The Fifth Chapter
I
stand atop a spiral stair
An oracle confronts me there
He leads
me on light years away
Through astral nights, galactic days
I
see the works of gifted hands
That grace this strange and wondrous
land
I see the hand of man arise
With hungry mind and open eyes
(Oracle: The Dream, 2112, Rush)
The kiss had been electrical; the chemistry was strong.
She didn't bother to give in to her hesitations, nor her inhibitions.
She let him touch her; caress. She longed for the gentle touch she had been deprived of. Her ex-boyfriend had never been so gentle with her,
Her mind gave way to fleeting thoughts of fancy, as she lost herself in the arms of a near stranger.
There was something exciting about being in the arms of a man who her brothers both equally hated. She didn't understand her choice, but she gathered from the previous mental link ups that neither cared for this young man.
She hadn't heard their reasons, nevertheless, had, she, she'd have likely dismissed it. She didn't hold either to be accountable when it comes to dealing with other guys. They both appeared as the types to jump in with their weapons, ready to kill any man who gazed at her… even approvingly.
Stretching, Meike left the room.
It was late morning, and the other spot in the bed had since been vacated.
Rubbing her eyes, to rid her vision of its sleepy blurriness, she strolled into the living room, yawning as she greeted the young man she had brought home last night, or rather, who had volunteered to give her a ride.
"Mornin'…" she remarked, her greeting stifled slightly by a jittering yawn.
He nodded. "Morning…" he replied. He pointed to the kitchen. "I made some coffee… though it was a chore trying to find it…"
"Thanks…" she murmured, as she ran her fingers through her messy hair.
Sitting back, while Meike went to get herself a cup of coffee, Tetsuya's eyes travelled to the underside of the coffee table in front of him. He blinked, peering closely. He thought for a moment that his vision was deceiving him, but upon closer inspection he realised that he wasn't so wrong after all.
Placing the cup down, he picked up the book. 'But… why? Why did he take the book from the history room?' he pondered, as he recalled the day, before he ever actually dealt with Shannon face to face, that the book was removed from the room.
He flipped through it. It hadn't been tampered with, so why was it here? And what could've possibly been the motive for removal? Tetsuya pondered, as he put Shijin Tenchisho back on the table.
He recalled overhearing Jonathan mention that they wanted the book, but there was no justification given, and why did it matter, the story was done, wasn't it? And even if Tenkou was out on a bloodlust venture for total world domination, why did it matter where the book was?
"Meike… can you answer something for me?"
"In a minute." Meike replied, as she put her cup down on the table next to his. "I'm going to get dressed first…"
He scowled at her back. Why did she have to bother? He didn't mind that she was dressed scantly; wearing nothing more than her bra and a thong.
Turning back to the book, he casually flipped through it, suddenly becoming alarmed after stumbling upon a new section of it. He paused, reading it carefully.
It was recent! It documented Tenkou's movement and that of the others when they were close to the sources for the Shinzahou…
'And when they went back in… but when they went back in, there was a scroll…' Tetsuya mused sagely, as he read through the new sections.
He gasped, though silently, as he came upon a passage.
Tenkou laughed softly. "Soon they will fall into our hands…"
"My lord, they have fallen like dominos. Soon they will summon Seiryuu and then Nyosei Maijin can emerge…" his closest minion remarked.
"The war has been kept up and they have fallen into our trap." Another added. This man wasn't a Seishi.
Tenkou was displeased. "But someone with key knowledge lives still…" He prepared to attack one of the two minions.
"Wait, my lord." The man urged. "We got two of their strongest allies incapacitated. If you give me time, I can take out the one in Tokyo. I don't know where the other is, and Dallas was dealing with him and Schwartz at last check."
Tenkou appeared unimpressed. "Just get something done and force them to summon, without it appearing that we have a need for it. Then… like a house of cards, they'll fall."
'What the…?' Tetsuya furrowed his brow as he read on. 'This… what is this?'
He reread it, the meaning sinking in. 'That means that we've been trying to summon Seiryuu for them… they know something we don't!'
He put the book down, as Meike walked back into the room.
"Do you know where your brothers are?"
She shrugged. "I have no idea. Shannon left without a work after Jonathan had a snit fit… and he… well, he was supposed to pick me up from the embassy…"
"And?"
"He was no show." She replied, as she involuntarily reached for Shijin Tenchisho.
Before her hand reached it, the book blew open, the pages rapidly flipping, as a strong resonating golden light shot out. She just stared and screaming, shielded her face, but it was futile, as she felt herself get drawn into a wind tunnel spiral…
Tetsuya didn't react in time and watched as the light died down.
'No… that just isn't possible… there is no way that there is a fifth priestess…'
He shook his head and flipped the book up, noticing that the opening portion that once contained the beginning of the Suzaku no Miko's story was blank, now being replaced with that of Meike. He didn't know which god she'd be serving under… or for that matter if she'd take up the post. He remembered her resolutely declaring her atheism.
'So… how are they going to summon their god then?' he thought as he began to read.
The streets were bustling with life and the people of Kousei, the capital of Aoisora. Aoisora was situated between the southern country of Konan and the northern country of Hokkan. Aoisora was small, but peaceful, free of the assaults launches frequently by the hostile Kutou army.
In the midst of the crowd, lurked a foreign girl. She was none like any other; her clothes offset her from all the others and her pale appearance gave her away as something of a race of untouchables.
The people watched her; some murmuring amongst themselves, as they watched the strange girl wander through the streets, barefooted and lost…
Meike growled softly, as she pulled her shirt closed. She didn't like the way that these people kept gazing at her. Of course, it wasn't to say she wasn't gazing around at a person here and there strangely.
Stopping, she leaned against a wall and pulled a hair scrunch out of her pocket and gathering her sandy brown hair back in her fists, did up a crude bun, ignoring a few strands of hair that fell in her face.
It helped a little; but it didn't help that much since it was a touch warmer here, more than she was used to.
She fanned herself with her hand. 'This sucks… it's fucking hot here and I have no idea where the fuck I am… and all the people are… strange.'
She sighed and sadly thought, 'and I didn't even get a chance to finish my morning coffee yet…" she slumped, pulling her legs into her chest. Her whole day was shot! She couldn't face the day without her morning cup.
She peered up. 'But… they do have tea here… that'd be ok for now…' she thought, as she crept over to the stand, carefully reaching up and snagging the cup. She then made her get away, taking care not to spill the contents of the cup.
Sipping the contents, she exhaled, enjoying the sensation of boiling hot liquid coursing her throat, down into her stomach. An iota of her insatiable desire ebbed away as she sipped the cup, until she went the bottom and ingested the loose tea leaves at the bottom.
Gagging slightly, Meike coughed, making a face at the unsavoury taste of the leave shreds in her mouth, as she took a flying logy at the road side to rid her mouth of the aftermath of her cup of tea.
"Ugh…"
She gazed up as the onomatopoeia indicating disgust came from a young man who crossed her path.
She snorted derisively.
"That's mighty impolite…"
"Yeah, so? I didn't ask you for your fucking opinion, so, do us both a favour and go fly a kite, douche."
"I don't know where you learnt such language, but your mother…"
"Spare me the religious sermon. I don't give a flying fuck about my language, and don't even think of spouting that self-righteous Bible-belt shit at me." Meike declared crushing the clay cup in her bare hand, as she stood up, facing the young man.
He blinked, realising that as she came to her full size, she wasn't so small.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Isn't that convenient… ignorance is always your excuse…." She sneered as she pushed past him, dropping the crushed remains of the cup onto the ground.
The young man arched a thin eyebrow, peering at her quizzically through long pale red bangs. He blinked simply. "I don't know what you're talking off…"
"So it seems education isn't something your type is exposed to."
"I don't know where you get off with this 'your type' stuff, but it's rather annoying…"
"Is it, is it? Tsk… that's a pity, isn't it?"
The young man scowled angrily at her. "I've met better mannered Kutou nationals! And I'd hate to know where you're from…"
"A nice normal place called Canada."
"Ca…na…da?" the young man pronounced each part separate of each other, as he studied her. "I've never heard of such a place. There's only Aoisora, Kutou, Konan, Hokkan and Sairou…"
Meike gazed at him cockeyed. "What the…? Those aren't real countries! Why the hell am I wasting my time talking to you…?"
"I was just wondering the same thing." The redheaded young man remarked, his sharp aqua-green eyes sparkling nastily.
Meike pulled back slightly, not liking the way he was holding himself; the composure reminded her of Shannon when she pissed him off.
She narrowed her eyes. "You're one of those guys with weird powers aren't you?"
The young man gazed at her, shocked. "But… how? How did you figure me out when I could barely detect your chi?"
"I recognise that defensive stance." She remarked flippantly.
"How many Seishi have you encountered?"
"What's a Seishi?"
"But… how? Uh… how can you know that I'm of a certain disposition without knowing what a Seishi is…?"
"Uh… I have no idea." She shrugged. She didn't know why but she had figured out that this boy wasn't a normal kid by any means.
She peered closely at him. "What's your name?"
"My name? Shui, but most people around here know me as Katsui." He replied.
"Good for you, kid." Meike snipped at him. She brushed past him. 'Where the hell am I anyway? He listed off a couple of nations, but I can't remember them now…'
She mentally backtracked her steps. 'Ok, so I picked up that book that Shannon was leaving on the table. The pages were blank then a light came out. And now… I'm not even in Tokyo any more. This is not going well, but at least people seem to speak French here… wait, French?'
She turned to Katsui, "what language are you speaking?"
"Same language as you." He replied. He didn't know what to make of her. She was not by any stretch of the imagination a normal girl. She was too masculine for his liking. She was a guy with a large bosom and a lithe body. Kind of really cute… kind of really sexy.'
She glared at him through narrowed eyes. "That does not answer my question!"
"But… what kind of question is that anyway? You are speaking to me in the same language, so why do you want to know?"
"First of all, that sign is not in my native language, but you're talking to me in it." Meike pointed to a banner that hung over an entrance.
"What? It says it's a teahouse. Of course, I wouldn't expect a girl to be able to read." Katsui said flippantly.