This story takes place before the beginning of the Clouded Horizons series proper. It's best to have read through Dimensional Legend chapter 50 before reading this story to have context for the scene shown here.

A Clouded Horizons Story

Broken Glass

[April 28, 1596 | Ethereal Plane, Upper Court, Fifth Division Barracks, Captain's Quarters]

Clink.

The quiet tinkle of the glass as Kari set it back down on the wooden table in front of her was the only sound that was made in the still room. The captain's quarters…her quarters…felt more like a tomb now than any kind of sanctuary. A white haori bearing the symbol of the Fifth Division lay across the back of a nearby chair, leaving her dressed in just the simple black shihakushou belonging to all members of the Grim Angels. She slumped, one hand cradling her face as she stilled, and started to reach for the bottle of wine on the table again. Right now, she wanted nothing more than to forget…wash away the events of the past few days in a bleary haze of alcohol.

A knock at the door stopped her hand in its tracks, and her eyes drifted to the entrance warily, as if she expected death itself to be on the other side…waiting for her next.

"…Come in."

She wanted nothing more to be alone, but she couldn't bear to take the risk that it was important. Like it or not, she was the Captain of the division now, and bore all the responsibilities that came with it.

Getting drunk could come later – hopefully, not too much later.

"Almost didn't think you'd be here."

Etchel Beoulve's voice, she thought to herself, was one that she couldn't decide if she was happy or sorry to hear. The head of the Second Division was notorious for being lackadaisical, but he sounded subdued now, nothing at all like his normal self.

"…I heard about what happened," he continued, stepping across the room towards a free chair on the other side of the table. "Heard she took out five of them herself before she went down. Hell of a way to go, if you ask me."

"She…she was fighting two of them when I finally got to her. Urameshi and Sasada were already…gone," Kari replied quietly, words catching in her throat. Urameshi, the Vice-Captain, was cut down before he even realized what had happened…Sasada, taken down by a Cero far beyond her ability to dodge or deflect.

"She didn't die for nothing, you know," Etchel said, leaning back in the chair. "You survived. Some of your squad mates made it out alive. She went out like any of us would want to – trying to make sure that others were safe. That's why you joined the Order, isn't it?"

No response came from Kari for a few seconds as she contemplated Etchel's words. Chieko Murakami had given her life so that others would live…they'd been caught off-guard, and she did what she felt had to be done. Still, that didn't make it hurt any less.

"I…wanted to protect people, wanted to learn," she finally said, not looking up. "It all seems so pointless, now…stuck in a war no one asked for, watching everyone around me die for the stupidest reasons. What good are we as an order to protect the Creator, if we can't even protect ourselves?" She couldn't tell whether it was her own emotions or the alcohol's influence lending fire to her words, but Etchel didn't seem to mind the sudden bitter outburst.

"You're right. This war is pointless – we both know that. But if you give up now, you're doing a lot more than just hurting yourself. Think of the rest of the Fifth Division. Would you let them suffer by walking away, by giving up before you've even tried?"

"But…"

She paused, her voice quieting.

"If taichou couldn't stop this, then how can I?"

Etchel reached over, taking another empty glass from its place and pouring himself some of the wine from the bottle on the table before he responded. "You need to stop that thinking, now. You are not Chieko Murakami. You never will be. You are Kari Inihara, the new Captain of the Fifth Division. You have your own life, your own views, and your own way of doing things. You can't keep comparing yourself to Chieko, because you are not her. If you keep thinking like that, you've lost before you even play the game." He lifted the glass to his mouth, enjoying the taste for a moment as he sipped at his drink, and then placed it back on the table in front of him. "Right now, you've got a choice to make. You can sit here and drown in your own despair, or you can follow the example set by your Captain by getting up and taking charge."

A moment later, he smirked. "And maybe you couldn't protect her, or the others…but you can certainly avenge them. If you remember them, then you'll always be honoring their sacrifice, no matter what happens."

That was a thought to put steel in her spine, she realized as she listened. Her Captain was gone - nothing could change that now - but she still remained, like Etchel said. Forty or so others in the Fifth Division also lived. The fight had been a rout, a disaster, a travesty, any number of other words that described the calamity that had befallen them, but if she gave up here and let the magnitude of her new responsibilities crush her, then the fight which had been a disaster would also be the death of their hope.

Her Captain had always kept the faith...and now it was her turn to do the same.

"...Thank you, Etchel."

He nodded lightly, finishing the last of the wine he'd poured himself before standing up. "It's what I'm here for. Just keep pushing forward - we've still got a lot of work to do, no matter how much it hurts to do it."

He reached over and put a hand on her shoulder gently, her own hand reaching up to rest over his for a moment before he turned and made to leave, letting the door swing shut behind him as he left. Kari felt his energy fading as he headed back towards his own division's barracks, and she turned her gaze once again to the table in front of her. Chieko's Diviner lay atop the table, the light blue cloth-wrapped hilt and dark blue sheath seeming to glow faintly against the dark surface of the wood, and she reached out carefully to take it in hand before getting up from her seat and moving to the far side of the room. She opened the large doors of the cabinet against the wall and placed the blade inside, resting it inside with care before closing the doors again and beginning to cast a spell on the cabinet itself. Glyphs shone upon the doors for a brief instant before fading, the magical lock keyed to her own reiatsu sealing it firmly.

"One day, you will be avenged, taichou. I'll keep your blade safe here, in honor of all that you gave up for us."

Her footsteps padded gently on the floor as she walked back towards the front of the room, stopping and picking up the white haori from where she'd left it. She took a deep breath as she slid the garment on with a flourish, and her face settled into a determined look as she headed for the door. No longer could she afford to be idle...no longer could she afford to grieve. There would be time enough for both later, much later, once the war was over and the Ethereal Plane was once again at peace.

Until that time, she would fight. She would fight, protect, and lay her life on the line for those under her command just as her Captain had done for her.

The door swung open again, and Kari Inihara, Captain of the Fifth Division, stepped back into the daylight of her new life, leaving the shattered pieces of her old existence behind.