—a mix of black and silver. A white cloth seemed to be wrapped around his head. He was whistling softly as he cleaned the camp up, obviously preparing to leave.

The female was close by, short, with white attire and two strange rounded things floating about her. Her hair was dark black, spiky, and she looked to be wearing jewelry. She was watching the male intently, as if to make a request.

"Pànduàn?" she spoke, "Can I go out for a while?"

"To do what?" replied the male. His voice was calm, and somewhat laid-back.

"To see all this scenery, of course!" said the female, faking her outrage. "Look, Pànduàn, this is the most beautiful time of the year in this place. I just want to look at all those leaves!"

"Alright, alright, you may go. But don't stray too far away, Himiko."

The female jumped with joy. "Thank you so much, Pànduàn!"

She ran off, the twin rounded objects following her. The male gave a small laugh.

"Always so energetic, Himiko," he said. "You are always so lovable."

Da Li sighed with relaxation. She was in the middle of a small gap in the trees, sitting on a large rock that, for some reason, had decided to place itself near the roots of the towering plants. The cool autumn breeze, carrying with it leaves so fiery and colorful that it seemed the gust chose to carry them because of their beauty, sang past her shoulders, ruffling her violet hair, making the tassel on her hat fly and feeling cold on her face. Her teardrop chakrams were leaned at the rock's base, blades shining, her vulpine feet resting near them. Her five tails twitched behind her, the pinkish fur ruffling as her hair did; she was enjoying every bit of the time by herself, in the gap between the trees, watching the leaves rain and the boughs cast their shadows.

As much as she loved being in the company of others, she liked to be alone as well. After all, she had spent the first five centuries of her life this way, although there had always been a tinge of fear in the air back then. Now, everything was so peaceful, so perfect. Zhao Yun had spoken of bandits, using the friendliness between Shu and Wu to pass the border unharmed—but she couldn't picture them. She couldn't see them in her mind. Everything was looking too serene to bear anything that wasn't pleasant.

She was about to close her eyes, when she saw movement at the edge of her sight. Suddenly becoming alert, she whirled in the direction of the disturbance, just in time to see something white disappear behind a tree.

Were her eyes playing tricks on her?

No. She was certain she had saw something. Frowning, she leaned closer. Nothing. Whatever it was, it had hidden itself behind the tree well.

Slowly getting off her rock, Da Li stooped down and picked up one of her chakrams. Grasping the velvet-bound handle, she padded towards the tree, silently, without a sound. She started circling it, and then the thing moved again. A flash of white.

"No use hiding," she called. "I've already seen you. Come out!"

The leaves on the ground crunched, and a figure stepped out from behind the tree. Da Li's eyes went wide.

It was a young girl, short of stature and aged about eighteen. Her face was youthful, pretty, with a childish touch; but Da Li could tell from her features that she was bound to grow up into a very beautiful woman. Well…she was a woman now, albeit a young one, a new one. Her hair was black, spiky, tied in a high ponytail not unlike her own, but with the ends sticking out in all directions like rays; decorated by a hair ornament shaped like the rising sun. A red ribbon patterned with white triangular patterns was tied around her forehead, covered by her bangs, with the decorative knots at the sides and the ends swishing about her face. Long sideburns framed her face. Her eyes were brown, deep brown, and under one of them was a symbol that looked like "99", but upon closer inspection it revealed to be the Yin and Yang signs.

The girl had a slim build and wore a simple skirt-like tunic trimmed with blue. She wore a necklace with jewels shaped to look like the halves of the Yinyang symbol. Her belt was a sash, a red one that was formed into a huge bow in the back, and the ends flowed down, tailing behind her. She wore blue leggings and boots that looked a bit too big for her to finish up. But her most prevailing feature was the two, white rounded objects that floated around her; painted with closed eyes and bearing gaping holes for mouths, seemingly held in the air by a mysterious force.

Both girls stayed silent for a long while as they studied one another; but it seemed that the more the other girl looked at Da Li, the more she frowned, as if she were remembering something. And it was starting to make her uncomfortable.

"…Who…are you?" said Da Li, finally breaking the silence.

"I might as well ask the same question. Who are you?" replied the girl.

"I want to know you first. What's your name?"

"I'm Himiko, the Shaman Queen." The girl said, matter-of-factly.

Da Li raised an eyebrow. "Queen? You look like—"

"I know that. Everybody says I look too young to be a queen, that I'm only a kid, blah, blah, blah. Annoying. I'm nineteen now, and I suppose I'm old enough for the title." The girl, dubbed Himiko, blew a strand of hair out of her face. "Now, mind telling me who you are?"

"I'm Da Li, from Shu."

"Shu?" Himiko cocked her head and frowned, "…You don't look like you come from Shu."

It was now Da Li's turn to blow a strand of hair out of her face. "I am of Shu," she said. "Positive. Everybody out there calls me the Odd Maiden 'cause I'm the odd one out of them. Annoying. I'm part of Lady Sun Shang Xiang's handmaiden guard, you know, and I'm proud of it."

"Wow. Really?"

"Yep."

"You must be elite, then!"

"Of course I'm elite! Everybody in Lady Shang Xiang's guard is elite, mind you. I certainly went through a lot just to get a place there. Had to face down Guan Yu himself at some point…"

"…By the Mystics, you did!"

"One would be worried if I didn't!"

Himiko's eyes were starting to glint with admiration.

"How did you win over him?" she asked. "Did you have some tricks?"

"Me? Win over him? Simple. I pulled on his beard. Hard!"

Himiko's eyes widened. Then she put her hands on her belly…and burst out laughing.

"Heavens forbade! That's the funniest way of overcoming Guan Yu I've ever heard!"

She doubled over, tears rolling down her face, and the twin rounded things that floated around her tipped over as if they were laughing as well.

Da Li laughed along, laughing, in reality, at her own joke.

But she forgot that there were other people listening to her tall tales, too.

There was a symphony of crunching leaves as two figures burst into the clearing, attracted by their glee; one was Zhao Yun, frowning, and the other was a male that Da Li had never seen before.

Both girls stopped their laughing, abruptly. Both of them turned in the direction of the second male—and vastly different expressions crossed their faces, one of surprise, the other of confusion. Zhao Yun forgot whatever was making him frowning and joined them in their silent stare as well.

The newcomer was a man that was, like Zhao Yun, in his early twenties; he was tall, about five foot ten, and his hair was a most strange color—black mixed with gleaming silver. It was messy and long, with four long strands of it framing the sides of his face. His face was calm, with a most handsome complexion; but it was marred with his missing right eye, which was covered with a white cloth tied around his head. His good left eye was colored strangely too: a mix of sapphire blue and ruby red, combining to give him a fierce single-eyed gaze.

He wore a gray cloak that wrapped around him, but also hung behind him like a cape; with sleeves that ended at the elbows, and three black belts attached with a length of red silk circling it at stomach level. Under that he wore a thick black shirt, black pants, a gray belt around his waist, and high boots with two belts wrapped around them each in a sideways "V" shape. Another belt was wound diagonally around his chest, and yet another one was around his neck. Red bracers covered his forearms and the backs of his hands, with even more smaller black belts coiling around them. Da Li made a mental note that the boy surely had a thing for belts.

In the young man's hands was a pitch-black sword, a blade with strange gray symbols on it and a diamond shaped out of the metal forming a vague crescent in the tip. The entire hilt was wrapped in a white cloth that reached a good foot and a half after going past the weapon's pummel, and it was currently resting on its owner's shoulder.

For a moment, total silence reigned as the warriors looked at one another, the falling autumn leaves floating past them carelessly. But then the surprise on Himiko's face gradually melted into embarrassment, and her cheeks flushed until it was as red as a tomato.

"…Pànduàn?" she stammered.

What kind of a name is that? Thought Da Li, knowing that the word meant "judge" or "to judge".

"No…surely you aren't…?" the voice of Zhao Yun sounded behind her, carrying with it clear disbelief.

The man called Pànduàn raised an eyebrow, then lowered it, a smile appearing on his face.

"So," he said, his tone calm and somewhat laid-back. "We have some friends here now, do we?"

"Pànduàn!" Himiko jumped up, sprinting towards him in an instant, the twin floating rounded things following her just as swiftly. She plunged into his arms, to which he responded by holding her tightly, as if they were a couple.

Zhao Yun suddenly thrust the end of his spear into the ground. He then fell to his knees, which made Da Li turn to him in surprise—and raised his hands, clasping his right hand over his left fist in the gesture that all male warriors used when addressing one another with respect.

"I've heard so much of you," he said, apparently awed. "You…you must be the Dragon of Judgment!"

Da Li looked at Zhao Yun as if he were mad. "What…?"

"My lord has told me so much of your deeds!" he continued, seemingly oblivious now to the fox girl's presence. "But I never thought I would have the honor to meet you and your companion here, in this forest between the kingdoms of the Dragon and Tiger!"

Pànduàn laughed, holding Himiko ever more tightly. "And I've heard so much of you as well!" he exclaimed. "You must be Zhao Yun, Zhao Zilong of Changshan, the Young Dragon and one of the Five Tigers of Shu, no?"

"Indeed I am," said Zhao Yun, rising. "Again, it is such a pleasure and honor to be meeting you here, Lord Pànduàn Shén!"

Pànduàn shook his head. "No need for such formalities," he said. "'Pànduàn' is just fine."

Zhao Yun nodded, his face bearing an expression of true admiration.

"May I introduce to you my female companion here," he said, gesturing to Da Li. "This is Da Li, my friend, and an elite warrior of Lady Sun Shang Xiang's handmaiden guard. She is here with me to patrol this border."

He turned to her, ushering her forward. "Bow to him, will you?"

Da Li stepped forward, putting down her chakram and placing both hands on her right thigh. She bended her knees and lowered herself in the bow that all women, whether warriors or common folk, knew to perform to respected people. Including fox women like her too.

Pànduàn inclined his head in return. "A pleasure to meet you as well," he said to her. "I've heard of you also. Are you not the Odd Maiden, the Sister of Da Ji?"

Da Li straightened herself, wincing at the last part of the sentence. "Yes. I am," she said.

Himiko's eyes widened. Suddenly, she tore herself from Pànduàn's hold and jumped in front of Da Li.

"No wonder you looked so familiar!" she cried. "You are the younger sister of the person who deceived me!"

Da Li flinched. She always hated the moments when people would berate her because of her family relations. But when she raised her face again, she was surprised to see that Himiko's expression was not one of anger.

"…But, I forgive you for it," she said, much softer now, "I shouldn't be angry to you because your family's a mess. After all, if it weren't for your sister…" she went back into Pànduàn's arms, "…I wouldn't be with him now. Right, Pànduàn?"

Pànduàn nodded. "That's right. You've become so much more mature," he said, smiling.

Da Li let out a sigh of relief. "That scared me a little," she said. "Well, at least people aren't creating crap over my family relations again."

"Nobody will," said Zhao Yun, placing a hand on her shoulder. "In fact, nobody ever did. My lord and I forgave you from the beginning. Well, except for Zhang Fei, at least."

"But he's learned to like me now, right?"

Zhao Yun smiled. "Yes, you're right about that." Then he looked back at Pànduàn, who was now holding Himiko in his arms again.

"Pànduàn," he said politely. "I have a proposal to make. Since I and Da Li have met you here by chance, I think it would be unfit if we were to part our ways again. Would you and Himiko accompany me and Da Li back to Cheng Du?"

"Cheng Du?" Pànduàn looked at Himiko, who flashed him an uncertain look. "Well, that's a nice offer, but I and Himiko have been living out our lives together in this wilderness with peace ever since the Odigan War ended. Are you sure you want to bring us with you to Cheng Du?"

"I am. Lord Liu Bei and the others would be very pleased to meet with you again. Besides, I believe that Lord Zhuge Liang would like to speak with you also."

Pànduàn looked to the sky. "Maybe…I haven't been meeting your lord ever since Himiko and I decided to go out and see the world."

He looked at Himiko. "What do you think, love?"

Himiko thought for a moment as both Zhao Yun and Da Li's eyes widened. "…I say we do!" she said. "I haven't been seeing Lady Shang Xiang in ages, too!"

Pànduàn nodded, then looked back at Zhao Yun. "Then it's settled. We both adjourn with you, Young Dragon."

Zhao Yun nodded back. "Then let's go. We start our journey back to Cheng Du now."

The four of them—Dragon of Judgment, Shaman Queen, Odd Maiden and Third of the Five Tiger Generals—then set out, walking along the dragon's spine separating the empires of Shu and Wu, out of the sea of fiery leaves that was the forest that lay between the kingdoms of the Dragon and Tiger, on a journey to the heart of the Dragon's Domain.