Destiny

By: Brukaoru

Author notes are at the bottom of each chapter.

Disclaimer: Rurouni Kenshin belongs to Nobuhiro Watsuki.

Chapter One:

The Decision

The most beautiful place in existence is rarely seen by mortals. There is no place on Earth that can match its magnificence. Although human imagination has led to the creation of many stories, myths, and illustrations all trying to convey what it looks like no one could ever capture its essence in the form of letters nor in the stroke of a paintbrush. It is indescribable through any human language. Nearly all living creatures want to go there when they die. To mortals it is known as heaven. To the gods it is their home.

In heaven an aura of peace is instilled everywhere and an ethereal glow surrounds everything. All is bright and beautiful andthere is no darkness. Every path is adorned with flowers of blending hues, never wilting, always in full bloom. The weather is pleasant, it is never too muggy or dry. Endless streams of water flow through the lands, their depths crystal clear, forever immaculate. There is nothing unpleasant in heaven. Even buildings are a sight to behold, the walls of each structure encrusted with gemstones and melded into gold.

The beauty of heaven was lost to the mortal who stood rigidly in the center of the room as the Amatsu-Kami, the gods of heaven, formed a half circle around him. When he arrived he did not waste time gawking at the sight of absolute perfection before him. His entire focus was on the reasoning of why he had been summoned there. The decision they were forcing him to make far outweighed anything else and nothing else mattered to him.

A person being called upon by the gods is a rare occurrence. Not even the spirits of the dead who are granted entry into heaven are able to visit the gods as they are placed in a separate realm. It would be expected for someone to feel honored and privileged to be in the presence of divine beings. However, all he felt was a mixture of immense fear and raging anger.

The mortal who stands before the gods has been known by several names throughout his life: Shinta as a child, Kenshin as the apprentice of a swords-master, and Battousai as a hitokiri. His biggest regret in life started when he took another person's life and guilt soon bore down heavily upon his shoulders as he continued killing others for the sake of a new era. However darkness is never without a light. Though he regretted his actions he met two people who made him see the joy of life, who helped him escape from the madness that wanted to consume him.

Once again his past threatened to destroy the new path his life had undertaken. Two innocent lives were being threatened to coax him into making a decision that was unfavorable for him no matter which option he chose. To remind him what was at stake the ones he loved were hovering in front of him, both oblivious to their current predicament, eyes closed and in a state of unconscious serenity.

"Have you decided?"

Kenshin raised his head to stare at the deity who had spoken, one of the three goddesses in the room. She had pale pupils surrounded by cyan irises, an oval-shaped face, and colorless hair that flowed down to her ankles. He wasn't aware of who she was and didn't really care to know. The only deity he knew of was the god of war, the one responsible for him being there. He would find out later that it was Kaminari, the goddess of thunder. She was the only deity in the room who gazed at him sympathetically, a contradiction to the cold expressions on the faces of the others.

He gritted his teeth, refraining from lashing out at the look of pity in her gaze, as if it mattered how she felt, it did nothing to help him.

"This is about me-" Kenshin began, pausing to glare at all of them before he turned his attention back to her, "-why are you involving two innocent people?"

"If we did not, you would not be willing to take this position," she replied softly.

"So why don't you just force me to take it? Why involve them?!" he shouted with unrestrained anger.

Bishamonten, the god of war, stood up angrily. "You should be grateful we don't just kill both of them!"

The human snarled, eyes blazing with rage like an inferno that wished to incinerate every divine being in existence. Though his gaze was only directed towards Bishamonten, the power of Kenshin's fury was felt by everyone in the room, shivers tingled down their spines as if they were burned by cold flames.

A wicked grin formed on Bishamonten's face. A mortal creating such a feeling of unease in a room filled with gods demonstrated the raw power he possessed. Truly, Battousai was someone to be feared, the perfect choice to be his successor.

"You can only choose one, unless you agree to become his apprentice," Kaminari said quietly, trying her best not to invoke Kenshin's wrath on herself.

Kenshin's eyes flickered to Kaminari, his pupils still glazed with rage until her words became clear through his murderous thoughts. Upon hearing them, his whole demeanor changed instantly, turning sorrowful.

He tilted his head to stare at one of the floating bodies, "Tomoe..." He turned his head to where the other body floated, "Kaoru..."

His chest tightened as he forced himself to breathe, stifling back the urge to sob. His heart was torn between the two women he loved. Bowing his head in defeat, he raised his arms and stared at his palms.

His hands were stained with the blood of countless men. For several years he had willingly volunteered to fight for the Ishin Shishi, the pro-imperialist faction of Japan, who opposed the Tokugawa shogunate. For years he took the lives of countless men and stole the happiness of many families, all for the dream of a peaceful future. Until the deciding Battle of Toba-Fushimi that ended in the Tokugawa shogunate's defeat, when he abandoned his blood-stained sword and vowed to never kill again.

Now, to save both women's lives, he was being forced into agreeing to become apprentice to a god who would make him a murderer once again. If he declined, the gods would let him go back to his life, but only after they killed Tomoe or Kaoru.

There was no choosing between the two, he loved them both equally. Even if he did love one more than the other, the one not chosen should not have to die! Manipulative bastards, he thought to himself, enraged at the gods. He dropped his hands, lifting his head to stare at both women once more. Neither of them would want me to kill again… They would both hate me... Yet... If they don't remember...

Kenshin ignored the way his heart twisted in pain and took a deep breath. "I will become the next god of war if both their lives are spared and their memories of me are erased..."

Author's Note (November 4, 2013):

After much consideration I have decided to post this prologue even though the rest of the story is nowhere near finished. (I know how I want it to end but am having trouble writing the beginning/middle parts). Initially I was going to wait until the story was complete to start posting it.

I have several reasons for changing my mind:

1 - I may never complete it.

2 - I was tired of debating with myself over whether I should post it or not.

3 - Maybe if it's never completed then it can be considered interesting enough to be a short 'what-if' one-shot, a mystery where readers can fill-in their own ideas.

So I apologize in advance. I hope I am able to continue this story someday. I believe I have some good ideas planned for it. At the moment though, my ideas are scattered all over the place and I am working on another story that seems to be progressing more than this one.

Thank you for taking the time to read this story. Critiques are welcomed.