Game of Touhou
Chapter 55
Shou
The City of Desires was becoming a less welcome sight with every moment that passed. Gengetsu Barren was certainly becoming content as the new self-styled 'Prince' of the City of Desires, and had changed the flag flying from the watchtower again, this time from the Kazami blood-stained sunflower to a strange flower that resembled a sunflower, albeit with black petals with yellow petals amongst them, and a blood-red receptacle in the middle, and surrounding the flower was a thorny stalk resembling that of a rose. The field was also the same scarlet of the flower's receptacle, and all in all, the sigil Gengetsu had chosen seemed only to serve in making her seem like a bastardized rendition of a Kazami, which, of course, she was.
Elly Kazami had decided to organise a meeting before their armies marched southwards to end the war once and for all. While Gengetsu had been openly depraved, proud, and insensitive, Elly had been nothing but calm and composed, while Mugetsu Barren had barely been noticeable at all.
Shou walked to the meeting fully armoured, clumsily rubbing sleep from her eyes with her mailed hand. She hoped she wouldn't throw her visor down and fall asleep halfway through, but her body made no promises. Throughout the night, her sleep was interrupted by the chattering of eagles in Mamizou's bedchamber, which was unfortunately situated next to her own.
While Shou had intended to let the squires sit out of the meeting, 'Prince' Gengetsu had insisted that 'the cripple boy' would join them, and so, to allow Nazrin to accompany the boy, both were to attend the meeting at the city's dining hall along with Shou. When they got there, there were three free seats- two between a black armour-clad person that was presumably Nue Houjuu, and Mamizou, across from Byakuren's seat, which was between Elly Kazami and Mugetsu, and another next to Gengetsu Barren, who sat at the head of the table.
"Hello, Ser Toramaru! You're the last to arrive..." Gengetsu said in a falsely amiable tone, "You and your squire can sit across from the lovely hostage Rebel Queen. The one-handed boy can sit next to me!"
Shou would sooner throw Jaime into a pit of snakes, "I shall sit next to you... Prince Gengetsu."
Gengetsu chuckled lightly, "The boy's not mute, is he? If he doesn't want to sit next to me, he'll tell me himself, won't he?"
Jaime's face became pale, and he looked down, then to Shou, then to Nazrin, and then to Gengetsu. Shou could tell he was afraid to speak to the young woman, and she could not blame him for that much. However, he did speak up in the end, albeit stammering half the time.
"Milady... I... I... I would be honoured to sit next to you." Jaime mumbled, before suddenly shouting, "Please, Milady, don't hurt me, I'll sit next to you!"
Gengetsu's eyes seemed to glint with what may have been joy, although Shou was unsure, "Excellent! Sit, boy! And Ser Toramaru too, I suppose."
The terrified boy did as bid, and Shou sat next to Lady Nue, while Nazrin sat next to Mamizou. From her less-than-prominent position, Elly began the discussion herself.
"Before we simply march into battle with the Shotokus, let us make it certain that certain things are known." Elly stated, "Firstly, if Miko Shotoku marches northwards with an army before we reach King's Landing, I shall slay her. I shall. If anyone else does, your Rebel Queen is Gengetsu's to torment."
Gengetsu cut in, and pulled a little at the paralysed-with-fear Jaime's cheek with a peculiar look of adoration on her face as she did, "In other words, someone else kill Miko Shotoku, because I'd love a toy that so many people will miss..."
Elly glared at Gengetsu at this remark, "If you kill Miko, or make it so that someone other to me kills Miko, I will cut your black bastard heart from your chest."
The room fell silent. Gengetsu stopped stroking Jaime's face, and simply stared at her aunt in horror. She opened her mouth a few times, making many a false start at a sentence, but in the end found no words.
"Now that that is well-known..." Elly continued, as if no great thing was said, "...it would be best if any matters that should be reported are reported. Lady Hijiri, one of your vassals is Lady Minamitsu Murasa, is she not? Have you received word from her?"
Byakuren didn't have an answer to this, not one that was useful, "Lady Murasa does not live on land, sending ravens to bring word of her exploits is most difficult, but given she is the greatest naval commander in Noros, I imagine she has begun her sail to the Bay of Death."
Mamizou spoke up at this, her lazy eyes filled with sadness, "I... I may have tidings on that. Last night... a warged eagle came to me with a message. Several wargs controlling the krakens that accompanied the Murasa fleet... were insane, acting like they had been seeing through their animals' eyes as they died. The warg who sent the eagle to me wrote that he had to kill some of them for mercy's sake. One died saying 'The flames, the flames, they never stop, they never stop' over and over..."
Elly Kazami seemed to be slightly upset by this, as if she had never threatened her own blood with murder at all and had a heart after all, "So, we may not receive reinforcements from the bay when we sack King's Landing, and some Shotoku men may come to retake this city from the coasts."
Nue nodded, "Many men will have been taken to the Red God, both Murasa and Shotoku. Krakens only burn in wildfire, and wildfire cares not who used it and who it is being fired at. It burns all."
"It would be most convenient if the loyalist fleets died as well, but if we march with that assumption and we're wrong, we'll lose the City of Desires. We must assume the worst." Elly pointed out.
"Assume that Lady Murasa burned in a fire, screaming as she died in vain?" Byakuren asked, her voice cracking a little.
"If it will help our plans, yes." Elly replied bluntly, "Gengetsu, keep some of your men here in case troops come from the west."
"But I wanted to kill some Sanzus!" Gengetsu said petulantly, "I want to take hostages home, like mother would!"
"I won't stop you rushing into battle." Elly remarked in an undertone, "It's more like that you'll die that way. But leave some men in the city to stop it falling into Shotoku hands, or the great House Barren and its 'prince' will have no lands to rule over."
This seemed to shut Gengetsu's mouth, and Shou decided to speak, "So, what else must we do? We have the Houjuu army, and Byakuren's army, along with some of Mamizou's wargs. With Elly's army and part of Gengetsu's, we should be able to sack King's Landing and take what Sanzu troops remain as we do. The war is won, all we must do is march. The sooner the better."
Nue smirked at this, "A man was wondering when the personal insults between Elly Kazami and the Barren child would end and the armies would march."
Elly became indignant, and said, "Very well. Let us begin the march."
"I AM THE PRINCE OF THIS CITY! I DISMISS THE MEETING!" Gengetsu interjected, making Jaime jump back in shock, "ME!"
"Very well." Elly said, her gaze as cold as a winter blizzard, "Dismiss us, Gengetsu."
Suddenly, Gengetsu felt unable to dismiss the group, and abruptly said, "...go, go, all of you."
After that, Gengetsu aggressively kissed Jaime on the forehead, and stood up, briskly walking out of the room, Nazrin looking at the girl with a wide-eyed expression.
"...she scares me." Nazrin surmised.
Elly scoffed, "You'd be mad not to be scared of her. Yet she's scared of me. I guess I'm the maddest of all. My apologies, boy."
Jaime twitched a little, "...many thanks, milady. You're... you're most kind, milady..."
Byakuren sighed, "So... I am a hostage, where shall I be?"
Elly smiled at this, "I am so glad you remember your place. You shall stay in this city, and should we defeat the Shotokus and Sanzus on the field and not in King's Landing, I shall send Mugetsu to retrieve you. Gengetsu will also return to her beloved city, because I shall not have that bastard take glory for the final sack of King's Landing if I can help it. It will also give her the message that she's not to have you after all."
"A man thinks the Barren girl is not capable of seeing things that are not obvious at first." Nue mused.
"The girl's got a brain, if you look hard enough." Elly replied, "Let us join Gengetsu, before she sucks all the spirit from our soldiers."
With that, the group of commanders left the room, and the squires joined Shou, instantly talking to each other now they were free to talk without being looked down as mere children.
"Did you like it?" Nazrin asked Jaime accusingly.
"Of course not! She's a monster!" Jaime defensively replied.
"She's old enough to have teats, Jaime, and she has yellow hair!" Nazrin said back, "She's a monster, but a pretty monster. Did. You. Like it?"
Shou closed her eyes. They are thinking about the wrong things. Gengetsu is a monster, they should worry more about that than whether Jaime enjoyed being kissed by her. Byakuren could be at that monster's mercy, too, if we are careless.
As Shou became lost in thought, she barely noticed that the figure in black armour that was probably Lady Houjuu had approached her, "A man has something to tell the Shou."
"What is it?" Shou asked.
"Ser Kokoro Hata. She lives, but is a different man." Nue said.
Shou had tried her best to forget about that evening. While the day was triumphant, the day she became a Queenslayer in battle, the evening was spent in the Maester's tent, with a dying Kokoro Hata spluttering and coughing up blood, her face changing from one unsettling mask to another. She finally died with a regular face... one that was plain and emotionless, and muttered that 'The Red God surrounds every woman that makes herself Queen on this day', before closing her eyes. At the time, she thought it only to mean the Mad Queen she had just slain, but now that Byakuren was in Elly Kazami's hands... the words rang horrifyingly true. And yet, Nue was now saying Kokoro Hata was alive... and a different man.
"What do you mean? Did Kokoro Hata change her face and let someone die in her stead?" Shou asked.
"No, the man Shou saw was Kokoro Hata... the true one." Nue replied, "Another man took her role, to command for her while she is with the Red God. Does Shou truly think a man is the first Nue Houjuu?"
Shou did have her doubts about that, she had to admit. She then said, "So... why are you telling me this?"
"So Shou is not too surprised when she sees Kokoro Hata once more." Nue said with a chuckle, "A man must leave. The Shou must stop her children from fighting..."
With that, Nue's pace picked up, clattering as she caught up to Elly Kazami, while Shou turned her attention back to her squires.
"Nazrin, she was like to kill me if I didn't sit with her!" Jaime said, his voice still very defensive.
"But... but I thought that you..." Nazrin mumbled.
"You thought that Jaime does what?" Shou interrupted, "Nazrin, why are you becoming so jealous?"
"Because he let that Gengetsu bastard kiss him!" Nazrin replied.
"Why is that a problem? Would you rather be the one kissing him?" Shou asked.
Nazrin blushed, and muttered, "...no. Of course not."
Jaime rolled his eyes at this, "So you're my chaperone? I hear that's what you nobles get to stop children kissing..."
Shou laughed at this. When Jaime gained a little confidence, he was quite witty, however, in truth this was no time for jests, "Jaime, Nazrin, I must tell you something important."
"Yes, yes, run if you die..." Nazrin muttered, clearly not taking this as seriously as she should, "...I understand."
"But now I'm telling you where to run. Run to Chatra. Go past the City of Desires, and keep going. I don't want you anywhere near Gengetsu Barren or Elly Kazami. They're both savage, and without me, I don't know what they'll do to you..."
"You're like a mother." Jaime said, "You're always worrying over us. We'll run to Chatra, like you say... Gengetsu scares me."
Nazrin hugged Jaime out of the blue for saying that, "Oh, Jaime! That's all I wanted you to say..."
Shou sighed at their ignorance, "Promise me you'll do that. Promise me."
Nazrin let go of Jaime and became solemn, "As you wish, Shou... sorry, you really could die, I shouldn't make light..."
Shou sighed, "Yes... even Queenslayers die some day..."
Once that was said, Shou followed the others outside of the City of Desires, where their troops were gathered. Meeting with the Kokoro Hata that wasn't Kokoro Hata, Shou began her part of the march to King's Landing, Hijiris, Houjuus, and Kazamis marching side-by-side...
