Soldier's Forge Chapter 11, a sakura wars fanfic

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Soldier's Forge, Chapter 11:

From his point of view, nothing ever changed in this place. The cold, stone walls stood unwavering, a testament to the brief, flitting lifespan of men. They would outlive his life—that much was certain.

As if that weren't enough, in this place the passage of time slowed, almost as if it were intentional. The added minutes, the agonizing seconds all conspired against him giving him ample time to contemplate the reasons he was sent to this prison. Of course, that is the assumed purpose of prison—to provide a place for dangerous beings to be isolated, and to repent. The long days sitting in his cell, barely three meters in length; the never-ending hard labor simply for the sake of labor—nothing productive came from digging holes, but apparently knowledge of that was punishment itself; the meager, often cold meals; the lack of comforts, for it was either always too cold or too hot—conditions as these will either break an individual or strengthen them. For the former army Major Amakasa, no one could tell, because in madness the distinction really isn't there.

The retreat into the mind in times of pain, an evolutionary mechanism much like the drug-induced stupor and apathy that often accompanies death, is powerful in that worlds can be built or destroyed with mere thought. Dangerous indeed if the line between the corporeal and surreal was blurred.

Amakasa could not understand why he was here. The Taisho government was weak and hollow. The only real salvation for his country came from those that fought to protect it. Those who would not fight would only realize their error when death arrives. Fools deserved death. His realization several months later of being used by Keigo ate at him. He too had been a fool for trusting him, but Keigo had been the ultimate fool for underestimating the fire of people who would fight to save their country, people such as the Hanagumi—and people such as himself.

On this particular day, Major Amakasa sat in the middle of his cell. Eyes closed, not because of fatigue, but because there simply wasn't anything noteworthy to look at, he sensed imminent change. The footsteps of the guard and the opening of the outer door were events that did not happen at this time usually, although his notion of time was fairly distorted. The prison guard stepped in front of his cell, and unlocked the latch.

"Get up, Amakasa. Apparently they want you back in the Army. Get out of my sight," the guard told him dispassionately. Opening his eyes, but showing no surprise, he stood up and made ready to depart from the place he stayed briefly, although to him it was much longer than the three or four months since he arrived. For him, this was his chance for repentance. It was time to fight for Teito once again.

"Good to see you again, Amakasa." Amakasa stood a lavish office made of the dark browns of wood and the bewildering array of colors, mostly from elaborate art, rugs, and furnishings. It was not too much unlike Yoneda's office, except it belonged to a General Kaio of the Army. Gesturing to a chair, Kaio sat back down behind his desk. The General was decorated with several medals, and his wrinkled, long face and prominent cheekbones showed years of experience in the service of warfare. Amakasa took the offer while Kaio appraised him. "It's been, what, three, four months? How did you hold up?"

The newly reinstated Major simply smiled.

"I understand if you don't want to talk about it. And I'm not really interested anyways. I do know, however, of something that will interest you."

"Nothing could interest more than to serve Teito as I always have. I am but a humble soldier," prostrated Amakasa.

"Of course. I believe they debriefed you on everything that has happened over the past few months. We fight for the sanctity of Teito, but I am afraid that there are some elements that have chosen to side against us unwisely. They have left us no choice but to act swiftly, but unfortunately in doing so they have eluded us temporarily. I say temporarily because I want you to change that, soldier."

"Of course. I would be honored to rectify this…mistake," replied Amakasa with a glint of interest in his cold, dead eyes.

"You are lucky to get a second chance, Major. Not many do so when they fall as egregiously as you have. I expect you will do your best to carry out your orders."

"And what are my orders, sir?" asked Amakasa coolly.

"To find these vagrants, and do whatever it takes to silence them. They have been out of our control for too long—it's time to bring back what is ours."

"As you command, General." With that, the General handed the Major his assignment, sealed in a black envelope—a chance to cleanse Teito forever of the taint of the weak.

* * *

The hypnotic sound of wheels moving over tracks did nothing to mask the silence that befell those who were unfortunate enough to give company to it. Almost as if riding on a hearse—and who could say that was not what they were riding—four survivors of the tumultuous events of the night sat, fatigued yet still vigilant for danger.

Tsubaki was piloting the bullet train Gourai-gou; the train passed by the damp, crumbling walls of an underground labyrinth that at best was long forgotten by the population. Few understood that Teito was built like an anthill; if it was destroyed, people rebuilt on top of it, and consequently many ancient structures were unknowingly preserved. The nefarious had used it to attack the surface, as a poison seeping up from a giant rotting corpse, but for tonight it would be the sanctuary of a wearied few.

The train slowed as it reached its destination. No lights illuminated this place, but then again no lights were present since the train moved off the main track. The lights became fewer and fewer until nothing but the illumination from the train itself provided visibility. The shrieks of the brakes were uncomfortably loud; no one wanted to wake the dead.

Tsubaki emerged from the front into the cabin, her job finished. Gathering supplies and handing out several torches, she motioned the others to follow her. As they exited the train, the smell of earth assaulted their senses. The water at their feet, the invisible creatures of the darkness, and the misty haze surrounded them like an endless vise.

Iris clung to Sakura and Jean-Paul tightly in fear. This place lent no comfort to Sumire and Reni either. The four walked closely behind Tsubaki, who lead the way into the darkness. Sakura observed the walls as she walked in silence. At first, the walls were unremarkable, but as they moved deeper ancient glyphs and epigraphs, blurred from the sands of time, could be distinguished.

The procession of warriors through this ancient monument of human construction was both solemn and respectful as the brave few made their way once again into the ancient city of old Teito.

"Get onto the train, Sakura!" yelled Kikunojou as he herded the others down the stairs. They ran down quickly when a large explosion knocked them to their feet.

"Where's Oogami! Where are the others?" yelled a frantic Sakura.

"Take them down quickly! I'll see how the others are doing!" shouted Kikunojou to Yokihiko and Kotone.

"Wait, I have to finish some business first," Tsubaki said quickly. She ran towards the control center, leaving Sakura, Sumire, and Iris with Yokihiko and Kotone while Kikunojou disappeared up the stairs. Kotone continued to lead them down the stairs.

Entering the control room alone, Tsubaki quickly set herself to work on the main computer while periodic explosions sent debris falling from the ceiling. Providing her access codes to the computer, she entered the commands for lockout and encryption, hoping that they would buy the Hanagumi enough time so they could return later. Waiting as it set about to do its work, she nervously monitored the indicated progress until it declared it was ready. The system was set for shutdown in thirty seconds.

Kikunojou had returned from above when Tsubaki met him.

"The others can't make it—a collapse is blocking them from coming down here. The enemy will be here any second from stage side," reported Kikunojou.

"Oh no! What will happen to them? There's no way out!" shouted Tsubaki.

"You have to leave without them. If they manage to capture the rest of you, there will be truly no hope of recovering from this one," reasoned Yokihiko. Tsubaki was briefly torn with indecision, and then reminded herself of her duty as the Kaze-gumi.

"Let's go, guys," she ordered.

"Actually, we're staying. We're going to hold them off as long as we can. It is our duty to do so," said Kotone as he from the basement.

"What are you saying? They'll kill you!" she replied.

"Get going, you don't have much time. The enemy may hold the theater for today, but there will come a time when they will be vulnerable. Wait until then," said Kikunojou.

Tsubaki frowned, and then bolted down the stairs towards the train. When she out of sight, Kikunojou turned to his companions.

"Time to execute Yoneda's final orders. Kotone, help me hold them off. Yokihiko, collapse the tunnel when they escape safely."

"It's been an interesting night, hasn't it?" remarked Kotone as he moved upstairs, prepared to fight.

"Yes. I pray that Oogami and the others can make it. For now, we will do our best to protect him and his friends," replied Kikunojou. "Even if it means our deaths."

"We're here," reported Tsubaki. Her sudden statement brought Sakura quickly out of her ruminations. They stood before the entrance to a large underground cavern. The ceiling sloped upwards, high enough that several medium sized buildings could fit. The sounds of running water echoed in the cave, and in front of them was the stretch of an ancient street. Derelict buildings, houses, and ruins stood to both sides of them.

"Tsubaki, where are we?" asked Sumire. She winced as her voice carried, compounded by the echo from the cave walls.

"This is one of the many ancient towns lying underneath Teito. Yoneda knew about it from his time; during the Kouma Wars the records were destroyed."

"Ancient towns?" commented Sakura in fascination.

"Yes. According to Yoneda, there have been many others before us fighting the Kouma. Every generation has its warriors; this is the legacy of one of those." Tsubaki turned towards an old wall. Holding her torch to it, they saw the obscure, yet unmistakable picture of humans battling large, demonic like objects. "Yoneda's orders to me were to take you here if the worst happened. He told me to stay here until it would be safe to return."

"So we're going to live in this rotting place until what?" asked Sumire irately.

"Those were my orders. I think he's going to contact us when the time is right," she replied.

"Iris is frightened…this place is haunted," she whispered.

"Don't be frightened, Iris. I'm sure they'll welcome us as long as we don't do anything to disturb them," comforted Sakura.

"The probability of the existence of ghosts is infinitesimal. It is not logical to fear what doesn't exist," remarked Reni. Tsubaki led them towards the town square. The large center was riddled with crumbling stones, and in the middle was a long dried fountain. A weathered statue, crumbling and missing its head, stood proudly in the torchlight.

"We have ample food to last several weeks, and there is an underground river flowing close by. We should be fine for now," said Tsubaki as she showed them a somewhat intact house. Aside from the missing doors and windows, and the brittle walls that threatened to collapse upon contact, it contained distinct rooms and some furnishings.

"Tsubaki, what happened to Oogami and the others?" she asked quietly.

"Honestly, I don't know. The ceiling collapsed, so they couldn't go around. They could have escaped. Or they could have been captured, or…" She looked downwards as she left the last part unfinished. Sakura sat down dejectedly, knees to her chest. "Have faith in them. I'm sure they'll be fine," cheered Tsubaki. She sighed when she saw no sign of movement from Sakura. "Sumire, would you help me get supplies from the train?"

Sumire nodded, her soft face flickering in the torchlight. She motioned for Iris, who slightly torn between staying with Sakura and going. As they began their trek back, Iris looked at Sakura once more before following. Left alone, and in darkness was complete silence except for the sound of quiet weeping.

* * *

Yoneda grimaced in pain as he slowly regained consciousness. It had been several hours since he first woke to find himself in a cold, dimly lit room that contained nothing but a small cot and a toilet. He could feel the bones in his old body, and reminded himself that he was not the young soldier he used to be.

It was obvious to him that he was in a cell, but he could not conclude exactly where he might be. The entrance was a steel door, bolted and locked from the outside. The only light was from a small slit on that door, but it hardly let in enough light to see anything with detail.

In these conditions, he floated from sitting and contemplating the fate of himself and the others to sleeping for unknown periods of time. Yoneda mentally replayed once again the events of the night. He saw the tank fire nearly obliterate the van. He remembered after the dust had cleared that Kayama was no longer present, along with his charge; Yoneda fervidly hoped that Kayama somehow managed to make it to safety with her. He held a small glimmer of hope when he saw the van escape, and painfully remembered when dozens of soldiers and agents finally surrounded him and an unconscious Oogami. They had hauled him to his feet roughly, and he dreamily recalled shouting before being knocked unconscious.

Yoneda worried about Oogami. It was very likely he was dead. Feeling remorse, Yoneda never liked losing comrades, and a lifetime of his did little to alleviate the pain, but the familiarity of it comforted him slightly.

The rattle of keys on his door abruptly brought him out of his thoughts. The guard at the door blocked the light streaming in, and a second person entered the cell. Gesturing to the prison guard, the uniformed officer closed the door and left.

"Long time, Yoneda," greeted a cold voice. Yoneda looked closely, and then widened his eyes.

"Amakasa? You—"

"Yes, they decided that they needed my services again. I had a wonderful trip to hell, but I'm certain that's nothing compared to what you have to look forwards to."

"What do you want, Amakasa? They locked you up for a reason, you idiot."

Amakasa frowned, and then struck Yoneda harshly across the face.

"You are the one who will be answering my questions. Speak not unless spoken to." He leered at Yoneda, grinning maliciously. "I am here to correct certain…mistakes on the part of my commanders. You see, apparently your harem somehow managed to elude the fools. As such, I am to find them and bring them back."

"They got away…what about Ooga—" started Yoneda before he was struck down again.

"I told you, do not speak unless I allow you to. As for your Navy officer, he's doing just fine—feeding the worms."

Yoneda gasped in disbelief. "I don't believe you."

Amakasa struck him harder this time, sending him sprawled on the floor in pain.

"Believe what you want. It makes no difference to me. However, I think that you might know where the others have run off to, hiding like dogs. If you let me know, then maybe I can arrange for you to see your precious Ensign. That is the only way you will truly know his fate."

"Or," he continued as he began pacing. "You could sit here and rot until I lose my patience. Either way, I will have what I want. You are weak, Yoneda. You have always been a blight on this city. It is filth like you that I live to clean up. If I could, I would have you killed when they found you. By the way, how is your ankle?" Yoneda grimaced. He felt the pain, and knew if it wasn't treated it would only get worse.

"I will allow them to treat that, if you wish. You know my price."

"Go to hell, Amakasa," he replied curtly. Frowning, Amakasa moved to hit Yoneda across the face, but this time Yoneda blocked it with his arm and headbutted him across the face. Holding his nose in pain, the Major glared at him with hatred, and then kicked Yoneda harshly in the ankle. Yoneda fell with a gasp and lay there.

"As fun as this is, I'll be back when you're more cooperative. Maybe that will give you something to think about," Amakasa spat. Turning, he opened the door and motioned the guard to lock it. Yoneda stayed several minutes lying in pain, adjusting to the hard fact that it was very possible he did not have very long to live.