So... this is my first story in quite some time. And I know how unpopular OCs can be, I've seen my share of bad ones. But this is why I'm writing this story. I want to show that a good story can be made with good OCs without readers wanting to continually stab them. I even started with the canon characters, so no worries!
Anyways, I hope you all enjoy my story~!
It was a beautiful day in the Heavens, as always. The sun was shining, the birds were singing and the old generals were drinking booze merrily under the cherry blossoms. It was the kind of day that could bring a smile to anyone's face.
Kanzeon Bosatsu, however, was not smiling. In fact, she was quite pissed off.
"Master Bosatsu?" Her man-servant, Jiroshin, questioned, "Are you alright?"
"No." She sternly replied, glaring down at the pool of water in front of her, "These four idiots have grown incredibly boring. I've been watching them for so long that their actions have become predictable. There needs to be a change." Jiroshin turned his eyes to the image that his master was glaring at. The pool's reflection revealed four men in what looked like a dark, hotel room. Behind one of the men was a small window that showed a solemn rainy night.
"The Sanzo-ikkou seems to always get depressed when it rains." The servant pointed out.
"Yeah, and it's gotten so damn old already. They're only like this because of their messed up childhoods…" The Merciful Goddess trailed off, earning her another curious look from Jiroshin. Suddenly, she smiled wickedly as a wonderful idea swirled around in her mind. Kanzeon Bosatsu stood up from her throne and gracefully walked towards the edge of the pool in front of her. She bent down low and cupped one of the lotus flowers in her hand. She dipped the flower into the water for a moment before bringing it back to the surface. A good amount of water was now inside the lotus as the Merciful Goddess straightened her form, a wicked smile still on her face.
"Master? What are you planning?" Jiroshin hesitantly asked as she waved her free hand over the water-filled lotus.
"Nothing too sinister." She replied without looking up from her work. The water inside the flower began to glide in the same direction her hand was moving until a blurred image appeared.
"Perfect." Kanzeon Bosatsu whispered under her breath before pouring the water onto the images of Genjyo Sanzo, Son Goku, Sha Gojyo and Cho Hakkai.
The sound of rain tapping heavily against glass echoed inside the silent, dark hotel room. The three eldest men of the Sanzo-ikkou sat in their respective areas, brooding. The youngest, however, looked uncomfortable. He desperately wanted to announce how hungry he was, but the last few times he did say something almost got him killed. So, Son Goku just sat there on his bed, petting Hakuryuu sleeping beside him and thought about different dishes he wanted to sink his teeth in that moment. However, between his thoughts of side dishes, he found himself thinking back on the time he spent trapped under that mountain. The feeling of loneliness immediately followed those memories and clenched his heart in its icy grip, only to disappear just as quickly when he remembered the sight and smell of warm meat buns.
Genjyo Sanzo watched the rain fall from his spot on the windowsill, hunched up while smoke drifted from his cigarette. As tiny water droplets plunged down from the heavens, visions from the blond man's past flashed inside his mind. Rain, blood and helplessness were the three main things he remembered clearly. Sanzo took another inhale from his cigarette, letting the nicotine fumes settle in his lungs for a moment. It helped ease the pain of recalling the image of his master's body sprawled along the bloodied temple floor, but only a little. Hostility radiated off the priest; a sign to his comrades that if anyone so much as talked to him, they would be expecting a bullet in their head.
Cho Hakkai glanced around the dark room for the umpteenth time from his spot at the lone table. The depression surrounding them all was as suffocating as the cigarette smoke that lingered in the air, but he was in no mood to try and lift it. In fact, he welcomed the shared misery as he turned back to the cup of tea resting in his hands. The man staring back at him through the reflection looked dejected and forlorn, just like he had expected. The memories of his lost lover always did this to him. Guilt rose up his throat like bile, so Hakkai took a sip from his drink. Cold tea touched his lips, making the green-eyed man cringe in disgust. However, he continued to drink it despite the taste, desperate for something to turn his attention away from Kanna.
Sha Gojyo sat opposite of Goku on another bed, smoking a cigarette just like the golden-haired priest. Since Sanzo and Hakkai were both out of sorts because of the weather, Gojyo did not want to do anything to get on either man's bad side. Even though he tried to fight it, the atmosphere around him ended up making the red-head recall painful moments of his past. Thoughts of his mother and the path he struggled on because of what he was reminded him that he was cursed and unwanted. He pushed down these stupid, worthless feelings as he took another drag from his shrinking, third cigarette.
The four sat in complete silence until finally, Goku gathered up enough courage to try his luck at getting some food. As he was about to open his mouth to exclaim his hunger, he suddenly felt something wet on his head. He blinked, lightly touched the middle of his skull and looked up. Once he did, it was the bridge of his nose that met with another droplet of water. Goku noticed that the water was coming from the roof. And the leak didn't look like it was going to stop as another drop splashed on his face.
"Um… guys?" He called, finally breaking the silence as he turned to his companions.
"Goku, please. Now isn't the time." Hakkai quickly answered, not wanting to deal with the young man's complaining.
"But-!"
"Shut up monkey." Gojyo retorted without looking up.
"But guys-!"
"What the hell do you want?" Sanzo finally asked, his eyes still glued to the rain outside.
"Look!" The three older men turned their attention to their youngest member to see him standing next to his bed, staring up at the ceiling. They immediately looked up to see what Goku was looking at and saw a leak. However this time, instead of dropping every so often, the water was coming down more freely, almost like it was raining just where Goku had been sitting.
"Damn cheap motel." Gojyo muttered angrily. Sanzo grunted, almost in agreement as he stood up and started for the door. However, a comment made by Hakkai made all of them stop cold.
"Aren't we on the first floor?" At that very moment, the ceiling suddenly gave way and an impossibly huge gush of water flowed down, engulfing the Sanzo-ikkou in a matter of minutes. The four men knew not what hit them as they sunk deeper and deeper into darkness.
"Wake up you hellions." A collection of groans resounded in the air as Sanzo, Goku, Gojyo and Hakkai felt themselves coming back to consciousness; their aching bodies uncomfortable lying on a cold, hard floor. When the men finally opened their eyes, they saw a familiar woman standing before them.
"Good morning Sanzo-ikkou." Kanzeon Bostatsu greeted sarcastically, a smirk gracing her godly face. She wore a strange white jacket over a lacy black shirt and matching white pants. On her feet were what looked like shoes, but more strappy and had a very long stick attached to her heel to make her seem taller. Her arms, ears and neck seemed to dazzle with the small, but expensive looking jewelry. When the goddess noticed their confused looks aimed at her clothing, her smirk only grew.
"Do you like my outfit? It's called a 'suit'. It's one of the many clothing women wear in this world."
"What do you mean 'this world'?" Sanzo was the first to stand as he said this and glowered at Kanzeon Bosatsu, "Where the hell did you take us?" He didn't get an immediate answer since Goku's shout distracted everyone in the room.
"Holy crap! Sanzo, what happened to you!" The priest spun around to face his comrades and earned three looks of disbelief.
"Shit man…"
"Oh my…" Sanzo would have registered these reactions quickly if he himself wasn't faintly surprised. Goku looked like his usual idiotic monkey self, but Gojyo and Hakkai looked slightly different. Their hair seemed shorter and their faces… younger. Hakkai was the first to notice Sanzo staring questioningly at him and his friend and turned to face the red-head. He gasped again. Gojyo quickly turned to the green-eyed man only to have his jaw drop.
"You're younger too?" That sentence snapped the priest out of his stupor. He looked around until he found his reflection staring back at him on a long, shiny black box. Just as he thought, Sanzo had also become visibly younger. He turned back to the awaiting goddess, his glare even deadlier than before.
"What did you do to us?" He asked in a low, steady voice, his fingers itching to reach for his gun and try his hand at killing a celestial being.
"What? You don't like it?" Kanzeon Bosatsu asked, her face plastered with feigned innocence, "I thought the three of you would enjoy being 18 again."
"What the hell? Why are we the monkey's age?"
"Dammit, I'm not a monkey you stupid kappa!"
BANG!
"This isn't the time dumbasses!"
"Excuse me, why are we 18 again?" Hakkai asked calmly, the final one to stand up as he kept his questioning gaze at the woman.
"You can't go to school as 20-something year olds." She replied like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"What?" A gleam appeared in her eyes as Kanzeon Bosatsu pointed to a table that sat in front of the shiny black box Sanzo had used to view his reflection. Several packets of paper were scattered on it.
"Those papers have certain information about this world. It's only a fraction of what is actually out there, but it's better than nothing. They also contain information about who you four are to the rest of this world. And you can't leave the house in the clothes you're in now. There are rooms in this house with closets full of clothes that'll fit your tastes. School starts 7:30 tomorrow morning. The directions to get there are also in those papers. Make sure you go." By the end of her explanation, the goddess had turned away from the males, ready to take her leave.
"Stop." The woman calmly turned around, finding herself face-to-face with Sanzo's silver pistol. She raised an eyebrow at him.
"Yes?"
"You haven't told us why we're here. We have a mission we're supposed to be completing, also assigned by you. Why send us to another world that will only hinder us from completing your first set of instructions?" Sanzo's voice was calm, but his eyes were flaring in unspoken rage. However, Kanzeon Bosatsu just gave an all-knowing smile. A soft glow radiated from her body as her white suit was instantly replaced by her normal goddess robes.
"Find the Unlucky Cat, the Empress of Fairies, the Sky of the Thunder God and the Heavens' Chaos.
All four coincide with one another. Find one, you find them all.
Protect these four, they are your guides. Without them you will never go back home.
Only they hold the power to return you all to your world.
However, in order for them to unleash their true potential, you must help them find resolution in their hearts.
In turn, they will help you four find inner peace.
Once these requirements are met, the keys necessary to open the portal between your world and theirs will reveal themselves.
At the end of this journey, all of you will find something that has been missing from your lives."
The moment she finished speaking the Merciful Goddess was suddenly surrounded by a flash of light, blinding the Sanzo-ikkou. When the light died down, she was gone.
Sanzo, Goku, Gojyo and Hakkai stood there in complete silence, stunned by the last instructions the goddess had given them and confused about the whole situation. Why was this happening? What was her intention? How different would this world be from theirs? After a few minutes, the first to finally break the silence was their youngest member.
"Guys? I'm hungry…"