FALLEN ANGEL, SILENT PRIESTESS
SHI NO TSUKIMITSU
{DEATH OF MOONLIGHT}
SAKURA:
Dancing away in this world filled with agony
Makes me feel so alone... Then I
Think of those things that make me feel whole!
Dancing away... the death of moonlight shines!
Shadows dancing on a pinkish ray of light
I always, always, always feel alone!
Sakura holds up her Star Staff and the cards come to stand by her.
SYAORAN:
Lying again and again, I never thought I'd feel this way before
What's done is done and we cannot fix it!
Flying away on a cloud sounds so far away
I used to think life had a happy ending but now...
I can see that the world will come tumbling down
But now that I know, I can say, I wish I never knew!
Syaoran holds up his double-edged sword and the cards come to stand by him.
TOMOYO:
Life isn't wonderful, I know that that's true
Dancing away of a cloud of dead moonlight!
Why did the moonlight die? I know, oh, I know...
Life is a precious, flitting butterfly, and it doesn't go away
But now that I know half my life's been in vain
I must say, for me it's a CURSE!
Tomoyo stands against a shadowy purple backround holding a wand topped with a violet star.
FALLEN ANGEL, SILENT PRIESTESS
Disclaimer: No I do not own the original CCS characters. Blah, blah, blah and yadda yadda.
Episode One
Lights of the Past
Darkness of the Future
"Power." a golden-auburn head poked out of a tree. "Betrayal." Memories flitted through the girl's head, catching her at a vulnerable moment.
A boy. Messy chestnut locks that fell over his blank, without emotions, amber eyes. A sword. Power. A green aura. He had betrayed her.
Shadows flickered across the night on gilded wings, eager to make the world dark again. Light stood alone, filled with sorrow and hatred.
Happiness had been vanquished from the eerie village that was Tomoeda years ago. And it had stayed that way. It still was that way.
Nothing was the same way it had been eight years ago. Eight long years, filled with sorrow, betrayal, anger, hatred...
What was hope? Many had given up on it. Kinomoto Sakura was one of them. Hope was something that always failed you. That people said to try to cheer you up.
Hope was something that never came through. Never, in a million years. Darkness was solitary, safe, because there was no hope. Hope was a fickle emotion, it always toyed around with your mind...
...And then it didn't come through.
She wiped a tear out of a brilliant emerald eye. She scolded herself thoroughly. Tears were a sign of weakness, they showed you were vulnerable.
Kinomoto Sakura was far from vulnerable.
*****
A shadowy image focused, becoming clearer. A girl held a small pendant up to the darkening sky, but the shadows still roamed. The staff of the stars came out.
But it didn't do any good. If this was indeed the future, it was not a nice one. Many omens of things to come had passed through eighteen year-old Yamino Shimi's mind.
They all came true.
Shimi was a sorceress, one who posessed extremely strong magics. Darkness flowed within her very blood. She was the sorceress to begin the prophecies.
She would be the sorceress to end them.
For centuries, clans of magic had taken the route of outcasts; abandoned and unwanted. They had grown strong, powerful, through this thin sheet of deception.
They had focused their strong powers in order to create a Way for themselves. The Way of sorcerors and sorceresses and other magic users had been prophecised of years before it happened.
The Yamino clan was one of those old clans, dark and mighty. They liked to think no powers were beyond them.
But that was not Fated to be true.
*****
Ripples flowed beneath the surface. The ancient prophecies threatened to come through now. But that was good for Hayashibara Tsukimi.
Shadows danced amidst the darkened villa that was her home. Long white hair flowed on deeply tanned shoulders. She would show them what is to be.
If the prophecies rang true, this was the beginning of this dimension's downfall. Tsukimi made bright stars go out, she tried to eclipse the rays of the sun.
But she didn't need to. It would be done for her. The prophecy spoke of a girl who was "Ying" and another "Yang" who were the balances between good and evil.
If this balance were to be broken, disaster would befall upon this world.
Ying, the force of light, and Yang, the force of darkness, were not allowed to meet.
Yet it was hard to stop their meeting, for no one knew the identities of either. Each generation a "Ying" and a "Yang" appeared, true to the prophecy.
And so far, they had not met. But they may be fated to finally meet. Tsukimi knew that was true, and so she prepared. She prepared her powers, stored them away so they would be there when she needed them.
But she wasn't ready yet. A strong power still reigned free, powered by an ancient One that had been "Yang". True magic was hard to find, for it was either already captured or hidden.
Tsuskimi would find this strong power. She would find it, or destroy this world before its time.
*****
Power, that was what he trained for, and what he was "destined" to achieve.
It was what he both admired and detested. It had brought him closer to himself and then it had jerked him away. He did not know whether to hate it or admire it so he did neither.
A strand of chestnut hair fell in his eye and he absentmindedly blew it away. It just fell back. It was as persistent as he was.
"Master Li." a strong voice echoed in the vast depths of his training room. He picked up a pendant and stopped his thoughts. "I am ready."
A man walked over by him, a long broadsword concealed within a sheath. "Then let it commerce."
Li Syaoran pulled out his pendant, holding it in front of him he concentrated. A long chinese-style longsword appeared in his hand. he clutched the dark green embroidery-embossed handle tightly and signaled to begin.
Slash. Parry. Strike. Lunge. Hit. Miss. The deadly and lethal dance of fencing began.
Parry. Lunge. Feint. Swords locked in combat and clashed mercilessly.
Strike. Blow. Miss. Block. Slash. Onward and onward the two continued their deadly dance, articulating complicated moves in seconds.
Hit. Miss. Lunge. Feint. Strike. Slash. The battle was still going, the deadly fight weaving an immense tapestry of whirling swords.
Feint. Jump. Scatter. Recollect. Dodge. Miss. Hit. Strike. The battle was just beginning to grow one-sided. The deadly clash of swords beginning to dwindle.
Strike. Slash. Hit. Slash. Strike. The battle was truly one-sided, Li Syaoran beginning to win out.
Slash. Clatter. The broadsword had been knocked out of its wielder's hands, clattering harmlessly to the ground.
"You have triumphed yet again Master Li." the other man said, bowing gracefully.
"It was a good fight." Syaoran said finally, bowing to meet the other man. "May the powers of lightning guide your route."
"And may the One with the sword vanquish your foes." the man automatically replied. "You are truly the chosen One prepared to deliver us of evil."
*****
"She has a determined spirit indeed. But does she have what it takes to pass the Judgment?" a voice echoed in the black painted room of Kinomoto Sakura.
Shadows parted to reveal what seemed to be a golden lion plushie. But Cerberus was more than what he seemed to be.
"The Judgment. Does Yue have the respect to appoint her? Or shall he delay the Judgment forever?" Cerberus wasn't sure. Knowing Yue, it would take a miracle for him to accept anyone as Master.
But back to the most important question. Did Sakura have the power and skill? Cerberus had been asking himself that for years. Ever since the lull in capturing the cards he had asked himself that.
To be Card Master you must have a lot power, determination, bravery, skill, and love. Could Sakura do it? She had changed a lot in the past eight years, going from a happy preteen to a dark and moody teenager.
Was the "new" Sakura still eligible? She wasn't Clow, that was for sure. But Cerberus knew that, given time, Sakura could be the same way she was again. And the Chinese Gaki might want to come back too.
*****
Twilight. With the coming of dusk all was dark again. Shadows crouched and leaped as a female appeared in the darkness.
Short auburn hair tied back with a darkish indigo ribbon and matching eyes. Yamino Dokumi crouched down as she anticipated the arrival of her twin.
A bolt of pure black lightning cracked through the sky as a storm began to rage. Dokumi smiled slowly. She was approaching.
Wispy shadow clouds formed and more lightning crackled. A form began to appear on one of the clouds and an eerie song filled the air with terror.
A short midnight-black haired girl walked off the cloud, floating on nothingness for a second. Bloodred eyes appeared under messy bangs and a bloodred ribbon held back some of the girl's messy hair.
Dark power crackled in the air as the girl raised her arms. Almost automatically a whirling tornado appeared under the girl's black booted feet.
A red leather jacket concealed a black midriff top and slinky black bellbottoms were on the girl's long legs.
She appeared to be pretty short, only about five foot five. But an aura of doom seemed to encompass her entirely within its borders and a smirk was on her naturally bloodred lips.
"Shimi..." her twin's name disappeared out of Dokumi's mouth. Shimi had arrived. "What is the news?" she began her query, not even bothering to ask her twin how she was doing.
Because Dokumi already knew. She had a mighty psychic bond with her twin, allowing her to read the dark haired girl's thoughts and respond accordingly.
So she had already asked how the girl was doing.
*****
Loneliness. That darkly posessed void of nothingness that stretched out as far as the eye could see. Possibly farther. For the mind of this jet black haired girl, it was all loneliness. Fear. Love. Hatred.
For Daidoujii Tomoyo knew that her eternal love would never love her. If her love continued along the dark path she seeked, she would never love again.
Betrayal and deception haunted her inner regions as she struggled to be at peace with herself. Nothing was ever "happy" for Daidoujii Tomoyo. Nothing would ever be "happy". She used to hide under a mask...
...But the mask cracked. Shattering into bits and pieces, Tomoyo had never bothered to pick it up. Life stretched on before her, yet she couldn't seem to let her love go.
Power stretched out before her, trying to encompass her in its icy void. But she couldn't let it. She couldn't forget Sakura. She still loved Sakura, even though Sakura didn't love her back.
Tomoyo was torn, torn between telling Sakura and letting it go. If she told Sakura, Sakura would either love her out of pity or just shove her out of her life completely. Sakura had already basically thrown Tomoyo out of her life.
*****
Darkness. It was all there was, and it stretched out encompassing the horizon as far as the eye could see. Beautiful houses, plants, parks, all black.
It was as if someone had taken a paint brush and literally painted the whole city black. It suited its inhabitants. Dark and lonely, the citizens of Tomoeda were safe and secure in their world of darkness.
Power came to those who searched for it and treachery and deception were what the inhabitants did best. Years ago many people had lived there, being happy and safe with light and love.
But it had all changed. Just as suddenly as it had grown happier, the town's people grew nasty and cruel, cold and inconsiderate.
It isn't really fair in a situation like this to lay all the blame on one person, but it is true that all this happened because of the mental state of one person.
That one person was Kinomoto Sakura. Normally a beautiful ray of light, Sakura had changed into a dark and moody teenager, threatening to kill if you mentioned one name.
Li Syaoran.
Li Syaoran had been a Chinese exchange student who stayed for about a year. Then, as suddenly as he had come, he left. Heartbroken, Sakura vowed never to love again.
She still lives to keep that vow.
Now a sad and depressed teen lives in place of a happy and loving ten year-old. Fate is indeed cruel to Tomoeda. Very cruel.
*****
Fiery blasts of light erupted from a closed door, shattering the wall across from it into pieces. A blast of water extinguishes the fire and douses the light.
A sword point sticks out of the wall and a hand reaches out to pull it back in.
Such is the life of watching a closed door in the Yamino training hall.
A blast of raw dark electricity cracks down the door, leaving a raven haired girl visible.
Red robes clothed her and black rune markings were etched on to the waist of the robes. Bloodred eyes stared out from a pale, almost white, face.
An auburn haired girl stands next to her, clothed in blue-silver robes. Identical black runes are etched into her waist. Auras of crackling electricity are present on their still forms.
The raven black haired one lunges at another girl with blonde hair swirling on her face. The blonde screams in pain and clutches her chest, where crackles of lightning remain.
Power is evident in all three females, a trio of swords on the floor. It is quite safe to assume they are related. They are.
The Yamino sisters stand before you, pupiless eyes alight with inner fire. An older female steps in through the empty doorway.
"Shimi-san. Try not to burn down the door next time." their mother, Yamino-Kourino Himeko scolds her black haired daughter, who merely stares back, face impassive.
Himeko sighs. It's hard to scold someone who acts so much like you.
*****
Morning shines upon the bedroom of Kinomoto Sakura. Sakura yawns, pulls back her covers, and jumps out of her bed. Like always, Sakura is in the mood for gymnastics.
Throwing back her head of curls, Sakura straightens her composure. She grabs a hairbrush and begins the tedious exercise of brushing her hair.
Now straightened a bit, her hair reaches down to her waist, setting off her figure perfectly. Energetic emerald eyes peer out at her surroundings.
Stifling a yawn, she rips off her pajamas and grabs her blue and black school fuku. Her long legs go into the skirt, she pulls it up as it goes along. The arctic blue shirt goes over her head.
A black sailor collar is pulled over her head to rest firmly over her shoulders. The indigo blue tie on the front of the collar is adjusted and she grabs her backpack and runs down the stairs.
"Otou-sama. Ohayo." she greets her father, Fujitaka and kisses him on the cheek, standing on tiptoe. She sits down at the table and eats her hot cakes, smiling appreciatively.
She grabs her car keys and rushes out to the door. "Gotta go check out the campus of Konsakura college. Ja ne!" Sakura is eighteen, going into college at Konsakura.
Her father nods. "Remember to take your luggage Sakura-san." he yells after her. Sakura is a bit absentminded about those things.
Sakura checks her trunk. "I did otou-sama!" she yells back, jamming the key into the ignition. Slamming her foot on to the gas pedal, her car drives off into the distance.
Fujitaka wipes a tear out of the corner of his eye. Sakura is going to stay on college campus instead of at home. He is going to miss his daughter a lot.
*****
Starlight. What seems to be mystical isn't really. Everyone says to wish upon a star. When you do, nothing happens. So what is the point of it? To raise your hopes falsely?
Hayashibara Eriol doesn't know. And that is why he is not all-powerful. Eriol is a mighty sorcerer. He trains within the Hayashibara Clan, one of the Five old clans of Magic.
The Five old clans of Magic are Hayashibara, Yamino, Amamiya, Li, and Kageno. Each clan is all-powerful in its own way.
Hayashibara, in the way of evil and demon magic. Kageno, in the way of shadow magics. Yamino, in the way of death and darkness. Li, in the power of the Elements. Amamiya, the spirits and the sixth sense or the inner eye.
Those powers are not subject only to those given them, Yamino can do Elemental magic and Amamiya can do darkness. But you are best off using, or at least beginning, with your clan's special Magic.
Eriol was preparing his attack, readying his plans. He was going to steal the cards created by Clow. It wouldn't be easy. The two who captured them trained seperately, but that was Eriol's mission.
Every member of the clan Hayashibara had their own separate mission or they were part of one. The most powerful led the missions and the others joined them.
It was not a fun thing to do. The missions were often long and boring, you couldn't accomplish it...
But under the rule of their new leader, Tsukimi, they were hoping to change that. To make it easier to accomplish what they set out to do. That wouldn't be easy.
But they thought they could do it.
*****
"Kano, Kania, Kate, Keino," the doorman kept going through the list of names. "Ah here it is. Kinomoto." He smiled at Sakura, who waited politely until he gave her the maps to the campus.
Then she dashed off, leaving nothing but dust behind. "Kids these days..." the doorman mused, shaking his head and laughing it off.
Sakura smiled. She was going to stay at campus during college and hopefully forget Li Syaoran. But she didn't know if she could.
Li Syaoran was an important part of the Clow cards. He still held a few of them. Earthy still remained uncaptured, but it would come when it was ready Sakura was sure.
She was using Theater as her major because it involved acting and dancing, both of which Sakura was sure she still loved. After all, she had taken sessions of both before, so it wouldn't be that different combining them.
She dashed off again, remembering she still needed to get her things out of her car trunk. So much for moving in to her dormitory quickly and efficiently.
*****
{HOW ARE THINGS GOING?} a voice resounded throughout the continuum of space we live in. Farther out than Pluto, this tiny planet had a life of its own.
"Perfectly fine my liege. They do not suspect, so we shall do it with ease." a woman dressed in a fancy red and gold soldier's uniform stood at the edge of a shadowed room with a red lipped smirk clearly visible on her face.
{THAT IS GOOD. ARE YOU READY TO PRECEED?} the voice resonated again, leaving us to only wonder who was creating it. "Hai I am ready. I am more ready than I have ever been."
That smirk again.
{GOOD. PROCEED WITH OUR PLANS TO MAKE EARTH OUR SILENT STAR.} If voices could smile, this one would be smiling now.
The woman bowed and disappeared in a spark of red and gold light that looked suspiciously like fireworks.
The planet Ashitarii was unknown for a good reason. It was pure evil and its aura radiated that evil. No people should ever have stepped foot there.
But some did. They were called there by the ancient spirit of Ashitarii and so they went. No one knew of Ashitarii and its inhabitants preferred it stay that way.
Forever.
*****
Li Syaoran smiled slowly, realizing why he sensed a strong power. Another power was reching its maximum capacity. Soon it would be released. And that would mean he would be free of the gilded cage he lived in.
Free to spread his wings, for he knew the powers would chose a place of strong magic and he figured it would be Tomoeda. Tomoeda, he would finally get to see Sakura again.
Kami-sama, he missed her so much. And now he would see her smiling face again. He would get to see his beloved Ying Fa again.
Maybe Earthy would finally arrive and the Judgment would commence. Yue... His idol, and a symbol of his moon power. And Cerberus would go back to being the Golden-Eyed Guardian Beast of the Seal.
He wondered what Sakura looked like now. Strange, he somehow knew she had changed her hair. Kami, if he went to Tomoeda, he would be in college.
Could he truly dream of spreading his wings and make it happen? Was his heart in the right place? Was this his destiny? It had to be.
Because he knew his destiny was to truly began when he set foot on Tomoeda soil once again.
*****
Ancient spells woven throughout time guarded the hidden palace of Yamino Kaze. Powers far beyond comprehension had been stored here, awaiting their release. And it was to come soon.
Very soon.
Dark powers flowed within the ancient runes inscribed onto the gate way. Because history was about to be made.
Because the mold of destiny was to finally be fulfilled. A shattering sound resonated through the palace. An intruder ran free.
Not inhibited at all by the traps set throughout the palace, Hayashibara Tsukimi ran through the palace corridors, looking for the main source of this mighty power.
A golden door stood before her. She grabbed the handle tightly and pulled in open. The sight before her made her gasp.
Power flowing all about the room and one lone pedestal stood in the center of the room. On it was a black book with violet runes sketched on it.
Tsukimi couldn't understand the runes, for she had not trained in the lore of the Yamino clan. This was created by a Yamino clan member, and so it had been written in their ancient runes.
Yamino Kaze was one of the most powerful sorceresses to ever walk the earth. Her final resting place was not of this dimension. It was the ancient city of the night that was known to the Yamino clan as "Ni Dai".
Many forbidden myths surrounded this place. Was it of earth? Was it of another dimension? No one knew where it was because it was hidden from sight and those who went there and actually came back never spoke of it.
Tsukimi walked over to the pedestal, trembling all over, and reached out to grab the book. She held it in her hands and chanted,
"Powers of sorcery known to me...
I ask you to make this book for me...
Fear not the wind,
Fear not the air,
Fear not the flame,
Fear not the water,
Fear not the earth,
Fear not death,
Fear not life,
And destiny is set in stone...
Give up the powers,
Ying and Yang!"
A terrible explosion shook the ground around her and all colors of light erupted from the book.
The cover opened to reveal fifty cards of magic, each glowing brightly. Tsukimi picked up the first one and read its name,
"Shadow."
Instantly all power around her ceased. The cards all glowed a shimmering black and they flew out of the book.
Jutting this way and that, they flew through the roof and went off in search of a place in which they should be found by other sorcerers and sorceresses.
The book flashed in Tsukimi's trembling hands and disappeared also, to thesame place.
Tsukimi shook violently and screeched, a terrible sound heard for miles. The powers were released and were in need of capture.
This was not good. It did not bode well in Tsukimi's mind. She figured it was an accident.
But it was no accident. It was Fated to happen and so it happened. Nothing would ever be the same again now that the wheel of Fate was set in motion.
Ever.
*****
The End.
For now at least.
So what did you think of FASP Episode One. I thought it was pretty well-done myself. I hope I didn't steal anything from anyone, if I did I'm not aware of it.
The desire to write this was inspired by the fanfics Dimensions, The New Trials, and The New Cards. I happen to luv those fics.
The New Trials can be found at Wish for a Star, a well done site. Visit that if in need of enlightenment. And remember, figure out the identities of Ying and Yang. I'll spill eventually, but if you figure out them and email them to me and they are correct I'll place you in the story somehow. Hee hee. Or I'll do something you want in the story.
Ja ne.
~yami no ako
{child of darkness}