DISCLAIMERS: Don't own Saiyuki, or the hottie Kenren Taishou *purr*. Very small shot of implied KenTen.
So there he lay, stripped to the chest, and covered in wounds both old and new bleeding in various shades of crimson. Even so, Kenren hadn't lost the kick that gave him the edge over every other martial god (and they should know. One hundred were knocked out by him before he was subdued. By fifty others. And a ton of sleeping gas.).
"OI, LET ME OUTTA HERE, WILL YA?!" he roared, lunging at the bars that imprisoned him. Something throbbing just below his ribs protested furiously, and he ended up curled up against the wall with a low whine of pain forcing its way out between his lips. Ah hell, it wasn't like anyone would hear him screaming anyway, he thought bitterly--the last person that came close to this oh-so-unholy Tenkai prison cell was that mother-effin Li Touten. That would have been to gloat and generally act like a toad.
"It has been settled, Kenren Taishou," he smirked, emphasising the now-defunct title. "You will be executed at dawn tomorrow by Nataku Taishi. Now, the only problem is, WHICH part of the happy couple shall I knock off first? The fearless husband, or his headstrong wife?" Kenren smirked despite himself, remembering how he'd snarled at the stupid bearded fool and hawked the finest little loogie ever. It described a pretty little arc and hit Touten right in the eye.
The god wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. He had to tell Tenpou what that old jijii had SAID after that. He knew exactly how his commander-adjutant would struggle to rein in his laughter before a polite snort and gay laughter would bubble forth from his throat. (Snorts COULD be polite. Tenpou proved it possible.) Goku would be howling with undiluted pleasure, most definitely. He'd come up with the fine insult of 'loach head' for Tentei himself. You could count on the kid to show every ounce of emotion he had in him. Even Konzen might crack a smile, if only because he was noting all that vitriol to be used later. You could never have enough swearwords...
...But no, he couldn't tell them anything now, could he? Konzen was dead. Goku had seen him fall in a spray of bright, fresh blood. Tenpou was locked away in a different cell, in a different building, in a different part of heaven, with different wounds in different places. All that torture, and the green eyes had still burned with absinthe flame. That fire was what made him Marshal, and the same fire was burning him down. Kenren wouldn't like to see that fire drowned and subdued in a river of blood as crimson as his own eyes. Goku? Best not talk about Goku. Li Touten had 'taken custody of the heretic child'. Lord knows how much he must'a been screwing with Goku's small, innocent brain...
Don't think, Kenren, don't even go there, don't bloody think, don'tthinkdon'tthinkdon'tthinkdon'tthink...
Footsteps suddenly echoed down the corridor, and Kenren was jerked out of his reverie. The jerk was a bit too hard, for as he whipped his head up, pain seized him by the neck and shook him witless. Was it morning? Already?! He couldn't tell in the permanent semi-darkness and all, but he had a good sense of time and was pretty sure it was still late at night.
"Sumimasen. Are you Kenren Taishou?"
The footsteps stopped in front of his cell, and Kenren found himself staring at the two small, dainty feet on the ground. They were clad in white boots, and their owner was a definite change from most of the other goddesses. She wore a royal blue leotard-like garment and a contrasting gold jacket over that; in brighter light it would have hurt to look at it. Her eyes were like pieces of green crystal set in her face, and as she smiled down kindly at him her long, light brown braid swayed gently.
"ARE you Kenren Taishou?" she asked again.
"I am, if you're my last request," he drawled with a weak grin.
"You act exactly as I thought you would, from what they told me," was her only reply. "My name is Ranran -- I am a healer here. I was sent to check on you. Are you quite all right?"
"Yeah. I'm just bleeding from seventeen places I never knew had blood supply."
Ranran unlocked the door and sat down next to Kenren. She produced from within her clothes several rolls of bandages and salve. "Geez, they really cut you up. Jackass soldiers. There's such a thing as treating your prisoners with dignity! It has to be outlined! It's not fair!"
"*Tenkai*'s not fair," Kenren countered as she medicated his wounds. "Live with it."
"It shouldn't be. It's HEAVEN. It's supposed to be paradise." She frowned as she looked at the two slashes they had cut across Kenren's left cheek. "Those are going to leave scars, damnit. What were they thinking of when they kicked you into this dump?"
The general gave her a long, blank stare. "You mean you REALLY don't know why I'm in here? I thought I was famous," he smirked.
"I only know it had something to do with Nataku-chan..."
_-chan!?_ Kenren's mind spluttered feebly.
"...and Li-jisan. How serious are things? What did you do?"
Kenren told her, figuring there should be at least one person who could hear it straight from the horse's mouth. She listened as she stitched up his wounded shoulder with fine thread and snipped the ends away cleanly. "...that's why four unlucky bastards got slapped with a death sentence. But you...did you just call Li Touten 'jisan'? He's your UNCLE?!"
"...Do NOT think for a moment that I'm proud of that!" she hissed. "All he wants is to take over Tenkai and rule from behind Nataku's throne. He's gotta be stupid if he thinks I can't see that." After a pause, Ranran further added, "I'm the daughter of one of Touten's brothers. One with a better head screwed on his shoulders, in my humble opinion. I like Nataku, though. Pity his dad forced him to grow up and make a child do a man's job."
"So you're not a goddess, are you?"
"I'm not," came the prompt reply. Ranran's green gaze, a clearer and lighter version of Tenpou's, bore into Kenren's. looking up into Kenren's crimson eyes. "No chakra. No 'rei' in my name. I was born into a lower societal class, but thanks to my relations--" she shuddered--"I was allowed to study in detail how the system in Tenkai worked. The more I see, though, the more I dislike it. It's corrupted--down to the roots."
"It's not called corruption. It's called self-interest."
"Too darn much of it." She had long ago finished bandaging him up, and she now leaned against the wall and crossed her legs. "It's not the way it should be. This whole THING--" she gestured wildly--"reeks, and like one of Li Touten's overripe shoes, no less. LOOK at my uncle! Part of the ruling hierarchy and he's using his son like a marionette, and there's nobody with the cow sense to see it."
"Damn. You're really serious about this."
Ranran shrugged. "I was taught what was right and wrong at an early age, Taishou, and I haven't lost that. And I think that this is VERY wrong. I just don't like seeing people get in trouble when they're acting out of something higher than self-preservation--it's not my style. I sometimes think I would be better fit for the World Below because of that. At least I can go and be a martyr if I want and no stinking uncle is going to interfere. There's the matter of you and Gensui, and Son Goku." She smiled slightly. "He's a nice boy. I saw him walking around Tentei's castle once. I think he was looking for Nataku-chan. I helped him make flower-chains to take to him. Golden eyes like amber fire..."
"You know that's the sign of a heretic?"
"Does having green eyes make me Tenpou Gensui?" replied Ranran with a cool smile. "Does it matter? He's a living creature all the same and deserves the same rights. I wish I could help him. What happens to him tomorrow? What happens to you and Tenpou Gensui?"
Kenren leaned against the wall, suddenly quiet and a little somber. "Tomorrow? Nataku puts the swords to our necks, of course. All of us will be transmigrated, and Konzen Douji will be cursed the same. Son Goku is to be sealed far away from Heaven--bastards. Poor kid's already shaken up, and they want to give him Nirvana besides..."
Ranran cut the general off. "Nirvana the truth, or Nirvana the drug?" Her eyes glittered with strange excitement.
"The drug, of course. To seal off his memories in a state of nothingness. That's what the stuff does, doesn't it? We use it on souls in Gekai-Shita," replied the man cautiously, referring to the world below the World Below, Hades, as it was.
Ranran paled. "I. Have. Been. A. Fool."
"Uh?"
"Nataku-chan! Nataku-chan told me he wanted a batch made for tomorrow. He just wouldn't say what! Oh ye GODS, he is to use it on you?!" Kenren Taishou didn't quite know what to say. Ranran got up and paced in tight circles. "I've had enough. Nataku's too far gone for me to do anything anymore. My cousin's become like my uncle, corrupt and heartless. I'd like to force some of that stuff down his throat if it would knock him to his senses. It might make him catatonic, but it would shake him to his senses. He asked that enough be made for four people. Who is the fourth--"
"Ranran!" Kenren bellowed. "Pacing isn't going to solve the problem!"
The heavenly nymph seemed to pull some calmness from somewhere and settled down. "You're right. It;s not. I'd already made half of it when I was told to check on you, but I think I can doctor the rest of the drug. If I smash the catalyst, there's a chance it might work."
"Meaning?"
"It depends on how the drug is heated. The more heat you give it the more potent it becomes. There is a chance it might work, for all of you. You, Gensui and Son Goku will not fully lose yourself, and Son Goku will perhaps be able to keep some of his more precious memories. What I fear may also happen is that the drug will be scorched. If this happens then the drug will be too potent. It will damage the soul beyond repair and you'll end up being a vegetable down in Gekai, and one without half a mind, at that."
Kenren's expression set. "Even if it took 500 years to get one single memory back, that's a chance I'm bloody willing to take, Ranran. Can it be done?"
"Easily."
"Then rise. I command you to do it."
"Huh?! Kenren Taishou?"
"...Who is still a Taishou and can therefore give this as a last command. You are appointed--" he laid two fingers on her forehead-- "as Ranran, the Spirit of Rebellion. May your quick mind and high sense of duty guide you on your way. You are the only hope of those who would speak but have no tongue to do so."
Ranran closed her eyes and nodded solemnly. "I'll do my best, Taishou. I should go check on the others now, before I start on my task."
"As you will." A pause. "Will you be checking the marshal's condition?"
"Is there a message you want relayed?" she smiled. Seeing Kenren's hesitation and reading into it, she suggested gently "I assume that the general drinks to his marshal's health?"
Kenren grinned. "Aa, that's about it. And I'll find him. I swear I'll find him if it takes me 500 years. You tell him that for me"
"Bite your tongue."
"It's not going to fill my stomach."
"Suit yourself." She stood up, locked the grille behind her. With a small wave of her hand, she was gone.
Kenren leaned against the wall and closed his eyes. _Yeah, even things out a little for us rebels, won't you, Ranran?_ he thought just before he lapsed into a deep slumber.
And so it was that the Spirit of Rebellion went ahead with her plan. The drug was safely doctored, although its effects would be hard to monitor. Not long after, a new fighting god was elected--and this one a woman, for on the head of a mysterious Li Ranran there was a very familiar chakra, shaped like a compass on its side.
GLOSSARY
(O)Jisan -- Uncle
Kenren Taishou - General Kenren
Sumimasen - excuse me
So there he lay, stripped to the chest, and covered in wounds both old and new bleeding in various shades of crimson. Even so, Kenren hadn't lost the kick that gave him the edge over every other martial god (and they should know. One hundred were knocked out by him before he was subdued. By fifty others. And a ton of sleeping gas.).
"OI, LET ME OUTTA HERE, WILL YA?!" he roared, lunging at the bars that imprisoned him. Something throbbing just below his ribs protested furiously, and he ended up curled up against the wall with a low whine of pain forcing its way out between his lips. Ah hell, it wasn't like anyone would hear him screaming anyway, he thought bitterly--the last person that came close to this oh-so-unholy Tenkai prison cell was that mother-effin Li Touten. That would have been to gloat and generally act like a toad.
"It has been settled, Kenren Taishou," he smirked, emphasising the now-defunct title. "You will be executed at dawn tomorrow by Nataku Taishi. Now, the only problem is, WHICH part of the happy couple shall I knock off first? The fearless husband, or his headstrong wife?" Kenren smirked despite himself, remembering how he'd snarled at the stupid bearded fool and hawked the finest little loogie ever. It described a pretty little arc and hit Touten right in the eye.
The god wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. He had to tell Tenpou what that old jijii had SAID after that. He knew exactly how his commander-adjutant would struggle to rein in his laughter before a polite snort and gay laughter would bubble forth from his throat. (Snorts COULD be polite. Tenpou proved it possible.) Goku would be howling with undiluted pleasure, most definitely. He'd come up with the fine insult of 'loach head' for Tentei himself. You could count on the kid to show every ounce of emotion he had in him. Even Konzen might crack a smile, if only because he was noting all that vitriol to be used later. You could never have enough swearwords...
...But no, he couldn't tell them anything now, could he? Konzen was dead. Goku had seen him fall in a spray of bright, fresh blood. Tenpou was locked away in a different cell, in a different building, in a different part of heaven, with different wounds in different places. All that torture, and the green eyes had still burned with absinthe flame. That fire was what made him Marshal, and the same fire was burning him down. Kenren wouldn't like to see that fire drowned and subdued in a river of blood as crimson as his own eyes. Goku? Best not talk about Goku. Li Touten had 'taken custody of the heretic child'. Lord knows how much he must'a been screwing with Goku's small, innocent brain...
Don't think, Kenren, don't even go there, don't bloody think, don'tthinkdon'tthinkdon'tthinkdon'tthink...
Footsteps suddenly echoed down the corridor, and Kenren was jerked out of his reverie. The jerk was a bit too hard, for as he whipped his head up, pain seized him by the neck and shook him witless. Was it morning? Already?! He couldn't tell in the permanent semi-darkness and all, but he had a good sense of time and was pretty sure it was still late at night.
"Sumimasen. Are you Kenren Taishou?"
The footsteps stopped in front of his cell, and Kenren found himself staring at the two small, dainty feet on the ground. They were clad in white boots, and their owner was a definite change from most of the other goddesses. She wore a royal blue leotard-like garment and a contrasting gold jacket over that; in brighter light it would have hurt to look at it. Her eyes were like pieces of green crystal set in her face, and as she smiled down kindly at him her long, light brown braid swayed gently.
"ARE you Kenren Taishou?" she asked again.
"I am, if you're my last request," he drawled with a weak grin.
"You act exactly as I thought you would, from what they told me," was her only reply. "My name is Ranran -- I am a healer here. I was sent to check on you. Are you quite all right?"
"Yeah. I'm just bleeding from seventeen places I never knew had blood supply."
Ranran unlocked the door and sat down next to Kenren. She produced from within her clothes several rolls of bandages and salve. "Geez, they really cut you up. Jackass soldiers. There's such a thing as treating your prisoners with dignity! It has to be outlined! It's not fair!"
"*Tenkai*'s not fair," Kenren countered as she medicated his wounds. "Live with it."
"It shouldn't be. It's HEAVEN. It's supposed to be paradise." She frowned as she looked at the two slashes they had cut across Kenren's left cheek. "Those are going to leave scars, damnit. What were they thinking of when they kicked you into this dump?"
The general gave her a long, blank stare. "You mean you REALLY don't know why I'm in here? I thought I was famous," he smirked.
"I only know it had something to do with Nataku-chan..."
_-chan!?_ Kenren's mind spluttered feebly.
"...and Li-jisan. How serious are things? What did you do?"
Kenren told her, figuring there should be at least one person who could hear it straight from the horse's mouth. She listened as she stitched up his wounded shoulder with fine thread and snipped the ends away cleanly. "...that's why four unlucky bastards got slapped with a death sentence. But you...did you just call Li Touten 'jisan'? He's your UNCLE?!"
"...Do NOT think for a moment that I'm proud of that!" she hissed. "All he wants is to take over Tenkai and rule from behind Nataku's throne. He's gotta be stupid if he thinks I can't see that." After a pause, Ranran further added, "I'm the daughter of one of Touten's brothers. One with a better head screwed on his shoulders, in my humble opinion. I like Nataku, though. Pity his dad forced him to grow up and make a child do a man's job."
"So you're not a goddess, are you?"
"I'm not," came the prompt reply. Ranran's green gaze, a clearer and lighter version of Tenpou's, bore into Kenren's. looking up into Kenren's crimson eyes. "No chakra. No 'rei' in my name. I was born into a lower societal class, but thanks to my relations--" she shuddered--"I was allowed to study in detail how the system in Tenkai worked. The more I see, though, the more I dislike it. It's corrupted--down to the roots."
"It's not called corruption. It's called self-interest."
"Too darn much of it." She had long ago finished bandaging him up, and she now leaned against the wall and crossed her legs. "It's not the way it should be. This whole THING--" she gestured wildly--"reeks, and like one of Li Touten's overripe shoes, no less. LOOK at my uncle! Part of the ruling hierarchy and he's using his son like a marionette, and there's nobody with the cow sense to see it."
"Damn. You're really serious about this."
Ranran shrugged. "I was taught what was right and wrong at an early age, Taishou, and I haven't lost that. And I think that this is VERY wrong. I just don't like seeing people get in trouble when they're acting out of something higher than self-preservation--it's not my style. I sometimes think I would be better fit for the World Below because of that. At least I can go and be a martyr if I want and no stinking uncle is going to interfere. There's the matter of you and Gensui, and Son Goku." She smiled slightly. "He's a nice boy. I saw him walking around Tentei's castle once. I think he was looking for Nataku-chan. I helped him make flower-chains to take to him. Golden eyes like amber fire..."
"You know that's the sign of a heretic?"
"Does having green eyes make me Tenpou Gensui?" replied Ranran with a cool smile. "Does it matter? He's a living creature all the same and deserves the same rights. I wish I could help him. What happens to him tomorrow? What happens to you and Tenpou Gensui?"
Kenren leaned against the wall, suddenly quiet and a little somber. "Tomorrow? Nataku puts the swords to our necks, of course. All of us will be transmigrated, and Konzen Douji will be cursed the same. Son Goku is to be sealed far away from Heaven--bastards. Poor kid's already shaken up, and they want to give him Nirvana besides..."
Ranran cut the general off. "Nirvana the truth, or Nirvana the drug?" Her eyes glittered with strange excitement.
"The drug, of course. To seal off his memories in a state of nothingness. That's what the stuff does, doesn't it? We use it on souls in Gekai-Shita," replied the man cautiously, referring to the world below the World Below, Hades, as it was.
Ranran paled. "I. Have. Been. A. Fool."
"Uh?"
"Nataku-chan! Nataku-chan told me he wanted a batch made for tomorrow. He just wouldn't say what! Oh ye GODS, he is to use it on you?!" Kenren Taishou didn't quite know what to say. Ranran got up and paced in tight circles. "I've had enough. Nataku's too far gone for me to do anything anymore. My cousin's become like my uncle, corrupt and heartless. I'd like to force some of that stuff down his throat if it would knock him to his senses. It might make him catatonic, but it would shake him to his senses. He asked that enough be made for four people. Who is the fourth--"
"Ranran!" Kenren bellowed. "Pacing isn't going to solve the problem!"
The heavenly nymph seemed to pull some calmness from somewhere and settled down. "You're right. It;s not. I'd already made half of it when I was told to check on you, but I think I can doctor the rest of the drug. If I smash the catalyst, there's a chance it might work."
"Meaning?"
"It depends on how the drug is heated. The more heat you give it the more potent it becomes. There is a chance it might work, for all of you. You, Gensui and Son Goku will not fully lose yourself, and Son Goku will perhaps be able to keep some of his more precious memories. What I fear may also happen is that the drug will be scorched. If this happens then the drug will be too potent. It will damage the soul beyond repair and you'll end up being a vegetable down in Gekai, and one without half a mind, at that."
Kenren's expression set. "Even if it took 500 years to get one single memory back, that's a chance I'm bloody willing to take, Ranran. Can it be done?"
"Easily."
"Then rise. I command you to do it."
"Huh?! Kenren Taishou?"
"...Who is still a Taishou and can therefore give this as a last command. You are appointed--" he laid two fingers on her forehead-- "as Ranran, the Spirit of Rebellion. May your quick mind and high sense of duty guide you on your way. You are the only hope of those who would speak but have no tongue to do so."
Ranran closed her eyes and nodded solemnly. "I'll do my best, Taishou. I should go check on the others now, before I start on my task."
"As you will." A pause. "Will you be checking the marshal's condition?"
"Is there a message you want relayed?" she smiled. Seeing Kenren's hesitation and reading into it, she suggested gently "I assume that the general drinks to his marshal's health?"
Kenren grinned. "Aa, that's about it. And I'll find him. I swear I'll find him if it takes me 500 years. You tell him that for me"
"Bite your tongue."
"It's not going to fill my stomach."
"Suit yourself." She stood up, locked the grille behind her. With a small wave of her hand, she was gone.
Kenren leaned against the wall and closed his eyes. _Yeah, even things out a little for us rebels, won't you, Ranran?_ he thought just before he lapsed into a deep slumber.
And so it was that the Spirit of Rebellion went ahead with her plan. The drug was safely doctored, although its effects would be hard to monitor. Not long after, a new fighting god was elected--and this one a woman, for on the head of a mysterious Li Ranran there was a very familiar chakra, shaped like a compass on its side.
GLOSSARY
(O)Jisan -- Uncle
Kenren Taishou - General Kenren
Sumimasen - excuse me