ATTENTION: Hi. As I've stated in my most recent chapter, I've been reviewing my past chapters and find them utterly disgusting. I am now undergoing the process of re-writing each chapter and editing them to my liking. Please take the time to re-read this chapter (I worked really hard on it!) and hopefully the others will be up in a few weeks. Sorry for the inconvenience. And thanks for the 1000 hits!

Concealed in the Moon's Shadow: A Story of Love

Any Japanese history book could tell of the carnage and mayhem that rocked the country during the fifteenth century – better known as the Sengoku Jidai or the Warring Era. From the northern islands to the southern peninsula, no place was safe from the wrath of greedy lords and power-hungry dynasties. Clans were shattered, alliances were broken, and many people fell victim to the blade. Gunpowder was a new invention brought from the continent, and in the hands of those who held proper firepower, certain doom was spelled for any opposing being.

Unless, of course, that being happened to be a supernatural.

The abundance of supernatural beings that roamed the country brought even more terror than did the thought of any mortal army. These beings, known as youkai, were often blood-thirsty and proud – whether they resembled a human or an ogre. Many sought power, some sought vengeance, and a frightening majority lived merely for the taste of blood on their tongues. Mystical strengths and powerful weapons caused many mortals to fear youkai, and rightly so.

However, there were youkai who held no ill-will toward humanity, or any other being for that matter. There were peaceful beings among these supernatural; some bent on stopping the catastrophes plaguing the Sengoku Jidai. During this period, the relations between humans and youkai also blossomed, and although frowned upon, resulted in hanyou offspring. And though these children were both youkai and human, they were quite often discriminated against for being neither youkai nor human.

It was a difficult time for all.

Times became especially testing when the Shikon no Tama fell out of safe hands. The legendary Jewel of Four Souls was a gem of extreme power, created and controlled by the power of emotion and desire, whether it be human or youkai. It held the ability to grant wishes, of sorts. If placed in the wrong hands, atrocity was liable to fall the land. However, it had been rumored that in the heat of battle, the jewel was struck and shattered into thousands of tiny fragments. The search and accumulation of the shattered shards of the all-powerful jewel made the Sengoku Jidai an even more dangerous time. Ruthless youkai and gluttonous men became even more feared throughout the lands, slaughtering whatever stood between them and even the chance of collecting a jewel shard.

But of course there was always the worst of the lot: that one devilish youkai – or human, who feared not traveling through life to death if it meant recovering all the pieces of the Jewel...The worst of them all.

That is a completely different story.

There is a tale that begins beyond the prancing hills and hazy valleys of the Sengoku Jidai, into the deep and ever-growing wood near the southern coast. In those forests, where mortals barely crept, a small village dwelled. It was a prosperous, self-supporting village – it had to be, as the surrounding woodland was too difficult to brave. Rarely a townsperson left, and rarely a merchant strolled in.

In this small village was a small castle, where the lord of the town claimed his residence. Lord Kanosuke1, pompous, wealthy, and questionable, was the head of the village as well as its token celebrity. The strength of his will and his voice wavered not, even in his old age. The order with which he managed his territory was optimal, from the building of a commanding militia to assuring that all families would prosper from the harvest. He worked hard to bring the village to its economic peak, and was quite revered; as almost a god.

His youth brought him unmatched strength and victory in war. He never failed to brag over one of his war tales, especially those that resulted in his being honored with riches and women – which, for the most part, were the most important aspects of his life. Riches came in the form of wealth, status, and weapons, all of which he carried with him throughout his life. One of his family's prized possessions was a sword collection, gathered over hundreds of years and kept locked away. Women, however, were his preferred vice. Kanosuke was quite lecherous indeed – touchy and promiscuous from the time he was a boy. And his old age was of no concern to his questionable actions.

But once he resigned from his military position, Kanosuke was betrothed to and eventually married a beautiful, lively maiden called Amatsayu2; the daughter of an affluent clan leader from the continent. In her youth, Amatsayu's dark features and pale complexion were quite stunning, especially in the eyes of an eager bachelor. She conceived on the eve of their union – something that forever bound Kanosuke to his marriage. The pair then stole away to a quiet village in hopes to settle Kanosuke's restless spirit. Little did they know that the village would only fuel the fire that burned within him.

Kanosuke was already being referred to as a lord when Amatsayu conceived for a second time, nearly nine years after they had located to their new home. The entire town held its breath when she brought forth her twin sons. Amatsayu swam in support from both her fellow townsfolk and her husband during the first season, but as time went on she felt herself weary from the lone responsibility. Kanosuke was often too busy to help her care for the three children, something she was unaccustomed to from being raised in such a family-oriented Chinese society.

The twins were called Aruki3 and Akiyo4, and held the same spirit as their mother and father. In their early years, they were the village troublemakers – borderline disgraceful. Innocent pranks and biting wit were their forte, as well as the uncanny ability of being able to obliterate the last nerve. They were a team from the time they could walk, salvaging one another from strife almost as much as they put one another into it. But their cunning and unmatched energy were redeeming factors that Kanosuke hardly overlooked. In fact, they were his soldiers in training. As they grew, so did their cleverness – but instead of taunting villagers with it, they used it to focus more on their samurai studies. Of course, Kanosuke's boys were destined for greatness just as he was. That was all he ever thought about.

But wait. What about Kanosuke's first child?

Several months after Kanosuke and Amatsayu's union, their first child broke free from her mother's womb and greeted the world with a soft retch. The girl quickly stole Amatsayu's breath; thus she named the babe Sayera5.

Sayera was Amatsayu's treasure – her inspiration to remain a loyal and faithful wife. Although Kanosuke supplied her with servants to nurture their daughter, Amatsayu refused to part with the child. Even if her husband was too involved in building this community, Amatsayu vowed that the child would be raised with a belief in family values, instilled in her by her Chinese ancestry. As Sayera developed beneath the guarding wings of her mother, the child grew farther and farther from Kanosuke. At times her own father was more of a landlord than a relative.

Age blessed Sayera with unsurpassed beauty. She was a hanyou of sorts – a child of two worlds – with roots planted in her country as well as across the sea. Her exotic eyes were long and spaced, edged with curved, even lashes. Her pupils pierced, but could not be seen while hidden beneath the murky blackness of her irises. Dark strands reached long from her head to her lower back, waving in a shimmering unison. Wispy bangs framed her pale, maternal face, just barely veiling her neatly arched eyebrows. With full, rosy lips she graced townsfolk with smiles that could forever steal the attention of a potential mate.

Settling down was something Sayera was not eager to accept – not even when she reached the appropriate age. She may have assumed the ideal wife, but Amatsayu sensed the defiance within her. Her daughter was unique. This was all she needed to realize how Fate tangled Sayera's destiny. Her ambitions went beyond the capacity of this tiny village. Suitor after suitor tried and failed to win Sayera's troubled heart, until an impatient Kanosuke pushed her into learning the ways of the priestess to humble her. But her father was blind to her true desires, to the fire that burned in her eyes. He could not see how her true self was feebly being buried while a strange hollow woman was being built on top of her. Sometimes she felt that not even her mother understood enough to help.

However, there was something in Sayera's life that was able to fill that hollow void with fascination: the Moon. The silver crystal that brightened the midnight sky had always seemed to comfort Sayera, even when she was just a girl. It was able to soften her hard emotions and give her the strength to face the world that demanded everything she could not give. How humble the Moon is compared to that arrogant Sun. It needed not much to thrive, like Sayera. She secretly believed that a youkai god manipulated the phases of the Moon, a fantasy her inventive mind cooked up as a little girl. As often as she could, Sayera watched the Moon, hoping to one day gaze upon the face of the god that was able to liberate her from the routine.

But in order to protect the slight freedom she held, Sayera had to push aside her beliefs, and obey her father's wishes. Lady Tsuyaka6 was the village's head priestess and Sayera's supposed mentor. Tsuyaka was indeed beautiful and skillful as well as a cunning warrior when duty called. Although only a few years Sayera's senior, she taught her how to develop and control her spiritual abilities, how to properly wield a bow and arrow, and most importantly how to flirt. The final lesson wasn't exactly intentional on Tsuyaka's part, but it did teach Sayera how to deal with suitors. She truly admired the priestess, but while under her care, Sayera felt suffocated and empty. She was unable to release her spiritual powers, thus they amassed within her, and she could not comfortably arch by means of her left side, let alone the right. But her failure as a priestess brought little grief, as she cared not for it.

Tsuyaka's training had done nothing but stir Sayera's true desires. The outward compassionate happiness she portrayed became solely outward. Those smiles she flashed were but a curling of her lip to satisfy her royalty. There was no real satisfaction in rising to the sound of someone else starting her day for her in that god-forsaken mansion. With so many people and artifacts hidden within, one would think the halls would linger with a little more than emptiness. The idea of a virtuous family life Amatsayu tried so desperately to plant in her children had fallen.

While awaiting the soft kiss of sleep, Sayera would find herself searching for a stray silver light poking through her chamber window. The Moon became her sole confidant to whom she relayed her desires and hardships – hoping, praying that the youkai god would bless her with strength.

Her deepest desire was to become a master swordsman, and learn the ways of the famous samurai warriors that she was only able to read of. She attempted to teach herself well-known sword styles such as Hiten-Mitsurugi7 from scrolls her father collected from its northern origins. It was a dangerous method created for the sake of the war. How Sayera wished for the day that she might be as strong as one of the famous samurai. Unfortunately for her, a sword was not a weapon to be wielded by the lady of the castle. Sayera was to fit the stereotype of a delicate, weak girl who needed a strong man to hide behind. In that scenario, there was no room for her fiery spirit. The anger that evolved from those thoughts was what brought Sayera to bitterness.

The only means by which her anger was quelled was by rebellion. The rush of sneaking away from Kanosuke and his damned castle prison helped – especially when the Moon was in its fullest. As the Moon calmed her, Sayera felt it was only proper to test her aspiration under its glow. She braved the shallows of the forest: far enough in to be hidden from view, yet close enough to assure no wandering youkai. Thus, on clear evenings, she grunted and sweated while swinging her weapon among the woodland floor littered in instructional scrolls.

Her blade of choice? The one she had stolen years ago from her father's sword collection. It was a bit ragged and ancient when she first acquired it, but the blade quickly became part of her spirit. She decided to call to sword Tamaya8, a name she believed connected her with her only true prized possession. Sayera felt at home when Tamaya hung secure at her waist because it was the only thing she ever really needed. Emotions ran deep when Tamaya was at her right hand. Her blade allowed her to take control of something, and Sayera was not prepared to let that slip away.

When the cock sang its cries in the last moments of moonlight, Sayera would sneak back into her house and rest through dawn. Physical tiredness was a sacrifice she was willing to make. For her keen eyes never seemed to fail her, even in the dark.

And so Sayera lived in a shell – hiding her truth beneath an unbreakable mask. Only with the Moon did the beast within the beauty emerge. Who needed the Shikon no Tama to fulfill their desires when the Moon acted as the fountain of silver opportunity?

And so her story begins…

Kanosuke1: literally "strong male fur"

Amatsayu2: like "heavenly"

Aruki3: taken from "to live" and the Japanese term for the Chinese Feng Shui meaning "life energy."

Akiyo4: "world of autumn"

Sayera5: alteration of "difference of breathing"

Tsuyaka6: literally "steal beautiful arrow"

Hiten-Mitsurugi7: Yep, Rurouni Kenshin's sword style.

Tamaya8: "melting spirit"